Berserk is awesome as hell
Anyone seeing the box for Berserk in their local DVD store could be forgiven for assuming it was another hacking, slashing, super-gory action show meant solely for the hardcore anime fan. Those who take a chance and sit down for more than one or two episodes will surely notice: there is much more interesting stuff beneath the surface. While epic in appearance, Berserk is a very personal story of friendship, ambition, and betrayal. It stands out as one of the most compelling extended works of animation I've ever witnessed
To be fair, the out-of-place first episode will throw some people off. The main character, Guts enters the series as a battle-scarred mountain of a man with a sword that's larger than he is. His swordfighting consists of basically crushing foes with the weight of his blade. Tormented by the voices of demons, he hunts them down to exact sadistic, bloody vengeance for their crimes against man.
It's a pretty grim opening, but episode two has a complete change of mood. We flash back to a much younger Guts, long before the traumatic events that led to the beginning of the series. In fact, the rest of Berserk is a flashback showing us what led Guts to become such a terrifying, intense figure.
Young Guts is shown to be a directionless, troubled youth who challenges people to fights at the drop of a hat, clearly wishing to die at the hand of a stronger fighter. That fighter turns out to be Griffith, the charismatic leader of a band of mercenaries. Despite Griffith's "pretty-boy" appearance and friendly demeanor, he's more capable than Guts anticipates. Despite his wishes, Guts gets roped into fighting as one of Griffith's soldiers.
The remainder of the story follows Griffith's band as they advance and make a name for themselves, but focuses primarily on the friendship between the two lead characters. Guts is soon impressed by Griffith's combat skill and ambition. Assisting his new leader gives him a sense of direction and satisfaction, as well as the role-model that he always needed. Griffith is harder to read. It's often not clear to what degree he views Guts as a tool for his own great ends, or as a much needed friend and confidante.
Trapped between these two men is the only notable female character, Casca. She is Griffith's second in command, and has a strong one-sided love for him. Guts' arrival makes her jealous of the favor he recieves from Griffith. Casca is an extremely capable warrior, but her desire to succeed in battle only seems to exist because she thinks it's the only way to win the respect of the man she loves.
Some people have complained that Casca isn't exactly a progressive depiction of women. When it becomes a plot point that she is having "female troubles", that certainly doesn't help matters. The world of Berserk is a world of men, and she just happens to be caught in the middle of it. However, far from being a cardboard cut-out, Casca has her own struggle. Much like Guts and Griffith, she has to confront the life she leads and ask "What is its purpose?".
I've seen many anime series that are emotionally driven, but they are almost exclusively aimed at women. It is often assumed that male viewers don't care about such things and just want to see action and plot. The cult popularity of Berserk shows that there is room for a male-oriented series that cares more about "why" than "why, what, where, and when". Not to say that Berserk is short on action. The show is packed with military battles, royal intrigue, and extremely bloody swordfighting. In fact, the gore is so strong at points that it risks turning off many viewers who would otherwise enjoy the show.
As the plot reaches its conclusion, the series becomes gradually darker, building up to the bloodbath of the last two episodes. It's only here that the beginning of the show starts to make sense. The intro was a warning, without which the sheer horror of these final episodes would seem to have come out of nowhere. The ambitions of Guts and Griffith cannot remain in harmony forever, and when their friendship threatens to break down, it takes on literally apocalyptic significance.
The ending has angered many, abruptly stopping at the most agonizing, pivotal moment of the entire story. Berserk shouldn't have ended anywhere else. It's a superb, bloody tragedy, and having an extremely unhappy ending doesn't make it unsatisfying. Aside from perhaps Boogiepop Phantom, I've never seen a television series that took me on such a compelling ride.
I know a lot of people who "don't watch anime", but Berserk avoids a lot of the common turn-offs that bother most people about Japanese animation. Its universe is very western in style, and the setup isn't very complicated, which makes the show easier to pick up and follow. It also has none of the cutesy comic relief that tends to much up many anime series. The English dub is also extremely good, and fits the setting better than the original Japanese.
Now that the whole series is available in a very cheap thin-pak DVD collecion, it's never been easier to see (Its only 25 episodes, and you can probably get it from Netflix as well). If that's not enough to entice you, each disc contains a long, hilarious reel of voice actor out-takes and improvisations that would be worth buying on a disc by themselves.
To be fair, the out-of-place first episode will throw some people off. The main character, Guts enters the series as a battle-scarred mountain of a man with a sword that's larger than he is. His swordfighting consists of basically crushing foes with the weight of his blade. Tormented by the voices of demons, he hunts them down to exact sadistic, bloody vengeance for their crimes against man.
It's a pretty grim opening, but episode two has a complete change of mood. We flash back to a much younger Guts, long before the traumatic events that led to the beginning of the series. In fact, the rest of Berserk is a flashback showing us what led Guts to become such a terrifying, intense figure.
Young Guts is shown to be a directionless, troubled youth who challenges people to fights at the drop of a hat, clearly wishing to die at the hand of a stronger fighter. That fighter turns out to be Griffith, the charismatic leader of a band of mercenaries. Despite Griffith's "pretty-boy" appearance and friendly demeanor, he's more capable than Guts anticipates. Despite his wishes, Guts gets roped into fighting as one of Griffith's soldiers.
The remainder of the story follows Griffith's band as they advance and make a name for themselves, but focuses primarily on the friendship between the two lead characters. Guts is soon impressed by Griffith's combat skill and ambition. Assisting his new leader gives him a sense of direction and satisfaction, as well as the role-model that he always needed. Griffith is harder to read. It's often not clear to what degree he views Guts as a tool for his own great ends, or as a much needed friend and confidante.
Trapped between these two men is the only notable female character, Casca. She is Griffith's second in command, and has a strong one-sided love for him. Guts' arrival makes her jealous of the favor he recieves from Griffith. Casca is an extremely capable warrior, but her desire to succeed in battle only seems to exist because she thinks it's the only way to win the respect of the man she loves.
Some people have complained that Casca isn't exactly a progressive depiction of women. When it becomes a plot point that she is having "female troubles", that certainly doesn't help matters. The world of Berserk is a world of men, and she just happens to be caught in the middle of it. However, far from being a cardboard cut-out, Casca has her own struggle. Much like Guts and Griffith, she has to confront the life she leads and ask "What is its purpose?".
I've seen many anime series that are emotionally driven, but they are almost exclusively aimed at women. It is often assumed that male viewers don't care about such things and just want to see action and plot. The cult popularity of Berserk shows that there is room for a male-oriented series that cares more about "why" than "why, what, where, and when". Not to say that Berserk is short on action. The show is packed with military battles, royal intrigue, and extremely bloody swordfighting. In fact, the gore is so strong at points that it risks turning off many viewers who would otherwise enjoy the show.
As the plot reaches its conclusion, the series becomes gradually darker, building up to the bloodbath of the last two episodes. It's only here that the beginning of the show starts to make sense. The intro was a warning, without which the sheer horror of these final episodes would seem to have come out of nowhere. The ambitions of Guts and Griffith cannot remain in harmony forever, and when their friendship threatens to break down, it takes on literally apocalyptic significance.
The ending has angered many, abruptly stopping at the most agonizing, pivotal moment of the entire story. Berserk shouldn't have ended anywhere else. It's a superb, bloody tragedy, and having an extremely unhappy ending doesn't make it unsatisfying. Aside from perhaps Boogiepop Phantom, I've never seen a television series that took me on such a compelling ride.
I know a lot of people who "don't watch anime", but Berserk avoids a lot of the common turn-offs that bother most people about Japanese animation. Its universe is very western in style, and the setup isn't very complicated, which makes the show easier to pick up and follow. It also has none of the cutesy comic relief that tends to much up many anime series. The English dub is also extremely good, and fits the setting better than the original Japanese.
Now that the whole series is available in a very cheap thin-pak DVD collecion, it's never been easier to see (Its only 25 episodes, and you can probably get it from Netflix as well). If that's not enough to entice you, each disc contains a long, hilarious reel of voice actor out-takes and improvisations that would be worth buying on a disc by themselves.