Review of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

THE GOOD: Pretty much everything in this show is absolutely top level. The animation is among the best you could find in a seasonal anime, as well as the direction. Everything related to visuals is absolutely stunning, from character design, to coloring, to lighting. Then we get to the sound production. Voice acting is fantastic: not as bombastic as your usual shonen entry, but more realistic and definitely subtler, and for this reason I appreciated it so much more. The soundtrack is among the best and most interesting I heard in the last 10 years, Evan Call really pulled off a miracle here. To the uninitiated it mightsound unassuming, but it uses so many interconnected thematic elements in such a characteristic way that it could be used as a teaching device in composition courses. The 1st OP by YOASOBI is catchy and the ED by milet is melancholic and simply beautiful.
Also, the writing. This might look like your run-of-the-mill trope-y fantasy anime with the usual trope-y characters... nothing farther from the truth. All the characters, even the supporting cast, are well written with clear motivations and subtle quirks. The worldbuilding slowly goes from "generic high-fantasy with elves, dwarves and demons" to a detailed setting with interesting and original peculiarities.
Finally, the storytelling. This is probably what sets this show apart from the rest of the series out there. You might love it or hate it, but it will definitely leave a strong impression on you regardless. I personally loved the heavy use of subtext. You never have internal monologues giving you direct access to a character's thoughts and feelings: you either have natural dialogue with tons of nonverbal interactions, or flashbacks (quite a lot of them), but the deeper meaning of each scene is always left to the viewer's interpretation.

THE MEH:
The pacing might be too slow for some people. This isn't an action fantasy, it's more akin to slice-of-life, although you also have action-packed scenes in some arcs. For the same reason, the story might not be right up everyone's alley. There is only a very vague goal set after ep. 4, but no real plot as of now. You can "reconstruct" a semblance of a plot based on the many flashbacks we got this season, and that's part of the charm of the series, but if you are looking for a tighter story, you probably won't appreciate it.

THE BAD:
There is a certain reliance on shonen tropes in the second half of the season, but they are handled in an original way so it's not a big deal. In the same arc we also get introduced to a lot of new characters, meaning that we get less time for each, and this also affects the existing MCs (Stark appears only for a few minutes in total in the last 10 episodes or so).
To be fair I'm just nitpicking here. I would mention these things in the "meh" section for other shows, if I'd mention them at all. These are very minor issues and probably due to personal preference.

FINAL THOUGHTS: Frieren is currently ranked 5th in my personal top 10 for series, as of 2024. In my opinion, best anime series since Violet Evergarden (2018) and the best fantasy first season of all times. Its number 1 spot on MAL is well deserved.
Recommended if you like fantasy and slow-paced, contemplative shows.