The popular Berserk dark fantasy manga is set to resume serialization, a major announcement from publisher Hakusensha has revealed. Picking up the baton from the late Kentaro Miura are his friend and fellow mangaka Kouji Mori and the former’s assistants.

As explained in a message from Mori on the Hakusensha website, he was the only person who had been informed of Berserk‘s full story by Miura. “I will recall the details as much as possible and tell the story. Also, I will only write the episodes that Miura talked to me about,” he wrote. “I will not flesh it out. I will not write episodes that I don’t remember clearly. I will only write the lines and stories that Miura described to me. Of course, it will not be perfect. Still, I think I can almost tell the story that Miura wanted to tell.”

Hakusensha’s Young Animal Editing Department noted that Miura did not leave behind rough drafts, and stated that while it would be impossible to create a manuscript exactly as Miura would, “we will write the manga so as not to deviate from Mr. Miura’s own words.” On how the resumption will be carried out on the publishing side, it wrote, “From the next issue [Issue 13], we will first publish six chapters until the end of ‘Fantasia Arc/Elf Island Chapter’. After this, we will start a new arc.”

Following the resumption, Berserk will have the credits of “Original work by Kentaro Miura, Manga by Studio Gaga, Supervised by Kouji Mori.” The manga volumes’ numbering will maintain their order.

Currently, 41 tankoubon volumes have been published as of December 2021. Miura passed away from a ruptured aortic dissection on May 6, 2021 at the age of 54.

Mori shared that he was initially unsure about what to do with his knowledge of Berserk‘s story, saying that he wondered if he should talk to fans via an interview or publish article with illustrations. Below is an excerpt from his statement:

Just when I was trying to decide what to do, I received a message.
“The staff are saying they will finish the last chapter that was left behind, so can you take a look?”
The last few pages of the chapter were incomplete. Some did not even have the characters drawn on them.
I took a look at the manuscript, without expecting much.
Desperation can push people to create miracles — There it was, the completed manuscript for Berserk.
“Mr. Mori, will you let us do it?”
Miura’s apprentices, who Miura had been so proud of while he was alive, asked me straight.
Company Director Shimada, a mentor for me and Miura, also said, “If you do it, the company will give our full support.”
I thought, if I run away now, Miura would say:
“I talked to you about it so much, but you didn’t do it!!”
Alright. I’ll do it properly.

Berserk first began serialization in Hakusensha’s Monthly Animal House in 1989, and later moved to Young Animal in 1992. The manga has inspired multiple anime adaptations, including 1997’s Berserk, the 2012-2013 Berserk: The Golden Age Arc film trilogy, and a 2016 CG TV anime adaptation. Berserk has also been adapted into several video games, including 2016’s Berserk Musou. 

Dark Horse describes the manga as:

His name is Guts, the Black Swordsman, a feared warrior spoken of only in whispers. Bearer of a gigantic sword, an iron hand, and the scars of countless battles and tortures, his flesh is also indelibly marked with The Brand, an unholy symbol that draws the forces of darkness to him and dooms him as their sacrifice. But Guts won’t take his fate lying down; he’ll cut a crimson swath of carnage through the ranks of the damned — and anyone else foolish enough to oppose him! Accompanied by Puck the Elf, more an annoyance than a companion, Guts relentlessly follows a dark, bloodstained path that leads only to death…or vengeance. Created by Kentaro Miura, Berserk is manga mayhem to the extreme — violent, horrifying, and mercilessly funny — and the wellspring for the internationally popular anime series. Not for the squeamish or the easily offended, Berserk asks for no quarter — and offers none!

Source: Hakusensha website