Berserk: The Flame Dragon Knight novel

[Hitoshura]

Retailers Amazon Japan, Rakuten, and Gamers! are all listing that Kentarou Miura's Berserk manga will get a novel that will ship on June 23 titled Berserk: Honō Ryū no Kishi (Berserk: The Flame Dragon Knight).

The retailers list Makoto Fukami and Miura as the authors. Fukami is the series composition writer for the new Berserk series that premiered last year, as well as the continuation that premiered on April 7. Fukami also wrote the script for the Psycho-Pass television anime series and film, and the Resident Evil: Vendetta film. He is also a novelist known for the Young Gun Carnival light novel series.

Source: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/daily-briefs/2017-04-24/retailers-list-berserk-novel-by-anime-scriptwriter-makoto-fukami/.115211

[jackson_hurley]

I'm not to sure what to think about that... Do you think it'll be new material or is that some other kind of adaptation? Thoughts/clues?

[Aazealh]

Really curious to know more about this novel in order to determine if it has any merit. Specifically eager to know if it will be canon or not and what Miura's involvement has been in its creation. If if it's just some side thing from Makoto Fukami "based on" Berserk then it's as relevant as the recent anime adaptations. A curiosity at best.

But if it's canon and Miura contributed heavily then it implies a lot for the future of the series. For example the past of some characters (Grunbeld, Locus, Rakshas, Irvine... and more) might be told through novels and skipped in the manga, which would be very regrettable in my opinion.

[jackson_hurley]

But if it's canon and Miura contributed heavily then it implies a lot for the future of the series. For example the past of some characters (Grunbeld, Locus, Rakshas, Irvine... and more) might be told through novels and skipped in the manga, which would be very regrettable in my opinion.

As much as I like back story, like you said, I'd rather have them in the manga (for multiple reasons) than in a light novel. I'm still curious to know more though.

[Aazealh]

As much as I like back story, like you said, I'd rather have them in the manga (for multiple reasons) than in a light novel. I'm still curious to know more though.

To be honest if Miura were to outsource the backstories it would feel like a betrayal to me. But let's reserve judgment until we know more.

[RaffoBaffo]

A Novel by the person in charge of the Series Composition of the 2016 Anime.

Well...let's see.

[BTW I'm thinking of a Grunbeld-centric Novel, for obvious reasons]

[Cyrus Jong]

I'm too burned out on shitty Berserk non-manga media to get excited. We got a crappy anime and a crappy game within a year of each other. Who's to say that this is going to be any better? Especially if it was written by one of the hacks involved with the recent show. Oh, Miura may be credited as one of the authors, but what exactly does that mean? That he actually was involved with the writing, that they're basing the story off of some plot details he gave out, or are they just plugging his name in for authenticity's sake? Or is it just a mistake by the retailers or ANN? Miura was credited as writing the third episode of the anime, and considering what a train wreck that was, it's not enough to fill me with confidence.

[jackson_hurley]

I'm too burned out on shitty Berserk non-manga media to get excited. We got a crappy anime and a crappy game within a year of each other. Who's to say that this is going to be any better? Especially if it was written by one of the hacks involved with the recent show. Oh, Miura may be credited as one of the authors, but what exactly does that mean? That he actually was involved with the writing, that they're basing the story off of some plot details he gave out, or are they just plugging his name in for authenticity's sake? Or is it just a mistake by the retailers or ANN? Miura was credited as writing the third episode of the anime, and considering what a train wreck that was, it's not enough to fill me with confidence.

Well as Aaz said, no need to jump to any conclusion right now. We have no detail at all as to what to expect. But I'm a little bit like you on the subject though. I hope it's not gonna be something lame as a "companion" book.

The only thing that would make me interested is if it's by Miura himself.

And again as Aaz said, it'd feel like a betrayal if we got  some background stories in another format.

[Aazealh]

Well as Aaz said, no need to jump to any conclusion right now. We have no detail at all as to what to expect. But I'm a little bit like you on the subject though. I hope it's not gonna be something lame as a "companion" book.

The only thing that would make me interested is if it's by Miura himself. And again as Aaz said, it'd feel like a betrayal if we got  some background stories in another format.

On the contrary, you should hope it's a lame companion book that serves as a meaningless (and therefore harmless) side story to coincide with the end of the anime, which will show Grunbeld's appearance at Flora's mansion. A push into light novels to make more money off the franchise and/or extend its reach, like the recent anime and game.

To me, the best case scenario is that this recounts something without much importance about Grunbeld and that Miura's billed as an author because he's the original artist and also because he'll have done some illustrations for it. That's the best case scenario because it has no impact on the main product: the manga. The worst case scenario is that Miura has decided to speed things up and is doing so by outsourcing parts of the story to other authors (and I am not impressed by Makoto Fukami's resume), in which case this is only the first books of many. To me that would be hugely disappointing.

Either way, this week's Young Animal issue should have all the information we need, assuming natalie.mu doesn't reveal it first.

[jackson_hurley]

To me, the best case scenario is that this recounts something without much importance about Grunbeld and that Miura's billed as an author because he's the original artist and also because he'll have done some illustrations for it. That's the best case scenario because it has no impact on the main product: the manga.

Either way, this week's Young Animal issue should have all the information we need, assuming natalie.mu doesn't reveal it first.

Well my first guess as to why his name is on it was exactly that : he's the original Creator and needs to be credited if this is gonna be a "side story" by someone else.

If it's your best case scenario that's gonna happen, it'd be nice to get new illustrations for that little story.

We'll know soon enough anyway.

My most important thing for the moment right now is the new episode this week anyway. 

[Sancho]

I really hope it won't involve anything related to the current plot or any relevant character, i'd prefer that everything would be shown in the manga.
But that title is ominously hinting too much on Grunbeld  Especially considering that almost every apostle has a potentially tragic past, involving a sacrifice of a loved one, and set in an amazingly built fantasy world, than any shallow writer with no intention of coming up with ideas on his own would be eager to "take inspiration from" (copy).

Does anyone know, forgive the ignorance, who had the final choice on this matter? Is it Miura who agreed on the creation of this project or is it Hakusensha who decided everything without giving him choice. In that case Miura might have agreed to assist the writer just to avoid the novel would result in a disaster, since he didn't have a choice anyway.

[Walter]

We've wondered for years how and when Miura might reveal the backstories of some of these big characters, including the major apostles, the God Hand, and of course Skull Knight. With the appearance of this novel, we might have our answer. And if so, that would be ... an unprecedented low point for the series. I think this is pretty evident, but just to be clear: Such stories should be revealed in the pages of the manga, not some new supplementary work being penned by a contract writer. Furthermore, there is no guarantee this work would be translated for international fans.

But like Aazealh said, we'll need more info to be sure. Right now all we have is the title, our overactive imaginations, and our sensibilities as fans having endured some poor adaptations in recent years. Best-case scenario, it's a fragment of Grunbeld's life after he became an apostle — filler material. Worst-case scenario, this book tells his life before he became an apostle, leading up to his sacrifice — in a book that's coming out in less than two months.

What worries me is that if Miura was trying to merchandise Berserk in small novels, there are a number of avenues he could take that wouldn't disrupt the flow of reveals, stepping on the toes of Berserk. What about Judeau's backstory? He's a fan favorite. People would devour that book happily, and it would be inconsequential to the ongoing series. Pippin's a popular character, too. And hey, maybe not the smartest decision, but I personally would buy a PALLET of novels about Corcas' life before the Falcons.

But why embark on Grunbeld (and really, he's one of a group, so there's an implication that there will be more of these) if not to tell the primary story of consequence about the character? And if that is indeed the plan, how would such a reveal be woven into the manga after the fact?

It's a very confusing move with big implications about the rest of the series. OR it's just merchandising that we will laugh about in a few months.

[Aazealh]

I really hope it won't involve anything related to the current plot or any relevant character, i'd prefer that everything would be shown in the manga.

But that title is ominously hinting too much on Grunbeld 

Oh the book is 100% certain to be about Grunbeld, there's zero doubt about it. But yeah, to have important parts of his story be told elsewhere than in the manga would be seriously disappointing. I'd rather have a one episode flashback in the manga (like for Ganishka) than a co-written book like this for the backstory of his sacrifice.

Does anyone know, forgive the ignorance, who had the final choice on this matter? Is it Miura who agreed on the creation of this project or is it Hakusensha who decided everything without giving him choice. In that case Miura might have agreed to assist the writer just to avoid the novel would result in a disaster, since he didn't have a choice anyway.

No idea, but I imagine Miura would have a say in the matter, especially regarding the content of the book.

[Theozilla]

If the novel is indeed a canonical in depth from Miura, perhaps the logic for not including it in the manga is that the story/information being conveyed just doesn't have a place that would naturally fit in with the narrative flow? Perhaps (again going with the assumption that this is manga-canonical/significant, and not a marketing tie-in) Miura is viewing this light novel story as serving a similar function/role as JRR Tolkien's Appendices served for The Lord of the Rings? (or like the various Gaiden novels for Guin Saga, or the many short stories Ursula K. Le Guin wrote for her Earthsea series?)

[Salem]

If the novel is indeed a canonical in depth from Miura, perhaps the logic for not including it in the manga is that the story/information being conveyed just doesn't have a place that would naturally fit in with the narrative flow?

This is my line of thought.  Look at all of the characters throughout the years and how many have backstories vs how many we want?  There is no conceivable way for the manga to throw all or even half without disrupting the story.  This may very well be as simple as giving an option to know about more apostles.  I don't want the current falcons bogged down to one or two pages a character.    As long as the story is good and Miura at the helm, obviously it'll all be ok.  Too many times the expectations vs. the approach from the actual author become unhinged in an echo chamber, sometimes more passionate than reality and disappointment is blown out of proportion. 

[Aazealh]

If the novel is indeed a canonical in depth from Miura, perhaps the logic for not including it in the manga is that the story/information being conveyed just doesn't have a place that would naturally fit in with the narrative flow?

It's really hard for me to believe that Miura would think some parts of the story could be both important (i.e. canon and meaningful) and also not have their place in the narrative flow of the manga. And to the point of offloading them to another author, in another format? Even harder to believe. And just to be clear I'm talking about Grunbeld's backstory here. His final fight and subsequent death would probably be a good, easy place to interweave it, and it wouldn't take a volume to tell the tale.

[jackson_hurley]

And just to be clear I'm talking about Grunbeld's backstory here. His final fight and subsequent death would probably be a good, easy place to interweave it, and it wouldn't take a volume to tell the tale.

To be honest, that's what I'd like to see... in the manga preferably. 

[Tama]

I'm hoping for the best like everyone else  and that it's something like a filler novel that doesn't pertain too much to the manga and isn't a shortcut to the actual series. I'd be sad if that's not the case as I was also looking forward to seeing some of these characters backstories in detailed art, especially the god hand and Griffiths army. I won't jump to conclusions though, and at least we'll get a sense of what's to come soon.

[Theozilla]

Another thing this light novel reminds me of are the Fullmetal Alchemist Light Novels (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Fullmetal_Alchemist_light_novels) which were written by another author collaborating with Hiromu Arakawa, which while not an "official" part of the manga were still done in a way that they were canon-compliant with the manga, sorta like how the Sword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage story had Miura contributing to it. So maybe it'll end up of being something similar to that level of narrative significance. A story about Grunbeld Miura had a passing interest in making but didn't deem important enough to be part of the manga?

[Aazealh]

Another thing this light novel reminds me of are the Fullmetal Alchemist Light Novels (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Fullmetal_Alchemist_light_novels) which were written by another author collaborating with Hiromu Arakawa, which while not an "official" part of the manga were still done in a way that they were canon-compliant with the manga

As far as I know that's the standard these days for this kind of merchandising. And that'd be perfectly fine so long as it doesn't detract from the actual story as told by the manga. I think this is what most (all?) of us here are hoping for.

how the Sword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage story had Miura contributing to it.

Miura didn't just "contribute" to the story of the Dreamcast game, he wrote it entirely by himself. And he originally planned for it to tie in with the manga, but the story had evolved in a different direction by the time it caught up and so it fell into a sort of limbo (not really canon, but canon-compliant, like you said). Of note is that he also did the character design (original concept art) for all characters and enemies in the game.

So maybe it'll end up of being something similar to that level of narrative significance. A story about Grunbeld Miura had a passing interest in making but didn't deem important enough to be part of the manga?

That's the best case scenario, yes. Although I still find it hard to believe Miura was the one to pitch the idea. I think it's more likely that publishing a light novel was planned as part of the marketing effort around the series (along with the new anime, new game, etc.) and that he gave the writer some pointers about the characters/world.

[Theozilla]

Miura didn't just "contribute" to the story of the Dreamcast game, he wrote it entirely by himself. And he originally planned for it to tie in with the manga, but the story had evolved in a different direction by the time it caught up and so it fell into a sort of limbo (not really canon, but canon-compliant, like you said). Of note is that he also did the character design (original concept art) for all characters and enemies in the game.

Oh thanks for the clarification (I wasn't sure because the wikipedia entry of the game listed Tsuyoshi Tamai under the writing credits for the game as well).
Also I forgot/didn't realize that the Dreamcast game actually came out before Miura had finished the Conviction Arc in the manga (I wonder if fans felt the game spoiled the climax of the Conviction Arc when it came out at the time?). I wonder how much else Miura changed/revised during that period of time (late 90s/early 2000s) since wasn't there also some promotional calendar art that had Azan traveling with Guts and co.? (that also hinted at Schierke joining eventually?)

[Aazealh]

Oh thanks for the clarification (I wasn't sure because the wikipedia entry of the game listed Tsuyoshi Tamai under the writing credits for the game as well).

I don't know the exact details, but I imagine that guy took care of specific bits of dialogue and some of the less important scenes while Miura wrote the overall plot and key scenes. You can feel it in the tone of the game, which is very close to that of the manga. In fact I'd say it's the most faithful piece of merchandise we've had for the series. If you're interested in learning more about it I really recommend the Berserk Visual & Story File (an artbook that was made about it that also contains comments from Miura and the full script of the game).

Also I forgot/didn't realize that the Dreamcast game actually came out before Miura had finished the Conviction Arc in the manga (I wonder if fans felt the game spoiled the climax of the Conviction Arc when it came out at the time?).

I think it was done cleverly enough that they were left with more questions than answers. At the time the game came out in Japan, the prepublication was almost done with volume 19. That means two full volumes worth of content remained until the Conviction arc ended. But the game doesn't actually reveal much. The player knows Guts managed to escape with Casca and Puck, obviously, but that's it. The most revealing part comes from Guts' dialogue with Zodd, where he mentions the idea of recruiting apostles for "the Falcon", to which Guts responds by asking if he wants to create an army of monsters. That's actually a hint at what happens in volume 22, which is where/when the game's storyline was originally supposed to take place. The biggest clue to the Incarnation ceremony, on the other hand, comes when Balzac summons the God Hand. Only four of them appear, Femto being absent.
Of course, the biggest spoiler of them all is probably when Casca, briefly regaining her mind, tells Guts she was having "a bad dream". 17 years later and we're finally seeing that dream.

I wonder how much else Miura changed/revised during that period of time (late 90s/early 2000s) since wasn't there also some promotional calendar art that had Azan traveling with Guts and co.? (that also hinted at Schierke joining eventually?)

Those are different, unrelated changes. But yes, some details of the story evolve as it is being written, even though there is an overarching plan. That's not limited to that part of the story.

[jackson_hurley]

If you're interested in learning more about it I really recommend the Berserk Visual & Story File (an artbook that was made about it that also contains comments from Miura and the full script of the game).

Is that one hard to find? I'd be interested in checking it out. (I got the illustrated files last year and was really happy to have new stuff to check out by Miura, but I did not read it in it's entirety)

[Aazealh]

Is that one hard to find? I'd be interested in checking it out. (I got the illustrated files last year and was really happy to have new stuff to check out by Miura, but I did not read it in it's entirety)

It's been out of print for over a decade, but it can be ordered used from Amazon.co.jp, just follow this link.

[jackson_hurley]

It's been out of print for over a decade, but it can be ordered used from Amazon.co.jp, just follow this link.

Thank you very much. I shall investigate that!