Review of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

Boy this was awesome. This anime deserves the world in what it brings to the table. While it never really made me cry tears or whatever, nor did it emotionally haunt me for months on end, there is possibly no other anime that can surpass this show in showcasing how effective anime can be in storytelling. To preface my review, let me ask you one question, what is the meaning of time for you, and what would you do if you had infinite amounts of it? That is the question that (at least the first part) of Frieren aims to answer. The show centres around Frieren, anelf who lives a practically infinite lifespan, and how she goes on a journey to understand human emotions after a comrade of hers in a party who defeated the Demon King dies.

Right off the bat, it throws us an interesting concept that we've really never seen before. Sure, we get a ton of Isekai and Fantasy shows that focus on defeating the Demon King of some sorts, but this is the first show that truly asks: "So, we beat em. What happens next?". The ability to create a concept and expand upon it so well is something Frieren does extremely well.

For Frieren, time is nothing. A year goes by in a blink of an eye. A decade goes by in a few steps. A century goes by after a day.
One of the most interesting aspects of this show would be how it manages to encapsulate just the speed at how Frieren views the world at, especially in the beginning before she embarks on her journey of self-discovery. You feel just how fast she views everything, especially with the first episode. Everything feels a bit rushed for me, but that's just how it's supposed to be. We're seeing how Frieren views time, a hundred plus years were basically the equivalent of a 24-minute episode for her back then.

The characters are also another strong point of the show. All of them are very well written and have motives behind the paths they took in life. Not once have I seen one that doesn't have something beneath the surface, even having quirks that each of them express which I think is a nice touch, makes for some really cute and funny moments in the show. Furthermore, it's interesting to just see the story of why they are they way they are unfold. It adds to the feeling of the world being real, and plays into Frieren's agenda of trying to understand human emotions.

But possibly what I think is the greatest feat of this show is how it managed to move on from it's main gimmick of tackling what happens after the renowned party defeats the Demon King. While the initial 12 episodes were more focused on world building and character building, as well as uncovering more about Frieren and her party members (Fern and Stark), the rest were just a flat out great fantasy-action type affair. The exam arc really featured some great battles and I really like the stories they uncovered throughout their journey. But the difference here is that they still manage to make it play into what this story was about in the first place: Frieren understanding human emotions and discovering what Himmel truly meant to her.

Not to mention, this is all complemented by the immaculate animation and music, courtesy of Madhouse and Evan Call respectively. I wouldn't say it's JJK or Your Name levels of amazing, but I'd definitely rate it A+ tier. It's quite in a similar vein to Mushoku Tensei. Good stuff.

Of course, it's not all perfect, I think the ludicrous and confusing pacing, the heavy story, and the somewhat insignificant moments in the show may be unenjoyable to some, but still, this is one of the best anime that has EVER come out, and one of the masters of storytelling. I've really yet to see anything like it.

It's a show that literally anyone can pick up and find something they take interest in. No matter if you liked the emotionally touching story of stuff like Violet Evergarden and Vinland Saga, the bombastic fantasy-action power trip of shows like Mushoku Tensei and Re:Zero, or the more lighthearted fantasy-exploration affair of shows like Majo no Tabitabi or Dungeon Meshi, this show is for you.

I rest my case.