However, where Miura really shows off his latent artistic talents early on is through his ability to create crisp, clear, and highly fluid fight scenes. Those initial volumes feature many very unique character designs (especially the apostles) and also sport a relatively high focus on detail. The artwork in the first few volumes of Berserk won't do much to impress many of today's manga readers, but at the time when the series was first serialized (1992) it was certainly well above average. But even still, it's pretty much impossible not to enjoy the ongoing story that is Berserk. In fact, at times it can even make some of the chapters feel a bit shounen-esk. I feel that the magic the group 'acquires' in volume 24 is somewhat exaggerated and does not suit the dark atmosphere of the story. The only problem with the story, in my humble opinion, is the introduction of magic in the manga. One of the side stories that I found most intriguing was Farnese and Serpico's as it was so beautifully orchestrated as part of the manga as a whole.

Each of these side-stories is not only unique and extremely well developed, but also very deep and revealing as it shows the reader why these character are the way they are. In fact, nearly all of the major supporting cast members receive a considerable amount of page space for their own stories to be fleshed out. These conflicting thoughts and emotions just go to show how invested the reader becomes with the characters.Īnother good thing about the Berserk story is that the protagonist (Guts) is not always the focal character in every chapter. You'll be confronted with conflicting emotions and think things like 'I really want to see Guts put Griffith in the ground' and at the same time 'Griffith is just so damn cool'. The reader has established a deep connection with Guts, Casca, and Griffith and that only grows more as the story continues. Then the rhythm of the manga has changed completely.

It defies generalization and is just damn good storytelling.Īfter the Gold Age arc wraps up the story come back full circle to where it left us at the end of volume 3. It is chock-full of action, drama, character development, twists and turns, and just a dash of romance. However, after the reader begins the Golden Age arc it is nearly impossible to not be pulled in and become addicted to the series. The first three volumes may discourage some of the readers because it's starts off kind of slow and the initial artwork is not quite up to today's standards.

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