Anime like Claymore?
May 9, 2010 3:07 PM Subscribe
Hey Guys, I just finished watching an awesome anime called Claymore and I was wondering if anyone knew of any other anime similar to that one. In other words something pretty violent with a conflicted hero and strong story.
It's difficult to recommend any one anime, but I would second Death Note: it's aimed at a similar audience to Claymore, and has a wonderful hero/villain dynamic. Note that, like Claymore, both were originally published as manga (i.e. paper comics, not animated). Some people prefer to read the source material first, but that's a personal preference.
I'm not too sure about Noir is all that similar, although both have strong female characters in lead roles.
Regarding Berserk, only the first 13? volumes of the manga were animated, so if you do start watching it be aware that you'll have to read the rest to get the end of the story (correct me if I'm wrong about this; I haven't seen it).
Claymore itself is what would typically be called a "shounen" anime, and they're typically characterised by many fight scenes (something that I personally wasn't too fond of in Claymore). In that respect, if it was more the characterisation they drew you in perhaps you'd be better off looking for "seinen" anime instead (aimed at a slightly older audience). However, I don't want to give shounen anime a bad name here--they're not all bad. :)
posted by mattkh at 4:57 PM on May 9, 2010
I'm not too sure about Noir is all that similar, although both have strong female characters in lead roles.
Regarding Berserk, only the first 13? volumes of the manga were animated, so if you do start watching it be aware that you'll have to read the rest to get the end of the story (correct me if I'm wrong about this; I haven't seen it).
Claymore itself is what would typically be called a "shounen" anime, and they're typically characterised by many fight scenes (something that I personally wasn't too fond of in Claymore). In that respect, if it was more the characterisation they drew you in perhaps you'd be better off looking for "seinen" anime instead (aimed at a slightly older audience). However, I don't want to give shounen anime a bad name here--they're not all bad. :)
posted by mattkh at 4:57 PM on May 9, 2010
If you don't need closure, another vote for Berserk. Watching Berserk is what made me hunt down Claymore.
posted by jmd82 at 5:08 PM on May 9, 2010
posted by jmd82 at 5:08 PM on May 9, 2010
Noir is very violent, has a very strong story, and has a very conflicted protagonist. (Or two of them.) It's not science fiction, however.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 6:54 PM on May 9, 2010
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 6:54 PM on May 9, 2010
A bit stranger of a suggestion: Divergence Eve (and Misaki Chronicles; the two of them together make up a 26-episode series). It is science fiction. There's a lot of violence. Misaki is definitely conflicted. It has an excellent story, and the best ending you could hope for.
But it's quite a lot different than Claymore in some ways. One way is that the character designs are preposterous. All the women have immense breasts, and there are a lot of nude scenes. But if you can get past that (or if you think it's a feature rather than a bug), there's a hell of a good story being told here, about amazing characters.
I would classify it as SF-horror.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 7:02 PM on May 9, 2010
But it's quite a lot different than Claymore in some ways. One way is that the character designs are preposterous. All the women have immense breasts, and there are a lot of nude scenes. But if you can get past that (or if you think it's a feature rather than a bug), there's a hell of a good story being told here, about amazing characters.
I would classify it as SF-horror.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 7:02 PM on May 9, 2010
Darker Than Black.
Violence - Check.
Conflicted hero, working within a corrupted system to achieve personal goals - check.
Strong story - check.
What it also has going for it: awesome animation, a second season, an OVA release. And color. Because lets face it, Claymore seems to treat the color green like a rare commodity.
Also, AniDB.net recommends Berzerk as similar to Claymore. It's pretty old though. And personally I think the narrative form employed is terrible.
posted by pwnguin at 7:51 PM on May 9, 2010
Violence - Check.
Conflicted hero, working within a corrupted system to achieve personal goals - check.
Strong story - check.
What it also has going for it: awesome animation, a second season, an OVA release. And color. Because lets face it, Claymore seems to treat the color green like a rare commodity.
Also, AniDB.net recommends Berzerk as similar to Claymore. It's pretty old though. And personally I think the narrative form employed is terrible.
posted by pwnguin at 7:51 PM on May 9, 2010
Elfin Lied.
posted by infinityjinx at 9:17 PM on May 9, 2010
posted by infinityjinx at 9:17 PM on May 9, 2010
Elfin Lied transcends "violent" and resides in the lofty realm of "slasher feature". A friend of mine used to run an anime club at his college. He received a courtesy copy of the first episode of Elfen Lied to show to the club, but it was censored for violence. Most of the first fifteen minutes of that episode was blacked out, so the club looked at a black screen while listening to screams and sounds of people dying. Something like 20 people die very graphically in that first episode alone.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 10:50 AM on May 10, 2010
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 10:50 AM on May 10, 2010
If you liked the Claymore anime, check out the manga of it. The Anime really veered off from what the manga set.
Also, Darker than Black is an awesome series that meets what you've described.
Alucard - if you like anti-heroes.
Fate Stay Night - Unlimited Blade Works (movie, 2010) meets your criteria as well. The anime, sort of, to a degree.
posted by doctorwhitecoat at 11:40 AM on October 12, 2010
Also, Darker than Black is an awesome series that meets what you've described.
Alucard - if you like anti-heroes.
Fate Stay Night - Unlimited Blade Works (movie, 2010) meets your criteria as well. The anime, sort of, to a degree.
posted by doctorwhitecoat at 11:40 AM on October 12, 2010
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posted by _cave at 3:09 PM on May 9, 2010