The practical examination to become a first class mage continues in Frieren episode 20, which is titled, “Necessary Killing.” Fern is locked in combat with another mage, while Frieren and her group are being challenged by Denken and his two teammates. Let’s see what happens from here.
Episode Recap
Fern quickly overwhelms her opponent – whose name we find out is Ehre – using a bombardment of simple but effective attack magic. Ehre is completely defeated. Elsewhere, Land (the guy with glasses from Fern’s group) faces off against Scharf (the dark-haired man from Wirbel’s group.) Using powerful illusion magic, Land wins the fight. He knocks his enemy unconscious with a strong shock.
The battle between Wirbel and Yubel was intense and entertaining. It allowed viewers to get to know Wirbel a little better. He’s not as bad as he seemed at first. For one thing, he doesn’t want to kill anyone if there is another practical alternative. Ubel, on the other hand, just loves to kill, and was hoping for a true fight to the death. It was a close battle, but Wirbel won. He was about to finish off Ubel when Fern appeared.
By lying and claiming that she killed Ehre, Fern made Wirbel back down and admit defeat. All three members of a party must survive for the group to pass the test. Wirbel and Fern are now safe and I assume they will meet up with Land soon. Meanwhile, Wirbel finds Ehre, who is too weak to walk, and begins carrying her on his back. He also finds Scharf and carries him using flotation magic. By a random stroke of luck, Ehre spots a Schtille bird, and Wirbel catches it. The group is now back in the game.
The last part of the episode shows the situation in which Frieren, Lawine, and Kanne now find themselves. Laufen snatched the Schtille in the birdcage using a spell that increases one’s movement speed. Richter, the other male mage in Denken’s party, announces that he will kill one of the teenagers to disqualify Frieren. Denken, however, won’t allow it. He orders Richter not to kill the girls, but just to keep them busy and then knock them out. In the meantime, Denken himself will face off with Frieren.
During the discussion preluding the battle, Denken stated that the privilege of becoming a first class mage is not worth killing someone. Richter strongly disagreed. Much to his surprise, Frieren didn’t know the privilege promised to new first class mages. so, Richter quickly explained the amazing reward that so many mages are willing to kill for.
A mysterious Elf named Serie became head of the Continental Magic Association after Himmel’s death 29 years ago. Serie is considered the being closest to the Goddess because she is so ancient and knows more spells than anyone else in history. To any new first class mages, Serie promised to grant any one spell they can imagine. In other words, it’s like having a free wish. While there may be limits on what can be wished for, it’s certain that almost anything is obtainable through this method.
After the discussion and explanation is over, the fight begins. Richter separates Frieren and the girls using a massive-scale spell that breaks the land apart like an earthquake. Denken braces himself to fight Frieren. This is where the episode leaves off.
Thoughts and Notes
While the battles in this episode were exciting in and of themselves, the best part of the episode was the reveal about Serie and her promise to grant any wish. I have a few thoughts about her later on. This episode also provided more character information and development for Wirbel and Denken. Both men are reasonably interesting characters, but Wirbel caught and held my attention better of the two.
At first, I thought Wirbel would be completely insane and bloodthirsty. In reality, although he is a wild mercenary who already has a lot of blood on his hands, Wirbel is doing his best to maintain a sense of humanity. He doesn’t enjoy killing, and often hesitates or tries to find a way around that ultimate action. Still, he always gets the job done if he deems it a necessary killing. Wirbel’s softer side is proven by the way he looks out for his companions and his history of helping Northern villages fight demons.
Demon-fighting mercenaries like Wirbel are sometimes used for manpower in wars between nations. In that sense, they are similar to Vikings from real history. It was sad to hear about those wars and how they forced people like Wirbel to become desensitized and almost lose their humanity. During those terrible wars, it was commonplace to see women and children forced into being soldiers. Wirbel claims this was nothing out of the ordinary, but it’s clear that this was absolute hell.
As for other characters, Ehre was very cute, Scharf was funny, and Land was surprisingly bad-ass. Fern’s ability to lie with a completely straight face was impressive. But the question weighing on my mind is, of course, about Serie. Who exactly is that weird little Elf? Why did she suddenly decide to rule over the world of human magic? Is she planning something, or just acting out of the boredom that comes with being ageless and immortal? I noticed one other thing. It seems like Frieren might be familiar with Serie based on her reaction to hearing the name. What is their connection?
There are a lot of unknowns at this point. If I’m correct, this business with Serie and wish-granting will become quite important in the next few episodes. I imagine this will be addressed soon, but I can’t help wondering what each character would wish for if they were to pass as first class mages. What would Frieren wish for? To see Himmel again, perhaps, or to rid the world of all demons? It’s interesting to consider.
For now, that concludes my thoughts and notes on Frieren episode 20. Thank you so much for reading or just clicking. Getting a lot of views definitely boosts my mood. Sayonara until next time.
~Thanks for reading~
PATREON
