The final revelations are at hand, with the true nature of Griffith’s ambition revealed, and it doesn’t spell good news for the rest of the Hawks.
What They Say
When Guts first joined Griffith and the Band Of The Hawk, the wheels of fate were set in motion. Since that time, Guts has learned the lessons of the battlefield and embraced his own path. Griffith has tasted ultimate victory and ultimate defeat. Caska has cast away her dead dreams and found new ones. Now all of the pawns are in place, and the Great Eclipse draws near. The terrible truth behind Griffith's destiny is revealed as the sun turns to sackcloth and the seas to blood.
The Review!
Audio:
I listened to the English language track primarily for my main review, and noticed no dropouts, distortions or other technical problems; this is a pretty standard stereo mix with most dialogue coming through the centre channel. The same can be said of the Japanese track from the areas I spot-checked.
Video:
One area where <i>Berserk</i> is beginning to show its age is in terms of video, and it’s even more noticeable when upscaled on my HDTV. Presented in its original full frame ratio, the picture is very grainy and there are a lot of nicks and scratches around the screen. During high movement and some darker scenes, there is some blocking, and although it’s not helped by the style of the show itself, some of the colours are a little washed out. Having said that, much of this is more down to the quality of materials available to Madman rather than poor production on their point.
Subtitles are in a yellow font which is easily readable, and I didn’t notice any obvious spelling errors this time out.
Packaging:
No packaging was included as this was a check disc.
Menu:
The main menu starts with a brief introduction as all the selections animate on screen, and then in the background images in the style of the cover art for all of the characters revolves and rotates around. The show’s logo and volume number are in the top right, with all the selections on a parchment of sorts at the bottom of the screen. One of the show’s signature themes plays over this menu. The two sub-menus are static, with no music, and in the same style, with just a piece of artwork running down the right side.
Extras:
The final volume contains an interesting array of extras. First, there’s a music video of the “Forces” theme song that constantly pops up in the series. On the musical theme, there’s also a Paint it <i>Berserk</I> feature, which shows a massive street painting being done for the show, with the full version of the opening theme playing over it. There’s also a TV spot, an “encore” version of the opening (which I couldn’t tell the differences in) and finally more outtakes.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
It’s with great sadness that I watched this final volume of <i>Berserk</i>. Not just because there’s no more anime, but also because it’s unfortunate that, at the point the show was animated, there wasn’t enough manga to go beyond the first Band of the Hawk story arc. As such, the final episode ends at the most inopportune moment, with you just wanting to see what happens. Thankfully, by now the translated manga is well beyond this point, so if you want, you <i>can</i> now see what happens. And given that this is one of the best stories around, after watching this volume the desire to do so will probably be very high.
At the start of this volume, the focus of the Hawks is on rescuing Griffith. Led by Guts and Caska, they battle their way through the castle until eventually they reach the deepest depths, and find Griffith. Much to their horror, he is a mere shadow of his former self, having fallen from grace and been reduced to skin and bones, with no tongue either. Guts leads the charge to escape, but the state of Griffith sends ripples through all the Hawks. No one is entirely sure what is going to happen with Griffith no longer able to lead them.
Meanwhile, Guts finally realises that his place is with the Hawks – everything he’s been looking for has actually been right in front of him all along. But Griffith is having visions of his own, seeing the results of all that he has done to the people around him. As he feels his power slipping away, he races off and lands in a lake. When he tries to commit suicide, he is protected by the Behelit, making its conspicuous reappearance.
From here, the show descends into its darkest moment, as the momentous Eclipse takes place. The whole area becomes a festival for demons, with four “apostles”, known as the Godhand, leading the fray and explaining that they were summoned by Griffith, who has brought everyone along to be sacrificed. What ensues could only be called a slaughter, and it spells an untimely end for many of the Hawks.
These final episodes sum up everything that <i>Berserk</i> is about: the characters, their relationships, their ambitions, all wrapped up in a bloodbath of epic proportions. Caska and Guts’ relationship comes to its ultimate point, as she is willing to leave everything to be with him but he realises that everything he wants is with her and the Hawks.
Griffith’s ambition finally comes to a head. We always knew that he wanted big things, and that he would do anything to get it, but here we finally see the results of what he wants, and it doesn’t paint a pretty picture. The man was actually willing to sacrifice everyone he surrounded himself with, and brought himself close to. And the whole time you can’t help but think that partly, he’s driven by his desire of sorts to just be better than Guts, and to show everyone else that he has surpassed him. Watching his transformation, and his justification through his visions, is both scary and enthralling at the same time.
Even the supporting cast each get something memorable as their swan song. Judeau is always at the front of the pack, with his words for both Caska and Guts providing inspiration. But even the likes of Corkus and Pippin go out as you would expect, with the former being his usual argumentative and kind of scared self, and Pippin being selfless as always.
But for all the great character interactions, they’re built on the foundation of one of the most enthralling stories you’ll find anywhere. There are few stories out there that are as well told as <i>Berserk</i>, particularly this Band of the Hawk saga, which manages to be epic in scale and yet filled with so many memorable characters and intimate moments with them at the same time. Watching the rise of the Hawks, from small-time mercenaries to the main force in the Midland army, and likewise Griffith’s rise to power, Guts’ importance, Caska’s role in everything, and even the love triangle has simply been a joy.
In Summary:
It may not be the most flashy series around, but watching <i>Berserk</i> again reminds me why it will always be considered a classic. The story is just timeless, a tale of friendship and greed, that you’ll always be able to watch and enjoy, because it’s told with one of the most memorable casts you will ever see. Perhaps the only fault you can place against the series is that it’s only the first part of a much larger story – one that is not complete in anime form. But to ignore the journey because of that would be to deprive yourself of one of anime’s finest hours. There are few series that know their characters as well as this, and few shows that are such a joy to behold. Forget the fact that it’s shrouded in ultra-violence, <i>Berserk</i> is all about the story and the characters, and it never forgets it. If there’s one series you should own, it’s this anime classic. An absolute masterpiece that I simply can’t recommend highly enough.
Features
Japanese Language (2.0), English Language (2.0), English Subtitles, “Forces” Full Version, TV Spot, Paint it Berserk,TV Opening Encore Version, Outtakes
Review Equipment
Samsung LE40M86 1080p HDTV, Philips DVP 5980 region free DVD player upscaling to 1080p via HDMI, Pioneer HTP-GS1 5.1 Surround Sound System.
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