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Berserk Anime Review
Introduction
The Berserk anime is an adaptation of Kentaro Miura's Berserk manga. Although the Berserk manga is what I would describe as an epic masterwork, made up of over 30 volumes, the Berserk anime does a great job of presenting the first two arcs of the storyline over 25 episodes. Berserk's anime adaptation ranks amongst the best ever.
Story
Berserk features a storyline which is engrossing and excellently paced. The first episode draws the viewer in perfectly both through its hardcore action scenes which get the heart pumping and the intrigue and mystery created through its unanswered questions. Berserk then flashes back several years and tells the story that led up to the beginning of the first episode.
The plot follows a group of mercenaries called The Band of the Hawk which is lead by Griffith, one of the main characters. Guts, the hero of the story, is recruited by Griffith and becomes a commander of the Hawks. Caska is a girl who joined the Hawks at a young age and is a commander like Guts. We see the Hawks rise to power gradually throughout the anime as Griffith tries to fulfill his dream of becoming King. Towards the end there is a genuinely shocking twist in the last couple of episodes creating an apocalyptic type ending instead of the stereotypical happy ending.
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Characters
The three main characters, Guts, Griffith and Caska, are very well developed. All three are atypically complex and multi-dimensional individuals. Throughout Berserk they often engage in deep moments of intraspection. The excellent soundtrack which plays during poignant scenes such as these is very nice, often giving chills, as is the music during the action scenes. One such scene is where Guts takes on a whole army on his own, not waiting for the Hawks to attack with him. This scene looks awesome as Guts charges towards the army alone on horseback. It also personifies Guts' character well: a loner who's had a very tough life and because of this he sees little meaning in anything and will recklessly endanger himself with little care for whether he lives or dies. Converserly, Griffith is the more sensible one and is totally consumed and driven by his goal to become King. As such he guides Guts, valuing his skills. Caska loves Griffith and hence she has made his dream her own as she tries to support him at his side.
Criticism
The only true disappointment about Berserk is that when the anime stops you are really left hungering for more, especially since it ends on a huge cliffhanger. The first episode gives you a taste of what it would be like if they made a second season but it looks like they're not going to make any more episodes. The best you can do is keep following the story in the Berserk manga but I would have loved to see some of those scenes from the manga animated in a second season.
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The Ending (spoilers)
The last few episodes of the Berserk anime is where everything really gets turned on its head. Griffith is taken prisoner and tortured. Even after he escapes he is unable to lead the Hawks or even look after himself and things seem hopeless. Guts leaves the Hawks to create his own dream, no longer wanting to work for someone else's. Caska who hated Guts for so long falls in love with him. And on top of all this suddenly the Hawks end up in hell fighting for their lives! And here I was thinking the Hawks would simply defeat all the bad guys and live happily ever after...
Although some people criticise this shock ending, it is in my opinion one of the anime's strongest points. The ending is a culmination of Berserk's anti dualistic nature; the events and characters in Berserk are never black and white. After being portrayed as a messianic figure throughout the story, suddenly Griffith becomes an antichrist. The memorable scene for me was when he realises to himself that out of all of the thousands of comrades Guts was the only one to ever obscure the vision of his dream. But yet he still makes the decision to sacrifice all the lives of the Hawks, Guts included, straight after this realisation in exchange for his dream fulfilled.
If the ending left you thinking "what the hell?" then recall the first episode for an idea of where things progressed to after the last episode: Guts manages to escape hell and becomes the Black Swordsman hunting down Griffith in revenge. Also I would recommend reading the Berserk manga as it continues much further after the Berserk anime, being that the anime is less than half the length of the manga's storyline.
Conclusion
The makers of Berserk were wise in creating the adaptation to be as close to the manga as possible. The dialogue is mostly identical, as is the drawing style. Scenes in the anime look exactly the same as they do in the manga, with the same angles and identical drawings, only animated. However some scenes and characters from the manga did have to be dropped from the anime to make things fit. Nevertheless the anime does a wonderful job of presenting the first two story arcs.
In conclusion the Berserk anime is a near perfect adaptation of the manga. It would have been great watching Guts as the Black Swordsman on a fierce quest for revenge in a second season, but it does not look like it will ever be made. Nevertheless if Berserk left you hungering for more then don't hesitate to continue the Berserk tale by reading the manga.
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