Just one more of those posts where I’m amazed by how far authors can go with symbolism, parallels and the like. 

I didn’t notice it just now, but I felt like mentioning it because I miss updates + it’s also motivated by a post I’ve seen about not being fond of how Miura-sensei handles sex (as in, artistically speaking) in Berserk and, while I definitely respect that opinion, it reminded me that I wanted to write this for a while. 

So, nsfw post ahead! I don’t mean to speak about context for once, but simply about how the way Sensei chose to draw the two moments actually illustrates just as well in what these two dynamics differ.

Where do I start? Maybe by the fact that Griffith/Charlotte opens the 9th volume while Guts/Casca ends it, which is definitely not a coincidence. 
And also the settings: super stormy night with Griffith slipping undetected in Charlotte’s room vs sunny day in the forest near a waterfall for Gustca. 

As for how it all begins: as soon as Griffith shows up, Charlotte hugs him and starts crying about all the many things that happened recently and he’s still so damn shook by what Guts pulled on him that he jumps onto the occasion to reinsure himself that his dream can still be achieved/seek some comfort and

that’s the result: she’s very surprised and he just went “to hell with it”, with both their eyes wide opened as they kiss, full of disbelief. 

In comparison, for Casca and Guts the discussion leads to a fight because #confrontation and #confused-feelings and while it also ends with Casca crying on Guts…

…unlike Charlotte and Griffith, the first kiss comes from a mutual desire, not at all unexpected and fully committing to the moment (= their eyes are closed). 

Coming up next, we have foreplay: still in a hurry for Griffith, to show in what state of mind he was, and with Charlotte barely registering what’s going on… 

even going as far as to utter a slightly hesitating “no” before they reach the bed

vs Guts and Casca taking a lot more time and undressing each other first.

This leads to one of my favorite contrasting parts, just after Charlotte says “no” and is pushed on the bed, we get this…

whereas Guts noticed how Casca, too, was afraid

but it’s followed by 4 pages of her explaining why with Guts listening to her and…

providing comfort. Of course, the two dynamics aren’t the same at all, but still, it’s worth mentioning because I’m sure it’s a part of the mirror effect. 

(slightly more below)

I could go on with how the whole Griffith/Charlotte sex scene is cut by a few moments showing the Band of Hawk, or even the maid who caught them, when the moment is never interrupted for Guts and Casca. 

Also, the act of penetration itself is just like the very first kiss for both couples: without warning and rather rough, considering Charlotte’s expression, with Griffith thinking intently about Guts the whole time, which emphasizes on the angsty atmosphere of the whole scene…

vs Guts at least warning ahead the first time, even if him too will have a flashback about when he was raped as a child, but with their second time flowing in continuity with the whole moment ‘till they reach climax together. 

Also let’s talk about the following:

vs

Because where Charlotte being most likely in some pain does nothing to stop Griffith’s pace, Casca’s expression triggers an intense stress for Guts, bringing him back to his own trauma (also eased in my opinion by the fact that he’s taking her from behind at that moment, which is exactly what happened to him). 

Speaking of which it’s interesting to point out that, while Casca and Guts both get to do some introspection (first Casca about her feelings and then Guts about the fact he was abused as a child), which brings them even closer, Griffith is fully haunted by Guts’ departure but does not utter a word about it, just like we do not get any thought at all from Charlotte. 

Similarly, while Guts is having a breakdown about his past and Casca manages to comfort him just like he did with her at the beginning

Charlotte doesn’t even know how much Griffith is angsting over Guts’ departure and as such he doesn’t really find the comfort he was looking for. 

This is overall illustrated by when the two couples climax…

(I don’t think I need to point out in what these two scenes are so opposed) and also by how the two moments end…

even if I have to mention that Griffith was considerate enough to leave a flower for Charlotte after he spent a large part of the night probably crying as she slept (which is actually really sad & I’m not being ironic: the flower was a nice touch).

That being said the flower itself is contrasting with Guts asking Casca to leave with him once they’ll have freed Griffith (I know, it’s vol10): there is a wish for a future together for Gutsca, meanwhile Griffith leaving a flower for Charlotte is more akin to “thanks for that one night together (maybe there’ll be others)”.  

There may be more that I haven’t mentioned but you get the idea. 🙂 

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Overall I think a point I really wanted to make was that, yes, Miura-sensei is always extremely explicit and detailed when he draws and it doesn’t always please everyone on the matter of nsfw (not that it has to, obviously).

That being said, personally I really enjoy that the man is so skilled that, even if he’s being vividly graphic all the time (as in he draws naked characters on plenty of different occasions and it’s always with a lot of visible anatomical details), he can still easily show a lot of contrast between 

• a moment that’s about sex for the sake of reinsurance, with two characters being in fact disconnected and one of them hurting 
• and another that’s about emotional lovemaking after two characters realized that they were in love with each other.

So I disagree that being graphic in both the beautiful and horrifying, awkward or  disgusting moments is not differentiating enough. The Griffith/Charlotte and Gutsca sex scenes, albeit both explicit in the exact same way (we see the same body parts + foreplay, penetration and climax), are in fact completely different. 

It’s a matter of context too obviously, since the 4 characters and their dynamics are vastly different, but still I believe that nsfw material can be used to make a point and I like the different ranges of just “how” in Berserk.