Super-sized Dragon Slayer in a striking Berserk cosplay.
Shared on Reddit, the outfit recreates the Black Swordsman’s armor and prosthetic arm. While multiple knives and weapons can be spotted throughout the image, a giant version of Guts’ deadly sword dominates the photo. Stand for easy miniaturization of tall cosplayers.
The ongoing Berserk manga that first appeared in the now-defunct Monthly Animal House magazine before moving to Hakusensha’s Young Anime in 1992, where it remains to this day. After author Kentaro Miura unexpectedly passed away in 2021, mangaka Kouji Mori has continued to work on the series with the help of artists at Studio Gaga. The story follows Guts as he travels through the dark fantasy world, slaying monsters and seeking revenge against his old friend and commander, Griffith.
Berserk’s Role as a Cultural Platform
Berserk serves as an important cornerstone of the fantasy genre and of the entire pop culture scene. Not only has it inspired many other popular manga series such as Hajime Isayama’s Attack on Titan and Makoto Yukimura’s Vinland Saga, but it has also had a notable impact on Western entertainment media. For example, Castlevania host Adi Shankar and assistant director Adam Deats point to Miura’s masterpiece as an influence on the original Netflix animated series.
Therefore, it is not surprising that many fans and readers also create their own content for the series. Other than the Guts and Dragonslayer cosplay, a recent example includes an interwoven fan art piece that transports the colorful world of Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away to the bleak world of Berserk. The illustration shows Chihiro facing a more terrifying version of Faceless, with Yubaba’s bathhouse looming in the background. The artist, who goes by the Reddit username BadFengShui, explained that they were inspired after watching the stage play of the Studio Ghibli classic while also rereading Berserk. “Spirited Away doesn’t really get too deep into the horror side, but boy can it be,” they said in the post’s comments section.
Likewise, a fan of both Berserk and The Legend of Zelda used one of the novel gameplay mechanics from Tears of the Kingdom to reimagine the manga’s infamous Eclipse, creating a simultaneously creepy and hilarious examples of fan-mixed content. Another anime fan was inspired by Vincent van Gogh’s famous Starry Night painting. The final product shows a heavily bandaged Guts gazing out at the colorful night sky with the Dragon Slayer by his side.
Dark Horse Comics distributes Berserk comics in North America.
Source: Reddit