Frieren Beyond Journey's End Season 1
A slow-paced anime which deviates from the normal story of a party of heros fighting the 'big bad' and instead focuses on what comes after.
Review
I remember when I first heard of this anime and how much the community “raved” about it, I knew that when I would start watching it I would enjoy it but I wasnt aware of how much I would fall in love with it. The first episode was interesting since it starts with the celebration of the fall of the demon king, we got a glimpse at the part of the heros interacting and at that moment it didn’t feel like much to me. Later in the episode we watch Himmel’s death and since we had just been introduced to the character it still didn’t really “hit”. However as you watch the rest of the season and you truly begin to understand the character through the multiple flashbacks we get we start to understand how heavy that moment was - and of course on my second watch through of the first episode that funeral truly did “hit”.
The part which captivates me the most about Frieren is watching the main character - Frieren - experience how short and fufiling a human life can be, even if it’s insignificant. The show has a slow burn but it really does drive that home. It also shows what it means to be a hero - Himmel, was always willing to help those in need, regardless of how insignificant the help was and it truly does show what a “Hero” should be.
Another aspect which surpised me is how amazing and well thought out the fighting was (also the music). I was not expecting a slice of life anime to how such beautiful fight sequences. Although the magic system is definitely “soft” magic but that’s fine because the intricity of the magic system is not important to the plot and does not matter to us as the viewer.
What I Loved
- Pacing
- Story
- Music
- Characters
What Could Be Better
- Not enough episodes!
Final Thoughts
One of the better anime’s I’ve watched and one that I will remember for a long time. Hopefully the later seasons will keep up.