First Impressions: Berserk (2016)

 

A friend of mine does first impressions for when new shows start out whether be anime or tokusatsu or anything else. We need content. So I thought I’d throw my hat into the ring of doing it. And thus here we are.

Our subject today is that of the newest adaptation of Kentaro Miura’s Berserk. Berserk itself has been around since 1989 and originally received a 25 episode television series back in 1997 and eventually was brought back as movie trilogy in the late 2000s. The franchise is a marvelous one and to this day resonates with people for its themes of self worth, friendship, following and finding ones’ dreams, and of human nature. For me Berserk is without a doubt one of my favorites of all time and in fact I rank it as my second favorite piece of Japanese comics and animation ever. So when I heard months back that we’d getting a new show for it I lost my mind. Then when I heard Crunchyroll would simulcast the show I went full blown fanboy hype train apeshit. Sure there was something when promotional material slowly came out that I knew I’d dislike right off the back (and we’ll get to that), but my joy and hype levels were through the roof.

With that here we all. Episode one has been released and episode two just went up today on Crunchyroll. So how about we take a look at the renewal of Berserk and see how it does one episode in. Is it good? Will it satisfy the fanbase? Did I like it? Read on and find out.

Being that this is the first episode there isn’t going to be a whole lot of story. Just the usual setting up the main character, some reoccurring side characters, and a general idea of what the story will be. We do know however from press reports that the show will follow the Black Swordsman Arc and the Conviction Arc. So if you have read the comics you already know how the show is going to start and what it will do with the plot. To actually talk about the episode though, it did a good job of setting up what is going to be seen for however many episodes we get. They do a great job of setting up Guts in character and motivation, they introduce Puck and while I can’t say he doesn’t annoy rather quickly the show does do a good of introducing him and keeping him there, and it gives a good idea of what you’ll be seeing. Guts pops up somewhere, some of the locals take to Guts and some don’t, demonic creatures show up, Guts cleans house, the end. We’re also shown the relationship Guts will have with the Holy Iron Chain Knights, albeit very briefly. Overall the story and setup is pretty good and gets the show off to a good start.

  Now we come to the animation. And…I have to be honest I knew what my thoughts on it was going to be since the first few promotional videos. Like the movie trilogy the shows uses both CGI and traditional animation. However while the movie switched between the two and mostly used traditional with CGI for environments and more complex scenes, this is the opposite, but not really. CGI is the main animation style used here with traditional only appearing in the opening vignette and for close up shots of the characters. I don’t like it. To be fair though the CGI isn’t too terrible. The environments look outstanding and at times realistic as if they actually shot some nature footage outside. And it was inevitable that it had to be used to pull off the mass number of monsters and scale of Guts’ fight. But other than that? It is 100% noticeable and it just isn’t that good. Characters move rather stiffly and everything looks like it is a Telltale game instead of an anime. I can bite my teeth and deal with it to watch one of my favorite series have a new show and a production that isn’t mostly focused on The Golden Age arc. But that doesn’t mean I have to enjoy everything I see.


Also I suppose I should bring up now that we’re speaking of animation that, well, Casca’s design has been changed. She is now a very light skinned color and sports reddish purple hair. Yeah…I have no idea why they changed this. At all. It’s stupid. Moving on.

On the Left: Casca from the 97-98 anime | On the Right: Casca from the new anime

That leaves us with our music of the show. Beginning with the opening it isn’t bad. But it isn’t that great. It’s just sort of there and sounds like your average rock anime opening in this day and age. Kudos though to the production for making the video package be the entirety of The Golden Age arc and hitting all of the key points (save for Nosferatu Zodd and Doddery) in a minute and a half. What about the ending theme? I don’t like it. It is so bland and whispy sounding. Actually it sounds like just about every anime ending from the last couple years. There’s no other way to say it other than that it’s terrible. So how is the score? Well it isn’t all that bad. The soundtrack is going for more of a rocky and industrial sound and in some places it works and in some it doesn’t. However there isn’t a whole lot to get you pumped or sucked into the show. The music is decent overall. There’s some good, there’s some bad, and there’s quite a bit of meh.

So where does that leave us after one episode? Is this new Berserk worth watching after the premiere episode? Well if you’re a fan of the series the answer is pretty much an immediate yes. The Golden Age arc is the plot that we’ve seen be used the most, so seeing a new Berserk production come out that is focusing on two different arcs is a great breath of fresh air and will showcase parts of the comic some people may not be too familiar with. But what about if you’re not a fan of the comic or previous anime versions and are just now venturing into the show? Well I still think it does a good job of getting those not familiar with Berserk to be interested. The episode itself is a good opening and sets the groundwork for what will come. But I would be lying if I said there were no negatives. The music, while not terrible, is pretty average and isn’t going to probably stay with you even after the show ends. And the animation, I just can’t with the majority of it. If it wasn’t for the fact that this is Berserk I would drop it after the first episode. Afterall why watch a show when you don’t like the way it looks?

Well while that normally is the kiss of death for an anime with me, the power of Berserk is strong enough to keep me watching. Whether it be the original show from the 90s, the movie trilogy, the comics, or the games, Berserk has the power to make people invest in its story and characters across the years. So yes, there are parts of the show I don’t like. In the end though I’m willing to deal with it and keep watching a new version of one of my favorites of all time.