Why Guts is The Most Compelling Character in Manga History

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This is great. However, I will continue to point out that the mainly overlooked reason that Guts is so torn up by the events of the Count's eclipse is that he could have comforted himself with the delusion that Griffith wasn't really given a choice. That it was an illusion or causality or fate or whatever. Then he sees the Count defy the Godhand and choose to sacrifice himself over the one he loved. He's ruined by the shattering of the one remaining delusion he could cling to.

Whenever I feel like I might be getting bored of Berserk, those feelings that are conjured from the story always makes it feel refreshed. I wish I could experience Berserk again for the first time.

Most people would be called normies for only liking protagonists, for Gutts.. He’s literally the best character In Beserk

Most controversial take in the entire video, "I don't like Hitler."

Guts telling Farnese that he was grateful for her help just floored me when I first read it. I think that's when I realized Guts deserved, and would get a happy ending. Yeah, we'll never really see a true ending to the story, but come on, you know it would be happy. Kentaro Miura developed Guts in a way that made him earn my respect and admiration. At the end of the day it wasn't his physical strength, or giant sword, or blind rage, but his earnestness, determination, sensitivity, and selflessness. Guts expressing his respect towards others and finding worth in them, after all he's been through, truly defines his struggle to achieve what I feel is his true dream-- peace. Same here man, same here. RIP to Miura, and yes, I did watch the entire video and I did cry.

I personally feel as though the reason black swordsman was first was to make us feel like Guts. We have our guard up against the warmness of the hawks just like Guts because we KNOW what will happen. But I and many others eventually dropped our guard when reading, we couldn't help but feel for the warmth that the band gave. Literally portraying exactly how Guts feels, especially when all of it is taken away. Excellent video essay, deserves more attention.

It didn't occur to me that guts not having his own dream would mean that Griffith wouldn't see him as someone he has to put up his "ideal self" as you put it. It's obvious that he's different around guts and the irony of Guts not being his "ideal" really shows how we as human really fail to see what's important to us, much like how guts himself makes that mistake. Great video I watched the whole thing! Keep it up

At 34:45 you say that in Griffith's mind, Guts is second only to Griffith's 'dream'. It's shown that to Griffith, his dream had actually become less valuable than his friendship with Guts - it's precisely why Griffith blunders as soon as Guts leaves. Griffith eventually realises this himself during his year being tortured, and he begins to bear resentment towards Guts because of this, as shown when he tries to strangle Guts upon them being reunited again.

Absolutely based taste, I’m so glad I chose to subscribe. I will miss Kentaro Miura - he was one of my biggest inspirations.

I have read Berserk and after watching this video, I think I understand Berserk a little more than I did before. I started the video and BOOOOM, 1 Hour is almost over. Nothing felt unnecessary, everything is just perfectly balanced as it should be. This Video deserves more Views.

it's absolutely crazy to me that miura started berserk when he was 23. I'm 22 and can't imagine being talented enough to write something of this quality. miura is by far the greatest author of all time and his passing broke my heart in the same way as when a family member passes. truly berserk is the greatest story in all of fiction. bar none

It really depresses me that Griffith allowed his dream and ideal self to drive a wedge between him and the people he cared about. Even now, in later chapters where Griffith has more or less achieved his goal, he feels empty within because the people he wants beside him aren’t there, even if he proclaims that they have no worth to him. He sits on a throne of flashy dreams, not of true substance.

i agree with the fact that "he'll use every single strategy". The most obvious one is Rosine fight

32:30 Honestly, I would go further. Griffith wanted to be a king. Kings are the top of all hierarchical medieval power structures. Therefore, Griffith wanted power most strongly. In Guts, Griffith sees the epitome of his ideal self. Someone who places everything into what he does and holds nothing back. Someone who has won respect and admiration by his own will and strength. Someone who has the ability to shape the world as he sees fit if he were to put his effort into it. Someone like Guts. Griffith in multiple scenes is haunted by the fact that he has to step on others to achieve what he wants. He lacks the same kind of strength of self that Guts has. He goes out of his way to sleep with the pedophile noble in order to avoid more trauma caused to others. In the scene afterwards, he is literally trying to claw his way out of his skin since he had to reduce himself to such methods. He constantly drafts plans to save as many lives as possible. He doesn't forget to elevate those that follow him to knighthood. Before the fall, almost every member of the band of the hawks is elevated to that status. When he dreams during the eclipse, he is horrified at the deaths of others that he has caused due to his perceived weakness before being chastised about it. Really, when Guts leaves, Griffith has to watch as the embodiment of his actual ideal turns his back on him. Watching the manifestation of your goals leave you has got to be absolutely gut wrenching. It is only in this grief that he begins acting against his interests. When at his deepest moments of despair, he begins doing as he pleases acting as if he has already become powerful, repercussions be damned. This leads to his arrest and torture. Only to be saved by his physical ideal self. So now he has been reminded about the ideal he can longer ever be. Eventually his despair gets to a point where he in agony and grief wants to no longer suffer. So he sacrifices everything to gain his wildest dreams. Which, while faulty, is a very human and very mortal trait.

Not exactly a comment about Guts, but one thing I love about the golden age arc is how it does such an effective job at establishing the world as completely normal that even though you already know there's supernatural forces at play, when Zod transforms into his apostle form you're still like "HOLY SHIT HE'S ACTUALLY A MONSTER!"

"Guts is great, worth all three silver coins"- Donovan

Muira has admited he didnt have a full plan for griffith and guts until he made the golden arc. some may call this under prepared but I think of it as resourceful and flexable.

Rewatching this and I realized something about the Griffith Guts rematch. Griffith isn't sure he has enough control of his curved sword to avoid impaling guts. But guts is able to swing his sword faster than Griffith can react to, hard enough to cleanly cleave his blade, and then stop it before he strikes Griffith. Displaying absolute perfect control of his sword that Griffith admitted he couldn't match in his own inner dialogue.

If it wasn't for that one panel where Guts sheds a tear while walking away from the Count's daughter I would have put the series down because at that point I honestly thought he was just so edgy asshole. Now I see him as one of the most well written characters in fiction