Reviews

I don't know if it's because my experience with fantasy anime is rather limited or if it's because I'm not seeking the high intensity anime bullshit that once enticed a younger me, but this to me is one of my favorite anime, maybe within the top 3. A better reviewer would deep dive into the individual aspects of how to arrive at that score, and to be honest I would give it an 8 objectively since some animation, designs, worldbuilding, and music is a tad less than perfect but my focus is not on any of those realms. Instead my great enjoyment of this anime (and subsequent 10 score) stems from the story and the feeling of comfort I experienced as I watched it. When I read manga or read anime, the flashback to explain a powerup or important lesson or meaningful moment is a classic staple and Frieren had some of the best explorations of this trope, particularly why Frieren's favorite spell is how to create a field of flowers, it's a large connection to two of the most important people in her life in different moments across her timeline. Flashbacks are interspersed to give important background to various characters and seeing how it all interconnects in the end of the arc or episode is so satisfying. The travelling group encountering challenges on the daily and solving them in real time without quick need to advance is also fulfilling because sometimes you just gotta take things slow. At some point in the past I might have agreed with Fern's early reluctance to take things slow, as if the world was ending if I didn't get to the next step in the journey. But I think Frieren's stop and smell the roses approach is a tactic I'm learning to appreciate in my own life. Even though there is a large cast of characters coming in and out, the tender care the author/story provides in order to reveal their importance to the story is a good tactic in letting me enjoy the ride. The arcs we were given had a decent variety, sometimes solo growth arcs, sometimes flashback arcs, sometimes just chilling and getting through life arcs (Fern sick, Stark as prince) the tournament/exam arc of the end was a great pivot point to have people continue reading the manga onwards. The slow reveals in piecemeal tidbits of lore and the world I love, I've seen people say good or bad worldbuilding but I don't think there's an emphasis on the world because I agree it's underdeveloped but it's not something that would detract from the series since it's so character and storydriven. A deep world dive is not what we need to understand this land that Frieren inhabits, in fact, the majority of Frieren's existence has been her just living through things and not paying them any mind until she notices the finality of Himmel's death. I enjoyed watching a longlife being growing to understand the shortlived experience, to know and learn emotions of another species, to watch her and her friends just exist. It may reveal that I enjoy slice of life vibes, and to mix slice of life with fantasy, it was a treat.