More chill vibes with the party this week. When it comes to physical threats, anyway.
The very long-awaited first date with Fern and Stark is finally happening with all of its passive-aggressive allure! What terrible romantic advice from Frieren awaits these two?
The Secret Hot Spring of the Etwas Mountains
It bears some repeating from the previous episode’s review, but it really is unsettling how quickly small civilizations vanish from monster attacks. It’s almost callous how the biggest footnote Frieren can make about a missing village is just that she’ll miss their hot spring.
That being said, this also happens to be one of the coziest episodes in the series.
The adventure to find the hot springs has a familiar vibe of a friend convincing you there’s a secret spot or a shortcut in a camping trip that they swear is real. Even if the actual reward isn’t that interesting, there’s something about the experience that sticks with you and then gradually evolves into a core memory.
I personally read Frieren as a story of a DND veteran rediscovering their passion for the game with new friends, and this episode reinforces that concept more and more. By this point, Frieren’s party has long made peace with their new life, and memories of the older one only serve as lessons to strengthen this current one.
The Places She Would Like + Peaceful Time
This is one of those episodes where you can tell where the animator’s creative biases went into. The long take of Fern leaving the room after being told about the date, Frieren’s tantrums, Stark’s “stiff” movement, etc. The scenario of three introverts freaking out over social norms is not going to be funny to a socially inept freak like me.
However, there’s a lot more going on with Stark and Fern’s interactions in this episode than a bunch of gags. Anyone who’s been on a date or has any decency would be appalled by Stark: Going out with the same clothes, not a word about the outfit Fern picked, eating separate meals and having literally nothing to talk about except another woman. (Yikes). Yet, Fern seems more bothered by the places Stark took her to, because he really was at his best at every moment.
It hit me that these two didn’t really have a chance at a “good date” or a normal life. The real problem is that they’re in a bit of arrested development due to having no life, interests or friends beyond just travelling. What could they even talk about beyond just Frieren? They practically know everything about each other already. Though the date does end well and it’s cute all the way through, there’s a nagging feeling. There’s a lot the two need to figure out about themselves.
The Northern Plateau
Beyond the introduction of the Northern monsters and the threat they’ll pose in the future, the theme of this episode was a bit hard to buy.
It’s not so much the dedication to the villagers’ preservation of their family homes that I’m bothered by, but the lack of effort the people make to defend themselves. The town visually looks like any other place Frieren’s team has visited – no walls, no reliable fighters to call on, and the people seem a bit blissfully unaware. Had Frieren’s party not shown up, these townsfolk who’ve lived there for presumably decades would’ve been wiped out… despite these monsters constantly being around.
For as much of a big deal as the Northern Plateau is going to be going forward, I particularly like how much the fight exposes a lack of teamwork within the party. It’s unfortunate that the first instance of civilization we get to see feels weirdly underwritten.
Stray Observations:
- Frieren, ironically, raised Fern pretty well by constantly being a baby that Fern needed to quickly mature and become a caretaker for. It’s also a really funny gag that the state of Frieren’s hair is determined by Fern’s mood that day.
- Ngl, I completely forgot about Fern’s Mage ID because of the last 4 episodes having nothing to do with the Northern Plateau.
- …I’m still a bit annoyed that Frieren and Fern are still not being more considerate about the way they treat Stark. Granted, his role in the Hydra fight was always going to be bait, but they could’ve at least told him.
- Stark complaining about walking a lot more than usual is funny considering that’s been 90% of their life by now. Don’t be surprised if Frieren’s party has Olympic-tier legs and stamina.
- The Northern Plateau and the date have made it even more of a prescient issue that there isn’t really an “adult” in the group, and the team comp of two mages and one frontliner might not be good enough.
- I miss Sein.
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