What Happened To The Berserk Fandom... (Long Rant)

[@lpassione]

I saw someone on Reddit say that Berserk glorifies rape and I was bamboozled trying to explain how it absolutely does not glorify it bcuz it’s consistently shown to be a bad thing that villainous characters do and how the victims are traumatized and harmed deeply by it. A show/manga that glorifies rape would make rape look like a good or at least harmless thing. Ppl think that depiction is glorification and honestly ppl need reading comprehension skills.

[@hobbsmakescomics]

There are soo many people who think a story depicting something is the same as the writer condoning it, and it really annoying bc these people are generally idiots that suck up all the air out the rooms they enter.

[@mariobonini1364]

They are so dumb they think depicting it is glorifying it

[@bjornsmith9431]

What happen to Western Entertainment culture, I watch Hollywood Films and Comicbooks from the 1960s, 70s, 80s, 90, 2000 sexual violence, nudity and extreme Violence, it only the pass 7 years things are getting out of hand with certain ideological belief, it is jealous westerners that hate the Beauty and reality of the Berserk Manga and other Manga with a hatred passion, I am not for telling Japanese creators what to write or draw, its their culture we should respect it, that the problem with Western like Johnny Somalia and others no respect.

[@marlom7882]

Ok your first mistake was going on Reddit in the first place

[@IVNHYPRFNK]

the show Game of Thrones featured 50 acts of rape, while the books included approximately 200. No one's complained about that...

[@XABLENXIII]

Saying “Casca enjoyed it” is just FACTUAL wrong. It’s like those people fail to realize the FACT that anyone with the brand of sacrifice goes through excruciating pain by simply being near any of the godhand members. What Casca experienced, was beyond painful and traumatizing on all three levels. Physical, emotional, and mental

[@SolidSnake240]

That was honestly one of the most idiotic things to come out of the Berserk fanbase

[@scottgimple8107]

I think most of the time they r just joking. They know it’s wrong, their just trying to be funny. It’s just so annoying when it’s literally the only joke they know

[@frumtheground]

I'm sadly not surprised by that narrative. That's part of why I usually prefer to be a silent fan. I like the community on this channel, and find it friendly, but I'd never go to a fan forum or anything like that just because of the odd weirdo I'd rather not run into. I used to work with survivors all the time, and I hate to be that person, but as a woman it makes me want to be part of a Fandom even less. Tho I know it's a minority of ass hats who say that kind of stuff. It sucks when a few loud people ruin it for everyone.

[@watchmehope6560]

​@@scottgimple8107nah the only joke is guts being SA. And it's not even clever. It's just his attacker and him pasted on something random.

[@TheGreenKnight500]

People who say she enjoyed it are either projecting their own sexual fantasies on the story, or they genuinely lack the ability to put themselves in another person's perspective. You'd also have to be pretty stupid to think that. Not only did the event break her psyche (which we saw inside of later), she freaked out and lost consciousness when she saw him again.

[@anotherunreliablenarrator]

"I think a lot of people came into Berserk looking at it like it's a Shonen," fucking THANK YOU for bringing this up.

[@golDroger88]

What is that supposed to mean? Shounen is just the target demographic, it doesn't necessarily say anything about the content.

[@illgeteverythingback]

@@golDroger88 no, no it's not, shonen is naruto, db, and bleach, berserk is seinen, seinen is death note, ajin, and of course berserk, seinen and shonen are not interchangeable and are not the same thing

[@tristantries9211]

​@@golDroger88well it does. Shounen follows certain tropes and themes and is in nature less mature and lighter. So if you go into a series that in its nature has different themes and is meant to be viewed differently with the previous mindset it will effect your viewing. It's like going into a horror movie expecting a rom com and being super disappointed - not because there is anything wrong with the movie but with your expectation of it.

[@golDroger88]

@@tristantries9211Tropes are just that, you're not bound to them as an author. The idea that you need to have a different mindset depending wether you're reading shounen, seinen, josei, shojou or whatever or that you must have certain expectation while reading a manga/work of art is incredibly stupid and anti-intellectual.

[@golDroger88]

@@illgeteverythingbackYes, it is. Read more manga and learn about the Japanese comic industry, you're incedibly ignorant and laughably condescending at the same time. Also Death Note was published on WSJ, it even says shounen in the name...

[@AceaSpadez88]

Everything you've said is 100% correct. I think what you're seeing is new/young readers who are incapable of understanding the themes of Berserk. Partly because every immature/uninformed opinion you could possibly have about something, will be confirmed by someone else on social media. I've been a fan of Berserk since I was a kid in the 90s. I'm in my 30s now and there are still parts of the story that hit me differently when I re-read them. Never underestimate the ability of young social media users to ruin a "fanbase".

[@TheGreenKnight500]

Because they've experienced their entire lives through media and the quality of media has taken a nose dive since they were born, zoomers have virtually no understanding of human emotions or behavior. It's that simple. We're seeing a giant wave of extremely mentally ill people trying to understand a deep commentary on the human condition when they themselves are aliens.

[@whitedragoness23]

Also some people might be viewing berserk as a story just for shock value. Now a days we have alot of poor “stories” which rely on shock then actually telling a story. It makes it more difficult for the younger generation to see more than what they been told to see. And berserk has a strong theme of being an individual and finding your path in life or dream. Which guts have yet to do so. Farnese was a great example where she was too brainwashed by the fanatics then she slowly becomes stronger on her own after following guts

[@oldschoolninja1003]

@@whitedragoness23 I tried reading Goblin Slayer while waiting for new Berserk content and I feel that is a manga that focus's on the rape more then a story. I gave up on it really quick.

[@connork9745]

@@oldschoolninja1003 I watched Goblin slayer like 4 years ago or so. Goblin slayer only does that for the first episode to emphasize the horror the goblins pose to any people caught by goblins. There is one other character I know of that was actually a victim of goblins later on but it's actually really good once you get past the fist goblin cave.

[@loopygordo]

​@oldschoolninja1003 honestly goblin slayer dosent do that. It gives a large amount of shock at the start but it's genuinely a more dnd type story with a focus on personal growth and killing goblins. The SA stuff is still around to remind the audience how horrible goblins are but it never gets to the level as the first chapter again really.

[@AnomalyINC]

I deal with Berserk the way I deal with any franchise that I enjoy. I enjoy it alone and don't join any community or fandom. If I find another person to share the enjoyment with, that's one thing, but an entire community? Communities are made up of people, and people are stupid. Like Tommy Lee Jones said in Men in Black: "A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky animals."

[@marcuseleazer3058]

I agree to that

[@nightmarishcompositions4536]

Agreed. Same reason I avoid cliques and herds of people in general. People become cultish maniacal sheep when placed in large groups.

[@nc1901]

Same. I barely know anyone that watches or likes the same anime as me and I'm fine with it.

[@zhawkmoth3653]

Same. I don't join "communities/fandoms" for stuff I like... masses of weirdos will always ruin it.

[@MrMichealHouse]

Agreed. That's EXACTLY how I feel about most media I enjoy. It's really odd to see that typed out.

[@maskedsaiyan1738]

I’ve had my own personal issues with aspects of the Berserk community for a while. Has anyone else noticed that some vocal Berserk fans are really toxic? Why trash other shows like Demon Slayer or Goblin Slayer just to praise Berserk? We can live in a world where needless fandom rivalry doesn’t exist.

[@InfamyOrDeath-__-]

I love all 3 of those series, have the manga of them all.

[@maskedsaiyan1738]

@@InfamyOrDeath-__-Yeah. I really feel like it might be just memes, but some of these Berserk fans seem to do it unironically.

[@Ash_Wen-li]

Yeah I'm not the biggest fan of Demonslayer but sometimes Berserk and other fans criticise it with too much vitriol

[@Monsoon-r5n]

well, cus they are badly written. Berserk is one of the few mangas I enjoyed and not many stories do that but I like realistic stories.

[@Monsoon-r5n]

@@Ash_Wen-li the art designs in the show hurt my eyes. Too much colours, look too gay. Imagine if halo had a muilti coloured master chief

[@SuperNinjaMan55]

There was once a point in time where i couldn't go 5 minutes on the internet without finding a sigma Guts edit.

[@Soberanos-i7t]

Guts is sigma lone wolf 🐺

[@astrovarius543]

I can only imagine how that must have disrupted your estrogenic hormone replacement therapy. My flaccid heart goes out to you.

[@costelinha1867]

@@astrovarius543 Comments like these, really aren't helping this fandom's reputation you know?

[@astrovarius543]

@@costelinha1867 Nah, the crux of the issue is people not being able to destinguish jokes and absurdities from genuinely bad and toxic behaviour. The extreme themes present in Berk are serious ones. These are NOT funny subjects. But jokes about these subjects can be (good ones anyway). That's the whole POINT of jokes. To give levity and take away some of the solemnity and moodiness. I do not laugh at people getting hurt in real life. But again, *why then is it funny when someone falls or slips?* LEVITY! To make light of the fact that they could have hurt themselves but didn't I'm not going to go into my own past experiences, but I can assure you, jokes and laughter have helped. It could have been all over for me, but it wasn't, so now I get to joke about those horrible things. Because I survived and joking about them helps me continue to survive. The horrible things that happen in Berk happen to fictional people, so levity is more than appropriate. Now what I'm genuinely confused about is thus; The "sigma male" crap is new. It's easy to meme Guts as a gigachad sigma because he has huge muscles, kills demons, and doesn't care if you're a man or woman. Obviously there will be idiots who project their insecurities through these memes, but otherwise they're harmless jokes. But crude in-jokes regarding the subject matter of Berk have been within the community for a long time. Donovan memes have been around for a long time. "Griffith did nothing wrong" has been around for a long time. These are all part of the fandom culture, and any Berk fan knows what these things are, regardless of their opinions on them. But it was the puritanical tourists who came onto the scene around the 2016 Berk anime that attitudes towards these things began to change. These new, young, and biased "fans" started infinite forum and comment wars about how people should approach and precieve Berk. Imagine that, these newbies want the old-guard to change for them. And now we're here. And you guys are fighting their battle. Let me ask you a question.... Why are we concerned about how we are perceived as a collective? We are Berk fans, a group of individual strugglers all making our way through life. We are not a political party, or a social movement. We ARE NOT A COLLECTIVE. Since that is the case; What on earth are you guys talking about when you say "the fandom's reputation"?????? I'm sorry, but who exactly are we supposed to be Kowtowing to???? It all just comes across as a little too subversive for my tastes. Like, I guess they don't even have to pretend to join our interest now, they can just say "that fandom is weird" and we're supposed to correct our behaviour in response. Nah, I think gatekeeping is the answer. Seems it always was. Comments like yours really aren't helping the community that composes the fandom, y'know?

[@bubbachildsupport4535]

@@astrovarius543 bro wrote a whole essay, it is not that serious bro

[@clickbaitable6320]

To me these “fans” are teenagers or young adults posting annoying memes and just seeing the art and don’t care about the themes, the real world historical events/religions/Japanese mythology and context to that culture. Alchemist symbols and the meanings of them historically being used in context with the function in the story. Early on the sexual assaults are used for both character development as Guts is very closed off and hates being touched until Casca was the first to be allowed because of the trust, respect and love he has for her. The deeper meanings of events that happen and make the characters human not just a drawing or a storyline for this character it’s more nuanced and human than the new fans understand. Edit: I’m a new fan got my volumes the night we got the news Miura passed May 19 2021 9:04AM. I fully understand the manga and Miura’s messages and his story and love he has for humanity. Everything he said through the story makes me happy and admire him. It’s not a good or bad morally binary story, everyone has the capacity to do evil in them even in real life. People need to get over themselves and accept the reality of our morality and existence as a whole.

[@MaxPaynefan1]

Schierke falling naked on guts is not nuanced, casca getting assaulted for the 10th time is not nuanced, casca's ass being the focal point in some panels after almost getting assaulted by wyald is not nuanced, come one. Miura is a legend but he had his weird kinks, it's not deep or anything and it's why it gets memed sometimes.

[@samuraiismael]

@@MaxPaynefan1someone hurt you bro? is everything ok? lol chill

[@kevintanza6968]

@@MaxPaynefan1 Casca shown naked is not a problem. She is a grown woman and Berserk is not a story made for kids. The Schierke one is bad, I will give you that. People have openly stated that wanted Miura to die and that he deserved to die. Those are the kinds of takes most of us get upset with. People don't give valid criticism but rather call the author every single bad thing under the sun.

[@reiangossling6395]

@@MaxPaynefan1 The sexual assault depicted isn't intended to be erotic at all. Donovan, Wyald, the trolls etc. are presented as horrifying and monstrous, something that goes hand-in-hand with the bleak setting and the horror genre of this manga. Berserk isn't a hentai doujin, the rape and violence is intended to create discomfort from how it's portrayed by the artwork itself and the narrative.

[@catpriest]

Everybody knows that Sword Art Online is superior in many ways. Truly a show for matured adults unlike to edgy teenagers of Berserk.

[@Veteransmoker]

I found Berserk in High School. I was depressed and suicidal at the time. Gut's story inspired me to keep fighting everyday no matter how hard it gets. I'm now much happier than I was back then. Berserk practically made me into who I am today. I was so shocked and saddened when I heard Miura had died. And I wasn't sad because this meant that it might not ever have an ending, I was sad because a brilliant and talented man who made the story that saved me was gone. He might be gone, but his legacy will last forever and I look forward to seeing how this story ends. We miss you, Miura. "Struggle, Contend, Endure. For that alone is the sword wielded by one who defies death. Do not forget these words." - Skull Knight

[@numbers9696]

Not to mention he died never completing the passion of his life

[@nemodex]

That very quote.. helped me through so much. This story is one meant for those who have already seen lifes horrors in person, the ones that can truly grasp the meaning.

[@Grasses0n]

Miura lives on in all of us. Struggle on, brother 💪

[@Maxb0-__-]

Imagine being so weak as to call yourself suicidal at high school with literally no real life responsibilities 💀

[@Veteransmoker]

@@nemodex Skull Knight is one of my favorite characters in Berserk.

[@codeineskywalka5691]

Well spoken Ryan, you hit it right on the noise. It’s gotten to the point for me where I don’t interact with the fandom on social medias outside of a few channels on KZbin. The subreddits in particular for me are honestly just draining.

[@SolidSnake240]

Interacting with any fandom on social media is a bad idea tbh. Most have been taken over by toxic brainlets

[@allahalkareem8055]

Yep, right on the noise

[@codeineskywalka5691]

@@allahalkareem8055 nose sorry for being dyslexic Mr Mogakumono please don’t give me an F

[@allahalkareem8055]

@@codeineskywalka5691 Xd Btw Mogakumono means "struggler" and its what Skullknight calls guts in the videogames. Now u learned something new!!

[@VampireA1056]

Always seperate yourself from the fandom

[@Grundbeldknight]

My apologies for what I said from @TheBleedingEdge🗿 I said SpongeBob clears fiction 🗿

[@KyzenEX]

For real. I love so many shows/games but I almost never speak about them/say I'm a fan when saying I like said game/show because I know that most fandoms are dogwater at best, criminally online and ready to doxx people at worst. For stuff like Berserk or anything that touches more mature topics, I just keep it to myself cause most of the people of my age would see it as "controversial" or "morally wrong" no matter what.

[@marlom7882]

Aha! I knew I wasn’t the only one who does this! Most of the time even if I’m apart of the same fanbase as other people I still can never fuck with them personally

[@binaryboopsva]

True. Honestly, I warmed up to MHA over the years, and love CSM. The fanbases are dumb as hell. There's a reason people say CSM fans have no reading comprehension. Still like the stories all the same.

[@jasonseacord]

Heck yes

[@wolfsblood6280]

Berserk is for a mature audience.

[@realcuondaotherside]

Yea too bad about that apparently. Berserk groups anywhere on the internet suck so bad.

[@Ash_Wen-li]

But that doesn't mean all Berserk fans are mature

[@numbers9696]

Yep I made a comment similar to this about how children and teens infest the fan base and ruin it with their toxicity and dumb memes

[@Force-Multiplier]

I mean not exclusively i started liking Berserk before all my milk teeth had even fallen off didn't read the manga until a fee years later tho because sadly it just wasn't (and still isn't) available in my country

[@bjornsmith9431]

@@numbers9696 why Kids and Teen read something mature like Berserk a seinen Manga that aiming for 18 and over age group, start complaining on the internet about, it simple there trolling and pranking with woke parents and friends, they don't care about Great art work and storytelling or respect other cultures rights in far Asian including Japanese culture, Johnny Somalia and other woke Hollywood agents is the worse example of this types, that embarrassed the true Western fandom.

[@cri_c]

This sadly seems to be the fate of all series/franchises that grow more popular. Berserk has seen a massive spike in popularity over the last 2 years. So different types of people will flock to it. People who don't understand it, people who shit on it just for the sake of being a contrarian, etc. I'm not gonna act like the fandom was ever this shining beacon of communities but i'm really starting to miss when we all just discussed the story and made fun of the 2016 show. It also was a lesson for me to just not join fandoms anymore and enjoy/discuss the series on a more personal level with friends.

[@irgendeineperson5350]

If your media becomes popular it increases it's monetary value, but also the amount of idiocy.

[@hieioni3354]

Do what your senpais have always done: Gatekeep the f*ck out of tourists.

[@KRG30001]

Last sentence is key

[@mixnflix101]

Same thing happened with JJK sadly

[@golDroger88]

People need to stop focusing on worthless things like "fandom" and return to focus on what really matters, the author and more importantly the work itself.

[@d.incubus2141]

exactly fandom is highly overrated

[@michielankersmit8656]

exactly, glad that I'm barely on social media

[@georgep.4145]

gatekeeping is basically keeping your community safe from tourists. gatekeeping good

[@cymikgaming1266]

agreed

[@AlphaBeta17]

Completely understand where you’re coming from; sucks this is the way it is now, but at least we’ll always have the series itself

[@thedead_end9628]

I feel like when Miura passed, that's when I started seeing a rise in talk of Berserk in a negative light. Particularly posts about misogyny - Everything at only face value without any context. And it continues on to now. It is most aggravating.

[@frenchfriedbagel7035]

Well that was Twitter discovering Berserk. And Twitter does nothing but deliver L takes.

[@Ash_Wen-li]

We knew that would happen though. These people don't read the series they criticize

[@kevintanza6968]

That's Twitter. And Twitter is the gutter of human society when it comes to giving opinions because people do it for likes and validation. A week doesn't go by without them saying that X manga author is everything that is wrong with society. Of course Berserk would break their minds.

[@bjornsmith9431]

Once your successful like late Kenaturo Miura with Berserk Manga you be on the trend press, but the Critics wait till he dead, to bash the Man the Author and his Manga, there is anti Anime and Manga in Western establish Media and Internet troll pretending to be fans of Japanese entertainment, example Western Media co. Vice with lying allegations Anime and Manga, true fan of Berserk must respect what the world of Berserk Manga is.

[@IVNHYPRFNK]

These ppl should watch Game of Thrones lmao

[@bjollnirbjordsen9795]

I've been reading since 2003. I don't interact with the Fandom, so I don't even know what the problem is with it. I'm still liking it even after miuras passing, Mori and the team are doing as good a job as anyone on earth could do given the circumstances. There were times when the only reason I decided to keep living were so I could see berserk finish. Miuras was an amazing artist and had a depth of knowledge of European and world mysticism, philosophy, history and culture that is hard to articulate. I will continue to enjoy berserk solo, which I think is how it was intended to be enjoyed, like any great work of literature.

[@hoesmad8035]

youve been reading it since i was born pretty much, thats crazy to think of!!

[@jerric1228]

Pretty much the same for me. I discovered it with the 97 anime and after learning more and finding out there will never be a second season, I gave in and read my first ever manga, something I had no real interest in doing, however if I wanted more then I had no choice. It was a good thing, I’ve come to like manga more than anime now, and berserk was the push I needed to try something new. I also don’t really interact with the fandom in anyway, however I have seen memes spread around other places, mostly dark souls related stuff, because of how inspired that series is. Definitely seen many Donovan memes from edge lords desperately trying to stir the pot for engagement, and I never thought about it as anything more than that, the zoomer generation is very different from us, they’re the same as the kids who act out in class because they were neglected, any attention is good because they hate being ignored, except for them it’s that addictive ping on social media showing that someone likes or responded to them. They crave that interaction and don’t care how they get it.

[@Gigagorillaz]

This guy gets it.

[@sergiolopez6505]

Anybody who says Berserk is 'just rape and violence' is not a fan. Period.

[@mithos789]

its a love story between griffith and a certain big strong boi too foolish to realize it.

[@anastasiskal2608]

​@@mithos789Never comment again

[@mithos789]

@@anastasiskal2608sorry you dont see it

[@costelinha1867]

The rape and the violence is not even the part that make the manga interesting. It's the characters and their journey. Many of the coolest scenes in this manga are literally just people talking.

[@benjaminthibieroz4155]

As a I like to say: "dark fantasy isn't about rape and violence. It's about rape and violence you CAN'T defeat, and how you LIVE in spite of it."

[@TheAlanRaptor]

I love how people act like Golden Age was 6 years straight of the Eclipse. A big part of the fan favorite arc is a wholesome, heartwarming tale of a traumatized person with trust issues being forced to grow, open up, and have friends and a family for the first time. It's almost like the story has arced from Guts being fostered into a wholesome person from being a violent maniac. Then delved headfirst back into that violent mania. And now, is going back to Guts being fostered into a wholesome person with a lover, and a family unit. It's just that he's still gonna kill the everloving shit out of Griffith. He's gonna kill him so hard.

[@doomguydemonkiller]

I discovered Berserk late 2018 and while I’m glad that it has received popularity. I personally prefer it being a niche series that you had to dig deep to find, because I didn’t know about it and what I found was a GEM. It being too popular brings in the worst of worst toxic people.

[@Liminal_Simulacre]

If you like manga like this, BLAME! is a solid choice. A short read but it gets better each time you go back to it again.

[@gavrilopetkovic7054]

bro u cannot be saying this about berserk, this is not at all a niche manga. if you want niche, i recommend hellper and 20th century boys

[@LetiTFly47]

Happening to the g59 rn

[@JoeKerr420]

Discovers berserk in 2018, calls it niche LOL

[@gavrilopetkovic7054]

@@JoeKerr420 yeah lol, that's like watching spiderman for the first time and calling it niche

[@The-Black-Death]

My problem with some of the fans are actually with the fake fans who lack sympathize towards others and don't see how people could relate to Guts to some degree, because all they see is "BIG MAN DEMON SLAYER" and don't seem to realize that Guts is Human, and Guts himself has proven to be a inspirational figure in the Berserk universe and out of universe among the many fans of the series.

[@jasonsantos3037]

A lot of fake fans everywhere in entertainment they just come in and destroy the things we love and like this is why people should start gate keeping.

[@VSPhotfries]

For real. Guts is easily one of the most well developed and nuanced characters in fiction, but some folks just see "HURR HURR BIG SWORD MAKE BLOOD GOOD HURR" and I legitimately start to worry about the future of mankind.

[@The-Black-Death]

@@jasonsantos3037 das rite

[@Struggler3831]

Definitely not as serious, but something else I've seen is that almost NOBODY talks about characters other than Guts, Griffith, and sometimes the band of the hawk. I see very few videos and discussions about Farnese or Roderick, which is a shame because they're all AMAZING characters.

[@DagazsYT]

Don't forget about my boy Judeau... Might not be the 'deepest' ever written, but his genuine empathy and selflessness truly shine in the world of Berserk, like a rainbow in the dark

[@mekhane.broken9678]

Where's the 2 hour video essay on my man Vargas?

[@rdf4315]

I think for me one of the best characters in berserk that never gets mentioned is the blacksmith that gave guts the dragon sword, his last conversation with guts before he died is easily the best conversation in the series, and it was also the lowest we ever saw guts in the series, a man that has been totally defeated and broken, but would be saved by the person you least expected, an old blacksmith nearing the end .

[@benjaminthibieroz4155]

Also Rickert and Luca, the very best...

[@niggacockball7995]

I've seen A LOT of discussions about farnussy

[@alephthetheropod6210]

You're not out of line, Ryan. Your assessment is correct. As everything, when a niche thing becomes mainstream, it becomes unbearable for the fans that arrived early because it was a pure unadulterated artistic vision inside your head and no noise was made around it. Kinda like listening with headphones on. But when it becomes mainstream it's like listening on an old radio where you have to bear with the noise other people around you make. IMHO Berserk has been both bastardized AND overintellectualized, so much so that a lot of the non OG fans imagine a shakespearean work and when they find "just" an edgy dark fantasy setting with a great story they can't help but be shellshocked that it has so much "low brow" content. There's no way they can process the story with nuance. It has become a meme, because everything now is just a meme. For example, the game Metal Gear rising Revengeance was a great game beloved by fans for years but exploded in popularity because of the memes and now it's just the meme game. It happened around the same time coincidentally (2020). Then there's the problem of tourists, who just fling insults at everything they don't understand. I think the problem is that a lot of very young people are taking part in meme consumption and the material of the memes is meant for more mature people.

[@genep9302]

Feel like you hit the nail on the head as well. Exactly how it feels

[@Snzn_7]

It's funny with how these fresh blood anime/manga fans think of their opinions highly. And I legit just laugh hilariously when I found out some of them just barely even read other series and watched anime you can volunteer with just two hand and basically mostly just shonen.

[@phantombigboss8429]

Memes will be memes

[@risingofthethorn1197]

It doesn't help when people within the fandom pull the equivalent of "To Be Fair, You Have To Have a Very High IQ..." and then insult you for just not getting it, rather than helping you through the shellshock. It also doesn't help that the series technically hasn't ended you so we don't know what the ultimate lesson is going to be. The theme so far seems to want to portray the idea of "Endure and Overcome" but with the OG writer dead will the new writers stick to that theme or will they decide to turn it into ANOTHER dark and edgy nihilism story and have the protagonist fall?

[@excalibro8365]

@@risingofthethorn1197 The people who are working on Berserk now worked for Miura as his assistant. They are literally Miura's biggest fan so they won't dare to betray Miura's vision for Berserk.

[@frumtheground]

I'd heard of Berserk for years but was hesitant because of the rap3 depictions (I have enough personal experience with it, so I was wary of it being eroticized as it tends to be in a lot of media). I eventually caved and it's honestly earned it's reputation for being dark, complicated, and just really freaking legendary in it's story. I don't like the practice of gatekeeping usually, but it's gotten so misconstrued that it's worrisome what the culture of the fandom starts to foster. One bad person will come in. They'll bring a buddy. That buddy will bring more buddies. Before you know it, you're house is overrun with unwanted guests.

[@HelghastStalker]

Gatekeeping is not inherently bad, and that's something I think a lot of people need to learn.

[@benjaminthibieroz4155]

Please do not answer if you don't want to, but as an author myself I've been curious about how people with experience of it usually react and wether it can help or not.

[@hieioni3354]

@@HelghastStalker Agreed. Gatekeeping is for the healthiness of a franchise.

[@cloudstrife421]

Unfortunately its the same with any medium that becomes popular now, its not just Berserk. I had to remove myself from many anime groups as it became too much. I just enjoy for what it is and ignore the negativity. Keep making your videos and follow your passion.

[@costelinha1867]

Honestly, a fandom doesn't even need to be mainstream from my experience. All that becomming mainstream does, is increase the likelyhood of you having to deal with toxicity, but the toxicity usually was always there from the start.

[@moominkomet]

As an older Berserk reader, I try to just let it roll off my back. I just try to stay away from the crazy ones.

[@jasonsantos3037]

Agree

[@greatwarriorstruggler9447]

Fax

[@brandonpayne5725]

I've been trying to explain the idea of beauty in struggle and tenderness in strength. It does get frustrating when the lack of comprehension and compassion leads to the wrong message getting co-opted by weirdos. I appreciate all your content and viewpoints, I'm really glad you spoke from the heart on this one.

[@ericschuller908]

As a survivor of rape and sexual abuse, I have always approved of the way that Berserk depicts sex and rape, where rape is always depicted as the disgusting, vile, and evil act that it is. It was actually a very important and cathartic moment for me when recovering from my PTSD. To see the act that had so completely messed me up to be shown in this over-the-top fashion captured what that violation felt like and how it continued to haunt me for years. If you can't see that in Miura's writing, you're just not mature enough to read Berserk, full goddamn stop. I'm a guy and I've had an erection I couldn't stop while being raped by an ex-girlfriend. Ryan is absolutely right about how people who are sexually assaulted can have involuntary reactions to such acts. Been there, done that, and it's all kinds of fucked up.

[@thaolinthaolinsson7748]

All power to you bro, hope youre doing fine considering what you mentioned. Also agree you need maturity to understand Berserk, I mean its a seinen not a shonen so yeah haha , peace and love brother

[@excalibro8365]

@@saadamehdi2848 The most braindead take I've seen all day

[@Calendator]

Meh, the scene of Casca's rape is still heavily sexualised; imagine if Guts' trauma was portrayed that way

[@ericschuller908]

@Calendator If you think that it is sexualized, then that's on you. Granted, this is an act that Griffith took great pleasure in as act of dominance over both Guts and Casca, so I can see why you might think that. I have met many people who could adequately be described as evil, and most of them enjoy grand displays of dominance over others. It's all about flaunting power and their feelings of immunity from consequences.

[@ericschuller908]

@thaolinthaolinsson7748 Thank you. I've been very vocal in the Berserk community for years regarding sexual abuse and trauma and why the depiction of rape in the artwork and story perfectly demonstrates the evils of rape abd sexual coercion. It always depicts it as an evil and never glamorizes the act. Thankfully I have the support of my wife and therapists to help me with my PTSD. And the Berserk fandom has been exceptional in providing additional emotional support when I bring up my PTSD in discussions.

[@VisibleToeHead]

Gatekeeping is like being a janitor. No one cares until things start to stink.

[@MacDaddySnuggles]

I’d say the popularity of the souls series has introduced a lot of people to berserk causing an influx of new people to the community. There’s also the fact that anime and manga in general have become much more commonplace and not a weird thing to be into in the current day so you get a lot of the younger generation to check out the media that’s hailed as the greatest of all time. This in turn leads to more trolls and people who only care about who could beat who in a fight lol.

[@Toypapi]

I'm fairly new to berserk and started reading it last year. It kinda opened up some old wounds that I've been carrying around for so many years. Its honestly the best story I've ever read. Guts is always just trying to suck it up because he doesn't have time to deal with his emotions. I feel like alot of us guys who've had a hard life can relate to that.

[@christensolomon3679]

"...always just trying to suck it up because he doesn't have time to deal with his emotions." - That is the reality for so many people...

[@hieioni3354]

I'm glad you got into Berserk and enjoy it. Berserk is one of the greatest manga ever written, no doubt about it.

[@Future_Doggo]

Damn, I really hope Berserk doesn't become the next "nuclear wastezone" community, like with what happened with AoT and JoJo (although I love both of those seires). Berserk really doesn't deserve a fate like that.

[@anotherunreliablenarrator]

If it does end up like JoJo, it could heal over time at least. JoJo's community managed to heal from the mainstream destruction for the most part since it's had fans for decades, an advantage it and Berserk have that Attack on Titan unfortunately didn't..

[@larb6314]

NO I DONT WANT THAT

[@kevintanza6968]

Thank you for the video, Ryan. One thing that annoys me about most Berserk discourse is that people are mainly focused on three things: 1) THOSE scenes of Guts and Donovan, and Casca and Griffith. 2) Believing the manga is porn misery and that everything is going to end up with either Griffith and the Godhand winning or Guts turning into an apostle to kill Griffith. When both situations go against every single theme Miura built and developed throughout the series. Hell, Guts turning into an apostle wouldn't even make sense because of the story's lore and worldbuilding but people just care about the big man getting angry and killing demons. 3) People saying that is sexist because of THAT Casca scene and what happened to her. Even though Miura had always depicted abuse of that ilk as something awful and even did it to Guts, which is not always represented with men. Both Casca and Guts have to go through a lot to overcome that trauma and haven't fully healed, as of yet. But again, most of that discourse happens on Twitter, which is a cesspool of a platform. Most people there are just focused on talking about animation, how their series "broke the internet", and more superficial bullshit like that.

[@Masakrealm]

100% and in short it isn’t for the woke crowd of todays society

[@franciscvmpbell]

100% correct. Not sure what happened, but just a few years ago the berserk community was wholesome, cool people discussing the story, coming up with fascinating theories, even delving into philosophy. Recently I was told Guts would hate me because I dislike Sam Sulek. This is what happens when hype reaches a masterpiece. I just hope they don’t touch Vagabond.

[@alwi1115]

Man i feel the sam sulek bit lmao

[@stegosandrosos1291]

Who is Sam Sulek?

[@alessandrobaggi6129]

@franciscvmpbell Isn't Inoue also on indefinite hiatus? 🤔 I seem to recall having read that recently somewhere, but take it with a grain of salt as i'm 40 now and i don't follow manga news so much as i did years ago. 😅😔

[@franciscvmpbell]

@@stegosandrosos1291 just another steroid user that took gear as a teen and now inspires young people to do the same. Breathes way too heavily for someone so young. Also he essentially mocks anime/manga fans by saying if you like anime you’re either jacked or an incel. Funnily enough he’s closer to an apostle than guts because he’s taken shortcuts and sacrificed his health, but big = guts in the minds of kids so it is what it is.

[@franciscvmpbell]

@@alessandrobaggi6129 yeah he still is, no news of his return yet, it’s a real shame. But you never know, Togashi has health issues and he’s still made a return, there’s always hope.

[@InfamyOrDeath-__-]

11:23 I know Mori will give us a good ending, I have full faith in him, I’ve loved everything so far, so I’m sure I’ll enjoy the end.

[@martinnevarez242]

Yes! Koji Mori and Studio Gaga are giving it their all!!!

[@binaryboopsva]

@@martinnevarez242 Fr, I understand there would be some issues at minor points but I'm so thankful for what we get and they're carrying on their friends legacy.

[@carloshernandez2561]

Mori loved Miura and vice versa, I believe he will do Miura proud.

[@prod.a.b.i.l1930]

I remember a couple of months ago someone on Twitter with a Charlotte profile picture said that Miura glorifies rape and that "Casca's potrayal of getting Sexually Assaulted was drawn in an erotic way" and that's when i kinda started to just separate myself from the Berserk Fandom. Not to say that there aren't great people in the fandom, I'm just mentally exhausted with trying to debate people on their own stupidity, i just want to enjoy the story in the comfort of my own home and have good discussions with people who actually understand the story.

[@jackofastora8962]

I’m pretty sure that’s literally what happened though, no? I remember reading that he was regretful about how he depicted that scene because it was, as stated, drawn erotically instead of in the horrifying reality he wanted to show. He shouldn’t be ragged for it now, but it is factual that he didn’t portray it in the greatest way

[@astrovarius543]

I will never understand the people who think it was erotic. Even if it has elements of eroticism, you can thank Griffith for being a freaky creep. I think the way it's depicted between casca and Griffith is fine, because it plays into the fact that she loved him deeply and to him she was just a tool. So it's not gunna be donkey punches, black eyes and bloody fingernails... There is A LOT of prior context that a viewer would willingly have to ignore to see what happens between these two characters as erotic and not just utter twisted evil.

[@hieioni3354]

@@jackofastora8962 Him saying he was "regretful" was misinformation and you know it. Miura didn't say sh*t like that, so f*ck off with your misinformation. Casca's rape was NOT drawn in an erotic way. If you see it like that, there's something f*cking wrong with you and your hard drive needs to be checked.

[@pliskenx51mm83]

​@@jackofastora8962Ok so Miura stated that he depicted the scene wrong. That it was not supposed to be erotic but horrifying. So with this knowledge out there you would think these scatter brain Neanderthals would pick up on that and not espouse lies about the scene and not draw the conclusion that Berserk is some how pro rape right? But they don't, so it's looking more and more like either these people are mislabeling berserk on purpose, or they are really, really, like pathetically and hopeless dumb. Its seeming like the later is winning....

[@sweetcheeks5775]

well casca was drawn in a way to give the male readers boners and the anime just had to zoom in on boobs jiggling during a damn rape scene sooooo…. half of the audience was probably jerking off to that.

[@tristantries9211]

Lets be real fans and fandoms ruin everything. Its best to just enjoy what you enjoy without involving yourself in them. We all fall into it because we want to talk about what we like with others but it just ends up in disapointment and sometimes souring what we liked anyway

[@noblelazarus5815]

I came to berserk as a man who had healed himself from great trauma, of childhood abusive, over sexual assault, abandonment, neglect, & suicidal tendencies. And I immediately identified with the series as an adult cuz of how much it’s expressed what I had been through. Living with my memories had always felt like a curse, being branded for sacrifice, like no matter what I do I cannot run from the fact that great evil now resides in me because of the equally great tragedy that occurred in my childhood. But as I grew up I began to let people in, no longer shouldering my burden alone. The family I did not have at home, I created within in a family of my friends who’ve now been brothers to me since middle school (13 years to date). The pain, the suffering, the memories, that u may have been carrying all ur life & gotten used to, you don’t have to do alone. And that is the point of the story, people don’t understand it’s not a sigma male grindset manga, it’s the reality of living as a man who’s witnessed the depths of hell since they were a child and is growing past it, growing past the resentment & the trauma of it all. Learning that letting others be apart of u will help quiet the screams of terror you hear in your own memories , ur own screams as u relive them, & eventually they will heal those wounds.

[@bjornsmith9431]

Thanks, so true I have experience abuse and trauma has child, grown up even lead to suicide attempts, I over come this objective in my life never to be like my them. I relate to Guts given a bad hand has a child, but has over come it by share strength of fighting by his will power, I am not offend by Kentaro Mirua arts graphic depiction in anyway, he highlight the problems of life and the strength of character to triumph over them.

[@learnedscholar]

I totally agree with you. While I have not experienced any trauma near your level to make me feel as if I am “marked” I had a girl I was dating cheat on me with a very close friend back in the day and it definitely changed me as a person. It was my first experience of the “real” world from my relatively sheltered upbringing. I fully read Berserk maybe a year later and the themes of Dionysus, betrayal, loss, and the struggle really resonated with me. Not to mention everything surface level is sick. But just the idea of guts struggling no matter what facing everything with no “powers” just his sword hits home for the intended audience of a seinen. It makes sense how it’s been bastardized because 99% of the 15-16 yos reading it don’t have the life experience to understand the true meaning and as mentioned treat it as a shonen. My HS home room freshman teacher recommended I read Berserk and I found it quite meh at the time. But as mentioned above when I read it freshman year of college I loved it. I think the problem is the internet shoving things down people’s throats and kids just basing their personalities off their favorite creators or what everyone else is into and we end up with the issue discussed here. Truly must be hard for kids nowadays to find themselves in this day and age when time our most valuable commodity is usurped by corporations through creators.

[@bjornsmith9431]

@@learnedscholar true, there a lack of understanding between Seinen and Shonen manga, Seinen from adult 18 to over age and Shonen teenage age group. I respect the division of MANGA categories, but I am noticing there group of people with political agenda that is tied to Western Woke SJW Comic book online site, KZbin and website blog pushing this politics, that silent debates, creativity, freedom and expression in arts and written in the western world. I find Japanese Manga and Anime are more willing to bring issues to foreground in stories than modern so called progressive western comics, Berserk Conviction Arc Lost Chapter is well written with Jill and Rosine, Jill is suffering abuse from her father Zepek violence to his wife and rape attacks from her uncles, Rosine's father also is violent saying he not Rosine her father, some soldier is, I have feeling Zepek is the father of Rosine judging from the story visions devices and the emotional interaction between Jill and Rosine, it obvious there sisters, that the beauty of great written talent to bring real issue in metaphor story. It best for society to understand this and not cow tail hide form haters of human expression and freedom.

[@JJ-qg6ls]

THANK YOU. Guts as a character resonated with me not cus the “edge lord bad ass op” but cuz he’s a man who recognizes his burdens caused by his environment and tries his hardest not to let other be hurt by it. Despite all the RELENTLESS fucked up shit he lives thru dude keeps fighting with the intention of eventually conquering it and becoming better, accepting that he needs to learn to trust people again if he wants to make it. And it pisses me off to see these themes fly over ppls heads and have them treat it like it’s Naruto..

[@bjornsmith9431]

@learnedscholar true, there a lack of understanding between Seinen and Shonen manga, Seinen from adult 18 to over age and Shonen teenage age group. I respect the division of MANGA categories, but I am noticing there group of people with political agenda that is tied to Western Woke SJW Comic book online site, KZbin and website blog pushing this politics, that silent debates, creativity, freedom and expression in arts and written in the western world. I find Japanese Manga and Anime are more willing to bring issues to foreground in stories than modern so called progressive western comics, Berserk Conviction Arc Lost Chapter is well written with Jill and Rosine, Jill is suffering abuse from her father Zepek violence to his wife and rape attacks from her uncles, Rosine's father also is violent saying he not Rosine her father, some soldier is, I have feeling Zepek is the father of Rosine judging from the story visions devices and the emotional interaction between Jill and Rosine, it obvious there sisters, that the beauty of great written talent to bring real issue in metaphor story. It best for society to understand this and not cow tail hide form haters woke sjw individuals who dislike human expression and freedom.

[@gts013]

Anime in general has just gotten more and more popular every year. Personally, I feel like there are too many people out there that are just ignorant and negative people that can't see past the surface of most things, so it just makes sense that you're seeing an uptake in those types of fans in this particular series, as it's gotten more popular over the years. The same thing has happened in the other things I enjoy that have gained popularity. I do my best to tune them out, but every now and then you need a rant like this one just to realease that built up negativity that it will naturally inject into you when you see it.

[@harryhazza626]

Ive got a feeling that the people from places like titanfolk migrated to other fandoms on mass after chapter 139 of aot and brought the toxicity with them . Happened to chainsawman , jujutsukaisen , Evangelion, loads of guys from titanfolk came flocking in

[@Revealingstorm.]

Why do subs with the work folk in them automatically mean it's going to be a toxic cespit? It's weird

[@harryhazza626]

@@Revealingstorm. Not all , but it's common. Personally I find them to be the funniest ones in any fandom but they get in over their heads and become toxic overtime. I was in titan folk while the AoT manga was ending , man it's glorious to say the least, absolute chaos. I didn't like the ending either but they would go nuclear. Then they migrated to other places .

[@stegosandrosos1291]

​@@harryhazza626lol, it's always the titanfolk folks

[@harryhazza626]

@@stegosandrosos1291some of them but most are fine . Unless I'm wrong

[@twoshu8940]

Wtf is titanfolk 💀💀💀

[@anthonycrayne2835]

Guts cannot become an apostle.

[@JoshuasCornstar]

The internet is just a very degenerate place in general, Griffith perfectly embodies the modern gratification and grandstanding narcissism that is promoted and valued on the internet by the most popular figure heads. This shift in perception is unfortunately inevitable since the vast majority of people that influence others are completely unhinged and feed into those deep rooted desires. Very Kafkaesque.

[@dugonman8360]

When I was a kid my big brother used to take me to flyers games and I learned one thing from seeing the super fans there: almost every single fandom sucks. Mind you, some fandoms suck worse than others (most cartoon fandoms are far more evil and crazy than the anime fandom) but all suck to a certain degree. I've learned not to interact with any fan community due to knowing I'd most likely hate it.

[@JuanRamirez-tt7fp]

This always happens when there's a surge in popularity to anything. For example, I noticed the same thing happened with another one of my favorite series (JJBA) about a decade ago when there was a videogame and the initial anime release. "Griffith did nothing wrong" and "Is that a JoJo reference?" are just people being edgy and/or just trying to attach themselves to a fandom/culture without putting in any effort to understand why the series gathered a fandom in the first place.

[@DagazsYT]

Sorry to ask, but why do you personally like JJBA? I could never get into it, because superficially it seemed too silly for my aesthetical tastes.

[@JuanRamirez-tt7fp]

@@DagazsYT It's a long running story with currently 9 parts/arcs. Each arc has its own themes and could be its own standalone story. The themes and genres of each part are different from each other and provide a lot of variety in storytelling. What initially drew me in was the Ripple fighting style and a Dracula-like story in Part 1, but I quickly noticed how far Araki could evolve in his writing of the story with Stands. It can be campy at some points, but not reading the story because you think it looks "too silly" from some memes you probably saw online would be similar to not reading Berserk because it's "too edgy" due to its graphic content & memes you saw online. A boiling down of the series that misses its entire point. I'm not saying you have to like it, I'm just saying at least try reading the manga instead of dismissing it based on a shallow perception. Don't judge a book by its cover.

[@DagazsYT]

@@JuanRamirez-tt7fp it's not really just a shallow perception (as it may seem), I actually tried watching it bc of an ex-friend of mine... but it IS too chaotic and yes, silly, for me. Take into account that I really don't like anime (other than Berserk, Vinland Saga, and Monster) so I really don't get what the fuzz is about, regarding JJBA. I mean I can try and understand why but I can't get behind it. And I didn't ask for you to come forward and say your first-impression judgments about what my tastes are or what my perception is or should/shouldn't be. I didn't ask for you to talk about the different arcs or the stands, I already know about them. I asked for you to tell me WHY YOU LIKE IT, in a profound introspective way. Maybe I can't get an answer from you, but it was worth to ask this to a fan.

[@DagazsYT]

@@JuanRamirez-tt7fp sorry, I noticed that my response might come across as rude or brash. I'm not telling you to not enjoy whatever you like (and if you thought that I was saying that, it's not even remotely what I meant) I just wanted to know the lessons, discourse, morals and impressions that a piece like Jojo's might leave into people's minds and hearts alike, so much to make it that popular (if there are such ideals embroidered within its narratives)

[@pedropierre9594]

I remember being young and discovering Berserk, seeing the brutality of the manga, my first manga i bought at that, i always thought at my age the story would be finished, i was so wrong 😂, Siri play guts theme

[@60sekundenpolitik]

You really take that stuff too serious man, just ignore these people.

[@zorroya4856]

Social media has led many people to believe that it's incredibly important to be a 'somebody' in this world. Witnessing numerous 18-year-olds self-proclaiming themselves as 'strugglers,' diagnosing their own depression and taking the 'literally me - meme' to an extreme, became all too common. I've seen an overwhelming number of young individuals attempting to overlay their political and social views onto Berserk, doing so on the most superficial and shallow level, and consequently, mirroring these projections onto their own lives. No, "Struggler20002💢", Guts wouldn't be a communist who hates the police of Seattle.

[@marocat4749]

Wasnt gutds always a loner wary of authorities, that would be on brand for him to hate abusive authorities.i imagine. struggler 200002 might have a point there, through it would redicilous giving him any politica label he doesnt know. if its abusive cops of seattle that person meant, eh guts is a brute and man of action wary of authorities.

[@zorroya4856]

@@marocat4749 communism is when when loner and authorities bad

[@Revealingstorm.]

So we're gatekeeping depression? You don't need to be diagnosed to understand you have it

[@zorroya4856]

@@Revealingstorm. Another person who uses the term 'gatekeeping' as a defense mechanism to disguise their lack of understanding of a topic they haven't bothered to research thoroughly. Yes, Stacy, there are several compelling reasons why you should consult a specialist who has earned a diploma after years of studying the specific illness that you've self-diagnosed so casually after watching two tiktoks about it.

[@kevintanza6968]

@@marocat4749 I don't think Guts gives a shit about politics. During Golden Age he didn't care that much about royalty or having political power. He was just helping Griffith to achieve his dream.

[@burn1none]

I only got seriously into Berserk only about a year ago. Before, I had had an appreciation for the series mostly because all the From Software games I play and all the influences they took especially into the Dark Souls series. I'm a new fan I guess you'd say and I have been waiting with baited breath for each new chapter. The most recent chapter I actually watched your video and enjoyed it a lot. Berserk seems to be a truly amazing and personal story that I can see why it resonates so well with people. I think a lot of those memes about Griffith and Casca are just that and shouldn't be taken seriously. If I can be personally honest with you I think you are giving these internet cretins way too much of your time and energy. I think for me at least on the internet I've gotten to the point of rolling my eyes and moving on instead of trying to have discussions with them. Sorry but you're never gonna convince some people and they just enjoy the trolling. Just my two cents but you're letting your own darkness win right now by letting the trolls know how much it bums you out.

[@crustpnx]

"a lot of those memes about Griffith and Casca are just that and shouldn't be taken seriously" Thats the thing... Most of those ppl who "meme" about Griffith and Casca are doing it unironically. There are ppl who truly believe that Casca "enjoyed it" and that Griffith "did nothing wrong".

[@Snzn_7]

Having a counter argument out there to actually call out a lot of misinformation still has value. Especially nowadays that internet people in general tend to just echo whatever the most popular opinion that is out there. And that echo reaction can escalate to a point where even people within the industry gets affected by it. Like a simple joke and complains leads some fucked up people to justify in their minds sending death threats to authors, animators and directors. Manga authors like Naoki Urusawa also have some of his works not be localized in English since he feels that it have content that will likely cause controversy. Even popular media outlets do in fact sometimes escalate an out of context scenes or misinterpreting a show just to push some of their agendas. Yes those are sometimes just are blatantly petty but they still need to be called out for it.

[@burn1none]

@@Snzn_7with respect, I disagree that having a counter argument has value. The only “value” is the trolls get the attention they crave. You think you’re helping them by typing a thesis on Guts when they really just have you guys dancing like monkeys to their tune. Go ahead and try to find me some statistics that show how easy it is to convince someone on the internet. Not trying to be contrarian just sharing that I had my own moment of realization and I don’t give those idiots the time of day anymore, it’s a peaceful life.

[@slimsavage5436]

Yah, Berserk inspired me to keep writing- you just have to ignore the ignorance... Change what you can and maintain your path because it's yours .p.

[@woodsgump]

Me when I want to discuss with Berserk and its instrinsical themes about war, innocence, purity, wounded hearts, power, anger, man vs nature, man vs self: 😄 Me when I see that the people from Berserk and/or with Berserk profile pictures (such as Femto, Guts, sometimes Puck, and mostly Griffith) are either trolls or don't understand the message: 😐

[@woodsgump]

Now if only I can find a girl who looks like Casca and loves Berserk as I do...

[@yeahey5947]

Really appreciate you making this video man an I totally agree, personally I stopped interacting with the berserk fandom in 2018 when I realized it was driving me insane. Thankfully now I’ve graduated to depression but I have only gone partially insane, I highly recommend everyone simply pull back, also remember women are people

[@NBFK91]

This seems like Burnout more than anything else really. I don't engage too much with dedicated fandom spaces because they naturally repeat the same points over and over again, that's honestly just every fandom I've been a part of so I've learned that you got to step away from it from time to time. I know that's easier said for me than for you because you have a channel that is fueled by Berserk content. That's how I found this channel way back then and I wish I could say going away from berserk content is the right move, financially it probably isn't since it seems youtube does not like content producers switching to different topics. I got no answers, just sympathy.

[@MaxPaynefan1]

There's just nothing to talk about anymore, all that's left is to meme about the content we have, rather than choosing to discuss the same things over and over. We all know berserk is a story about moving on and persevering, we know that, it's been said a thousand times, but now there's just nothing left. Miura passed, the chapters are super short now, it's easy to see why the fanbase is like this now

[@Sichlitt]

@@MaxPaynefan1 there’s way more to talk about with Griffith considering almost no one understands the guy.

[@MegaFinalRound]

8:51 the explosion of Elden Ring and Dark Souls was a factor of the popularity of Berserk going up

[@kaarthuisplus]

I used to get mad at Griffith fanboys who don't seem to have the mental capacity to understand the story. Then I debated one of them and asked how old he was. He was a teenager. This is when I realised the problem. Expecting too much from teenagers.

[@Grasses0n]

The problem with Berserk being so popular and also so dark, is that it ultimately will attract actual crazy people that latch on to the horrible parts of it and they just want suffering. They only focus on the negative and that's all they want. These are the kinds of people that just want to see Guts suffer, hate it when he isn't, and legitimately believe in the stupid jokes some fans make. Unfortunately these kinds of people will always be around, so I find it best to just ignore them. Fandoms in general have horrible people in it, but something as popular and deeply dark as Berserk seems to attract the absolute dregs of humanity. Crazy or stupid people are just going to do these things no matter what, it's not worth trying to understand or explain it. Personally I find I enjoy things more when I just don't engage with Fandoms for the most part.

[@ITABehelit]

"they just want suffering" You're so right, believe me, this is happening in even more series and if they don't keep getting characters dying, betraying, causing major suffering, they just deem the story as a bad one.

[@hieioni3354]

Do not ignore them, call them out on their insanity/stupidity. Fight tooth and nail with them to protect your favorite franchises, AND gatekeep all these f*cking tourists out.

[@apmaquina]

to be honest, I tend to ignore the fandoms of anything I enjoy at this point because there will always be a very vocal "bad" part of it that kind of drowns out the good parts.

[@ironswan9]

The amount of exposure Berserk got in such a small amount of time really shows. You can tell me right away who just started because they’ll be annoying about it and toxic for no reason

[@kessler2797]

I’ve know way too many mfs with Guts pfps who aren’t even halfway through the chapters to date. I rock a guts pfp on one profile but I’ve read it 5+ times all the way through over the past 10 years. Seeing guts pfp become a meme in recent years has been kinda lame but it’s warranted with the number of guys who just like the dark aesthetic and think they’re literally him

[@johan662]

There were a lot of points that you made that resonated with me. I feel you man. I agree with you on everything you've said about Berserk in this video. And I share the same feelings you have towards the current issues and the potential issues in the future regarding the fandom. I have gone through a similar experience recently, so I completely understand where you are coming from. What I tried to do was focus on the people I enjoy being around that share the common interest and surround myself with them. Hey man, I wish you the best of luck in the future and I hope that you have positive experiences talking to people you enjoy being around about my favorite Manga of all time.

[@Xen8008]

Shocking to see a video like this coming from you Ryan lol. Great hearing your thoughts either way!

[@rodry1644]

Berserk helped me through depression and suicidal toughts, it made me appreciate life and its struggles and to carry on. I feel the community is getting full of people who just want to see the next "in" thing or get a rush of a dark and violent world without trying to understand the manga or history behind it. Best example i can give is Guts being just the guy who gets angry and rampages, its a sad take on such a great character.

[@shinnras]

Berserk has gone somewhat mainstream in the past year due to it spreading on TikTok and other social media platforms. I believe the gore and other dark aspects of Berserk have brought in people that don't even try to perceive the message of the story. Most of these people I feel like haven't even read the manga, and just slap on a Guts profile picture/make sigma edits and call it a day. A shame most of these people have a association with gym culture as well...

[@hychinas9712]

You've gone to the other end of the spectrum where the gore and darker elements in the work are divorced from the "message of the story"; almost as if you're secretly ashamed of them.

[@reiangossling6395]

I'm convinced a lot of these takes stem from people trying to project the based alpha/sigma red-pilled image onto Guts and Berserk as a whole, especially to "own" more mainstream anime and manga fandoms, which means that they end up glossing over how Guts has only barely survived and has his own deep trauma while Miura himself was a fan of other anime/manga franchises like Idolmaster.

[@KhalifBeats]

This is actually pretty spot on. The amount of TikTok edits I've seen pop up randomly on my feed where it's glorifying Guts in the way you described, but also with the most annoying and ear grating phonk beats

[@RubberDuck8989]

THANK YOU! This is what I hate the most. Edgy kids who misunderstand what Berserk is, and what the message of the story even is. Berserk depicts the “power fantasy” and Guts is admittedly pretty cool when he crushes hordes of demons but that’s not the point of Berserk. Berserk is a very tender and emotional story about love that pretty much goes against all the “red pill” stuff.

[@hychinas9712]

Midwit take. The red-pill/alpha-sigma folks aren't the ones crying endlessly about the "misogyny" that purportedly exists in Miura's works; and are certainly not the ones trying to tone police the manga. What an incredibly silly take.

[@hychinas9712]

@@RubberDuck8989 What do you think the "red-pill" stuff is, if not self-improvement and propelling one's life forward? If you have a different interpretation, you're quite off the mark.

[@reiangossling6395]

@@hychinas9712 Except that these people do give bad takes, I've them give takes such as "Griffith did nothing wrong" and that Guts should become an apostle. Judging from your other reply in this thread, it seems like I struck a nerve in criticizing this line of thought.

[@eliaspanayi3465]

I personally try to ignore the community and enjoy the thing on my own for most things these days.

[@eliaspanayi3465]

@breadandcircuses8127 the community around anime is for the most part very cringe so I avoid them often

[@jasonseacord]

Its not just Berserk its literally every fandom that does this unfortunately. I’m of the opinion that there is great media/IPs but there are no good fandoms (I know one good fandom but I wont say what it is because i dont want to jinx it). So I’ll still engage with media but not fandom. On the opposite end something else that bothers me just as much is when people look at bad fandoms and apply that to the piece of media and judge it through the fans rather than on its own merit which I think only further misses the point too. Thank you for your rant.

[@pascalakcan4613]

I have deleted all socia media apps for some years but youtube so i didn’t got to see the development you mentioning in this video. I think as a content creator you are in a harsh spot in this particular point. Thank you for telling honestly how you feel and what you think about the current berserk fandom.

[@lodestar27]

It’s reasons like this that I’m genuinely glad I’ve cut myself off from most social media. I’ve even gone out of my way to block some of the more toxic sites to be sure I don’t even try visiting them. Highly recommend it- keeping just KZbin/Twitch has been the peak lifestyle for me. Even if you just cut out twitter, it’ll save you so much sanity. W takes Ryan- I know these opinions are out there and it’s super gross. Know that there are still plenty of us who haven’t given into this weird mindset- I think we just aren’t as noisy. Thank you for being a beacon against this mindset- honestly I’d be down to see you do videos debunking the L takes you’re talking about seeing!

[@Gyrannon]

I honestly don't engage with fandoms on a discussion level, mostly because its absurdly easy for anyone to go toxic and take it personally or go to gross extremes in terms of interpretations. So yeah, best to just avoid them. Fandoms inevitably reach toxic levels and even go further into the abyss of arguments that have little to nothing to do with the actual story. And seriously, you don't have to discuss what these other insane idiots say about whatever events. Its the same when ppl try to inject political nonsense into things we like: ignore them, pretend like they don't exist. You'll be far better off.

[@mugenbop]

This is what I feel with Berserk when I ONLY made Berserk content 21:22, Ryan I am so glad you made this video. Keen for the next retrospective :)

[@Ash_Wen-li]

Berserk just started to get more mainstream so it attracted all kinds of people. And its more edgy and mature aspects attracted immature people that want to seem more mature because they "like more adult series" And those types of fans tend to be the loudest

[@numbers9696]

It’s always been mainstream adjacent imo

[@Tigo625]

I've started exploring Berserk recently (few days ago) and the fandom seems overwhelmingly positive tbh.

[@ctr1502]

It isn't for us to decide what people take from the story. We can't change the opinion of others unless they are open to it. The opinions of people on twitter mean little to my love for the books.

[@alanmercado7725]

I begun to read Berserk last year by my own and I loved it. I tried to keep it that way, but when I came to the chapter 47 "Wounds" I said: "I have to talk about this with someone who understands", fortunately I got a friend in classroom that I heard liked Berserk, I text her, it turns out that _"Berserk is her life"_ (in her own words) and since that night we become really good friends, I kept reading and sending images of the manga to her, we talked about it, she didn't spoil me at all and I didn't get into any group or trend of Berserk until I was up to date. I was guided and protected by this person (nowadays, one of my best friends) from the bad fandom and misunderstanding the manga. I can only say that I feel sorry for all the people who didn't have the same luck, and didn't understood what the manga is about and how they distort the whole point of Miura's work. I had the fortune to have been taught and guided by an old Berserk fan into an era where most of the content and fandom about this piece of art is shit. Only want to say to anyone who reads this comment, you don't need to belong to the fandom to enjoy it (not only with Berserk), maybe you just need a person that can appreciate what you like the same way, sometimes it's hard to find someone like that, but you must struggle, because thrust me, is worth. And if you see something that pissed you off, just ignore it, "it's only people wanting attention". Thanks Kitzia, for being by my side throughout my manga reading, and thanks to all the great fans that really love, understand, share and keep this marvelous and incredible story alive. Have a good night, strugglers.

[@Grimbear13]

So just to put some positivity in the comments you see. I do enjoy the Koji Mori stuff and honestly back when I started Berserk and read it for years cause I was younger (I think I've been reading for damn near 20 years now) for the most part it was just hurr durr big man swing sword for me. I could tell that the characters were well written and stuff but it wasn't till later when I started diving into the community more with videos such as yours I started to see the deeper themes and meanings that I was kind of subconsciously picking up (cause I clearly liked this series WAY more than any other hurr durr big sword/strong man smash things) but really didn't know what or why I was enjoying it more than most others. So thank you and the other people who make videos and break downs and discuss with the community things because it does make me appreciate and look at my favorite story at different angles and realize more than what when I just read by myself.

[@Grimbear13]

Also, negative comments tend to find their way to the top it always seems. Mostly cause when people are happy about something they don't necessarily feel the urge to comment on something to just agree with what you're saying or whatever. So usually you'll see more people who disagree or want to be an ass. I try to comment if I'm feeling a certain way good or bad... but I also always try to keep things civil and have an actual discussion about things. There's other fandoms I'm def in the minority of things on and don't mind holding my ground but also I'm not gonna resort to name calling and being a dick. I know this is easier said than done but yeah try to ignore the idiots.

[@thedude8526]

The Griffin did nothing wrong meme has become a serious reality to. It used to be a joke. Now fans say Guts is the evil one and Griffith should have been the hero.

[@kindlingking]

To be fair, Miura is the one who sorta introduced this idea through the character of Sonya. Obviously she was being set up for a rude awakening later down the line when glimmer of Falconia will disappear to reveal its dark underbelly as it quickly erupts into chaos or something like that. But with story taking so long to reach that point and Miura no longer being with us, I'm concerned whether Mori will be able to properly destroy Sonya's (and unironic Griffith apologists) shallow fantasy and if that would be enough to at least make them stop spitting nonsense on the internet.

[@TheMonkey0King]

I first read Berserk when I was 20, I am 37 now. The fandom has exploded since then and with that, many different opinions with varied reading comprehension. We also now live in an entirely different social environment where you're one step to cancellation if you happen to disagree with the majority. l really can't imagine anyone reading this in highschool unless person has gone through advanced literature courses or have a hobby of just reading more advanced literature in general. Otherwise, many scenes can be easily misunderstood.

[@bjornsmith9431]

The toxic woke sjw fandom who are attacking Berserk manga are the one migrate from western woke comic books, they can't tell the difference from Seinan manga that is aim for Adult aging 18 to over 40 which is Berserk, Devil Man Cry, Goblin Slayer and Violent Jack and Shonen Manga which is Dragon Balls series with it own perversion which is for teenagers. They want to change Japanese even South Korea entertainment to the woke western standard entertainment without factoring that woke culture from the western world is seen has an imperialism to change Asian Culture.

[@hieioni3354]

Majority my @ss. The tourists are only the vocal minority. Because they are so few they have to act like rabid dogs foaming at the mouth to intimidate people.

[@kurdijef]

Thank you for speaking out on this topic. I feel like there must be a lot of people like me who share the same views as you but just don't partake in the discussion. Been following Berserk for well over 15 years but I separate the fandom from the material because honestly some people are just too taxing to deal with. You keep doing you. I've definitely watched and keep on watching your other videos too.

[@Arumbarth]

I found berserk when I needed it most, in high school. When I graduated, when my best friend moved away, when I joined the workforce, when I moved in with my partner. Miura and Guts were there. I would think I can’t die yet, I have to finish Berserk. When Miura passed I was devastated. Not because the series wouldn’t end. But because I could never thank the person who saved my life. The current Berserk “fandom” is a disgrace to Berserk and Miuras memory.

[@Hmty2383]

5:22 this is exactly my thoughts about this whole situation right here, as well. You are not alone, my friend... Engaging with big fandoms is always a double-edge sword, especially when it comes down to social media (facebook groups, discord, tiktok, twitter/x). I just got into Berserk back in 2017 and it was until last year when I knew well enough the fandom became way too cancer in many regards, but this is not exclusive to Berserk, it is just part of the social decay overall. However, when I started to see it hit Berserk, I couldn't stand it and decided to keep my experience with it just for myself and people I genuinely trust, it was for the best, honestly...

[@Infernalhag]

I may get a bit political but I think this is due to a lack of good male role models and with the fact Andrew taint and the whole multicolor pill thing going on a lot of younger dudes are becoming edgy and misguided and interpret media from those toxic ideology we need to help men more

[@adamled99]

I will always love Berserk

[@foolycoolytheband]

This is explicitly why I don't interact with fanbases, they by in large suck and are filled with people with the reading comprehension of a 12 year old

[@solomongrundy1616]

The sad thing is that "Griffith did nothing wrong " and other dark memes of the community started out just as that. But with every fandom, there will always be your idiots & bad apples. Don't let them get to you too much man

[@mithos789]

griffith really did nothing wrong. god and the angels worked to set this man up.

[@hammurabii.3173]

I personally avoid people that think its either funny or unironically believe in that. Might be one of the reddest flags there is. And right now im at a 100% accuracy. Turns out the 2 people I heard say it were fucking weirdos.

[@AuspexAO]

@@hammurabii.3173I’m with you on that. People always pretend they’re “just saying it for the lols” but people like that are just closest a-holes. They may pretend they’re decent people, but when the chips are down they’d be marching right alongside evil people like Griffith.

[@Raine749]

@@mithos789he’s still the one who scarified his friends and raped casca

[@ABCetcIamalwaysright]

And let me guess, Guts is a hero and you try to defend him like the id!ot who made this video because "he stopped himself" give me a break. Both are bad and the majority of this fandom doesn't understand that. Just because Guts is the main character and speaks about his feelings every 2 seconds doesn't make him better than Griffith.

[@TheMaskedMan]

This video is cathartic.

[@jynniferspencer861]

Old Man rants from Ryan? Now it feels like Thanksgiving. Love this. 🫶🏻🍁

[@whitedragoness23]

King rants

[@binaryboopsva]

So true Meredith, so true

[@urbani8231]

The part you mentioned about the fandom becoming very divided over the death of Miura reminds me of how the RWBY fandom reacted when Monty Oum died. And I would like to add that I absolutely love listening to people talk about things they like. I enjoy your film videos and all the other manga you have talked about.

[@Joxxerfoxy]

Oh god RWBY…. I have faith that Mori will not change the story, but you can tell that the writers of rwby changed a ton of stuff in order to cave into shippers

[@blackosprey2219]

Yeah, me too. It's a completely unfalsifiable claim that a fandom can never recover from. Frustrating.

[@edwardlecouteur7900]

I got in to Berserk through the 1997 anime and found your channel on KZbin, there read the manga, I like the videos you have made about Berserk and Vinland saga, what you said is true about the shallow interpretation of Miura's story. It is about Gut's struggling to move forward facing the worst the world has to offer. I have struggled with depression, epilepsy, autism spectrum disorder and relate to the anger at being along with helplessness and nihilism.

[@YungTimeWeaver]

This is why I don’t do fandoms or communities the collective brainrot is just not worth it.

[@riohand9064]

As a roughly decade long fan of berserk you hit the nail on the head. When ever a series exploades in popularity it seems theres a large influx in toxic fans. A good recent example is Vinland Saga. Started enjoying it back in 2018, and admittedly the shift in the first leg of the story in tone was a surprise, but i appreciated it. Cut to 2023, and you have the fan base raging that the anime showing the shift ruined the show and dropping bad takes on it, like the Casca commentors.

[@5IvanDrago5]

Ive seen this over and over and over again especially in the. "wrestling community" and "gaming community". People became content creators because they have a real passion and love for something. Within a few years either the person changes, finances change the relationship, or interacting with masses change things. The story never change, what started as love and fandom turns toxic and combative. Never lose focus of why you started this, dont let some clowns online take Berserk from you.

[@SOGBigBoss]

I just stopped arguing about Berserk. Plain and simple

[@costelinha1867]

I got into Berserk pretty recently, and sadly it didn't take long till I had to deal with the infamous "Casca enjoyed it" people.

[@remyvuff9984]

You are the realest Ryan, this is the very reason why I, and many other berserk fans follow you. We know what Berserk means for us, we know for ourselves how it changed our life in a certain way. The best we can do is appreciate that love, feeling and emotions we get from Berserk and try to stay away from the negativity. It's really unfortunate that these people make these negative statements and comments, bringing the Berserk name down in a way which may result eventually in new people going in differently trying to reading the story; they will may go in these story thinking: Yes another dark edgy story with rape etc. Instead of: lets read one of the most influential and beloved piece of fiction of all time. It makes me sad. Reading those comments about Berserk makes me always think: is this where Miura died for? He didn't deserve this, he made one of the best piece of fiction of all time. That's why I'm happy that you speak up about this topic, just straight from the heart. I appreciate that so much, and I am certainly not speaking for my self. Well this was a long story, and my English is not the best. But I am happy that I'm able speak up in a positive way, seeing that I am not the only one doing that in this comment section makes me happy. Always love to watch your videos Ryan, keep it up

[@drbluejay858]

Ryan, I respect you so much for this video. It’s definitely been bothering for some time, I think it’s unfortunate how people don’t watch your other videos, some that I say are much better than your berserk videos. The fandom has driven me to the point of just not liking berserk sometimes. Sometimes it hurts your streams with the same stupid comment that’s already been dissected. Glad to see this Ryan, keep it up, I’ll support ya

[@James_Rustled]

I always took the “Griffith did nothing wrong” and “Casca enjoyed it” as beings edgy jokes that are not serious. People are crazy though

[@mithos789]

you can enjoy a grape. its an involuntary action. can lead to conflicted feelings.

[@benjaminthibieroz4155]

unfortunately, I'm pretty sure some actually mean it...

[@niggacockball7995]

​@@mithos789grapes taste amazing though especially the seedless ones

[@zekuzilla5992]

I'm a cosplayer who has been a Berserk fan for 11 years. Getting the opportunity to cosplay Guts and interact with mature/intelligent fans was a highlight of my hobby. This year, in my opinion, has been the lowest point for the Berserk community. Every point made in this video accurately reflects how I've been feeling about the Berserk fandom. I've seen talented Berserk cosplayers abandon their creations, community, and series but they receive waves of rape threats. It's just so tiresome. We used to be such chill and awesome fandom. Now, I sometimes feel ashamed to announce my self as a Berserk fan :(

[@bjornsmith9431]

Sad to seen Berserk fan being look on as Pe-do lover and Ra-pe culture fan, the late Kentaro Miura is being hate by troll with a certain political agenda tied to Woke Hollywood envy of Japanese Manga and Anime even South Korean Kpop too, These people love Alan Moore work The Last Girl book which have the worse Pe/do contain, I have seen, yet these people never want to ban this man, I said about this People they follow this rule, one rules for me and another rule for him if he interfering in my profit and agenda, these people criticizing you has an Cosplay do not understand that Berserk is a Seinen manga that is for 18 to over 40 age group adult contains certain manga are in those range, if there offend don't watch or read those fictional matters, be respectful to others views.

[@bjornsmith9431]

@breadandcircuses8127 👍

[@ianthrockmorton9167]

The problem is, children made their way into the fandom. Only a child, or man-child, would say and think anything so utterly juvenile and asinine.

[@billyboleson2830]

Cause it got popular

[@TheFireNerd]

I fully agree Ryan, I just wanna keep an open mind and see where berserk is going. I've always loved the interpersonal themes of the story. It's okay to do what you feel passionate about. We'll support you the full way. Don't focus on the off putting side of the fan base. I don't want to gate keep either, but the real open minded readers are gonna sit by and enjoy what comes along. I appreciate your thoughts on the matter because I've been feeling the same way. It's not a Shonen and it's not surface level. Thank you and stay well my man.

[@djsjdh-hoahdi]

I like how you’re referencing stuff like The people that say Griffith did nothing wrong and try to convince people about that. It’s funny how they completely miss or ignore or misrepresent the long established portrayal of his dark personality traits and through making those arguments they confess much more than they think are saying. mainly that they have little self awareness and are quite willing to elevate their experience and feelings above others and try to manipulate them. Funny how that’s just like Griffith.

[@Sichlitt]

Human Griffith did almost nothing wrong, and certainly less wrong than Guts has done. Griffith’s heart was frozen during the transformation into Femto and there is no “long established portrayal” of his dark personality traits any more than there has been of Guts. All you can point towards in the Golden Age arc is a dream speech that he was lying about and his apparent Machiavellian nature for killing court members that had already tried to murder him. Human Griffith is the most empathetic character in the story outside maybe Puck.

[@binaryboopsva]

@@Sichlitt Oh hey I was just talking about you in another comment lol. It's kinda iffy but I sorta agree. Especially since you don't misconstrute the character, you just draw a line between Griffith and Femto. Please don't turn out like these random idiots.

[@VSPhotfries]

Yeeeeeup! You nailed it. Griffith's response to the bad shit he went through was to make it worse in a bid for power, to "get his" instead of doing anything positive even for those closest to him - and hence he's THE VILLIAN. I can't begin to understand how people can claim anything but that. Just because he's humanized and someone you can understand and empathize with doesn't mean (to any sane person) he was right, just that his motives are understandable, which if you ask me, makes everything he does so much worse. And yet, some neckbeards manage to mess that one up...

[@Sichlitt]

@@VSPhotfries give me a specific example of him doing that.

[@kindlingking]

​@@VSPhotfrieswith this comment, you're no different from "did nothing wrong" crowd, except your pendulum swung in a different direction. Griffith wasn't a psycho or anything, just like Guts he had to deal with his own trauma and messed up shit he had to go through (like selling himself to nobles as a male prostitute). Why? Because he saw people die around him all the time and worse they were dieing for him, believing in his cause, his dream. He couldn't bear it and instead chose to shut his comrades away, to hide behind the simple idea of the being just tools, because tools break all the time, no need to worry about them like you do with people. Yes, he ultimately betrayed and sacrificed them to become Femto, but that just proves my point - to be reborn he had to reap a piece of himself, to give up something closest to him, which without a doubt was Band of the Falcon. He was so close to his goal, he made so many sacrifices, lost so many people, endured so many trials, yet his dream is the farthest it ever was. He lost. Everything was for nothing, all that's left is an existence so miserable he would wish to die every moment he's alive. It is at that moment Griffith breaks, he loses to his bottled up trauma, guilt and (misguided) hatred for Guts and himself and take a leap into an abyss. Griffith is a tragic character, not purely villainous. And, while still directly connected to him and being a manifestation of his ambition, Femto, I think, is his own thing entirely.