What are the changes from manga to anime? What manga chapter should I read next?

[NoSanninWa]

These are questions that frequently come up in various threads and unfortunately they can be difficult to discuss inside the boundries of those other threads. Now that the show is over and a lot of people are thinking about reading the manga volume that continues the anime story, the questions are a lot more important. Since this is so important I'm sure many people want to put in their 2 cents. I'll post my answer and others are welcome to continue the discussion since I surely missed something of importance. Let's try to be careful about spoilers since folks might want to learn their answers from the manga once they start learning about the differences. And nothing after Rigald's battle in chapter 60 should be discussed since that is a pure manga discussion, though you can say what at the end of the anime did not happen. ;)

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[NoSanninWa]

I recently received this question in PM:
Finally, I have a question. Reading here and there I've found that great changes were made from the manga, starting from episode 20.
And I have to say, what it was a series worthy a 9+ until episode 19, it has become worthy barely an 8 at the very end. As a non manga reader, I'm very disappointed with the last episodes.

Since if I read there I would certainly be spoiled too much on future events, could you tell me which major changes the anime compared to the manga? Key scenes and such. Also, the chapter closing the anime. How was it in the anime? Did Priscilla survive in that lame way (I guess so, but in the anime it felt too rushed and poorly build).
This person speaks for many in asking this so I will attempt to answer and others are welcome to help me out, but please be reasonably careful with spoilers. Episodes 20+ took serious liberties with the anime and I'd rather not give away secrets that it is better to read in the manga.

I'd say that the first significant difference between the anime and manga was just after the fight with Riful. Whereas in the anime Riful simply decides to leave, in the manga she leaves because the Organization is spying on her and she doesn't want to give away her secrets. Number One, Alicia, is sensing the battle and assessing the difference in their strength. She says that she is only half as strong as Riful, but a man in black says some mysterious things about making her stronger. This was a fairly minor difference, but if you want to see it, then you should read volume 9, chapter 49.

The next noteworthy change was when Clare was recruited to go fight in at Pieta. Rubel said some interesting things including a bit about Raki's fate. This was in volume 9, chapter 50.
Rubel revealed that Raki had been caught by slavers and shipped to the north. Apparently most male slaves are shipped to the north because they need manpower there. He also comments that many female slaves are shipped to the east, apparently to become Claymores.
After that many things differ at the introduction of the Pieta arc. Most of these are rather small, though they add up. Many people are upset at the loss of Helen's humorous scenes. She made for a humorous foil amidst some pretty grim circumstances. Nothing in particular for me to comment on here, but it does make the end of volume 9 fun to read.

Next I should comment about the battle against the trio of Awakened Beings in episodes 18-19. There is a bit more detail in volume 10, chapters 52-54. This was somewhat important because of an ability used upon Undine and some others... this has a real effect on Undine.
The Awakened Being who could control youki was able to use his ability to force Claymores to go over their limits. They were only saved because Deneve and Clare were able to continue functioning past their limits. Also, this ability was used on Undine. This is the real reason that Undine got so freaked out. The feeling of going slightly over her limit is what overwhelmed Undine. She wasn't quite so weak as the anime portrayed her.

Now for a big change. Episode 20. Some of Raki's scenes were notably different. However the biggest difference was the interchange between Clare and Flora. In the anime they had a bit of a heart to heart mediated by Jean. In the manga it was totally different.
In the manga Flora and Clare have a duel. Flora is quite disturbed by seeing how strong number 47 really is and insists on having a duel to determine who is going to be the leader of their squad. The duel is very intense and reveals the true difference between the Windcutter and the Flash Sword. We discover that each technique has slightly different advantages. It also reveals that Clare is truly a match for a single digit like Flora. I'll let you read the details for yourself since this is all that matters to the story.Raki arises from a dungeon to discover that the entire city was wiped out by monsters while he was held prisoner. Isley found Raki's sword amongst the ruins and returns it to Raki after Raki expresses his attachment to that blade.
Now comes the Rigald fight in episodes 21-23. Much of this is quite similar to the manga up until Clare awakens her legs. Then things change drastically.
In the anime Clare simply mastered her speed through some unspecified ability. Maybe willpower? Awakening her inner Theresa? In the manga the speed was simply uncontrollable. Finally she pushed harder and awoke her left arm. Using the blades from her left arm to grab the ground she was able to improve her manueverability. Then she awoke her right arm to gain the power necessary to kill Rigald. This was her "Queen of Blades" form that she used in episode 26. It was necessary to reach this level of power just to defeat Rigald.
At this time Raki's circumstances were extremely different from the anime...
Raki never came anywhere's near Pieta. Raki was busy bonding with Priscilla while Clare was fighting in Pieta. He never knew how close he was to Clare. He never learned that Priscilla eats guts. All he knew was that Priscilla and Isley were somewhat strange people who seemed quite nice to him. That very painful and messed up scene in the anime where Priscilla cries while gobbling human entrails never happens in the manga, so erase it from your mind. Perhaps Raki would have run from her in horror upon discovering she was a monster. We'll never know.
After the Rigald fight... Now things are completely different from the manga. There is no longer the slightest similarity.
I was asked
Did Priscilla survive in that lame way (I guess so, but in the anime it felt too rushed and poorly build).
I'll just tell you straight out that Clare and Priscilla do not fight at Pieta. There is no volcanic battlefield. If Clare had tried to fight Priscilla with the meager power Clare needed just to defeat the comparatively weak Rigald, Priscilla would have torn her into pieces too small to see with the naked eye.

In voume 12 we discover truths about the nature of Isley and Priscilla's relationship that make everything you learned in the anime into a complete lie. It is a completely different story now.
What happens after that? Read volume 11 and discover. The story is now going places you could not imagine... Right now volume 9 has been released by Viz and volume 10 should be released in another week. I'd recommend that you buy and read those two volumes to continue the story. When volume 11 comes out in December you'll be able to learn the true fate of Pieta and some of the Organization's secrets.

[Riful]

Some things that are maybe minor, but might be important later on or just make for better understanding of the story.

(sorry I don't have the manga at hand to check the exact chapters)

At the end of Teresa's arc, some information about Priscilla's behavior was left out. This appears again in Ophelia's arc and Riful's.

Slasher's arc: Miria has a different answer to Helen's question about what she found out about the org so far.

Teresa'a arc also has a bit more deep to Teresa's character, so it's worth reading for people that like her.

[hierophant]

There is also a new interesting Claire's work left out in anime, from V1 ch02.

It show her initial competence to accomplish jobs is higher than shown in anime, in the beginning of the series. It also show her empathy about humans being killed. It also create a base for the organization distrust toward Claire.

At the beginning of the chapter, she is able to easily spot a yoma who suppressed his yoki.

There is a interesting but brief discussion between her and Rubel while she is having a bath in a waterfall.

Clare is supposed to wait for her conrades to attack the yoma, but she rush fearing 2 or 3 people would be killed in the meantime. The yoma threat turn out to be 4 yomas. One of them can fly. She fight them simultaneously.

This happens after she meet Raki and before she fight the yoma disguised as a Claymore (where Raki finally join her).

This is also not the same Clare's fight with multiple yomas shown in the anime. the other mission, before Ophelia's arc, is in the beginning of V6 ch31

[Anh_Minh]

However the biggest difference was the interchange between Clare and Flora. In the anime they had a bit of a heart to heart mediated by Deneve.

I think you mean Jean.

Nothing to add, except that the anime also skipped chapter 2. It was a filler chapter anyway, but it did show off Clare's rashness a bit.

[hierophant]

I suggest for anime fans to read the manga since volume 9, as it is when the Pieta arc starts and the anime start to stink.

[Schuyler]

Yes read the manga, and you will see why so many was pissed.

[NoSanninWa]

I suggest for anime fans to read the manga since volume 9, as it is when the Pieta arc starts and the anime start to stink.
It doesn't stink. It just isn't as good as it should have been if they'd followed the manga. It's... alright.

At the end of Teresa's arc, some information about Priscilla's behavior was left out. This appears again in Ophelia's arc and Riful's.Thanks for pointing this out. I'd forgot that this very interesting and important detail about Priscilla was left out of the anime.
Volume 5: After Theresa's death we are shown that Priscilla left Clare alive because she somehow didn't even notice her.
Volume 7: Ophelia reveals that her brother was killed by a One Horned Monster (Priscilla) who left her alive for unknown reasons.
Volume 9: Riful says that Priscilla went on a rampage completely wiping out whole towns except for the young girls whom she didn't even seem to see.
Slasher's arc: Miria has a different answer to Helen's question about what she found out about the org so far.Thank you again. I believe that this is part of the anime's attempt to completely ignore Alica's story arc. I can't blame them for wanting to leave out this story arc since it is an unneeded complication which has nothing to do with Clare's story until after the TV series would end. This was vauge and not really important at the time so you aren't missing much if you don't start reading the manga until volume 9. Anyway, for those who want to know what Miria said:
In the anime Miria said that she hadn't discovered anything much about the Organization so far.
In the manga Miria said that she had discovered the Organization's greatest secret.

[maian330]

In the anime, Riful left Clare and co alive because of dubious reasons, while in the manga
she left because she noticed the organization watching her. Then there's a scene of Alicia or Beth and some blackcoat discussing their observations of Riful.

Don't remember the volume and chapter this occurs, but it happens right after they defeat Duph.

[maian330]

In the anime, Raki is a total wuss, while in the manga,
he's still a total wuss :D

[HinaThePrince]

Except that in the manga he's a likable wuss.

[Westlo]

Likable? Not really.... just no obnoxious like in the anime.

[Negativedark]

Also in the manga, after the KissClaire did not have the prostitute smile on her face. It was a more nutreal look.

[Rhyel]

I suggest reading at volume 1. ;)

As differences about Raki and Clare joining for adventures. :)

Clare atitude in Rabona. :eyebrow:

[zato_1one]

I suggest to start at volume 1 or 3. Don't worry, Teresa's charisma will make you read again and again without boring. ;)

[PGilis]

Some differences i noted is, manga-Raki has more guts and is less crybaby than anime-Raki, because...


After Clare was hurt by the youma, in her defense Raki literally exchange punches with Sid. Not just one, but a lot!

And at the ending, Sid stole a kiss from Clare. Raki "thank" him kicking his balls!! :D



At Ophelia's arc...



Clare left Raki come with her. And when Ophelia grab her, Raki tried to protest, and she kick him on the face! Even spilling blood, Raki grab his sword and atacked her... hitting her arm.



Raki can be a boy, but has the courage of a true man. Unfortunately, at the anime they changed his character, leaving him a lot weaker than he really is.


Another difference between anime and manga i noted was at Pietta's arc.



Rigardo/Ligardes NEVER ordened his troops to pull back. He atacked the 5 captains at the same time the others A.O.s were fighting the other claymores!

[cors8]

They left out the secret plan Miria had for the survival of the Claymores in Pieta. This is pretty essential for the post-Pieta arc.

It'd be pretty interesting to see how the anime will handle it if there is a second season.

[Fenrir_valindri]

I doubt they are going to do a second season, otherwise they would have had no reason to change the orginal story line as much as they did.

A minor change they made during the Rigaldo fight;
When Rigaldo killed Veronica, Cynthia was the one to attack him (with quite the emotional look on her face I might add), not Helen.

[Muffinz]

Also in the manga, after the KissClaire did not have the prostitute smile on her face. It was a more nutreal look.

maybe she acted it?

She did mention that they were taught that they can blush like a aristocrate or smile like a prostitute :D

http://img.onemanga.com/mangas/00000045/00000005/15.jpg

[Fenrir_valindri]

maybe she acted it?

She did mention that they were taught that they can blush like a aristocrate or smile like a prostitute :D

http://img.onemanga.com/mangas/00000045/00000005/15.jpg

That is the point, she looked like she was acting it in the Anime, while in the manga she had a stern look on her face, it made the scenario have quite a different feel.

[Beansy]

important detail about Priscilla was left out of the anime.
Volume 5: After Theresa's death we are shown that Priscilla left Clare alive because she somehow didn't even notice her.
Volume 7: Ophelia reveals that her brother was killed by a One Horned Monster (Priscilla) who left her alive for unknown reasons.
Volume 9: Riful says that Priscilla went on a rampage completely wiping out whole towns except for the young girls whom she didn't even seem to see.

Actually the second one of those revelations, the one from Volume 7, was definitely in the anime too.

[nine_tailed_kyuubi]

i wanna know why on hell the anime did that ?!!!!
The Manga is by far one of the best i've ever read if i wanted to rate it i will give it a rank of the top 3 along with Naruto and Bleach and to be honest it just keeps intresting and intresting , why did they finish the anime ?!!! and why did they change too many events at the end ?
first of all Clare never met Piricialla and Clare used her complete awakened form to kill Rigardo not to beat Pirisilla, if they were planing to end it like that from the biginning why did they say thee was 3 dwellers of the deep ? it's not cool to mention that the third dweller is there when she never appeared in the anime !! Luceila i think was her name , i'm so pissed the anime was amazing and the end is a bunch of craaaaaaap even if i was not a manga reader the ending of the anime is terrible no way in hell could have Clare not killed Pirisilla + no way in hell she can fight against her as in the manga Pirisilla is stronger than the 3 dwellers now !!!!! just shit

[Flar]

why did they finish the anime ?!!! and why did they change too many events at the end ?Because they wanted to give a conclusive ending to their public, and didn't want to wait six years for the manga to finish, so they could stay faithful to it in a second season, maybe?

Would you have liked a Pieta ending "and now all the lights have disappeared" -the end-, with everything but Rigaldo left up in the air?

Well, breathe and go read some other stuff, it's not the end of the world. As a side note If Naruto and Bleach are in your top 3 and you like Claymore, you may want to broaden your experience. Try stuff like Berserk, Desu Noto, Eden, Monster, GTO, etc, there is bound to be something you like better.

[Gooral]

Because they wanted to give a conclusive ending to their public, and didn't want to wait six years for the manga to finish, so they could stay faithful to it in a second season, maybe?
You're right, they WANTED, but they haven't succeeded. There is no conclusion in the anime so why did they went off the manga in the first place ? Obviously not because they didn't want to end anime with a cliffhanger because it did end with a cliffhanger !

Would you have liked a Pieta ending "and now all the lights have disappeared" -the end-, with everything but Rigaldo left up in the air?
(...)
Definitely yes and I'm sure many others would prefer ending like that too.

[NoSanninWa]

Would you have liked a Pieta ending "and now all the lights have disappeared" -the end-, with everything but Rigaldo left up in the air?

Actually I'd have prefered that the final episode end with the "counting the swords" scene. That gives much more closure and we actually have a whole thread about the topic here (http://forums.animesuki.com/showthread.php?t=48423). Please let's not get into any more detail on how it could have ended in this thread.