Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End [Episode 21 - Review]
As the first class mage exam continues and she squares off with Denken, his philosophy on the joy of magic being in the process of searching for it spurs a millenia-old memory in Frieren of her meeting with Serie, the legendary elven mage who offers the gift of any spell. It’s revealed that Flamme was actually a student of Serie long ago, and as Flamme is often regarded as the mother of all modern human magic, Serie’s influence and respect among mages is second to none.
Unsurprisingly, Frieren soundly beats Denken in their spar, as the imperial mage exhausts his mana after a flurry of flashy spells. Knowing that their Stille was nearby, Frieren threatens Denken to lure out his teammate, binding the two of them and re-securing their key item for victory.
Manwhile, Kanne and Lawine battle against Richter. The older, more experienced mage dwarfs their mana, and spends a fair amount of the episode soundly whomping on them. As a mage that can control water, Kanne would be in a far more advantageous position if that pesky barrier was out of the way, but, as it’s noted multiple times in the episode, “The barrier is unbreakable.”
Well…Frieren doesn’t seem to think so.
In a stunning display of power, Frieren completes her analysis of the barrier and shatters it with a specialized spell. Now free to utilize the full breadth of her power, Kanne is aided by Lawine in taking down Richter, and they reunite with Frieren to wait out the final two hours of the test.
Denken and company are down, but not out…and it’s the conclusion of their own path of this first test that provides an unexpected, and very fun, scene to conclude the episode.
Overall, Frieren continues to impress with its narrative execution and characterization. Take Denken for example. He first appears as the archetypal power-hungry mage from the city, but over just a few short episodes there’s a depth for the character that’s developed that is sure to win over viewers. While the barrier-shattering is largely expected at a certain point, the actual scene will surely still make you grin - accompanied by that fantastic score that you could keep running in the background for hours.
We’re definitely going to be seeing more of Serie as well - no doubt within the world of Mages there are few who could match Frieren…and Serie is top of that list. I’m interested to see how their paths cross in the episodes to come.
