Evil Genius

Turd Ferguson wrote: Also, about the "Til next time!" everyone keeps mentioning. The last time we got one of those was September of 2006, and we didn't get the next release until January. It was a long, hard four months. So be prepared to hunker down and tough out a long wait. Might not be a bad time to re-read from the beggining, maybe even a few times.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo, I would live happier if I havent read this. Ah, this is fucking sad.

Great chapter, great release, thanks EG. (Even though I'm way late.)

Something Monumentally Ominous does come... another till next time date.

Thanks for the release EG.

Istvan wrote:

Interesting how the Emperor's "man-made behelit" resembles nothing so much as a smaller version of the Idea of Evil's fleshy core.

I think that might actually be a better analogy, frankly. A behelit is designed to bring a potential Apostle into the Abyss at the appropriate time, so that they can make the sacrifice. It's basically a tool of causality. From what we've seen it is the ceremony and the intervention of the Idea of Evil that does the actual "upgrade" into Apostle, and that upgrade is what the giant flesh mound seems to be supposed to duplicate. Basically just a device to pour lots and lots of "evil energy" into something in order to shape it into a powerful monster.

I was thinking the same thing. Also, this "reincarnator" doesn't seem to extract that evil energy from the abyss, like the fleshy core of the idea of evil did. Instead, it sucks the energy of living beings from the physical realm. At least thats the impression I had after seeing how the mist absorbed the life of everything it came in contact before entering the reincarnator where the Emperor was forcing his second "rebirth".

Rolos wrote:

Istvan wrote:

Interesting how the Emperor's "man-made behelit" resembles nothing so much as a smaller version of the Idea of Evil's fleshy core.

I think that might actually be a better analogy, frankly. A behelit is designed to bring a potential Apostle into the Abyss at the appropriate time, so that they can make the sacrifice. It's basically a tool of causality. From what we've seen it is the ceremony and the intervention of the Idea of Evil that does the actual "upgrade" into Apostle, and that upgrade is what the giant flesh mound seems to be supposed to duplicate. Basically just a device to pour lots and lots of "evil energy" into something in order to shape it into a powerful monster.

I was thinking the same thing. Also, this "reincarnator" doesn't seem to extract that evil energy from the abyss, like the fleshy core of the idea of evil did. Instead, it sucks the energy of living beings from the physical realm. At least thats the impression I had after seeing how the mist absorbed the life of everything it came in contact before entering the reincarnator where the Emperor was forcing his second "rebirth".

Should be interesting, this is very similar to what the count was attempting to do in volume 3 with a 2nd rebirth. I just wonder how much of an upgrade this is really going to be. I hope it is significant enough that he will actually pose some sort of resistance towards Griffith (or at least until Griffith decides to get serious).

not likely to cause grifith much concern... Remember the dreams predicted all of this.. even the giant new form of the Kushan emperor... So its not like this hasn't been forseen... by Grifith himself even? Is he controlling the dreams or is it Idea directly?

Lord Rae wrote:not likely to cause grifith much concern... Remember the dreams predicted all of this.. even the giant new form of the Kushan emperor... So its not like this hasn't been forseen... by Grifith himself even? Is he controlling the dreams or is it Idea directly?

There's no way to know for sure, but I suspect that Griffith is the one controlling the dreams, as one of his powers. If he's not, he certainly knows what the dreams are going to be, as shown when he sent Mule and the psychic girl (I forget her name) off to recruit the Pope, and knew they would be successful.

Thanks for the translation.
Looks like the spotlight is on the emperor this time. Desperate measure for a desperate man. Impressive power so far. ;]

It's bizarre how the story is unfolding, with two separate arcs, because against the Kushans Griffith seems like a good guy. When, really all he is is another form of evil that they people are accepting because he saved them and is marrying their queen. By that logic I guess Guts is evil too, killing whoever gets in his way, but he's been really careful not to kill anyone who wasn't an apostle (or in the case of the bug kids warped by an apostle). When was the last time Guts killed a human?

The Herald wrote:It's bizarre how the story is unfolding, with two separate arcs, because against the Kushans Griffith seems like a good guy. When, really all he is is another form of evil that they people are accepting because he saved them and is marrying their queen. By that logic I guess Guts is evil too, killing whoever gets in his way, but he's been really careful not to kill anyone who wasn't an apostle (or in the case of the bug kids warped by an apostle). When was the last time Guts killed a human?

Probably the last time a human attacked him. The Kushans as he escaped from the second eclipse, maybe? And before them the Chain Knights, and more Kushans, and servents/warriors of the Snake and Slug Apostles, and so on. Guts is perfectly willing to kill humans, when they attack him. But I agree that he doesn't kill normal humans unless they attack him, and often works hard to save normal people's lives.

Well yeah Guts has slain countless "normal" humans, both before and after the eclipse. But the important things are, a) he almost always does so out of self defense and b) besides his assassination mission where he killed that Count and his kid, I can't remember Guts ever killing innocent bystanders. Warriors and Soldiers know well that they might die in war or a personal battle. And the will do so when fighting Guts. But it's only Apostles and Crapshit like Griffith and those Demon Hound Dog Knights that kill innocents like a family that doesn't have to do with anything.

Aetherfukz wrote: But it's only Apostles and Crapshit like Griffith and those Demon Hound Dog Knights that kill innocents like a family that doesn't have to do with anything.

Those Demon Hound Dog Knights were the coolest enemies in the series, don't be dissing them by putting them in the same boat as Griffith.



Coolest shit ever, torso's impaled on spears.

You are a very disturbed man!

How can anyone think that scene was "cool"?

Aetherfukz wrote:You are a very disturbed man!

How can anyone think that scene was "cool"?

For once we're in agreement. That scene was fucked.

Yeah, I meant Guts only killed in self defense. And, if you think about it, because Guts was Griffith's assassin, technically it was Griffith who was killing the Count Yurius. Though, it was Guts' mistake that he killed the kid, but that was an important plot element that was supposed to twist Guts' , well, guts and make him more sensitive to people. Essentially after that is when he and Caska start, well, I wouldn't call it flirting, but you know ... noticing each other? Anyways, moments like that are what force Guts to grow up emotionally and are essentially why he looks 50 at age 22 ish. That and not sleeping for about two years before and after he met Puck, and before he met Isidro and the other guys.

Anyways, Griffith was RESPONSIBLE for two eclipses, so I still think that's worse than the Dog Knights. Though, that pic does make me want to lose my lunch, so to speak.

The thing what makes that particular pictured scene so gut-wrenching, at least for me, is the following:

Berserk is a very violent manga. Cut-off limbs and torsos everywhere. Tortured people happen pretty much often too, depending on the arc. The scene when we first see Mozgus' torture chamber is pretty wicked, too with all that's going on in there. But we as a reader haven't bonded with those people in there at that moment. It was the first time we saw them.

The scene with the Dog Knights is completely different. A few pages earlier we saw the Hawks visiting a happy farmer family, which was honored to do their share in helping the Hawks leader escape. The girl in particular, was kinda shy and one could see, enchanted (for the lack of a better word, I mean she was flirting with him, probably having a crush on him just as a little girl has on a popstar) by him. She even shyly gave him some flowers which he happily accepted.

Flip a few pages and that sweet shy little girl is getting raped viciously by Wyrd, and the next page we see her torso stuck on top of a lance.

That was what made the scene one of the worst (to endure) in the whole Berserk manga.

FightClub wrote:

Aetherfukz wrote: But it's only Apostles and Crapshit like Griffith and those Demon Hound Dog Knights that kill innocents like a family that doesn't have to do with anything.

Those Demon Hound Dog Knights were the coolest enemies in the series, don't be dissing them by putting them in the same boat as Griffith.



Coolest shit ever, torso's impaled on spears.

That scene was cool. I miss stuff like that. The only disturbing thing we can see now is the mist x(.

Arcandus wrote:

FightClub wrote:

Aetherfukz wrote: But it's only Apostles and Crapshit like Griffith and those Demon Hound Dog Knights that kill innocents like a family that doesn't have to do with anything.

Those Demon Hound Dog Knights were the coolest enemies in the series, don't be dissing them by putting them in the same boat as Griffith.



Coolest shit ever, torso's impaled on spears.

That scene was cool. I miss stuff like that. The only disturbing thing we can see now is the mist x(.

Depends how you define "disturbing", in my opinion. True, it's been awhile since something of quite that level, probably at least since Griffith was reborn. On the other hand, there were plenty of gruesome scenes of dismemberment and slaughter in the escape to the ship. So I wouldn't say that there's been no disturbing thing recently, frankly there have been (and will doubtless continue to be) lots.

Yeah, but we haven't seen an enemy like Wyrd (or Wyld) for a while.

What was special about Wyld? The guy was a sadistic son of a bitch!! I remember when Gutts was still hunting down the apostles one by one.

Man, those were good enemies. The enemies we are seeing now are shit compared to them. Granted, they are way more powerful, but Where is the sadism, the sonofabitchness?

Good ol enemies used to laugh while they were slaughtering people......nowadays all we see is an occasional "it was necesary" , or stuff like that.
I cant hate Locus, because he is fucking boring!! He doesnt do thing like this:



I know Griffith is a greedy, cold-hearted bastard who is playing with the minds of an entire country, while feeding his own personal hell with the souls of every single warrior that falls while fighting for him...........but personally, I would like to see more Wyld-like apostles in Griffith s army.

I know Griffith is a greedy, cold-hearted bastard who is playing with the minds of an entire country, while feeding his own personal hell with the souls of every single warrior that falls while fighting for him...........but personally, I would like to see more Wyld-like apostles in Griffith s army.

From what we've seen a lot of them probably are Wyld-like (remember when psychic girl went wandering among them, and they came close to eating her?). It's just that they don't generally show it because Griffith keeps such tight control over them, and they want to follow and obey their "god."

Griffith has to maintain a good image, so he can't let monsters like Wyald run wild. He does have several monsters that seem as brutal as Wyald, but he's keeping a tight leash on all of them.

Then there are those legendary like apostles like Grunbeld and the dude with the bow with the eye on it. I just know I've heard Grunbeld somewhere else before ... anyways could those guys be sadistic? Though, I think that the new band of the hawk is like a mirror to Gut's troupe. Shierke to the psycic girl, Serpico to the arrow guy, and Guts to Grunbeld, in one form or another. Either way I can't wait to see the kid Mule get screwed.

Locus did say things were going to get bad soon. Probably after the fight with Ganishka and marriage, Griffith will let the raping and etc. go on.

Because Locus is a german (loan-)word for toilette, that knighs will probably do some shitty things!

Ba-dum-dum-pshh!

Depends how you define "disturbing", in my opinion. True, it's been awhile since something of quite that level, probably at least since Griffith was reborn. On the other hand, there were plenty of gruesome scenes of dismemberment and slaughter in the escape to the ship. So I wouldn't say that there's been no disturbing thing recently, frankly there have been (and will doubtless continue to be) lots.

Agreed, you know what I miss is some Epic battles, like the Battles Guts had with Zodd, it was really cool when Guts fought side by side with Zodd against the Emperor, when Guts said Fuck You to the emperor, but now is remembering me of Dragonball, that had something like 5 chapters just preparing for the fight, just to make you wait for it huahuaauhauh. But the incomming battle will be cool, ohhh it will