Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End was one of the biggest releases of the Winter 2023-2024 anime season. It not only topped the rankings of Anime News Network and MyAnimeList but also dethroned the legendary series Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, ending its multi-year reign in March 2024. But while many love it for its story of friendship and self-exploration, its original story pitch is far different from what fans know.
During the presentation ceremony for the 48th Kodansha Manga Award, where Frieren won the Best Shonen Manga, in Tokyo on July 31, Weekly Shonen Sunday editor-in-chief Kazunori Oshima (via Oricon as translated by Anime Hunch), revealed that the manga creator Kanehito Yamada originally pitched Frieren as a hero versus demon king comedy.
“The plan for Frieren was submitted to the editorial department in 2019,” he recalled. “Yamada-sensei, who has already had two serialized works, said in the initial meeting with his editor that, ‘Let's go with a gag story about a hero and a demon king!’”
However, the concept eventually evolved during the development, and the initial draft submitted completely differed from what they originally planned. So, instead of a gag comedy, it started to tell the story of a long-lived elven mage who went on a journey to understand and learn more about humans after witnessing the members of her party dying one by one.
“However, the name [the initial rough draft of a manga chapter] that came up was the story you all see now, where a long-lived elven mage realizes the differences in the time axes of humans and elves after parting with a human hero and sets out on a journey to learn about humans,” he continued.
The opening story for Frieren struck an emotional chord for them to the point that even Yamada couldn’t help but say that it was a “very beautiful” tale. As a result, the idea of being a comedy manga turned into a heartfelt story of Frieren and her adventures.
Will there be Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Season 2?
So far, the continuation of the titular character’s adventure in Frieren Season 2 is yet to be confirmed. However, the anime’s finale hints at the series’ return after featuring a post-credits scene where Frieren says the same thing Himmel mentions to her, “It will be embarrassing when we meet again,” before the words “The journey to Ende continues” appear on the screen.
The anime’s X account also shared an image of Frieren holding her bag and walking away, seemingly going on a journey. It also featured the same caption in the anime, “The Journey to Ende continues.”
If there will be a second season, Frieren, Fern, and Stark are expected to continue their journey to Ende after the First Class Mage Exam in Auberst. In fact, it was the sole reason Frieren and Fern joined the exam, as nobody could go to the said region unless accompanied by a First Class Mage, considering it was home to many demons. Though Frieren didn’t pass the exam, Fern successfully did so, giving them an eligibility to enter Ende.
Ende is a region in the northernmost part of the continent where the Demon King’s castle is located. It’s also where Aureole can be found, a place regarded as heaven or the afterlife where the souls of the dearly departed go. So, if Friere, Fern, and Stark can continue their journey to Ende, they can meet Himmel, Eisen, and Heiter again.
With a great story Frieren tells, it’s hard to imagine the anime as a gag comedy. Thankfully, its story evolves and becomes one of the most critically acclaimed manga and anime today.
All episodes of Frieren are available on Crunchyroll.
