@ItsFriezenHere
It's a different show every time you rewatch it, as you notice more and more things each time and that's what makes it beautiful
@Malakmask
I love how much the elves in this show don't understand their own emotions and subconsciously express without knowing. Frieren's favorite spell is her master's favorite spell. Frieren is wearing what seems to be her master's earrings. She wears and cares for the ring Himmel gave her even if she acts like it's just another ring. I can understand why she acts like it wouldn't impact her if she lost the ring because everything, in time, slips threw her grasps and she knows this. Serie is similar in this regard. She remembers all of her student's favorite spells despite saying it was a waste of time for her to train them. She has a room full of magically grown flowers despite calling it a useless spell- more than likely because it reminds her of Flamme. She more than likely continues to make apprentices because she desperately doesn't want to be alone and she calls it a waste of time to train them because ultimately they get to pass on while Serie remains.
@kcsupersonic1
I think when people say that the 1st episode of Frieren is emotional for them, what they really mean is that the 1st episode is emotionally resonant. What I mean by this is that it isn't necessarily an attachment to Himmel that makes his death hit so hard on the initial viewing. It is Frieren's genuine realization that she believes she wasted all the time that she had with Himmel, believes she never really got to know him, that hits hard for people. I would argue that moment where Frieren cannot stop her tears from flowing, where she feels the weight of wasted time, hits hard for many people because they internalize this moment and end up having an empathetic response to seeing someone mourn the loss of a friend while lamenting not treasuring the time they had with that person. Regretting time spent with another person that you can never get back, that is the emotional gut punch of Episode 1 on an initial viewing, a regret that only hits deeper on repeat viewings because instead of simple emotional resonance, we now have emotional investment and attachment to who Himmel is. We go from being sad at seeing Frieren regretting the time she wasted because we've all been there, to mourning the loss of a friend as well, right alongside her.
@Ken_4401
For me the term " Re-watching ' was just watching the best parts of the series or the fight scenes but when i watched Frienen it was different i actually want to watch the whole series again and I proceeded to do that about seven more times
@flowerence0
Watching Himmel and Heiter’s deaths for the second time hit so much harder than it did the first time—especially Himmel’s. The first time, their deaths were sad, but during the rewatch, it was overwhelming. By then, we already knew who Himmel truly was—his kindness, his impact, and how much he meant to Frieren, even if she didn’t realize it fully at the time. Rewatching with that understanding made me feel Frieren’s regret and grief more deeply. It's like experiencing her journey of slowly understanding how important her companions were. In Heiter’s episode, the pacing felt slower, and that matched Frieren’s emotional growth—she was learning to be present, to sit with her emotions, and to connect. That slower pace made the sadness more intimate, more reflective. So while their deaths were emotional on the first watch, the rewatch made it far more poignant. It wasn’t just loss—it was realization, reflection, and a deeper connection to Frieren’s feelings.
@Defektyd
You aren't alone in not being too emotionally moved by the first episode upon first viewing. I had that same experience and I agree that these first few episodes really do feel so much different, and more enjoyable, upon rewatch. I think one thing to notice especially is the line "I didn't even know him." when Frieren starts sobbing at his funeral. This sentiment rings true for her but also for us as the audience. It cues us in to the fact that this will incite the plot but it also is more emotionally effective for us on the second watch because we know that Frieren DOES know things about Himmel and the rest. Rather, she just failed to recognise that she did. This show is about learning and appreciating what you have right in front of you. "I didn't even know him." hurts so much more with the added context of the scenes where we see Frieren interact, and where we see her learning the true value and meaning of those moments. Such a simple line used so effectively.
@Greymist73
Possible spoilers A german reviewer I watched a year or so ago pointed out that the word “frieren” isn’t a word for cold or frozen, but more akin to a feeling someone feels when it is cold an miserable outside. As in english, on a cloudy drizzling winter day, we’d say to a passer by “boy it sure is freezing today”. So it’s often used as a metaphor. Which makes a lot of sense, because Frieren is an elf, and her people have no future in the world, even though they lives many thousands of years. Furthermore we learn that even though she’s over a thousand years older, she’s not much more emotionally developed than Fern. A hint of which we get from both Serie and Kraft. Which makes a lot of sense, because her timeline is she is the only survivor of an elf village wiped out by demons at the express order of the demon king. Then Rescued and trained by Flamme for 50 years, after which she spends most of the next thousand years isolated and alone, quietly training, until the Hero Himmel abruptly appears and convinces her to join his quest, which by comparison passes in a blink, but serves as the catalyst that allows her to break free and actually begin to grow, interact and start a life.
@Imperial-Moth
The first time was incredibly pleasant, the second time gave me an existential crisis, the third cemented my love for the series forever. Who knows what it'll be next time I watch it?
@0u70fSync
Frieren packs in so many details visually and narratively. I can rewatch it several times and pick up something new every time
@cyberspacecat
I had just lost my grandmother when Frieren premiered, so the first episode especially hit me hard, there was just something about the music, imagery and voice acting that evoked that emotional response to losing Himmel that I found extremely touching and tender - however if your main emotional connection comes from a familiarity with the characters I can certainly see how it becomes way more effective on a rewatch. Plus there's a lot of foreshadowing and small moments that make a lot more sense once you know more about Frieren's previous life experiences and how it has shaped her.
@ThanesTito
one thing your comment about taking 3 episodes to get invested: when Frieren released, the first 4 episodes released together as a 1 hour special, so the first audiences never got the feeling since when they finished watching, the plot was starting to unfold
@andrewcushing1915
One of my favorite parts about rewatching the show is finding more and more small things that main characters like frieren & fern learn from past experiences and incorporate in their lives.
@TheBaldrickk
I've said before that the main thing that changes about the first episode on a rewatch, is that the first time, you know of Himmel. The second time, you actually KNOW Himmel. The first time, you see Frieren's reaction and know that he was a meaningful person to her, despite the time spent away. The second time you understand who he is, what he stands for, his relationship with Frieren and everything that couod have been, and you get to mourn the loss of the character and everything that could have been between them.
@groger9734
i havent rewatched it, but seeing your videos about frieren give me a nice understanding of how it would feel and many of those videos bring me to the brink of tears because its such a beautiful and well constructed story
@LamperougeCC
If Frieren does not win "Anime of the Year" tomorrow at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards the anime community is beyond cooked. Especially if Solo Leveling wins 😑
@vincejoshuamartinez2409
All this time I thought I was the only one feeling like this. Thank you.
@s.k.1687
When you find yourself a person who loves you as much as pey loves frieren, you've won in life. EDIT: Grammar
@TomPouce5931
I started Frieren a little annoyed how generic it looked, it was just another hero party, in a generic fantasy land that don't even have a name, but it was kind of funny, with good music, no voice over holding your hand or flash back of scenes from just two minutes ago. So I watch another episode, then another, and suddenly it's the generic looking characters are real peoples, the land have a name, Frieren just didn't bother remembering it as it change so often and you realize the show is deep and though inducing. Peak anime, and that's why I'm here every week commemorating it.
@vedadhasmana
EARLYYYY Frieren is really such a unique show and the more I see your episodes on it, and the more times I rewatch, the more I learn to appreciate and love it
@orppro7100