Official Berserk Thread

[Blood_Red_Moon_Wolf]

Berserk is one of my favorite series! The story, the character development throughout, the art, and the ability to pull at your emotions make this an amazing anime/manga. Its sad that the anime only got one season and it unfortunately will not be seeing more. The first season was remade into three movies called Berserk: The Golden Age Arc. The art in the manga is stunning. Each panel has so much detail and is visually appealing.

PLOT: Guts is a wandering warrior who was taken in by "Band of the Hawk" under its leader Griffith and became its renowned raid leader as the Hawks play a pivotal role in ending the long war that has ravaged the country of Midland and are renowned as heroes. But Griffith, who has aspirations to rule his own kingdom, seduces the King's daughter Charlotte while enlisting Guts to covertly remove any opposition. It was only when Guts left him to find his own dream that Griffith ended up being imprisoned for sleeping with the princess and is tortured for a year until he is rescued by his comrades. But by then, Griffith's body is horribly mutilated as he rendered a mute and immobile cripple before he accidentally summoned the archdemons known as the God Hand. Griffith sacrificed his soldiers to the God Hand's apostles—humans who sacrificed their loved ones and humanity for power—so that he can become a member of the God Hand and fulfill his desire. While Guts and his lover Casca escaped with the aid of the mysterious Skull Knight, the former lost his left forearm and right eye, while the latter lost her mind from the hellish ordeal along with her unborn child. After leaving Casca and the Hawks' other survivor Rickert with the blacksmith Godo, Guts begins hunting down Apostles in search of revenge against Griffith, though his Brand of Sacrifice made him a target for restless spirits that hunt him nightly.

Years after beginning his journey, joined by the elf Puck whose company he eventually accepts, Guts is later reunited with Casca when she was to be burned as a witch in the city of St. Albion. There, encountering Farnese of the Holy See Church's Holy Iron Chain Knights, Guts finds himself going through a nightmarish ordeal that ends in Griffith's physical form restored. As Guts takes Casca to the Elven realm of Elfhelm for sanctuary with Farnese and her subordinate Serpico, the youth Isidro, and the young witch Schierke and her elf Ivalera, Griffith creates a second Band of the Hawk to battle the invading Kushan army. The war between him and the Kushan emperor, a rogue apostle, greatly escalated before it ended with realities overlapped and Griffith establishing his rule over Midland. Seen by the Holy See as a messiah-figure, Griffith has the Midlanders take refuge from the ever increasing attacks of mythical beasts brought into reality within his created city of Falconia.  

[Blood_Red_Moon_Wolf]

smithers456

Berserk sounds like an interesting series to read and watch. Since I happen to like Dungeon and Dragons this a series that I will keep an eye out for. Also I'm big into Character Development so that makes me curious about this series. So what's better to watch, the movies or the original season of the series. I'm going to Youmacon soon so that would help me out. Also have you ever seen Cosplayers that Cosplay characters from this series. If so let me know and I can keep an eye out for them as well. If I am able to take a photo of a Berserk Cosplayer I will add it to this thread.

I would suggest starting with the original series. It has a similar feel to the manga where the movies move away from that a bit since they used some different animation. Unfortunately I have not seen anyone cosplay it. I'm hoping that there might be someone at Aki Con bit you never know.