westhefitting

[westhefitting]

Berserk and Liminality

I think part of why I'm so okay with the final Miura chapter being the "final" chapter of Berserk (to me) is because it preserves the themes of liminality present both in the literal text, and in the meta-context of reading longform, serialized fiction. (Spoilers ahead) As Branded, Guts and Casca are described as living within the interstice between worlds. They exist in the very literal liminal space between the world of humans and the world of monsters and demons. They are trapped between the two, in a place that is supposed to be transitory. Guts particularly as The Struggler spends the bulk of the story *in transit,* as the brand prevents him from ever returning to his previous state or moving on to something else. The Eclipse is supposed to be a temporary, transitory state between humanity and demonhood for the bearer of the Behelit, and during that liminal period all who are not slated to transition into demonhood, are meant to die. By surviving as branded, Guts and Casca are perpetually trapped in this liminal space, referred to in fiction as the "interstice". As an audience, we ourselves reading Berserk also exist in a liminal state of sorts. We are in transition between having begun the series and having finished it. Depending on the schedule and any hiatuses, this liminal state created by reading manga can be comforting, like being in a hotel, or unsettling, like anxiously waiting for a kettle to boil. The time between chapters of Chainsaw Man is like being in a hotel. I know it to be temporary, and there's a scheduled date for my time in that transitory state to end. The time between Berserk chapters on the boat to Elfheim felt like waiting for water to boil. I don't know how long it takes water to boil! But it's going to boil eventually right? Right?! And I can't look at the site I read the scans on because the old adage says that that's going to make it take longer. Like many others, I spent more than 8 years watching that pot, waiting for it to boil. And that's not to complain, or to say that that time was wasted, that I didn't appreciate those chapters, those tiny bubbles and near-imperceptible wisps of steam, but to emphasize that feeling of liminality. My experience with Berserk has always been liminal. It started before I knew what manga was, before I was born even. I spent 15 years of my life reading, anxiously awaiting the next chapter, and as time went on and hiatuses became more frequent, worrying about Miura's health. And so when fans were upset that Miura's final chapter didn't wrap up the story in a nice bow, I understood, but I couldn't relate. Liminal stories shouldn't have closure, because then they cease to be liminal. There are other reasons I am satisfied with Miura's ending, reasons that have to do with my own trauma and the way that informs my relationship with Guts, Casca, and the very idea of closure, but I think this reading on liminality is one that might make sense to a lot of people. I think this also explains why I felt so many feelings of frustration towards the larger western Berserk fandom, which was largely adamant that more chapters be published in pursuit of a "better ending." Because why would you want such a liminal story to cease being liminal?

[westhefitting]

100 Gecs and JPEGMAFIA and Danny Brown are dominating my ears