At the end of the day, we are left with a pale imitation. And I don't mean that as any slight towards Studio Gaga. It is a credit to them that they can stylistically emulate their sensei's artwork, but Miura's use of panelling and full page spreads were in a class of their own. They're also trying to frame a story from a second-hand source, which is why a lot of it feels half-baked and underwritten. That said, it was partly their decision to take up the mantle. The manga didn't necessarily need a continuation.
The art is really the least of my concerns. It looks fine. Even if there's some "off" looking faces and lazy backgrounds sometimes, it's still a lot better than I ever could've hoped honestly. Every episode so far has had at least one standout page I really like (in this episode it is the page of Guts' arm extending out as Griffith and Zodd become a small white speck in the sky).
Look at how well it went when either Griffith or Locus ordered Rakshas to kill Rickert.
There are so many ways Griffith could have Guts killed that I don't think this is an issue. He can send an army after him, or have one of his God Hand buddies kill him, and so on.
It's the difference between adding inconsequential stuff for the sake of making it readable and adding whole new plot events and character developments that go far beyond what Mori knew from Miura, I guess.
Okay "inconsequential" was probably a poor choice of words. Every little choice they make will inevitably influence how the project feels, and you in particular have already gone over the dire consequences at length. I'm more just saying that to our knowledge they aren't inventing and big new story beats. Most of what they've assumedly added is probably in an effort to gloss over things they don't know, which has its own effect on the story. This isn't "Mori writes Berserk while using his memories of what Miura told him as an outline to build on", it's "Mori sticks closely to what he remembers, perhaps to a fault, while only adding the bare minimum to make the story comprehensible (which has its own negative effects by way omission and not leaving room for things that could've otherwise happened)".
The whole sequence doesn't really hold up to scrutiny if you pick it apart too much. It's like you guys said in the podcast, why do all the other magical creatures sense Griffith coming but not Danan? Why would the merrows have a premonition of catastrophe and not the Gurus who have specifically been mentioned has having the powers of divination before? Why didn't Isma's mother warn her if this "oracle" came well before Griffith emerged, and why didn't Roderick send his messenger sooner? How is Roderick's crew already prepared to leave if the "oracle" only happened like three minutes earlier? The whole thing would need to be rewritten a bit for this to make any sense.
What I meant by "non-Miura additions" was Mori adding elaborate set pieces, such as what I used as an example, despite it not being something Miura explicitly told him would happen. I'm not saying Miura himself wouldn't have included such a scene, in fact I feel like it was probably something that would've happened. What 'm saying is, Mori is not making logical assumptions about how characters would act and what they would do to create scenes, instead he's just handwaving them if he's not sure what Miura had in mind. It's why Schierke and Farnese disappear instead of putting up a resistance.
The dialogue almost certainly is, this episode has made that much abundantly clear, but the basics of "Skull Knight saves Isidro and co." or "Roderick makes to leave the island" may well have been a part of what Mori knew, which is more what I'm talking about. They will of course have to make up specific details themselves, but it is not quite the same as making whole new scenes based on assumptions. The ramifications they have on the story are similar though, so yeah, maybe the distinction is not so important.
Yeah, the biggest question for me about this whole thing is how they could possibly do a whole new storyline like this. There are already massive holes showing after only four episodes, and surely that can only get worse the further we get from Miura's work. I doubt anyone here isn't apprehensive.
)Here me out on this: It's interesting to see Guts actually succumb to despair after reacting to rage at every injustice inflicted upon him. Everything he went through, everything he did, slowly wrecking his body to the Berserker Armor, just to get her to Elfhelm. When he was at his happiest, Casca was with him. Casca helped him to grow as a person. And all this just to have the one who took her away from her take her away *yet again*. How would you react to that? To see exactly what you've always feared come to pass? Would you immediately get angry? I doubt it. I'm pretty sure he's still in shock, given that the last 4 episodes have taken place over the course of 2-3 minutes. I'm actually surprised at how much negativity there is here surrounding the good intentions the team has here; There's literally nobody on earth more suited to continue Berserk than Studio Gaga and Kouji Mori. Frankly, I'm disappointed by all the pushback here. I haven't been reading Berserk for as long as some of you guys have, but I can honestly say I can accept this continuation so far.To expand on this, it makes me wonder HOW can they be so far off the mark with their assumptions - like Aazealh mentions, Isidro's character was fully and entirely betrayed - his bravery and reliability were replaced by cowardice, in effect killing all the progress Miura did on his character through the series. The same goes for the remaining members of the cast (well, those who actually got panel time).
But most of all, I think the biggest injustice was done to Guts.
Unless Miura specifically told Mori that Guts lost all of his will to fight after realizing he cannot touch Griffith (yet), it is so out of character for him to just watch his arch nemesis fly away, and with Casca in arms, to boot. He has always been a struggler, but this episode portrays him as a mere quitter, and it feels so terribly wrong. Given his track record, it's so much more likely he'd either fight until incapacitated one way or the other - the painful foreshadowing during his training session on the island showing the toll on his body from using the armour comes to mind - or that Danan/Shierke/Farnesse would (just barely) manage to stop him from being engulfed by the armor's odd again, which would mean he cannot continue the pursuit and would need to regroup and plan his next move with the others (after dealing with the invasion/escaping with the survivors).
I feel like we'd almost certainly see Griffith x Zodd x Guts x SK face off in some shape or form, with assistance from Danan and the gurus, at the very least.
I think Aazealh already said everything there was to say regarding SK's downright laughable appearance in this episode - I wish I could erase those scenes from my memory. They make you wonder why he'd bother with small fries when Griffith is around - and even have inner thoughts on it???? - but it also does a big disservice to the group that was 'rescued' because it makes them look infantile and entirely incompetent in one of the most crucial moments in the story. How could they miss the mark so heavily there?
The team don't appear to have a very good comprehension and grasp of Berserk's characters, their mannerisms and the immense growth they went through over the past 40 volumes, and I feel that, at this rate, and despite their best intentions, they'll be dishonouring - rather than honouring - Miura's legacy. And it's heartbreaking to see panels of Guts watching with desolation on his (poorly drawn) face instead of being the first to act.
My one and last hope now is that Mori will eventually be willing to give an interview to someone (Archipel would be ideal in my mind) about exactly how much and what he remembers. But yea, a long shot.
(Also, shouldn't Casca be bleeding heavily from her brand given her proximity to the one who cast it on her?
I'm more and more reluctant and scared to continue reading because every new episode just tramples on everything Miura has built over the past decades.
That the team has good intentions or is putting in effort doesn't necessarily mean they're doing a good job or that we owe them our approval. For my part, I respect them for trying to carry on their mentor's work, but the results have been disappointing so far. Not because they're not at Miura's level (no one expected them to be) but because this continuation simply isn't good, as many members here demonstrated with their points. The difference with Miura's work only underscores that drop.
I never said he'd go into full blind rage / angry mode. I just don't think he'd throw in the towel without so much as trying to pursue in some way. Like I said, he is not a quitter. If you think it's understandable for him to break so easily and quickly under pressure in one of the most pivotal turning points in the story, you might have not been paying enough attention while reading.
Exactly. He's a man of action first and foremost.
