Frieren

Watch on Netflix

Episodes: 28 twenty four to twenty six minute Episodes

Rated TV-14

Frieren and her companions have defeated the Demon King, but the end of their journey begins the next one. When you live as long as Elves do ten year journeys are only a minuet amount of time and by the time you get to know someone they have passed away.

Themes:

Time, friendship, ends, death, magic, death, fear of death, heroism, life, lifelong companions, age, apprenticeships, teaching, mana, legends, spell collecting, what to do with power, finances, travel, vices, understanding people, trying, believing in people, helping others, adventuring parties, fear, afterlife, searching, sleeping in, mana, power, sacrifice, saving people, trickery, hiding true power, demons, emotions, empathy, loss, romanticizing heroes, myths, teamwork, meaning, heaven, wisdom, being remembered, tests, trust, and gratitude.

Language:

B*stard - 1 B*tch - 2 D*mn - 8 Hell - 5 (a few of these are not used in a curse word way) Pissed Off - 1 Sh*t - 2

Stuff to be aware of:

Alcohol/Smoking - There is a priest that likes to drink. A character pours alcohol over a person’s grave. There is a brief scene in a bar that is filled with smoke and there is a hookah sitting on a table.

In episode thirteen there are a few characters that smoke and drink. One character smokes most of the time you see him. It is mentioned to be tobacco he smokes. He is a main character and he smokes regularly.

Religion - There are discussions about this world’s version of heaven. Characters discuss if it exists or not and one character mentions that an afterlife can’t be proven by magic. These discussions happen periodically, and there is talk of a goddess. There are a few times characters pray to the goddess.

The priests in this world casts healing spells and are called “father.”

Scary - In episode two and three there are brief scenes where you see a demon’s face. It is brief and then gone. In episode three there is a large demon that has a discussion with the main characters. They do fight via spells, but no psychical fighting. The demons don’t properly move their mouths when talking. When the demon in episode three is beat he disintegrates into the air.

There are some ruffians in a smoke filled bar. One has sharp teeth, but they end up being friendly.

In episode five there is a brief discussion and glimpse of gross looking zombies. There are spectres that look like characters that have passed away. There is ghostly looking being above them that covers its face. He doesn’t appear long before destroyed. There is also a scary looking dragon. In episode six a creepy looking zombie monster that has two heads and torsos on one body. It is kind of gruesome looking, but is not on screen very long.

In episode twelve there is a huge demon that looks like a white werewolf.

Sexual - There is a quick glimpse of some characters at a river. One male character is seen in undergarments soaking up the sun and standing in the water. The undergarments looks like very old school underwrappings.

In episode three there is a little boy that flips up woman’s skirt. In episode five a spell is mentioned that allows the caster to see through clothes. When the spell is used there is a joke about a man being “so small.” They seem to be trying the spell out on each other, but the audience doesn’t see anything.

In episode ten there is a brief scene with water bugs. One is on top of another, possibly mating? This is very brief.

In one episode a potion is mentioned to dissolve people’s clothes. Later, in episode twelve the potion is brought back up and it is suggested that it can be given to a man because men like that kind of stuff. One girl, who is upset by these comments, dumps the potion on the girl she is talking to. It then dissolves her clothes in a puff of smoke. You see her bare back in this brief, funny scene. She wraps a blanket around her. No nudity is seen. A character sees a cloud that looks like a woman with huge boobs and mentions it.

In episode thirteen two characters lose their clothes in gambling and are sitting outside in their boxers. It is mentioned that a guy loves older women and an older woman blows him a kiss. In episode sixteen there is a joke about traveling with a, “sexy older woman.”

In episode eighteen a girl tells another girl, “You’re kind of cute when you smile.” I’m not sure this was a comment based on sexual attraction, just a compliment.

In episode twenty-two a man is seen in the bathtub. Water covers his private areas, but he is seen shirtless.

In episodes twenty-three through twenty five there are clay golems that have molded butt cheeks that are exposed.

Violence - There is not much fighting in the first several episodes, but ti does pick up later in the season. In episode one a giant wolf attack the group. One character hits it in the head with a stick and another casts a spell that kind of tears it in part in areas, but this isn’t gruesome or graphic.

In episode six a man gets punched and bleeds from his head. A master hits his appearance, and eventually it is explained why. A dragon is killed.

In episodes seven, eight, nine, and ten the amount of violence and blood really pick up. The violence is mostly toward demons and guards that are fully armoured. Some of the demons look like humans, but with horns on their head. There is a demon that looks like a child in a flashback. She burns down a house and kills a man (he has slashes on his back that are bleeding). Demons eat people and the child looking demon is accused of eating a child. Heroes kill her, but first chop off her arm and her arm and hand fly through the air. Demons disintegrate after they are killed. As she disenigrats she continues to talk. Several guards are beheaded. Their heads are not seen under their helmets, but blood is seen coming out from under their helmet when it falls to the ground. One demon uses his blood as a weapon. He bites himself causing blood to come out and then used it to stab people and behead them. Another demon loses his arm, but he creates a new one out of blood. There is a lot of blood in these episodes. One person gets stabbed and his shirt is very bloody. There is also an army of headless zombies, but they just look like suits of armor. There are several fights and blood is shed. One character gets an ax through his shoulder and cut on the face. He gets pretty beat up and bloody. In episode ten there is a demon with a huge hole in his chest and lots of blood everywhere. He continues to talk before he is killed off screen. There is a demon that is mind controlled at the end of episode ten that is told to kill herself. She cuts her own head off, but it is seen off screen.

In episode twelve the party kills several wolves. Some get chopped in half by an axe. There are brief sights of blood. There is a huge wolf looking demon. He doesn’t last long and gets his arm chopped off.

In episode thirteen snake bites a character and his nose bleeds. His nose bleeds continually until healed.

In episode nineteen there are people that are killed by monsters. A dead body is seen in a tree and there is blood all over the tree. A person wipes some off. There are several battles in this episode and a few cuts and gashes bleed minor amounts. These battles continue into episode twenty with multiple characters get slashed and cut. There is discussion of killing women and children. There is a brief flashback of children being sent to battle in war, but the children are only seen marching. A few characters get more serious cuts later in this episode and there is a bit more blood.

I episodes twenty-four through twenty six there are a few more fight scenes where people are slashed and their clothes are bloody and sometimes there are brief scenes of pools of blood. There is a copy of a character that stabs several characters with her hair. You witness a few character stabbed through their chests and shoulders with sharp objects going all the way through them. There is a person that is sliced in half and blood goes in all directions. These scenes are quick, but pretty bloody.

Other - There is a girl who appears to be contemplating walking off a cliff. She is stopped by a priest. There is a scene in episode nine with a bunch of dead cows with flies buzzing around them. There are gargoyles that come to life in episode twenty-three. They are beaten pretty easily but move in unnatural ways like you would expect stone to move.

Overall:

Seeing It With Your Family

There are a few more curse words in episodes nineteen through about twenty-six. This is during a test that brings a bunch of mages together. Some of them have a bit more “expressive” language than our normal cast of characters. There is far more footage without fighting than with fighting, but when there are fight scenes they can be intense. The episodes with the main heroes fighting demons and the end of the season during the tests are two parts of the series that has more intense fights and blood.

What I Thought

I cannot begin to write about how amazing this show is. It isn’t just an amazing anime, it is just a well-written show with great characters. The writers have done a great job creating a fantasy world that feels real and has real characters in it. The topics and expository in the show have made me think deeply about the way time works, how magic can have philosophical aspects, and even how characters in a fantasy setting with magic would view a god. It is all very interesting and I found myself multiple times thinking, “Whoa, I have never even thought of fantasy from this perspective.” I also may have shed a tear or two, there are so many touching moments and stories.

This brings me to the characters. Not only are the main characters fun, but they are relatable. I even found myself relating to Frieren, who will live for 1000s of years. Not only is the main cast phenomenal, but almost every minor and side character shines. We catch glimpses of who they are and why they are this way, and it's such amazing storytelling.

I can’t say enough good things about this show. If you want continual action and lots of fights, you won’t find them in every episode. There are plenty of thought-provoking, relationship-building, and what feels like a comfy, cozy Dungeons and Dragons journey story. But even the slowest episodes have depth and impact on future episodes and even small scenes. Soaking it all in allows you to make connections to things in late episodes which feels rewarding.

I really liked this show. Go watch it, even if you aren’t an anime person. If you love a rich fantasy setting with characters, you will love this is for you!