Berserk by Kentaro Miura

Author: Kentaro Miura

Genre: Adult Fantasy

Format: Paperback

๐‘๐š๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐ฏ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ž๐ฌ ๐Ÿ – ๐Ÿ’๐Ÿ: โญโญโญโญโญโฃ
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โ€œ๐๐ฎ๐ญ ๐ญ๐š๐ค๐ž ๐ก๐ž๐ž๐, ๐’๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ ๐ฅ๐ž๐ซ. ๐’๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ ๐ฅ๐ž, ๐ž๐ง๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ž, ๐œ๐จ๐ง๐ญ๐ž๐ง๐. ๐…๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐š๐ญ ๐š๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ž ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐ฌ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐จ๐ง๐ž ๐ฐ๐ก๐จ ๐๐ž๐Ÿ๐ข๐ž๐ฌ ๐๐ž๐š๐ญ๐ก. ๐ƒ๐จ ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐ž๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ž๐ฌ๐ž ๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐๐ฌ.โ€โฃ



The quote above perfectly summarises Berserk.โฃ
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Have you ever read a story that plagues every waking moment of your life? A story that is not merely a work of fiction but an alternative reality we choose to ignore in order to survive?โฃ
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Almost as if the incomplete mirror youโ€™ve been staring at everyday has found its missing piece and is now reflecting something else entirely? โฃ
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Many queries spring to mind because of Berserk. Philosophical questions which address what it means to choose a path leading to struggle for happiness or dream to obtain our lifelong ambitions.โฃ
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If we select the path to happiness, is every struggle, demon chase, regret, heartbreak and loss worth surviving over a beautiful dream youโ€™ve longed for but unfortunately remains beyond your reach and will haunt you forever?โฃ
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Alternately, if we pick our dreams, would we demolish everything weโ€™ve built, every relationship weโ€™ve fostered, every moment of happiness, every struggle weโ€™ve overcome, and use them as the means i.e. a building block to obtain our ambitions?โฃ
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Berserk has been recommended to me before but I dismissed it as a shounen manga that merely focuses on swashbuckling action and fighting final boss character archetypes which was why it never appealed to me. Looking back on it, I think it was all about timing. Certain stories do not speak to you unless youโ€™ve experienced personal suffering that leads you to reliving moments you never thought youโ€™d relate to in the first place. Another push to pick this masterpiece was the mangaka. Upon hearing about Kentaro Miuraโ€™s passing which left millions of fans heartbroken, I slowly started to take notice of his workโ€™s reception being much more than what I wrongly assumed it to be.โฃ
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After watching a few testimonials on YouTube and episodes of the anime, I had to give this manga a chance and unbeknownst to me I was in for the rockiest ride of my life.โฃ
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Unlike most fans I am fortunate enough to read all 364 chapters in one sitting but loyal Berserk audiences have been on this journey with Miura since 1989 which is commendable in every way. โฃ
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This isn’t a story I can easily recommend as at its core, Berserk is a violent grim dark fantasy filled with mature themes that is not for the faint hearted. I know I barely scratched the surface of this manga, especially the breathtaking art, intricate world building, unforgettable characters, profound characterisation of immoral characters, exploration of friendship, revenge, and other themes which need to be experienced first hand through reading the manga. Trigger warnings need to be researched prior to picking this up. โฃ
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There will never be another Berserk. Definitely not in terms of scope and mastery lengths that the mangaka has taken. If Miura wrote Gutโ€™s journey as a novel, I believe that it would still be as impactful but of course the beautiful art gives the horror and gore that extra push. โฃ
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Disclaimer: One day, I hope to own all 41 volumes or the anniversary omnibus editions but I will settle with Volume 38 being my prized possessionโฃ
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