How many episodes would you need to get someone into Berserk?

So I was (unsuccessfully) preaching Berserk to my friends as usual and a fun though crossed my mind. I noticed that the main reason no one I know bothers to read it is because it takes too long to figure out If they actually like it once they actually give it a go. So the question I asked myself was, "What is the least number of episodes I need to get them into berserk, and which ones are they?" And since there is not many Berserk related things going on at the moment, I wanted to share my thoughts!

Let's assume that our friend has the attention span of a goldfish, and wouldn't bother reading enough volumes on his own without us showing him something good.
Let's also try to avoid any major spoilers like the Eclipse (Which, while shocking, would ruin the following reading experience)

So if you had to show someone "What berserk is" in the least amount of episodes, how many would you need and which ones would you choose?

I personally think that I would choose the episodes
329-331. It gives a nice glimpse of Gut's character, is quite a small story that doesn't give away too much, is full emotion and violence, and the artwork is gorgeous!

(P.S. I know that it's quite a meaningless question, since it's impossible to portray the essence of berserk in a bunch of episodes, but I thought it would be a fun game! I myself struggled to pick :serpico:)
 
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Oburi

All praise Grail
I’ve anyways felt completely confident in the first few pages. Its the perfect hook for someone who doesn’t know anything about Berserk and in my experience it works like a charm.
 
I’ve anyways felt completely confident in the first few pages. Its the perfect hook for someone who doesn’t know anything about Berserk and in my experience it works like a charm.
Always had a couple of friends try it out this way, but both of them thought that he was just an ass for no reason, which most certainly didn't do the depth of this character any justice. I also felt the same way up to the point I saw guts cry in part 5 the guardians of desire. That was the moment that fueled my curiosity

Oh another thing is the art, which while fine, is nowhere near the level it is in later episodes. (Which of course is understandable given it is over 30 years old now)
 
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Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
Let's assume that our friend has the attention span of a goldfish, and wouldn't bother reading enough volumes on his own without us showing him something good.

Not to just repeat what Oburi said but volume 1 is very representative of the essence of Berserk. It shows a man with a huge sword and a cannon arm fighting bad guys who can transform into giant monsters. And he's not a knight in shining armor but a deeply angry and bitter man, haunted by his past. If someone doesn't think that's "good", then Berserk probably isn't for them.

So to answer your question, in your hypothetical scenario I'd tell the person to read the first five volumes. If they stop reading out of disinterest or aren't eager to read more after that, I wouldn't insist.
 
Similar to what Aaz said, I always recommend people to read the first four volumes. I honestly believe that the Black Swordsman arc is the best way to get into the series because, as others said, it lets the reader know exactly what Berserk is about, but I recommend also reading the fourth volume because the beginning of the Golden Age arc should work as a cliffhanger to want them to read more. I know asking people to read four volumes is a big ask, but I’m sure that future fans of the series would be grateful they got into the story that way.

I would personally never introduce people to Berserk by having them read episodes in the middle because I wouldn’t have wanted that to happen to me. I was introduced to Berserk by the 97 anime and I always wished I could have experienced the Black Swordsman arc not knowing anything about the series. Just a very personal opinion.
 
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Like others have said, optimally volume one would be the best place to start, but I have a somewhat controversial take on this.

I have found from personal experience, it is incredibly hard to get people hooked on the black swordsman arc. Especially around my crowds. Unfortunately, the response I usually get is "edgy trite, not worth my time". I know this is NOT the way berserk is meant to be read, but I have had more success preaching berserk to people starting them on the end of volume 3.

Typically, if I recommend starting at black swordsman they will either drop it and never bother again, or take forever to get through black swordsman, and then binge the rest of the series. I do like the black swordsman arc, but in my opinion it's the weakest part of the series so I understand why this turns them off.
 
Like others have said, optimally volume one would be the best place to start, but I have a somewhat controversial take on this.

I have found from personal experience, it is incredibly hard to get people hooked on the black swordsman arc. Especially around my crowds. Unfortunately, the response I usually get is "edgy trite, not worth my time". I know this is NOT the way berserk is meant to be read, but I have had more success preaching berserk to people starting them on the end of volume 3.

Typically, if I recommend starting at black swordsman they will either drop it and never bother again, or take forever to get through black swordsman, and then binge the rest of the series. I do like the black swordsman arc, but in my opinion it's the weakest part of the series so I understand why this turns them off.
Even though it makes perfect sense to start from the beginning, I too have seen this be the case. I had some friends try the 97' anime as a first step and every single one liked it, even if they disliked the black swordsman arc! Granted, I can't make such a claim with such a small sample of ~ 5 friends with confidence, but this is all I've got haha.
 
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Are your friends fans of Berserk now? Do they buy the volumes when they come out?
I wouldn't go as far as to call them fans, they liked they anime but didn't continue reading the rest of the story through the manga (how heartless do you have to be to stop after the eclipse?:puck:).

When it comes to buying volumes the question is a tough one. The availability of volumes here is horrible. The only ones for sale country-wide in any shop are volumes 1,2,3,4,5,39. This is understandable since there really isn't that much of a Manga-Anime market here since the medium is considered geeky/childish and therefore isn't all that popular.

So your only ethical option is to go for the deluxe edition. It's about 60$ and is by far cheaper than buying single volumes internationally because of shipping and customs costs (I did get the deluxe edition 5 and 7 from amazon when they were on discount through). But in all honesty I think that most of the already few people who do read berserk in my country do it the unethical way which while obvious, is unfortunate.
 

Aazealh

Administrator
Staff member
I wouldn't go as far as to call them fans, they liked they anime but didn't continue reading the rest of the story through the manga (how heartless do you have to be to stop after the eclipse?:puck:).

I see. That doesn't surprise me. I imagine they watched the anime because you urged them to, but felt no particular affinity for the series. Part of it is probably that the anime format is easier to consume for some people, but like I said earlier, I think that if someone finds the Black Swordsman arc uninteresting, they're not very likely to enjoy Berserk as a whole. In this case, not caring to know what happens after the Eclipse is the clearest possible sign of not being interested.

This isn't a knock against you for wanting to evangelize the series, but in my opinion Berserk is not for everyone. If someone doesn't have the necessary sensibilities, it's unlikely that any part of the series will change their mind.

When it comes to buying volumes the question is a tough one. The availability of volumes here is horrible. The only ones for sale country-wide in any shop are volumes 1,2,3,4,5,39. This is understandable since there really isn't that much of a Manga-Anime market here since the medium is considered geeky/childish and therefore isn't all that popular.

So your only ethical option is to go for the deluxe edition. It's about 60$ and is by far cheaper than buying single volumes internationally because of shipping and customs costs (I did get the deluxe edition 5 and 7 from amazon when they were on discount through). But in all honesty I think that most of the already few people who do read berserk in my country do it the unethical way which while obvious, is unfortunate.

That's unfortunate. Is there a Greek version or do you have to read them in English?
 
I see. That doesn't surprise me. I imagine they watched the anime because you urged them to, but felt no particular affinity for the series. Part of it is probably that the anime format is easier to consume for some people, but like I said earlier, I think that if someone finds the Black Swordsman arc uninteresting, they're not very likely to enjoy Berserk as a whole. In this case, not caring to know what happens after the Eclipse is the clearest possible sign of not being interested.

This isn't a knock against you for wanting to evangelize the series, but in my opinion Berserk is not for everyone. If someone doesn't have the necessary sensibilities, it's unlikely that any part of the series will change their mind.



That's unfortunate. Is there a Greek version or do you have to read them in English?
Yes I do have to admit that you are on point with the reasoning. I think I urged them a bit because I myself don't think I would have given berserk a chance if not for the 97' anime. If I had started reading from the beginning of the manga I might have disregarded it as another crazy strong-asshole hero action story, which would have been a shame. You are most certainly right that Berserk isn't for everyone, but oh man it's quite special for those few it is for.

Oh I'm pretty sure that there isn't such a thing as a Greek version. I can't even find any kind of Greek berserk-related translations online! So it's just the English version, which I quite like.

[just as a note, I urged them to give it a shot, not to watch it till the end (that would be pure harassment haha), they did that on their own]
 
Are your friends fans of Berserk now? Do they buy the volumes when they come out?
Yes. Almost all of them. I make sure they come back around and read Black Swordsman after golden age for context. Although I don't really talk to hardly any of them anymore, the ones I introduced berserk to became pretty big fans.
 
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