Would it surprise you to hear that the protagonist of Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End is actually ancient? She’s short and youthful, but Stark ironically calls her “old hag.” Truthfully, Stark isn’t wrong since Frieren is way older than your great-grandmother.
Actually, scratch that. Frieren is older than several generations of your family. I refuse to do the counting at this point, but no human could live for an entire millennium. Elves are a long-lived species in series, and a century can pass by them in a blink. The anime and manga weren’t explicit about Frieren’s exact age, just in case you thought you missed it in any dialogue.
Here’s what we do know: When Frieren met Himmel, she had already lived for 900 years. It was only after Himmel’s passing that Frieren realized the value of time. Think of it this way: She lived life at 2x speed, the same way you’d watch any anime at a crunch. Hours to Frieren were milliseconds, given her lifespan. She’s not considered old by elf standards, but Frieren is roughly more than 1,000 years old.
At 1,000 years old, Frieren isn’t even an old elf and is still considered a powerful mage. Kraft, another elf from Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, is older than Frieren. Neither of them shows any signs of aging or weakness that humans normally go through when they age.
In the manga, it’s implied that elves live for millennia. The limits of their lifespans are not specified, but they’re clearly portrayed as capable of living a long time. It sounds like a great deal for any elf who wants to go on a journey, but a curse for elves who love species with short lifespans, who won’t even last a fraction of elven lives.
(featured image: Crunchyroll/MADHOUSE)
