Berserk Is the Opposite of a Shonen, Which Is Why Its Use of the Most Clich Shonen Trope Surprised (And Delighted) Me

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Berserk

I've been reading and rereading Berserk for a long time, and it stands predictably among my all-time favorite manga series, getting its hooks into me early on with Kentaro Miura's artwork displayed across its various adaptations. The series is legendary for its dark fantasy setting, eclectic cast of characters, heinous villains, and carrying the legacy of its creator now years beyond his passing. But despite the bleak seinen storytelling in moments and a world rapidly descending into ruin, I found Berserk embodying a trope I never expected in the series: the shōnen-standard Power of Friendship and its shocking effectiveness.

Shōnen anime and manga tropes are particularly repetitive due to their saturation, particularly in battle shōnen series like Naruto, to the point of "Friendship no Jutsu" memes. Fairy Tail and the Power of Friendship are so intertwined that it's heartbreaking yet unsurprising that it's influenced by its creator, Hiro Mashima's prior loneliness. But one man's cliché is another man's classic, as Berserk paces out its execution of said trope to the point that the true Power of Friendship moments are especially earned several arcs in.

Berserk Shows Guts Overcoming Trauma with the Power of Friendship

The Hawk of the Millennium Empire Arc Signals a Big Shift for Guts

Every time I return to Berserk, I'm stunned by how much I continue to adore the quality of the Hawk of the Millennium Empire Arc (or the Millennium Falcon Arc) and how it showed me Guts' journey toward healing. This is the longest and best arc in Berserk (in my opinion), with some of its most consequential developments outside the Golden Age or Fantasia, namely, how Guts began to depend on the Black Swordsman Party. This development is key as it marks the moment Guts realizes his healing begins when he relies on others again.

Berserk featuring Guts in his Berserker Armor

Best Berserk Panels That Prove Kentaro Miura's Unequal Genius

Kentaro Miura's magnum opus, Berserk, continues to define the world of anime and manga, and his legendary panels have stood the test of time.

Berserk explores many touchy and difficult topics over its now 377 chapters and counting, but coping with and recovering from trauma is among its most enduring themes, with Guts and Casca psychically devastated by the events of the Eclipse. The Black Swordsman Arc thus becomes Guts' lost period, where he lets his trauma get the better of him, going on a rampage for vengeance. After all, Berserk's antagonist, Griffith, handles his trauma in an antithetical manner, discarding his friends as sacrifices in pursuit of power. Guts realizes his friends keep him from sinking into a similarly violent abyss.

The Power of Friendship typically entails how the hero overcomes seemingly insurmountable odds thanks to the backing of their friends.

This isn't controversial, it's a fact, with Guts even affirming how important it has become to accept help from and depend on others in one of Berserk's best quotes in chapter #349. By the time of the infamous troll caves segment in the Hawk of the Millennium Empire Arc, Guts witnesses teammates like Isidro, Serpico, Farnese, and Schierke putting their lives on the line against the horrors emerging from the Qliphoth. But the Power of Friendship doesn't just manifest for Guts, as others in the Black Swordsman Party benefit immensely from this trope in Berserk.

The Black Swordsman Party Draws From the Power of Friendship

Berserk's Heroes Fight for Their Friends

I remember being surprised by Puck's comic relief as a tiny elf companion juxtaposed against Guts' overly serious, loner persona. However, I began to see what Berserk was cooking while drawing them together. Much like the rest of the Black Swordsman Party, Puck is an invaluable friend who helps Guts regain his grasp on humanity after it was wrenched from him by the Eclipse and his subsequent lost years in the Black Swordsman Arc. This extends to each core member extending outward, showing their growth most prominently from chapters #196 and onward.

One of my favorite characters from Berserk who benefited from this trope is Farnese, who leaves the Conviction Arc feeling lost, realizing her lack of purpose while finding a sense of agency in a group of peers. Farnese begins her atonement by trying to protect Casca, discovering herself as a peer to rely on instead of a figurehead officer of the Holy See. She goes from earnest yet incompetent in chapter #196 to willing to lay her life on the line for Casca, as noticed by Serpico in chapter #207, to refusing to cower with Casca at her back in chapter #217.

Guts compliments Farnese's dedication, bringing her and the readers to tears and seeing her path unfold while Guts learns to trust others. Berserk shows the rest of the party's similar bravery towards their comrades, like Serpico's trust in Guts in chapter #215 and his near-suicidal charge against the kelpies in chapter #211. Guts even recognizes Isidro's growth as a swordsman, communicating the boy's value to the team in chapter #217. Finally, I can never forget Berserk's Schierke, whose role is paramount to keeping Guts from falling into the abyss of his latent rage in the Berserker Armor.

The long and the short of it is that Guts has learned to trust his friends and not to see them as fodder. Guts sees his team for who they are: friends and comrades, just like the Band of the Hawk whom he had lost in the Golden Age Arc, in a beautiful panel from chapter #221. But perhaps most heartwarming is how Berserk is sustained by the Power of Friendship even outside its pages.

Berserk Continues Because of Friendship

Kentaro Miura's Legacy Lives on

Berserk chapter 364.5 Miura and Mori's friendship

Berserk's creator Kentaro Miura tragically passed away on May 6, 2021, from an acute aortic dissection, swiftly taking him away from the world and his loving family and friends. It was a devastating loss, yet his longtime friend and fellow mangaka, Kouji Mori, would soon take on the mantle to lead Berserk's publication, with Miura's relayed plans and character designs for the series' eventual ending. People were cynical about such a change, but in my humble opinion, Berserk has continued to impress me, and I treasure every subsequent chapter release.

Kouji Mori's one-shot preceded Studio Gaga's resumption of Berserk under Mori's supervision.

But the biggest gut punch of the transition was Mori's memorial one-shot manga, Mori-chan Ken-chan. Inside is a flowy, stream-of-consciousness story with anecdotes about his mutual mangaka journey with Miura, admiring him as a rising creator, appreciating Miura's patience even when Mori had his difficulties as a creator, and noting Miura's quirks and mannerisms while sharing his vision. It's a beautiful and fitting eulogy and crushes any doubts that Mori wouldn't take the responsibility of finishing Berserk as seriously as possible. Miura never lost sight of their connection, and in his passing, neither did Mori.

With Mori carrying on Berserk to its eventual conclusion as a way to honor Miura's wishes, I think about how friendship can be empowering and how Miura's kind words were reminiscent of Guts' trust in his friends later in the series. But I also think about the ephemeral nature of life and how Miura's lessons can be used in our daily lives. I love my friends fiercely and wish for everyone to grow, succeed, and be happy, and while we're not living out the plot of Berserk, a few words of affirmation can go a long way.

Berserk

Berserk is a dark fantasy manga series by Kentaro Miura, first published in 1989. Set in a medieval Europe-inspired world, it follows Guts, a lone mercenary, and his struggle against demonic forces after his betrayal by Griffith, leader of the Band of the Hawk. The franchise has expanded into multiple anime series, films, video games, and merchandise.

Created by Kentaro Miura , Kouji Mori

First Film Berserk: The Golden Age Arc 1: The Egg of the King

Latest Film Berserk: The Golden Age Arc 3: The Advent

First Episode Air Date October 7, 1997

Cast Nobutoshi Canna , Toshiyuki Morikawa , Yûko Miyamura , Hiroaki Iwanaga , Takahiro Sakurai , Kazuki Yao , Unshô Ishizuka , Kenta Miyake

Character(s) Guts , Griffith , Casca , Judeau , Pippin , Corkus , Rickert , Gaston (Berserk) , Puck (Berserk) , Farnese de Vandimion , Serpico , Isidro , Schierke

Video Game(s) Sword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage , Berserk: Millennium Falcon Hen Seima Senki no Sho , Berserk and the Band of the Hawk

Summary

Berserk is a dark fantasy manga series by Kentaro Miura, first published in 1989. Set in a medieval Europe-inspired world, it follows Guts, a lone mercenary, and his struggle against demonic forces after his betrayal by Griffith, leader of the Band of the Hawk. The franchise has expanded into multiple anime series, films, video games, and merchandise.

Source: TV Tropes

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