News

Every story or narrative needs inspiration that could help its creators in forming a base for the story. Something similar happened with one of the biggest dark fantasy mangas, Berserk. While Berserk offers a plot that was never seen before, there were some things within the series that Kentaro Miura borrowed from other popular manga series.

Mangaka Kentaro Miura’s Berserk | Studio Gaga

In an interview once, Miura confessed that he had used three legendary manga stories for Berserk’s reference, and all three of these have played a different role in designing one of the best dark fantasy narratives of all time. These were some of his favorite works before he entered the industry.

These references and inspirations can be deemed Miura’s way of honoring the works that persuaded him to become a mangaka, and those who have read them can clearly spot the influence in the story.

When Kentaro Miura first released the Berserk manga in 1989, he changed the entire Seinen manga genre by portraying a new side of dark, epic fantasy storytelling that was never seen before. It became such a big hit that even after his death in 2021, the production studio decided to keep the manga going in honor of his legacy.

Berserk manga | Studio Gaga

Miura had a deep understanding of how to make a dark and depressed-toned story attractive to readers. However, he was not born with this skill but acquired it through reading almost every genre of manga as much as possible. He kept reading manga, irrespective of their nature or the type of storyline, and absorbed as much as possible.

This was a big change in his lifestyle, but it helped him figure out the perfect way to create a story and make it intriguing for the fans. This ultimately led...

Kentaro Miura was always a man to take things at a soft and leveled pace when it came to drafting and drawing Berserk. One of the very reasons why it is such a loved manga is because of the wide variety of stories and complexities it dives into. The pedestal it stands on is difficult to move and rightfully so.

Guts in Berserk | Credit: Hakusensha

While the series stands as one of the best, it is not without its flaws. Kazuhiko Torishima, former Dragon Ball editor pointed towards these exact flaws. As a manga that deals with the complexities of life, there is so much that goes into its making and the thoughts that compete with no one. Torishima, although acknowledging all that, could not help but notice one problem.

Kentaro Miura Rushed Things

During an interview in the Berserk home anthology Young Animal, (via Crunchyroll), Kentaro Miura talked with...

The story of Guts is once again hitting the anime world as Studio Eclypse is remaking Berserk with the title Berserk: The Black Swordsman. Fans of Kentaro Miura and Guts are ready to follow the adventures of The Black Swordsman Party as they once again tackle the dangers of their world while accomplishing their individual goals.

Berserk: The Black Swordsman | Studio Ecylpse

Berserk is one of the best stories of all time. And although the creator of the series is no longer with us, his work and his legacy are being taken forward by his best friend Kouji Mori, along with Studio Gaga. However, many people don’t know this, but Berserk is inspired by different mangas that are also quite popular in the industry.

Mangaka Miura once came clean about the stories that inspired him to create Berserk and how these works had taken a place in his mind...

Kentaro Miura never held back when it came to contributing to Berserk. Every character and every piece of artwork that constitutes the manga holds a part of him. Inspiration makes artwork better. As a writer, it becomes important to understand each and every character not as a combination of words and images but as a person.

Guts in Berserk

A hero and a villain are both the creations of the same mind. Whether it be through inspiration or understanding, an artist, especially a writer, can think both as an antagonist and as a protagonist. Miura has some of the most complex people in his manga, so it is only safe to assume that his own thinking process was filled with complexities. More than that, so were his surroundings.

Kentaro Miura Found Violence in Envy

In an interview with Yukari Fujimoto (via Mangabrog) Kentaro Miura talked about channeling his inner Guts and Griffith.

Kentaro Miura was a legend with his absolutely breathtaking artwork and storytelling. What he did with Berserk was absolutely impossible for anyone else to do and that is reason enough to justify the pedestal he still stands on. The element of horror combined with one of melancholy, relatability, and the brutality of the world, Miura created a masterpiece worth a thousand words.

Griffith in Berserk | Credit: Dark Horse Comics

When it comes to visually representing realistic elements through unusual perspectives, another name that comes to mind is Tim Burton. Both him and Miura are different in the genres and mediums they worked on, but that is not to say that one cannot have inspired the other. One thing Miura found interesting about Burton’s works, that he had to incorporate in his own storytelling, and that was the dark presentation of humanity.

Kentaro Miura was Inspired by Tim Burton

Kentaro Miura,...

Almost every mangaka tends to create a specific quality in their protagonists that draws parallels between the main character and the mangaka. However, this was not the case with Kentaro Miura and his masterpiece, Berserk. Miura, once in an interview, revealed that the character that replicated him the most was Pippin.

Guts in Berserk manga | Studio Gaga

Pippin was one of the members of the Band of Falcons who helped Guts escape. He did not speak much, but whenever he did, it would either be a serious discussion or to offer some advice. Pippin had a good relationship with Guts in the series, and the two were called the power duo of Berserk.

According to Miura, when he planned Berserk, he initially thought of only five characters for the series and all of them were based on his friends. However, there were no Guts, Griffith, or Casca in his friend circle,...

Berserk fans are well-versed in the dark and goth elements of the series, which makes Kentaro Miura’s magnum opus one of the best Seinen manga of all time. Death, torture, monsters, ghosts, etc. are all part of the series, and they not only make the series scary but also keep the narrative intriguing for the fans.

Mangaka Kentaro Miura’s Berserk | Studio Gaga

Miura’s love for horror and fantasy comes from a legend in the field: Tim Burton. The American director is famous all over the world for his horror movies. Burton inspired a lot of other directors and creators, and one of them was Miura. He might not be the reason behind the entire story of Berserk, but he certainly helped in forming its main element.

This was confessed by Miura in an interview, where he was talking about the birth of Berserk, the flow of the series,...

Kentaro Miura’s death in 2021 left a big question for his magnum opus, Berserk. Fans were depressed as they could not find out about the ending of one of the most popular anime and manga series in the world. However, Miura’s best friend, Kouji Mori, decided to take on his legacy and is now continuing the story.

Berserk | Studio Gaga

Mori was the only one who knew the ending of Berserk. This is why he collaborated with Studio Gaga, which was the manga production studio of Berserk. Together, they are now working on bringing Berserk to fruition with the help of the ending that was originally planned by Miura before he passed away.

However, contrary to popular belief, Berserk’s ending might not be as dark as the original storyline. This was stated by Miura in an interview when he explained that he had already planned the ending of...

Kentarou Miura was responsible for creating one of the greatest manga ever. Berserk’s popularity has always been on the rise since it began its serialization. Even though Kentarou Miura has passed away, leaving an unfinished story, he still gave the fans what they wanted. Currently, his friend, Kouji Mori, is in charge of creating the manga and published volume 42.

Guts and Griffith are the protagonists and antagonists of Berserk, and Miura sensei might have been influenced by his past experiences to give birth to such an iconic rivalry. During an interview, he mentioned his obsession, and it showed that he can be pretty competitive, just the way his characters are. His obsession led to the creation of a masterpiece in the Seinen genre.

Kentarou Miura’s One Good Quality Turned Into Obsession Guts (Credit: Dark Horse)

Kentarou Miura was always praised for his magnum opus, especially for two things – plot and drawings.