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Claymore [クレイモア] #27
CLAYMORE 27
Priscilla debía haber sido derrotada gracias a la combinación de Clare y Raki pero logra revivir tras devorar a los últimos engendros del abismo. Así, habiendo llegado a los límites de su resistencia y agotado su yoki, Clara decide “despertar” Pero cuando lo hace ¿Ocurre algo inesperado? ¿La larga batalla de las guerreras llega a su majestuosa conclusión!
196 pages, Paperback
First published December 4, 2014
15 people are currently reading
470 people want to read
About the author
Norihiro Yagi
127 books279 followersNorihiro Yagi (八木教広 Yagi Norihiro) is a Japanese manga writer and artist from Okinawa Prefecture. He started making manga in 1990.
Norihiro Yagi is a successful manga artist, having won the 32nd Akatsuka Award for his very first work, Undeadman. Undeadman appeared in Monthly Shōnen Jump and has had two sequels. Yagi's first serialized manga was his comedy-genre Angel Densetsu, which appeared in Monthly Shōnen Jump from 1992 to 2000. His most recent work, Claymore, has been running in the magazine since 2001.
Norihiro Yagi is a successful manga artist, having won the 32nd Akatsuka Award for his very first work, Undeadman. Undeadman appeared in Monthly Shōnen Jump and has had two sequels. Yagi's first serialized manga was his comedy-genre Angel Densetsu, which appeared in Monthly Shōnen Jump from 1992 to 2000. His most recent work, Claymore, has been running in the magazine since 2001.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 186 reviews
March 21, 2021
And so finally the ending, which was pretty epic and quite unexpected. Oh, who am I kidding , I expected some pretty badass comeback was going to happen... Not going to spoil though. The last couple of volumes were hard to put down, I loved everything about it, the characters, the backstories, the fights, so what, if a tad too endless, - for me it all was close to perfect. A beautiful conclusion to the series which I can only recommend to every manga lover, especially if you're into dark epic fantasy.
I kind of feel bad now, because it's over. :(
I kind of feel bad now, because it's over. :(
February 4, 2016
Claymore is a manga about Yoma who pretend to be human in order to kill and eat the humans. The Claymore are the hybrid of the two stronger faster but still human with the ability to slay the Yoma which they do for a price. They travel from village to village slaying Yoma with nothing but the sword on their back using the Yoma abilities but slowly turning into a monster that they hunt. When the time comes a Claymore will send a black card to another claymore to be slain before the Yoma takes over and so they die as a human.
In the 27th and final vol it’s all come down to Clare to save the day. She’s always been the weakest warrior but that’s always been assumed because she had Theresa not a yoma inside of her. All she had to do was remember and it set’s Theresa free to fight Priscilla after all she’s the one of the strongest warriors. While the claymore’s look on Theresa makes quick work of Cassandra and Priscilla saving the day and giving Clare what she needed most.
I like Clare she’s a sword carrying slayer who isn’t afraid to die charging in risking her life. She's grown a lot from the Clare in the beginning of the series. While she may not be the strongest she's determined and unwilling to give up. She's one of those underdog characters you can't help liking and she’s had to deal with a lot throughout the series. We’ve gotten to know most of Clare’s fellow warriors throughout the series. We have also gotten to know Raki as he grew from child to man throughout the series.
I’ve recently gotten into Manga the last few months and having a general idea from binge watching the anime on Netflix it was a great choice. I love the concept for the Claymore a hybrids created using parts from the monsters that are put in the warriors giving them supernatural abilities. Claymore is an action packed horror series with supernatural elements that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. Claymore’s are created to fight the monsters that threaten the humans, but we learned that maybe the monsters are created as well. The characters are great I found myself connecting with several of them throughout the series. The art is great it gives me just enough to create the story in my head as I read each detailed page. This is only my 2nd manga so I don’t have a lot to base on but I’m super addicted to them. They are perfect for when I have some downtime or when I feel like reading back to back. I highly recommend that if you liked the anime or just like horror kick ass heroines that you check it out. I very much loved it.I'm sad it's over but at least I'll be able to read it again.
In the 27th and final vol it’s all come down to Clare to save the day. She’s always been the weakest warrior but that’s always been assumed because she had Theresa not a yoma inside of her. All she had to do was remember and it set’s Theresa free to fight Priscilla after all she’s the one of the strongest warriors. While the claymore’s look on Theresa makes quick work of Cassandra and Priscilla saving the day and giving Clare what she needed most.
I like Clare she’s a sword carrying slayer who isn’t afraid to die charging in risking her life. She's grown a lot from the Clare in the beginning of the series. While she may not be the strongest she's determined and unwilling to give up. She's one of those underdog characters you can't help liking and she’s had to deal with a lot throughout the series. We’ve gotten to know most of Clare’s fellow warriors throughout the series. We have also gotten to know Raki as he grew from child to man throughout the series.
I’ve recently gotten into Manga the last few months and having a general idea from binge watching the anime on Netflix it was a great choice. I love the concept for the Claymore a hybrids created using parts from the monsters that are put in the warriors giving them supernatural abilities. Claymore is an action packed horror series with supernatural elements that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. Claymore’s are created to fight the monsters that threaten the humans, but we learned that maybe the monsters are created as well. The characters are great I found myself connecting with several of them throughout the series. The art is great it gives me just enough to create the story in my head as I read each detailed page. This is only my 2nd manga so I don’t have a lot to base on but I’m super addicted to them. They are perfect for when I have some downtime or when I feel like reading back to back. I highly recommend that if you liked the anime or just like horror kick ass heroines that you check it out. I very much loved it.I'm sad it's over but at least I'll be able to read it again.
August 31, 2016
It's been such a long, wild, "no-you-can't-up-the-ante-any-higher-than--argh!-you-just-did-O.o" ride.
And it ended on so tender a note ....
And it ended on so tender a note ....
December 20, 2023
Some points for those who are curious about the series:
-The art was good especially some of the designs for the monsters (yoma, awakened beings, etc)
-It has layers of story lines and it doesn't get sloppy with them.
-Some of the events can sometimes shock the reader and I'm not talking about the deaths of characters I'm talking about things that we find out about this fictional world and the state of things and the more you find out as the plot slowly unfolds.
-When it is the author's intention you get emotionally overwhelmed as you find out about some charachters' past and what happens to them next.
-The last volume is completely satisfying for those who like the third volume.
-The art was good especially some of the designs for the monsters (yoma, awakened beings, etc)
-It has layers of story lines and it doesn't get sloppy with them.
-Some of the events can sometimes shock the reader and I'm not talking about the deaths of characters I'm talking about things that we find out about this fictional world and the state of things and the more you find out as the plot slowly unfolds.
-When it is the author's intention you get emotionally overwhelmed as you find out about some charachters' past and what happens to them next.
-The last volume is completely satisfying for those who like the third volume.
December 27, 2024
TERESA - MOTHER, GODDESS, FRIEND, WIFE, THE ONLY WOMAN WHO EVER WAS
October 19, 2025
Please don’t talk to me for 3-5 business days.
March 2, 2024
(7)
Pues se acabó!
Llevo desde 2021 leyéndolo, gracias mil a Manu por dejarmelos durante tanto tiempo 😭
Me encanta que sean todas mujeres y que estén 0% sexualizadas, se me hace rarísimo en un shonen, la verdad.
Pero efectivamente, sigue siendo un shonen 813383728 peleas que se saben cómo van a terminar, y derrotan al más fuerte PERO aparece x con una técnica brutal que las supera a todas, pero vencen y en el siguiente tomo 3/4 lo mismo hasta el final~
Aún así el lore chulísimo! Y ojalá se hubieran centrado más en él y menos en peleitas.
La nota es para toda la saga, y obviamente teniendo en cuenta que no aguanto los shonen🩷
Hala, a otra cosa mariposa!
Pues se acabó!
Llevo desde 2021 leyéndolo, gracias mil a Manu por dejarmelos durante tanto tiempo 😭
Me encanta que sean todas mujeres y que estén 0% sexualizadas, se me hace rarísimo en un shonen, la verdad.
Pero efectivamente, sigue siendo un shonen 813383728 peleas que se saben cómo van a terminar, y derrotan al más fuerte PERO aparece x con una técnica brutal que las supera a todas, pero vencen y en el siguiente tomo 3/4 lo mismo hasta el final~
Aún así el lore chulísimo! Y ojalá se hubieran centrado más en él y menos en peleitas.
La nota es para toda la saga, y obviamente teniendo en cuenta que no aguanto los shonen🩷
Hala, a otra cosa mariposa!
August 24, 2022
4/5 Yay I finished a whole manga series this month. I suppose that's not a huge accomplishment for something that reads as quickly as Claymore did but at least it was a lot of fun.
So after the first half of the series it really turned into one demented perverse kaiju battle after another. The story really played second fiddle to the art and the action. There was no deep story telling and while some characters were interesting by the end there were so many bland characters they all started to not really matter. We also learned that there was a huger outside world out there but that hardly gets any mention at all.
The final confrontation with Priscilla is kind of bitter sweet but it is really nice to see Teresa awaken from inside Clare. Though this really amounts to Clare going Super Saiyan and defeating the big bad bad guy who really is just a confused girl.
All in all I would rate the entire series a solid 4/5. It's fast paced and pretty enough to keep you going all the way through all while enjoying yourself. However nothing here is going to blow you away. It would be really cool though to have seen the rest of the series animated.
Teresa and Clare the twin goddesses on the cover of the final volume.
Read 8/24/22
So after the first half of the series it really turned into one demented perverse kaiju battle after another. The story really played second fiddle to the art and the action. There was no deep story telling and while some characters were interesting by the end there were so many bland characters they all started to not really matter. We also learned that there was a huger outside world out there but that hardly gets any mention at all.
The final confrontation with Priscilla is kind of bitter sweet but it is really nice to see Teresa awaken from inside Clare. Though this really amounts to Clare going Super Saiyan and defeating the big bad bad guy who really is just a confused girl.
All in all I would rate the entire series a solid 4/5. It's fast paced and pretty enough to keep you going all the way through all while enjoying yourself. However nothing here is going to blow you away. It would be really cool though to have seen the rest of the series animated.
Teresa and Clare the twin goddesses on the cover of the final volume.
Read 8/24/22
February 11, 2021
what a ride
Overall i think this series is amazing, such incredible characters and twists with masterful reveals
I will say where the series falls short is definitely the world building, dragging out fight sequences (more so in the last half), and almost aimlessly having characters disappear/reappear for .. what? (*especially* in the last third)
the start of this series, the first half, was so incredibly strong where the last half felt .. aimless but still managed to stick its landing towards a satisfying conclusion
the art alone of the yomas and awakened is enough for me to recommend this series if you’re a very visually stimulated as I am, and of course the action/fantasy/adventure, while doesn’t hold the same quality all the way through, the majority of it truly is enrapturing .. just be aware of the somehow both slow and abrupt conclusion, and maybe some questions that will never be answered .. 🙂❤️
Overall i think this series is amazing, such incredible characters and twists with masterful reveals
I will say where the series falls short is definitely the world building, dragging out fight sequences (more so in the last half), and almost aimlessly having characters disappear/reappear for .. what? (*especially* in the last third)
the start of this series, the first half, was so incredibly strong where the last half felt .. aimless but still managed to stick its landing towards a satisfying conclusion
the art alone of the yomas and awakened is enough for me to recommend this series if you’re a very visually stimulated as I am, and of course the action/fantasy/adventure, while doesn’t hold the same quality all the way through, the majority of it truly is enrapturing .. just be aware of the somehow both slow and abrupt conclusion, and maybe some questions that will never be answered .. 🙂❤️
April 11, 2019
It's over... I'm glad I read it all but also really sad I won't be able to continue in that universe! This series was awesome from start to finish! It's action based but it also has a strong enough storyline and very strong characters to get us in and get emotionally attach to them. I smiled. I yelled! And I cried... reading through it! I will remember this journey for a very long time. Even if you'll never read that Norihiro Yagi. I wanted to thank you!!
January 15, 2019
It was fabulous. I cried just a bit. Happy tears. That is all.
April 17, 2023
È stata una bellissima avventura ❤️
December 22, 2025
Доббі вільний
April 30, 2018
I don't really add manga to my list but I wanted to write down my thoughts on this somewhere, and this is as good a place as any. This is a stand in for all 27 volumes I read and the review is for the series as a whole.
Claymore is a good manga that could have been downright amazing but manages to sabotage itself at every turn.
It helps that the problems I have with Claymore are for the most part, not outright faults but things that I see great potential in that never fully utilized. This applies to both plot points and characters.
The biggest culprit I see in this is that Yagi is using in GGRM's words the "gardener" method of writing, not planning ahead but just thinking "let's see where this takes us". Nothing wrong with that in itself but if you want your writing to be consistent in this style you need to have some ground rules about how your setting works. Claymore doesn't. It's bafflingly obvious that Yagi keeps coming up with things on the spot, especially in the final arcs. This is very easy if you take a look at the earlier chapters.
Claymore has a large cast and few of them really get to shine, generally they will get a moment to shine, a backstory, generally involving how they ended up a claymore. It's not much however I still love every one of the claymores introduced. It's hard not to feel sympathetic of even the most cruel of them when you know the circumstances they've lived in. The manga is at it's best when it focuses on claymores as a group and the bond between the warriors.
I would say the manga has two main plots, one is Clare's quest and the other the fate of Claymores in general. The first becomes a bit of a mess with shounen tropes creeping in, the "power levels" getting higher every chapter to the point bordering on self parody. It's also where the most underutilized character and plot points come in, especially in regards to Raki (without giving spoilers his plotline could have allowed him to give a lot of insight to a certain important villain(s) but instead he is just here parroting things he said the first chapter). It's not bad, there are definitely parts that I enjoyed about this storyline too, I didn't close the book angry at the ending, just kind of disappointed that it didn't hold up to what it could have been.
The other major storyline is, despite coming into play halfway through much better handled. It's a much less typical storyline than "defeat this monster" which the first storyline can be roughly summed up as. It also is a much more satisfying conclusion, after this Clare's story feels a bit like an extra.
The art while gorgeous, one initial problem with it is that characters start off looking very similar. As claymores the have the same hair, same eyes, rougly the same uniform. You basically have to recognize them purely by hair style. Later on Yagi learns to work around these and have more unique looking claymore. Althought the art is beautiful in general where it really shines is the monster design, they all manage to be creepy, unique and most of the time also absolultely gorgeous in a way. The panel work on the other hand is pretty standard. There are times where it's hard to know what is going on because of how every new enemy has a completely unique anatomy.
Claymore at the end of the day is a very flawed manga I don't have purely positive things to say about any aspect of it. And yet for all the flaws that it has none of them kept me from loving it to bits. Objectively I would say this is a 8 out of 10, maybe even a 7. But in my heart it remains a 10.
Claymore is a good manga that could have been downright amazing but manages to sabotage itself at every turn.
It helps that the problems I have with Claymore are for the most part, not outright faults but things that I see great potential in that never fully utilized. This applies to both plot points and characters.
The biggest culprit I see in this is that Yagi is using in GGRM's words the "gardener" method of writing, not planning ahead but just thinking "let's see where this takes us". Nothing wrong with that in itself but if you want your writing to be consistent in this style you need to have some ground rules about how your setting works. Claymore doesn't. It's bafflingly obvious that Yagi keeps coming up with things on the spot, especially in the final arcs. This is very easy if you take a look at the earlier chapters.
Claymore has a large cast and few of them really get to shine, generally they will get a moment to shine, a backstory, generally involving how they ended up a claymore. It's not much however I still love every one of the claymores introduced. It's hard not to feel sympathetic of even the most cruel of them when you know the circumstances they've lived in. The manga is at it's best when it focuses on claymores as a group and the bond between the warriors.
I would say the manga has two main plots, one is Clare's quest and the other the fate of Claymores in general. The first becomes a bit of a mess with shounen tropes creeping in, the "power levels" getting higher every chapter to the point bordering on self parody. It's also where the most underutilized character and plot points come in, especially in regards to Raki (without giving spoilers his plotline could have allowed him to give a lot of insight to a certain important villain(s) but instead he is just here parroting things he said the first chapter). It's not bad, there are definitely parts that I enjoyed about this storyline too, I didn't close the book angry at the ending, just kind of disappointed that it didn't hold up to what it could have been.
The other major storyline is, despite coming into play halfway through much better handled. It's a much less typical storyline than "defeat this monster" which the first storyline can be roughly summed up as. It also is a much more satisfying conclusion, after this Clare's story feels a bit like an extra.
The art while gorgeous, one initial problem with it is that characters start off looking very similar. As claymores the have the same hair, same eyes, rougly the same uniform. You basically have to recognize them purely by hair style. Later on Yagi learns to work around these and have more unique looking claymore. Althought the art is beautiful in general where it really shines is the monster design, they all manage to be creepy, unique and most of the time also absolultely gorgeous in a way. The panel work on the other hand is pretty standard. There are times where it's hard to know what is going on because of how every new enemy has a completely unique anatomy.
Claymore at the end of the day is a very flawed manga I don't have purely positive things to say about any aspect of it. And yet for all the flaws that it has none of them kept me from loving it to bits. Objectively I would say this is a 8 out of 10, maybe even a 7. But in my heart it remains a 10.
July 6, 2019
Wow what a finale.
World: The art is fantastic, the last book is just amazing with the fights and the monster designs. The world building is also fantastic, call back to the Teresa story and the core of the Clare character. It calls upon emotions that have been earned over the course of the 27 books.
Story: I loved that for the finale it went intimate, it went internal and we get to see Clare and Teresa and their emotions and all those beautiful feelings that were earned throughout the series. I also love the Raki didn't become a huge thing for the book cause this story as a whole became about Clare and Teresa pretty early and that was what this focus needed to be. I love how they treated the final battle and how it ended. The end is melancholy and beautiful and just a really solid end to the series that earns all those tears.
Characters: Clare and Teresa is the best and the fact that their relationship comes full circle is amazing. I won't spoil any more. The character, the group as a whole get beautiful resolution and earned emotions. Yeah I won't say anything else, I don't want to spoil it.
A beautiful finale.
Onward to the next book!
World: The art is fantastic, the last book is just amazing with the fights and the monster designs. The world building is also fantastic, call back to the Teresa story and the core of the Clare character. It calls upon emotions that have been earned over the course of the 27 books.
Story: I loved that for the finale it went intimate, it went internal and we get to see Clare and Teresa and their emotions and all those beautiful feelings that were earned throughout the series. I also love the Raki didn't become a huge thing for the book cause this story as a whole became about Clare and Teresa pretty early and that was what this focus needed to be. I love how they treated the final battle and how it ended. The end is melancholy and beautiful and just a really solid end to the series that earns all those tears.
Characters: Clare and Teresa is the best and the fact that their relationship comes full circle is amazing. I won't spoil any more. The character, the group as a whole get beautiful resolution and earned emotions. Yeah I won't say anything else, I don't want to spoil it.
A beautiful finale.
Onward to the next book!
October 24, 2015
This is the 27th (and final) volume in the Claymore series. It did an excellent job of wrapping up this series. There were some awesome action scenes and some huge surprises.
Volume 26 ended on a bit of a cliffhanger when we see Clare access Teresa of the Faint Smile. In this book we see the implications of that and follow an epic battle between Clare/Teresa and Priscilla.
We get a little back story on Clare, Priscilla, and Raki which was a nice diversion from the main battle and did a good job of filling out the story. The illustration remains top notch as well.
I really loved how everything wrapped up. There are some loose ends but overall it was tied up in a way that was realistic, engaging and just...well...nice!
Overall this was the perfect closure to an excellent manga series. There is a lot of action, some surprises, and an excellent story. I would highly recommend this whole series to those who enjoy action-packed fantasy shounen.
August 18, 2018
A great and touching end to a great series.
It's been a wild ride. 27 volumes, but they've all flown by. This is not a perfect series. It's flawed, convoluted, I'm 99% sure its made up on the spot, and it's heavily action-orientated, which usually isn't my thing, but I loved it all the same. It's silly, it isn't going to change the world, but it's so fun. The characters are great, the world is interesting, its super well drawn, and its extremely entertaining (even at its most absurd). This was a fitting and emotional ending, and its a massive ride I'd love to take again one day.
5/5 (For volume and series)
It's been a wild ride. 27 volumes, but they've all flown by. This is not a perfect series. It's flawed, convoluted, I'm 99% sure its made up on the spot, and it's heavily action-orientated, which usually isn't my thing, but I loved it all the same. It's silly, it isn't going to change the world, but it's so fun. The characters are great, the world is interesting, its super well drawn, and its extremely entertaining (even at its most absurd). This was a fitting and emotional ending, and its a massive ride I'd love to take again one day.
5/5 (For volume and series)
January 19, 2016
Çok güzel, yürek dağlayan ve bir o kadar da içinizi mutlulukla dolduran bir sonu var. Kesinlikle okuyun.
February 6, 2019
Wow. This series. Just wow. I don’t even know where to start or end with this. Clare and Miria and Galatea and all of them were uniquely their own characters, strengths and weaknesses and personalities, despite the Organization. There’s an incredible amount of symbolism, in word and world, if you just look a little. What a way to end this brutal and beautiful series. The world building was strong enough to make me want more. More of the main land and what comes next. 10/10 one of my recent favorites.
February 21, 2020
如果不談那十分抱歉的畫工(尤其最近看的作品都是畫面精美背景細緻的)，故事本身倒是中規中矩的王道冒險。
雖然不曉得是否因為連載需求，反派一直強中更有強中手，強了十幾集之後還在繼續變強太拖戲了點
但一群(設定上)高挑美麗的女戰士沒有被主角威能壓成雜魚也是難能可貴了
要是畫工好點應該可以值三星吧
雖然不曉得是否因為連載需求，反派一直強中更有強中手，強了十幾集之後還在繼續變強太拖戲了點
但一群(設定上)高挑美麗的女戰士沒有被主角威能壓成雜魚也是難能可貴了
要是畫工好點應該可以值三星吧
December 10, 2020
The series that got me into anime/manga. Read the series again after being 6 years away from it. I love this series and let me tell you some tears were shed in the last couple of volumes.
December 27, 2023
Un muy buen voumen final con un muy buen final para la historia.
Me ha gustado mucho
4.5 stars
Me ha gustado mucho
4.5 stars
December 20, 2024
This was another case of a series that started with a roar but ended with a hobbled whimper.
2.25/5
2.25/5
February 18, 2025
What a most perfect ending to such an elaborate and emotional story!!! I loved watching the claymores grow in both physical and emotional strength; I loved how their relationships blossomed so clearly on the pages. Oh, to be a half-monstrous girl with a sword fighting alongside my comrades to bring about the downfall of male oppressors.........
July 13, 2021
El mejor tomo final que Claymore podía tener.
September 7, 2023
I can’t believe I’m done!!! I loved this series so freaking much!
September 22, 2024
absolutely fucking phenomenal. i need this series etched into my mind, skin, and soul forever.
August 22, 2016
It hits ya straight in the feels. I was almost sure I knew how the final fight would pan out, but I was wrong. It's way more emotional than I would have thought. It's sweet and bitter and all-around lovely.
One thing I enjoy about manga in general is that its series generally have a beginning and an end - and a clear progression of steps between them, which allow the story to develop, catch your imagination, capture your heart and take you on a full journey. This, of course, as opposed to many superhero comics which feel like villains are forever respawning and that no final conclusion will ever be reached.
Claymore is a lovely teen series (considering the graphics, *late* teens :D), with all the usual Japanese tropes of friendship and (numbered) power, of working together, training hard and self-sacrifice. I'd recommend it to others as well, since the plots are fun overall, the characters are easy to love - and it's just nice entertainment. I'm happy I've been persuaded to buy it.
One thing I enjoy about manga in general is that its series generally have a beginning and an end - and a clear progression of steps between them, which allow the story to develop, catch your imagination, capture your heart and take you on a full journey. This, of course, as opposed to many superhero comics which feel like villains are forever respawning and that no final conclusion will ever be reached.
Claymore is a lovely teen series (considering the graphics, *late* teens :D), with all the usual Japanese tropes of friendship and (numbered) power, of working together, training hard and self-sacrifice. I'd recommend it to others as well, since the plots are fun overall, the characters are easy to love - and it's just nice entertainment. I'm happy I've been persuaded to buy it.
July 3, 2025
Volume review: 3.75/5
Series review: 4/5
This series’ emotional core is so strong, and I’m so thankful that this final confrontation's final stage hinges on just that.
The emotional me attached to this series after binging most of it in bursts wants to give this concluding volume a five out of five because that was emotional, satisfying, pretty smart way to bring everything together quickly, but I really do think another volume, or, at the very least, just a few chapters to really round out the post-organization stories (AND GIVE CLARE AN ACTUAL RESOLUTION TO HER CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT) would have brought this up to 5/5. The resolution was much to quick for my liking, especially considering how much this series values slow buildups and very long fights.
Where did the rest of the organization's leaders go? The only "resolution" we get on that front is the the man in black's decision to fade into obscurity when faced with two Claymores at his throat, but what about that MASSIVE plot-twist about the lands we know in this series functioning as a breeding-ground for yoma, in service to a larger continent's government's dastardly plans? Clearly, they failed, and couldn't the man in black simply return in preparation for a far more destructive threat from that group entity manipulating everything?
The core of this series' conflict has to do with what is unknown for the Claymores, and how the systems one might once trust are often actually the villains in disguise. A volume-long epilogue detailing these developments, even if it takes some flash-forwards, would have made this an all the more satisfying ending. Volume 28 could've continued with Clare and Raki meeting with Irene to discuss how to proceed in making sure that they've covered ALL their bases and truly understand the gravity of their effect on a core system operating in these lands. That's what is implied in the last panels, but there is just way too much unresolved for my liking.
In addition to a lack of loose ends being tied up, this series really struggles with how expansive its cast of characters is in comparison to its volume length, which I suppose is a pacing issue because 27 volumes is nothing to scoff at in terms of length. Clare functions as the conduit for the entire story because she is the protagonist...until the end of the Battle for the North. Now, I often appreciate when main characters are sidelined narratively for a while to boost a deuteragonist or supporting cast (and just the stakes in general), but Yagi just lets Clare disappear while, suddenly, Miria becomes the lead. I love Miria. She's one of my favorite characters. However, this transition between character leads is clunky and rushed. This series values the origins of its characters so much...why wasn't Miria set up as a foil to Clare from the beginning, or at least given a well-rounded origin in order to inspire a similar level of emotion as Clare's early-series development does?
Additionally, Clare's return culminating in being essentially possessed by her surrogate mother-figure Teresa was initially interesting to be in its reveal in the previous volume's final pages, but the concept of Teresa literally replacing Clare's body and consciousness as Clare's final form stifles and reduces the conclusion of Clare's character development MAJORLY. I felt miffed that she was basically robbed of a conclusion in favor of showing more badassery that we'd already experienced from Teresa early on in the series. This quite literally leaves Clare's entire revenge plot unresolved, despite it being her core motivation in life.
I really enjoy the skeleton of the rebellion arc, but its execution is flimsy and rushed to me. People flip-flop allegiances too quickly and the entire arc just raises more questions than it does reveal answers by its conclusion.
In a highly detailed, very emotionally charged fantasy series like this one with a MASSIVE ensemble cast and continent-spanning narrative, I need the loose ends to be tied up. Not all, but at least SOME. Despite the emotional core of the finale being well-formed, the actual narrative's resolution left me with too many questions to feel satisfied. This is something that I'm really remiss to admit because there is plenty of brilliance present in this series in its exploration of hatred and grief, gaining personal autonomy, destruction through misinformation, differing expressions of womanhood, and the path to redemption.
It's worth noting that the art itself is also fascinating to watch mature. I consistently enjoyed Yagi's subversive style considering that he was writing a story about mostly women for a shonen magazine. His portrayal of the spectrum of femininity is really refreshing, and despite this series having a lot of horror-based nudity, it (almost...) consistently felt tasteful. The creature designs also basically take LSD and amplify to beautiful yet horrifying monstrosities a bit of the way in to the story, and it was always super exciting seeing how Yagi would push his creativity further with the yoma each time. A minor quibble I have with this last fight is how boring and frankly silly the awakened being creature designs were in comparison to previous ones. The stakes felt reduced because of this, while previous confrontations with awakened beings had me genuinely reeling, unsure of who was going to survive because the artwork was just so precise and detailed and terrifying.
Despite struggling with the fact that this volume really only resolves the fight itself rather than the larger narrative, this is a very strong series sitting at a solid 4/5 for me, and I greatly enjoyed my time with it. I just wish I could inhabit Yagi's existence for some time to write a satisfying epilogue...
(How the hell this is going to be adapted for live action is totally beyond me without whatever studio producing it spending 52 billion on insanely complex CGI, but, wow, would I love to work on such an adaptation...this would also be an incredible RPG game...many thoughts...)
PS the anime's soundtrack absolutely rocks go listen to it
Series review: 4/5
This series’ emotional core is so strong, and I’m so thankful that this final confrontation's final stage hinges on just that.
The emotional me attached to this series after binging most of it in bursts wants to give this concluding volume a five out of five because that was emotional, satisfying, pretty smart way to bring everything together quickly, but I really do think another volume, or, at the very least, just a few chapters to really round out the post-organization stories (AND GIVE CLARE AN ACTUAL RESOLUTION TO HER CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT) would have brought this up to 5/5. The resolution was much to quick for my liking, especially considering how much this series values slow buildups and very long fights.
Where did the rest of the organization's leaders go? The only "resolution" we get on that front is the the man in black's decision to fade into obscurity when faced with two Claymores at his throat, but what about that MASSIVE plot-twist about the lands we know in this series functioning as a breeding-ground for yoma, in service to a larger continent's government's dastardly plans? Clearly, they failed, and couldn't the man in black simply return in preparation for a far more destructive threat from that group entity manipulating everything?
The core of this series' conflict has to do with what is unknown for the Claymores, and how the systems one might once trust are often actually the villains in disguise. A volume-long epilogue detailing these developments, even if it takes some flash-forwards, would have made this an all the more satisfying ending. Volume 28 could've continued with Clare and Raki meeting with Irene to discuss how to proceed in making sure that they've covered ALL their bases and truly understand the gravity of their effect on a core system operating in these lands. That's what is implied in the last panels, but there is just way too much unresolved for my liking.
In addition to a lack of loose ends being tied up, this series really struggles with how expansive its cast of characters is in comparison to its volume length, which I suppose is a pacing issue because 27 volumes is nothing to scoff at in terms of length. Clare functions as the conduit for the entire story because she is the protagonist...until the end of the Battle for the North. Now, I often appreciate when main characters are sidelined narratively for a while to boost a deuteragonist or supporting cast (and just the stakes in general), but Yagi just lets Clare disappear while, suddenly, Miria becomes the lead. I love Miria. She's one of my favorite characters. However, this transition between character leads is clunky and rushed. This series values the origins of its characters so much...why wasn't Miria set up as a foil to Clare from the beginning, or at least given a well-rounded origin in order to inspire a similar level of emotion as Clare's early-series development does?
Additionally, Clare's return culminating in being essentially possessed by her surrogate mother-figure Teresa was initially interesting to be in its reveal in the previous volume's final pages, but the concept of Teresa literally replacing Clare's body and consciousness as Clare's final form stifles and reduces the conclusion of Clare's character development MAJORLY. I felt miffed that she was basically robbed of a conclusion in favor of showing more badassery that we'd already experienced from Teresa early on in the series. This quite literally leaves Clare's entire revenge plot unresolved, despite it being her core motivation in life.
I really enjoy the skeleton of the rebellion arc, but its execution is flimsy and rushed to me. People flip-flop allegiances too quickly and the entire arc just raises more questions than it does reveal answers by its conclusion.
In a highly detailed, very emotionally charged fantasy series like this one with a MASSIVE ensemble cast and continent-spanning narrative, I need the loose ends to be tied up. Not all, but at least SOME. Despite the emotional core of the finale being well-formed, the actual narrative's resolution left me with too many questions to feel satisfied. This is something that I'm really remiss to admit because there is plenty of brilliance present in this series in its exploration of hatred and grief, gaining personal autonomy, destruction through misinformation, differing expressions of womanhood, and the path to redemption.
It's worth noting that the art itself is also fascinating to watch mature. I consistently enjoyed Yagi's subversive style considering that he was writing a story about mostly women for a shonen magazine. His portrayal of the spectrum of femininity is really refreshing, and despite this series having a lot of horror-based nudity, it (almost...) consistently felt tasteful. The creature designs also basically take LSD and amplify to beautiful yet horrifying monstrosities a bit of the way in to the story, and it was always super exciting seeing how Yagi would push his creativity further with the yoma each time. A minor quibble I have with this last fight is how boring and frankly silly the awakened being creature designs were in comparison to previous ones. The stakes felt reduced because of this, while previous confrontations with awakened beings had me genuinely reeling, unsure of who was going to survive because the artwork was just so precise and detailed and terrifying.
Despite struggling with the fact that this volume really only resolves the fight itself rather than the larger narrative, this is a very strong series sitting at a solid 4/5 for me, and I greatly enjoyed my time with it. I just wish I could inhabit Yagi's existence for some time to write a satisfying epilogue...
(How the hell this is going to be adapted for live action is totally beyond me without whatever studio producing it spending 52 billion on insanely complex CGI, but, wow, would I love to work on such an adaptation...this would also be an incredible RPG game...many thoughts...)
PS the anime's soundtrack absolutely rocks go listen to it
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 19, 2021
OMG! This manga isn't as good as Attack on Titan but I swear it is really really good! At first, I thought I would just drop reading it since I felt it was really boring. However, someone said that this manga is really good so I reconsider it. It took me lots chapter before I got into the really interesting stuff. I really didn't regret that I push into reading this.
The ending is really perfect. I think it's really the most appropriate ending for this manga. Teresa is really really beautiful even after being awakened she is just the prettiest! Not to mention the strongest of all number 1! I am so glad she just come out unexpectedly.
This is just a really really good read. My gosh! What a really beautiful ending!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So satisfying!!
The ending is really perfect. I think it's really the most appropriate ending for this manga. Teresa is really really beautiful even after being awakened she is just the prettiest! Not to mention the strongest of all number 1! I am so glad she just come out unexpectedly.
This is just a really really good read. My gosh! What a really beautiful ending!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So satisfying!!
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