Kentaro Miura, author and creator of the influential manga “Berserk,” died on May 6 due to acute aortic dissection, according to an official statement from publisher Young Animal Comics. He was 54.

Miura’s influence on modern fantasy writing and art can hardly be overstated. First started in 1989, “Berserk” is a serial dark fantasy story about a knight named Guts and his extremely big sword. While the series is most famous for its dark themes and violence, it has sold over 50 million copies arguably on the strength of its character work and its complicated intrapersonal relationships as much as its Hieronymus Bosch-inspired art style.

“Berserk” arguably started a visual trend that continued in heroes like Cloud Strife of “Final Fantasy VII” and Dante from “Devil May Cry.” Perhaps the most famous example of his inspiration is within the “Dark Souls” series by From Software, which borrows much of Miura’s monster design to create its own nightmarish hellscapes.

The “Berserk” story is most famous for its Golden Age arc, the second story in the series. The arc is arguably the series peak, telling the origin of the complicated hero-villain relationship of Guts and Griffith, the beautiful and charismatic leader of mercenaries who eventually becomes obsessed with Guts. The name of the arc belies its dark nature. To this day, when artists and creators think of “dark fantasy,” they often think of the Eclipse moment within the Golden Age arc, which makes the red wedding sequence of “Game of Thrones” feel like a tea party by comparison. The Golden Age arc has been adapted into anime and a film trilogy.

Thousands of players within the online role-playing game “Final Fantasy XIV” gathered online last night and this morning to pay Miura tribute. Many of those paying their respects are within the Dark Knight class, which was heavily inspired by “Berserk” and Miura.

“Berserk” may very well be a story that remains unfinished, as it is still ongoing today. Miura famously took long breaks (often measured in several years) in between story arcs. His readers were often very patient with these breaks, particularly since “Berserk” is more detailed and meticulously drawn (and planned out) than many standard manga works. It was a popular meme to guess what Miura might be up to during his hiatus, including his admiration for cute pop idol video games.

I’m a fairly recent fan of “Berserk.” Of course I had heard about how it inspired so much of the high and dark fantasy stories I’ve loved over the years, including the “Final Fantasy” and “Dark Souls” series. But I was hesitant to dive in because I was worried its influence on so many other works might’ve dampened its initial impact.

I was wrong. When I finally watched the anime a few years ago, it was as stunning and shocking as I imagined it would’ve been had I watched it in the 1990s. Beyond its extreme violence and sadness, there was aching beauty in how these characters wanted to be understood.

This feeling persisted as I read chapters after the Golden Age arc and grew to love the members of the Black Swordsman Party, all of whom continue to chisel away at trauma to find a more peaceful existence for themselves. It was then that I realized “Berserk” isn’t about acting out in violence or using anger as a motivation, it’s about moving past the pain, just as Guts is able to find peace and laughter among his new band of friends.

It’s actually never too late to see why “Berserk” and Miura’s art and writing has endured throughout the decades, and will live on through the countless other fantasy worlds he’s inspired. Like “Berserk,” Miura’s ability to inspire and move entire universes may never end.

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