Grimgar — Lessons from rewatching the anime
I decided to rewatch Grimgar, the anime. I remember enjoying the vibe and realness of it.
I’m only 3 episodes in, but I’m already loving the existential themes:
- Humans are adaptable
As difficult as it is to survive in Grimgar, especially under such poverty, in just 23 days, everyone adapts and sets into routine.
2. Humans have default settings and conditioning
Although humans are adaptable, we also have nature and nurture. Some of us are just weaker in ways that others aren’t. Ranta is a loud mouth, but when everyone is faced with the horror of killing of Goblin, he is not immune. Loved the death grip the main character had, very nuanced.
They also forget a lot of terms from their old world, even though it’s their “default” ways. But through introspection, they come back (like the plane the guy carved).
3. Humans aren’t meant to (able to) survive alone
They all depend on each other. Even the most valuable person in the group Manato doesn’t think he can survive without the others. The nuance/layer is that he also was yelled at by his teacher, so he perhaps compensates for his own insecurities by bringing value to the group in leadership, organizing, info-sourcing, and logistics.
It’s a beautiful and aesthetic anime with thoughtful and real reflections. I’d say one of my top animes of all time.
These are all very applicable to me too. Even though I think about plunging into independence in the world, it’s not good to self-induce isolation as we need community to “survive”. But either way, we will adapt.
