Guts, a wandering mercenary brandishing an immense greatsword in the world of Berserk, typically prefers to work alone. But when he is surprisingly bested in a duel by Griffith, the beautiful, ambitious leader and founder of the mercenary group known as the Band of the Hawk, he finds himself inducted into the troop. Within three years’ time, Guts has become a commander in the group he’s grown close to. With Guts’s immense strength combined with Griffith’s leadership, the Band of the Hawk becomes renowned for dominating every battle. But with Griffith’s underlying dark, selfish goal, their successes in battle eventually come at great costs.
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Oddly animated in 1997 by the same Studio OLM that has delighted the hearts of children worldwide with Pokemon, it’s also adapted perhaps the bleakest anime and manga to ever exist, leaving mature viewers hopeless, in shambles, and yet somehow still wanting more. There’s no sugarcoating it: Berserk is not a feel-good fantasy. In fact, this series tends to be the epitome of what anime fans think of when they think of a dark, especially grimdark, fantasy series. Set in a world slipping into ruin, most anything unfathomably gruesome that can happen, does. Unrelentingly disturbing, gritty, violent, hopeless, and morally ambiguous. However gut-wrenching it may be, the show and its characters carry a certain visceral depth to them that meticulously dissects the themes of free will, perseverance, human connection, and the corruption therein. And with struggle comes wisdom, like in these quotes from Berserk’s manga and anime.
10) Our Best Weapon is the Will to Move Forward
“Struggle, Contend, Wriggle!! For That Alone Is the Sword Of One Who Confronts Death!!” – Skull Knight
Berserk Volume 9, Chapter 37
Skull Knight appears before Guts as a dark omen, warning him of the Eclipse and horrors to come. While Guts (and frankly anyone unfortunate enough to exist in that universe) faces existing in an absolute hellscape full of demonic monsters, psychological and bodily horrors no one should ever face, and other merciless humans, he still somehow finds the strength to fight. And as Skull Knight elucidates, sometimes even when all may seem bleak, the sheer will to survive is enough.
9) Hindsight is 20/20
“Why do I always realize it… When I’ve already lost it…” – Guts
Berserk Volume 12, Chapter 71
Guts may be a hardened warrior, but he’s not completely immune to acknowledging the truly important things that are liable to be lost, especially when it comes to learning from mistakes and recognizing what had previously been within his grasp. Hindsight may be 20/20, but it can take practice to acknowledge when we’ve messed up and embrace and learn from such humility and hopefully not repeat such folly. Unfortunately, cyclical futility sometimes has other plans. After rescuing Griffith, Guts’s horrible realization foreshadows the even more horrible sequence of events that have been set in motion soon come.
8) The Past is Past
Try as he might to piece Casca’s broken mind back together, Guts also acknowledges that the only direction one can move in life is forward. Guts’s broken body, Casca’s broken mind — both time and struggles have not been kind to Guts nor those he holds dear as much as he may pine to go back to before the Eclipse.
“Even if You Force Back What Was Lost… It Still Won’t Be the Way It Was.”
– Guts
Berserk Volume 33, Chapter 287
Guts shows great emotional maturity and growth over time following the Eclipse, acknowledging that as much as he may endeavor to restore things to how they once were, such an endeavor is nothing but a pipe dream. His solution is that he must ultimately grow past the adversities at hand rather than drown in the past. We may often dwell on nostalgia and pine for a time of yore, and although it’s good to appreciate fond memories and acknowledge our roots, we must ultimately strive to create a better future.
7) Hatred Does Not Fill the Void
While hatred and a lust for more and more blood drives demons within the Berserk universe, it also unfortunately drives many humans, being no better than the monsters they face. Hardening one’s heart can leave one blind to positive growth, leading one to run away from adversities rather than facing them and growing past them.
“Vengeance is somethin’ you soak and sharpen in blood… The more you sharpen, the more it rusts, so you sharpen it again. In the end, all that’s left is a pile of rust and scraps.” – Godo
Berserk Volume 17, Chapter 129
Acknowledging sorrow and grief does not make one weak. On the contrary, it allows one to recognize and overcome it rather than letting it grow into drowning hatred, giving in to a futile, cyclical endeavor of vengeance, and most likely and ironically lead to self-sabotage in the end.
6) Shout Out to the Lady Strugglers
Let’s be real, the ladies in the Berserk universe definitely come against some of the most brutal struggles. At one point, Guts even gets on Casca’s case about being a fragile little female warrior. Rude. Anyway, yeah, the majority of bloodshed in this series is brought about by men. “Boys will be boys”, right? Then again, women tend to shed blood every month, not that it would typically be considered “enjoyable”.
“Why do most men commit to such affairs that only result in bloodshed?”
– Princess Charlotte
Berserk (1997), Episode 9
But just imagine an alternate universe of Berserk where all the genders are swapped. Griffette would definitely be a vibe since his character design is already pretty Rose of Versailles-coded. The Berserk universe would definitely face a different set of struggles.
5) Just Keep Struggling
“Struggle. There’s no fighting just to die. Keep struggling and struggling until the end of ends, then struggle some more.”
– Judeau, Berserk Volume 13, Chapter 81
Akin to how Dory in Finding Nemo says, “Just keep swimming,” Judeau’s advice for fellow strugglers is basically, “Just keep struggling.” Bad economy? Just keep struggling. Terrible job market? Just keep struggling. Entire army of demons hunting you down? Just keep struggling. A series of terrible luck just seems to keep coming your way? Just keep struggling. Sometimes endurance and patience is the simplest way to eventually overcome. Wear down the opposition. Win via struggle.
4) Live Your Life
While the context of this quote isn’t exactly uplifting upon Guts’s recommendation of “self-destruction” which definitely isn’t to be condoned, a bit of a milder sentiment of “don’t be afraid to strive to live the life you dream of” is something everyone can take to heart. (Except when it comes to doing something that isn’t in your best interest. Also Griffith. He needs to chill with following his dream.) But besides self-destructive behaviors or Griffith, so long as your dreams and goals are morally upright, go for it.
“It’s your life. Do what you want with it.” – Guts, Berserk Volume 3, Chapter 8
If you just want to become a firefighter, eat cake as a little treat while being sure to maintain an overall proper healthy diet, or save enough money to buy an adorable abode to live the cottagecore lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of, in the words of Shia LaBeouf, “Don’t let your dreams be dreams!” Sometimes things like the economy or the hiring landscape can seem bleak, but baby steps are just a goal’s reps to build dream biceps… or something. YOLO, responsibly.
3) Don’t Be Like Icarus (or Griffith)
“The reward for ambition too great… Is self-destruction.” – Guts
Berserk manga Volume 2, Chapter 2
Whether speaking of himself or foreshadowing Griffith’s fate, the sentiment is the same: setting one’s standards too high and aiming for a completely unrealistic goal only leads to disappointment. While shooting for the moon and being satisfied with landing among the stars is one thing, flying too close to the sun can mean one’s downfall.
2) A Fragile Body Does Not Mean a Fragile Will
“You’re right, we are mortal and fragile. But even if we are tortured or wounded, we’ll fight to survive.” – Guts
Berserk (1997), Episode 1
While torturing the Baron with arrows, Guts explains to the monster how, although “lesser”, mortal beings like mere humans may be inherently vulnerable, their corporeal fragility does not denote a fragile quiddity. While the hammer of harsh reality may seem as though it simply quashes any mortal in its wake, on the contrary, those with the will to endure actually become forged with the fortitude to do so. This quote encapsulates Guts’s grasp of the importance of having an enduring will to survive despite suffering, the odds stacked against oneself, and a seemingly bleak fate. Truly a struggler who continues despite the struggle.
1) Humans > Monsters
“I’m purebred human, right down to the bone. Don’t mistake me for one of you freaks.” – Guts
Berserk manga Volume 31, Chapter 275
Or, as some fans prefer in the Dark Horse Berserk translation’s quote: “F-ck you. I’m human, the real deal, right down to the f-ckin’ marrow of my bones. Don’t lump me together with you f-ggot-ss monsters.” Running off Guts’s assertion that humans as mortals aren’t as weak as monsters and demons may think, he further asserts that being human actually makes him better. Guts is a struggler who at least has self-respect enough to recognize that he may be a mere human, but being a struggling human is definitely better than being a monster.
What’s your favorite quote from Berserk? Let us know in the comments!
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