New Friends Are Golden (Baby's First Berserk)

“In this world; is the destiny of mankind controlled by some transcendental entity or law? Is it like the hand of God hovering above? At least it is true, that man has no control, even over his own will.”

A passage that has been branded (pun intended) into the very fabric of my nervous system. And what cuts even deeper is the impact Berserk has had on me in such a short amount of time. Quickly pivoting from “I’d like to read that some day” to “Is this the greatest story of the modern era of fiction?” And that’s a loaded question I feel confident enough to ask having, as of writing this piece, only experienced 25% of the (still ongoing) story. The first, most famous, and most well known story arc represented across multiple different mediums: “The Golden Age.”

The final couple of weeks of June 2023. I had been fresh off of celebrating an unexpectedly good birthday. Great people, great times, and unexpected pleasure in a string of two months that had been very unkind to me and left me struggling mightily. Loss, departures, grief and whole hypothetical trophy-case full of memories that had come to define me, (one might even say “The Golden Age” of my own life to that point) simultaneously breaking me down to the ground and lifting me up off of it as reminders of the past faded further into the background, still alive in my weary heart.

My brother (who has basically helped define my taste in art as much as anyone else, including myself) gave me the most unexpected and best gift I could have possibly asked for. I didn’t know it at the time but my artistic perspective was about to be changed permanently. He asked me if I would like to watch the 1997 anime adaptation of Kentaro Miura’s life’s work with him (May He Rest In Peace).

I try my best to temper expectation, as it often has a habit of getting in the way of the artistic and the critical process of analyzing a work of fiction, as well as cutting into potential enjoyment we have. The idealized version of what we wanted in our heads clashing violently with the reality of what we ultimately receive. I understood people far and wide had spoken very highly of Berserk, but it’s hard to fully grasp a work’s merits and what people have to say about them until you experience it yourself and understand the empathetic voice behind which they are speaking about it so glowingly.

A lone mercenary, Guts, fighting for the next paycheck in the war that is tearing apart the world, the century-old conflict between the kingdoms of Chuder and Midland, Is taken in by the famed mercenary group “The Band Of The Hawk” led by its charismatic and enigmatic leader, Griffith, a strange red necklace around his neck at all times, and his second in command, the only woman on the battlefield, the fearless and protective Casca. There’s something different about these mercenaries however. They don’t fight for coin and reputation. They fight for something more intangible. They have actual goals and aspirations beyond the monetary value. 

Anime from the 1990s has a special place in many hearts. The last true era of animation cells being used en masse, there is a certain rawness and organic feel to it that is hard to emulate and essentially not even tried anymore, as digital animation is a far more intuitive and less labor intensive way of bringing the illustrations to life. Less an artistic choice and more of a limitation to work around, it incidentally lends itself extremely well to the emotional pull and tone of Berserk. A lingering and flickering hope in a world gripped by the rough and unforgiving. Reflected in the rustic color palettes of its backgrounds and the beautiful imperfect industry in its strokes and shades. And t is in the mutually intelligible small details that the 1997 Berserk anime is able to come to life, and leave it’s impact.

The trio of main characters in The Golden Age Arc are not only some of the most well-realized in all of fiction but so smartly contextualized not only against their own personal plights, what led them each to The Band Of The Hawk, their motivations at this point in their lives, but particularly against the backdrop of the times they live in, and the circumstances they push through on a daily basis and how their past informs their reactivity. It is consistent with who they are, who they ultimately become, while still leaving room for believable alterations within each respective journey. They struggle with the weight of their actions, the decisions that they make and their relationships with others. And in turn that is what allows its core narrative to earn its heaviest hitting, most surprising, and emotionally wrenching moments. Through each battle, the dynamic and connection between each of the three changes. It is again, the small details that make the difference.

A special mention must be given to Susumu Hirasawa, the composer of the anime’s soundtrack. Kentaro Miura’s fantastic writing has not only stood the test of time but is and at the time was a known commodity that makes it much more friendly to future adaptations. But Hirasawa was in unknown territory: to create the identifiable sound for a work of fiction that had, to that point, only been conveyed through still illustrations and silent reading. And remarkably so, the sound that he developed, even to this day, has such individuality and staying power for more dark fantasy musical accompaniment. Crunchy synthetic eighth and sixteenth note runs being the preamble to a sinister melody of evil, chaos, and destruction conveyed through an ensemble bass, cello, violins, and echoing, cavernous, percussive smashes. The ominous harp harmonization against a breathy, legato flute that flirts with dissonance. The battle-worn hopes and dreams of a young man who has only known death, destruction, and betrayal. And the hype anthem of gods racing into battle, unafraid and unwavering. The quantity of the soundtrack may be small, but its quality gives Berserk an atmosphere unique to its drama. That, with each successive adaptation (good and bad) has tried to emulate.

It may be unfair to give an interpretation to a currently unfinished work, but within The Golden Age Arc there is a defined beginning and end before Guts continues on his journey. And since this blog is built on personal interpretations it would be extremely hard to not give a work as emotionally and thematically rich as Berserk is a proper “personal interpretation” even if it is just a portion of it.

Dreams are beautiful, they encompass all that we want to be, they can represent our purpose for being, they can be as damning or defining as we allow them to be. But in reality, they are metaphysical, unfulfilled, and a yearning of what we desire most. The most powerful are those of the most individual nature. Uniquely tailored to our predisposition. Often unattainable alone, requiring the enlistment of others to see through. Other’s giving up on their own dreams in order to achieve another. An act of sacrifice for mutual benefit of the directionless. And when the real, human connections forged along the roads paved with bloodshed, pain, triumph, sacrifice, sibling-ship, not just of us, but those we enlist, is when we will find out the true nature of the dreamer, the depth of their soul and whether they truly value the people, the human cost and human connection as much as their dreams. Especially when their dream is in sight, attainable, and life-altering. No matter how strong the bond may have meant to another.

In a dimly lit living room, late at night, in silent harmony, dreams converged to allow for an experience like no other. A birthday gift that made a long, protracted, and painful broken dream a belief that refuge exists unseen, in places I never noticed until I needed it the most. A gift that will endure in my memory for the rest of my life, and every subsequent time I continue reading Kentaro Miura’s magnum opus.

-Dedicated to my brother, Brian. For his continued selfless sharing of transformative experiences.