The Ball Scene
Casca reveals a more feminine side of her to Guts. Because of this, he is crushing on her quite so. Guts is reassuring her and still attempts to persuade her into dancing with Griffith. During this conversation, it dooms on her that Guts really wants to leave the Hawks.
After the Hawk’s triumphant march into Wyndham, there is a formal celebration being held.
Guts is quite overwhelmed by the fact he has multiple ladies now on his tail and just leaves the scene to gain some space for himself.
Guts is not used to this kind of attention. Remember how he was always starved of appreciation and positive attention from Gambino? This is the exact opposite. The dude doesn’t even know how to deal:
For some reason, he notices the commotion around this lady here. Why is she surrounded by nobles? Wait, she’s actually looking at him? What is this?
Because he needs space, he calls her “pushy broad” as she tugs him along, I also like the face he makes as he says this. I mean what kind of woman would just drag him along like that? (Well… Casca would. 😂). Note how utterly confused and fascinated he is as he starts to realize this is actually Casca.
Casca too, needed a break from those pushy noblemen and asks Guts to accompany her for a bit. I absolutely love this page because Guts’ thoughts are somewhere else completely at the moment while she’s ranting. Not only this: as she says “a female warrior must be a rarity, treating me like I’m some exotic beast“, he looks at her like she really is an exotic “beast” (at least in that dress of hers). He’s crushing on her hard.
She eventually turns red and asks him what’s up:
Before he could finish speaking, she elbows him and embarrasses herself in front of other noble women. She then drags Guts – who correctly points out she’s the one at fault here – outside to escape the situation.
Thinking about it, Guts probably wouldn’t have even flinched had he not accidentally bitten his tongue.
I love how Casca’s first thought when trying to escape an uncomfortable situation is to drag Guts along. At least, they finally get some time for themselves now.
After they got outside, Casca notes how she’s not good at playing the role of a noble lady in a festive setting and how much she prefers swinging a sword in battle. Guts agrees with this and asks her what happened to her dressing like this.
She gets a little defensive, saying how much easier it is to dress like a man out of practicality (oof, relatable).
Casca is being insecure about going out of her comfort zone like this, stating she feels like she will catch a cold (…whats with Miura knowing how dresses work?). She’s worried her muscular build will affect the way she looks and then she asks Guts whether she looks weird.
Guts is reassuring her that she’s looking good the way she is and even insists she looks better than most noble girls – this was also “proven” by the way he looked at her when he first saw her. Another instance of Guts being the comfort character for Casca!
Then something interesting – and if you read between the lines, also tragic – happens. Guts asks her why she is not asking Griffith for a dance. Casca, as humble as she is right now, says that she’d only step on his feet because she hasn’t danced in forever.
A couple of things we can note here: for one, Casca in this setting is as feminine as possible. Like – she has mostly embraced her femininity solely by showing up in this dress and by the fact she is also being vulnerable. And in this “feminine state” she does not dare to ask Griffith for a dance – and thus get a possibility to bond with him – because she possibly does not perceive herself as a woman when she thinks of Griffith (if that makes sense). After all – she is his sword.
The other thing that’s tragic is that Guts fails to realize he there is indeed space for him in Casca’s life, given that she is too afraid or insecure to get closer to Griffith. She even asks him whether he’s going to leave no matter what (as if she implied that if anything, he should have stayed for her), as you will see later.
Next, Casca asks Guts what made him show himself in a place like this, since he never was someone to to show up on parties or celebrations. He states that he wishes to see the end by himself.
If the translation is anything to go by, I also find his wording interesting. First he mentions he wishes to see everything Griffith, him and the Hawks have done come together, and in the next panel, he seems to ignore his own contribution and makes it about Griffith: “all the things he’s managed to get so far…“.
Because Casca already has a hunch he wants to leave, she is asking him whether he’s serious; and then she is asking him “no matter what?”, as if she would be willing to make him stay (which she does later on by calling Griffith when he leaves). However, Guts would not be able to answer this question because once again, they are interrupted by the cheering inside of the festival hall.
How Casca felt about Guts leaving is established during the Passage of Dreams:
Casca knew that Guts would leave and this thought made her feel lonely and anxious. It is no surprise she does given she has been struggling with abandonment issues ever since her family sold her out to the noble when she was a child.
What is interesting as well is that right before the Battle of Doldrey, he made sure she got closer to Griffith by slapping her butt.
She looked back at him shortly after, concerned about Guts considering leaving the Hawks. And during the ball scene, it’s the same, except there is a big window between them now. Guts staying outside of the hall while the rest of the Hawks participate in the festivities can be taken as a metaphor or climax for his impending departure.
Berserk Analysis 
Compliments, I have been following all your analyzes for a long time and they are extraordinary and accurate. Rich and interesting. Thank you. I just wanted to tell you what I look for this part of them, when how they make love. Because I, after following up to here, want to see what you saw, understood and connected. As an example, the book Griffith shows to Guts, and if it as a connection or as they both consider “the thing” to their past, which they show in those scenes. How they behave or not, letting the other do it. Or after Albion when he heads and acts that way. I hope for your in-depth analysis, and if there is anything else I haven’t noticed. Thanks
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Hello Deia!
Thank you very much for reaching out and letting me know! It takes quite a while to write each one of the articles on this blog so I’m glad I can provide.
It’s true that both Guts and Casca show the other their deepest vulnerabilities and fears and as they do so, they are deeply understanding of each other. In that mutual understanding they find comfort, and end up making love beneath the waterfall. I think it’s that comfort and understanding that Guts has experienced with her that makes him protect her selflessly after Albion. At the same time, he seems to be so attached to Casca and these old memories he has of her. In some way it’s completely understandable that he is trying to cling on a tiny shred of hope after losing literally everything that was dear to him after the eclipse. But at the same time, he’s forgetting there are other people around him that may are capable of giving him some comfort as well (e.g. Farnese and Schierke, who both are capable of understanding him). It’s like Godo said in volume 18: “He turns and starts running towards something one way, without noticing some other thing, and nicks himself.” I am looking forward to witnessing whether Guts has learned this lesson after episode 359 – something tells me he did. There is still a lot of material for new articles!
There is another reason why I decided against covering Guts and Casca’s love scene directly, and that is wordpress’ mature content policy (the pages can be considered pornographic, which – from what I understand – can results in a ban at the staff’s discretion). Maybe I will find a way around that though.
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Thanks for your answer. It’s true what you said, besides Casca is the only person who made Griffith and Guts open with her, only her, and not between them. And she didn’t understand this, that she really got to know them, and in things that the two friends didn’t know about the other. She is the only one in the manga to be the person who knows them deeply and made them naked despite the suffering they wear like armor. And in return they have made her what she is, she changes and accepts everything, about herself and others, about Guts and what it was for her. but it would be long 😀
In fact there are things that they do not know about the other, but only Casca, and between her and Guts there is an understanding of various things that make them characters (and couple) better created in the panorama of the anime. And as Miura said, try to make the characters and their choices (and the epilogue of the story) as if it were real and lived by humans. I understand the problems of the theme of the scenes, I hope then that it is possible to be able to read even that piece, because it also contains that part of Guts that it holds inside, and external only with her and would like to live again. Thanks, I’m sorry if I can’t comment many times but I only have time to read (sometimes at different times) but I follow every post. Thanks for all your analysis and the futures you enter.
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“Next, Casca asks Guts what made him show himself in a place like this, since he never was someone to to show up on parties or celebrations. He states that he wishes to see the end by himself.”
WOW what a reference to the eclipse.
Nice work as always 🙂
At a first glance I thought Guts was acting like a jerk with Casca, c’mon Guts you are not that dumb to not see Casca has give up Griffith and is constantly giving you sights of interest.
Then I though that maybe Guts thinks everybody else should be as stubborn as he is, so Casca should insist with Griffith.
But if you check it twice, specially those finals “ilogical” frames where Guts leaves in front of Casca without a word. Why Guts did that? Well my though is, that’s the awkward way to flirt of Guts, a flirt that probably no one there, specially Casca, understood. But think about it, Guts was playing fair, with Casca and with Griffith, he wouldn’t say things to influence their thoughts, that’s the way Guts is, fair. Guts doesn’t wanted to start an affair with Casca in the Hawks, but at the same time he refuse to told Casca he is open to that outside the Hawks, waiting or hoping, Casca’s free will would do that or not, finally it was not.
He just said to her instead he hopes thing will be well to her and Griffith. This would also be jerk style if I wouldn’t think that Guts truly believes that somehow Casca would be capable to make Griffith feelings towards her change.
So another reason to leave the Hawks could be to put Casca in question, does she want to leave with him or does she want to stay with Griffith? I don’t have much evidence to back that, it’s just my opinion on what the hell is doing Guts there. If it was that, it was a sounded failure because Casca don’t even consider the possibility of leave with him, that’s why Guts smirk in that frame, he’s laughing on how profound he has fail with Casca, not making her able to understand his feelings and his true purposes with that departure.
PS: I hate you for saying Farnese and Guts doesn’t share true love haha, joke. Farnie is my platonic love I ship her with everybody, specially with Guts and Serpico for obvious reasons.
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