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Berserk
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Alternative Titles

English: Berserk

Synonyms: Berserk: The Prototype

Japanese: ベルセルク

Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: Unknown

Chapters: Unknown

Status: Publishing

Published: Aug 25, 1989 to ?

Genres: Action, Adventure, Demons, Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Supernatural, Military, Psychological, Seinen

Authors: Miura, Kentarou (Story & Art)

Serialization: Young Animal

Statistics

Score: 9.36¹ (scored by 181,345 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #1²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #2

Members: 387,476

Favorites: 77,725

9.36

Ranked #1Popularity #2Members 387,476

MangaYoung AnimalMiura, Kentarou (Story & Art)

Volumes: /?

Chapters: /?

* Your list is public by default.

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Synopsis

Guts, a former mercenary now known as the "Black Swordsman," is out for revenge. After a tumultuous childhood, he finally finds someone he respects and believes he can trust, only to have everything fall apart when this person takes away everything important to Guts for the purpose of fulfilling his own desires. Now marked for death, Guts becomes condemned to a fate in which he is relentlessly pursued by demonic beings.

Setting out on a dreadful quest riddled with misfortune, Guts, armed with a massive sword and monstrous strength, will let nothing stop him, not even death itself, until he is finally able to take the head of the one who stripped him—and his loved one—of their humanity.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Included one-shot:
Volume 14: Berserk: The Prototype

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Background

Berserk won the Award for Excellence at the sixth installment of Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2002.

The series has over 40 million copies in print worldwide and has been published in English by Dark Horse since November 4, 2003. It is also published in Italy, Germany, Spain, France, Brazil, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Poland, México and Turkey.

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Related Manga

Other:	Berserk: Shinen no Kami 2
Adaptation:	Berserk: Ougon Jidai-hen I - Haou no Tamago, Berserk: Ougon Jidai-hen III - Kourin, Kenpuu Denki Berserk, Berserk, Berserk 2nd Season, Berserk: Ougon Jidai-hen II - Doldrey Kouryaku, Berserk (Movie Pilot)
Spin-off:	Berserk: Honoo Ryuu no Kishi

More characters
Characters

Guts

Main

Griffith

Main

Casca

Main

Schierke

Main

Puck

Main

Serpico

Main

de Vandimion, Farnese

Main

Isidro

Main

The Skull Knight

Supporting

Judeau

Supporting

More reviewsReviews

Apr 29, 2008

295 of ? chapters read

Overall Rating: 10

TheCriticsClub (All reviews)

1636 people found this review helpful

Story - 9.38

The first three volumes may discourage some of the readers because it's starts off kind of slow and the initial artwork is not quite up to today's standards. However, after the reader begins the Golden Age arc it is nearly impossible to not be pulled in and become addicted to the series. It is chock-full of action, drama, character development, twists and turns, and just a dash of romance. It defies generalization and is just damn good storytelling.

After the Gold Age arc wraps up the story come back full circle to where it left us at the end of volume 3. But by read more

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Jun 7, 2013

347 of ? chapters read

Overall Rating: 7

Polyphemus (All reviews)

1188 people found this review helpful

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

This series already gets plenty of praise, so I will mostly focus on criticism for this review, despite the fact that I do have plenty of positive things to say about Berserk. I want to make a review that will be legitimately helpful to people, rather than simply echoing the beliefs of every other reviewer on here. Look at the myriad "10" reviews for raving about how amazing it is, there is plenty of that already. This series does not get nearly enough proper criticism. Please read the whole thing before marking the review "helpful" or "not helpful." Because if you don't read more

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Sep 30, 2010

Unknown of ? chapters read

Overall Rating: 10

qrdel (All reviews)

814 people found this review helpful

"Have you ever hated someone so much, that this feeling alone would drive you to do horrific and impossible to grasp things?
Have you ever hated someone so much, that your whole life was focused on finding that person and ripping him apart?
Have you ever hated someone so much, that you would forget about your humanity, purge it all just to find enough power, for one, single fraction of a moment, one chance to get your revenge...

What would your eyes look like in that very moment...? Insane? Terrified? Passionate? Happy? Or maybe... satisfied...

Look into his eyes, and find nothing there..."

When I first learned that there is something like Berserk manga, I was a bit surprised. That was some 7 years ago and little did I know about relations between anime and manga. Either way, I took my chances and downloaded several first volumes.
You can imagine my surprise when I noticed that the manga is a far cry from the anime which really made my day some time ago. Having struggled through the first chapters I moved on to the next volumes. You know, the anime itself is, in all its ingenuity, only a small fraction of the whole manga... As small as several volumes with some deleted scenes and a bit redone ending at that. However, by the moment I reached 'the anime plotline' in manga (which is volume 3) I got already interested in the manga itself.

I think that there's no point in summarising the plot. You can read it above, and for the sake of not spoiling anything, I think you should. You have to, however know this: Berserk manga, in terms of plotline and characters development - is by far the best manga I have ever read, the most complete one, the most multi-dimensional one, the most memorable one... Nowhere else will you be told the stories of sub characters so bluntly and yet discreet that you won't even notice. Nowhere else will you receive such a huge dose of information, and yet still be able to comprehend it effortlessly. This is something uncanny, and frankly, I doubt that anyone ever will be able to reach the level.

The characters are just great. On one hand we have Gutts and Griffith, shades of black and white, fire and water. Being so different, neither can live without the other one. They're like Yin and Yang, two halves of the same coin - even in his darkest moments Griffith still finds himself as Gutts' friend, although few minutes later this friendship changes into hatred and horrific envy. Their whole story is like that, they start off as great friends who would die for each other with smiling face, but only one of them is really committed here.
Characters shine even more when we consider other protagonists and antagonists. No person is left shallow and without a story to tell. Miura-sempai explains everything in a given time and briefly enough to keep you interested. Unlike in other titles where antagonists exist only to serve as a powerup training bag for the protagonist, here all demons have their motives. Even the smallest monster is explained, by which you get attached, even to such scumbags.

The story itself is brutal, broody and hectic sometimes. But you never really lose the track if it. You can have two mini-arcs in one mayor arc, but you'll always remember what the team's real destination is. In this way, Miura-sempai makes it clear to you, that Gutts, although a little less passionately, follows his path and even if he was to be destroyed, he would neither falter nor go back. And the same goes for Griffith, who despite his appearance (nowhere else will you notice that appearance is deceitful so much as in Berserk) is a very strong-willed and straight-forward character. And in all this, having seen all the atrocities that happen in Midland, you never ever think of Griffith as the wrong one. He's not wrong, he's just following his dream, a dream that was clouded with Gutts appearance in his life.

The art itself, is a state of art to watch and read. Detailed panels, hundreds of characters on one page during a hectic battle, highly textured monsters and what I love the most - fluid, realistic and clear fighting scenes. You don't need Kubo trolling with ink to see that Gutts has his speed even despite the weight of his sword. You don't need hundreds of straight lines to increase the dynamics of the scene - Miura-sensei manages it all without a loss in quality.
Facial expressions are something completely else. Even if you cannot follow the plot for some weird reason you can always judge whether the character is good or bad by just looking at his or her face. Those are very detailed and so rich in expressions that you never get bored. You can feel the difference between smooth and angelic appearance of Griffith and a brute, yet kind rectangular face of Gutts.

The mangaka puts a lot of effort into shade and light in Berserk. By that we get a very distinctive nights, sunshines and sunsets as well as dynamic shadows (however awkward it sounds) that no anime director can mime. It's simply sensational to look at all that and even be able to read the story of it... It is clear to me, that Miura-sensei is trying to end up with a sort of masterpiece in terms of manga. And you know what? He's pretty close to achieving this.

There are, however, some bad points too. The manga is not for everyone. I would strictly add parental advisory and 18+ to it. Nowhere else will you see so much nudity, sex and violence as in this manga. It's not a hentai-like nudity and sex though. Berserk shows a violent world with all its aspects, hence these parts were as relevant as any other to make the story as believable as possible.

I'm glad I was able to read the manga. It's one of the best titles ever, if not the best so far. I sincerely hope though, that Miura-sensei lives up to the expectations and finishes this story in a fitting way. Judging by his up-to-date work, it's more than possible.

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May 3, 2010

312 of ? chapters read

Overall Rating: 10

Cobbles (All reviews)

423 people found this review helpful

Berserk: best manga of all the time or GREATEST manga ever? This isn't up for debate, its written in stone.

The story is incredible in every way imaginable. It starts out with a few small arcs featuring the Black Swordsman named Guts who hunts down demons known as Apostles. We aren't really sure why he does this at the beginning but the mangaka, Miura indicates that there is a lot of history between Guts and these Apostles. The setting is realistic fantasy at first with dashes of supernatural and high-fantasy elements sprinkled here and there. Guts doesn't appear as a very likable protagonist at first. He's rude, cynical, wooden and somewhat insane. The only definite characters are him and his elf sidekick, Puck. There is definitely a strong sense of mystery at first with Guts' motives being hinted at very subtlety as he makes his way through these self-contained arcs. There are no real characters that one can attach themselves to and the tone is extremely bleak. Themes such as existentialism are brought up quite often as the audience wonders why Guts continues at what seems to be a hopeless goal. Its eventually revealed that he has a personal vendetta against one of the God-Hands named Femto, one of the 5 deities of the Berserk universe.

As soon as this is revealed, the manga goes into a very long flashback of Guts' entire life up to the present. It explains how he joined a mercenary group called The Band of the Hawk and became friends with the leader, Griffith. We see that Guts' enjoyed his life with the Band, and was friends with many of the mercenaries. Themes such as comradeship, identity and love are brought up which is stark contrast with the themes in the present. While reading all this, there is a nagging sensation that the audience hears at the back of their heads: this can't last. Miura skillfully throws in elements into the story and brings them up again much later. Its all masterfully weaved together, and as the past starts to catch up with the present, you can't help but dread the outcome of it all. And finally when the Eclipse rolls around, all sorts of emotions surge up such as sorrow and anger. It all comes full circle when the audience realizes that it was foreshadowed since day 1. Ladies and gentlemen, this is what we call masterful storytelling, and the best part is that its only one-third of the story. Truth be told, the manga could have ended after volume 13 and it would still be spectacular but Miura goes the extra several miles and turns Berserk in the stuff of legends.

The characters in Berserk are phenomenal and are expertly written. Many characters undergo vast changes, and it all feels natural and not forced at all. Despite how they all appear at first, you can't help but come to like them all, shortcomings and flaws be damned. Guts becomes one of the best protagonists after a while, a true tragic hero in every meaning of the phrase. It really is a pleasure just to see all the characters interact and to see all their quirks. A chapter can be filled with nothing but dialogue and exposition, and it will be every bit as interesting and compelling as the action-packed chapters. The characters and story go hand in hand, they are all products of their environment and fit so well with the setting. All the fantastical elements fit just as well if not better. Berserk doesn't really require that much suspense of disbelief at first but once you get into it, it doesn't really matter what it pulls, it all seems possible and the sky is limit.

The art is easily some of the best I've ever seen in a manga. The level of detail in the drawings is absolutely insane, everything looks so good. Characters all look great and have their own style and flavor. Faces are never recycled and even background characters all have a distinct look from each other. One of my favorite parts of the drawings are the eyes, their not overtly huge like in most anime and manga, but have a unique design that fits the characters well. Its not ultra realistic like Vagabond or Blade of the Immortal, yet the artstyle it sports is just as good if not better.

Overall, Berserk is easily the best manga I have ever read. From its well developed and written characters to its deep and intricate plot. There's loads of action, blood, gore, nudity, violence, horrific monster designs and I love every bit of it. Truth is all the extreme elements of this manga simply play second fiddle to the characters and story. There is no manga out there that has captivated me like Berserk, it has no equal. I don't even need to read every manga in existence to tell you that. You could take it as fanboy rambling, but I'm not kidding you when I say Berserk is a masterpiece in every sense of the word. If you have the time to read this review, than you sure as hell have enough time to open a new tab and read the first few chapters of Berserk. You won't regret it!

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