Berserk

A hardened mercenary with a massive sword moves from town to town, selling his skills and surviving by his blade. He crosses paths with a magnetic young leader who is building a mercenary band to climb the social ladder and carve out power in a brutal, medieval-like world. The series follows their alliance, the bonds that form among soldiers, and the costs of ambition and fame. The story focuses on battlefield grit, moral gray areas, and the personal toll of violence, keeping the plot tight around character choices rather than surprising twists or distant resolutions.

First broadcast in 1997, this TV adaptation draws on Kentaro Miura's dark fantasy manga, with Yasuhiro Imagawa credited among the creators. The English-subtitled and dubbed versions feature voice work by Nobutoshi Canna as Guts, Toshiyuki Morikawa as Griffith, and Yuko Miyamura as Casca, giving the main trio strong vocal identities.

It didn’t collect major mainstream awards at the time, but it steadily built respect among anime fans and critics. Over the years it’s been discussed in retrospectives and fan rankings, where its place as a standout darker series is often noted.

The show left a clear mark on the darker side of fantasy storytelling in anime and related media. Its stark visuals and willingness to show violence and moral compromise reshaped expectations for what animated fantasy could present. Many creators and fans point to its tone and imagery when talking about mature anime, and elements of its aesthetic and mood show up across later series, manga, and games.

Critics and viewers tend to praise the series for its unflinching atmosphere and the intense, complicated relationship at its core. It gets high marks for mood and characterization, reflected in a vote average of 8.5/10 from 731 votes. Themes of ambition, loyalty, trauma, and the price of glory run through the episodes, and while the series is harsh at times, it keeps the focus on who the characters are as people and fighters rather than on spectacle alone.