Frieren might be old, like really old, but when it comes to her mental age, it wouldn’t be too far off to say she’s younger than even most of us. The author of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End masterfully explains this concept of individual maturity, which is never related to anyone’s chronological age.
The millennia-spanning time Frieren has lived is just a way to trick people into believing she’s wise and mature. However, one must never forget that age isn’t always equal to maturity; what matters more is the active absorption of experience. And that only happens if you’re willing to make it happen.
Frieren’s age means nothing to her maturity!
Even in real life, getting older doesn’t necessarily mean someone becomes wiser or more mature. It all comes down to your own life experiences and decisions, regardless of what others might be telling you. And to get this level of maturity one needs a trigger factor.
For all this time, with stuff like understanding love, having proper social awareness, and self-care, Frieren never really gave much thought. It’s only natural as when you have a long life to live, it’s easy to become unmotivated to actively pursue anything. That’s exactly what happened to Frieren, she just didn’t see the point of putting any effort into understanding people.
That’s why, even though ten years did nothing to Frieren’s individual growth, it finally worked out when she met with Himmel and others. That was her trigger factor!
Himmel Developed the Most Heartbreaking Coping Mechanism to Deal With Frieren’s Absence for 50 Years
Her lack of motivation to understand basic human emotions and connect to them on a personal level is something that initially made her disconnected and immature from others’ perspectives. And, it wasn’t until Himmel’s funeral that it really sunk in.
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For her, ten years might be just a week, but the impact of these mere ten years, spending time with the heroes’ party, was more impactful than her entire millennia-long life. She intentionally tried to value these moments and eventually took a learning lesson for her life.
The narrative itself mentions how insensitive Frieren is when it comes to dealing with basic human emotions
Frieren has always seemed to be a bit awkward in social situations, and why would she not be? 1000s of years passed, she had been living her life all alone! So, she basically has no interest in knowing what normal human beings might be thinking.
She also mentions that elves aren’t really wired for romance or any such sort of physical attraction, so we can see how much she struggled to figure these things out on her own. And the fact that it is a slow burn is what makes her journey so relatable even in our own lives.
The story is all about growth, after all; learning to appreciate the little things, and cherishing the time you spend with people who matter most. It masterfully reminds us to live in the moment and make the most of the time we all have. And this is the first step of truly becoming mature!
Even through their current ongoing journey to Ende, we can notice how Frieren is learning to value the present and express her love for the people she truly cares about. Despite her initial naivety in the series, it’s amazing to see her character evolve in a way that’s so heartwarmingly grounded to reality.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
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