Episode 371

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Episode 371 will be published in Young Animal #24, slated to be released on December 9.

I'm making the thread a bit early because the preview on Young Animal's website indicates that episode 371 will be the conclusion to the Elf island chapter. We were unsure of whether it was already over or not until now due to their previous announcement that specifically stated six episodes would be published to close the chapter. In addition, there will be a color page.

YA2022-24-preview.jpg


RELEASES: December 9, 2022
DIGITAL STORE: Hakusensha-e (Price: 470円 / $3.5)
PHYSICAL COPY: Buy from Amazon Japan (Price: around $20 shipping included)

This episode is part of the new serialization of Berserk that is being done without Kentarou Miura. It's based on some of the material he left behind as well as what he had told his close ones of the story over the years. Kouji Mori, his best friend and a fellow mangaka, writes and supervises the series while his former assistants draw it under the banner of Studio Gaga.

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Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
So YA counted the double release as one episode, huh?

Yeah it seems so, which kinda defeats the point of having made them into 2 episodes. :sweatdrop: Although I guess it's also possible they realized partway through that they needed more space and just made an additional episode. Either way, at least we should get to see Schierke talk to Guts, presumably to tell him there's a reason he couldn't hit Griffith and that maybe with magic, he can be made vulnerable.
 

Rhombaad

Video Game Time Traveler
It's weird. The last two episodes left such a bad taste in my mouth, I'm both looking forward to reading the new one and not. I'm curious to glean what little morsels I can from it, as far as what Miura intended, but I feel like I have to wade through so much awful stuff to get there.
 
I think it depends on how much Miura told Mori. The less Mori knows and decides to invent, the worse things are going to get.
Do you think things might improve as the story proceeds? The way I figure it, these episodes are going over from what Miura told Mori a long time ago, so his memories might not be the clearest, but as we get closer and closer to the end Mori's recollections will be clearer as the conversations he had with Miura might have been more recent.
 

Grail

Feel the funk blast
Do you think things might improve as the story proceeds? The way I figure it, these episodes are going over from what Miura told Mori a long time ago, so his memories might not be the clearest, but as we get closer and closer to the end Mori's recollections will be clearer as the conversations he had with Miura might have been more recent.
Speaking for myself, I'm much more invested in seeing Mori's notes about what came directly from Miura, and what gaps were filled in by the team. At this point, I can't dedicate a lot of energy to analyzing inconsistencies with characterization, pacing and themes, as they've been ever-present in the continuation since it started, but I will say that I feel these problems probably won't see much improvement (I do still hope that they prove me wrong, though! :slan::daiba:)

Also, not to get too far into the weeds of the possible whens and wheres of Mori's conversations with Miura, but it's possible that they might not have all happened in the chronological order of intended series events. I do hope Mori talks a lot more about his conversations with Miura in the future, so we can have some more context!
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Do you think things might improve as the story proceeds? The way I figure it, these episodes are going over from what Miura told Mori a long time ago, so his memories might not be the clearest, but as we get closer and closer to the end Mori's recollections will be clearer as the conversations he had with Miura might have been more recent.

If you check what Mori said when the continuation was announced, he learned about the storyline "nearly 30 years ago", back when Miura drew the Eclipse. Of course, they kept talking about things over the years, but that was about parts of the story that were current at the time, from what he's saying. Based on that, you probably shouldn't hold your breath. If anything, I'd say it would be reasonable to assume the part of the story they all knew the most about was the end of the Elf island chapter. We saw how that went. The unknown factor in that equation is the notes and sketches Miura left behind. In theory, they could go a long way. In theory.
 

DANGERDOOOOM

Rest In Peace, Kentaro Miura. We will miss you.
I'm still hoping their story and character development will improve. Especially if they're continuing the 'Berserk' name. Though, so far this is in much doubt, I deeply wish that we either get a series with a different title, or we just get the "official" ending summary Mori has remembered from Miura Sensei,

I do love Berserk immensely, and it saddens me that I want it to end with just a summary of the final conclusion without any context of what happens before-hand. But I am feeling a lost sense of compassion with this story and its updates with every release; it's killing me. :judo:

I retain little hope from this next chapter...

I never though I'd say this, but I miss Miura's 9 month hiatuses, only if it would give us a decent crumb of his brilliance.
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
I don't mean this hyperbolically, but this was probably the most superfluous episode of Berserk. Not every episode can be filled with surprises. But this added nothing from where we were left in 370. I've got nothing to chew on. :chomp:

Schierke didn't need to dive into Guts' mind (is that how it works?) to convey that Guts was down in the dumps. No unique information was gleaned from that encounter (neither for her nor readers), so I'm still wondering why they even introduced the low-stakes problem of the door being blocked. Was this scenario contrived just so Schierke could feel a bit of Guts' desolation and put words to it? And was the whirlpool's appearance also added expressly so she could mingle those feelings with a convenient and thematic visual? Because I doubt that thing is going to smash the ship to pieces in the next episode.

I don't think the "beast snapping chains" imagery made much sense here. Those chains represented Guts' friends. His friends are still here. I've seen some misguided talk elsewhere that this is the moment the beast will seize to take control. But the Beast isn't a foreign entity. It represents the aspect of Guts' trauma that is ravenous for revenge. So right now, it should be subdued by this desolate feeling, not enraged. If we were to see it right now, it would likely be portrayed as an absolutely adorable yappy pup. :beast:So reminding us that it was once a ravenous monster sends the wrong message for where Guts is right now.

Speaking just of the broad strokes, Casca landing back on the continent and in the midst of Griffith's cohorts is a big deal. The haze around where Miura would take things after the island is starting to clear, after close to 20 years of wondering what would happen after Casca is restored. We're taking our first steps down that path now instead of wondering about it.

It's just kind of a bummer that they didn't seize this opportunity to do anything at all with the new possibility space for her. Because I think every reader could have connected the dots for where Casca was headed once she was whisked away. So having her arrive in Falconia in the company of (nearly) all of Falconia's main cast does nothing other than confirm that yes, Casca is now in Falconia. And yes, there are apostles there. Of course that's a necessary thing to establish to begin the new dynamic, but they could have done that obvious bit AND turned the page on those expectations in the same release (Ex: Casca is in Falconia, and so NOW....!). Instead, we have an anticlimax just as the Elf Island Chapter ends, though there was no indication of it on the page. I guess I should probably just shut up about that detail at this point, yeah?
 
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Echoing Walter here, it definitely felt like a nothing episode and I was shocked at how quickly it was over. I felt like the previous episode made for a poor conclusion to the Elf Island Chapter (when we thought it MIGHT have been the final one) but honestly, it's better ending point than this.

I was happy to see that the Beast of Darkness was acknowledged, even if it doesn't make the most sense in this context (at least it wasn't forgotten about!). I'd say it might have been the conclusion to thoughts of despair Guts was having, leading to Griffith and then to a pure Beast of Darkness rage that pushes even Shierke out of his mind. But then we see him still laying out on the ground in despair-mode...so that's not so likely.

Griffith returning to Falconia didn't add much of anything. Falconia's port (I don't recall that being a thing previously) was kind of cool and it's neat to see more sections of the city. The ominous black dome was hinted at again, it would be nice to get some more info on it while we're transitioned here in Falconia. The other detail i noticed was when Griffith arrives with Casca there is a close up shot of Sonia's eye seemingly noticing Casca. Whether this was just a reaction to seeing Griffith with yet another woman or if she saw something through clairvoyance remains to be seen. Either way, I hope they are setting up something interesting for her character involving Casca.
 
I've got my hopes so up for this episode and it was as dull as it can.

When the chains broke I was sure the best of darkness is going to be releashed, and Guts going full on Berserk might be a suitable ark finale, but no, he's just laying there depressed. What a shame. :chomp:
Also, still no mention of casca in Guts' mind? really? its a conscious choice at this point. I hope its a setup for later events (maybe HE will the one who suffer amnesia this time? I don't know...
Also art-wise, this episode is a bit lackluster, and Sonia look completly off - she looks like a little child and her eyes are very different from Miura's. It might be because she's an apostle now?:magni: your guess is a good as mine.


All in all, i'm a bit dissapointed from the continuation now, up untill 369 I really wanted to belive it'll work out - but after that ark finale I'm just here for the answers. This is by any means not Miura's Berserk. may his soul rest in peace.
 
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I don't have a lot to say about this one. Like Walter said, it feels superfluous. No new info was gleaned, nothing was developed. You could have stuck the pages of Griffith returning on the end of 370 and nothing meaningful would be lost. I'd rather they have spent more time with Griffith talking to Locus and Grunbeld to allude to what comes next for Casca.
 
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