Wow, these are some wild news that pretty much everyone in the manga community is aware of. BERSERK IS BACK!
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| © Kentaro Miura, Studio Gaga, Young Animal |
My history with Berserk is fairly simple. I started with the 90s anime a few years ago. Funny thing is I remember starting it around 3pm and it was so captivating I watched 22 episodes and went to bed at 3am lol. It held the title for most episodes I watched in one day for some time until I watched 24 episodes of Eyeshield 21 one hot summer day😂 A lot of people like to point out how the animation doesn't hold up, but I think it looks pretty good. Yeah, there are a lotta still shots, but I've seen plenty of 2020s anime that look worse. Another thing I gotta mention is the amazing opening and I mean that both completely ironically and completely unironically... #Nothingwillbewong
Anyway, the 90s anime is a solid 9/10 in my book and as soon as the Berserk deluxe edition volumes started coming out I jumped onto them as well. I'm up to number 8 so I'm on the Troll arc and will be buying more volumes soon. I should also mention I haven't seen the 2016 and 2017 series for obvious reasons and I'm yet to watch the 3 movies as I've already experience the Golden age in both anime and manga form, so I'll wait a few more years until I yearn to experience it again through them.
Back to the topic at hand, as we all know Kentaro Miura passed away last year, so everyone kind of assumed the manga will just be left without an actual conclusion. This was the consensus for a year until the people at Studio Gaga (which Miura founded) announced plans for continuing the manga on Twitter. From what I can tell, they're determined to keep the manga as canon to Miura's vision as possible, though they said they'll also start a new arc once the current one wraps up. I honestly dig the way they're approaching the situation as judging by that announcement, things are looking up.
The true wild card we also gotta talk about is Kouji Mori. He also made a statement along with the people at Studio Gaga and it turns out he's the only one who knows the rough idea of how the story will conclude. My dude holds the power lol. It also helps that he has his own successful career as a mangaka with his most notable work being Holyland. I haven't read it, but I became aware of it ever since my boy NZAnimemanga uploaded his top 20 favourite manga video, where he put it at number 2. From what I could tell, it looks like my cup of tea. I'm imagining it has the street fights of Garouden, but with some messed up psychological elements sprinkled on. The point is, it seems like Mori will be able to supervise the project to an excellent degree as he makes it clear he's doing it for his friend's sake. Respectable.
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| © Kouji Mori, Young Animal |
Lastly, I would like to address a common concern in the fandom regarding well... is it right to continue the manga without Miura? This question ventures into a potentially bizarre category, which I can only compare to Prince and 2PAC holograms performing on stage despite both artists passing long ago. On one hand, some may see this as disrespectful as it brings the dead back to life in a metaphorical sense. On the other hand, the fact that people still want to experience their creative endeavours enough to bring them back in such a form serves as nothing but a testament to their work and almost iconic status in the minds of their fans. You can argue this is the ultimate form of respect.
I believe the statements made by the people who continue the work exert a great respect and appreciation for Miura's creation, which sound pretty reassuring. They also decided to clearly label exactly when this Miura-less era of Berserk starts, which is singlehandedly the one thing I can give them my ultimate respect for. Why is this important? Because it establishes a clear cut-off point from the work Miura was directly involved in, to the work that continues his vision. This means if fans are disgruntled with the new state of Berserk, they can simply dismiss it as Miura-less and thus more of a fanfiction/non-canon/spin off of the real Berserk. This isn't to say the future of Berserk will necessarily be bad or be akin to filler, but some fans will surely be unable to accept the change of mangaka. It's like when a lead singer leaves a rock band and is replaced with someone else (think of AC/DC, Black Sabbath and Three Days Grace). Some fans love it, some hate it, some have mixed feelings and all of these reactions are to be expected.
A perfect example is the modern state of Yugioh's anime. I believe the canon anime timeline of DM, GX and 5Ds, which is brilliantly tied with Bonds Beyond Time the movie is a masterpiece. This cut-off point also allows me to conveniently dismiss series I happen to hate like Zexal, Arc V, Vrains and Sevens. They exist outside of that timeline and although I may be disappointed and dissatisfied by the current state of the anime, its existence can't stain the part I do love. Looping back to Berserk, if you like the new direction you can continue to treat it as part of the base story, whilst if you think it's lacking you can simply dismiss it as a part that exists outside of Miura's true direct canon. It's a win-win for everyone.
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| © Kentaro Miura, Studio Gaga, Young Animal |
Overall, I honestly think the manga's continuation is in
good hands, with people who are seemingly willing to continue its creation in
good faith. I'm currently reading Berserk physically through the Deluxe
editions so I haven't truly caught up to the latest chapter, but I'm excited
for the manga's continuation. In the meantime I think I might also pick up
Holyland, which seems to have nothing but universal praise. You can expect a
post on it as soon as I finish it. Fingers crossed Berserk's revival is a
success! 🤞
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