Berserk (manga)

Berserk is a seinen manga series written and drawn by Kentaro Miura from 1989 to 2021. It follows the main character Guts and the other members of the mercenary group the "Band of the Hawk". It takes place in the medieval time period. The series has been praised for its characters and artwork. Berserk was made into an anime multiple times, the most important ones are from 1997 and 2016. Publication was paused because of the death of its author Kentaro Miura, but it has since been continued by his assistants and childhood friend Kouji Mori. There is a lot of violence in Berserk.

 Plot 

The series follows main character Guts and his story as a mercenary starting when he is a child. He is born from his mother's dead body, and his adoptive mother dies of plague three years later. The leader of the mercenaries, Gambino, teaches him how to fight.  Guts is forced to leave the group he grew up in after killing his drunk father Gambino to defend himself. After losing a duel to Griffith, he joins Griffith's "Band of the Hawk" group. In his time with them he becomes friends with Casca, Judeau, Gaston, Rickert, Pippin, and more. Together, they fight for money and become famous for their success. Guts finds out about a necklace Griffith has called the "Behelit". In one battle, they fight a monster named Nosferatu Zodd who beats Guts and Griffith, but leaves after seeing the Behelit and warns Guts that "Death will pay you a visit". Guts becomes famous for beating an army of 100 soldiers alone. 

The band become heroes for winning a war that started a hundred years ago. For this, the king of Midland gives some of them noble titles. Guts hears Griffith say that he can only be friends with someone who has their own ambitions, and he decides to leave the Band of the Hawk after they win the war. Griffith tries to make Guts stay by winning another duel, but he loses and Guts leaves. Griffith feels powerless because he couldn't keep Guts, so he spends the night with the king's daughter. While trying to leave, he is caught by the palace guard and sent to be tortured. The Band of the Hawk are hunted by the army of Midland and Casca becomes their leader. As Guts is resting, he meets a mysterious Skull Knight who gives him an unspecific warning and leaves.

One year later, Casca and the remainder of the Band of the Hawk are saved from a sneak attack by Guts. After Casca fails to kill herself, she and Guts talk about their past to each other and have sex. With the help of Guts, the Band of the Hawk rescues Griffith from prison. Griffith notices that he lost the Behelit, but can not speak because his tongue was cut off. On the orders of the king, they are chased by the Black Dog Knights, an army of criminals lead by Wylad. Wylad turns into his true form as a monster. He almost kills Guts and Griffith, but they are saved by Nosferatu Zodd. When Wylad does, he is sucked into a vortex and his original body as a little old man is revealed. They learn that the king's torture removed Griffith's tongue and many of the muscles he needs to fight.

After seeing a vision, Griffith tries to run away from camp. He falls down and finds the Behelit again. As the band get close to him, the moon begins begins to cover the sun and starts a solar eclipse. The band are trapped inside the eclipse. Four giant demons appear and Griffith is grabbed by a gigantic hand as the rest of the band are attacked by demons. Griffith sacrifices everyone in the eclipse so he can become the fifth member of the "God Hand". Judeau and Pippin die protecting Casca. Guts goes into a fit of rage, but he can't protect Casca from the demons. Griffith, now reborn as Femto, rapes Casca. Guts cuts off his left arm to escape a demon, but he is pinned down and can't do anything. The Skull Knight breaks into the eclipse to save Guts and Casca, but everyone else from the Band of the Hawk die except Rickert, the youngest one who was waiting outside.

Guts wakes up 4 days later in the cave of the blacksmith Godot. Casca has lost all her memories, she does not know who Guts is and cannot speak. Guts runs away until night time, when he is attacked by spirits. The Skull Knight tells him that he was marked for sacrifice during the eclipse and will be attacked by the spirits every night. Guts finds Casca giving birth to his child, which has been possessed by evil and deformed by Femto's rape. They return to Godot's cave and Guts gets a new mechanical arm that has a cannon inside and new armour. Guts' new sword breaks when they are attacked by a big monster, but he beats it using the "Dragonslayer" sword that he is famous for. The Dragonslayer is as long as he is tall and wider than his head. Soon after this, he leaves Godot and declares war against the demons and the God Hand.

 Influence and Reception 

Berserk is considered a very important and influential dark fantasy series. Gene Park from The Washington Post said Guts influenced the look of the main characters from Final Fantasy VII, Devil May Cry, and Bleach with the large sword he uses. The video game Dark Souls and other games by the same company are heavily inspired by Berserk. The metal band Brand of Sacrifice is inspired by Berserk and has written music about the series.

The artwork in Berserk has been praised a lot. It is the best-rated and most popular manga on the anime website MyAnimeList, with a score of 9.47 out of 10 and over 600,000 members as of August 2023. Berserk was chosen as the best seinen manga by the website FandomSpot. More than 55 million copies have been sold.

Cultural Impact in India, Berserk has garnered a devoted following, transcending linguistic and cultural barriers to become a beloved classic among anime enthusiasts. Its themes of sacrifice, betrayal, and redemption resonate with audiences, offering a poignant reflection of the human experience. Through fan communities, cosplay events, and online discourse, Berserk continues to thrive in the Indian anime scene, inspiring a new generation of fans to delve into its dark yet compelling world.

Notes

 References 

Category:Manga series
Category:1989 manga
Category:2016 anime television series debuts
Category:Japanese-language television programs