Claymore: Complete Series Box Set - Anime DVD Collection | Dark Fantasy Action Adventure | Perfect for Fans & Collectors | Gift Idea for Anime Lovers

Edit: sadly the manga has ended. The manga after where the anime ended does not have a very good story. Unless a miracle happens, we probably won't see the second season.Claymores are half-human, half-monster warriors who fight monsters. All Claymores have a tragic life - their families were killed by monsters, so they became warriors in order to revenge. They either die in battles or release too much monstrous energy and become monsters. They are disliked and avoided by normal humans. Almost every Claymore is withdrawn and frigid. Although most Claymores are extremely beautiful, there is no romantic story (except a kiss scene that came out of nowhere.)Typical Japanese animes have cute characters and a silly/meaningless story. Claymore has strong realism and suspense. It is very good at building expectations and then utterly destroying them. Humans have realistic body proportions, without big heads, big eyes, or cute expressions. Most of the protagonists are complex, relatable, and always make you wonder what will happen to them. Fighting scenes are technically not the best, but they are fast paced and keep you focused. Claymores and monsters alike have a tendency to give long speeches in the middle of battles - which is unrealistic but common in Japanese animes.The show raises many philosophical questions, such as: (a) Good and evil. The line between monsters and humans are blurry. Some monsters can speak and have human-like emotions, whereas some of the worst villains are humans. Average humans are portrayed as mean, fearful, weak, and ignorant. (b) Revenge. Girls become Claymores because they want to revenge. But some become monsters after releasing too much monstrous power. They go out and kill people, which results in more orphans, which results in more Claymores. (c) Social alienation and discrimination. Although Claymores risk their lives to protect normal humans, humans dislike them. But to the few humans or fellow warriors that do like them, they give everything without holding back.A few negative points. There is very little information about the Organization or how Claymores are trained. The story takes place in a world like medieval Europe, but the background music is not classical, and clothes are mostly 19th and 20th century style. The male protagonist is awful and useless. Thank the Lord he doesn't get too much time in the show. The last 3 episodes were different from the manga. They are very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very disappointing - of course the male protagonist is responsible. The entire story is about Clare trying to achieve a certain goal for a very special person in her life. That person is her only raison d'etre. But in the crappy ending, he persuades her to give up that goal!!!!!!!!!!! And the ending makes it difficult to do a season 2. Perhaps we should wait for a remake.p.s. The male protagonist is annoying and useless. But you can argue that he is a microcosm of humans. In "Claymore", humans are usually depicted as weak and useless.p.s. I watched twice in Japanese and once in English. My two cents about the English dub - some are good but others are not. Teresa, Galatea, Helen, and Rubel (Clare's handler) are great. In some ways maybe better than the original Japanese dub. But Clare does not sound lonely and melancholic. Miria does not sound mature and authoritative. Ophelia does not sound sadistic.