BERSERK｜Anime
BERSERK is a manga and anime by Japanese manga artist Kentaro Miura. Serialization of the manga began in 1989, and the series has been published in book form both in Japan and abroad, garnering support around the world.
In 2002, it won the 6th Osamu Tezuka Cultural Prize for Manga Excellence, and as of September 2023, a total of approximately 60 million copies have been sold worldwide, including electronic versions. 1997 saw the creation of an animated television series, and from 2012 to 2013, a three-part theatrical anime was also produced.
The author, Kentaro Miura, continued to work on the manuscript during his absence, to the point of overwork. In his comments, he often expressed his concerns about his own health and expressed his own fears about completing the work, such as “Will I be able to get everything out of my head before I die?” As he himself had feared, Miura passed away suddenly in 2021.
The series was later resumed in 2022 under the supervision of manga artist Koji Mori, a close friend and the only person who had been told the entire story until its completion by Miura before his death, and drawn by a studio to which Miura’s pupil belonged.
Synopsis
The main character, Guts, is a man with a scarred face and a huge sword on his back.
Sworn to take revenge on his old enemy, the God Hand, he travels through a devastated world inhabited by terrifying demons.
Puck, a mischievous fairy, follows Guts around and becomes his traveling companion.
Guts’ daredevil fighting style was often feared as if he were a mad warrior.
Years earlier, Guts had been a mercenary.
He was a bastard born from the belly of a corpse, picked up by a mercenary who happened to be passing by, but after being sold to a pervert and otherwise treated horribly, he murdered his adoptive father and ran away from the encampment. This experience had a serious impact on his character development, turning Guts from a pure boy into a difficult man.
While traveling around the battlefields, Guts was recruited by Griffith, the leader of the Band of the Hawk, a group of mercenaries.
Griffith won on the condition that he would only join if he lost in a sword fight, and Guts won with his swordsmanship that surpassed his own.
Guts joined the Band of the Hawk, and as the leader of the band of hawks, he achieved many feats of valor.
The mercenaries of the Band of the Hawk, who at first rebelled against Guts and constantly lashed out at him, gradually recognized his abilities and accepted him as one of their own.
Guts, who had lost his resolve to continue killing as Griffith ordered, decided to quit the Band of the Hawk and said goodbye to his comrades.
Shocked by his best friend’s betrayal, Griffith embraces the princess in desperation, incurring the wrath of the King of Midland, who had doted on his daughter. The king imprisoned Griffith underground and tortured him for several years, and then arranged for the Band of the Hawk to be executed as renegades.
Hearing of the Band of the Hawk’s misfortune, Guts rescues Griffith with the help of the princess. Griffith is a crippled man who cannot even speak, and he is in deep despair at the realization that he cannot even kill himself.
At the same time, a natural cataclysm occurs, opening a door to another world.
BERSERK | Recommendations
“BERSERK” is set in an ancient Norse-style world and depicts the revenge journey of Guts, who bears a huge sword, the Dragon Slayer, and has won the hearts of many readers with its gritty style that does not hesitate to depict cruelty.
If you like manga, this is one work you must read. The story continues to unfold in a shocking and unpredictable manner, not to mention the wonderful artwork.
The artwork, worldview, and characters are all drawn at an overwhelmingly high level, and I wonder how many works have been influenced by all of these elements. His contribution to the world is extraordinary.
It is a great pity that the work was never completed, but that does not diminish its excellence.
If you have not read it, please do so. It is a blockbuster work of dark fantasy that has been serialized for more than 30 years and has been adapted into an anime several times.
© Kentaro Miura (Studio GAGA)・Hakusensya / BERSERK FILM PARTNERS
