Berserk - Episode 6 (Review)

By: Mithrandiel[yasr_multiset setid=11]Miss my previous reviews? Check them out here: Episodes 1&2, 3, 4, 5Berserk continues to pick up momentum as we venture deeper into the Conviction arc. The episode begins with Guts on the move, seeking his former lover Casca with ceaseless determination. On his journey he encounters a familiar face...er....skull.The Skull Knight tells Guts that as one of the only creatures capable of doing battle with apostles and other high-ranking demons, he is currently pursuing the God Hand. Guts is shocked to hear that the immensely powerful group is nearby, but rather than tremble with fear, Guts is excited and even joyous at the chance to fight them.The Skull Knight continues by telling Guts another "eclipse"-like event was going to happen soon. That's right - an incident similar to the horrific event that transformed Griffith into a member of the God Hand was due to happen, thus the God Hand would be making their nefarious appearance. Following their brief meeting, the Skull Knight takes off and Guts is left with renewed energy at finding Casca.I enjoyed this opening scene quite a bit - the Skull Knight looks awesome, and the brief conversation helps build some hype around the forthcoming cataclysm. Of course, the episode then proceeds to ignore Guts for the remainder of the episode.Back at the Tower of Conviction, Farnese has some doubts regarding their "holy" mission. Concerned that the refugees they are tasked to care for will turn against them, Farnese seeks understanding from Mozgus. Of course, Mozgus resigns this to a lack of faith, and feeds directly into the female commanders zealous attitude by challenging her to commit herself to God once again, and that he is the only one that she's doing anything for.Invigorated by Mozgus' words, Farnese re-doubles her efforts, burning heretics at the stake and tightening the control over the growing refugee population that surrounds the tower of conviction.I'm really not a fan of Farnese as a character. She's too easily manipulated and flat, and is being cycled through the same motions over and over again. Mozgus is more interesting as an out-and-out villain, as he commands attention whenever he's on screen. While he's an evil zealot, he seems far more dedicated to his religion than Farnese. Sure, she's into self flagellation and all that, but her experience with Guts followed by Mozgus' controversial tactics put her back on the fence. If she needs a pep talk like this every other episode, it's going to get old real fast.The third and final arc of the episode revolves around Nina, a prostitute working in the refugee tent-city that encircles the tower of conviction. At the end of episode 5, it was revealed that Nina was infected with a sexually transmitted disease. As a result, when she's pursued by a friend named Joachim she resists his advances. Insistent, Nina tells Joachim to meet her by the river at midnight. Then, she starts off the conversation like any normal girl would...Nina leads Joachim to a wild midnight party with dozens of naked men and women dancing around a large bonfire. Screenshots would be a bit much, but trust me when I say that Berserk is definitely maintaining its "adult" classification, even if the women all miraculously have lost their nipples.Joachim and Nina have sex amidst the psychedelic experience, and Nina attempts to recruit him into their creepy cult. When he realizes that the broth Nina wants him to drink is full of human body parts he freaks out (understandably) and attempts to run away. Nina orders her companions to kill him and as a result Joachim falls off a cliffside - presumably to his death.Following the party, Luca emerges to bring Nina back to her senses, even after Nina clocks her in the head with a stone.Nina hurls insults at Luca to try and distance herself, but Luca ignores her and literally puts her over her knee and gives her a good spanking, to which Nina responds by apologizing and being reduced into a sobbing mess.With Nina back to normal, she and Luca find Elaine (Casca in disguise) being harassed by some of Nina's companions from the earlier bonfire. When they begin to assault Casca, evil spirits manifest and begin to devour the assailants in an immediate and immensely satisfying instance of karmic retribution.When the demons attempt to turn on Casca, a creepy spirit appears and the meat-eating monsters dissipate immediately. Not surprisingly, the surviving cultists believe that Casca's a witch and elevate her as a result. The animation style continues to grow on me, and the quality of the story is beginning to outweigh the minor gripes I have regarding the aesthetics of the series. Farnese remains a flat and uninteresting character, and Guts continues to be put on the back-burner despite the fact that the show does so well with him in the spotlight. His time to shine is coming soon, and in the meantime I can be patient.Berserk continues to improve week after week... I just hope it continues this momentum! If you haven't checked it out yet, make sure to do so!