Can someone please explain the Berserk Anime (original?)

I'm not sure if what I watched was the original series. There were 25 episodes. What I'd like to know is WTF? The story was great, the characters were awesome and then holy geez somebody took some acid and tripped big time. I thought it was getting a little weird when they rescued Griffith and he was all gross and disfigured, but at the end of episode 23 it just went nuckin' futs.

Can anyone provide some insight into the author's inspiration for turning the end into a bloodbath, tentacle-rape nightmare?
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
The TV series is a truncated, severely abbreviated version of a part of the original story (as told by the manga). Therefore events that make sense in the manga can be perceived as happening abruptly in the adaptation because of all the material that was removed.

My only recommendation to you would be to read the manga. It goes way, way beyond what the TV series covers. Just so you know though, the Eclipse does still happen. The Golden Age arc, that shows us Guts' life from his birth up to that point, is a lengthy flashback. The story starts before that and continues on long after, showing us what happens to him after that incident.

Dark Horse publishes it and you can find it easily on Amazon or any other shop.
 
Be warned though, the manga goes into much more detail but there is a lot of graphic wtf moments. Also if you catch up to the current release, you will be waiting months for new releases.
 
Yeah, be warned, you wont appreciate manga -or story telling at all for that matter- as much when you´ve read Berserk :iva:
...Seriously its hard finding something of equal quality.

Anyway, buy it, dude! I´ll pay you back your money if you dont like it :guts:
 
Thanks everyone for the insight into the story. I'm not exactly a newbie when it comes to anime, but I'm not a fanatic in the sense that I don't actually own any anime dvds, manga or attend any kind of "cons".

Anyway, do they sell these manga series "comic books" in an English format? Or is it all reading back to front and whatnot? Not that I wouldn't read it like that but...
 

Walter

Administrator
Staff member
RickertFTW said:
Anyway, do they sell these manga series "comic books" in an English format? Or is it all reading back to front and whatnot? Not that I wouldn't read it like that but...
Dark Horse prints Berserk in English, and they currently have all the volumes available (vol 1-36): http://www.amazon.com/Berserk-Manga/lm/R2DNN6ZYWWPNE7

It is printed in original format, meaning read right to left. You get used to it pretty quickly, and it's the absolute best alternative.
 
http://www.darkhorse.com/Search/Browse/berserk/PpwNwkt8 - You can also go here, since I noticed volumes 9, 13, 14, and 16 are more expensive at Amazon currently. Subject to change with better availability, obviously. Aliens: Berserker has nothing to do with Berserk. :D


/edit Actually, that appears to be a dead end also. What is up with that?
 
The anime's decision to downplay the childhood trauma and supernatural elements (Puck, Wyald, Skull Knight etc.) and present for the most part a realistic, character-driven war story, gives the Eclipse more of a dramatic and emotional impact if you haven't already read the manga. At least that was the case for me. As an introduction to the original manga, it serves its purpose well enough.
 
In some way you could say, what you saw was like a trailer for Berserk, a 25-episode long trailer. Compared to, hmm, something like Star Wars, everyone knows Star Wars, its like you have only seen the first episode out of 6 yet (well with the exception that the star wars ep 1 is bullshit). You remember the beginning of the anime? When he cut down a snake demon with a 2-3 metre sword? Thats him, after the anime. Well not exactly, the manga also starts with that like a short teaser. But you get much more like that after the anime, when he starts to hunt down the beings who did that to him. The anime and the first 12-13 manga volumes basically provide the background for the protagonist and the series, to show the reader why Guts is the man he is now. And after that, you will come to what Berserk is actually about, the journey of the Black Swordsman.
But i would advise you to not just start reading the manga after the events of the anime. The anime left so much out, so many important characters (the damn namegiver of this board), or even the comedy (yes Berserk is sometimes really funny, you just don't see that much of it in the anime). It's always better to start from the beginning, even if you know the basic plot already from the anime.
 
The anime only covers the first 12 volumes of the manga, and very poorly at that. Lots of characters are left out (like Puck and Skull Knight). Honestly the only way you're going to understand the end of the anime is if you re-watch the first episode and do some quick research. That being said, it's a shame they didn't continue the series. A lot of people who are into Berserk start by watching the anime. Hell, at least I did. :judo:
 
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