7 Gut-Wrenching TV Betrayals
4. Berserk- Griffith Sacrifices The Band Of Hawk
Griffith was the ideal leader; he had the face of an angel and the charisma to back it up. This allowed him to craft the Band of Hawk into an effective fighting force. Like most great leaders he was not without his faults, notably his arrogance and desire for greatness. Griffiths thirst for power and need to be in control is what led to his downfall, and the eventual betrayal of those that were devoted to him.
Guts was the only member of the Hawks that Griffith counted as a friend; when he chose to leave and abandon his leadership, the wounded Griffith became reckless. Having engaged in affair for which he was imprisoned and horribly tortured- Griffith was a broken man. The discovery of Guts relationship with fellow Hawk Casca was the final straw. The crippled and disfigured Griffith was determined to regain his power, he chose to sacrifice the band to demons so that he may be reborn.
As the Band of Hawk is slaughtered, Griffith is reborn as the Demon Femto. He then proceeds to assert his authority over the surviving Guts and Casca. His first act as Femto is to rape Casca in front of the despairing Guts, costing his former friend an eye and arm in the process. It is a brutal sequence to watch but excellently conveys the story of a sociopath with delusions of grandeur. Griffith had the loyalty of every member of the Hawks- they were his family- but his need to have more made him throw it all away.