This volume can be divided into two parts: the epilogue of the Golden Age and the beginning of the Conviction arc.
The Golden Age wraps up pretty well here. Guts is on the road to his darkest place. He's setting out to fight an unwinnable battle as a way of escaping from dealing with his trauma and avoiding his responsibility to support those who are important to him. I'm going to make no bones about it, folks. Gut's decision to go out and fight monsters is an utterly selfish one that is is worse for all of those involved. With the eclipse, Guts has been reset back to 0. He is in the same place where he was after Gambino tried to kill him. He's a broken human going from battle to battle because that's all he knows. The work he put into developing a sense of belonging and a purpose for living has been utterly destroyed by the eclipse. So he gives up and throws himself into the grinder that is fighting apostles. Guts himself admits it- revenge is just an excuse. What is really motivating him is anger. But anger is almost always a safer front for more vulnerable feelings, particularly with men. What's really going on is that Guts is disheartened, hurt, scared, and grieving. Casca needs him, but her pain is a dragon that he is too afraid to battle. Supporting an emotionally devastated partner and facing the depths of despair within yourself? That's something Guts isn't equipped to do. He is much more comfortable fighting life or death battles with unbeatable foes for no greater purpose.
And I should say, none of this is a condemnation of Berserk as a series. Guts is one of my favorite characters ever written precisely because of his failures. Berserk is the story of an abused survivor of trauma trying to create purpose in his life. And it's about what happens when that purpose is taken away and you have to claw your way back to a meaningful life. The mistakes Guts along the way- his blind spots, his failures, and the hard truths he avoids. Those are all very understandable and very human mistakes. They are emotionally honest regarding the kind of person that would be borne from what Guts has been through. He is a product of his environment, struggling to do better and be better in a cruel, unfair world. And, slowly but surely, Guts will make his way back to having meaning in life and being a more complete person. In spite of practically every bad thing that could happen to a person happening to Guts, he goes on. He keeps living, keeps trying to make something of his life. People talk about Berserk like it's this pointlessly grotesque, joyless manga. But the reality is that Berserk is a story about hope. In spite of the horrendous brutality it presents, Guts keeps getting back up, keeps learning, keeps growing, and makes progress in overcoming the effects his experiences have had on him. And he ultimately gets there. He finds clarity of mind, makes new bonds, and comes to live a purposeful life. It's a powerful story of personal growth and healing in spite of horrible suffering. It's about finding reasons to live in seeming nihilistic, fatalistic world. And it's moving to watch Guts go through the highs and lows of that journey.
But for now, Guts is definitely in the middle of a low that is only going to get deeper.
I love Guts's response to the townspeople's panic in chapter 97. The villagers mistake Puck for a pseudo-apostle and, understandably, try to run Guts out of the town. His immediate thought is "Maybe they'll calm down if I kill one or two?". During the Golden Age, Guts illustrated emotional and existential nuance in his speech at the bonfire of dreams, his relationship with Casca, his thoughts about Griffith after they part ways, his recognition that he belonged with the hawks all along. But this one line perfectly illustrates just how far Guts has fallen. He takes a kid hostage as
Regardless of how monstrous he becomes, Guts still has a soft spot for Jill. He probably sees a part of himself in her, being a scared child surrounded by violence. It's heavily implied that Jill was raped (or at least that her dad's friends tried to rape her). Additionally, she is the child of an abusive, alcohol, disabled veteran. In the best of times, he probably doesn't have the emotional wherewithal to make sense of these feelings. But in his current low, it's really impressive he is able to muster up the care that he does show. Jill is already this adorable kid, but the relationship she forms with Guts just melts my heart. In the same way that Guts struggles against apostles, she struggles against her own "apostles" in the form of her dad and his friends. On some level I think Guts recognizes their similarities and wants better for her, but doesn't know what to do with that feeling.
Some other odds and ends: I don't like how Rosine is a naked little girl. I get the whole Doctor Manhattan thing of becoming a being who is beyond the social norm of wearing clothes. But I don't want to see a naked little girl in my manga.
I'm happy to have Puck back. He's super sweet and charming. I love how he juxtaposes with Gut's demeanor. He's a pure heart unspoiled by this cruel world. Protect him at all costs.
Oh yeah, and the art is amazing. Who knew.