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Almost 1 year since it finished airing, will Sousou no Frieren's legacy hold up? Will we look back and remember it?

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Jan 18, 1:25 AM
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Mar 2024
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It's funny because Frieren in itself is a story about the time and legacy. The writing is very strong and the themes are quite subtle, so when some young teenagers call it boring or uneventful it's completely understandable. Give it time, and when they come back to it in 5 years, having lived through the difficult moments, they will see it in a completely different light, that's just the reality.

I'm not saying it's gonna hold up for 50+ years, since our world may look completely different by that time, but if the question is the next 10-15 years - it will definitely still be considered one of the greatest pieces of fiction, even more so than now.
Jan 18, 1:53 AM
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Jan 2020
1
What sets a 9.xx apart from an 8.xx I think is broad appeal.

I'd imagine most people's favourite anime would have an 8.xx score.
Personally, my top three are 86 (about 8.5 avg score), Higurashi (about 8.0) and The Eminence in Shadow (about 8.3).
Shows like that are incredibly well written and well made, but they definitely aren't for everyone. I can completely understand why others don't love them as much as I do, or even dislike them.

With Frieren, you get calming and serene slice of life coupled with bright colourful action, and it is executed to perfection. There's a lot to love about it, and far fewer people it would be "not for" or reasons to dislike it compared to the examples earlier.
When I finished watching it I was saying "10/10 for me easily", and I'm sure a lot of people felt the same, even if there are other shows they like more.
Jan 18, 5:05 AM

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Nov 2013
6808
Frieren is #1 because many different types of people all found it that good!

I mean, people who are new to anime, veterans, kids, parents. It's a show that is easy to watch; and there's things in it those different types of people found enjoyable. Some liked characters the most, some - the story, some the vibe, the soundtrack, the atmosphere, worldbuilding, animation etc.

To say it differently, it CLICKED with many people.

Many other shows don't succeed in "clicking" AS GOOD. Steins gate may be too boring or complex for some; FMA may be "your typical Chinese cartoon" for some; AOT may be too gory and edgy; some may have fanservice or " inappropriate" scenes people don't really enjoy; plot that is hard to follow etc.

Doesn't at all mean those shows are bad, but it's that simple. Frieren has many elements that people liked and few elements they disliked.

People may not agree it's the #1 anime of all time, but it's still a 10/10 show for a big portion of viewers. I don't agree it's the best anime ever as well, yet I have it in favorites and gave it 10/10 because it's that good and deserves the top mark. Many people seem to agree with this statement and don't see a reason why they should give it a lower score, hence why it surpassed FAB and is #1 even after a year.

Pabloskii_ said:
What will we be thinking about this series in 15 years time
Frieren will likely stay in #10 for certain. But I won't be surprised if it stays #1 even after 15 years. Again, the success of Frieren can be explained simply by "most people don't know why they SHOULDN'T like it, or why it shouldn't be 9/10 or 10/10". Again, doesn't mean people think it's the best anime ever or should be #1 on MAL, but IT SO JUST HAPPENED that a culmination of similar views resulted in Frieren getting this spot.

Same can't be said about other shows and that's what makes the difference. Basically, Frieren is not criticized as much as FMA or AOT or Steins Gate and others.
Jan 18, 5:40 AM

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Nov 2013
2713
For sure it will hold up for several years. Probably not gonna be #1 anymore though. It's without a doubt one of the most memorables anime I dare say in 2020's.
I'm too weird to live but much too rare to die.


Jan 18, 6:57 AM
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Nov 2009
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Frieren above all plays it super safe. It doesn't really do any of the cringe anime tropes, its plot doesn't attempt to make wild twists and turns, the characters are for the most part made to not be annoying. Coupled with high production quality and solid writing it's no wonder it has no trouble keeping the top spot.

But for all we know there may be just as good of a show (or other source material) in the making somewhere that will tick all of those boxes while improving upon the concept. The only safe assumption is that no currently existing show has a chance of dethroning it.
Jan 18, 12:34 PM

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Feb 2021
151
As someone who read Frieren before the anime was announced, I do think recency bias has some affect towards the score, but I'm not gonna say it was undeserved. Even before it was adapted, it had a unique premise and had like an 8.6 in manga already.
Jan 18, 5:05 PM
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Nov 2018
53
Frieren doesn't even have a huge lagacy even now.
Won barely awards,
sold averagely for such popular anime,
Tv rating were high but nothing groundbreaking.
Manga didn't get number 1 on the year.
Only thing that makes it relevant is some arbitrary score on a bunch of sites. it is truly and simply overrated
Flick_onJan 19, 7:31 AM
Jan 19, 9:01 AM

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Feb 2024
1318
Reply to trashedacc
Frieren above all plays it super safe. It doesn't really do any of the cringe anime tropes, its plot doesn't attempt to make wild twists and turns, the characters are for the most part made to not be annoying. Coupled with high production quality and solid writing it's no wonder it has no trouble keeping the top spot.

But for all we know there may be just as good of a show (or other source material) in the making somewhere that will tick all of those boxes while improving upon the concept. The only safe assumption is that no currently existing show has a chance of dethroning it.
@trashedacc

There is already a "just as good of a show" that ticks all of those boxes while "improving upon the concept" and it's called Seirei no Moribito but since it does not have cute waifu material like Frieren it "has no chance of dethroning it". Same can be said for Mushishi as well. And unlike Frieren these shows actually have an ending.
JoeChipJan 19, 9:05 AM
Jan 19, 11:45 AM

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Dec 2023
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No, frieren was fantastic but I give it a 9/10. The 2 shows I gave 10s to, Evangelion and Utena, exceed Frieren mainly because they are incredibly influential anime. Also, Frieren drags during the middle before becoming really interesting again with the first class mage exam arc.
Jan 20, 8:37 AM
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Nov 2009
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Reply to JoeChip
@trashedacc

There is already a "just as good of a show" that ticks all of those boxes while "improving upon the concept" and it's called Seirei no Moribito but since it does not have cute waifu material like Frieren it "has no chance of dethroning it". Same can be said for Mushishi as well. And unlike Frieren these shows actually have an ending.
@JoeChip

While I consider mushishi a clear 10/10 it doesn't really hit all the points that Frieren does. For instance there's characters: In mushishi there's only one persistent character and he isn't really the focus of the story, nor does he get many big character moments or development. This is very much unlike Frieren, that puts a lot of focus on developing and spotlighting the main character. Don't get me wrong, the characters in mushishi are really well written, but they generally don't stay around more than an episode so there really isn't that much time to connect with them. And expanding on that last part, mushishi is an almost fully episodic show. I like that, but most viewers prefer there to be a larger narrative connecting it all, which we get in Frieren.

I'm sure there are more points, those are just the most blatant differences I could think of where Frieren wins out in the eyes of the public.

People generally don't consider whether there's an ending when it comes to ratings. They will however rate lower for bad endings.

In any case my post wasn't about which shows were "objectively" better or anything like that, I was pointing out why it's the highest regarded show by the public and why no currently existing show has a chance of getting even close in terms of ratings. And I'll reiterate that it's because it's a competently written, well paced and really sentimental story that retains broad appeal, has extremely high production quality and is completely inoffensive, a very rare combination of traits. It appeals to all demographics, to the point that people who are completely unfamiliar with anime are cool with it.
trashedaccJan 20, 8:46 AM
Jan 20, 8:49 AM

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Feb 2024
1318
Reply to trashedacc
@JoeChip

While I consider mushishi a clear 10/10 it doesn't really hit all the points that Frieren does. For instance there's characters: In mushishi there's only one persistent character and he isn't really the focus of the story, nor does he get many big character moments or development. This is very much unlike Frieren, that puts a lot of focus on developing and spotlighting the main character. Don't get me wrong, the characters in mushishi are really well written, but they generally don't stay around more than an episode so there really isn't that much time to connect with them. And expanding on that last part, mushishi is an almost fully episodic show. I like that, but most viewers prefer there to be a larger narrative connecting it all, which we get in Frieren.

I'm sure there are more points, those are just the most blatant differences I could think of where Frieren wins out in the eyes of the public.

People generally don't consider whether there's an ending when it comes to ratings. They will however rate lower for bad endings.

In any case my post wasn't about which shows were "objectively" better or anything like that, I was pointing out why it's the highest regarded show by the public and why no currently existing show has a chance of getting even close in terms of ratings. And I'll reiterate that it's because it's a competently written, well paced and really sentimental story that retains broad appeal, has extremely high production quality and is completely inoffensive, a very rare combination of traits. It appeals to all demographics, to the point that people who are completely unfamiliar with anime are cool with it.
@trashedacc

It doesn'T change the fact Mushishi is a complete story with an ending whereas Frieren is far from complete and "it's "highest regarded show the public" by your own words and I already said Mushishi lacks the cute waifu material, so obviously it won't be liked as much as Frieren, my main example was Seirei no Moribito anyway.

We could assume only the first two seasons of GOT exists and let public declare it as the best TV show but it wouldn't really reflect the truth .

You can go back to repeating what you said like a parrot while ignoring what's already said now.

PS It should be"there're characters", not "there's characters".
Jan 21, 10:59 AM
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Sep 2021
154
Frieren is still #1 because enough people like it enough to give it 8, 9, 10 and not enough people hate it enough to give 1 - 6 score. You don't become a president because you're the MOST loved, you become the president because you're WIDELY loved.

Jan 21, 10:42 PM

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Dec 2023
80
Will it hold up? Absolutely, Will we as in most people, not just myself, still remember it? Not necessarily. Although often times it is the case, popularity and something being a "hit" does NOT necessarily equal a show holding up or even being good.

Although they often go hand and hand and things often become popular because they are good, being good wont necessarily mean something becomes popular, and being popular doesn't necessarily mean something is good. I can't possibly count the number of shows from even 20 years ago now or even more that have stories that have held the test of time and are still very good. And sometimes the animation/production holds up too. One thing most of these have in common is almost no one remembers them, if 15 years from now people believe Frieren is just average or decent that's simply the "mass mind" of people changing opinions and doesn't actually affect what it's like to watch the show itself from my view.

Also I wouldn't bother with discussing the MALs ratings, this site gives it's shows a rating based on the ratings the users have given the shows. There's only like 14 shows at the moment that have a rating of 9.0 or above. So if anything most shows here have a deflated rating or have a underrated rating not an inflated one. Frieren is good, no doubt about it, best of all time is definitely little bit of a stretch, I don't mean this in a bad way against Frieren but, there's loads of anime out there that's really good, 10/10 level even, so asking which of them is the best of all is a question that doesn't really have an answer or rather it can't properly be answered. Besides the internet is full of insanity, people are going to argue about a number 1 anime till they literally manage to murder each other with their words over their opinions.


Basically as for whether it will hold up, Frieren is good, I'm sure 30 years from now it will still be just as good as it is now regardless of what people think, just as how the original star wars movies from the 80s are still good movies today. And the star wars sequels from disney 10 or so years ago will stay just as bad as they are regardless of public opinion.

And I mean is Frieren overrated? No it's really not, if anything it just looks over rated due to how MALs current user ratings are underrating a lot of shows to 8.x/10 or sometimes even lower when really they should be above a 9.x/10 like Frieren.

Another way of looking at things is the Frieren is a recently released show point your friends made, it wasn't that hyped before it's release, but it's popularity grew not long after it started airing as people realized it's good and starting sharing it everywhere on the internet. So it got this weird reputation of "best anime of all time?" due to people seeing how popular it got, watching it, enjoying it because it's really good and/or better than almost everything they've seen before so it actually managed to get rated accurately on a site with users that rate stuff weirdly.


I personally find most of these posts about the "MAL rating should be x", Frieren is the best anime ever, is Frieren better than "example" anime, Frieren is overrated trash, Frieren animation bad, etc etc etc. To usually be pointless posts that just cause a storm of internet insanity, more than half of them is just opinion based stuff that people argue over like it's a fact, with the rest being stuff that doesn't really matter anyways. Objectively speaking there isn't an answer to whether Frieren is the best anime ever as "best ever" is a question that can't really be answered, Subjectively if you think it's the best anime you've ever watched then it is the best anime you've ever watched. It might not be the best anime for anyone/everyone else and that's perfectly fine, if you think it's the best you've ever watched that's all that needs to matter to you.

Honestly as for anyone that gets annoyed by your post, they can just live with their annoyance. You wrote it to ask for people's opinions, and unlike most of the other posts you wrote it in a way that treated it as a opinion based topic that wanted to know other peoples opinions and wasn't trying to argue over "Frieren is number 1!" so there's no issue with that here.


I have a more objective view for this matter so I don't necessarily agree with the Frieren number 1 opinion but it's pretty much a fact that Frieren will hold up pretty well regardless. And as your post said this is an opinion topic, so half of the answer depends on your opinion, and the "general public" opinion of the show that you're asking about. I personally really enjoy Frieren, I don't think it's the best of all time, it's not even a personal #1 favorite if I had to pick, but I absolutely agree that it is a excellent show and if I enjoyed it then really not much else matters to me. I can see why people would make it their #1 favorite. If you believe Frieren is the current best anime of all time and can stand the test of time, then so long as you don't have a change of opinion it will be for you at the very least.
Jan 22, 6:52 PM
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Feb 2023
9
There is no absolute number one anime, so even if the question is not this one, it does give an opportunity for people to troll or hate on Frieren because literally nothing is the best. Unfortunate because anime is unusual for art in having something like a consensus what are the best works ever: FMAB, NGE, Stein's Gate, Cowboy Bebop, Clannad, Death Note, Mobile Suit Gundam (the franchise), etc. Beserk and K'on are interesting because style and subject do put off enough people to make their inclusion harder.

Now there are several more recent series (using more recent source material too) so the question becomes will they take their place in this sphere. That is the question. Attack on Titan is even more certain one of these anime. On the other hand, Jobless Reincarnation (MT) is very well animated but I think the goal of the story to redeem the Japanese version of an Incel will not resonate in a few years. People will be puzzled by Rudeus' motivation.

Frieren should stay in the consensus I think. It does need another season at least. It does have an overarching plot and its goal, to use Frieren's journey to understand her former companions, offers a way to explore all sorts of human relationships in this a compelling fantasy world. But it is a matter of consensus. Delicious in Dungeon had its fans in the year of second arc as did Dandadan.
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