Berserk Eps. 18-21 Talkback (SPOILERS!)

[Mynd Hed]

Well, today is the day... sort of. For those who preordered, yesterday or the day before might have been the day, or for those unlucky few like me who are still waiting for their preorder to arrive, it might be tomorrow or the next day. But anyway, SOMETIME in or around today is the day when many and/or most of us who have been waiting and waiting for Vol. 5 of Berserk to come out will finally be treated to the next-to-final installment of what I, based on the first seventeen episodes, consider to be one of the finest animes out there.

So you lucky folks who already have it in your hands, what do you think? Let the talkback begin!

[Mynd Hed]

Boy, I posted this thread thinking I'd be back in, at most, a day or two to comment on the episodes, but then my DVD got shipped to the wrong address and I JUST got it today.

Anyway, the series definitely changes tone in these episodes. The action was toned way down in favor of more character drama-- and I can't say I disapprove. Guts' shacking up with the old swordsmith was a definite departure for the series, an almost pastoral episode, and it was nice to see Guts actually seeming to enjoy life for once. Of course, it was shortlived, and the series gets-- I never thought I'd say THIS-- even darker than it had been up until this point, with Griffith's less-than-100%-consensual tryst with the Princess and his subsequent arrest and torture, and the downfall of the Hawks. Guts and Caska finally hook up-- everyone saw it coming a mile away, but then, we were supposed to.

My only complaint is that I believe these are the first episodes in which we're able to hear the thoughts of anybody besides Guts. Personally, I liked the more limited-perspective method of storytelling in the earlier episodes better, where we're seeing events through Guts' point of view and the motivations of characters like Griffith and Caska are revealed only through their words and actions. Suddenly being able to hear Griffith's thoughts is kind of distracting.

But in any case, this was a pretty good bunch of episodes, and it certainly made me want to watch the next DVD, which I understand ends the series on a horrible cliffhanger which will make strong men weep with frustration. (-:

Overall Grade: B-