Our in-house Berserk fan dresses up as one of the series most memorable faces…and no, it’s not Guts of Griffith.
It’s now been three weeks since we learned about the death of manga artist Kentaro Miura, creator of Berserk, who passed away in early May at the age of 54. Among those deeply saddened by Miura’s sudden passing is SoraNews24’s own Mr. Sato, a long-time Berserk fan.
They say that everyone grieves in different ways, and Mr. Sato’s first reaction was to go back and reread his favorite chapters of the manga. But he felt a longing to more actively work through his feelings, and that’s when he had an idea.
After decades of enjoying Miura’s art, Mr. Sato would himself create a visual expression of the Berserk world by cosplaying as one of its characters.
But the question then became who to cosplay as? Main character Guts would be the obvious choice, but looking around the office, Mr. Sato felt that if anyone were going to take on that role, it should be his colleague Masanuki Sunakoma.
▼ The guy knows a thing or two about wandering, after all, with as much time as he spends drifting back and forth across Japan.
So maybe Griffith? No. Along with his complex motivations and calculating ruthlessness, Griffith is known for his fabulous hair, and in that department, SoraNews24 reporter Seiji Nakazawa is the current champ.
After a few more minutes mulling over the possibilities, Mr. Sato realized that there really was only one logical choice for his Berserk cosplay, and now that he had his mind made up, he dashed off to make it a reality.
We really don’t like to let Mr. Sato run around Tokyo without adult supervision, so we followed him to his destination, which turned out to be the Sora Dormitory (the code name for a company apartment we lease).
As he stepped across the threshold, he immediately began taking off his clothes. We were frightened, but also too curious to look away, which, honestly, is pretty much how we always feel whenever the guy has an idea.
Now shirtless, Mr. Sato stood in front of the bathroom mirror and began applying bright red face paint…
…eventually transforming himself into Berserk’s Crimson Beherit!
An object of immense magical power, the beherits are ideas and ambitions given the physical form of a teardrop-shaped talisman with facial features that cry tears of blood before summoning a council of demon demigods.
▼ Why yes, Berserk is part of the “dark fantasy” sub-genre.
They also scream when activated, so Mr. Sato made sure to incorporate that into his performance.
▼ “Despair…”
With that, it was time to head back to SoraNews24 HQ and show off his cosplay to the rest of the in-office team.
In Japan, you ordinarily say “Ohayo gozaimasu” (literally “good morning”) or “Shitsurei shimasu” (“excuse me”) when entering an office. However, since Mr. Sato’s entrance was anything but ordinary, he changed things up.
▼ “Band of the Hawk!”
▼ “RALLY TO ME!”
Honestly, even by Mr. Sato standards, this was pretty far off the charts, and we figured the safest course of action would be to do as the crazy man said, so we did.
▼ “I…”
▼ “…LOVE…”
▼ “BERSERK!!!”
Yes, it’s a far cry from the somber tone of the Final Fantasy XIV player tributes to Miura, but again, everyone mourns in different ways. And considering how Miura himself, in contrast to the harsh world he created for Berserk, was a cheerful, easygoing guy, we hope he’s looking down at Beherit Sato and smiling.
Photos ©SoraNews24
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
[ Read in Japanese ]