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It’s a fundamentally a MMORPG video game story. Obviously it goes much deeper than that and has all the great aspects off a great show beyond this point.
But am I crazy for thinking that? Or is it maybe one of the reason this show resonates so well with people?
You’re not crazy, but I personally don’t agree with you. Not once did I think this had anything to do with video games aside from maybe dungeons, but may as well have been inspired by TTRPGs like DnD (and originally, likely was). These types of fantasy worlds and ‘classes’ aren’t unique to MMORPGs and within anime also not to Frieren. Look at basically every fantasy anime. What makes Frieren unique is what it does with it. Instead of traveling the world to defeat the demon lord, she travels to reflect and more or less find herself. She’s near immortal. She will outlive almost everyone she meets. That made her cold and disconnected from others, both emotionally and empathetically. Now, after realising that her party mattered more to her than she thought, she opens up a bit and tries to move past it. She still doesn’t understand much, but is actively trying with the help of Fern and Stark.
I see it as a very strong anime in the fantasy genre. It’s not unlikely that it has some video game inspiration for the world (but not strictly MMORPGs), but storywise I think it has nothing to do with that.
Of course, to each their own interpretation, but that’s what I think.
brenticus@lemmy.world 7 months ago
A lot of the framing of modern Japanese fantasy derives from Dragon Quest. There is some MMO-specific stuff mixed in at times, like the raiding terms, but the tropes mostly shake out from a time well before the Internet was a thing.
The bit about old clans and such is especially not an MMO-specific thing, it’s just life. It’s something everyone experiences, and the exploration of those themes in varied ways account for a large part of why the show is so universally praised.
That said, if the MMO framing helps you to get a deeper understanding of the show you go for it. Part of appreciating art is finding your own ways to engage and relate with it.
tobogganablaze@lemmus.org 7 months ago
I can totally see how all the points I made pre-date video games. Guess I got overexicted about something that is general knowledge.
Like I was so happy when I reliseed all the names/places in Frieren were German words. But everyone knows that already :(
brenticus@lemmy.world 7 months ago
Hey, nothing wrong with being excited about discovering new things about a show you love! Even the German word bit, it’s super prevalent in fantasy (especially Japanese fantasy), so most people have had that exact realization at some point with some show, so now it just feels obvious haha.