Nobody Understands Berserk: The Lost Children 

Nah mate don't worry about theft, "No One Understands" and "Nobody Understands" are totally different lol also really dope video, im a huge berserk fan and im glad to see an analysis on this specific arc being that i never appreciated it to its fullest, keep it up!

normal anime/manga filler: "oh yeah we're going to the beach and having fun!" *berserk 'filler': "ah shit, looks like I'm going to have to massacre hundreds of children insect mutants"*

Guts and Jill ARE the lost children.

Nothing is filler between creation and death, it's all struggle.

Dark souls music in a berserk video? We have gone full circle.

Nothing is filler in Berserk!

I feel like Guts' softening to children is tied to him killing that kid during Golden Age

How could anyone see this as filler? The whole point of Berserk is Guts’ personality and powerful resolve. I love stories with villains and allies that challenge the protagonist’s mind-set!

I miss when Puck was a character :(

Lost children is by far my favorite arc in the whole of Berserk. I was legitimately surprised when I learned that others didn't feel the same way.

Probably my favorite scene from the lost children is when Guts wakes up in the windmill to find Jill curled up on him sleeping. Looking down at her, Guts notices the bruises and cuts all over her face and hands inflicted by her alcoholic dad. Followed by a panel of Gut with an anguished expression as he is reminded of his own childhood trauma of getting the shit beat out of him by his "father figure" Gambino. It's a rather subtle and overlooked bit of characterization that Guts gets. Because at this point in the story, Guts is still in his rampant asshole revenge phase (aka The Black Swordsman). And this scene shows another break in the persona that Guts had crafted in the two years since the Eclipse.

It's not really filler. The fight at the end is the reason Guts gets captured by the Holy Iron Chain Knights, and Farnese becomes skeptical of the world around her.

I hope an older Jill comes back later to aid Guts and party when then return from Elfhell... maybe in late 2119.

PEOPLE THINK IT'S FILLER? This is why I keep far away from the anime fandom. It's one of the most important parts of gut's post-eclipse character arc imo!

"Guts and Jill went up the hill To find her old best friend... The Friend broke down Brought fire to the town Til guts had sadly slain her .."

Lost Children is definitely not filler. The series starts off with Black Swordsman, which introduces Guts as an edgelord 90's anti-hero, and Golden Age was a flashback where, at the end, Guts commits to being a Middle Ages Punisher and leaves Casca in the care of Godot, so there had to be a good justification for why Guts wanted to stop being the Punisher. Imagine if Lost Children didn't happen. Nothing would have apparently prompted him to see Casca again without killing all of the Apostles in the world except for a spur-of-the-moment idea to visit her that ended with Godot successfully nagging him to take her along. He logically would have knocked her head off with the broad side of his over-sized frying pan out of annoyance and then the series would have been a monster-of-the-week shonen where Guts keeps killing apostles until it got canceled after sociopathic 90's anti-heroes stopped being trendy.

I figured that Jill wearing the black cloak was a rather obvious visual metaphor of Guts' characterization.

Lost children was an amazing point where it shows the dichotomy of guts character to his visualization, he wants to help, but he cant, he can only burn the forest down to take down the apostle, and the children would only return in death, so in saving the town and the area, the aftermath makes him look like a pure psycopath, and is mistaken for the black hawk, and the apostle who he is fighting is a child that never grew up, while guts never had a childhood, it makes you realize just what he has to deal with, and shows that he wont get any peace or recognition for it

Man I hear almost NO ONE talk about the best part of that final chapter in lost children- the way Miura uses light and shadow for visual story telling. This chapter without hyperbole is his masterpiece in Berserk. At this point Guts is beaten, bloody, and hell-bent on killing Rosaline, and whenever he's in this mindset of "must kill" he's cloaked in shadows, in particular over his face. When the dad hits him with an arrow and he flees, the shadows surrounding him break for a moment. Then we get to Kill reaching Guts in the forest. He's covered in shadow and his humanity is being hidden by both it and the panels themselves. Jill meanwhile is completely visible under night sky. When she finally tells Guts to take her anywhere but here, the shadows part once again. Until he tells her to take a look around them. Around him. And the shadows engulf the entire page, and Guts himself seems to disappear as the shadows threaten to claim her as well. Then from the dark background, Guts swings the Dragonslayer at the demons, cutting through the dark and we see him devoid of these haunting shadows as he tells her that there is no paradise for her. During his speech, the background starts to return illuminated and we get this real dream like feel. As we notice this, Guts leaves the scene, and we see the encompassing darkness follow him, blending into his cloak as he vanishes back into the woods. Now the scene is filled with light, and the sky is no longer that of night but of a beautiful morning. Because Guts lives in a land of Shadow and he took that darkness away from Jill and the Town, leaving them with the light. FUCK IT'S SO GOOD!

Griffith viewed Guts as his property, at first at least. Then overtime he grew to love Guts as something more, but still his. During the Duel on the Hill when Guts decided to leave The Band of the Hawk it's important to remember that Griffith still refused to let him go because he loved Guts so passionately, so much so that in the manga Griffith envisioned himself murdering Guts and saying, "That's fine. So long as no one else can have you". Griffith's feelings towards Guts were so intense that his "love" touched on every single love there is: Familial, Friendship, Lovers, Materialistic, Spiritual and Emotional. Griffith had never opened himself up and made himself vulnerable to anyone in his life before. Ever. That and Guts making the decision to leave Griffith broke Griffith to the point of making him do what he did and go spend the night with the Princess because he wanted to have absolute control over someone again.

I always viewed Berserk as a sort of character study on one extremely unfortunate man, being Guts. It's how he grows and evolves and struggles onwards while retaining what makes him human is what makes the story so compelling to me. And because of that, I believe both the black swordsman arcs AND the lost children arc to be not just good, but NECESSARY. In order to show how someone comes to grips and betters themselves through trauma, you need to show them at their lowest. You need to show them kicking and crying in the dirt before they get their feet back from underneath them and continue their journey. The Lost Children arc shows just that. It includes the scene where Guts was slaughtering the child flame spirits and looking like a madman, which I think is honestly the closest he ever came to completely losing his humanity. He even starts to swing his sword like he's in the Berserker Armor! It's also literally the first time we see the beast of darkness and Guts makes his pledge to "never change, not for anything". It's a defining moment of his character. It also solidifies the bond between Guts and Puck, after Puck saves his life. (Plus the fight with Rosine was friggin nuts, you've got to admit) Edit: I made this before watching the video

Probably my favourite arc in the entire series. Guts is at his most demonic. Definitely not filler.

Great video. That panel of Guts telling Jill "There is no paradise for you to escape to." is my favorite in the series as well.

Oh wow, many thanks for the shout-out at the end! Guess I probably should go back to making more stuff. Much Appreciated.

17:22.....these panels and the embrace......I get such a bittersweet feeling from it yet I'm happy

The Lost Children act is a redemption chapter is fundamental to Guts development

This arc made me so emotional its insane. Rosine and Jill are just fantastic characters. Rosine was shaped by her terrible environment which caused her to turn into a "monster" as a way out but still cared about jill until the very end. Rosine and Jill did not deserve what had happened to them, I wish rosine didn't die

i like the elf arc or lost child arc what ever you call it its show guts human side how he was a loner his whole life with no body but he opens up and shows that he cares and wants to protect his friends that girl jill it kinda hit home for guts after i seen this and i love it more

Dat dark souls music: I know it all too well!

Great video. Beginning these chapters I was underwhelmed but by the end I was almost in tears. Never doubt Miura

I would have honestly loved a little bit more of these more episodic arcs with the Black Swordsman. Always got the impression that Miura started going for this episodic Apostle of the Week format but couldn't bring himself to keep on that structure, having the stories escalate too much.

I wonder if anyone ever thought about Jill at 17:07 looks alot like Casca did when Griffith saved her the very first time. But where Griffith said the "Do what thou wilt" (basically), Guts did not.

"screwing an apostle of something similar" how did you miss that the apostle he banged and blasted was the apostle that killed Corkus. it's not out of place he baited her, lured her in, trapped, and killed her. in keeping with his path of revenge against apostles and search for the God Hand to further his revenge. after seeing The Eclipse, the manga's opening moments are made clear.

My favorite panel was also in this arc. "Takes a look at the darkness around me" gave me chills

I remember meeting a lone Space Marine with a massive power-sword that resembles that young man once... He was the only survivor of the Blood Angel successor chapter 'The Band of the Golden Hawk-Boy' after the chapter master joined Chaos and killed all the other members...

Most definetly an arc people get very mixed opinions on. You tackled it well.

Really hope Guts get to meet her again some time in the future

It's my fav arc in the series if not one of my fav in manga

If anyone says this part of the story was filler, make them remember the "adult attack" moment. That solidified that there really is no escape for literally anyone or anything in this world. Puck and Guts' moment in the end of the arc was so touching as well as to how Puck "defended" Guts from the small demons after his body gave way.

this arc is one of the better ones in my opinión. Maybe it doesnt move the overall plot but it s a good story nonetheless.

Personally I see it as a continuation of the black swordsman arc.

Oddly enough, anytime I’ve ever recommended berserk, I’ve shown only scenes from lost children. In my opinion, it’s easily the most visually intense as well as instilling strong emotion.

It's really sad that so many people think the lost children arc is filler. The lost children arc is in my opinion the most human arc in all of berserk. Hope, ambition, dreams, home abuse, being trap, toughing out a shitty situation, ect... The list goes on and on.

Jeez, and I thought I overanalyzed stuff. I just saw the lost children arc as a way to show that guts can still actually care, and isn't completely mindless when it comes to fighting the apostles. I just viewed it as a way for them to show guts outside his comfort zone of being in a battle rage, to show him struggling with indecision when given the choice between kill target, and save innocent. The lost children arc is a very easy way to show that direct interfacing with a more neutral character, compared to later on with Farnese, who is a more antagonistic character. Guts wanting to protect innocence vs pitying weakness, I guess.

i’ve only ever read Berserk because i love Guts as a character. i’m one of the only people i know that doesn’t give a hoot for the golden age arc and instead rereads everything starting and past the black swordsman arc. as such, the Lost Children Arc is my absolute favorite one. it marks the beginning of the end of Guts exposed vulnerability and stands in my mind as the last apostle fights where he is still underpowered compared to later arcs and wins only by sheer determination, action, and thinking that only Guts could come up with. i think it is the highlight of his character development in the series thus far and it’ll always be my favorite part

I'm reading through Berserk for the first time ever, and honestly the lost children arc is so far my favorite one. I'm on chapter 246 as of writing this

True berserk fans know that hiatuses are the fillers.

The Lost Children is the most impactful arc in my eyes, those panels with guts biting intestines is and will stay in my head.

This arc is so important for us to actually understand-- SYMPATHIZE if not totally empathize to Guts' state and character. We see the extent of Guts forcing himself out of his humanity just to get whats his. And despite all that, he reveals his remaining humanity and true thoughts of that-- the helpless struggle-- to Jill. He is no less vulnerable as Jill to this cruel world. Angels, demons, humans, elves or whatever-- its all the same death and evil that rules. Jill even experiences the concept of guts' struggle herself having put through the events in the mist valley. She is lost to where she'll go as much as Guts is too. They are the lost children.

That Majula music just makes it so much better.

I got the “there’s no paradise for you to escape too” panel tattooed on my forearm, I love this arc

Awesome analysis. It shed some light of some of the parts of the story I didn't even consider that much. Jill litterly represents Guts inner child manifested into reality. I also loved the pararell you pointed out between the character of Rosine & Griffith. Thing is, I gone through the same kind of transformation as Jill & Guts did. I mean my struggles wasn't that horrible as theirs (thank god) but I can relate to how the characters of Jill, Guts & Rosine is going through. I think that's why some people get this arc while others don't. Sometimes I wonder what kind of life Miura had or if he read the works of Carl Jung & psychoanalysis & more to be able to write a story like this. Either way he was a frikin art genius & story teller. Excuse my English, I'm a scandinavian & English aint my first language.

I just finished the Lost Children arc and it was honestly fantastic. It absolutely isn't filler and seriously plays into Guts' character development to smoothly transition into the Conviction arc.

I also noticed these parallels between Guts and Jill in this chapter its like Kentaro Miura wanted us to realize and remember the complex past and relationships he has had during his life maybe to make it easier for the reader to understand Guts change and transformation or maybe he's just a genius at writing and created these parallels to make the readers wonder and try to understand what Guts feelings are and whats going through his mind, to look past his violent actions and some actions unlike him (Casca incident) and actually try to understand his suffering (which not many people can sense not many people go through a hell like that in they're lives) its narrative genius in my opinion. A very under appreciated chapter!!

There is no paradise for you to escape to. :(

I understand what you mean. The Lost Children Arc is not mere "filler" as some claim, but in truth; it's very good and needed character development for Guts. A little foreshadowing perhaps of how Guts personality would evolve for the better. 🤔

I hope Jill comes back at some point.

It is so cool seeing someone realized the paralelism between the lost children and Guts. Definitrly, one of my favourite parts of the manga

I liked The Lost Children arc already but you definitely shed some light on a few things I hadn't noticed. Thanks for your excellent work!

This arc is one of my most favourite. This is reminds me stories like "the Walking Dead - the Game", "Leon", "Logan", "God of War 4", "Terminator 2". Story about journey of children and adult - they always have interesting themes.

You could say the black-swordsman arc is filler, with that type of logic

This is, legit, my favorite arc in the story. If berserk was only this arc, I'd consider a masterpiece (I'd still consider a masterpiece now, but it's not over yet so I have to stay my hand.) Everything in the arc has perfect characterization. Guts is at his best as the black swordsman: the perfect mix of anger, fatigue, humanity, and weakness. Hes not the pissed off, spiteful guts from early golden age/early blackswordsmen chapters, and hes not the superpowered bishie guts from the post berserker armor arcs. He has enough humanity to be relatable, but rage filled enough to scare us. Puck isnt just comedic relief, but guts' moral compass. And the disciple is both monstrous, and pitiful. This is the point in the story where everything in the series mixes together perfectly, in a way the story wont ever replicate.

Star Wars: Forget the past, kill it if you have to. Berserk: Hey hows about I don't destroy my franchise?

Things betwixt and majula on the background is so nice. Awesome video man!

I've always adored lost children. It has so many elements that clicked with me. It's tight and succinct, focusing on only a few characters. The dynamic contrast between Guts and Puck. Seeing Guts at his darkest point and operating on his own, and you get the feeling of the endless suffering he now has to contend with each night and the toll it has taken, thus leading him to be the vitriolic hateful character he is around this point, which is just made all the more sadder now that we know why compared to the angsty badass we get in the black swordsman arcs. It's extremely bleak and has some of the best panels in the manga for me (I love Muiras way of drawing rage filled guts) All that makes for a strong sub story in the grander narrative. I didn't even notice some obvious things you pointed out though such as the parralals between Guts and Jill, which after hearing is so obvious and only reinforces the strength of this arc. I'd never say it is filler, I think it is extremely important on a character level. Bravo. Great work

Don't think I don't notice the Dark Souls music. It is very appreciated,

Rosine is the best boss, one of the best and most tragic characters, and the best tear-snatcher in all of Berserk. I've litterally cried at her death. And my God, that Guts rage aside the awesome Miura artstyle ! And don't forget these weird twisted elf childrens and their behaviours changing in just one page... The Lost Children is OBJECTIVELY one of the best arcs in all of Berserk.

This is great! Im a Huge Berserk fan and watching this Analysis video makes me wanna re-read the "Lost Children Arc" so i can get a more depth and understanding. Its been a few years since i read this chapter, it def. was one of my favs. Great work on the Slideshow too!

Lost Children is the peak for me, not because it is the most important, but because its tone, art, and essential tragedy is some of the most intensely atmospheric, grim media I have ever encountered. I was in love with Berserk, completely and totally, by the time I got to Lost Children. The panel where he asks Jill to look at the evil around him -- to see what he has to deal with day in and day out in his life -- is perhaps my favorite in the entire series for not just its composition but its dramatic weight. I honestly think that at the time he was writing this part of the story, he didn't necessarily intend to ever write some of the (relatively) more lighthearted content we see later with Guts and his band of merry companions -- it feels like Guts is really and truly cursed eternally to be both alone and fighting desperately in Lost Children, and I think the story may have even eventually been depressing its author. And, I'm sorry, but the idea that it is filler is just absurd. Guts is developed tremendously during Lost Children, and some of the most tragic elements of his 'new life' are set up there, including flashbacks to his own trauma and an exploration of how his psyche has been affected by the constant, unending harassment of the curse.

Wasn't aware of the filler sentiment. While The Lost Children doesn't serve much to drive the plot, it has some of Gut's defining character moments.

Love the DKS2 music in the background, it fits berserk well

Using Vendrick's music really matched when you were talking about his routine fight with the spirits at night. Awesome video!

I believe this arc is amazing and things make lots of sense. The first time i read this arc i thought Jill was like Guts and Rosine was like Griffith.

I thought everybody loved this arc? It's my favourite after the Golden Age... after the Eclipse I thought "well, it can't get more heartbreaking" and then it did. Amazing study of character.

Lost children is now my favorite arc. A true rollercoaster of emotions this one.

I also think many people don’t realize that this shows guts story in a different light. This arc is shown right after Guts losing everyone close to him, and gives him some validation to his revenge fueled quest against Griffith, but it also shows the length Guts will go to fulfill his goal as he blurs between good and evil to the point that he reader is questioning who they should be routing for. For one of my favorite pages in the arc is when Rosine saves Jill from burning rumble that almost fell on top of her and Puck, though in the background of flames you see a one eyed demon peering through the fire at his prey. You even see rosine question Guts humanity in the fight. Even seeing the look of a terrified little girl when Guts clamps down on her stringer and proceeds to lay the killing blow on her. It’s a tale, of Guts dangerously treading the abyss and almost becoming the very thing he hates.

Excellent video. As one of the 35% that voted this as not filler, I actually never connected the parallels between Jill and Guts. I mostly attributed it to Guts development from a walking death machine to someone who starting to understand that not everyone who takes the devil’s deal is a monster (thought last apostle we see before golden age also proves this, though it doesn’t directly effect Guts in that part). Aside from these points in the video, and the fact that it leads to the development and later teaming up of new companions, this is an enjoyable ark and a turn in direction that makes the series all the more worth sticking around.

to me, Rosine is the best character in this chapter. and this chapter is the best chapter in the series. I think only this chapter alone can make an amazing action emotional fantasy mystery movie.

Lost children episodes along with the episodes wherw young Guts' wounds healed by Chitch in the prison are both tearjerkers for me. Subtle things like Jill using Guts' cloak to fall asleep in her room, realistically choosing an unknown swordsman's blood soaked cloak as an embrace instead of her own family home bed. Chitch seeing the good in Guts' risking her life to repay him. And him keeping his promise after her passing, bringing her flower to the flower field in hopes of maybe rebirthing the small creature.

Absolutely brilliant! You somehow made me love my favorite arc even more!

The Lost Children arc is my favorite arc.

Great analysis on the character side. As for the plot side, I'm fairly certain that story about Peekaf is the backstory of Skull Knight. If not the 100% true story then at least a mythologized version of it. Might even have been a story Skull Knight himself told drawing from his own past.

Your favourite moment and panel are mine too! Such a gorgeous moment, I can’t quite place why so but it’s touching.

Absolutely fantastic video. Made me appreciate new things about the arc and just Muira’s art in general.

Oh my god I never realized how Jill and Guts are similar. Damn thanks for the video. Also I didn't know people call The list children arc filler......I love the lost children arc. Its my 2nd favorite arc

The ending in this arc is the best ending apart from the eclipse. It’s so complete that the slow build up of the arc is completely paid off by the ending.

Killer Videos man, keep up the great work. I loved this analysis and the beautiful connections that you made. Miura is a master in disguise, outright, and unnoticed. Love the connections that are made between Guts and his past via a little girl. That's super cool!

Fantastic video dude. Not sure why it never popped up on my feed before now but I've always loved this arc in particular with the understanding that we will NEVER see it adapted in another medium in spite of it's importance. It was the point at which I felt I truly understood who Guts had become and the depth of his suffering.

Jill is to Guts as Lisa is to Mr. Bergstrom. Your video helped me see that. They are both temporary relief for conflicted young women.

The choice of music is perfect! It really shows how much in common berserk and souls games have.

I enjoyed this analysis so much that this 20-minute video felt like it lasted for two. Thanks so much for sharing your insights, they are much appreciated!

Personally I loved that arc. Finally seeing the Black Swordsman in all its glory and struggles was awesome.

I feel that this is a pretty good summary of what the Lost Children arc is about. I only recently finished it and the more I began to understand why it ended the way it did after thinking that, for some time it was going to end similarly to the Guardians of Desire arc ended up not only proving me wrong, but left me somewhat confused but in a good way since Guts actually laughed and allowed Puck into his life. And that's where I think this Arc actually does serve it's purpose. It's not filler for that reason this is the Arc where Guts begins to change and start giving a fuck about letting people help him in his battles since he can't live his life alone. I don't think that is nessecarily a bad thing in story telling as much as it is a good thing in a sense where it moves the character of Guts forward. And I think that's the cleverness of the Arc.

Im ten seconds in and I already want to applaud you just for using the Dark Souls music, so perfect.

Such a brilliant way of explaining this scenario. I would have never made the connections that you have brought into light. I have to say I’m never surprised when I find depth within the Berserk universe, but this one slipped right over my head.

Just finished this arc and I had no idea so many people hated it I loved it

I really liked the lost children arc it I really liked Jill and Guts interactions

Very cohesive analysis, didn’t think about all those parallels with the characters. Made me like it even more. Hope you’ll do more in the future

Finishing Berserk to watch all these incredible youtube videos was a gooood choice You guys make me realize how much I missed reading Berserk and how incredible this story actually is I'm getting more and more into it, the more I watch about it

Love the Dark Souls theme in the background