The ultimate goal of bringing peace to the world or reaching its highest point is a core component of many shonen series. What comes after that? An extremely short epilogue or underwhelming sequels in the case of mainstream series. Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End follows up on the ultimate goal with a fresh approach. The entire premise is an extended epilogue, and Frieren reflects on her journey to the goal.
Life doesn’t end once the goal is achieved, and the aftermath deals with the void and wounds it leaves behind. It’s not all bad or melancholic; the nostalgia sometimes hits you with a familiar sweetness, and you are left wishing for more shonen series to follow a similar formula.
More shonen series need to follow Frieren’s journey beyond the end
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End begins with Himmel and his party defeating the Demon King. The end goal is achieved at the beginning, and the characters are left with memories, regrets, some nothingness, and new adventures to experience. The story focuses on Frieren and her feelings. She finds new companions in Fern and Stark.
The regret of not realizing Himmel’s feelings sooner and the grief of his death become a part of Frieren, and she slowly learns to accept it through tears, pain, and new experiences. Seeing her evolve into this new version of herself is interesting and profound. Shonen protagonists dedicated their lives to one goal, and after obsessing over it for years, it’s weird to picture them moving onto something else.
For instance, Naruto became a worn-out shell of his former self in Boruto, while Deku accepted his quirkless nature once again in My Hero Academia. This comparison might be a little unfair given Frieren’s extremely long life. She has all the time in the world to become her better self or embark on another adventure.
The point still remains that she’s doing it all. She’s preserving the part of herself that once defeated the Demon King, while allowing new experiences to expand her lens and world. We need to see more shonen protagonists deal with that fleeting nothingness and how they come to terms with it.
Life beyond the big win and the losses along the way
It’s not just about seeing how the characters deal with their new life, it’s also about how their changing values affect their perspective on the past. For instance, Frieren realizes how she failed to cherish Himmel’s presence when he was still around. If it was her former self, this wouldn’t have bothered her so much.
To achieve such larger-than-life goals, the characters sacrifice a lot along the way. The aftermath could be about these big and small sacrifices, and if the end goal justifies them. This reflection doesn’t need to get all dark either, it could simply be about how all of it was worth it in the end.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End has allowed us to experience a slow and new form of shonen stories. Something we need more of to know about the unseen, the big and small losses, and what was left in the end.
Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is currently available to stream on Crunchyroll.
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