Berserk (anime)

Berserk is a manga, anime and movie series written and illustrated by Kentaro Miura. Set in a medieval Europe-inspired fantasy world, the story centers on the characters of Guts, an orphaned mercenary, and Griffith, leader of a mercenary band called the Band of the Hawk. Themes of isolation, camaraderie, and the question of whether humanity is fundamentally good or evil pervade the story, as it explores both the destructive and protective traits of occidental human cultures. Both the manga and anime are noted for their heavy violence.

Quotes From Manga

Narrator

In this world, is the destiny of mankind controlled by some transcendental entity or law? Is it like the hand of God hovering above? At least it is true that man has no control; even over his own will.
It was much too big to be called a sword. Massive, thick, heavy, and far too rough. Indeed, it was like a heap of raw iron.
Dreams, ambition, love, hope; in this world, could the glories of a youthful heart be... forbidden?
Dreams. Each man longs to pursue his dream. Each man is tortured by this dream, but the dream gives meaning to his life. Even if the dream ruins his life, man cannot allow himself to leave it behind. In this world, is man ever able to possess anything more solid, than a dream?
In this world, there is a time that one is forever unable to retrieve. In pursuit for forgiveness one is destined to atone by living through agony and letting time slip away. The sorrow in the furthest reaches of one's memory... The sorrow just beyond one's memory... Which is more heartbreaking?
Providence may guide a man to meet one specific person, even if such guidance eventually leads him to darkness. Man simply cannot forsake the beauty of his own chosen path. When will man learn a way to control his soul?
A man draws his sword in order to protect the small wound deep in his heart, it was inflicted in the days long past at the farthest reach of his memories, a man wields his sword in order to depart life with a smile....

Guts

Even if we painstakingly piece together something lost, it doesn't mean things will ever go back to how they were
Look around you carefully. Strain your eyes at the darkness around us... At the darkness around me. You said anywhere but here. This is where, here, at the border. Gathered by the winds. Those who have met their final destiny hanging between jealousy and regret. Those who failed, swept together here. You say it doesn't matter where. If you follow me, this is where you'll go. This is your eden.
If you're always worried about crushing the ants beneath you... you won't be able to walk.
Do whatever you want now. But if you disturb me, I'll kill you.
My place really was here. I was too foolish and stubborn to notice. But, what I truly hoped for then was here... Why do I always realize it.. When I've already lost it...
You have the strongest armor, because you are the weakest!
When you meet your God, tell him to leave me alone.
God shows himself on the ground. These are his miracles.
I don't have time for miracles. They make me puke.
He appeared right in front of me, and he wasn't a demon... but what looked like a human. As if he'd been yanked from before into the present unchanged. I gazed at him and for a second... I forgot to kill him
I'd rather fight for my life than live it.
Couldn't you settle for a smile, and a fond farewell?
I don't want what another man can give me. If he grants me anything, then it's his to give and not my own.
In the end the winner is still the last man standing.
I can't compare to you... Sure I can kill a hundred enemies but... and not only you, but Griffith too. You both hold on to something, gambling with your very lives. It's amazing to me, I can't compare. I just kill for the sake of killing. Everyday, hundreds, thousands... There's nothing... honorable... about it.
Looking from up here, it's as if each flame were a small dream, for each person. They look like a bonfire of dreams, don't they? ...- But, there's not flame for me here. I'm just... a temporary visitor, taking comfort from the flame.
Monsters shouldn't call themselves warriors, you self-centered bastard.
Humans are weak... but we want to live... even if we're wounded... or tortured... we feel the pain...
(repeated line) GRIFFITH!
A beast, a monster? Heh... Don't make me laugh. I... am me. And nothing on earth. Can change me. No matter who chases me.
So I guess you're like a mad dog that bit his master's hand. Not bad. I can't say that I don't like stuff like that. But you know... I hate to say this... But I don't have the time for that shit right now, like i would care about pissing contests between monsters. Go find someone else.
Revenge... War... Maybe that's enough reason. I'm all alone, I think. For now. And within me is the black berserker rage... And only that... Will keep me on my feet. As I head toward you... Pressing on.
Why do you shrink back from these sights? If you were in a place of worship, you'd call them angels. Talk to "God."
People who perish in other’s battles are worms… If one can’t live their life the way they want, they might as well die.
The reward for ambition too great... is self destruction.
People bring the small flames of their wishes together... since they don't want to extinguish the small flame... they'll bring that small flame to a bigger fire. A big flame named Griffith. But you know... I didn't bring a flame with me. I think I just stopped by to warm myself by the bonfire.
Throughout my life, the moments, and people who have defined me... they have all been illuminated by sparks.
Where am I going? If I just collapsed back there I would be better off. If I were dead back there, there would be nothing. Now there's only bad.

Griffith

A friend would not just follow another's dream... a friend would find his own reason to live...
A dream... It's something you do for yourself, not for others.
It is my perception that a true friend never relies on another’s dream. A person with the potential to be my true friend must be able to find his reason for life without my help. And, he would have to put his heart and soul into protecting his dream. He would never hesitate to fight for his dream, even against me. For me, a true friend is one who stands equal on those terms.
A dream can make a man feel alive, or it can kill him instead. But to simply exist.. just because one's been born is the sort of notion that I hate.. I can't stand it.

Judeau

Whether it’s good or bad, it’s so unfortunate to wake up during a dream.
I realized that I could never be the best, so I decided to find the man that could and serve by his side.
I'm a jack of all trades... a little better than most at everything, but I don't shine at anything.
It's okay to cry...
You cry a lot when you're alone, don't you Casca?

Skull Knight

God gave them this destiny. This encounter.
What you want....may not be what she wants.
The world is as moonlight reflected on the water's surface.

The moons light will not be extinguished. So long as the moon exists in the sky, moonlight will remain on the water... ...And this is a thing that already was. What will follow now is a shadow... No more than a shadow cast high above the earth ...By light from a distant dying sun. We already subsist... Within the current of causality. We who exist beyond the physical are still merely shadows on the water Maybe you aren't a shadow on the water... But instead, a fish that breaches water's surface.

Quotes From 1997 Anime

The Black Swordsman

Guts: (after defeating the Snake Baron, bifurcating him from his waist) Didn't you say a human couldn't kill you? You're right, we are mortal and fragile. But even if we are tortured or wounded, we'll fight to survive. You should feel the pain we feel and understand. I am the messenger that will deliver you to that pain and understanding.

Snake Baron: Stop it...! Don't kill me...!

Guts: And what is it you said when those people begged you for mercy?

Band of the Hawk

(Guts agrees to serve Griffith if he can beat him in a sword fight)

Griffith: As you wish. (Draws his sword) I rather enjoy settling things by force.

Casca: Griffith!

Griffith: Leave us alone Casca.

Casca: But-

Griffith: Don't worry. I will get what I want.

Guts: (to himself) I've had enough of this bullshit. (charges) You make me SICK!

First Battle

(while dueling Griffith, Guts brings his sword down onto him, only to find Griffith standing atop Guts blade)

Griffith: (points his sword at Gut's face) I enjoy fighting you, my friend. You'd go to any length to defeat me. But now, you can't wield your sword unless I move. I wouldn't mind if you'd rather postpone this.

Guts : You know, you talk too much. Let me tell you, in battle there is only one way you should be using your mouth! (bites down on the sword)

(After a fierce duel, Griffith manages to overpower Guts)

Griffith : Now, my friend, you have a choice: Admit defeat, or I will be forced to dislocate your shoulder. Either way makes no difference to me. Now choose.

Guts: (begrudgingly) You...bastard. (Griffith cripples Guts, defeating him. The other Hawks rush to congratulate Griffith)

Corkus: (to Guts) Hey, champ, how does it feel to lose two in a row? (Griffith brushes Corkus aside, and takes Guts face in his hands)

Griffith: And so, now you belong to me, Guts.

Rickert: Do you mean it?

Griffith: From now on, he is a member of the Hawks!

(Pippin hauls Guts down to the camp, to a celebration in his honor)

Guts : Put me down NOW, you thick-headed bastard!

Pippin: I am Pippin. (plops Guts on the ground)

Guts: Don't you ever- (Pippin hands Guts a mug)

Pippin: Come, drink.

Hand of God

Judeau: Guts, I have a funny feeling you'll fit in just fine with the Band of the Hawk.

Guts: (after accidentally getting knocked into a moat twice) I want out of this damned moat!

A Wind of Swords

Casca: (criticizing Guts' reckless behavior in battle) All you care about is swinging your sword against others. You don't care at all about the lives of the men you lead; you're just a mad dog! (Guts grabs Casca's wrist)

Guts: Say it again! Say it again, if you dare!

Zodd The Immortal

Zodd: (to Guts) Well, boy, we'll forego our duel for the time being. Unfortunately, I doubt we will have another chance to fight. But I will leave you with this bit of advice - or rather, I will foretell your doom. If you think this man (Griffith) your friend, then know this: when you regard one another as brother, and this man's ambition crumbles, it is your destiny to face your death! You cannot escape your fate!

The Sword's Owner

Griffith : Will you always be left doubting me when I lay down my life for you?

Conspiracy

(Foss and Julius are both displeased by Griffith's appointment to the King's honor guard for the Fall Hunt)

Foss: In the act of hunting, a little danger must always lie. You never know what beasts may lie in the woods...

Julius: What are you trying to say to me?

Foss: Of course, not only are the beasts dangerous, but also the stray arrows that may have been launched at the beast...

Julius: A stray arrow?

Foss: And a nastily poisoned stray arrow at that, Julius...

Assassination

Guts: (after Griffith explains how he discovered Yurius was behind the attempt on his life and tells Guts to kill him) This is unlike you; You should just order me to do your bidding, without saying all that other crap.

Noble Man

Griffith: One man's dream can hold dominion over the entire world, for one who dedicates his life to the forging of a single sword. While many can pursue their dreams in solitude, other dreams are like great storms blowing hundreds, even thousands of dreams apart in their wake. Dreams breathe life into men and can cage them in suffering. Men live and die by their dreams. But long after they have been abandoned, they still smoulder deep in men's hearts. Some see nothing more than life and death. They are dead, for they have no dreams.

Griffith: In my mind, a true friend never relies on another's dream. The man who would be my friend must have his own reason for living, beyond me. And he should put his heart and soul into protecting his dream. He should never hesitate to defend it, even against me. For me to call a man my friend, he must be equal to me in all respects.

The Battle

Corkus: Lost your nerve?

Rickert: I have not!

Judeau: I dunno, you look pretty nervous to me, Corkus.

Pippin: You're shaking.

Corkus: Shut up! It's because I'm excited, that's all.

Together

(In a flashback, Casca finds Griffith mourning a dead squire)

Griffith: He so badly wanted to be a knight. I remember this boy well; whenever he looked at me, his eyes filled with wonder, as though I were a hero. Was he happy, I wonder; he died pursuing his dream, but I think it was my dream that killed him.

Casca: Why would you do that with him?!

Griffith: For the money. Maintaining an army is quite costly. Soldiers, horses, provisions and equipment - none of these are free. The Hawks will grow even larger, and so will their expenses. I must help my army grow, and that, I'm afraid, takes tremendous funds. So I found someone who is as interested in me as I am in his substantial fortune. So we have come to an agreement.

Casca: Even so, you can't! Why can't things just stay as they are? I know we could earn the money you need! We just have to keep winning!

Griffith: That would take a tremendous amount of time, and... the more battles we fight, the more people we lose.

Casca: You're thinking about that boy, aren't you, Griffith?

Griffith: I'm not. I came to this conclusion rationally. Which is the lesser risk for me? Losing hundreds of my men in tens of battles, or receiving what I need from some rich old man? Listen, Casca: I feel no responsibility to those comrades who've lost their lives in my service, because they chose to fight those battles... (grips his arms with his hands) just as you chose, just as I.

Casca: Griffith?

Griffith: Just as I have chosen this, but... if there is one thing I can do for them, for the dead, it is to win, and keep winning until I obtain my dream. (his fingers start to tear bloody gashes in his arms.) A dream they clung to and risked their lives for.

Casca: Griffith, stop it!

Griffith: I can't just step over the bones of the dead in order to realize it. My dream... my dream is already smeared with blood! I don't regret, I don't feel guilty, but I'd rather sacrifice myself than watch any more innocent children die in the name of my dream!

Casca: (running over and embracing him) Stop it... please, stop it...

Casca: Griffith has a dream he refuses to abandon, while most people have forgotten about their own dreams long ago. It is grand and it is pure, but it is a heavy weight for one man to carry, no matter how noble he is. And to make such dream a reality, one must inevitably endure terrible things. He wasn't born strong, but because of his dream, he knows that he must be. I want to be by his side during every last moment. If he dedicates himself entirely to his dream, if he has to fight to forge his dream, then I... I want to be a sword for him. His strength during battle. I want to play that important role in the fulfilment of his dream. (to Guts) And once, I believed my wish would be granted. But then, you arrived. Do you even remember, what he said that day on the hilltop when Griffith asked you to join us? The way he spoke - he had never given such high praises to anyone. I was overcome with envy that day. He barely knew you and yet he held you in such regard. I despised you. I tried to convince myself that Griffith wanted you solely for the strength you would add to the Hawks, but I see the way Griffith treats you differently. He becomes unnerved if you're in danger, and acts impulsively, as if, as if... Griffith puts his faith in you, but you, you can't appreciate the implications that that has! And I'll never forget that because of you, because of your recklessness and your selfishness, Griffith was nearly killed! I don't care if you drop dead in a field somewhere, but if you compromise Griffith's dream, if you ruin that, I will never forgive you! Do you hear me?! (breaks down) I can't forgive you for making Griffith change like he has! Why you?! Why did he choose you of all people?! Why you?

Prepared For Death

Guts: Women. You're entirely too weak, I mean just look at you; You have no endurance, you anger too easily, and you've got women troubles. Just more proof that women don't belong in a man's war.

Casca: You know nothing about women!

Guts: Of course not, I'm a man. How would I know? But what I do know is that we can't afford to be held up by your female problems, or anything else for that matter, understand? The enemy doesn't care what condition you're in, and they don't care that you're a woman. Actually, on second thought, they might be happy about that.

Guts : Do you really want to die in a place like this? Do you really want a meaningless place like this to be your grave? Is that dream in your head so dead? Every sword belongs in it's sheath. Go back to the sheath your master holds. Go back, back to Griffith.

Bonfire of Dreams

Judeau: You're messing with our only woman...You'll pay for that.

(after finding the remains of the hundred men he's slain, Casca finds Guts apparently lifeless body, and starts shaking it)

Guts: Please stop shaking me. It really isn't helping the pain.

Guts: You know, there's no need for you to worry yourself. It was for my own sake that I did all that. It wasn't for you in particular. It's just my nature. I'd rather fight with my sword than run away, that's all.

Casca: So that's the only reason? You fought a hundred men cause... It's not in your nature to run away?

Guts: Yeah, pretty much. Besides, I owed that bastard some payback. My memory of things is a bit unclear, I was lost in the swordplay. But to tell you the truth, there was something I just couldn't get out of my head. Compared to what you're trying to do, me fighting a hundred men means nothing, it has no purpose. I'm not talking about just you, I mean Griffith also. The two of you have something important that you can stake your lives on. I think it's great, I truly mean that. Compared to the strength of that purpose, whether I face a hundred men in battle or even a thousand, seems like nothing but a random act.

Casca: Guts, I...

Guts: Some view, huh?

Casca: Huh?

Guts: Gaston doesn't think he's very suited for army life. His intention is to start a tailoring business with the money he's earned when this war is over. He's very good with his hands, though he may not look it. Nikol had proposed to a woman who refused him once. Apparently she didn't want to marry a common soldier, so he declared he'd get promoted as soon as possible so that he could ask her again. That's why he tends to be so reckless and overextends himself in battle. It seems to me that everybody stakes their lives in a lost cause. Looking over them all from up here, I almost think I can see their hopes and dreams flickering in each little light.

Casca: Like a bonfire of dreams.

Guts: Well, that was beautiful. You sounded like the Princess talking.

Casca: Don't say that! But I understand; it's like each one of them has his own little light or small flame that he brings to the Band of the Hawk.

Guts: Yeah, and to ensure those weaker flames don't go out, each man casts his own into the strongest fire of them all: A raging fire, that is Griffith. But, my light isn't to be seen among them. Still, after all this time, it's seems I'm just someone who stopped to warm himself at the bonfire in passing.

Casca: Guts...

Guts: So long as I have my sword to fight with, I'm sure to survive. Year after year, I've proven it to be true. Before joining the Hawks, I've always survived, no matter the odds, no matter how hopeless a losing battle. This time was no different. In truth, I don't believe that's any way to live one's life. I've been fighting in battles for as long as I can remember. The mercenary leader who raised me taught me nothing except how to wield a sword. I've never had anything, except my sword. I don't want to die; for me that is the only reason for me I keep fighting. There is nothing to save myself for or give myself to. I fight because I know nothing else. Once I was willing, to do just that, to commit myself to fighting, and let anyone else find a reason for me.

Guts: Alright! Let's have a drink.

Hawk Raider 1: Are you sure you should drink in your condition?

Guts: Ah shut up. The alcohol will disinfect me from the inside!

Hawk Raider 2: Ha ha, that sounds like good medicine!

The Decisive Battle

Sir Laban: (On Griffith) Beyond all others. Perhaps we have fought by a hero such as the like of which comes around once in a hundred years. A commander beyond all others.

Griffith: Stake your lives on this fight! Our survival demands that we stake our lives on this fight! And to survive, is to be victorious!

The Conquerer

Guts : (In response to the enemy's shock) What are you, idiots? Your head has been cut off, your leader is dead, your castle has fallen. Don't tell me you haven't figured it out yet!

Purple Rhino Knight : We lost?

Moment of Glory

Casca: Come to think of it, I can't remember the last time I wore a skirt, let alone a fancy gown. And look at all my muscle. The truth now; I look silly, don't I?

Guts: No, you look very lovely.

Tombstone of Flames

Queen: Griffith, if you think you can burn me, the Queen, you are mistaken! You can't kill me! You're common. I won't allow it!

Griffith: Death on the battlefield comes regardless of class, royal or common. The loser must die!

Griffith: Do you think me a dreadful man? I had you take such a part in my affairs, while never getting my own hands dirty. I left the most difficult and dangerous tasks to you alone. Do you then not, resent me?

Guts: You do realize you're talking to the man who slaughtered a hundred men. I think it makes your question kind of pointless. You're just following your path, you still believe that, don't you?

Separation

Guts : You're going to be all right. You just stumbled over a stone in the road. It means nothing. Your goal lies far beyond this. Doesn't it? I'm sure you'll overcome this. You'll walk again ... soon.

Sparks

Guts : (On his sword) Is this reality? It has always been at my side, through pain I could hardly endure. Yes, this is part of me. Whenever I met death, my sword was with me as I moved past it. For all the places I have seen, and people I can never forget, I felt everything through the tip of my sword. This sword is the proof that I ever lived.

Guts : Sparks: The light born in the clash when two swords meet. They serve me well. Throughout my life...the moments, and people who have defined me...they have all been illuminated...by sparks.

Confession

(Casca leans on Guts' chest, holding his wounded hand.)

Casca: You keep getting hurt. You keep spilling your blood because of me... for me... (Casca looks up at Guts, tears streaming down her face.) You fool! You fool...

Casca: That day you left, that's when I knew. The thing I could not stop gazing at and thinking about wasn't Griffith, kneeling in the snow defeated for the first time and devastated by it. It was you, watching you walk away from us and never look back. It gripped me, I couldn't accept what I was feeling, this woman unable to blink, unable to turn away as you disappeared. The life I had led since the moment I met Griffith all at once felt betrayed. My life has been an honest one: I have only my pride, and I owe that to Griffith, but... I'm changing. There may be a place for me in this man's soul. Not because of what I may receive, but for something of worth I may have for him.

(After making love to Casca, Guts confesses he'll go his own way after restoring the Hawks to their former status.)

Guts: I'll never draw my sword for another man again, or be dangled by someone else's dream. From now on, I'll fight my own battles.

Casca: (laughs sarcastically) My, my. How honorable...

(Casca picks up some leaves and tosses them at Guts.)

Casca (angrily): You're just like Griffith! Your dream is everything to you! You only think about yourself! You don't give a damn whether or not I'm around, do you?!

Guts: Casca...

(Casca beats Guts' chest with her fist, tears in her eyes.)

Casca: JUST GO! Do whatever the hell you want and don't look back! Wind up dead somewhere, alone, with your sword!

(She starts to cry, but Guts embraces her.)

Guts: Come. You could come with me.

Casca: (She stops crying.) Huh?

Guts: I don't know what will happen. I know only one thing; that I want to keep holding you...

Casca: You fool.

Guts: ...lie with you a hundred more -- no, a thousand more times. That's how I feel.

Casca: (smiles) Stupid...

(They kiss.)

Infiltration

(While in prison, Griffith receives a vision from the God Hand)

Void: We shall meet again, in another world. We are kindred, your kinsmen...

Eve of the Feast

Corkus: I AM IN HELL! This was supposed to be our new beginning! Weren't we going to make a fresh start after we rescued Griffith? Wasn't that it? For a goddamn year now, we've been living like rats; the lucky ones, of course. The other half are dead! "But have faith," they said, "Once Griffith is back, he'll lead us to glory." Bullshit! (smashes his sword against a rock) You know, I had a feeling it would turn out like this, that something like this might happen. But even so, I did hope...

(While discussing plans for the future with Judeau, Guts is interrupted by Gaston and a large group of the Hawks raiders)

Gaston: Commander Guts! Say, you weren't thinking about leaving without saying goodbye again, now, were you? Because if that's the case, we've decided that we're coming with you, and there's nothing you can do about it. It was a unanimous decision.

Guts: All of you?

Gaston: As long as you're leading us, we know we can succeed. Please take us with you, Commander.

(The other Hawks join in, begging to come along with Guts)

Guts : (thinking) Perhaps, this is what I was looking for my whole life. I hadn't realized it until this very moment, but everything I ever wanted back is right here before me, right now. Why don't I realize what I have until it's lost to me?

The Eclipse

Old Woman: Listen here boy, this is the only path that leads to the castle. Those who really want to make it to the castle must either step over the ones who have fallen or stay here to pave the road for those who have the will to make it.

Griffith: (after receiving a vision pertaining to his childhood dream of ruling a castle) Was that...an illusion?

Ubik: No illusion; we're merely holding a mirror to your own consciousness and allowing you to witness the reflection. You yourself stacked the cobblestones to reach the castle in the sky. That was and always has been your destiny.

Conrad: Without doubt, you stepped over the thousands of dead, whose bodies made up the stones to pave your way, and they, for you, have done the same to those before!

Void: Stray from the path, and you will not be granted the black wings that will carry you to the heavens. Fate has set you free from human reason, and by providence, embrace your inner evil. Now stand, and face your future!

Gits: GRIFFITH!

Griffith: You. Out of all the thousands of comrades and tens of thousands of enemies, only one, only you, and you alone, obscured the vision of my dream. I submit.

Time of Eternity

(Guts find himself in a lake of blood, along with the mangled remains of many of the Band of the Hawk)

Guts: GAH! IS ANYONE STILL ALIVE? JUDEAU, PIPPIN, CORKUS? (Pauses) Casca...

Gaston: C-commander.

Guts: Gaston! You're alive! (rushes up to Gaston) Thank God.

Gaston: Well, I can't actually say I feel like I'm alive.

Guts: Where are the others? Is anyone else still alive?

Gaston: I don't know. All I can remember is running like hell. After a while my fatigue caught with me. I don't know what happened to the others. (starts weeping) Commander, what in God's name is happening? Is this real, or am I having nightmares? (starts violently coughing)

Guts: Gaston!

Gaston: WAAGH! (Gaston's head explodes)

Void: You are our prodigy, our newest kinsman, our wing of darkness. Arise, Femto.

Slan: How delightful. I feel it all over again. Love, hate, ultimate pleasure, ultimate pain, life, death, all here to enjoy, right before our very eyes! The true nature of man and the devil is here and now.

(last lines)

Godo: (to Guts) You leaving? (Guts walks out of the room) Don't get yourself killed.

Quotes From Golden Age Trilogy

Egg of the King

(Guts agrees to serve Griffith if he can beat him in a sword fight)

Griffith: As you wish. (Draws his sword) I rather enjoy settling things by force.

Casca: Griffith!

Griffith: Leave us alone Casca.

Casca: But-

Griffith: One way or another, I'll get what I want.

Guts: (to himself) I've had enough of this bullshit. (charges) You make me SICK!

(while dueling Griffith, Guts brings his sword down onto him, only to find Griffith standing atop Guts blade)

Griffith: (points his sword at Gut's face) I enjoy fighting you, my friend. You'd go to any length to defeat me. But now, you can't wield your sword unless I move. I wouldn't mind if you'd rather postpone this.

Guts : You know, you talk too much. Let me tell you, in battle there is only one way you should be using your mouth! (bites down on Griffith's sword)

(After a fierce duel, Griffith manages to overpower Guts)

Griffith : Now, my friend, you have a choice: Admit defeat, or I will be forced to dislocate your shoulder. Either way makes no difference to me. Now choose.

Guts: (begrudgingly) You...bastard. (Griffith cripples Guts, defeating him. The other Hawks rush to congratulate Griffith.)

Griffith(to Guts after he relocated his arm): For now on, you belong to me.

Casca: (criticizing Guts' reckless behavior in battle) You haven't changed in the past three years. You're satisfied as long as you get to just cross swords with the enemy. You don't care at all about the lives of the men you lead; you're just a mad dog! (Guts grabs Casca's wrist)

Guts: You're wrong! I do think about my comrades. I'm not...who I used to be."

Zodd (over being harmed): I've encountered two men who are able to inflict wounds on my body. A shame I have to kill them both. I'll start with this one.

[Advances on Griffith before seeing the behelit.]

Zodd: T-This is the Egg of the King! T-That cannot be! A boy like him possesses the Crimson Behelit? (His shock turns into amusement) I see! So this is their ploy...

[Punches a wall while spouting wings.]

Zodd (to Guts): Human, I'll give you some advice. Or rather, I will foretell your doom. If you consider this man your true friend, and regard him as a brother, then know this. When this man's ambition crumbles, it is your destiny to face your death. A death you can never escape!

Griffith: (Showing Guts his Behelit) She called it the Egg of the King. For once you possess this, you are destined to rule the world in exchange for your flesh and blood

Guts: (after Griffith asks him to assassinate Julius) This is unlike you; You should just order me to do your bidding, without saying all that other crap.

Griffith: Why do men like to shed blood, you asked. You are right in saying that it is one of the facets we, men, possess. However, it is but a tool to obtain what our heart desires and keep it from harm's way. I believe it to be a double-edged blade.

Charlotte: What your heart desires... Lover? Honor?

Griffith: Both are important, aren't they? Fighting and dying for love and honor is what a knight desires above all else. But there exists something even more important than that. You know of it, I believe.

Charlotte: More important?

Griffith: It is a dream formulated and fostered for your own sake. Men are entranced by their dreams regardless of birth, rank or social standing. Dreams breathe life into men and can cage them in suffering. Men live and die by their dreams but long after they're abandoned, they still smolder deep in men's hearts. A life spent as a martyr...to the God named "Dream". I find it abhorrent to simply live my life for no reason other than I was born into it.

Griffith: They are...excellent soldiers. Together we have faced death so many times. They are loyal to me, willing to follow me into the jaws of death for my dream. But that does not make them my friends. To me, a friend is someone who would never depend on another's dream. Someone who wouldn't be compelled by anyone, but would determine and pursue his own reason to live...Someone who would put his heart and soul to protect it, even if it mean from myself. For me to call a man my friend, he must be equal to me in all respects.

The Battle of Doldrey

Adon: As for the girl...I'm sure my men know what to do with her.

Guts: Are you sure? She might bite something off. (get whacked by Casca)

Guts: (to Casca) Do you really want to die in a place like this? Do you really want a meaningless place like this to be your grave? Is that dream in your head so dead? Every sword belongs in it's sheath. Go back to the sheath your master holds. Go back, back to Griffith.

Guts: (In response to the enemy's shock) What are you, idiots? Your head has been cut off, your leader is dead, your castle has fallen. Don't tell me you haven't figured it out yet!

Casca: Come to think of it, I can't remember the last time I wore a dress. My body And look at all my muscle. The truth now; I look silly, don't I?

Guts: No, you look very lovely.

The Advent

(While in prison, Griffith receives a vision from the God Hand)

Void: We shall meet again, at the appointed time and place. We are kindred, your kinsmen, oh blessed one...

Silat: The outcome has been decided. Drop your weapon and order your men to surrender or I'll take your head on the count to three. One... Two... Three!

Guts (blocking Silat's deathblow): Four. Don't let that street performer get the better of you. On your feet.

Casca: Guts!

Casca: Draw your weapon.

Guts: Wait a minute! (Casca swings her sword at him) Are you trying to kill me? Casca!

Casca: I said draw your sword!

Casca(while forcing Guts to fight her): It's all your fault! Griffith and the Band of the Hawk, it all went to hell because of you!

Guts: Because of me? How so?

Casca: How stupid are you? Damn you! You are the one Griffith wanted! It was always you! You were the only one!

Guts: Who the hell are you?

Skull Knight: Pay heed, struggling one. Soon, a storm of death and madness that will rage around you that no mortal can atone for. But, pay heed struggling one. Struggle, squirm and fight. That is the only sword with which you can hold death at bay. Ne'er forget this.

Guts: Hey! What do you mean? Wait!

Charlotte: A thousand years ago, the land was embroiled in war and turmoil. One rose to put an end to the chaos: Supreme King Gaiseric. In his lifetime, he forged a vast empire that spanned the entire continent. His lineage remains a mystery, but his skill at arms was famed, and they say he always wore a skull mask to battle.

Judeau I've heard stories of the legendary Skull King. But he was mad with power, so Five Angels were sent to deal with him. This led to the elimination of his army and the empire he'd built.

Casca: Wasn't it four?

Guts: Casca! The Keys!

[Guts and Judeau see the horrific scars on Griffith's face.]

Guts: T-This can't be... T-This cannot be Griffith...

[The door is locked]

Torturer: You're trapped in here. You're locked in.

Guts: Was it you who did this to Griffith?

Torturer: I never got to work on someone so pretty before. He weathered torture so well. First, I cut his tendons so he wouldn't run away. Then, when he wasn't sleeping or eating, I tore off his skin and fingernails. I branded him with glowing iron and bathed him in boiling water. We've been as close as a married couple for the past year. Look at what I have for my collection! (He shows off Griffith's tongue.) It's my charm. His tongue, see?

[Guts breaks the door and runs the torturer through in the shoulder, suspending him above the pit.)

Guts: This is where you die. You won't be going to Heaven double-tongued. (He cuts the torturer's tongue out.) Your breath is rancid. You'll fit well in Hell.

Torturer: Please...! Don't do this...!

Guts: I can't hear you. Speak properly.

(Guts drops the torturer, causing him to fall to his death.)

Void: I bid thee welcome to this distant setting, this abstract time. Ye lambs of the un-godly God-born of man, enjoy this sacred nocturnal festival to the fullest. Thee, honorable child, consecrated by the laws of Causality, the Hawk. Thou art the Chosen One. At this time, at this place. The one chosen by the hand of the Great God. We art kinsmen, O blessed King of Longing.

Void: What is it you fear? We, who are infinitely more powerful than you? Or perhaps it is the future, the path which you were destined to follow.

Ubik: Before we delve into your future, let us return once to the foundation of your past. Then we shall know what exactly it is you are.

Old Woman: What are you shouting about?

Young Griffith: All these people are dead!

Old Woman: Weren't you the one who killed them? None of them would have died had you not claimed to be on your way to the castle.

Young Griffith: But I didn't force anybody...

Old Woman: Silence! You should have known from the start. You should have known what kind of place you'd come to.

Young Griffith: Known?

Old Woman: Listen here boy, the only path that leads to the castle is by paving a road of corpses. Stop here and you'll end up a corpse yourself.

Young Griffith: I... I'm...

Old Woman: You're such an idiot. Now you regret what you once thought was a good idea. Just looking at the castle from the alleyway couldn't satisfy you, could it?

Griffith (thinking): I knew the consequences. But... I cannot apologize. I will not. If I should apologize or feel regret, then everything would have been for naught. I will never reach the castle if I do.

Griffith (coming to from his vision): Was that... an illusion?

Ubik: No, this isn't an illusion. We merely held up a mirror to your own consciousness.

Void: You have longed for the castle in the heavens, paving your way there by piling up corpses. That is you.

Void: Pile them up. Take all you have left. All you need to do is chant the phrase... "I sacrifice." And you shall be granted raven-black wings upon which you shall soar the heavens.

(Suddenly, Guts arrives.)

Guts: Griffith! (pants) Griffith.

Griffith (while looking towards Guts): Yes... amongst the thousands of comrades... and the tens of thousands of enemies... there was only one man... you were the only one... who ever made me forget my dream.

(A long pause...)

Griffith: ...I sacrifice.

(The hand-like altar begins to close its fingers around Griffith. Griffith smiles.)

Guts: Griffith!

(Griffith is encased in the hand. Guts frantically starts to try and pry the gigantic fingers open, calling Griffith's name.)

Void: The threads of Causality have now been bounded. The promised time has come.

(Void casts the branding spell, marking everyone in the Band of the Hawk with Brands of Sacrifice. The Apostles transform and begin to attack the Band, overwhelming and slaughtering them.)

Void: The lives of those who bear the brand, from the last drop of blood to the last moment of your agonizing death, will feed life to the new child of darkness.

Nosferatu Zodd: You finally showed yourself. You've been our enemy for millennia. I was never quite sure you would use this chance.

Skull Knight: I see you have been appointed gatekeeper, Immortal.

Nosferatu Zodd: I take no interest in their mindless banter, "old friend."

Griffith (sinking deeper into the Astral Realm while his men are slaughtered): Where am I? Their deaths are flowing through me. I feel nothing. My memories are slowly overflowing. Why...? Why do men... I see... So that's why...

[Guts is surrounded by thousands of Apostles, several of them holding the mangled remains of the members of the Band of the Hawk.]

Guts: You bastards...! ...DAMN YOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!

[At the same moment...]

Ubik: The birth!

Slan: The Fifth Blessed King.

Conrad: A new demon king!

Void: Our new kinsman, to wear the mantle of evil. The Wings of Darkness... Femto.

[Griffith, transcended into a Godhand, hatches from a Behelit-shaped egg, rising to his feet with a scream of mixed fury and agony]

Guts: ...huh?

[Griffith, reborn as Femto, spreads his wings and descends into the crowd of Apostles to meet Guts. He lands gracefully, several feet from Guts. Guts stands, shocked.]

Guts: ... Griffith, you...

[Femto outstretches his hand; a tentacle holding Casca lowers her down to him. Guts gasps at the sight of his lover in this state. Femto brings the outstretched hand to Casca's breast, groping it. He then places his other hand in between Casca's legs, rubbing her nether-region.]

Casca: (...gasp!)

[Femto continues, staring at Guts all the while. More tentacles from the Apostle restraining her begin to pull her legs apart.]

Guts: ...what the hell are you doing...?

Casca: (gasping and writhing)

Guts: STOP! What the hell are you doing?!

[An Apostle -- Borkoff -- lunges forward and bites on his arm, holding him in place. Femto, meanwhile, has the tentacles of the Apostle restraining Casca to turn her to him. She opens her eyes to see Femto standing over her.]

Casca (recognizing him): ...Griffith?

[Femto forcibly kisses her, making her eyes widen in horror as she realizes what Femto is about to do to her. As Guts watches with seething hatred, Femto moves to penetrate Casca by force and begins to rape her. Guts snaps and struggles against Borkoff's jaws clamping down on his arm. Femto looks up from Casca, staring at him with contempt as he forces Casca against her will. Guts turns back to Borkoff with his sword and stabs at the monster's teeth, hoping to get free, but his sword breaks. In a split-second decision, he resorts to chiseling his arm half-off, then pulling until his arm disconnects, freeing him. Yelling furiously, Guts charges at Femto, stabbing towards the Godhand's eye with his broken sword. Femto stops him mid-charge, holding him in place with telekinesis.]

Ubik: How foolish... what can a mere human do against a being who has transcended the mortal coil?

[Ubik suddenly gasps as Guts begins to break free of the grip, slowly inching his sword towards Femto's right eye. Femto responds by hurling Guts in the air, making him land in the same spot he lost his arm. Femto has Casca turned around so he can continue violating her. Guts gets back up, but several more Apostles dogpile him, halting his final attempt to save her. Femto continues to rape Casca.]

Casca: D... Don't look at me...

Slan: How delightful. It might move me to tears. Love, hate, pain, pleasure, life, death. All of it here to enjoy, right before our very eyes!

Ubik: This is to be human. This is to be evil.

[Guts watches tearfully as Femto forces another kiss on Casca as he rapes her. As he does this, one of the Apostles restraining Guts stabs into his right eye with its claw, the last picture in his right eye being of Femto sticking his tongue down Casca's throat. Suddenly, Femto finishes, letting the exhausted and humiliated Casca topple sideways onto the ground. Guts lifts his head and wails in agony and despair.]

(The Skull Knight has just escaped with the unconscious Guts and Casca.)

Ubik: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Fascinating! How unforeseen!

Slan: Hmm... it's impossible to anticipate everything. We're not gods. How are we to know what will occur? But tell us, Void... was this also "fated" to happen?

Slan: Regardless, this is the dawn of a new age. The fifth angel has been born.

Void: An age of darkness will dawn. The vastness of the dark will drive away the light. Men will call it thus: The Dark Age.

Guts: Where are all of you going? Judeau! Hey, stop! Don't go! Corkus! Pippin! Stop! Come back! DON'T GO!

Rickert: Guts! You finally woke up.

Guts: Rickert...?

Rickert: Thank goodness! I'd almost given you up. You haven't moved at all in four days.

Guts: Where are we?

Rickert: Guts, what happened in the eye of the storm?

Guts: Storm?

Rickert: Hey, what happened to freeing Griffith? How did you get those wounds? Where is everyone? Hey, what happened?!

Guts: Casca! Where's Casca?!

Rickert: C-Casca...Well...

Guts: Casca! It's me. Guts!

Casca: No!

Guts: Hey, stop joking around! It's over, Casca! We made it out alive!

[Casca runs over to Erica.]

Guts: Casca?

Erica: There, there. You shouldn't scare her.

Rickert: She doesn't remember. She doesn't remember you or me. She's been like this ever since she woke up.

[Guts finds himself attacked by ghosts that proceed to enter his body, but he manages to force them out.]

Skull Knight: Steel yourself Struggler, or they shall consume your flesh.

[The Skull Knight has arrived.]

Skull Knight: The Brand of Sacrifice attracts creatures of darkness, bound to consume your body to the last drop of blood. That is the fate of those branded, Struggler.

[Guts runs up to the Skull Knight and borrows his sword.]

Guts: In short, this is another battle. It is no different from any other battle. No different!

Griffith's voice: Who is that? Who is crying? Tears? I shed them... they are my last.

Quotes From 2016 Anime

The Dragonslayer

DragonSlayer: CLANG!

The Holy Iron Chain Knights

Night of Miracles

Farnese: Somehow, as he sat beneath the brightening sky, panting like a beast, splattered with the blood of his prey, the image touched me. It was both solemn and beautiful, almost like a painting adorning a basilica. I merely sought to escape, shivering in fear. Not once could I call upon my Lord. I avow myself a woman of God, but not even the name I've invoked a countless thousand times...I...In the shade of the morning sky, I was tiny, wretched, and powerless.

Epihany

Tower of Convinction

A Nighttime Feast: Burning at the Stake

The Black Witch

Guts : (while talking to the Holy See Chain Knight Commander) You call this a holy land? What a bad joke. It's more like a dump.

Reunion in the Den of Evil

Blood Flow of the Dead

Hell's Angels

Shadows of Ideas

Mozgus: Can you not hear them?! Every person congregated in this place now desires, as one heart, salvation. They are eagerly awaiting the time of God's victory. Do you mean you care not that tens of thousands of believers shall lose their lives in exchange for one evil witch?

Guts: Don't make me laugh. All they do is pray. Every last one of them, when the fire's under their own ass, all any of them do is bow down. Tens of thousands of people shouldn't cling to just one woman!

Guts: (to Mozgus): If you see God, you tell him this...LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE!!!

Those Who Clang, Those Who Struggle

Nina: I'm sorry, Luca, to worry you to the very end. I'm going with Joachim. I...love you, all of you. But...if I stayed with you, I'm sure someday I would hate you again, and hate myself. A person hurts someone just because they're strong, and they hate someone just because they're weak. I know that well enough. That's why I think I'll go with this man who is burdened with the same weakness and sins as I. Because if I'm with him, I have a good feeling...we can both become just a little kinder and stronger. I want to be someone who can trust others without clinging to them. I want to live, keep on living, and see you again without clinging or fearing, once I can smile with you with sincerity.

The Rent World

Griffith: I came here to know for certain whether anything will shake my heart. While I stand before you in this new body of flesh...it seems...I am...free.

Guts: You mean after what you did, after all those you betrayed, you don't feel anything!?

Griffith: I'll not betray my dream. That is all. I told you once, I will get my own kingdom. Nothing has changed.

Guts: You say nothing's changed...! After everything you did, you say nothing's changed!?

Griffith: You should have known. This is the man I am. You, of all people.

Guts (to Casca): I won't leave you behind. I won't desert you anymore. This time...I won't lose you."

Winter Journey

Guts: I was prepared. I knew a journey wouldn't be easy. It's not just the rigors of travel. It goes far beyond a personal war...Fighting to protect someone...and it's not just about completely protecting Casca, because my death will result in her death. I'm used to fighting to survive. But what grows worse daily is the pressure not to die. Have I ever before wielded a sword so heavy?

External links

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Berserk (anime)