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Berserk Official Guidebook
Berserk has conquered the worlds of manga and anime, and now comes the essential roadmap to the sprawling Berserk universe, exploring the characters, creatures, settings, and stories of Berserk's first 38 volumes.
Profusely illustrated and including never-before-seen art (including an eight-page color section) and author notes by Kentaro Miura, the Official Guidebook is a comprehensive tour through the epic adventure, shocking horror, and graveyard humor that can be only Berserk!
Profusely illustrated and including never-before-seen art (including an eight-page color section) and author notes by Kentaro Miura, the Official Guidebook is a comprehensive tour through the epic adventure, shocking horror, and graveyard humor that can be only Berserk!
200 pages, Paperback
First published September 23, 2016
109 people are currently reading
134 people want to read
About the author
Kentaro Miura
374 books2,701 followersKentarou Miura (三浦建太郎) was born in Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, in 1966. He is left-handed. In 1976, at the early age of 10, Miura made his first Manga, entitled "Miuranger", that was published for his classmates in a school publication; the manga ended up spanning 40 volumes. In 1977, Miura created his second manga called Ken e no michi (剣への道 The Way to the Sword), using Indian ink for the first time. When he was in middle school in 1979, Miura's drawing techniques improved greatly as he started using professional drawing techniques. His first dōjinshi was published, with the help of friends, in a magazine in 1982.
That same year, in 1982, Miura enrolled in an artistic curriculum in high school, where he and his classmates started publishing their works in school booklets, as well as having his first dōjinshi published in a fan-produced magazine. In 1985, Miura applied for the entrance examination of an art college in Nihon University. He submitted Futanabi for examination and was granted admission. This project was later nominated Best New Author work in Weekly Shōnen Magazine. Another Miura manga Noa was published in Weekly Shōnen Magazine the very same year. Due to a disagreement with one of the editors, the manga was stalled and eventually dropped altogether. This is approximately where Miura's career hit a slump.
In 1988, Miura bounced back with a 48-page manga known as Berserk Prototype, as an introduction to the current Berserk fantasy world. It went on to win Miura a prize from the Comi Manga School. In 1989, after receiving a doctorate degree, Kentarou started a project titled King of Wolves (王狼, ōrō?) based on a script by Buronson, writer of Hokuto no Ken. It was published in the monthly Japanese Animal House magazine in issues 5 and 7 of that year.
In 1990, a sequel is made to Ourou entitled Ourou Den (王狼伝 ōrō den, The Legend of the Wolf King) that was published as a prequel to the original in Young Animal Magazine. In the same year, the 10th issue of Animal House witnesses the first volume of the solo project Berserk was released with a relatively limited success. Miura again collaborated with Buronson on manga titled Japan, that was published in Young Animal House from the 1st issue to the 8th of 1992, and was later released as a stand-alone tankōbon. Miura's fame grew after Berserk was serialized in Young Animal in 1992 with the release of "The Golden Age" story arc and the huge success of his masterpiece made of him one of the most prominent contemporary mangakas. At this time Miura dedicates himself solely to be working on Berserk. He has indicated, however, that he intends to publish more manga in the future.
In 1997, Miura supervised the production of 25 anime episodes of Berserk that aired in the same year on NTV. Various art books and supplemental materials by Miura based on Berserk are also released. In 1999, Miura made minor contributions to the Dreamcast video game Sword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage. 2004 saw the release of yet another video game adaptation entitled Berserk Millennium Falcon Arc: Chapter of the Record of the Holy Demon War.
Since that time, the Berserk manga has spanned 34 tankōbon with no end in sight. The series has also spawned a whole host of merchandise, both official and fan-made, ranging from statues, action figures to key rings, video games, and a trading card game. In 2002, Kentarou Miura received the second place in the Osamu Tezuka Culture Award of Excellence for Berserk.[1]
Miura provided the design for the Vocaloid Kamui Gakupo, whose voice is taken from the Japanese singer and actor, Gackt.
Miura passed away on May 6, 2021 at 2:48 p.m. due to acute aortic dissection.
That same year, in 1982, Miura enrolled in an artistic curriculum in high school, where he and his classmates started publishing their works in school booklets, as well as having his first dōjinshi published in a fan-produced magazine. In 1985, Miura applied for the entrance examination of an art college in Nihon University. He submitted Futanabi for examination and was granted admission. This project was later nominated Best New Author work in Weekly Shōnen Magazine. Another Miura manga Noa was published in Weekly Shōnen Magazine the very same year. Due to a disagreement with one of the editors, the manga was stalled and eventually dropped altogether. This is approximately where Miura's career hit a slump.
In 1988, Miura bounced back with a 48-page manga known as Berserk Prototype, as an introduction to the current Berserk fantasy world. It went on to win Miura a prize from the Comi Manga School. In 1989, after receiving a doctorate degree, Kentarou started a project titled King of Wolves (王狼, ōrō?) based on a script by Buronson, writer of Hokuto no Ken. It was published in the monthly Japanese Animal House magazine in issues 5 and 7 of that year.
In 1990, a sequel is made to Ourou entitled Ourou Den (王狼伝 ōrō den, The Legend of the Wolf King) that was published as a prequel to the original in Young Animal Magazine. In the same year, the 10th issue of Animal House witnesses the first volume of the solo project Berserk was released with a relatively limited success. Miura again collaborated with Buronson on manga titled Japan, that was published in Young Animal House from the 1st issue to the 8th of 1992, and was later released as a stand-alone tankōbon. Miura's fame grew after Berserk was serialized in Young Animal in 1992 with the release of "The Golden Age" story arc and the huge success of his masterpiece made of him one of the most prominent contemporary mangakas. At this time Miura dedicates himself solely to be working on Berserk. He has indicated, however, that he intends to publish more manga in the future.
In 1997, Miura supervised the production of 25 anime episodes of Berserk that aired in the same year on NTV. Various art books and supplemental materials by Miura based on Berserk are also released. In 1999, Miura made minor contributions to the Dreamcast video game Sword of the Berserk: Guts' Rage. 2004 saw the release of yet another video game adaptation entitled Berserk Millennium Falcon Arc: Chapter of the Record of the Holy Demon War.
Since that time, the Berserk manga has spanned 34 tankōbon with no end in sight. The series has also spawned a whole host of merchandise, both official and fan-made, ranging from statues, action figures to key rings, video games, and a trading card game. In 2002, Kentarou Miura received the second place in the Osamu Tezuka Culture Award of Excellence for Berserk.[1]
Miura provided the design for the Vocaloid Kamui Gakupo, whose voice is taken from the Japanese singer and actor, Gackt.
Miura passed away on May 6, 2021 at 2:48 p.m. due to acute aortic dissection.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
February 18, 2023
Una buena guia de la obra magna del maestro Miura.
Para los que llevamos mas de 20 años siguiendo las aventuras y desventuras de Guts y compañía, esta guía es imprescindible, un buen material de coleccionista con fichas y descripciones de personajes, pero ademas un buen punto para recordar todo lo que ha ido pasando desde el principio, contiene un resumen somero pero interesante de la historia hasta el volumen 39 y viene bien para organizar los acontecimientos.
Ademas de todo esto tiene una entrevista al maestro muy interesante, aunque con un final que me entristece mucho, al final dice que seguirá trabajando en la historia para darle un final digno, su muerte fue una gran perdida para la industria del manga.
Habrá que ver como lo hacen sus ayudantes y si al final son capaces de terminar la historia.
Para los que llevamos mas de 20 años siguiendo las aventuras y desventuras de Guts y compañía, esta guía es imprescindible, un buen material de coleccionista con fichas y descripciones de personajes, pero ademas un buen punto para recordar todo lo que ha ido pasando desde el principio, contiene un resumen somero pero interesante de la historia hasta el volumen 39 y viene bien para organizar los acontecimientos.
Ademas de todo esto tiene una entrevista al maestro muy interesante, aunque con un final que me entristece mucho, al final dice que seguirá trabajando en la historia para darle un final digno, su muerte fue una gran perdida para la industria del manga.
Habrá que ver como lo hacen sus ayudantes y si al final son capaces de terminar la historia.
October 18, 2024
Ya solo por la entrevista y fotos del estudio de Kentaro Miura vale cinco estrellas. En cuanto al resto, no ofrece nada nuevo si ya has leído el manga hasta el vol. 39. Por eso las cuatro estrellas.
December 21, 2019
The BERSERK OFFICIAL GUIDEBOOK is an oddball mash-up of repetitive encyclopedic facts about the long-running Berserk manga series (e.g. a long-winded recap of how magic works in the universe, exhaustive character summary/"stat" sheets, and a general recap of the entire series' plot), genuinely interesting series-related tidbits for super-nerds (including an in-depth interview with Kentaro Miura, shots of his workspace, and character reference sheets), and filler/fluff pieces (like a summary of all the special attacks of Puck, who is largely a comic relief character, and a flowchart to help you determine what kind of apostle, a.k.a. minor demon, you'd probably turn into if given the chance).
I would not recommend it for casual readers or newcomers to the manga, but it's satisfying for hardcore fans who are eager to suck up anything Berserk-related (of which, I will fully admit, I am one), and it's perfect for those who have been reading the series either on and off or for a long time and have forgotten some of the characters or parts of the plot. Since Miura can work slowly, many of Berserk's readers will eventually fall into this latter audience, and the GUIDEBOOK could serve as a handy... well... guidebook. So if you intend to remain a fan for the long haul, it's probably worth having around.
That being said, the GUIDEBOOK's contents are best discovered serendipitously, by flipping through or skimming and not by a focused search (or even worse, a liner read-through). This is a good one to keep on your coffee table, in your bag, or in your bathroom, best enjoyed in small sips.
I would not recommend it for casual readers or newcomers to the manga, but it's satisfying for hardcore fans who are eager to suck up anything Berserk-related (of which, I will fully admit, I am one), and it's perfect for those who have been reading the series either on and off or for a long time and have forgotten some of the characters or parts of the plot. Since Miura can work slowly, many of Berserk's readers will eventually fall into this latter audience, and the GUIDEBOOK could serve as a handy... well... guidebook. So if you intend to remain a fan for the long haul, it's probably worth having around.
That being said, the GUIDEBOOK's contents are best discovered serendipitously, by flipping through or skimming and not by a focused search (or even worse, a liner read-through). This is a good one to keep on your coffee table, in your bag, or in your bathroom, best enjoyed in small sips.
December 7, 2024
Nice plot refresher, abit more detail about the magic system, and a nice interview with Kentaro Miura, but not really worth much else. Minus 50 million aura for the cuties section what the fuck do you mean by putting the girls who get murdered and raped in there Miura ???? What do you MEAN talking about Erica's panties and using the word CUTE ?????? The LITTLE GIRL ??????? Minus 50 zillion social credit too man wtfffff
April 18, 2019
Whilst it contributes very little to the story so far, it serves as an excellent summary and brush up of the various themes whilst clarifying a few others that any reader might have missed. It stands up to its title as Guide Book especially with Miura's own comments and reflections.
March 5, 2024
I’m not through with this yet. I still have maybe 40 more pages to go. I love Berserk. I’m going to hold onto this guidebook so I can catch up on things once volume 40, and any subsequent works, falls into my lap. I gave away all 39 volumes that I owned on a whim. I did the world a favor that day…the injustice to myself is measureless.
Ha! It ain’t that bad. I have rid myself of nearly all the books I own. Twas A LOT. Anyway, this strikes gold because Miura lets us in on the process. I admire his work and the dedication. The questions are pointed and quite interesting, most notably for the answers given. They could ask Miura, “hey, do you pay attention to the color of your urine when you pee?” and I’d gobble it all up. Not the pee…the info. Sickos.
Almost any addition to the Berserk world is welcome. The back of the guidebook includes a quote that states it’s “one of the best manga ever conceived” and just like the quote on the back of the Final Fantasy 7 disk case “Possibly one of the greatest games ever made” I can only nod in agreement.
Ha! It ain’t that bad. I have rid myself of nearly all the books I own. Twas A LOT. Anyway, this strikes gold because Miura lets us in on the process. I admire his work and the dedication. The questions are pointed and quite interesting, most notably for the answers given. They could ask Miura, “hey, do you pay attention to the color of your urine when you pee?” and I’d gobble it all up. Not the pee…the info. Sickos.
Almost any addition to the Berserk world is welcome. The back of the guidebook includes a quote that states it’s “one of the best manga ever conceived” and just like the quote on the back of the Final Fantasy 7 disk case “Possibly one of the greatest games ever made” I can only nod in agreement.
Read
December 26, 2025Me gustan mucho esta clase de libros, como amante oficial de Wikipedia no me la pienso ni un segundo antes de comprar esta clase de enciclopedias de mis franquicias favoritas. Disfruté esta lectura, no me dejó nada nuevo pero como fan acérrimo que soy de Berserk fue algo interesante recordar lo transcurrido y ver que me lo explicaran de esta manera. Lo que sí es que hay dos cosas que no me gustaron: las estadísticas de personajes están muy raras, personalmente no me convence que Guts tenga mi edad cuando lo dibujan como si fuera mucho mayor y se comportara como un padre-mentor; y en cuanto al diseño del libro, hay que echarle ganas al adaptar el formato japonés al occidental: el texto vertical no funciona con nuestro alfabeto, dejaron unos párrafos tan extraordinariamente delgaditos que hay palabras que quedan partidas como en tres
pe-
da-
zos
y eso vuelve muy incómoda la lectura.
Sin calificación.
pe-
da-
zos
y eso vuelve muy incómoda la lectura.
Sin calificación.
March 22, 2024
A good collection and summary of information, world knowledge and characters from across the series with a few pages of just fun thrown in. I particularly enjoyed the interview with Miura.
(I rad this in the deluxe edition 14, so if there are any differences between the 2, that probably accounts for any inaccuracies in my review)
(I rad this in the deluxe edition 14, so if there are any differences between the 2, that probably accounts for any inaccuracies in my review)
October 5, 2025
I find the interview with Miura incredibly insightful but also very sad since he couldn’t finish Berserk as he said he wanted to.
Other than that the colored pages in the beginning are stunning and it has tons of information that could help immensely if one needs to catch up with the characters and world after a reading break for example.
Other than that the colored pages in the beginning are stunning and it has tons of information that could help immensely if one needs to catch up with the characters and world after a reading break for example.
January 11, 2024
Skimmed most of the character description and plot recap stuff, but a very nice interview with Miura and a trip through his office space.
Holy fuck that "cuties collection" page is, uh, something else.... Different cultures!
Holy fuck that "cuties collection" page is, uh, something else.... Different cultures!
April 19, 2019
Good to have, but nothing new
March 19, 2022
[2019] Un apéndice de personajes, sucesos, datos del universo Berserk útil para no tener que rebuscar entre tomos y poco más que eso.
June 19, 2022
Nothing groundbreaking, but a nice refresher between deluxe volumes.
January 2, 2024
La mejor guia.
March 14, 2020
A great book for those who love Berserk and can't get enough of it.
This guidebook tells you details about every character in the universe and adds many refreshing extras to it, like a character chart you'd see in RPGs.
It includes an interview with Miura, secrets about his ambitions, inspirations and many other things like great artwork and storyboards.
Also many funny things I don't want to take away for those interested in reading it!
5 stars because it's all you would wish for as a fan.
Needless to say, don't read it if you aren't a fan or haven't heard of Berserk at all.
This guidebook tells you details about every character in the universe and adds many refreshing extras to it, like a character chart you'd see in RPGs.
It includes an interview with Miura, secrets about his ambitions, inspirations and many other things like great artwork and storyboards.
Also many funny things I don't want to take away for those interested in reading it!
5 stars because it's all you would wish for as a fan.
Needless to say, don't read it if you aren't a fan or haven't heard of Berserk at all.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews