Berserk/Heartwarming

It doesn't get anymore romantic than this. Awwww! ...No seriously - it doesn't.

As one would assume, heartwarming moments in this series are extremely rare and stand out all the more thanks to this. Soak in the awww's while you can.

• The Guts vs. Griffith water fight is heartwarming in the fact that in a world of blood, death and angst, two people with burdens to bear have a rare moment of just fooling around and becoming friends without a care. Reading or watching that part is tough now because of how much It Got Worse overall and between them later.
• The first Crowning Moment of Heartwarming between Guts and Casca came when he stayed behind to fight a horde of mercenaries so that she could escape (the famous Hundred Man Slayer scene, which also qualifies as a Crowning Moment of Awesome). When Casca rushes back with reinforcements, she finds a bloody and battered Guts slumped against a tree. She shakes him and shouts at him to wake up, but it seems that he's finally fallen in battle. Suddenly he puts his hand on her shoulder, gives her a weak smile, and says

"Don't shake me. You'll just make the wounds worse."

• • Casca tears up from relief and joy. It is the first time EVER that Casca shows warmth towards Guts.
• The first is undeniably Guts smiling genuinely for the very first time in the manga upon witnessing Griffith's Awesome Moment of Crowning right after becoming a full-blown knight.
• Another one is also one of the most aesthetic and beautiful scenes in the whole story, one that not even Berserk Abridged could spoof: the love scene between Guts and Casca. Not only the Scenery Porn makes the premises perfect but the whole dynamic of the moment was rendered in one of the most sensual and enthralling way that was ever drawn in the industry. That aside, it is actually one of the only few moments that Guts actually enjoyed for real in his life and finding love with Casca actually made him happy, for a short time though.
  • I'd have to say the sex scene between Guts and Casca. hbi2k, creator of Berserk Abridged, said it best: "finally, someone in this fucking series gets to have a moment of joy, for Christ's sake." That was him explaining why he couldn't bring himself to mock it, probably by playing "Let's Get It On".
  • There is also the impressive moment (manga only) in which Guts spills his beans about being sold out by Gambino and being raped. He is convinced Casca will find him disgusting now, but instead Casca tenderly throws herself at him and she heals at least one of Guts's mental wounds. From this point forward Guts is eternally devoted to her. It's probably the most realistic and deep moment of the entire series. Remember people: Many former victims of child abuse never even tell their partner anything about it and remain damaged forever. This scene must have been therapeutic for at least someone out there.
    • And this touching revelation was laced with nightmare-induced Fridge Horror since Griffith might have gained omniscience through his transformation and found out that this particular event was Guts' Achilles' heal, taking advantage of it during the Eclipse... but let's not think about that now. Palate cleanser!
  • Probably the most heartwarming part of their scene takes place afterward when Casca gets upset when Guts says that he was going to leave the Hawks after everything with the Griffith rescue is straightened out, and she starts crying and hitting him. Then Guts tells her that she should come with him, even though it goes against his whole way of thinking, but that he wants to be with Casca and take care of her. The two of them then share the cutest kiss. Aww!
• During the Griffith rescue operation, Guts and Casca begin acting Like an Old Married Couple after They Do the deed, much to the amusement of the Judeau and Pippin. There is some tension in the air when Guts and Casca show some obvious signs of jealously toward one another such as when Guts gets miffed at Casca for being too concerned about the relationship between Griffith and Princess Charlotte, and when Casca casts a wary eye on Princess Charlotte when she gets physically close to Guts, but it all gets neutralized by their obvious show of affection toward one another like when Guts thought it was a bad idea for Casca to go through the secret tunnel into the dungeon because she was the commander and needed to be out of danger's way (though he was really more concerned about Casca being in danger as his lover) and when Casca gently cools Guts down and tenderly wipes the blood off of his face after he had slaughter dozens of Midland soldiers. The cutest part was when Casca gets anxious part of the way and grabs onto Guts' cape ("Like a lost child," he said).
• My favorite is probably In the 11th volume Guts has an enormous battle with the Apostle Wyald. He uses everything thing he can to finally bring the beast down. All the while his lover Casca is watching. When the battle finally ends she rushes out her eyes begin to water up with fear that Guts has finally bought it. Then she notices something and gives a trembling smile while the tears start pouring out. Revealing that Guts, despite being bloody all over the place is giving the thumbs up and smiling. The last page is Casca embracing Guts and her being nearly naked does not actually detract from it at all, amazingly.
• A completely unexpected incident of this comes in the form of the Count, one of the most horrible minor villains in the series. A demon who has vast numbers of innocent people executed on trumped up charges and enjoys torturing and eating alive human beings, the Count is butchered by Guts. His despair and agony summon the Godhand, who offer him a new body and continued life at the price of his daughter. After looking at Theresia and being reminded of a time when he was truly happy, he chooses eternal damnation and nothingness over sacrificing her to demonkind.
• The moment when Puck rescues the wounded Guts from the forest spirits. It's the first time he refers to Puck by name, and marks the start of his turn from Sociopathic Hero to potential Jerk with a Heart of Gold.
• The mysterious child in the beach mini-arc is definitely one of those. It was one of the few times Guts had a (small) break and showed how he would behave in a family.
  • It's both heartwarming and heart-aching to see that if things had turned out differently, Guts would have made a pretty decent father (or a lot better than Gambino), despite his past interactions with children.
• Relatedly, the scene where Casca and Guts's demon-baby comes to Casca's rescue when she's on trial for witchcraft. The poor thing is horribly deformed and corrupted by evil due to Femto's rape, but all that still can't extinguish its love for its mother.
• Judeau had a lot of these involving Casca, and Guts had a few, too. At various points when Casca was silently despairing over Griffith's emotional distance, Judeau would say just the right thing to restore her confidence and cheer her up. And just after the Hawks have won their biggest victory, Casca is shedding silent tears while watching Griffith from afar; Guts promptly scoops her up to carry her over to him.
  • Combined with a Tear Jerker when one of the last things Judeau ever says is to remind Casca that Guts is in love with her, even if he doesn't say it.
• After an encounter with the reincarnated Griffith, a fight with Zodd, and the destruction of their elf-protected cave home, Guts decides to depart for Elfheim so that he and Casca (or at least Casca) could live in peace away from the dangers of being branded. They leave while it's snowing and Guts wraps his cape around the both of them and says that he would never leave her like he did two years prior again.
• There is something touching about Morgus' personal body guards. They, or at least the group's leader, admits they are complete monsters and their devotion to the guy isn't by religious zealous but more out of 'I Owe You My Life'. The bit where the Twins are feeding crows, who are suddenly drawn much cuter, or when the leader of the band uses his final moments to kneel, pray, and thank Morgus for having a less miserable life. Villagers have it VERY rough in Berserk-verse so imagine how rough it is for deformed humans or a man who blisters and burns when he is in the sun, can they really be fully hated for a complete monster taking them in? This all kind of leads in the Egg-Shaped Apostle wishing he could have joined with them.
• The victory ball. Yes, yes. We all laughed out loud at Guts' reaction to Casca looking ultra prettied up. But the conversation that the two had on the balcony is rather cute. After they both banter about how much they don't like social gatherings such as the ball, Guts goes onto joking about Casca's appearance. Casca then shows an insecure side to her personality, telling Guts how she felt goofy in a dress and that she was embarrassed to be showing off so much skin because of her muscle. But then Guts reassures her that she looked very lovely and that she looked way more attractive than the noblewomen at the ball. Not only did he succeed in cheering her up, but it was the first time that Guts hinted to Casca that he thought that she was beautiful.
• Here's a new one: Guts on Schierke. During their breather beach chapter, Guts and Schierke meet each other on the beach, looking at the moon and at the ocean. They have a conversation, and along the way, Guts tells Schierke to not overburden herself with the issues of other and that she needs some time to think about herself. She tries to brush it off by saying that she's cool with everything that had already happened to her which included her losing her home and her mistress, but little Schierke just can't help it and cries into Guts. He does his Aloof Big Brother thing and lets her cry into him, and Schierke tells him that she feels better after doing so.
• The humans of Midland and Griffith's monsters working together to fight against Ganishka's demon-spawn and overcoming their natural hatred and fear of one another to serve a greater cause.
• The ending of the PlayStation 2 video game Berserk: Millennium Falcon Hen Seima Senki no Shoo. The plot follows the general story that takes place after Guts and Casca's departure from Godo's house, with Guts forming a group with Serpico, Farnese, Isidro, and Schierke. Though the intense sexual content that surrounded their predicament was omitted, Casca still fears Guts, which understandably makes Guts feel crappy. However, after their departure from the spirit tree and Guts collapses after the injuries he sustained, Casca approaches him fearlessly and coos at him affectionately, making Guts lose consciousness with a smile. Even though it was not canon, it just makes you feel better to know that in this continuation, Casca got over her fear of Guts a bit quicker, and the thought of just having Casca smile at him lifts Guts' spirits even when he's bloodied and battered. It does bring a hint of sadness when you think back on the official continuity.
• The scene where the Hawks are on the plains on the outskirts of the Midland. It is the last serene moment that the Band of the Hawk share together and is therefore the calm before the storm. During this time, the Hawks are coming to terms with what might be the end of their band and are figuring out what lies ahead of them. We not only see Guts and Casca give each other emotional backing, but Guts and Judeau have one last talk, with Judeau telling Guts to take Casca with him no matter what, and Gaston and the rest of the raiders telling Guts that they were prepared to follow Guts wherever he goes. Guts finally realizes that he already had something when he was with the Hawks, and regrets leaving them a year ago. It's comforting but also very disturbing that all of this happened sheer minutes before all hell broke loose.
• The mermaids rescuing Guts from the body of the Sea God in chapter 327. We see supernatural beings which are good in the horrible world, we also see said supernatural caring and aiding Guts and treating him as a hero. The mermaids resemble angels in this picture.

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