What do you think of Berserk then and now?

[EvilSniffles]

there are two totally different manga, but both are based on fantasy type themes

[KaiserRyuujin]

Can I ask something (probably) stupid ... is Berserk and Bastard the same manga ? and Bastard just a different translation used in other countries (or some countries)?

Heh someone beat me to it Anyway I have seen people talk about Bastard though as some of their characters resemble Gutts and the Hawks from the old days. Though obviously not intentional but thats just what I have seen discussed been awhile since I have seen the two pictures compared. So I could also be mistaken on that topic.

[Gold Knight]

Never read Bastard, but no it's not the same manga

Also agreed, Gutts has companions but yeah they are far apart from the Band. I am wondering if Rickert himself will ever join with Gutts after some hard thinking of the whole situation. He was emotional at the start there after hearing about the Eclipse, so I am wondering if he will join or just stay with Erica waiting for Gutts to return to touch up his sword. But thats true, he did come out the blue for Isidro. What was kind of fun to see was someone from the past (forget his name) but recognized Gutts as "The Hundred Man Slayer" being part of the Hawks formerly. Kind of a nice touch to have that nostalgic moment.

I loved that moment too

[Silhouette]

I am not too optimistic about Rickert joining Gutts because Rickert can not hate Griffith...at least is is what Gutts said and Rickert looked shocked because he realised Gutts was right.

Why does every one hate Isidiro? he has a big mouth alright and he gets jelous from Scheirke but he has does care about her and the others. He defended Scheirke in the trolls cave when she was chanting a spell and in the city against pirates, even though she could have taken the pirates in no time, he was worried that if she did then people would know that she uses magic and attack her. plus his character fits his age, a kid would be full of him self after catching a frog imagine when he kills trolls or beats adults.

[Dragonzair]

I haven't heard of Bastard before, but I don't think they'd be the same..since the name just doesn't make sense. XD

I agree with you guys about how the artwork has really improved.

From the start, it already had amazing details, although it had the old style of Japanese anime art. But now, I'm loving evreything. REally. Like GK said. The ballroom scene was absolutely breathtaking. I kept staring at the ceiling. If you zoom in, each person in that ceiling is well drawn and detalied.

And so have the characters improved. Gutts is becoming mroe manly. Comparing it with the old first chapter, he looked a lot more 'boyish' there. And that white addition to his hair was quite weird, but I'm gettingused to it. XD Griffith's, in my opinion, looks even more XD

All in all, I'm glad I read Berserk. XD Both the now and then of BErserk, had it' ups and downs, which actually adds to the ongoing storyline. ^_^ <333333333 *glomps Berserk*

[SchmoDawg]

I'd really like to see casca die, I think it would really set guts off and would hopefully make him lose his nancy boy comradery ideas, even though I know it won't happen. It's too bad he's become such a wimp he used be so badass walking around and killing stuff just trying to find Griffith. I also wanna know more about the skull knight. To answer the question though, I liked it a lot more before guts gained all these allies [br]Posted at: April 29, 2006, 12:45:45 PM_________________________________________________

I haven't heard of Bastard before, but I don't think they'd be the same..since the name just doesn't make sense. XD

I agree with you guys about how the artwork has really improved.

Yeah, I agree with that the artwork is way better then when the manga started. haha you have to watch the anime of Bastard its cool just cause the Dark Schnieder (main character and sort of a bastard) has the same voice as Franky from One Piece, but no it is nothing like berserk beside the midevil setting.

[Kickmeister]

I loved the flashback, and I can understand why people wouldn't like where it turned.. It went from a dark manga to a more entertaining but still serious one.. Though I like it the way it is now.. I mean the comedy is priceless!
Like when Ishidoro (I think that's the kids name) stole some old mans food and the old man was all nice towards him and said that he could get one of his apples or something, then suddenly Ishidoro goes: "Ishi-drop" and knocks the old man out! That was awesome..

[Anax]

The old Berserk was more violent and all, which was fine by me. It also had the Band of the Hawks, whom I adored. Their death just killed me over. XD

I think I cried during that part... Judeau had this rogue-ish, "jack of all trades but master of none" feel to him and his death left a big hole in me. Of course, the loss of the band as band and all the events of that day were painful to me (as painful as anything can be to a reader) and I tried my best to sympathise with Gatts, although I would have properly perished in that fight, dying without even saving someone else like Judeau did...

but I have to say that I'm glad that there's less 'rape' stuff and naked people. It's somewhat distracting. I also like the new group, and Gutts has finally become more human. XD Human, in a sense that he worked with other people this time, and not for himself.

Well, rape isn't nice, but all the sex in the manga was (and is) welcome! Casca was a beauty and her sexual moments with Gatts where indeed the peak of the Golden Years in my eyes... Don't take me wrong though, I can tell the difference between a seinen adventure manga with sexual scenes and hentai. What made it all so great was the story behind it all! We followed the young couple through all their hardships and tough moments that brought them close... that day in the woods was the zenith of "the good times". I'm sorry DZ, I apologise to anyone who thinks I'm a Jiraiya, but I did love that part of Berserk... *sigh* poor couple...

I'm still hoping for more Casca interaction though.

Amen to that! I wouldn't know anything about the feeling of being raped but she shouldn't be running away from the world! She has a child to raise and a war to fight... she can't be a burden to the others forever! Again, I hope you won't this the wrong way, but Caska lost a lot of her apeal when she became a vegetable... It's hard not to complain the new, empty Caska, with the bright, beautiful, quick witted Caska of the Golden Years. Why did I mention "beautiful"? Because the way she is now she has lost all of her femininity, which is a large part of beauty (in my eyes).

And I really missed the Puck - Gutts interaction as well. The only thing I don't like now, is how Puck has gone down to a tiny humour relief. Which he was before, but he wa also mroe serious then. Now he's mre of like a side kick to Isidro, where I'd rather him be one to Gutts.

And I don't like how the manga-ka draws him now. T_______T

Puck... he was drawn chibi all the more as time and chapters went by... a pity.

Now, let me say one more thing. Now vs then, in my mind isn't just Golden Years arc vs the current arc but also Berserk before Gatts met more people and formed a party vs Berserk now. It feels like the manga grew softer in a way I don't like... No matter how hooked I am to manga like Naruto or Bleach it is obvious to me that there's no true suspense, no danger of anyone dying. The same is happening to Berserk! I distinctly remember the time Gatts met this old priest with his daughter and how they both died. I just couldn't accept that this cute little lady, who seemed to like Gatts would die so suddenly... Berserk was generally unpredictable, you didn't know if anyone other than Gatts would live or die or when for that matter. Now though, it's more like a violent version of the standard shonen manga we grew up with...

Anyhow, call me stupid but despite what I have mentioned I will continue to read Berserk and said shonen manga, and what is more: enjoy them!

[JioFreed666]

Back then I loved Guts and Caska scene

Now I like the apostles slaughting anything

[mistah radical]

Well, this topic is old but there's no traffic on this area so I guess no one cares if I comment. I just read the whole series over a couple of weeks for the first time, so it's interesting to think about. This will be full of spoilers since I'm assuming you've read everything to view this topic.

Yes, I think it's hard to not notice the huge difference in the story before Griffith becomes a God Hand and after. The manga is amazing in that not too far in we learn of the God Hands and that someone Guts once new will become one of them. It's even more amazing that then we go into the backstory of what happened. So you're reading the whole time, about these extremely complex people with their own goals and humanity even if they're what we think of as evil, like Griffith, and you know that it's a forgone conclusion that all ends in ultimate betrayal and horror. That in itself is amazing. I don't know Miura Kentaro realized how great he hooked everyone or not by revealing the end ahead of time, but it works brilliantly. There's never a dull moment in that part of the series because you analyze everything for signs of the coming doom. Also the tension between Caska and Guts is amazing. Their whole love story arc is just ridiculously believable. When they finally get together it's because they are only people for each other in the world. You know there will be problems, but they promise to love each other, and it makes sense, even with Guts still disturbed about his own rape and Caska still partially conflicted about Griffith.

I just found that the whole of that half of the series was brilliant. You never felt like anything was reaching for a new plot, there was enough plot bubbling out of the character's psyche's.

As far as after the first eclipse, well I admit I started to get confused. The event itself is a mixed-bag. Griffith is awfully quick to listen to some frickin DEMONS about what he should do with himself. He's committed some political dirty deeds, but he's actually done a lot of heroic things up until that point. Suddenly, he not only listens to strange monsters, sacrifices his loyal men, but he rapes Caska, which is almost absurd. I guess it's probably not much of a stretch to say Griffith is a repressed homosexual and wanted to destroy Guts for loving her, but again things really start to fall apart here in terms of us actually knowing that and just being left to guess. Griffith's sudden turn to the "dark side" for power is still basically a mystery other then that he really liked the idea of being king of a country. Is that enough to rape and kill everyone? What scarred his psyche to that point?

After this, the story is lacking in a footing. Guts has to wander about in the darkness trying to figure things out. Caska has been turned into a pathetic, mentally-ill lunatic, to the point of drooling on her himself, wandering off, and being a sad excuse for what was once the only women strong enough to be a leader in Griffith's army and the lover of a mad superhuman like Guts. Before she had her own dilemmas and depth, now she's... nothing... which I think for a lot of people was a disappointing direction for her. Maybe you can argue it's a set-up, we're having to put up with Caska being this disgraced for some eventual turn around where she gains a whole lot of power from it.

The only new prophecy is the king of the elf land will be able to cure her but it won't be what Guts is thinking. That's not really a motivating thing to read for. Oh boy, she'll get her mind back but something else will suck! I sort of want a new cycle to get ordained by now, like we knew the original eclipse was coming. It's more fun when you know that everything is contributed to some important fate. Right now, the whole fate of everything is a mystery, even including what the hell Griffith's life as a God Hand was and how that suddenly jumped to the whole Rebirth thing. It's a series with so many scopes, that it would be good if Miura Kentaro prepared us for the next center point of the epic rather than just leaving us wondering.

Overall, the series is incredible though. My gripes about the second half are more just because it's a bit different and requires more patience and preys on the reader more by not letting him in on what things mean. It's still quite good, and if I hadn't read the first half, would be quite good. And really isn't the only true downer how long new chapters are taking?

[JioFreed666]

holy f*** man

[xi0]

LOL

I think that I agree with everything that mistah radical says.

The only thing that I disagree with is that I think the Eclipse was an excellent way to reveal one of Berserk's main themes, Causality. It also explains why Guts is possibly the only person in the story that can go against the laws of causality. He is this way because he survived the Eclipse. The emotions that Guts experience are so genuine and raw, that you can feel them yourself. The sense of betrayal and hatred he feels is because of the Eclipse, and his journey through impossible situations only reinforce the helplessness that a man can feel. Guts still finds a way to triumph in the end though. That is what the Skull Knight saw in him, and it is what Flora saw in him as well. It's the reason Guts is still alive.

[JioFreed666]

I just said that because it was so long

[mistah radical]

haha, sorry. I just read the whole thing and was thinking about it a lot. XD

[xi0]

I just said that because it was so long

I figured that was why. But it was very smart analysis of the series in my opinion.

haha, sorry. I just read the whole thing and was thinking about it a lot. XD

Don't apologize. It's the sort of reaction I would expect from someone who was able to read the entire series.