Customer Reviews

Berserk, Vol. 2

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Wow. I LOVE this series. As we delve deeper into Guts' journey, the characterization is superb: Guts the Master Swordsman who's raw fury and power comes at the cost of his humanity(?). Plus, Puck the Elf is hilarious and never fails to get a laugh. He is a great balance to Guts' demeanor. Kenturo Miura's artwork is so effective in creating this chaotic world that you'd almost swear something moved in the background :) This continues to be a dark tale and I don't expect it to lighten up anytime soon - which is a good thing! The only bad thing was the cliffhanger ending....I want more BERSERK!!! PLUS, we haven't even gotten into where the anime took place.

If you've seen this anime, get the manga...you won't regret it. For those who haven't, read if you dare...the Behelit awaits....

If you have seen the Berserk anime released by Media Blasters then you have only scratched the surface of this story. The anime only covers about a third of the manga (which is currently 27 volumes and growing). I do not recomend this manga for those faint of heart, or those that felt the anime was too violent. The manga is much, much more graphic than its anime counterpart.

Aside from a few very minor editing/spelling mistakes (In the first volume there is a minor spelling mistake in reference to a castle) I have no problem with Dark Horse's translation of Kentaro Miriua's Berserk.

Highly Recommended

The only problem I've yet to have with Berserk is how fast they are as a read. I finished volume two in less than a hour. Though I will admit that the manga had me hooked, it wasn't just that that made this manga seem so short despite being over two-hundred pages. A lot of what happens in this manga is presented in imagery, and not in character dialogue. In fact, contrary to today's manga, where everything is over-explained, the Berserk manga under-explains. It lets its action speak for itself. I don't consider this a bad thing, though; it just sucks closing the book for the last time.

In this volume, the battle with the Count continues from the first volume. Helping Guts is a strange man named Vargas, who wants nothing more than to see the count dead, yet is incapable of doing anything himself, as well as Puck, the little elf that constantly annoys/helps Guts throughout the manga. This volume also teaches us a little bit more about the brand on Guts's neck, as well as showing Guts rare, emotional side. And of course, it has heaps of violence, blood, and gore, along with a smidgen of comedy interlaced during some lighter moments.

Though I felt the volume short, it still gets a five from me, and easily so. Berserk continues to get better, especially since I started my little trip through the world of Guts and his many demon enemies through the anime series. It's great getting to know his deeper history, as well as seeing Guts at his worst moments. If you've already started collecting the series, then you obviously shouldn't miss this. And if you've only seen the anime series, then buy this along with volume one and start collecting the series. Just note that the gore in this manga is graphic, and has a few scenes of nudity, which is often followed by some pretty disturbing imagery. I'd recommend following the book's instructions; if you consider yourself a mature reader, then get this.

I finished the first volume of this manga a few hours ago and could not stop myself, I devoured this installment. Guts continues his quest and the action level goes even higher than in the previous volume. People that have already experienced this manga know that it includes scenes of extreme violence, many involving women and children, and that it has plenty of vivid gore. But, once again there are other facets besides the violence that make this a spectacular series.

Guts is becoming a more interesting character with the turn of each page. We get to see a conflicted psyche, with many layers, and an uncertainty about his humanity and strength to face the challenges that lay ahead. The relevance and meaning of the brand he carries gets further explanation in this volume, and the Behelit surfaces, a key to open the door to a world of monsters and demons.

The mighty Guts will face a tougher challenge this time around, and it is not clear if his mechanical arm and enormous sword, if it can be called that, together with his supernatural skill will be enough to carry him through. Once again, Puck provides the necessary tidbits of humor and a voice that seems to be starting to reach Guts' ears and affect his emotions.

This is another wonderful volume and fans of the series will not be disappointed. One final recommendation, the volume ends with a cliff-hanger, so it would be wise to have the next one handy.

This is one insanely tragic/violent manga series. That being said, I love it! Fair warning though, it is disturbing but through the the shocking moments there is a heartfelt story within the chaos that can't be denied.

SAW THE ANIME, NOW READING THE MANGA, AND IT IS AWESOME! PHILOSOPHICAL, AND ACTION! A KILLER COMBINATION!

This second installment of the berserk series stays true to the name. This book is a gorefest and keeps the reader on his toes for what happens next. This book is ideal for the 16 year old thru 21 Age range for the gore and the Detailed Illustrations inside. Ideal for a Christmas present & I know im getting the rest of the volumes.

It pains me to see one of my favorite manga titles get turned into half-assed translated English third rate comic. I have read the Chinese and some of the original Japanese versions of the manga and it seems to have something the english version lacks.

Maybe it's the atmosphere, or the asian pop culture, all I know is that something is missing from the English verison compared to the Japanese and Chinese versions. If any of you have read the manga, you would know that Puck "the fairy" companion of Gutz is suppose to take on the role of comic relief but when I read what Puck had to say I was confused on how they translated it into english.

Even though Berserk takes place in medieval european setting, it is suppose to emanate an aura of bushido-ism. In the Japanese and Chinese versions this can be felt, but it seems missing in the English translation.

Be wary if you are to purchase the english version if you are a person who doesn't like to wait for a hard copy (unless you just read it off the fan site translations). Even the Chinese version of volume 27 as of now (October 1, 2004) is already out and has already been imported to many of the chinese book stores in California. While the english volumes haven't seem to be progressing at all.

Also in this comic, there are scenes that contain (within the 27 volumes so far): the killing of women and children, pedophelia, depictions of gratuitous gore and violence, rape, animal cruelty, cannabalism, orgies, occult related activities, and almost all the taboos I can think of.

But again, I love the content because berserk is about war turned into a personal vendetta so all those things listed above I feel gives it a sense of realism. What I don't like is the translations of Berserk into English. Because I feel the english language is too limited in it's pool of descriptive vocabulary.