Frieren (character) explained

Frieren
First:Frieren #1, "The Journey's End" (2020)
Creator:Kanehito Yamada
Race:Elf
Weapon:Magic staff
Affiliation:Party of Heroes
Gender:Female
Occupation:Mage
Alias:The Slayer

is the title character and protagonist of the Japanese manga series , created by Kanehito Yamada and illustrated by Tsukasa Abe. Frieren is a former member of a party of adventurers led by the hero Himmel, who defeated the Demon King and restored harmony to the world after a ten-year quest. Reuniting with her former party fifty years later, Frieren discovers that her companions have distinctly aged, and Himmel dies of old age after one last adventure to see a meteor shower. During the funeral, Frieren expressed guilt for not attempting to learn more about him. Frieren then pays a visit to her other former comrades, and in the process takes on a human apprentice named Fern. She also receives an invitation to travel to the rumored resting place of souls in the far north, where she aims to see Himmel again, bid the hero a fitting farewell, and express her feelings. To fulfill those requests, Frieren embarks on a journey together with Fern while still pursuing her passion for learning magic.

While initially conceptualized as a comical fighter, Yamada scrapped multiple ideas she had for Frieren until deciding to make her an elf who grows in the story while remembering Himmel. In the anime adaptation, she is voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki in Japanese and Mallorie Rodak in English. Critical response to Frieren's character was mostly positive, due to how the series focuses on Frieren's view of life and how she aims to become a better person. The further exploration of her dark past was also praised for how it changed people's views of her.

Creation

Series creator Kanehito Yamada originally envisioned Frieren as the protagonist of a comedy manga where she was obsessed with killing demons. In planning the series, editor Katsuma Ogura was impressed with Tsukasa Abe's artwork and suggested him to work with Yamada. Yamada was impressed with the first illustration of Frieren, believing the title character had an aura of humanity.[1] When he asked him to draw a character picture for Frieren, Yamada said, "If this is the person, please do it." Abe was put in charge of the animation.[2] [3] After several revisions involving comedy, the author came across with the idea of having an elf with a long lifespan as the main character. Although Himmel dies, his appearances in flashbacks were written to reflect Frieren's emotional growth. When Himmel appears, the author feels that the story tightens up. Even if it is sad, there is a catharsis.[2] For the animated adaptation by Madhouse, director Keiichiro Saito said that Fern appears to have several changes in the narrative as her growth has a major impact on Frieren.[4]

The song "Yūsha" was sourced from the short story, titled, written by Jirō Kiso and supervised by Yamada, telling about protagonist Frieren visiting a small town called "Music City" five years after the death of the hero Himmel. She receives a difficult request from an old woman she meets in a place filled with music.[5] It incorporates the main character Frieren's emotional changes and memories towards the hero Himmel,[6] expressing lonely and melancholy atmosphere of the anime.[7] Originally, the opening theme would focus on the worldview of Frieren's journey; however, the songwriter Ayase was not satisfied with the original version of the song, which he felt had "too much emphasis on the atmosphere". Thus, Ayase decided to rework the song even after submitting its first version to the anime's team.[8]

In the anime adaptation, Frieren is voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki in Japanese.[9] Because of Frieren's age, Tanezaki opted to use her lowest register to deliver her lines. She also sought to convey the generally relaxed tone of the series in her delivery.[10] Mallorie Rodak voices Frieren in the English dub.[11] Rodak appreciated voicing Frieren, having liked the character.[12]

Fictional character biography

Frieren is elven mage who was a member of the group that defeated the Demon King. Although she appears to be very young, she was born into a long-lived race of elves and has lived for over a thousand years. She prefers to spend her days seeking and learning rare spells. Because Frieren's sense of time is so dissimilar to that of humans, she has a great degree of patience, and is content to wait for months or years to achieve even small goals. Her sense of time also leads her to be viewed by humans as aloof and insensitive to emotion.

Frieren was initially raised in an unnamed village which was destroyed in an attack by the Demon King's forces. Escaping from this raid, she was taken in by a human mage named Flamme, and began learning magic under Flamme's tutelage. Centuries later, she joined Himmel's party, and after a ten-year journey their party defeated the Demon King. The party disbanded after this victory, and after Himmel's eventual death of old age, Frieren regretted that she had not become closer to him during his lifetime. As a result, she began another journey to learn more about humanity. On this second journey, she has been accompanied by a human apprentice, Fern; Frieren began mentoring Fern at the suggestion of her former party member Heiter. Frieren's goal is to reach the region of Aureole, a region in the far north where the souls of the dead are believed to reside, in the hopes of seeing Himmel again and giving him a more proper farewell.

Frieren's high level of magical skill and antipathy for demons have led her to receive the moniker ; the original Japanese phrase could also be translated as "Frieren the Undertaker".

Reception

Critical response to Frieren was mostly positive. Anime News Network claimed that Frieren's story stands out in among other fantasies due to its focus on her regrets after Himmel's death even if the time spent with him was not much for the elf race. Frieren was compared to the story of Rip Van Winkle as it similarly reflects the changes of times in the eyes of the protagonist which makes him and Frieren highly relatable. The funeral of Himmel changes Frieren's character as she decides to go on a journey to sort out her feelings for the hero.[13] Siliconera commented the manga helps to make readers sympathize with the elf's lifespan as the protagonist looks for a way to make the same regrets she had with Himmel and live a different life. This is highly notable in the episodic nature of the manga where Frieren now lives remembering all the lessons Himmel taught her and applies it to how she meets new people and value them more.[14] Crunchyroll also found Frieren to go through a notable character arc when Himmel dies and starts a new journey taking care of disciple of Heitel and Eisen's disciples, Fern and Stark, respectively, which he compared more to a role-playing game rather than action fantasy. Another aspect of Frieren's new persona in is how she begins to understand the relative briefness of human lives, and begins treasuring her human companions.[15] GamesRadar+ remarked that, unlike other shonen manga in the fantasy genre, Frieren's series focused more on slice-of-life happenings than on fighting.[16]

Richard Eisenbeis of Anime News Network praised the dynamics between the main characters as Frieren quickly goes through an arc when meeting Fern and Stark as her perspective of time changes as she meets these two teenagers while also building up her backstory with each episode.[17] The further developments of Frieren's journey alongside the growing romance of Fern and Stark was notable to Anime News Network as it helps to give further depth to the protagonist and Himmel's apparent relationship; While it becomes obvious to the audience that Himmel was in love with Frieren, the previous state the elf was in might not reciprocate his feelings, giving a sense of romantic tragedy.[18] Sequential Tart compared Frieren to Spock: "logical and aloof and having difficulty understanding humans, but also getting closer to being like humans as she goes."[19] Sheena McNeil of the same website called the concept of "what happens to the party when the quest is over?" interesting, praising as well Frieren's struggling with "becoming less detached" and seeing her experiencing the "lovely poignant moments, bittersweet ones, and happy ones".[20]

The eventual reveal of Frieren's past and nickname "Frieren the Slayer" was noted by Fiction Horizon as displaying new sides to her personality: the discovery that Frieren's family had been killed by demons, and the reveal of her cold and ruthless approach to fighting demons, was noted as a contrast to her otherwise easygoing nature.[21] Comic Book Resources also recognized that Frieren's viewpoint on the demons is quite different from that of other famous protagonists like Tanjiro from , though they see this as a breath of fresh air for anime as a whole.[22] This is mostly exemplified in Frieren's duel with Aura, which ends with Frieren magically compelling Aura to kill herself.[23] The Fandom Post acclaimed Frieren's true nature and backstory, with writer Dan Mansfield stating that it had surprised him how previous episodes built up the protagonist's hidden skills until Frieren's duel with Aura.[24]

A frame from the twelfth episode of the anime, in which Frieren makes a smug expression while presenting a potion, has attained popularity on social media.[25]

Richard Eisenbeis of Anime News Network awarded Frieren as a best character of 2023 due to how she "carries" the series with her characterization, remarking that she was able to pivot between serious and comical modes while still keeping a noble and tragic arc.[26]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Narita. Usa. Manga Taisho 2021: Q&A Session with Sousou no Frieren Editor. Manga Planet. April 14, 2021. October 15, 2023. April 14, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210414110250/https://mangaplanet.com/qa-session-with-sousou-no-frieren-editor/. dead.
  2. Web site: ja:葬送のフリーレン:マンガ大賞の話題作 誕生秘話 感情を揺さぶる理由. https://mantan-web.jp/article/20210312dog00m200017000c.html. Mantan Web. March 16, 2021. October 7, 2023. ja. July 5, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230705161732/https://mantan-web.jp/article/20210312dog00m200017000c.html. live.
  3. Web site: ja:マンガ大賞受賞「葬送のフリーレン」担当編集が語る思い「普遍的な感情が佇ずむ作品」. https://natalie.mu/comic/news/420318. Comic Natalie. Natasha, Inc.. March 16, 2021. October 7, 2023. ja. July 5, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230705161735/https://natalie.mu/comic/news/420318. live.
  4. ja:Interview: 斎藤 圭一郎 (監督) × 鈴木智尋 (シリーズ構成). Interview: Keiichirō Saitō (Director) × Tomohiro Suzuki (Series Composition). Newtype. Kadokawa Shoten. November 2023 issue. October 10, 2023. 18–19. ja.
  5. Web site: ja:秋アニメ「葬送のフリーレン」YOASOBIによるOPテーマ「勇者」のアニメフルMV公開! 楽曲用原作小説も. https://animeanime.jp/article/2023/09/29/80261.html. Anime! Anime!. September 29, 2023. September 29, 2023. ja.
  6. Web site: ja:アニメ「葬送のフリーレン」長命のフリーレンに種崎「いろんな日があっていいじゃない」. https://natalie.mu/comic/news/542254. Comic Natalie. Natasha, Inc.. September 23, 2023. September 27, 2023. ja.
  7. Web site: ja:YOASOBI『葬送のフリーレン』OPテーマ「勇者」配信リリース! MVプレミア公開も決定. https://www.thefirsttimes.jp/news/0000331505/. The First Times. September 29, 2023. September 29, 2023. ja.
  8. Web site: Mori. Tomoyuki. ja:YOASOBI・Ayase、自身の曲作りの"武器"は「メロディーの強度」<EP『THE BOOK 3』インタビュー>. https://thetv.jp/news/detail/1160469/. . Kadokawa Corporation. October 7, 2023. October 7, 2023. ja.
  9. Web site: Pineda. Rafael Antonio. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Anime's Promo Video Reveals Cast, Staff, Fall Premiere. Anime News Network. March 8, 2023. March 8, 2023. March 8, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230308040509/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2023-03-07/frieren-beyond-journey-end-anime-promo-video-reveals-cast-staff-fall-premiere/.195700. live.
  10. Web site: https://animeanime.jp/article/2023/09/29/80240.html. ja:種崎敦美&市ノ瀬加那が「葬送のフリーレン」から教わったこと「人生には終わりがある。だから日々を大切に生きていきたい」. Anime! Anime!. September 29, 2023. December 10, 2023. ja.
  11. Web site: Dempsey. Liam. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End English Dub Reveals Cast and Crew, Release Date. Crunchyroll. October 12, 2023. October 12, 2023. October 12, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231012160505/https://www.crunchyroll.com/news/announcements/2023/10/12/frieren-beyond-journeys-end-english-dub-reveals-cast-and-crew-release-date. live.
  12. mall0rie. Rodak. Mallorie. ✨I voice Frieren in #FrierenBeyondJourneysEnd!✨ WOW, I am so over the moon about this beautiful series! I LOVE this character and I hope to do her justice. I will be forever grateful to @jadbsaxton and @crunchyroll for thinking of me. Can't WAIT for you all to hear the cast!. 1712499618137948359. October 12, 2023. December 13, 2023.
  13. Web site: Everything Changes in Folktales and Frieren. Anime News Network. November 24, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  14. Web site: Lada. Jenni. The Frieren Manga Helps Us Understand an Elf's Lifespan. Siliconera. November 24, 2021. December 11, 2023.
  15. Web site: Mosquera. Amílcar Trejo. What is Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End? The Fantasy Adventure Series Explained. Crunchyroll. November 15, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  16. Web site: Bishop. Rollin. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End is easily the anime you need to pay attention to this season. GamesRadar+. September 29, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  17. Web site: Eisenbeis. Richard. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Episodes 1–6. Anime News Network. November 8, 2023. October 16, 2023. October 26, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231026015814/https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/review/frieren-beyond-journey-end/episodes-1-6/.203473. live.
  18. Web site: Eisenbeis. Richard. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Episode 14. Anime News Network. December 11, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  19. Web site: Moondaughter. Wolfen. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Vol. 1. Sequential Tart. November 4, 2021. December 24, 2021. December 24, 2021. https://archive.today/20211224205925/http://www.sequentialtart.com/reports.php?ID=12532. live.
  20. Web site: McNeil. Sheena. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Vol. 1. Sequential Tart. November 12, 2021. December 24, 2021. December 24, 2021. https://archive.today/20211224210721/http://www.sequentialtart.com/reports.php?ID=12537. live.
  21. Web site: Poe. Arthur. Frieren: Who Is "Frieren the Slayer"? Explaining the Protagonist's Nickname!. Fiction Horizon. October 21, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  22. Web site: Cardaro. Brett. Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Puts A Welcome Twist On The Most Generic Villain Concept. Comic Book Resources. December 11, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  23. Web site: Poe. Arthur. Frieren: How Was Frieren Able to Defeat Aura? (& Why Did Aura Kill Herself?). Fiction Horizon. November 12, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  24. Web site: Mansfield. Dan. Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Episodes #08 – 10 Anime Review. The Fandom Post. November 13, 2023. December 12, 2023.
  25. Web site: Boycillo. Andrea Dawn. Daleziou. Madalena. Smug Frieren Challenges Anya's Iconic Meme Face. EpicStream. November 27, 2023. December 11, 2023.
  26. Web site: The Best Anime of 2023 - Richard Eisenbeis, Nicholas Dupree, Gunawan + The Best Characters of 2023. Anime News Network. December 28, 2023. December 28, 2023.