If brain-in-a-jar theory is correct, I'm currently being absolutely DRENCHED in some sort of anxiety inducing chemical; my hands are clammy, sweaty, my knees are weak, and I can smell my mom cooking some spaghetti so I'm pretty sure we all know what's about to happen...
I was waiting for Sousou no Frieren to finish airing to gauge people's reactions to the ending before I decide whether or not to watch it, but I caved.
Everyone and their momma is talking about this show, FOMO got me
But now what I feared most is coming true, and I can't help but tremble at the prospect of Frieren ending on a cliffhanger. There's 4 episodes left in this season. If Madhouse hits me over the head with a cliffhanger and I have to wait a year for season 2 they might as well cast Zoltraak directly into my heart.
Has anyone read the manga? Am I going to suffer terribly for my rash decision?
Also, this show is really good right?! Love it very much so far, no wonder it's topping MAL, I wonder if we really do have an all-timer on our hands.
Without spoilers: based on the pacing, odds are that the anime season will end on the equivalent of the manga chapter 60. It's a conclusion of the current short-term events, odds are that it'll feel emotionally fulfilling instead of a cliffhanger.
If you liked the first season odds are that you will be excited for a [potential?] future second season, but... that's it, no Zoltraak feels going after you.
There will be one, almost for sure. It's simply too popular of a series to let it go. However it might take a while, specially if keeping the same quality as the first season.
My subjective opinion is that its position as the top anime / manga of all time is well-deserved.
I usually go for comedy series, because humour is the easiest way to keep me entertained. Without it, the manga has to rely on good story-telling - and that's exactly what Frieren has done.
In fact, Frieren tells the story so well that it is one of the only two long-running mangas in my 10 / 10 list (the other being The Apothecary Diaries).
The show is really good. However, the last few episodes we’ve watched (a few behind) have been a long tournament arc and it’s not even done yet. The episodes themselves are still pretty good, but it feels like forward progress in the story kind of screeched to a halt.
Similar - my wife and I enjoyed the stories for each episode, but the pacing was a little on the slow side for us. Admittedly, we only got 4-5 episodes in, but that's typically a little further than I watch if I'm not already hooked...
This show is my personal favorite of the year, but I am so put out that they've stopped being a cozy emotional travel fantasy show to do a fucking tournament arc. I am intensely doubtful that they are going to do anything remotely interesting with this tired fucking format, which I feel only really shines in a show about fighting with a bunch of characters you already know and wonder how they'd stack up. It doesn't help that the new crop of characters other than Denken are pretty flat.
I gave this show 3 episodes and I genuinely do not get why people like it so much. Maybe it gets good later, but god damn was it boring. Every character has the personality of a wet sponge and Im not seeing how it can get better beyond every character suddenly having a complete change in personality. It's like every character is on Xanax or something.
I liked the first few episodes because it put a spin on the generic fantasy genre. A mage elf exploring what death means after their big adventure is already over and all her team members are dying is a plot point with a lot of possibilities.
They also did fairly well in the first episodes with Frieren being introduced as the introverted detached type, slowly regretting how detached from her party she was back then, not realizing that they will be gone long before her.
Unfortunately it spins into generic fantasy fairly quickly. Still decent but I feel like the main plot point was lost somewhere after the first few episodes and we got too much of "overpowered main character does stuff" already.
IIRC, the first 4 episodes were released in a batch. But even ignoring that, its a slow show where not much happens. Most of it is the gang going somewhere and Frieren trying to not repeat the same mistakes of not appreciating her friends enough before its too late.
I've really enjoyed it up until this last arc. I think it kind of derailed the pacing too much, especially since you know she's going to Mary Sue the end of it somehow.
IDK, I'm really enjoying the dungeon arc but you're not alone in what you're saying! I think Frieren being a Mary Sue affords a lot of freedom for the narrative to wander, since you know she always wins in the end. It's about appreciating the emotional development of the other characters and finding out about her past thru the flashbacks. I mean, that's what she's doing really hahaha