 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | FUNIMATION ENTERTAINMENT | | | ▪ | ASPECT RATIO: | | 16:9 ANAMORPHIC WIDESCREEN | | | ▪ | AUDIO: | | ENGLISH DD 5.1 AND JAPANESE DD 2.0 | | | ▪ | RUNNING TIME: | | 100 MIN | | | ▪ | RATING: | | TV MA | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 05/19/2009 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 06/20/2009 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | SCOTT CAMPBELL |
Volume five of Claymore continues the twisting tale of Clare, one such sister of the sword driven by pain in both victory and defeat. War has been unleashed, and certain death looms, yet the silver-eyed soldiers harbor an even greater fear – the uncertain fear of Awakening. Rigaldo, a foe more force of nature than actual warrior, stands in the way of survival. But neither madness nor monster will sway Clare, not with vengeance so near. This fifth disc of Claymore contains another four whole episodes: “The Carnage in the North II”, “The Carnage in the North III”, “Invasion of Pieta I”, and “Invasion of Pieta II.” It’s often enjoyable to see the course of a particular situation take a number of episodes to play out – that way each particular conflict is paid its due in time to play out as it is intended. There are no “short-changed” situations in Claymore – everything takes its time to play out as it should in meticulous story-telling and visual detail. It’s a piece of art as much as it is a piece of entertainment – the people responsible for this one have done the right thing with how they’ve produce Claymore, which is not always that easy to do. This series is a well-rounded product without a doubt, and a total nail-biter. It’s brutally violent at times, with not even a hint of an apology. Even the physical product of the DVD case is beautifully put together with a flashy cover and really nice graphics. It has a semi-holographic glow to it, and it comes off really nice. If you’ve read the books, you know already how much intrinsic depth Claymore has as a story – but if you’re new to the world of Claymore and its characters, just know that the story is as awesome as the action sequences and the animation. This volume manages to push the limits yet again when it comes to the intensity we love about Claymore and its characters. Being able to push the limits of what we have gotten accustomed to in watching this show is quite a feat, as it is with any anime that boasts action and nail-biting conflicts in need of resolution. The foes just keep getting bigger and more frightening, and the pains that Clare and her “sisters” must endure to bloodily push through each new fight are always a surprise (and we’re not talking surprise, like surprise birthday party – it’s more like a cringing sort of surprise, but with baited breath and all that good stuff!). It’s getting to the point where things are either going to have to explode, or the series is going to have to come to an end. It’s only fitting that both will happen in the last four episodes coming to us on disc six. It’s hard to have to wait!
EXTRAS:
Funimation trailers, Interview with Art Settings Nobuhito Sue (Kusanagi), Episode 19 Commentary, and textless songs (opening and ending themes).
IN SUMMARY:
Claymore is fantasy and horror and psychological thriller all thrown into one big wonderful epic with just the right balance when it comes to all these genres working together. Shows like Claymore only come around every so often – don’t mis out on this harrowing epic of bloodied proportions! |
