Fern is carefully choosing her outfit and making sure her bangs are in tip-top shape, ’cause that’s what you do when you prepare for dates. You want to look your best. You want the person you’re dating to find you attractive. But that leads to a natural follow-up question: does Stark even care how she looks? I’m not asking whether or not he finds Fern attractive, because in order for him to answer that question, he needs to know that it exists in the first place! Fern’s probably thinking, “I hope he thinks I look cute in this dress.” Meanwhile, Stark looks slightly concerned as he waits for Fern to arrive for their date. He’s probably dreading the fallout if the date is unsuccessful.
Finally, the two kids meet up. In my mind, I’m thinking, “Say something nice about her dress.” Unsurprisingly, Frieren doesn’t understand the point of getting dressed up, and neither does Stark. It doesn’t occur to him to compliment her. After walking with her for a short bit, he eventually realizes that Fern is attractive. Too bad he doesn’t also realize he should probably tell her that. One thing for sure, Stark is no ladykiller. Still, this answers my earlier question. They’ve been traveling together all this time, but he hasn’t even considered her looks until now. Fern’s careful preparation, however, has done the trick; it has triggered a change in how Stark sees her. But is this enough to give rise to romantic feelings in the boy? Well, one step at a time, I suppose. After all, this is a long journey. They’ll have plenty of time to spend together.
For the date itself, Stark merely retraces the steps he took with Frieren the previous day. They also have little to talk about, so their conversations always end up circling back to the elf. I’m no casanova, but you probably shouldn’t talk about other women when you’re on a date. But I’m not sure what to think here, because I waffle between “Stark is an idiot” and “Stark is inexperienced.” Sure, he’s never been on a date before, nor has he probably ever considered having a girlfriend. But it doesn’t take a genius to realize, Wow, she got all dolled up for this — for me! Like c’mon, do you need “experience” to compliment someone’s dress? Do you need “experience” to come up with an interesting topic to discuss?
Fern is not subtle around Stark, because she probably realizes that she needs to be blunt in order to get through to him. But even then, it doesn’t always work. She picks up a necklace and mentions how couples get a discount. Unfortunately, Stark’s just like, “Boy, dates sure are useful! Let’s keep checking out other places. By the way, ARE YOU HUNGRY YET? I BET YOU’RE HUNGRY, HUH?” As soon as they walk away from the stall, Fern sees another man buying that same necklace for his partner. Oof. Meanwhile, Stark harps on Fern’s appetite, because this is what he discussed with Frieren yesterday. In his mind, he better stick to the script, because she gets fussy when she’s hungry! Better avoid that! Sure, this is him trying to make Fern happy, but he’s just so clumsy about it.
Speaking of the script, the date ends up in the same, exact place as last week’s episode… where Stark and Fern proceed to talk about Frieren some more. This is almost too painful to watch. I bet a lot of shippers were looking forward to this episode, but the monkey’s paw strikes again. Fern and Stark finally go on a date! And all they do is talk about Frieren. Stark eventually asks if Fern is unhappy — if she didn’t have fun. He notices that his partner hasn’t smiled even once. I mean, does he think this was fun? It seemed like Stark had the most fun when he was buying that gigantic meat bun. Fern is noticeably blocked by the proprietor as the boy exclaims in joy. Welp, time for some honesty as Fern replies, “…it didn’t feel like you.” When someone goes on a date with you, they want to date you. Seems obvious, but not so obvious to a guy like Stark. And when he is honest in return — when he opens up about how he wanted to make the date special — Fern finally cracks a smile. Oh well, you live and learn. Emphasis on the “learn,” because interpersonal relationships just get trickier and trickier from here. Good luck to you, Stark. You’re gonna need it.
The next morning, Frieren’s braids are immaculate, a far cry from how they looked before the date. The elf doesn’t really need to spell it out for us, but there are Starks in the audience. Like Fern, the storytelling has to be blunt in order to get its message across.
The danger ramps up considerably as soon as the party enter the Northern Plateau. Frieren and company first encounter horned lizards that might as well be dinosaurs. And then there’s this plant-covered giant. I’m not sure how you would even fight that. Maybe just sneak on by. Throw in a five-eyed, mind-controlling serpent for good measure. This time, the gang has to run, because Stark apparently has no charm resistance. Last but not least, a nasty, horned bat man terrorizes them for invading his cave. Once again, the party bails. Their only moment of respite is when they stumble upon a seemingly tranquil village in the middle of the forested wilderness. But it makes you wonder how this out-in-the-middle-of-nowhere oasis of civilization can even exist. How are there pockets of safety in the midst of all this danger? One of the villagers agrees to house them in one of their unused cabins, but in return, he needs their help. According to the man, a particularly strong monster has been terrorizing the main road, wandering ever so closer to the village. Again, I can’t help but wonder what keeps the rest of the monsters at bay.
Stark wants to know why the man and his family are choosing to stay here where their lives are in danger. That city with its huge protective walls is just three mere days away on foot if they stick to the main road. Predictably, the man replies that leaving the village would be tantamount to abandoning their home. I’m a pragmatic sort. I would never raise my family in a dangerous area just because it’s “full of memories of our families.” But people are sentimental creatures. In my mind, home is wherever you choose it to be. You can always make new memories. You can always build a new house (well, maybe not in this economy). But you can’t bring your dead family back to life. Though morbidly, I suppose you could always make new children…
Dark humor aside, it doesn’t take long for the party to find their quarry: a monster (a feral demon?) with the fresh blood of its latest victim on its lips. A fight ensues, and the trio struggle a bit more than usual to put their foe down. They do, however, eventually get the job done. Frieren warns the kids that it’s gonna get a lot tougher from here on out. They particularly need to work on their teamwork. This prompts Stark to once again suggest traveling by boat. Not only would it be safer, it’d be a lot quicker too. It just costs more. Frieren had that same thought the first time she crossed through the Northern Plateau with her original party. But if she, Fern, and Stark hadn’t stopped this latest monster, it would have eventually attacked that village that had just been so kind to them. So Frieren does what she’s always done: when in doubt, invoke Himmel. Just ask yourself, “What would Jesus Himmel do?” With their answer in hand, the party’s journey continues.
Stray thoughts & observations:
- That meat bun really left an impression on the kids.
- Why did Eisen take Stark in? He says it’s because that’s what Himmel would’ve done. Why did Heiter take Fern in? Same answer. So what would have happened if these two men had never met Himmel? Would they have really ignored and abandoned a lost child? Or is Himmel a convenient answer, because men in general are emotionally constipated so they refuse to talk about their true feelings? I mean, I don’t doubt the fact that Himmel was a good influence on both Eisen and Heiter. But even if they hadn’t gone on a journey with the hero, I just can’t imagine either of them seeing and ignoring a child in need. ‘Cause that makes you a shithead. But hey, what do I know? Maybe they were shitheads before Himmel came along and fixed them.
- Seeing a happy Fern, Frieren reflects on her “date” with Himmel. It turns out she wasn’t mistaken; they did go on a date. Or rather, Himmel used their sidequest as an excuse to spend quality alone time with Frieren, because he’s the sort of man to do something sly like that.
- They even manage to find the lost cat. Ah, it’s a black cat, too. Sigh, I certainly miss my lil’ buddy.
- The party eventually reaches a checkpoint where they once again have to lean on Fern’s qualification as a first class mage in order to pass on through. So you’re telling me Frieren can’t help in the fight against the demons unless she’s traveling with Fern? Serie is so petty for this, but I guess that’s what makes her an interesting character.
