Berserk Manga Scanlations

This is my first and most important post. My reason for joining this forum is to defend scanlators everywhere. Some people would like to lead you to believe that scanlations hurt the manga community, that they hurt the artist. But led me shed light on the topic. I'll use Berserk as an example. When I was interested in berserk years ago. There was little to no info about it on the net. And no real collection of fans out there. This site for example wasn't even useful to me cause all i saw was a lot of talking and no action. The only site that was useful to me was this one: http://www.physics.scsu.edu/~jobien/berserk/home.html
Berserk Manga Was Just Licensed. And Before The Anime Series Was Licensed. I guess most people just think things like this happen for no reason... or they happen magically. Maybe the anime series getting licensed didn't have anything to do with the manga being spread all over the world. But the manga getting licensed most likely was because of it getting spread. The Hawks has spread the berserk manga to thousands of people across the world. Maybe even more than that. Why we aren't as excited when some american company licenses a series using only money as their motivation shouldn't be a shock to anyone. After 14 years or so they are just seeing the need to license berserk now. Come on use your brains people. What we do is noble. We make no money off of what we do... We do it cause we love the series and want to spread that same love to others.... Do I even have to tell you about how many people started reading manga for the first time because of Berserk... I shouldn't have to tell you the things I see... I shouldn't have to defend our work... Gatsu, my partner is more silent than me on these things... But I founded The Hawks... and I take responsibility when people discredit us or make people believe what we do is wrong... People's eyes have to be opened to what's really going on in the anime/manga world and not be clouded by a few elitist's point of views.... I think I've said enough... for now.. I'll save my energy for the replies I'll have to reply and defend against. -thewhitehawk

All talk and no action?

http://skullknight.net/faq

Seriously though, why be so defensive in your very first post? Would it make things easier if I swear to you that I left my glock in my other avatar? Forgive me, all father of scanlations and head honcho of Berserk piracy, but you sound just a wee bit paranoid.

PS: You also won't mind if I change your avatar to this, will you?

BAD HAWK, NO COOKIE!

if you like scanslations so much, go here.

The manga being licensed happened as a result of the anime's popularity, and the way the anime ends.

thewhitehawk said:

Some people would like to lead you to believe that scanlations hurt the manga community, that they hurt the artist.

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And they're right.

Delusions of Grandeur, anyone?

No, White Hawk, you’re wrong, I think they’re licensing Berserk because of my great theories. Come on, use your limited brain capacity, people! Miura’s obviously a big fan of mine, and he feels I should have an official English set of the series. I think he even bases upcoming plot elements on the things I say here. I’m a fucking Berserk super hero! WORSHIP ME!

-Griffith, the ANSWER to why Berserk is coming to America.

, White hawk nice name. Welcome to the board , sorry about the feisty sociopath hounds who attack anyone who evan attempt's to brandish miurras work, even to learn about it. Scans were a important part of berserk. I feel its noteworthy or just of one to use scans of volumes past 1-3 untill darkhorse licenses them. hell evan volume scans of 1-3 is ok untill they pop out. There's nothing extremly wrong with it except a imoral action to some diehard fans but it hurts nothing in the long run and if somone likes the series enough of the scans that they buy the manga it actully helps sometimes.

Griff superhero... not when supergutts is around !!!!

thewhitehawk said:

What we do is noble. We make no money off of what we do... We do it cause we love the series and want to spread that same love to others....

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"Noble?" Sounds like delusions of grandeur. I think the problem here is that while no, you aren't making a profit off of your scanlations, if people choose to read only the scanlations, Miura isn't going to make a profit either. I understand what you're saying with trying to share your interest in Berserk with others, but many of the people that download scanlations just aren't going to go out and buy the manga because the scanlatons piqued their interest. Some people may, but most of them won't buy the manga at all because the scanlations are easier and cheaper.

Miura may be creating a very wonderful manga that means a lot to him as well as to the fans, but you can't forget that the man still needs to pay the bills and still needs to make a profit in order to continue drawing Berserk. To say you love Berserk so much but then continue to push scanlations as your noble sacrifice for the public, to encourage people to basically not buy the comics and support the man behind them, is in my opinion, a slap in the face to Miura.

thewhitehawk said:

Come on use your brains people. What we do is noble.

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You know, I spent some time thinking about this and you're right. You deserve your place among your peers. Consider yourself immortalized.

what most people fail to realize is that the manga scanlations bring more people into it. people who otherwise wouldn't have had the exposure.... yes a lot will not buy... but even in the worst situation... more people will buy the manga than before the scanlations. this is the wave of the future... people already knowing a product is of value and purchasing it for the right reasons... not just blindly.... people think that we put out scanlators so that people can not buy the manga... that is not the case... we put it out there to share it with anyone who is interested.... if it wasn't for fansubbing i would have never seen berserk at all... along with many people... so if there was no fansubbing... i would never have even gotten to the manga... and the hawks would not be subbing it... and it would have never been licensed... fansubbing/scanlating serves a big purpose... of course people on the outside don't know... but we know.

thewhitehawk said:

what most people fail to realize is that the manga scanlations bring more people into it.

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and that is a good thing? why? why should we want undevoted fucking morons liking berserk? because of scans this place was fucked up almost every month someone comes in here begging for scans without even mentioning thier name. so why would we want to support something that fucks up this community? why should wally support something that will make him ban so many people? why should we listen to your belief on scans? I see no problems how this is run now. scans=idiots=wally banning everyone=this site fucking up, no scans=devout people=this site not fucking up. what if you spent about 12 years making something and some fucking jackass goes and copies it and sells it. you act like you know something about morals but you know as much as shit knows about bieng sanitary. all you are doing is seeping through the legal flaws and hiding behind false morals so YOU can get berserk for free...you people disgust me, you people disgust me more than harmony gold disgusts me. heres what you are doing you are making copies of an object and using them for your own profit, now wheter this profit be materialistic or not its still profit. if a bunch of volunteers agreed to break into a house, steal everything, but then leave the stuff out for everyone to take isn't that still stealing?
you are scum that infests this world you don't even acknowledge that you are human since you don't introduce yourself, for all we know you could be a bot programmed to annoy the hell out of people.

you can't convince us, we know what we think is right and justified. they have held these morals of not scanning but translating for years, before I even came here. we see your words but we don't give a damn, write whatever the fuck you want all we know is that you are full of shit.

Griffith said:

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I cannot emphasize enough how much that rules me.

thewhitehawk said:

what most people fail to realize is that the manga scanlations bring more people into it. people who otherwise wouldn't have had the exposure

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Man thats so true. Some fans may be shitty fans and downgrade the series, but chances are wtf would those people have to do with us. I feel the more people out there buyin the manga through watching scanlations ( the only way currently to obtain the trans manga ), will increase fandom by at least a good 30% when quality scanlations are tottaly avalible on a good p2p service untill the manga is released.

btw how many of you were actully doing hellmarys in the name of profit cuts for miurra , well reading a horribly despicable "scanlation"

thewhitehawk said:

... of course people on the outside don't know... but we know.

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Walter said:

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hahahahahahaha holy shit i havent lauughed like that since my friend said zig haille and used his hitly happy face on pso.

okay .... im gonna throw my 2 cents in, but i expect change ....

you all share valid points and i belive there is a happy medium ....

you all know how licencing laws work ....

i will comply with these laws .... when i can get my hands on an american release of vol.1, i swear that 56mb will be freed on my computer .... and so on and so forth with each chapter which gets released ....

thanks for the scans
even though you hawks booted me from the irc room way back when

i dont see anything wrong with having the mangas as well as the scans ....
without the mangas, well, then you are in murky waters

as far as recent chapters, mmm mmm mmm mmm mmm .... luv em and will buy vol25 and 26 and so on when i can

wtf psymount? going back to your olden-day self? bah! scans are crap, they sybolize scum and make people into scum.

Actualy Psymont... Your scans of vol 1 will be legal when you buy volume 1.

Scanslations are one of those messy things. I completely agree with all the negative things about them. However, all my favorite books, Berserk and Hellsing, I own in both hardcopy and scanslation... just because they are very, VERY hard to read from plain text translations (although I love the text translations as well! I love them! I huggle them!)

..Perhaps it will amuse someone to know that for some of the less dialogue-ey scenes of Berserk I've pasted in translations on teeny cut-out post-it notes so I can read them without having to boot up my computer at all... Yes..

I'm sure there are lots of fans like me who have both, or who guiltily have scans and spend their cash on other Berserk items and plan to get the manga when they can.
..But in the end, as much as I enjoy scanslations they present problems economically for the industry and if they were not available, I would absolutely 100% be happy with my tankoubon and a big stack of text translations.
Cause it really sucks to see all these stupid kids on Ebay getting loads of free money for other people's work, including the scanslators' work.. and other stupid kids spending the money they could have spent on legit stuff, buying scanslations.
Unless someone wants to make it their crusade to instruct every Ebay bidder how to leech off IRC, scanslations definitely, observably hurt Berserk.

-Lith

Lith: Where can I get Hellsing scanlation? AIM me with the answer please (AIM is theblakeman14)
I don't give a shit, as I have stated before, I read scanlations because sometimes I get a bit too...excited during the orgy scenes and Berserk and spew my manly juices everywhere in a wild masturbation session. Is this possible with actual books? I would have to laminate each page just to continue reading. That is why I read scanlations. Of course I will buy Berserk english manga when it comes out but I won't read it and keep it locked away so I don't get them...wet ;p

why god why must we continue to debate these things

thats all im going to say considering this thread brings up quite a moral dilemna for me

Walter said:

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Those are hilarious, Walter! Thanks!

Damn Griffith... mad photoshop skills you have there (Bok Choy applauding). It even tops your SK Girls Gone Wild photos.

ShinHell (studying for regents & finals) said:

wtf psymount? going back to your olden-day self? bah! scans are crap, they sybolize scum and make people into scum.

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are you actually going to tell me shin that you have not one chapter on your computer?(recent perhaps) .... revert? hmmm, no not really .... see, i have a lap top and i still belive that reading the scans is easier than reading the manga with a stack of 40 translation pages .... its an issue of comfort ....

i beleive the people that reserve the right to bitch about scans, should be the scanless ....
let he who is free of sin(scans) cast the first stone ....

majin, i will get rid of them as gesture of thanks to miura for FINALLY releasing an english verson .... and if people ask for scans at that time, i will "Just Say No!" ....

hmmm, wait a sec .... didnt the series just get licenced by dark horse? i guess that does make the scans ultimately illigal now ....

Well, I love scans, and I will keep them forever and ever with me all the time, together with the real manga. ;D For me at least it's true that without the existence of fansubs or scans I probably would have never bought or seen this manga at all.

And anyone who has ever even downloaded one mp3, game, movie or other pirated software has no right to bitch about scans. And besides, we are spreading scans of the newest chapters through this forum as well. But we've been over this all many times before and this is not the real point of thewhitehawks' post. His point is that scans (unlicensed) make more people buy the manga than it refrains people from buying it when they otherwise would have. Therefore scans are a good thing that only benefits Miura in the end. I don't know if this is true, since I haven't done any research into this, but if I only use my common sense I think this could very well be true indeed, especially since for many people it's much more comfortable reading the real thing in one's own hands than staring at a computer screen all the time. Some friends of mine for example who loved the anime refuse to read the manga scans not because they think it's immoral, but they just don't like to read manga from a computer screen. They'll wait for October instead.

The other point thewhitehawk makes is that without their scans the Berserk manga wouldn't have even been licensed now. This is where I disagree, though, as I think the anime getting licensed has played a much bigger role in that development.

Anyway, you can all think what you like about this, but I personally believe that if it wasn't for fansubs (or unlicensed manga scans) some anime titles (eg Fushigi Yuugi) would have never been licensed and its popularity woudn't have been like it is now. If that is a good thing or not is up to you to decide.