There is no doubt that “ Oshi no Ko ” and
“ Sousou no
Frieren ( Frieren: Beyond Journey's End )” were
two of the most important anime productions of the year 2023. Leaving aside
their plots and such, both series have something in Common: It turns
out that the premiere episodes of both series had an extended runtime instead
of the usual 30-minute block.
When it comes to the first episode of an anime series, it's
usually about the introduction of the characters. However, in recent years
there have been over 200 releases a year, making it much harder to stand
out. For this reason, many animes extend their initial episodes to
quickly reach the initial plot climax and captivate the audience from its first
broadcast.
Apparently, this strategy continues with favorable results
for the majority of anime series that have resorted to its use. Not only
“ Sousou no Frieren ” with a 120-minute first episode and
“ Oshi no Ko ” with a 90-minute first episode, but also
“ Kimetsu no Yaiba: Katanakaji no Sato-hen ” had a first and
last episode of duration extended to 60 minutes; and “ Re:Zero kara
Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu ” also resorted to extended episodes when it
had a remaster, so to speak. Other examples of success have been “ Kusuriya
no Hitorigoto ” and “ Uma Musume Pretty Derby .
But does the dynamic of the extended first episode really
ensure the success of a series? Fans are already debating about it:
- " It's
not that those series were successful because of the extended first
episode, but that we finally realized that twenty minutes per episode is
sometimes not enough to judge a series completely ."
- « I
think the extended start is just a way of looking at it, like waiting for
three or four episodes to come out and watching them in a row to determine
whether you will watch a series or not. Eventually you realize that a
series will be successful or not as it progresses, I don't think the
extended premiere has much to do with it .
- « Oshi
no Ko would have been popular anyway. However, I think that the extended
premiere only applies to certain series, especially those that have a
drama that you absolutely must see on your first sitting .
- « I
love Sousou no Frieren. However, I'm more than sure that not everyone
would have fallen in love with the series if there hadn't been an extended
release. After all, you had to witness Frieren's emotional development
from the beginning .
- " I
feel that the interest comes more from how much it is recommended by those
who read the original work, whether manga or light novel, and not so much
from an extended release ."
- " Ragna
Crimson also had an extended first episode, but it was not enough to make
the series popular ."
- « I
think that success does not come from there being an extended first
episode, but rather that the extended first episode decides precisely
whether the original work is popular or not .»
- " It's
very nice and everything that there are first episodes of extended
duration, but eventually all the premieres will be like that and it will
stop being something special ."
Source: Otakomu
