No, it wouldn’t be better if it were a battle shounen.
Summary:
- Many fans complain about how there’s not enough action in Frieren: Beyond Journey's End.
- However, the anime is mostly character-driven and is not about the fights at all.
- It still has some action, and it looks gorgeous even outside of it.
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End (Sousou no Frieren) is one of the most popular and well-received anime airing right now. That still doesn’t mean it’s for everyone, of course.
Some viewers have complained about the anime not having enough action. Except Frieren isn’t really an action series at all: and if you want it to be one, you’re missing the point completely.
Could Frieren use more action?
At first glance, it seems weird that Frieren isn’t an action anime. After all, fantasy and action usually go hand-in-hand. There’s magic — a lot of it, and there are clear enemies. Why not make it more interesting by adding more fights to it?
Another issue people bring up is Frieren being overpowered — yet choosing not to do anything. A lot of otaku want their favorites to actually show their powers. Frieren does show hers, but just barely, and some people feel like it’s not enough.
What is it actually about?
This mindset, however, is completely wrong. If you feel like there’s not enough action in Frieren, you’re approaching the series with wrong expectations: it’s not really about action in the first place.
The anime is very much character-driven, exploring their interactions with each other and with the world. Frieren herself, for example, views the world in a very different way from humans: her lifespan is much longer, and a day for her passes in the blink of an eye.
Of course she would be apathetic towards most issues, but her learning how others live is why we are watching the series in the first place.
Other characters and their progress are also a huge point in the series. People love Stark and Fern, and their slow but realistic development makes the anime so much better — and interesting to watch.
The action is still there
Besides, there is action in Frieren — just not as much of it as in many other popular series. Even the currently airing arc is action-focused. And when the series does have its fights, the animation is absolutely gorgeous — you can see the effort that was put into it.
The important part is that the anime still looks great when it doesn’t focus on action. Good animation doesn’t always mean fights: not everything needs to be a battle shounen. Frieren might not be a series for you, but you should at least give it a chance and not approach it with a wrong mindset.