Berserk owns a rich and varied cast of characters, each with a very precise role and characterization.This is a more detailed description of them.BEWARE THE SPOILERS!! Some will be given below.This page is for the main characters. For The Band of the Hawk, check out Berserk Band Of The Hawk For the Apostles, the Godhand and other antagonists in this series, check out Berserk Antagonists For everyone else, go to Berserk Other
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Guts
Voiced by: Nobutoshi Canna (adult) and Orine Fukushima (child)(Japanese, TV series), Hiroaki Iwanaga (Japanese, movies), Marc Diraison (English, TV series), Michael Bell (Sword of the Berserk English)
"When you meet your God, tell Him to LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE."
"Humans are weak. But we want to live. Even if we're wounded or tortured, we feel the pain."
Also called the Black Swordsman, the main protagonist is a naturally badassAnti-Hero with a round ton of Dark and Troubled Past. Born from a deceased mother not Death by Childbirth, she was already dead, he was raised amongst mercenaries by an abusive foster father and was later the victim of rape by one of his adoptive father's men. Guts is also a survivor of the demonic sabbath known as the Eclipse, during which he lost his right eye and part of his left arm. His injuries are not the only marks he bears from this event; Guts is also marked with the Brand of Sacrifice, a supernatural emblem that draws the attention of demons and the restless dead. Both groups are eager to finish the job left undone when Guts survived the EclipseHe is introduced as a wanderer with a grudge, bent on hunting down and slaying the beings known as Apostles with a gigantic sword known as the Dragon Slayer. Said beings are responsible, along with the Godhand, for the trauma he suffered in the Eclipse. Additionally, Guts later gets his hands on the Berserker Armor which makes him immune to physical pain, yet overexerts and further injures his body at the same time.Although he claims to be a complete asshole, Guts is actually a Jerk with a Heart of Gold who simply acts aloof and unreasonable towards anyone he meets, including his True Companions. He does truly care for his companions, but since the Brand attracts astral demons, and his Hell HoundSuperpowered Evil Side, the Beast, tends to make him go berserk and thus dangerous even to his companions, he prefers to keep them at a respectful distance.Guts's fate is tied to Griffith, his former best friend, and Casca, his love interest and fellow bearer of the Brand of Sacrifice. His relationships with both are currently strained - Guts wants to kill Griffith because of that whole "brutal treachery" thing, and Guts being slowly overtaken by rage/revenge has led to his attempted rape of Casca. Guts' entire struggle of fighting monsters and his fate, as well as his internal struggle between choosing to hunt the man he hates and choosing to protect the woman he loves can only be described as "heroic."
Achilles Heel: An emotional one. His childhood rape ordeal has been shown to be the one time that Guts showed a truly emotionally vulnerable side to his personality. Luckily, he had Casca to help heal his mental wounds, and he was genuinely getting better... until this side to his past was cruelly exploited during the Eclipse.
Allergic To Evil: Guts's accursed brand will bleed or hurt whenever an Apostle is nearby. It only gets worse if a Godhand is near, and may even kill him. Casca shares the same reaction with her own brand.
All Men Are Perverts: Notably averted. Out of all the male characters in the series, he is among the very few for whom sex is only a tertiary motivation at best, and he remains staunchly faithful to his Love Interest. He also scolds himself when he briefly thinks about having his way with Casca while she laid unconscious during one of their early missions.
It's worth noting that the one time we've seen Guts having any sort of sexual contact with someone besides Casca (or his childhood rapist) is actually with the same Female Apostle that eats Corkus, right before he blows her head off. Considering who it was, it could be he simply wanted to give her an Ironic Death.
This did happen at the very beggining of the first chapter, so Early Installment Weirdness is another possible explanation.
Animal Motifs: Canids. The rabid dog, according to Casca, back when they would bicker in their younger years; a Hell Hound, according to the form of his Enemy Within; and the wolf, for his wolfish looks and personality as well as his wolf-like armor.
Anime Hair: Averted. Guts has the spikiest hair in the series, but when it gets wet, it noticeably droops down until it's dry again (which doesn't happen in the next panel).
Barbarian Hero: Guts might not be a straight historic example of a barbarian, but he sure as hell fights like one. He has the big, crude sword, muscled, can defeat magical enemies and monsters with zero magic, and is a Lightning Bruiser. Also insinuated by Guts himself that although he is not the most morally upstanding guy, he had more standards than the other mercenary crews that he hung around, making him that white sheep in a bad barbarian band. To end, Word Of God said that part of Guts' character was based off of Rutger Hauger's character in the movie Flesh And Blood.
Byronic Hero: Is pretty much the best example of this sub-type in anime. Morally neutral? Check. Largely concerned with personal interests? Yes, indeed. Disrespect of common authority? Oh, yeah. Defined by conflict, inner and outer? Definitely. Introspective loner? Affirmative. Guilty of horrible crimes? Yyyyep. Intelligent? He may not be educated, but he is NOT stupid. An exile? From more than one place. Cynical and self destructive? Uh-huh. Not such a good idea to hang around him? Oh, boy...
Artificial Limbs: Guts, loses his left Hand to a monster during the hellish ordeal where his friends in the Band of the Hawk are sacrificed so that their band's former leader, Griffith, can become one of the evil Godhand. His Hand is replaced by a Steam Punk prosthetic which triples as a gunpowder cannon and a repeating crossbow.
Badass Baritone: Damn - even his voice is badass! And it was shown (or rather, heard) in the anime that Guts went through some major puberty at around age 14 or 15 since he has a deep voice then. It just adds to teh sexiness.
Badass Cape: For all purposes. Dramatic effect, blanket, protecting Casca from the cold, deflecting arrows (yes)...
Badass Creed: His sword's description counts, as it's oft-repeated by people who can't believe he can actually USE the damn thing. "A giant hunk of raw iron" indeed...
Badass in Distress: Happens surprisingly often over the course of the series. Sometimes even the ultimate badass gets in a position he just can't escape from on his own. It's usually Puck who needs to come to the rescue with his healing dust, even a couple of times before they actually meet.
Badass Normal: Points added when said badassery is natural!
Handicapped Badass: Missing lower arm and an eye, but Goddamn it if it has done anything to his basassery. If anything, it's enhanced it.
Blind Weaponmaster: Subverted. He lost only one of his eyes, but now Guts must face having no right visual field AND the matter of depth perception... But he seems to have taken care of that through hearing. Nice compensation.
Heartbroken Badass: Casca's unfortunate condition has completely deprived Guts from the affection he wants from her so bad. And ever since the Beast almost got him to rape her, she just no longer wants him which frustrates Guts even more. Still, this might change if the quest to Elfhelm is successful.
Because You Were Nice to Me: It isn't really as hard as you would imagine to get on his good side. All you have to do is treat him like a normal human being. It doesn't happen very often.
Berserker Tears/Manly Tears: Twice. Once upon seeing what Griffith has been turned into upon his imprisonment. The other one when being unable to save Casca from her demon rape at Femto's hands.
BFS: The Dragon Slayer◊, Guts's primary weapon against the Apostles and the Godhand, is more of a metal slab than a true sword and he can swing it like a mere knife
Black Bug Room This is where every single bad emotion and memory is stored in Guts' mind. Puck and Schierke ventured into his inner mind only to be bombarded with horrific images of the Eclipse. After going there, they both understand why Guts is so pissed off. The beast also hangs out in the same district.
Black Knight: Played with. He's the Black Swordsman and dons an all-black armor post-Eclipse but he's The Hero and has a bone to pick with a knight who wears all-white, Griffith.
Bridal Carry: Despite having had many opportunities to do this to the many women who harbor feelings for him, only one of them got this treatment from Guts. Take a wild guess who...
Broken Bird: Textbook case during the Golden Age Arc — right down to lashing out physically during his breakdown — and Only. Male. Example. Ever. Does not make him any less badass.
But Now I Must Go: Subverted. As noted below, Guts isn't about saving people, he has his own goals and might help along the way if it serves his agenda. But he never settles anywhere and goes from town to town, seeking to kill all the Apostles who cross his path, indirectly liberating the city or people around from servitude.
Chick Magnet: After the Golden Age arc he seems to develop a talent for getting younger girls to fall for him. Not that he's even trying.
Actually, he gets a young admirer right after the first apostle fight. Too bad she died.
The Comically Serious: Guts usually remains straight-faced and serious, even while putting up with the humorous antics of his companions.
Covered with Scars: With the amount of punishment that Guts regularly takes at the hands of his demonic enemies, he's accumulated quite a few scars over his career. Including a missing eye and forearm.
However, those are the only permanent injuries that have any noticeable effect on him, as all the broken bones he must have received ( before he got the Berserker Armour to hold his body together) healed quickly and don't impede his physical abilities in the slightest.
He gains a shitload of new scars after he start fighting wearing the Berserker Armor.
Crusading Widower: Guts fits this role since the Hawks were the closest thing to a family he ever had and he and Casca were pretty much life partners.
Death Seeker: Arguable. Guts likes to talk about how much he wants his Revenge on Griffith and the Godhand, but he acted very suicidally in the beginning. He'd get into battles with Apostles that he would just barely survive - usually by extreme luck - and it can be argued that Guts probably doesn't expect to defeat the Godhand, but he fought so rampantly because of the grief and sadness that he suffered during the Eclipse and his unquenchable hatred for the Godhand. It's only when Guts realized that he wasn't the only one to survive the Eclipse and who suffered a great deal ( his lover, Casca, who arguablyhad a MORE traumatizingordeal during the Eclipse) that he started to clean up his act, since his death will almost certainly mean Casca's death. Nowadays, Guts has returned to the crazy ol' berserker persona that everyone loves and fears.
Determinator: The absolute pinnacle of this trope. If he's not dead, whatever he's fighting is going to be, even if he's only got his teeth left to do the deed.
The fact that Guts' ears and teeth are slightly, though noticeably, more pointed than most of the human characters has been interpreted by some as implying that he is part-demon, which would explain a lot of his phenomenal abilities even before magic got involved.
Puck and Isidro poked fun at this after part of his hair turned white after he dons the Berserker Armor by calling him the Almost-Black Swordsman and Slightly White Swordman.
Eye Remember: Guts will never forget the last sight of his right eye. Never.
Fatal Flaw —> Wrath: As much as his raw rage and power has aided him on many occasions, it has probably caused more problems than solved. Not only has wrath taken a physical toll on Guts remember that Guts has gotten so the point of being so very enraged that he resorted to self-mutilation, albeit for a heroic cause, but also an emotional and spiritual toll. Through his desire for revenge, he left Casca behind and let himself be devoured by anger and hate. This not only warped Guts into a dark man for a time, but it went as far as manifesting the beast, which embodies all of his wrath and constantly goads Guts to go deeper into a pit of raw anger and hate. Even though Guts has found a greater reason to live in finding a cure for Casca and is trying to turn a new leaf, he still has that deep seated desire to exact revenge on Griffith and will burst at the very sight or mention of him. These emotions within Guts will probably never go away completely. Another flaw that can be associated with Guts that goes hand-in-hand with his wrath would be his crueltytoward anyone who gets in the way of his revenge.
Freak Out When Guts wakes up after the Eclipse and finally has some time to fully realize the horrible results of the event he spends an entire chapter blindly running through the woods in extreme mental agony, having meaningful flashbacks about his fallen friends, and clearly blaming himself for everything that happened. He only cools down when he remembers Griffith was the real cause of the whole nightmare. Guts promptly re-invents himself as the Black Swordsman.
Fountain of Expies: Pretty much any hardcore, brooding badass from the east owes his dues to the original BFS-owning hundred-man slayer. Auron is the best example, while Final Fantasy VII's main heroes Zack and Cloud...they'd wish.
Full Potential Upgrade: Guts needed to upgrade to the Dragon Slayer to fight Apostles without breaking his sword (which is only possible because he has the inhuman strength to cut through said enemies in the first place.)
Good Is Not Nice: Embodies this after finding his new Five-Man Band. But he's still a lot nicer than when he was still travelling alone.
Heroes Prefer Swords: Guts turned down a magic axe from Flora in favor for his trusty ol' dragonslayer.
Hero with Bad Publicity: While Griffith is the Villain with Good Publicity in this story, Guts is the (anti) hero with bad publicity. There's no doubt that he has ended up saving lives by killing apostles, but because of his HIGHLYmorallyquestionableactions, he's not well liked by the towns' folk that he encounters. This is most especially seen when Guts is Wandering the Earth alone, but when he stops being a loner,makes a mood shift, and gets an audience because of it, a lot more people are appreciative of his actions. Still, so long as Griffith is walking the earth, Guts' presence will always be seen in a negative light.
Also, he always seems to have at least one little girl hanging around with him. Not in a weird way, they just seem to like him. He tends to treat them like an Aloof Older Brother, when he's not trying to chase them off (for their own good) with his Jerk Ass Facade, but every now and then he can be surprisinglysweet to them◊.
The Hunter (He at first killed a bunch of things because it was his job. Now he does it because It's Personal.)
Insult Friendly Fire: When Guts and Casca were up against Adon and his hundred men, Adon said that they were going to capture Guts to torture him and capture Casca to use her as their "toy." Guts, in response, said that Adon wouldn't want a woman like Casca, since she was a total bitch and that she would "bite it right off." Casca promptly elbows Guts in the head.
It's Not You, It's My Enemies: The reason why he is so reluctant to show more concern for his current companions. Also, it can be said that, even though he may be implacable, Guts would rather not see others get hurt as a direct result of his actions - so long as they didn't get on his bad side before hand. The clearest example of this is when he turned down Jill's request to join him in his journey.
I Will Protect Her: Don't so much as raise a hand to Casca. If you do, Guts will go seriously apeshit on you, and seriously fuck you up.
Jerkass: Like his badass-ness, Guts has several layers of jerkass-ness that seem to evolve throughout the series.
Jerkass Façade: Despite his frequent denial, Guts has definitely noble intentions but doesn't want to appear "soft" or get even more people he likes killed.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Guts may be a blunt asshole a majority of the time and his goals and priorities come first - which are often at the expense of others - but just look at what one of his "selfish" goals is: taking care of Casca, the most important person in his life. Later, he also insures the well-being of his present Nakama.
Took a Level in Jerkass: After experiencing the Eclipse, Guts went from a defrosting Jerkass to a TOTAL Jerkass that almost border-lined Villain Protagonist, had he not already reached Byronic Hero status by the time the series began (which is really just a special kind of jerkass if you think about). Then again, maybe all is not totally lost.
The Jinx: Guts had the really BIG misfortune of being born from a hanged corpse. When Gambino and Sys's mercenary band came across him, the other mercenaries warned Gambino to not pick up the baby, since someone born of that nature was a bad omen. Still, Gambino allowed Sys to take the baby.... much to Gambino's chagrin. After that, when bad things started to happen to Gambino and his mercenaries, it was Guts' fault.
Knight in Sour Armor: If we were to replace "knight" with "mercenary", Guts acted very much like this in beginning. He acts like a jerk who doesn't care about anyone who is near him, but he reveals that he does care about his comrades, and he tries to make the most of a bad situation when it turns worst. However, we don't needto remind youhow Guts'sworldviews changedafter the Eclipse. After awhile, he kinda goes back to how he was in the beginning, now that he is looking after his True Companions, but you have to keep in mind that Guts isn't exactly on a mission to save the world and to protect the weak: he just fights monsters to a) get closer to Griffith and the Godhand and b) to protect Casca, and he sometimes just happens to save a bystander or two on the way.
Life or Limb Decision: Makes this harrowing decision with little hesistation in order to save Casca from being raped. The Power of Love will do that to a guy.
And said sword is made that much more deadly with said speed.
Limp And Livid: When Guts takes too much abuse to function but keeps going anyway, he gets like this. At the end of the fight with Rosine he does this in a way that looks a lot like the iconic "Terminator rising from the flames" scene.
Living Emotional Crutch: He wasn't aware of it, but he was very much this for Griffith during his days with the Hawks.
A Man Is Always Eager: Despite being rather decent compared to most other male characters in the series, Guts is much less nervous than Casca when both prepare to make love together. Plus, he enjoyed it so much that he then tells her straight that he wants to do that with her again at least a thousand more times.
A Man Is Not a Virgin: Also, in the same chapter, Casca begins talking about the strange (but wonderful) feelings that she has upon losing her virginity, and then turns to Guts and tells him that she knew that it was his first time too. Guts just give this expression that says, "man, I don't want to talk about it," and faces the other direction. However, Casca does understand why he never had sex with a woman before because of his childhood rape.
Men Are Uncultured: The only way for Guts to get into books and pimped-out balls is if some sort of woman is involved. With the former, it has to be pornographic.
To be fair, that pornographic book was the only one (eagerly) offered to him by Griffith, and he did read it, but focused on what Griffith was saying. And the reason for going to the ball was to see all his friends enjoying their hard earned social success and be ready to follow the blackmailing/murdering plans of Griffith.
Men Don't Cry: Subverted. Apart from Manly Tears, Guts truly cried once in front of Casca upon making love to her and almost choking her when he recalled his rape experience. And even this doesn't deprive him from being a total Badass... Even when Guts had become the badass Black Swordsman, Guts cried some (for a brief moment). After narrowly escaping an encounter with his mortal enemies, the God Hand, Guts encouraged the Count's daughter Theresia to hate him in order to prevent her from committing suicide.
Messiah Creep: Guts doesn't care about saving the world very much, but he gradually moves in this direction as he gains more followers and beats bigger and badder monsters. Who else is going to do it anyway?
Mind Rape: "Mundane" torture scenario. What Femto did to Guts during the eclipse was rape in just about every form. It's especially vile since Femto mind raped Guts by physically raping Casca in front of him, which he probably did to invoke Guts' memories of being raped as a child.
Missing Mom: This overused shonen trope is taken to the extreme since Guts' real mother was dead before he even fell out of her and his adoptive mother died from the plague when Guts was three. There is a chance Guts might have never even talked to a woman before he met Casca...
Mr. Fanservice: Maybe not intentional but the guy is verytall, veryripped, ruggedly handsome, appears shirtless or even completely naked several times, so it only comes with the territory that he garnered a devoted female fandom.
My God, What Have I Done?: Happens two prominent times. First was when he accidentally killed the Count's son leading him to go into Heroic BSOD mode. The second was when he almost raped Casca when the Beast got the best of him. After that, Guts began to keep his distance from her, fearing that he might hurt her again - or worse.
My Greatest Failure: Guts' greatest failure is not only being unable to save Casca from being raped by Femto during the Eclipse, but also leaving her to deal with her trauma alone for two years to pursue revenge against Griffith and deal with his own trauma alone.
Guts is also painfully aware of the fact that his abandoning of the hawks is the root cause of pretty much everything bad that went down. Made extra painfull by the fact that Guts ended his one year pilgrimage by concluding that his place was with the hawks after all.
Near Rape Experience: During the Millennium Falcon arc, Casca almost gets raped by Guts when he succumbs to the Beast.
Nice Hat: Usually not his thing exept that one time when Guts was scheming with Griffith against the queen. The hat seemed so out of character some viewers at first didn't even recognize the mysterious assassin even tough he was using a big sword. After that, we realise how good he looks with it.
Noble Demon: A seriously pissed off Guts will become much like a demon himself, but his staunch resolve to remain human and the presence of his Morality Chain (read: Casca) prevents him from completely delving into full-blown "demonhood."
One-Man Army: And HOW! He got the moniker Hundred Man Slayer before becoming the monster-killer he is today.
Papa Wolf: Surprisingly, he's more of this to Schierke than to the Child, but probably because Casca won't let Guts near him. They also don't get to spend much time together so far, since he's always battling monsters whenever he shows up. Then again, this is usually a cue in for their own little relationship.
Perpetual Frowner: When Guts isn't wearing a Slasher Smile or some sardonic and smug one, he's wearing this. Seen especially after the Eclipse.
Pet the Dog: Just when you're ready to write him down as a simple Villain Protagonist, he up and does one of these when you least expect it. It usually happens to children... even the very children he was using as bait or shields against monsters not one chapter ago.
Pointy Ears: Not nearly as pointy as many of the supernatural entities in the series, but his ears are still noticeably so when compared to other humans. (See Disappeared Dad above for what this might mean.)
The Power of Love: Didn't see THAT one coming, did you? But, no matter how you look at it, his current driving force is... his love for Casca. Yes and, mind you, nothing un-Badass here. He just doesn't want to lose the last being on Earth able to actually warm up his heart. Sure his new True Companions are important and all, but Casca is on a completely different level.
Raised by Dudes: And abusive dudes at that, hence his maladjusted behaviour around people in general.
Rape As Backstory: After Gambino sold him to child prostitution, Guts couldn't avoid getting what was coming to him, no matter how hard he fought it. Even though he managed to exact revenge sometime later.
Real Men Hate Affection: Zigzagged all along the story. He is gruff, blunt, aloof, dismissive and Hates Being Touched but there are times where he shows a warmer side of himself. For instance, he is quite surprised to find himself appreciating the company of his new True Companions and he really, really wants Casca to love him again.
Screaming Warrior: When Guts gets really pissed, he'll often start yelling at the top of his lungs as he starts laying about with his BFS.
Self Destructive Charge: Guts does this often, but the best example comes during the Eclipse, when he is trying to save Casca. First he rushes trough a wall of demons and almost gets ripped to shreds, then he has to hack off his arm to continue the fight and he wouldn't have lost his eye if he wasn't trying so hard to push himself up wile pinned down.
Eating the Eye Candy: While applying a protective seal over the Brand while he's shirtless, Schierke notes how large and strong his back is...and begins blushing.
Shrouded in Myth: According to Isidro, Guts didn't kill 100 soldiers, but 1,000. Guts refused to elaborate.
Single-Target Sexuality: As mentioned above, Guts is one of the least sex-motivated male characters in the series, and has attracted, been fawned over, been molested by, and has seen numerous women naked. But at the end of the day, he only has eyes for one woman: Casca. Aside from that one time where he had sex with a she-apostle - whose intent was to eat him alive during intercourse - but he knew it all along in order to slay it, Guts has only had genital-genital sex once in his life, and it was with her after getting through some post-traumatic stress from being anally raped when he was a kid and only looked forward to doing it more with Casca. Even after all of the horrible events that the two of them have been through, Guts is still strongly devoted to Casca.
Also, though his monogamy toward Casca is hardly a bad thing, it's also deconstructed, as Guts' attraction toward Casca has been the only time that Guts has played the All Men Are Perverts trope straight, some instances being a bit more disturbing, such as when Guts came close to forcing himself on Casca after the Eclipse when he accidentally ripped her clothes or when Guts almost raped Casca in volume 23.
Sir Swears-a-Lot: He's a goddamn fucking knight in black fucking armor.
Skunk Stripe: The first time Guts puts on the Berserker Armor, he gains a streak of white in his hair.
Slasher Smile: The only type of smile Guts is ever shown to have with few exceptions during the Golden Age Arc.
He does give a genuine smile when he learns there's a possibility of Casca being cured. So that's one non-slasher smile in a good two years.
The Social Darwinist: Back when he was a bigger jerk than normal, Guts adopted the "only the strong deserve to live" motto as his own. The irony in this of course is that he pretty much verbally condemned Casca, who is currently defenseless and can't take care of herself, to the same fate as those who couldn't fight against the strong. Alas, Guts cleaned up his act after awhile and seems to have dropped this ideology upon re-realizing what he wanted to protect the most.
Sociopathic Hero: Yeahhh... It's a bit foolish to say that Guts doesn't get a teensy bit of satisfaction from smashing the skulls of his enemies in half. This trait is, of course, played up in the abridged series.
Spank the Cutie: Upon meeting Griffith again after the famous 100 men slaughter, Guts playfully spanks Casca in front of Griffith when she says that she would accept ANY form of punishment for having slowed down everyone by going to battle while incapacitated.
Star-Crossed Lovers: He and Casca are two of a kind and paid dearly for this...
Stay in the Kitchen: Once tried this on Casca after her first battle against Adon, when she got incapacitated by her period and both fell off a cliff due to her fainting from exhaustion. Subverted in that it had the effect of a Rousing Speech rather than a demotivator.
The Stoic/Not So Stoic: Well, Guts isn't completely devoid of emotions, since he does have the capability of showing one most of the time: anger. Other than that, he tends to keep his emotions at a minimum, and really only opens up toward people whom he trusts. Corkus once claimed that this was the reason why he hated him so much, but there were times that just proved too much for Guts such as recanting his abusive childhood to Casca.
Stupid Sexy Flanders: Overloaded with testosterone, chiselled physique, dark, rugged, handsome... Need we say more?
Super Powered Evil Side: The Beast, his Enemy Within, easily one of the most evil entities of the series. It used to live in harmony with Guts during the Retribution Arc but, now that he decided not to lose Casca to anyone or anything, the Beast constantly tries to goad Guts into killing Casca so it could take over his body again.
Survivor Guilt: Interestingly enough, most of this comes not from his horrible experience during the Eclipse, but from his horrible childhood experience of being raped by Donovan. As with most survivors of sexual abuse and assault, Guts blamed himself for not being able to defend himself against Donovan, even though he shouldn't because Guts - who was only about six or seven at the time - couldn't have put up a fight against a guy who was easily ten times bigger than he, and that it wasn't his fault to begin with: it was his crummy adoptive father who was to blame, since he fucking sold him for three silver coins.
Sympathetic Murder Backstory: He had to kill two major people in his pre-Hawks backstory apart from those he killed in battle as a child mercenary. The first was Donovan, a pederast soldier in his adoptive father Gambino's band, who Guts killed in revenge for having raped him. The other was Gambino himself, who Guts had to kill in self-defense after Gambino lost his leg, got drunk one night and tried to murder him because he blamed the poor kid for the death of his lover from the plague. The latter killing affected him quite more strongly than the former, though he still has the aversion to being touched which came from Donovan's attack on him.
Tragic Keepsake: Casca is this to him since she is the last remnant of the original Band of the Hawk aside of him. Additionally, the throwing knives and strap that he kept from Judeau.
Uh-Oh Eyes: Take heed in this warning, children, as the windows to Guts' soul also signify how much immediate danger you are in:
The Unfettered: Not so much right now, but during his Black Swordsman days, Guts would let nothing get in the way of killing an Apostle.
Unskilled, but Strong: Strongly averted. In the first chapters, we think that he only has strong, but later, when he fights without being in Rage-mode, i.e. in the Golden Age arc, he displays true talent in swordsmanship. In fact, he is probably one of the most skilled swordsmen in-universe.
Unstoppable Rage: Guts pretty much runs on this. Especially when he has the Berserker Armor.
Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Up until Gambino sold him to Donovan for a night and Guts killed Gambino in self-defense two years later.
Walking Disaster Area (Everywhere this guy goes, calamity happens, mainly due to him being a complete...
Walking the Earth: Especially during the first 3 volumes where he was the Black Swordsman.
Warrior Poet: Guts eventually becomes an aloof, melancholic one after finding his new Nakama.
He had his moments even before that: following the 100-man slaying incident, he has a surprisingly poetic conversation with Casca, and she is just as surprised as the reader to see that he has these sorts of Hidden Depths.
And even during his not-very-nice rampaging Black Swordsman days, he gave a "It's Not You, It's My Enemies" explanation to Jill that was pretty much a tearjerker, an awesome, and a heartwarming moment all in one.
Wife-Basher Basher: Hey, Guts might be gruff and uncaring at times, but he's not about to stand idly by while a grown ass man beats a woman senseless. He at least gets Puck to take care of it if he doesn't do it himself.
Would Hit a Girl: Justified. Holding back against women like Rosine, Slan or the Female Apostle who are ANYTHING but weak and harmless would be plain suicidal.
... But it should be mentioned that because of his status as an Anti-Hero, Guts doesn't enjoy killing or hurting children, and so far, he has only killed kids who became monsters, and therefore, Guts sees them as fair game (that, and they were trying to kill him), and by accident; in both situations, he didn't take it too well. In truth, most kids actually LIKE Guts - a lot more than the adults - and Guts is okay with them being around him more or less.
Also, while he has used children as human shields before, the enemy in question has backed down rather than let the child get hurt. Consequently we don't know what Guts' reaction would be if the child had actually died because of him.
Younger than They Look: If we keep track of these dozens of Time Skips, Guts should still only be in his early twenties, but with all of the stress of fighting throughout his life (and other traumatic ordeals), he looks to be in his thirties.
"The Black Swordsman, you say? His petty existence is beneath our notice."
A stock White-Haired Pretty Boy and leader of the mercenaries known as the Band of the Hawk, he is also Guts's closest friend until the Eclipse. Griffith recruits Guts to his band after defeating him in battle, and Guts quickly becomes his right-hand man. There are also many hints that his friendship with Guts might not be completely platonic...Griffith is driven by his dream of obtaining his own kingdom, and stops at nothing to obtain it. He is in a good position to do so, being a cunning strategist, an unusually skilled swordsman, extremely charismatic, and a shrewd politician. It also helps that he possesses the Crimson Behelit, an Artifact of Doom that protects him from death several times. Griffith lacks any real scruples in his efforts to get what he wants - kidnapping, assassination, and self-abasement, even to the point of prostituting himself once so he could finance the Hawks, are all considered acceptable, even necessary steps towards his ultimate goal.Upon nearly achieving his dream, however, he falls apart when Guts chooses to leave the Hawks, an action born from Griffith's own philosophies of independence and the tireless pursuit of one's dream. Devastated, he seeks temporary solace by sleeping with Princess Charlotte, an act that sets off the inevitable countdown to the Eclipse. Crippled for life after a full year of torture on the King's orders for having deflowered the Princess, Griffith is later freed by his companions. After overhearing Casca convince Guts to leave again, Griffith crosses the Despair Event Horizon and uses the Crimson Behelit to summon the Godhand, albeit unknowingly.After betraying and sacrificing his whole party to the Godhand and the Idea of Evil, Griffith becomes Femto, the fifth member of the Godhand, earning Guts's undying hatred both for throwing him and his comrades to the wolves in order to become a Godhand and for raping Casca to insanity right in front of him in his first act as Femto. Griffith is later reincarnated into a human form after the mock Eclipse at the Tower of Punishment. Having gathered a new Band of the Hawk, one primarily composed of Apostles, he sets off to follow his dream once more. He is currently claiming ownership of his freshly conquered kingdom, Falconia, after defeating Ganishka in a massive Final Battle and fusing Midland with the Astral Realm.As Femto he appears as a dark, massively muscled figure with taloned feet like a hawk, clawed hands, large bat-like Cape Wings, and a hood that is modelled on the hawk-helmet Griffith wore back when he commanded the Band of the Hawk.
A Father to His Men: Deconstructed in the Golden Age. Yes, he did legitimately care about the people in his army, but in order to cope with the inevitable death that would happen, he had to distance himself emotionally from them. And ensure that those who died would not have done so for nothing.
A God Am I: Griffith was dying to be worshiped and got what he wanted.
Almighty Janitor: Subverted. Not only were people surprised at the charisma and military knowledge that Griffith carried, but they were most surprised at the fact that he is not even of noble birth, climbing up in rank in the Midland army from a street kid with a ragtag bunch of misfits to a knight general. The upper class saw this as a threat to their own power.
Animal Motifs: The white hawk, quite appropriately... as well as a Griffin for both his bird like motif and the fact that the name Griffith sounds similar to Griffin
Anti-Hero: Type V (In the Past), now he's a straight up villain.
Asskicking Equals Authority: Half of the Hawks joined under Griffith because his mere image put them in a state of awe. The other half joined under Griffith because they saw him a strong leader that they wanted to follow - meaning that most of them got their asses kicked by him when they tried to confront him. Same with the new Band of Hawks, with added prophecy bonus.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Had little compunctions about disposing of his companions yet acted as a caring and well-intentioned leader.
Certainly true post-Eclipse, but probably not true before it. His conversation with Casca after prostituting himself for funds, where he talks about how the only thing he can do for those who have died is to make sure their deaths weren't in vain, does suggest some level of genuine care for his troops. It has been suggested that his reincarnation as the demonic Femto has actually removed his ability to feel remorse (and maybe some other emotions), and thus regardless of what he may be now, his affection in the past was probably genuine.
Bungled Suicide: With his dream in tatters and his body mutilated, Griffith couldn't even end his misery.
The Champion: He was this to Casca for the longest time, since he saved her from a life of sexual slavery and prostitution and gave her a new one, and she was indebted to him to the point that it was practically hero worship. According to Judeau, she took his word as gospel and was prepared to sacrifice her life for his dream.)
Conveniently an Orphan: The details of his back story are a bit blurry, but Griffith's parents are never mentioned and he never talked about up and leaving them like Isidro did his, so we can only assume that he lived with the street children and decided that one day, he was going to become king - and it wasn't like he had parents to stop him.
Cape Wings: As Femto, he sports a pair of dark, menacing ones.
Char Clone: Handsome, has pretty hair, a powerful warrior, possibly abandoned by his parents, treats everyone around him as pawns, wore a mask. How come no one noticed this before?
Despair Event Horizon: It is Griffith's crossing of this that activates his Crimson Behelit.
Probably the visit at Charlotte's bedroom as well. Given, that he'd guessed king's obsession about his daughter (and thus could see how it'd probably turn out) and delivering I Shall Taunt You speech to the man, who was keeping him in dungeons, we can assume that Griffith gave up on everything... or it would be QUITE a Too Dumb to Live moment for a Magnificent Bastard.
Devil in Plain Sight: Even at the best of times, Griffith casually uttered lines like " You belong to me. And i will decide when and how you die." The only reason Guts didn't just pack up and leave right there is because he was used to being treated FAR WORSE and Grifith still managed to look idealistic.
Fatal Flaw —> Pride: Face it: this is Griffith's major fatal flaw and it's pretty hard to edge around (it's even implied in his namesake). Most of his actions revolve around the fact that he believes that he's destined to become a ruler and that no one canquitereach his standards. Just about everybody he encounters loves him, and he's totally fine with that, especially if it gets him closerto his goal. Griffith is a hard worker, but failure isn't an option for him and he rarely does, which sets himself higher on his own pedestal. But when he loses one battle against Guts, just ONE... Everything comes crashing down for him, and he just goes on a downward spiral of self-destruction (of course, you can also interpret his reaction in that Guts was his emotional crutch or that he had feelings for him). Again, we see this from a more sympathetic light, since Griffith genuinely wasn't a bad person to begin with. But again, this all changes when the Eclipse happens. Other flaws that can be associated with Griffith can be his ambition, his selfishness, and quite possibly his hypocrisy.
From Nobody to Nightmare: He started out as a normal commoner. Over time, he formed a gang of highwaymen, built them up into an army, became a successful general...and after the Eclipse, took his place in the Godhand as one of five demon kings.
God Mode Sue: A deliberate in-universe example. Since his reincarnation, Griffith is nigh untouchable and his charisma is gravitational. It's described that opposing him "would be akin to someone in a story challenging the one who wrote it."
Hellish Pupils: Clearly seen having this type of eyes after his reincarnation.
Heroic BSOD: In the past, he suffered one upon seeing a young boy in his army die in battle.
Humanoid Abomination: Since being reincarnated into a corporeal body. Griffith looks human (mostly), but he is most assuredly not.
Hypocrite: He said that a true friend to him was somebody who went after their own dreams no matter what. And whatdoes he go and do when Guts tries to go after his own dream???
Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: Griffith's goal seemed harmless and noble enough in the beginning, even making other characters look at their own lives in perspective, but he clearly starts making and doing more and more disturbing choices in order to achieve his goal (you know, plotting assassinations, kidnapping kids, and making his second-to-the-right hand man do most of it so that he wouldn't smear his good image). And then Griffith's very personality begins to unravel like a sweater caught on a nail. After all of the hideous things that happened to him over the course of the one year time-skip, we still look at him from a sympathetic light, and feel badly for him that he was unable to achieve a dream that seems so simple and pure. Until the Eclipse happened, and then - uhoh.
Knight of Cerebus: We knew this bastard was playing for keeps after what he did at the Eclipse.
Lack of Empathy: Highly suggested that he feels no remorse upon becoming a Godhand. Actually, it's not even suggested. Griffith himself confirmed this when he went to the Hill of Swords after his reincarnation, telling Guts that he came just to see if he could "feel" anything after what he did to the Hawks. And do you know what he said?
Griffith: "It appears that I am free."
Wow, what a dick.
Light is Not Good: He oozes this after his reincarnation in the mortal world as Griffith again.
Man Child: Before the Eclipse, many characters comment that he has an almost childlike innocence about him (though since he would sometimes display this at inappropriate times certain people would find it creepy rather than endearing). Indeed, one could interpret his dream as a boyish fantasy he never did quite let go.
Psychopathic Manchild: The events of the Eclipse and his actions afterwards definitely solidify his status as this.
Man in the Iron Mask: Turned into this during his year of being put to the torture.
Mind Rape: Psychic assault scenario. What Ubik does to Griffith, which results in him carrying out the sacrifices for the Eclipse and turning into the demonic Femto.
My God, What Have I Done?: When Griffith is being transformed into Femto, he has a moment of this...only to realize that he can no longer feel remorse. In the anime his inner voice suddenly becomes colder after the "last tear you ever shed" moment making it sound like Femto is lecturing Griffith. No more going back from here.
Naked on Revival: When Griffith is reincarnated into the physical world as an almost-human, he's understandably naked, since he used the body of the Child to do so.
Pet the Dog: Saves insane Casca from some falling rocks, though it is debatable on whether or not he truly did this out of remorse for the horrific things he had done to her in the past, or because he was being manipulated by the Child, whose body he used in order to reincarnate himself back into the physical world. Speculations highly suggest that it was more due to the latter reason, so this would be a subversion.
There's also the time he hesitates to destroy Guts. Perhaps this was to preserve Casca's unborn child; or was there another motive?
Spell My Name with an S: While he is widely known as Femto, it is highly probable that the actual spelling of his name is "Phemt", the technical concept after which he is named.
It could also be a reference to the prefix Femto, which is equal to one quadrillionth.
Tongue Trauma: Not only was Griffith's tongue removed, but that son-of-a-bitch torturer turned it into a necklace. But at least the torturer got what was coming to him.
Transhuman Treachery: Upon the Eclipse the Idea of Evil reveals to Griffith that it is responsible for all the unfortunate events that turned him into a helpless cripple. Instead of being mad at it, Griffith decides to ally himself to the Idea and the Godhand.
Übermensch: He believes no one is able to understand his views and dreams.
Ungrateful Bastard: Seriously, dude: After everything Casca did for you, you treat her like THAT?
The Unfettered: He'll doing anything to achieve his dreams, even sacrificing the lives of his True Companions to demons to do it.
Yandere: Griffith seems to have some kind of obsession in regards to Guts, judging by how he acts when he tries to leave the Hawks, though whether or not it's romantic in nature depends on your perspective. He also started harboring this toward Casca as well, and the discovery that both of them were in a relationship would cause him to snap, leading to everything going to hell.
Casca
Voiced by: Yuko Miyamura(Japanese, TV series), Toa Yukinari (Japanese, movies), Carrie Keranen (English, TV series), B. J. Ward (Sword of the Berserk English)
Casca pre-Eclipse
Casca post-Eclipse
"Maybe there is a place for me within this man. And not only can he give to me. Maybe this time I can also give something of worth in return."
"Forget about what you can't understand. Focus on what you can do."
The female lead of the series, Casca first appears as a dark-skinned, tomboyish, extremely capable Hot Amazon in charge of her own platoon of soldiers. Second only to Guts and Griffith at swordsmanship, she is highly respected by her fellows among the Hawks. She initially despises Guts out of jealousy over his rapid rise in the Hawks and Griffith's immediate affection towards him, but later grows to respect and become attracted to him. She was recruited into the Hawks after being saved by Griffith from a rape attempt, and idolizes Griffith as a result. The relationship between the three is... very complicated.She temporarily commands the Hawks during Griffith imprisonment and eventually becomes Guts' love interest, after she realizes Griffith has no place in his heart for her, while Guts always had a HUGE soft spot for her.Like all her comrades of the Hawks, Casca was branded as a sacrifice during the Eclipse, in addition to getting brutally raped by Femto. Like Guts, she survives. Unlike Guts, she becomes insane and mute after her horrific ordeal and behaves as a small child, with no recollection of her surroundings or her past with Guts. She also gives birth to a Fetus Terrible, the son she and Guts would have had were it not tainted by Femto's rape. Despite all that happened to her, she still sometimes shows glimpses of her former self, especially when put in mortal danger.After the Eclipse, she is left in the care of fellow survivor Rickert while Guts hunts for Griffith. The two are reunited two years later during the mock Eclipse at the Tower of Punishment, after which Guts decides to care for her himself. This turns out to be more difficult than he expects, and his frustration at the trouble he has protecting her, along with the urgings of his Superpowered Evil Side, leads him to nearly rape Casca. Casca now fears Guts and wants nothing to do with him, made even more painful for him since she is the only reason why he decided to change his ways. She is instead looked after by Farnese and finding the cure to her state is the reason for Guts and his party's are current journey to Elfhelm.
Allergic To Evil: She owns the same brand as Guts and reacts just the same whenever an Apostle, Godhand or any other evil-aligned entity is nearby.
All Women Are Lustful: Averted. While she's no prude, much like Guts, sex is really not a priority to her. In a setting where most adult females are either complete sluts or, at least, connected to sex, she stands out as a notable exception. Not to mention, she becomes very nervous when Guts is about to make love to her. However, seeing just how many guys tried to have their way with her without her consent, it's understandable that she might not feel completely at ease with the idea of lovemaking.
Am I Just a Toy to You?: She pretty much accuses Guts of this when he announced that he was going to leave the Hawks again after having slept with her.
Amazonian Beauty: She comments on how she is embarrassed to wear a revealing dress because of how unusually muscled she is for a woman, but we don't see her well-toned build until volume 9 when she and Guts make love. In both situations, Guts wasn't unhappy with this IN THE LEAST.
But Not Too Black: Casca is another dark-skinned character who went through this, unfortunately. The newanime'strailers show her doubtlessly lighter-skinned than the manga or even the first animated series derived from the manga. And this time, the Internet Backdraft was unanimous about this.
Attempted Rape: She NEVER catches a break from this even though she could fight off most sexual assaults.
Badass: Not as much as Guts or Griffith, but it still takes some serious ovarian badassery to be the only woman in a troop of fight-happy mercenaries, lead one's own platoon, take direct physical action during battles and assuming command when the leader of the whole band is away.
During Guts and Casca's first fight, the Hawks do note that in terms of actual swordfighting skill, Casca is second only to Griffith.
Pregnant Badass: Unbeknownst to the parents, Casca was technically pregnant with Guts's child during the Griffith rescue operation which she led and kicked some ass in.
Took a Level in Badass: As cruel as Griffith's "This Is Something He's Got To Do Himself" appeared to be at first, making Casca kill her attempted rapist was her first step in badass, as she was just going to allow the guy to rape her before Griffith showed up.
Bandaged Face: Coinciding with her So Beautiful, It's a Curse status during the Conviction Arc, her face is bandaged up as a syphilis victim in order to draw male attention away from her.
Big "NO!" / Little No: When Wyald brings out his...eeeeh...tongue? She tries once again during the eclypse, but by then she no longer has enough strength in her to raise the volume above a soft whimpering.
Broken Heel: Happens a lot when she becomes a damsel. Even before that, this deconstructs her combat style as a Fragile Speedster, since one trip and Casca goes down.
The Chick / Women Are Wiser: Averted. She is among the few examples in fiction of a morally 3-dimensional woman, even though she sort of qualified for these initially. In other words, she is a rare case of non-flat, realistic female character.
Cosmic Plaything: Literally, and not funny. Seriously, you begin to believe Casca has an invisible "Rape me!"-sign glued to her forehead.
Covered with Scars: Though not to the degree of Guts, Casca has her share of battle scars, the most prominent being the five arrow wounds that she got when she led the Band of the Hawk away from the Midland army during her Crowning Moment of Awesome. Although she is embarrassed to show them during her and Guts' love scene, it's implied that Guts finds them attractive.
Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Post-Eclipse, she mostly acts like an infant barely aware of her surroundings. At times, however, some of her previously Badass traits briefly bubble to the surface.
Cute Mute / The Unintelligible: Although she survives the Eclipse, what she witnessed back then and her brutal rape at Femto's hands made her lose her ability to speak.
Does Not Like Men: Especially so right after the Eclipse, and for obviously understandable reason. Casca reacted very badly when Guts tried to touch her after waking up, and was implied that she acted the same way toward Rickert. After the time skip, like a lot of her trauma-induced reactions, Casca tends to react violently towards men who want to have sex with her, like the unfortunate case with she and Guts at the time.
Distressed Damsel: After the Eclipse and she is reduced to the mindstead of a two year old, Casca needs constant babysitting so she won't get into the trouble. Most prominent instance was when Guts had to save her from being burned at the stake as a witch in St. Albion., but usually its from lecherous men who want to rape her. Despite this, Casca still has her -
Famous Last Words: Again, Casca doesn't die during the Eclipse, but before she loses consciousness after being horrifically raped and loses her sanity and speech as a result of the trauma, she utters, "... don't watch..." to Guts. Truly heartbreaking.
Forced to Watch: Doesn't only happen to Guts during the eclipse, but Femto humiliates Casca to a very savage degree by turning her around to rape her from behind so that she now has to face Guts while having all of this done to her. One could argue that being forced to stare at the man she loved while being humiliated in such a cruel and dehumanizing way is what pushed Casca over her psychological threshold.
The fact that she was forced to watch Guts being physically tortured as well probably didn't help; by this point Guts had already lost his arm and was in the process of having his eye clawed out.
Forgotten Fallen Friend: She was this to Guts during his raging revenge years, but more of on the emotionally forgotten level.
Fragile Speedster: Not the most powerful among the Hawks, physically speaking, but still light and fast enough to kick some serious butt!
Full Frontal Assault: Casca has gotten a lot of Clothing Damage from enemies who had wanted to rape her... But it's been shown that she still won't back down given the conditions. One instance was when Guts saved Casca from Wyald after he ripped her clothes off, but she still assumed fighting position after the fact and was actually told by Guts to get the hell out of there. Another one came when some bandits attempted to rape her and stripped her, but she killed them all single-handed.
The Heart: In Guts' new Five-Man Band, Casca is the one that everyone in the group is willing to protect. The whole reason why Guts formed the group in the first place was so he could have more people to watch over her and to get her safely to Elfheim.
Hero's Muse: If we looked at this from a Joseph Campbell perspective, Casca is this to Guts, as she is the one that he loves the most and is the drive of his adventure. Due to the nature of her predicament, he can't be with her until he has completed his current quest (getting to Elfhelm to find a cure to a her insanity), but she is at his side throughout his journey. And although they might not have the best relationship right now, Casca's presence serves as a reminder to Guts of what he has to gain if he completes his quest and what he doesn't want to lose.
Hot Amazon: Guts chose her as his lover because she was able to fight on par with him.
Humble Hero: Casca is perfectly capable of commanding an army by herself. She has proven it time and time again. But she is so modest and loyal she doesn't even realize it.
Ice Queen / Defrosting Ice Queen: The beginning of the series presents Casca as a distant, always serious, aloof, even cold young woman who seems to utterly hate Guts, and only shows genuine affection toward Griffith. After she and Guts's time being stranded together and learning that they weren't so different - with the big bonus of Guts saving her life twice - Casca finally begins to warm up to Guts, which leads to her acting a bit more girlish, open, and sensitive to others (Judeau even remarks happily how Casca started acting like "a real girl" after she was stranded with Guts, since her profession really doesn't allow her to), and eventually, she falls in love with Guts.
Innocent Fanservice Girl: Deconstructed. Casca's post-Eclipse behavior has become an issue for Guts, who is still sexually attracted to Casca and he really wants her emotional and physical love. Guts has had to restrain himself whenever he saw Casca partially or entirely nude. But one time, it went too far.
The Insomniac: Another deconstructed trope used to tell us just how severe her trauma was after the Eclipse. Casca showed some signs of sleep deprivation after the Eclipse, namely the dark bags under her eyes. Even two years later, Erika remarked that Casca had trouble sleeping (though her confinement could have also played a role) and that was why she took Casca out of the elf mine in the first place. This is, of course, the realistic insomniac example, since many rape survivors have trouble sleeping after their attack.
Interrupted Suicide: Believing herself to be of no use to the Hawks any longer, Casca tried to end it all by taking a step off of a cliff. Guts was there to save her, though.
Lady of War: While she was known to be a fierce fighter and a strong commanding female officer, Casca was also known for her beauty. Carrying a light sword as her weapon, her fightingstyling is much more graceful. Although she dressed as a man and was the sole female member of the Hawks, Casca could still dress up when the occasion called for it and she still acknowledged herself to being a woman.
Law of Inverse Fertility: She didn't even think about the possibility of getting knocked up when she had sex with Guts just once. Of course, the pregnancy was not coincidental at all and literally influenced the fate of the entire universe.
Luminescent Blush: When she and Guts have a Relationship Upgrade after their encounter with Adon, she gets these more and more around Guts... They reach their full luminance in volumes 9 and 10, if you know what I mean.
Ms. Fanservice: Guys, it's okay to find Casca attractive to look at... Just please look at her from the right places and not the - others.
Madwoman in the Attic: For her own safety, Casca is locked in a mine that was once inhabited by elves in order to protect her from those who want to harm her while Guts is off seeking Revenge.
Male Gaze: Many, many panels seem to be focused on Casca's backside, clothed or bare. Like you haven't noticed.
Mama Bear: Although her insanity causes her to act like a child herself, Casca does act fiercely protective of the Child, first acting out against his own father when Guts tried to off him.
Maternally Challenged: And given her current state AND the fact that she probably never had to take care of kids in her pre-Eclipse life, Casca carries herself very well when taking care of the little boy. She even mimics Farnese's feeding routine in order to feed the Child.
Messy Hair: Casca's long locks are often disheveled - since she can't exactly take care of it herself - but it only adds to her post-Eclipse beauty.
Disposable Woman: Due to this, her risks of ending up just another one of those are extremely high.
Never a Self-Made Woman: Lampshaded by Casca herself. She got where she is now because she met Griffith and was loved by Guts. Without either of them, her life is purposeless and she is nothing by herself, something she acknowledges during her heart-to-heart with Guts after he comes back from his time out.
And yet it is also averted, because after Griffith got imprisoned and Guts left she lead and kept the Band of the Hawk completely on her own and was uninamously accepted as the rightful leader. Neither men helped one bit in this. And even if she doesn't have Griffith's leadership skills or Guts' inhuman battle progress she won several victories for the Hawks on the Golden Age arc. If anything she was Overshadowed by Awesome at that point, and she still had her merits. How capable she was only works for making her state post-eclipse sadder.
No Periods, Period: Subverted. She once tried to fight during her period and had a very hard time keeping it up because of this and a developing fever.
Number Two: Took over leadership over the Hawks when Griffith got arrested.
Older than They Look: Around the same age as Guts, though after the Eclipse and she gains the mindset of a child, Casca does appear much younger, especially with the hairdo.
One of the Boys: Was mostly treated as such amongst the original Hawks.
The Ophelia: After the Eclipse, she has become quite the beauty but can only blabber incoherently or scream when she wants to express herself.
Plucky Girl: Has shades of this pre-Eclipse. Double subverted one time, after a Stay in the KitchenRousing Speech from Guts, because she was collapsing from exhaustion due to her period and a fever. Instead of being demotivated by his patronizing, she got back on her feet and went forward.
Protectorate: Touch her, you die. We can't stress this enough.
And not only from Guts since Judeau and Pippin were perfectly willing to sacrifice themselves for her during the eclipse. Something about Casca just inspires loyalty. She's allmost Griffith's equal when it comes to charisma, even though she never was the type to take advantage of it.
Seriously it just keeps going and going for almost two chapters...in intricate detail...you will feel like you got raped yourself.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Back when she was a commander among the Hawks, she was notably much more level-headed, responsible and considerate towards her comrades than Guts.
Sacrificial Lion: Like the rest of the Hawks, Casca can count as this trope, but in a different way since she didn't die. What Griffith did to her during the Eclipse is suppose to serve as a chilling reminder to the audience that he is not a good guy, since what he did was truly heinous and nearly all possible explanations for the act fall as flat as the Berlin Wall.
She-Fu: And she does this all while wearing armor.
She's Got Legs: Not only does a lot of the art focus on Casca's backside, but also on her legs, and her tall riding boots and almost-Zettai Ryouiki really emphasize them.
Shower of Angst: Right after the Eclipse, we see her bathing in a cascade.
Sideboob: More accurately portrayed in the anime, where the censorship meter is increased by a whooping 1%!
Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Brutally deconstructed with Griffith who eventually raped her, turned her insane and tainted her unborn child. Played straight with Guts though, since she isn't attracted to him due to his ultra-manliness and his Badassery, she loves him for his righteousness and his kindness and consideration towards her.
So Beautiful, It's a Curse: A negative example. Casca is one of the two most attractive female characters in Berserk (the other being Slan). Many men have complimented Casca on her beauty - that is, while most of them are attempting to rape her. Her situation only gets worse post-Eclipse. While in her care, Luca states how Casca's beauty, in conjunction with her innocent and helpless nature, will land her into trouble with these sort of men. To avoid this, Luca wraps Casca's face in bandages and passes her off as her syphilis stricken sister. It works for awhile with some sex-crazed pagan worshipers - until they rip off her bandages.
Stripperiffic: Averted. She and all the other warrioresses of the series dress reasonably and wear effectively protective armour on the battlefield.
Star-Crossed Lovers: She and Guts are bound together for life but at what price?
Stuffed into the Fridge: Rather than Chickification, as her current condition does NOT come from a mere invisible shift in the story but from a BRUTAL Break the Cutie process that happened on screen. One of the rare cases where the target survives.
Sugar and Ice Personality: Has traits for type 1 and type 2; type 1 appearing more after the one year time skip and type 2 after her excursion with Guts. In addition to being a woman in a man's world, Casca's also second in command of the Hawks, a position that has taken its toll on her emotional well-being, especially after Guts's departure and Griffith's arrest. Always trying to keep her cool in order to be a successful leader to the Hawks, Casca admits to Guts that she believes that she is at the end of her rope and that what she was truly afraid of was to be forgotten and dwindle to nothing if she didn't cling onto another's dreams (Griffith's). The self-realization that she was of no use to Griffith as a warrior or a woman nearly drove Casca to suicide, had Guts not interfered and given her some emotion strength later.
Thousand Yard Stare: Yes. Yes, another post-Eclipse deconstruction. Like most victims of rape, Casca went through these spells were she would zone out and stare at nothing (such as on the hill top). The Dull Eyes of Unhappiness were added for more traumatic effect. After the time skip, the shine has returned to her eyes, but Casca still has this vacant stare from time to time, since she is psychologically gone.
Tsundere: She becomes this to Guts when their relationship is established. On a sweet note, Guts said that he liked that about her personality.
Guts: "You get all jealous, you get mad fast, and you're quick to hit! You're plenty womanly."
Violently Protective Girlfriend: Well, it's zigzagged, since those were Casca's intentions when she and Guts became an official Battle Couple after their Relationship Upgrade. She knew very well that Guts could handle his own weight, but she still wanted to watch his back when he was in trouble. This was put to the test in the battle against Wyald, where Casca rushed to Guts' aid when he got pummeled and was ready to defend him against Wyald, though the roles ended up being reversed when Wyald got his hands on her.
The Woman Wearing The Queenly Mask: Surprisingly, pre-Eclipse Casca fits this role more than the noblewomen presented in the story, especially when she had to lead the Hawks for a year.
Weirdness Magnet: So weird that she gets accused of being a witch. As if being insane wasn't enough trouble.
Zettai Ryouiki: Averted since she wears leggings under her boots and tunic.
Guts' Companions
Guts's current True Companions who joined him gradually during his quest. After believing that he could handle it all alone, Guts realizes that he can't protect Casca unaided, due to her mental state and their mutual curse. He then warms up to his haphazard companions and learns to trust them.
"In meeting you and travelling with you, we've been changed. Not only Lady Farnese, but myself as well."
The Lancer of the party is a cannyFragile Speedster who starts off as Farnese's servant. He is actually her half-brother but she doesn't know it. He is completely devoted to her and seldom questions her decisions.Wary of Guts's Superpowered Evil Side and distrustful of Guts's ability to control it, he confronted him about this quite a few times, all of which ended up in a duel between the two in Vritannis, where he showed once more his superior strategy skills. After being defeated, Serpico has stopped acting hostile towards Guts and has grown to respect and appreciate him, as shown as the the two worked together in sync to defeat Ganishka's elderly henchman, Daiba.In battle, he uses a rapier blessed by the Wind spirits, donated by Schierke, which can bisect his opponents clean, in sharp contrast to Guts's BFS, as well a magical cloak that grants him the power of flight.
Animal Motifs: The fox, according to Guts whenever they spar or fight with each other.
Awesomeness by Analysis: He could fight with Guts twice on an almost even footing thanks to this.
Badass: Despite his lesser stature, he doesn't fear to take on much stronger enemies, often using his superior intelligence to gain advantage of his surroundings.
Big Brother Instinct: Towards Farnese. Literally. If you don't favor the other interpretation. Her wishes don't have to be reasonable, but if you go against them, you're in trouble, even if you are Guts. He also has traces of this behavior toward the younger Isidro and Schierke.
Brother-Sister Incest: Likewise subverted. When he finds out, his feelings for her become more brotherly.
Combat Pragmatist: Mainly in his fight against Guts both of them, but again, it was against freakin Guts if you aren't an Apostle, you need everything in your side to last a few minutes against him.
"I want to know what transcends the order I clung to. The truth. And I want to learn a way to live in the darkness where the light of that order does not reach."
Introduced as the figurehead of the Holy Iron Chain Knights, she was supposedly a Lady of War, except that she can't fight. She first meets Guts after his exhausting battle against Rosine and captures him.A frustratedRebellious Princess with pyrophiliac tendencies, she gets thoroughly Hannibal Lectured by Guts upon trying to whip him into submission with her barbed scourge. Seeing in him the epitome of heresy, she pledges to have him executed once he confesses.Yet, after witnessing the horrible events of the mock Eclipse at the Tower of Punishments, all her convictions are destroyed and she stands amazed before Guts's survivability and his unwillingness to submit to Mozgus who she respected deeply. She eventually joins him, wanting to learn how to survive unaided in the world.She is not much of a combatant but is currently learning magic from Schierke and sometimes uses her silver dagger for defense. She is also very protective of Casca, even though she has a crush on Guts. She recently Took a Level in Badass and is much more combative than what she used to be.
A Date with Rosie Palms: Turned on by people burning alive to the point where she spends some "alone time" thinking very hard about that.
Fan Disservice: And the second moment of her sexual turn on in the series was, khe, riding Guts' sword, no less.
Animal Motifs: The stoat. A noblewoman but rather weak in comparison to her comrades (physically stronger than Schierke though). Yet she's not helpless and isn't afraid to stab her assailants to defend herself.
The Atoner: She wishes to expiate the atrocities she used to advocate before joining Guts.
Blondes are Evil: Not really, but she maintained the impression quite some time after she'd been introduced.
Cherry Tapping: A scared senseless Farnese takes down Guts this way, but he was beaten to a pulp allready and he really just tripped and fell on her sword, leaving her stunned in disbelief. Nice throw, Serpico!
Enfante Terrible: Widely known as "the devil child of the Vandimion". Ask the servants of the household for more details.
Heel Face Turn: Started off as mentally unhinged Knight Templar largely antagonistic to Guts. Since joining him, she's mellowed out considerably, become more grounded, and much more kind in general.
Lonely Doll Girl: She use to have a stuffed rabbit that her father bought for her on a family outing that was pretty much her Security Blanket, but then her father told her to dispose of it because she was getting to old for it. Judging by the way that she did get rid of it, it probably didn't improve her troubled mindset.
Pyro Maniac: Formerly this. However, in contrast to the crazy pyromaniac archetype, Farnese is deeply ashamed, and even frightened, by her obsession. After the Date with Rosie Palms (see above) she is shown huddling on her bed and tearfully trying to convince herself "I am not wrong". Also, the pyromania, along with her sadism is traced to her spoilt but lonely childhood, where the sounds of other people's screaming would make her forget her own loneliness and depression.
Rebellious Princess: Deconstructed. She becomes one because of her parenting (or lack thereof), and this earns her the social isolation it would earn her in real life medieval Europe.
Stepford Smiler: Used to act as one of those and used to take out her rage on Serpico and other servants, or on the so-called heretics she sent burning at the stake.
Stripperiffic: Much like pre-Eclipse Casca, she averts this.
A Taste of the Lash: Practices that at herself, Guts and Serpico in the three different occasions.
Team Mom: Due to her role as Casca's caretaker and her willingness to take care of everyone's basic needs, she qualifies as one of these.
Took a Level in Badass: She is not the most violent of the bunch but has shown to be willing to take a more active part in battle, as seen during the attack of the Kushan tigers in Vritannis in which she could effectively ward off two of them.
Took a Level in Kindness: Joining Guts and caring for Casca really brought out the nicer sides in her.
"I'm going to be the strongest swordsman in the world!!"
The young runaway is an Affectionate Parody of a Kid Samurai, Isidro is primarily a Plucky Comic Relief, regularly subject to Art Shift.Also Wrong Genre Savvy, he believes himself the main character of a Shōnen series and wants to become the greatest warrior. He worships and admires Guts but never openly admits it and wants to "steal" his technique for himself after watching him dealing with a whole group of Kushans.Despite trying his best, he is not very effective in combat due to his undeveloped body (he is still a kid) but learns gradually to develop his own style thanks to Guts's tutelage and training. Although he hates to admit it, Guts has found an apprentice in Isidro. He used to carry a regular sword but it was too heavy for him and couldn't use it properly. He later receives a fire-blessed dagger from Schierke as well as a cutlass from an old man who saved him from the Troll attack right before Guts and his party depart for the Qliphoth.
Animal Motifs: The monkey, by way of what Schierke calls him when he's being a dick.
Brats with Slingshots: Subverted. He doesn't need slingshots, only his bare hands. And the things he throws (stones, bombs...) cause serious harm instead of a comedic effect.
Bratty Half-Pint: Rude, ill-mannered, he is a master at the art of provoking and pissing people off.
Dual Wielding: He usually uses both his cutlass and his dagger in battle.
I Just Want To Be Badass: So much so that he focuses on his weakness more so than his strengths in order to be more like Guts.
Indy Ploy: His rescue of Casca from a witches' execution is a definite winner!
Kid Appeal Character: Sort of. He certainly wasn't designed for demographic appeal - it's a Seinen, remember? - but he fits most of the classical traits.
Kid Samurai: Deconstructed. Due to the cynical tendencies of the series, it is clearly implied that Isidro would make little impression on the battlefield due to his size and lack of skills. To be fair, Guts' tutelage is beginning to pay off.
Took a Level in Badass: His breakthrough in swordmanship happens when he defeats the troll leader.
Weapon of Choice: Tried to use a regular sized sword but it didn't work in his favor since it was too big. He was then given a dagger blessed by the fire spirits, but at the time he didn't fully recognize its potential. He finally gave a short sword by an old man who thought it would coincide with his stature and speed. This works out a lot better. He's since been able to use the fire dagger more aptly.
"No matter their strength, for a human, to fight a monster means to let go of their humanity and become an even bigger monster."
Socially inept initially and a good example of a Dark Magical Girl, Schierke joined Guts' party late in the story. A witch-in-training, she joined only begrudgingly at the call of her mistress, the witch Flora. After Flora's death, she eventually sets off with Guts and his companions. She and Guts share a father-daughter relationship and comprehend each other instinctively. Like many other females of the series, she has a crush on Guts, albeit a childish one.Schierke is also a Cute Bruiser. She may take time casting her spells, but when she's done: KAPOW!!! She can wipe out an entire army of trolls or wash out a whole village with a tidal wave...
Kill It with Fire and Kill It With Water: Due to her control over elemental forces, she can either torch her foes alive or drown them in a tidal wave if she's given enough time to cast her spells.
Mission Control: Much like Sonia, her telepathic abilities make her one of these.
No Social Skills: She has been isolated all her childhood long from the rest of the world and is a bit awkward in social situations because of this; however it is highly compensated in the refined etiquette Flora, her master taught her.
"Aw, c'mon! You know this story would be too dark if I weren't around!"
"For crying out loud! Right when I think he's healed and his wounds haven't opened for 3 days, he's already ragged and torn all over! I'm gonna shrivel up! My maidenly skin is gonna dry up!"
Small annoying creatures and Plucky Comic Relief, the two elves that accompany Guts' companions can sometime give valuable guidance in the midst of the battle. They also offer their healing touch when needed.Puck is the very first to join Guts in his quest, being rescued from Koka Castle's bandits in the very first manga story. He can also act as a Deadpan Snarker and occasionally breaks the fourth wall. He usually travels in Guts' pouch and shows a strange attachment to the Behelit Guts is carrying with him - which they took from the Count - and prevented him several times from getting rid of it.Evarella used to act as Schierke's Morality Pet and is now Puck's Distaff Counterpart.
Armor-Piercing Slap: Guts usually treats Puck's tantrums with about as much concern as he would a mosquito, but every now and then when Puck is genuinely mad, he'll manage to land a blow that Guts actually feels. They usually just make his eyes water, but for a little guy, that's not bad.
Art Shift: Puck spends most of his time as a chibi, which is his default state when he's being funny. He only gets to look real when he's being serious(ish).
Barbie Doll Anatomy: Despite being obviously naked, Puck appears as a miniature Ken-doll
Breaking the Fourth Wall: They sometimes do this. Mostly with a random Shout Out to another anime show in the midst of a heated battle.
Chekhov's Gunman: Zigzagged a bit since the story starts in the middle, but Puck is briefly mentioned during the Golden Age arc by Judeau, but later becomes Guts' first travel companion when he's the Black Swordsman. Puck actually makes reference to the manner in which they became companions.
The Conscience: Puck tries to be this to Guts. He's not too successful, mainly because most of the time, Guts doesn't give a damn about the morality of his actions.
Puck (to Guts): I thought you didn't have any friends. Who knew you were friends with a monster?
(to the Skull Knight): Ah, not to be racist to monsters. This guy is so lonely, please be friends with him. My name is Puck!
The Determinator: It takes Puck a looong time, but eventually all the free healing he keeps providing pays off and Guts becomes more friendly to him. The pivotal moment comes in volume 16 when Guts finally calls Puck by his name. After that, they become VitriolicBestBuds. It's a big step forward since back in the early manga Guts came close to flat out offing Puck a few times. Rickert eventually points out that Puck was pretty much the only thing keeping guts human during his two year demon hunt.
The Empath: Both can sense the inner emotions of others, which makes Puck a Rare Male Example of this. Due to this, Puck is often overwhelmed by Guts' intensely hostile emotions during the whole Conviction Arc, especially when both were Walking the Earth.
Healing Hands: Both of them can heal minor wounds with their magic powder.
Light 'Em Up: Puck is able to cast a dazzling spark and can sometime help in battle with this power.
Morality Pet: Puck often acts as the voice of Morality when Guts loses it.
Mrs. Exposition: Evarella has taken this role for the team a few times when Schierke was out. She instructed Farnese in how to call Schierke back when she was "mixed" with the river spirit and told Isma about true names.
Vitriolic Best Buds: To each other. For a time, one could say Puck and Guts had this relationship going as well.
Roderick of Stauffen
"It looks bad when a princess protects a knight."
A noble prince that is also Farnese's brother's best friend, he has accepted to an arranged marriage with Farnese, in order to further cement the alliance between Vritannis and Eath.Rash, daring but mild-mannered and very handsome, he seems to show some personal interest in Farnese due to her rebellious attitude and her reputation, despite his obvious ulterior motives.He joined Guts and his party late in the story line, making him The Sixth Ranger, upon proposing to ship them to Skellig. He also wants to use this opportunity to spend some time with his wife-to-be. He was very impressed to see the skills of Guts against the Kushan's familiars in Vritannis and immediately accepted him as a leader.In battle, Roderick uses a straight sword and seems to be a decently skilled fighter, though his true talent is commanding ships in naval battles.
Badass Longhair: He wears it in a ponytail that went loose exactly once... to emphasize how good-looking he is.
Badass Normal: A regular human but he can still stand toe-to-toe with familiars or minor demons and is a highly effective admiral in command of his own ship.
Though given a choice between hand-to-hand and ship-to-ship combat, he'll take the latter, and for very good reason; he's a competent swordsman, but a bloody brilliant naval commander.
Farnese's slippery and underachieving older brother is a sad case of The Unfavourite. His father, knowing of his incompetence, has preferred to give the more important responsibilities to his other brothers, leaving him only with minor tasks.Ready to do anythingto gain his father's attention and recognition, he schemed to have his sister marry his best friend, Roderick, in order to unite both their families. But he utterly failed and thus, fearing his father's wrath, fled with Guts's Companions in order to escape punishment.Cowardly and unusually awkward, he never takes part in physical fights and reacts rather comically to the supernatural happenings he witnesses.
The Load: Much like Farnese in the beginning. But, unlike his sister, he has no intentions to work on his lack of skills and become useful to the group.
Meaningful Name: Magnifico means magnificent or splendid in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese. Quite ironic.
Nervous Wreck: Always, always panicking for his life when the situation turns even slightly against his favor. Made worse for his case since he's the...
