Kayla’s ‘Berserk’ Adventure: Volume One

Content Warning: The following includes discussion of sexual violence.

Berserk is one of, if not the most, influential manga out there. Its influence can be found in everything from Instagram merch and Delicious in Dungeon to Elden Ring. Nearly every anime watcher and manga reader has at least heard of Berserk before — or at the very least, they know about Guts’ giant sword. Even if you’re not a manga reader, if you’ve seen Phantom of the Paradise, you know about Berserk.

Trust me, you’d recognize that mask anywhere.

A reason to still analyze Berserk

I know what you’re thinking. “Another Berserk analysis? In 2025?” Hear me out: after pushing it off for a few years, I thought it was high time to finally crack open the series and see what all the hype is about. Berserk inspired a lot of media that I love so of course I want to take a stab at the source material. New year, new manga to obsess over, am I right? 

The series is set in a dark fantasy world that follows ‘The Black Swordsman’ known as Guts, a mysterious mercenary with an interesting symbol carved into his neck. We only know two things about him: one, evil spirits are chasing him, and two, he knows exactly how to wield that huge sword on his back. Berserk volume one drops us in the middle of Guts’ journey — he’s already an established name in the universe, demons of all sorts are chasing after him, and he can’t seem to catch a break. 

The Black Swordsman and the sliver of hope

When it comes to being a protagonist, Guts is the best of the worst. He’s selfish, ruthless, and downright cruel at times. His loyalty is only to himself and whatever he needs to do in order to achieve his goal. Guts is a walking red flag, even in the dark fantasy genre. Put simply, if this was any other genre, Guts would be the antagonist. But in Berserk, he’s the hero this brutal world deserves. Guts is necessary to cut through all of the nastiness that hides in the daylight. 

The juxtaposition of Guts and Puck is something that caught my eye the moment the latter was introduced. Of course, there are obvious aesthetic differences such as size and outfits—or lack thereof in Puck’s case. But their general outlooks on life are on opposite ends of the spectrum. From the get-go, Guts commits to spending his life in darkness and fighting demons while Puck chooses a sunnier outlook on life. Puck represents, quite obviously, the goodness that Guts so desperately wants to see in his world of darkness.

Additionally, Puck chooses to find and stick with Guts throughout volume one; which stands out from the rest of Guts’ interactions with others. Puck doesn’t want anything from Guts other than friendship, something Guts isn’t used to in this cruel, dark world. Their friendship is what shines a light in the darkness for him. Throughout volume one, Guts tries to convince Puck to stay away from him but is never actually that definitive about it. This only causes Puck to pop up when Guts least expects it, like in the carriage. 

Sex as storytelling

I wouldn’t be able to write this review without discussing the opening scene. Using sex as a form of violence isn’t new, but the roles are typically reversed when used as a plot device. Call me a women’s studies major if you want—you’d be correct and I’m proud of that—but sex plays a key part in how Guts is perceived in the story.

In the opening panel, it’s unclear that the woman is actually a demon. It’s only when we get to panel three that she begins to transform then we see what she actually looks like. Using sex to destroy Guts shows that the demon only sees sex as a means to an end. Guts, himself, is nothing. This lack of care, or at the very minimum this lack of connection to Guts, does nothing more than make Guts a victim of sexual violence. 

No perfect victim

One can argue that Guts isn’t a victim—and at first glance, I’d agree because of how he reacts to the demon. But when we look at sexual trauma and the way it can manifest, we start to recognize it for what it is. First and foremost, Guts seems to be used to this situation which, in and of itself, shows that he isn’t brand new to sexual trauma. He simply views it as a normal thing to happen to him; despite how abnormal it actually is. Second, sexual trauma, particularly in adults, manifests in ways such as disassociation, distorted self-image, and risk-taking behaviors.

With this in mind, look at Guts and tell me he doesn’t show these in not only the opening sex scene but throughout this volume. I’m not saying that Guts is only a victim. But it’s a part of his story that I believe can be glossed over because the idea that this very masculine man might have sexual trauma makes readers uncomfortable. 

Opulent details

Aesthetically, Berserk reminds me of Dorohedoro. Yes, I’m well aware that Berserk came out first and most likely inspired the former, but hear me out. It has a sketchy sort of aesthetic that brings the darkness in. The way Kentaro Miura draws the characters and his use of shadows specifically brings an unsettling feeling to them. It creates a creepy atmosphere even if the only thing in the panel is the character that’s speaking. Additionally, the opulence in the backgrounds is simply wild. Miura puts so much effort into creating the world that surrounds Guts and succeeds in making it both beautiful and horrific at the same time. It’s hard to balance that without leaning too far in one direction, but he managed to do it and I have to give the man kudos for that.

All of this leads me to a single question: is Berserk over the top? Well, yes. But it works well. Berserk is a dark fantasy manga and requires over-the-topness for people to keep reading otherwise the dark moments would make them turn away. In Volume One, we witness the horrifying death of people who were trying to help Guts but we also get to see how ridiculous it is for Guts to wield a sword twice his size. It’s a hard genre that requires authors to have a handle on this balance — and Miura-sensei manages to make that look easy. 

A compelling beginning

Berserk volume one is a good introduction. It met my expectations, and the plot kept me interested enough that I’ll definitely be reading volume two—especially considering he pulled a George Lucas by starting in the middle of the plot and not the beginning. Miura-sensei created a world that, even with the horrifying realities, is beautiful. It’s a solid story with complicated characters who I want to cheer on even if their morals aren’t the cleanest. I’ll end this review with one last question: where can a girl get a Dragon Slayer?

Berserk is available at local bookstores and directly via Dark Horse Comics.