After looking at a friend's wallpaper, I got really curious and interested about this illustration:
Searching in the forums I found this post by Griffith, from 2003:
So, what meaning/s can we extract from this picture?
It really is polysemic, and many readings can be done respecting each of its components.
The Title: The text says Dokuro no Kishi, so this attaches the image to Skull Knight, whether we like or not. Taking into account the contents of that episode, this is no surprise.
Beherit: Which Beherit could it be? The Crimson one, or a regular yellow/green/blue Beherit from your everyday apostle? The eye is open and the mouth is in a weird gesture, so it's not a "sleeping" Beherit. On the other hand, it's not arranged in the "face form" they acquire when a summoning is happening.
Is this symbol referring to "the Demons" in general? We can't relate it directly to Griffith since we don't know its color. I think it might be directed to the "evil beings" in general.
The Skull: I think this is the most obvious reference to Skull Knight. But some things are amiss... Why is it broken? Only to show part of the Beherit within? Is this a reference to the fact that Skull Knight has, literally, Beherits inside him? Or is there a much more poetic reason, something like darkness resides within Skull Knight as well?
What about the expression? This skull seems to be having a devious smile in his "face". This can' be a coincidence either.
The missing right eye: This is a direct calling to Guts, I assume. But why? Is it like Griffith said, a nod to "Skull Knight and Guts' relationship"? Now that we know that they are following a similar path, does this image gain more meaning?
The eyeball: The left eye is intact. Which is odd, since this is a skull we are talking about. My question is... Whose eye is it? Guts'? Gaiseric's? Or maybe Griffith's?
Let's take a closer look:
That eye is no regular Human eye by Miura's standards. Whose eyes looks closer to that one?
Guts' Eye:
Griffith's Eye (early in the story):
Griffith's Eye (later in the story):
I think that by comparison, the eyes Griffith have after the Incarnation are more similar. Does this mean Griffith is included also in this composition?
The Rose and the Thorns: I think this is another reference to Skull Knight. Or rather his past, which we yet know very little about. The symbolism of a Rose and its thorns is very well documented, even more if, like in this case, is portrayed as a Crown of Thorns.
Does this speak about the martyrdom of Guts' life? If he some kind of "chosen one"? Or maybe this speaks about Skull Knight's life itself? Or Griffith's? I can say without shame that I don't know.
So, sorry for so many questions and so little answers. I have to say I love this picture exactly for that.
What do you think about the subject? Why did Miura introduce it at that stage of the story? What were his intentions? Did he want us to not understand it fully? Does it have even more secret meanings?
I hope you find the subject interesting as well and I can't wait to read your thoughts about it.
Searching in the forums I found this post by Griffith, from 2003:
Griffith said:As for the image on the cover of the second DVD. That’s just a poor man’s rendition of this picture:
You can find it at the beginning of chapter 37, Skull Knight’s introductory chapter and namesake. As you can obviously see, it represents him, but it's NOT him, and it could easily represent other characters as well. I think it represents at least Skull Knight and Guts' relationship, perhaps Griffith as well.
So, what meaning/s can we extract from this picture?
It really is polysemic, and many readings can be done respecting each of its components.
The Title: The text says Dokuro no Kishi, so this attaches the image to Skull Knight, whether we like or not. Taking into account the contents of that episode, this is no surprise.
Beherit: Which Beherit could it be? The Crimson one, or a regular yellow/green/blue Beherit from your everyday apostle? The eye is open and the mouth is in a weird gesture, so it's not a "sleeping" Beherit. On the other hand, it's not arranged in the "face form" they acquire when a summoning is happening.
Is this symbol referring to "the Demons" in general? We can't relate it directly to Griffith since we don't know its color. I think it might be directed to the "evil beings" in general.
The Skull: I think this is the most obvious reference to Skull Knight. But some things are amiss... Why is it broken? Only to show part of the Beherit within? Is this a reference to the fact that Skull Knight has, literally, Beherits inside him? Or is there a much more poetic reason, something like darkness resides within Skull Knight as well?
What about the expression? This skull seems to be having a devious smile in his "face". This can' be a coincidence either.
The missing right eye: This is a direct calling to Guts, I assume. But why? Is it like Griffith said, a nod to "Skull Knight and Guts' relationship"? Now that we know that they are following a similar path, does this image gain more meaning?
The eyeball: The left eye is intact. Which is odd, since this is a skull we are talking about. My question is... Whose eye is it? Guts'? Gaiseric's? Or maybe Griffith's?
Let's take a closer look:
That eye is no regular Human eye by Miura's standards. Whose eyes looks closer to that one?
Guts' Eye:
Griffith's Eye (early in the story):
Griffith's Eye (later in the story):
I think that by comparison, the eyes Griffith have after the Incarnation are more similar. Does this mean Griffith is included also in this composition?
The Rose and the Thorns: I think this is another reference to Skull Knight. Or rather his past, which we yet know very little about. The symbolism of a Rose and its thorns is very well documented, even more if, like in this case, is portrayed as a Crown of Thorns.
Does this speak about the martyrdom of Guts' life? If he some kind of "chosen one"? Or maybe this speaks about Skull Knight's life itself? Or Griffith's? I can say without shame that I don't know.
So, sorry for so many questions and so little answers. I have to say I love this picture exactly for that.
What do you think about the subject? Why did Miura introduce it at that stage of the story? What were his intentions? Did he want us to not understand it fully? Does it have even more secret meanings?
I hope you find the subject interesting as well and I can't wait to read your thoughts about it.