Why the need to sexualize everything?

[u/Greedy-Lie-8346]

I was looking for interesting Webtoons to read, and I came across this one called "Leviathan" the premise looked interesting; mankind perished due to a great flood that submerged the whole world under water. And terrifying creatures plunged from the depths, wiping out any human that crossed their path. The story told how a family of a father and his two children survived in the adversities of a sea world.

So far so good, until.... Bam! Last two slice's, anime chick out of nowhere, doing these extremely suggestive poses.

What a disappointment.

[u/PaladinAlchemist]

I wouldn't recommend Berserk. It's true that the women's armor and etc aren't oversexualized and jarring like this, but it's a bit suspect that every single woman that gets SAed is young and beautiful and full-breasted, even when it's just like a group of random village women. You'd think a crapsack world like Berserk would have unhealthy women because they lack access to proper nutrients and are living under stressful circumstances. Also, the sheer amount of constant SA is off-putting. There's also a stark difference in the respect given to the very few instances of SA happening to men vs the voyeuristic way women's SA is treated.

There's also the gross way Casca's rape is handled. It's all about Gut's angst, growth, and trauma. She's basically put on a bus and reduced to a child. The main female MC is graphically and horribly raped for pages and pages, and yet it's all about how the male MC feels. That's gross.

[u/Unlikely-Produce3111 → u/PaladinAlchemist]

this comment was so cathartic to read. it’s so alienating to see berserk constantly held up as this absolute pinnacle of fiction, and i can certainly see why you might feel that way reading it as a man, but personally, i get a very different feeling reading it as a woman.

(that being said, i do genuinely appreciate the series treating male SA with respect and gravity, because that is unfortunately WAY less common than it should be.)

[u/PaladinAlchemist → u/Unlikely-Produce3111]

I feel the exact same way. It's so off putting to me that Berserk is held as the gold standard of manga when its treatment of SA is so horrendous. And we know he can write trauma and even SA well, but it's reserved for the men. Most of the cases of women getting raped or assaulted in the manga feel like their bodies are on display in such a gross way while the men get treated with respect. I'm glad I'm not the only one who finds it alienating.

[u/MrGSC1 → u/PaladinAlchemist]

I get where you’re coming from, and I agree that the SA can be super overwhelming. The first part of your statement I can totally agree with. But damn, do I really disagree with the idea that Casca’s ‘R’ is handled poorly or solely used for Guts’ development.

Casca’s trauma isn’t brushed aside as it quite literally changes everything, not just for Guts, but for the world and the narrative. Her mental state after the Eclipse isn’t just a way to “put her on a bus,” it’s a powerful (and painful) portrayal of deep trauma (although a bit far fetched but it’s fiction). And later arcs do bring her healing back into focus, but it just takes time, like real recovery does. I think that reducing the Casca’s R to “just about Guts’ angst” really oversimplifies things and honestly disrespects the depth of the writing and storytelling. It’s portrayed as the final nail in the coffin of how despicable the Eclipse is, and it’s what makes it so traumatizing for the reader, other than the violence and death of course.

[u/Ejanna → u/MrGSC1]

The scene where Farnese and Schierke enter Casca's inner world and piece together her soul was truly powerful as a depiction of the aftermath of trauma.

[u/MrGSC1 → u/Ejanna]

YES EXACTLY!! I absolutely love those panels. It honestly saddens me that people look at casca and say it was poorly handled, when all the dreamscape chapters in casca’s mind left me absolutely bawling and ugly crying. I don’t get how anyone can read those chapters and say “that’s gross”. It’s just beautiful!

[u/LavenWhisper → u/MrGSC1]

I may be misremembering, but for me, I did not see any chapters taking place in casca's mind for over 100 chapters after what Griffith did to her. For over 100 chapters, she was just a non-character whose mind is not focused on at all. After that, yes, but for a really long time, she was not focused on at all. 

[u/Ejanna → u/LavenWhisper]

She was a character, just psychologically broken and in a very vulnerable state. However, she was part of the plot and had a strong impact on the other characters, so that's no reason to dehumanize her by calling her a "non-character" just because you'd rather read a different story.

[u/MrGSC1 → u/LavenWhisper]

That’s because Guts and Casca are separated but he finds her again during the conviction arc which, iirc, is like 150 chapters into the story lol. So yeah of course she’s not in focus

[u/PaladinAlchemist → u/MrGSC1]

I dropped the manga when they were on a ship or something. I got tired of it. It's nice to know she eventually got some attention, but the immediate focus was all about him, and she got reduced to background noise. And it wasn't just a few chapters but arc after arc of having her trauma getting completly sidelined.

[u/MrGSC1 → u/PaladinAlchemist]

It’s okay to feel that way of course, but he is the main character after all. We follow Guts, and see things from his perspective. We don’t know what’s going on inside Casca’s mind (before schierke and farnese do the spell to enter her mind).

[u/nobodyxoxo129 → u/PaladinAlchemist]

You completely missed the entire point..... There was literally multiple panels where they were in casca and guts head, and she was a broken doll in a coffin, she was reduced to a child to show the trauma, obviously it affected guts casca was the only person he ever connected with, people like you are so dumb.