Warning: This article contains spoilers for Berserk Chapters 365 & 366
The seminal fantasy epic Berserk has returned with Chapters 365 & 366, and with it, a refreshing air has been reinstated to the entire breadth of manga. A year after legendary mangaka Kentaro Miura’s final entry in his controversial, groundbreaking series, his colleague Koji Mouri and pupils at Studio Gaga have managed to bring it rip-roaring back to life in as fitting a way possible, evoking not only their fallen comrade and his impeccable skill, but the foundational spirit of the genre of Japanese fantasy as a whole. Pure dark fantasy, in all its beauty and horror, is back, and its name, as it has been for the last thirty years, is Berserk.
Picking up in the moments where Miura left off in Berserk's Chapter 364, the art team of Studio Gaga does not miss a beat nor shy away from the challenge, immediately erupting the narrative into a frenzy of chaotic magic as Guts charges upon his archenemy Griffith, renewing their long-held grudge. There is much to be said regarding the dedication Miura’s former apprentices demonstrate regarding their adherence to his style, but perhaps no more vibrantly does this shine through than in the vividly lucid depiction of the supernatural. The energy that engulfs the scenery, as the inhabitants of Elfhelm brace for impact and the beleaguered Casca breaks down in demonically-induced trauma recalls the best moments of the series… and evolves them in even more powerful methods.
The image of an enraged Guts in a battle of wills and steel with the God Hand Griffith is one of the great iconic matchups not only of the series but in all of contemporary Japanese fiction. In their resumption of this conflict, Studio Gaga does not miss any beats or bring the level of cinematic immersion down but instead heightens these attributes Miura introduced into the series while adding their own practiced artistry onto his legend without trying to replace him. In taking aspects of Miura’s stylistic example in the illustration of sorcerous, otherworldly elements within the world, such as his rapid juxtapositions between the psychic and physical realms and his detailed attention to magical surroundings, Studio Gaga recalls not just Miura, but the storied history of the best manga epics as well.
One of the premier qualities of manga as a field, most evident in its Seinen (18+) landmark works such as Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira and Hajime Isayama’s Attack on Titan, is its capabilities of showcasing high-level creativity in the visualization of otherworldly concepts, such as the utilization of magical powers or other such fantastic abilities and settings. Studio Gaga’s Berserk takes this ethos and runs absolutely wild with it, shaking the very island of Elfhelm with raw, untapped fury which can only be a warm-up for the true bloody throw-downs to come. There’s a hearteningly minimalist sense of drama amidst the violent shake-up, one which speaks to the purity of focus the new team is setting up for the next leg of the story. This energy doesn’t just bode well for the series, it bodes well for the genre of Japanese dark fantasy in general.
What Kentaro Miura demonstrated throughout his work on the series was not only consummate artistry but also an exploration of the trappings of manga that make it so unique. This includes the adherence to maintaining a naturalistic unity of style in terms of the action, characters, and world of the story, a discipline found in the medium less and less today. Though it is early yet in their run, what Mouri and Studio Gaga offer in this first look is a flush and blossoming return to this fundamental touchstone of Berserk and a testament to this discipline.
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