Sousou no Frieren 2nd Season Episode 2 Discussion

This is about what I expected. You rail against people trying to explain what you have missed rather than engaging and learning. But, I'm stubborn, so let's try one more time to see where your misconceptions come from.





Alright, let's assume, for argument's sake, that Frieren did detect the Sword Demon's mana. Let's also find out why that still doesn't change anything.

First, I have already described where exactly you can see in the series that it shows demons can hide their mana, but you continue to argue that other people have the comprehension issue. Demons, just like Frieren and Fern, can suppress their mana; only they do it temporarily. Lügner and Linie did it, the demons chasing Flamme in episode 10 do it, it's not unexpected that any random demon can suppress their mana.

Second, it's been established that not all mages have the same skill in detection. Lernen, who instantly knew Frieren was suppressing her mana, still couldn't detect that Serie was doing the same thing. Denken was able to detect mana in pools of water when Laufen couldn't. There is a distinct possibility that Fern might not be as good at detecting mana as Frieren is, which meant Frieren knew the Sword Demon was still in the town when Fern thought it was empty.

You have one point correct in that the series continually shows how mana suppression is kind of a big deal, but you missed that it always pairs this with the concept that not everyone can see through that trick. Even first class mages. The show is very adamant on the point that letting your guard down is fatal, and it is very consistent on that even in this episode.



But let's say Frieren still detected her, and somehow Fern doesn't find that weird? Why would you assume Frieren and Fern are on the same level? They never have been, and that's been clear since the first season.

Unfortunately, that's where the other problem in your argument comes from that another user already corrected you on. Even if the demon wasn't suppressing her mana, it wouldn't be unexpected for a priest to have mana. Or in this case, someone posing as a priest. What if Fern actually detected that the Sword Demon had mana, once the demon revealed herself? Or maybe Fern never did. I'm not sure why you would think it's that big of a deal that Frieren notices something Fern does not.

Still, the demon claimed she was a priest, priests have mana (even if Fern can't detect it). She had the holy symbol as well and a reasonable story of burying the villagers. That story is plausible to Fern. Should Fern have been more cautious? Yes, but that's why Frieren still had her guard up. She's older and more experienced in demon treachery. She knew an easy way to prove her suspicions to Fern, and that was by showing there were no bodies in the graves. So how did Frieren know the Sword Demon was pretending to be a priest?

Again, she's experienced in demon treachery. Did you come under the impression that demon mana worked different from humans, or that Frieren knew it was a demon just from the mana? Aura's mana looks the same as Frieren's in episode 10, it just wasn't as large. Are you under the notion that detecting mana meant knowing if someone was a demon or not? I'm genuinely curious.



The irony in this paragraph aside, with or without mana detection, the Sword Demon was attempting to trick the party, and Fern fell for it. It was more likely she was suppressing her mana, but even if that were not the case, mana detection in the series has never been flawless. This has been shown to you before many times, like Richter missing Sense sneaking up on him in the last arc, even without dropping his detection abilities. That Fern did not detect the demon shouldn't be that big of a surprise.

Just because some rando has mana doesn't mean they're a demon. Frieren was able to suss out the Sword Demon due to the context clues, not just the mana detection. It's likely a lesson Fern will remember going forward and will be more cautious.

^YES! In bold, 100% this was what happened and I thought that was obvious from the start. So you get it after all.
Yes it's clear the demon was suppressing her mana- to which I questioned why since demons aren't supposed to do that- but that was less important than a supposedly First Class Mage totally blowing it like that.
However.. "mana detection has never been flawless" - that's fine, that's your interpretation- but just having Fern not be able to do something she SHOULD be able to do and then not addressing some reason why (if it was intentional)= is weak writing, and inconsistent with her claimed abilities. Trying to claim I am wrong to point this out, just because I dared question this Perfect Masterpiece of an anime seems kind of... pointless.
Your really are making way too big of a deal out of this.
Writing a novel full of hypotheticals isn't going to change my impression of the episode; the writing is inconsistent and that's a flaw this show has. Plain and simple. It's moved on to the 3rd episode anyway....

Demons are supposed to be able to do that. First Class Mages can make mistakes, they are not omnipotent. Both of these points have been demonstrated already.



I'm not saying you are wrong because you question the show. I'm saying you are wrong because you keep drawing conclusions based on your own faulty assumptions. By your words here, it appears to me that you will continue doing just that.

Admittedly previous episode didn't show me how Frieren can challenge in this highly competitive season, but this episode finally does show me that it's still a strong contender not only for anime of the season position but also the best anime of the year as well. I kinda hope season 2 would debut as ep1+ep2, but considering that it only has 10 episodes, it'd end too soon. But seriously, why just 10 episode when people want to watch 100 episodes. The demand is so high but the supply is so scarce.

Claiming that a character can "make mistakes" is a moot point- anyone can say this about any fiction, it does not excuse inconsistent writing.
It is a poor defense. The flaws a character has are supposed to be part of their growth, but in that scene it WAS NOT even mentioned or highlighted as a teachable moment- it simply showed Frieren to be badass and that would be fine if Fern wasn't the same exact rank as her.
You are defending the scene as flawless, based on nothing that was shown in the entire episode. You are arguing that the show is perfect because it's imperfect. That is illogical.

There were two interesting plot points this episode; the other hero whose story turned out to be a lie… and the family sword continually getting stolen.

Firstly, the hero having future vision and seeing his own failure was a pretty unique take. He marched to his fated death with a smile. Technically he was right too, his true story was forgotten and replaced with the legend that he’s still around after killing all the demons.

Secondly, it was interesting to see the party quickly dispatch a demon with a sword. Fern and Stark’s reaction to Frieren blasting first was pretty funny.

Claiming that a character can "make mistakes" is a moot point- anyone can say this about any fiction, it does not excuse inconsistent writing.
It is a poor defense. The flaws a character has are supposed to be part of their growth, but in that scene it WAS NOT even mentioned or highlighted as a teachable moment- it simply showed Frieren to be badass and that would be fine if Fern wasn't the same exact rank as her.
You are defending the scene as flawless, based on nothing that was shown in the entire episode. You are arguing that the show is perfect because it's imperfect. That is illogical.

The Hero of the South sounded absolutely ridiculous in terms of strength. Taking down three demons on the same level as Aura the Guillotine is no small feat, and the way they talked about him made him feel almost mythological. It really makes you wonder just how strong he actually was, and whether we will ever get more details or flashbacks about him later on.

The bit of action against the sword demon was also really cool. It was short, but well animated and satisfying, and it showed off how effortlessly Frieren can see through a demon's act even though the others completely fell for it and would've been killed if she weren't there.

Her love for seemingly trivial spells never gets old. Turning red apples into green apples, being described as a miraculous spell, is peak Frieren energy.