SerpApi.Org
Berserk's recent batch of chapters has reached an all-time low for the series. For the first time ever, it truly feels like Berserk does not know the direction the story is going in, outright contradicting established lore, ignoring major themes that have been in play for decades, and setting the stage for a rushed finale that seems highly unlikely to do the late Kentaro Miura's magnum opus justice. After effectively ruining Guts in the last two chapters, Berserk is turning its sights to Griffith.
Before Chapter 386, Griffith's reign over Falconia was framed as a way for him to turn himself into the world's supreme ruler. This is still very much the case by all accounts, but a new twist has been added to the equation: the God Hand are not happy with Griffith's behavior, and outright find him pathetic for playing at being a hero. On the surface level, this makes sense, but when examining the story up to this point – and how the Eclipse framed Griffith's evolution into Femto – this feels like yet another misstep from Kouji Mori and Studio Gaga, showing a fundamental misunderstanding of Miura's story.
Berserk Brings the God Hand Back Just to Call Out Griffith
With its overemphasis on generic fantasy elements, rough pacing (too slow with Miura, too fast with Mori), and questionable storytelling decisions, the Fantasia arc has never been the best Berserk has to offer, but it at least felt like it was building up to something narratively satisfying while Miura was still alive. With Guts' recent shonen hero power-up turning him into a chosen one in a move that goes against everything his character stood for, the manga has decided to knock Griffith down a peg, too.
At the end of Chapter 386, the God Hand finally makes a return, only to chastise Griffith in truly humiliating fashion. The God Hand call Griffith out for, "playing at being a conqueror" and "playing at being a hero." Griffith's actions with Falconia are described as, "absurd make-believe, below even the antics of a child. All a lie, all an illusion." The God Hand leave, but not before calling Griffith "king of nothing but your little doll-house."
Nothing the God Hand says here is wrong, but it feels painfully on the nose and banal for a series that's historically been extremely well-written and subtle. Worse than that, however, the God Hand seemingly turning on Griffith quietly sets up a scenario where Guts and Griffith may have to work together to take them out – which would be the worst possible direction the story could go in, but considering the most recent chapters, it feels like a painfully realistic possibility.
Berserk's New Chapters Are Once Again Contradicting Established Lore
The God Hand calling out Griffith is a poorly written scene to begin with, but it's bogged down even further by the manga, yet again, contradicting previous chapters. The God Hand specifically offered Griffith his own kingdom, and the whole point of Griffith becoming Femto is to drive the God Hand forward himself. Instead, the God Hand have turned their back on Griffith for playing at being a hero for too long, and not sowing enough chaos in the world.
Unlike when Rickert slapped Griffith, the God Hand dressing the Falcon of Light down isn't exactly cathartic. It comes out of nowhere with next to no set-up and doesn't track with their previous characterization, or how the story has handled Femto's relationship with the rest of the God Hand. It almost feels like Mori realized that Guts cannot defeat the God Hand alone, so Griffith needs a reason to hate them now, too, in order to take them out.
Alternatively, Griffith's recent humiliation could be a way to set up him sacrificing the residents of Falconia... but that would go against the whole reason Griffith used his Behelt in the Eclipse. Griffith wants a kingdom to rule, which the God Hand and Idea of Evil were more than happy to offer him. But now that Griffith is doing exactly what he sought out to do, the God Hand suddenly isn't okay with it. It's possible this was always their endgame, but the execution is lacking and hasn't been seeded nearly enough by recent chapters: a recurring issue with Berserk's most recent chapters.
