Berserk Manga Review: Reunion on the Hill of Swords

Brace yourselves, boys and girls. It’s time to dive into the longest, greatest arc in all of Berserk!

For the majority of Berserk thus far, the series has focused almost exclusively on Guts. Of course, right? He’s the main character.

With Conviction, however, we begin to see the scope of the story expand. Bit by bit, one chapter at a time, the series was evolving. Its core, that story of a man’s endless struggle through a hellish life, is still there. Now, however, this isn’t a one-man act. It’s a full-blown fantasy epic!

Today, we’re starting Falcon of the Millennium Empire with the following chapters:

• The Rent World
• Reunion on the Hill of Swords
• The Beast Swordsman VS The Black Swordsman
• Unchanged
• Prologue to the War

Our story begins in a dark forest. A group of children explore the woods, a growing sense of unease building in every one of them. Then Zodd flies by, the kids run away screaming, and we get this interesting quote from the narrator.

Secretly… the hollows of trees, the ground beneath graves, the whispers of winds, the lull between waves, the depths of wells, the darkness of attics… secretly, at some point, their silence… ceased to be mere silence. Like a folk tale told by elders to scare children… as if it might have been there all along… something surely breathed within the silence.

Thank you, Miura and translators, I didn’t want to sleep tonight anyways.

Hard cut to Erica. The little girl brushes snow off of a grave, speaking to her father beneath the ground. Just as he thought he would, Godo died off-screen. Thus am I made the saddest boy in the room.

But it’s not all doom and gloom, because Guts, Casca, and Puck are back! Guts mourns his adopted blacksmith grandpa, and Erica gives him some comfort. Through her, we learn that Godo was, at the very least, satisfied before the end.

Now, Guts needs to face a difficult question: what now? Casca is home safe and sound; surely it’s time to hunker down in the elven cave’s safety and just relax. Yet Griffith is finally back, finally within his reach. Confusingly, when he first saw him, Guts hadn’t wanted to kill his old foe, a fact that is screwing with his head super hard. He’s at an impass.

Until Erica says something strange. A visitor has come to see him and Rickert. An old friend from their days in the Hawks.

A beautiful man with long, white hair.

This is one of my favorite panels in all of Berserk. Griffith, as pristine and beautiful as ever, stands surrounded not by swords, but by the graves of those he sacrificed. Men he once cared for, slain by his own decision, yet he feels nothing. His gaze is as cold as ever. It’s one of the most brilliant villain panels I’ve ever seen in manga!

*Fun fact: I managed to convince my little brother to read Berserk a few years ago. One day, after I got off from work, I receive the following texts.

Getting back to the story: without Casca there to stop him, Guts flies into a rage and tries to murder Griffith. Rickert, still blissfully unaware of what happened during the Eclipse, steps in to stop him. The two argue for a bit, Rickert trying to calm Guts, Guts trying to get the boy to move.

Until Griffith chimes in. Calm, collected, and cold, he reminisces with Guts over days long gone. As if nothing happened at all between them. An attitude which drives Guts into a frenzy. Here, Griffith reveals the reason for his visit: to see if his previous weakness for his Raider’s Captain remains. Now there’s nothing. Now, he is free to claim his dream once and for all.

Imagine it. You’ve spent years of your life devoted to a man you thought as a friend. He’s made you do horrible things, betrayed you, violated the person you love, then disappeared. Now he’s back and he tells you that you, and therefor all the suffering that he put you through, means absolutely nothing to him.

Sufficive to say that Guts is just a wee bit upset by this. Shoving Rickert aside, the Black Swordsman gives in to his hate and goes for the kill. But his blow is blocked by an all-too familiar foe: Zodd.

And the immortal wants a rematch.

What follows is the single coolest one on one duel in all of Berserk. Zodd is as monstrous as ever, but Guts is far from the green young knight he was in their first battle. Each action panel is a blur of motion, perfectly capturing the speed and weight of both fighters without sacrificing visual clarity. Page after page, panel after panel, it’s a visual spectacle that highlights just how far Guts has come, and how far he still has yet to go. And when Zodd starts using the sword-gravestones as secondary ammunition, essentially weaponizing the death of Guts’ friends? It’s brilliant!

Meanwhile, Rickert’s mind is utterly blown and he has no clue what’s happening. First Griffith showed up, then Guts tried to kill him, now Zodd is here. Kid is having a rough day.

You know who else is watching? Griffith. And something weird is happening. Seeing Guts in danger is making his heart throb. Could it be the result of the Demon Infant’s influence?

Oh yeah, for clarity’s sake: the Egg of the World hatched into Griffith, but since the Egg swallowed the Infant, said infant is now a part of Griffith’s form and soul. Just to be clear. That definitely won’t have massive repercussions later on in the narrative, trust me.

Back to the fight: Zodd praises Guts and the Dragon Slayer both, having become drunk on combat. So he turns into his big minotaur form for round two. Even more incredible action panels follow, with the hulking monster tossing Guts around like a toy. In the chaos, Zodd breaks through the mountain, destroying Godo’s mine and annihilating the cavern in which Guts and Casca would be safe.

Speaking of, you’ll never guess who appears on the scene. Just in time for Zodd to break free and send boulders flying on top of her head. It seems all is lost and Casca is dead.

Then…

Casca tries to reach for Griffith, but her Brand is causing her too much pain. Guts goes to get Griffith away from her, but Zodd stands in his path. Before the chaos could continue, however, Griffith calls for it to end. It’s time for him and Zodd to go. But before he goes, he’s got one last thing to say to Guts.

I told you once. I will get my own kingdom. Nothing has changed.

Griffith, ‘Unchanged’

But he’s not done. He’s got another message, this time for Rickert. If Rickert hates him, then so be it. But if he still wants to chase the dream, then Griffith would accept him.

Guts, being not an idiot, seizes his chance and tries to kill Griffith with his crossbow, but it’s too little, too late. Zodd takes off, and Griffith is gone. Yet the White Hawk is disturbed by his own actions; it was not he who went to save Casca, but the Infant. It seems the demonic baby will be a greater problem for him than he anticipated.

Back on the hill, Rickert demands that Guts finally tells him the truth. So he does. Naturally, Rickert is rather upset by the news that Griffith murdered all their friends and sexually assaulted Casca. Moreover, he feels guilty that Guts had to carry the burden of their deaths by himself all these years. So he swears to accompany Guts on his journey.

Yet Guts refuses. Smiling softly, he tells Rickert:

Besides, Erica still needs him around. As she makes clear when she bursts into tears and runs away. Poor kid lost her adopted father, she knows that Guts and Casca can’t stay anymore, and now Rickert is leaving? Poor girl is downright distraught. So Rickert follows after her.

And the two lived happily ever after and definitely never come back again.

Now it’s just Guts, Casca, and Puck. The question on all their minds (or at least on Guts’ and Puck’s): what next? Guts clearly wants to keep chasing his revenge, but he’s not so dumb as to take Casca along with him. They need to find some place where Casca will be safe and happy.

Luckily for them, Puck has an idea.

Thus is the stage set for the Falcon of the Millennium Empire arc to begin. And what a start! Miura’s artwork somehow managed to get even better, and so too did his storytelling! This entire section is one of the series’ most iconic moments, and it’s not hard to see why!

Best of all: we’re just getting started! We’ve got nowhere to go from here but up!

Pack your bags! We’re off to the home of the elves!