The majority of this book is taken up with the conclusion of the 'Guardians of Desire' chapter in which Gut's is finally brought face to face with his nemesis Griffith. It then moves on to the 'Golden Age' chapter which was the inspiration for the original anime series and probably the most widely known story arc from Berserk.
The introduction of Griffeth is handled very well, I love that there are so many mysteries at this point and while some of the greater mythos is made clear it also poses many more questions for reader. The depictition of the Godhand's domain with its Escheresque imagery is one of my favorite part of the volume. The Godhand themselves seem to be inspired by the cenobites from Clive Barker's Hellraiser. They really are the stuff of nightmares. It also dawned on me whilst I was reading that the Behelits are very similar to the puzzle box too.
Yesterday I said how I understood why people might be put off by this series but if I wanted to convince someone of its merit I tell them to start reading the 'Golden Age' Chapter first. It is essentially the history according to Guts. It follows him from birth up until to the present day and while the previous chapters are key to the overall plot you could easily be read afterwards. In fact in Japan the manga only truly became popular after the start of this story line so its small wonder it was the focus of not only the ninties series but also the new film adaptions too.
Frankly, I loved this volume and rereading it was an absolute pleasure. Kentaro's art is pitch perfect, the characterisation, especially of young Guts, is excellent and the overall plot is well structured and brilliantly executed. What we have here is essentially Berserk in a nutshell and it is magnificent.
No comments:
Post a Comment