Synopsis

Berserk tells the story of a young swordsman named Guts as he joins the mercenary Band of the Hawk during a time of war in the kingdom of Midland. The group follows the vision of their leader Griffith as he follows his ambitions. The Band of the Hawk soon becomes the finest fighting force in the kingdom and plays a crucial role in its ultimate victory.

Review

Berserk is, in my opinion, the quintessential example of a fantasy anime done right. The story is epic and sweeping, akin to a well-written novel in visual form (not a TV movie adaptation, either).

The overall plot is driven by the aspirations of Griffith, who follows his dreams fearlessly and blindly. Guts is a free spirit, following Griffith and desiring nothing more than the opportunity to put his swordsmanship to work. He later becomes restless with following another man?s dreams and desires to find a vision for himself, however.

The story is the driving force behind this series, consistently moving the plot forward at a steady pace. The storyline takes place over the course of several years, allowing the viewer to experience some of the most significant changes that take place and watch the growth and maturation of the characters.

It is unfortunate that the story takes such a drastic, dark turn in the last 2 or 3 episodes of the series, however. While these episodes are significant and contain elements that tie in to the plot, the mood becomes so depressing and morbid that they are not at all enjoyable to watch. They are not particularly insightful, either. While they do provoke thought on the results of blind ambition, no alternatives or moral advice is offered. The viewer is left feeling disappointed and depressed.

The characters involved in the story are rather deep, especially Griffith and Guts. The theme of their destinies relating and possibly conflicting is reinforced consistently by their interactions, and their relationship is rather complex, almost symbiotic in nature. The other characters are not especially deep, but they do offer some personality, and almost all of them are rather distinctive.

The animation is not the emphasis in Berserk, in my opinion, but rather the story. As such, the animation quality is solid, but not revolutionary, and occasionally seems rather static. It is, in fact, very similar in some ways to storybook illustrations, which is no accident. The story could well be from a fairy tale of sorts, although the content is a bit more risqu? than the tales we are commonly familiar with.

The music is appropriately majestic without feeling bland. It does complement the story well, but it?s not something that many will want to relish on its own merits. The soundtrack serves to set the mood when necessary, but was not especially noticeable otherwise, which is a good thing, since the story does not need to be overshadowed.

The violence level in Berserk is definitely above average, in my opinion, although it is set during a prolonged full-scale war. The content overall is not gratuitous, but certainly not appropriate for children, in my estimation.

Conclusion

It is rare that a story of such depth and emotional impact is told convincingly in a TV series, but this is one of the few exceptions. It is unfortunate that the ending forces such a morbid turn of events. I would even suggest that by the second or third to last episode, the viewer can draw accurate enough conclusions to render the final 2 or 3 episodes almost unnecessary.

-Review by Reptile (17 Jun, 2006)

Audio:	Unique and epic soundtrack
Video:	Nice style with detailed still frames
Plot:	Intricately woven highly-engaging plot
Style:	Great character designs with a dark fantasy feel
Characters:	Dynamic, multi-level characters
Violence:	High (blood, gore, etc.)
Language:	Moderate
Nudity:	Moderate
Genre:	Fantasy
Episodes:	25
Rating:	4.5 of 5
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