{"id":1760,"date":"2008-10-22T22:07:56","date_gmt":"2008-10-23T02:07:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/?p=1760"},"modified":"2008-10-22T22:07:56","modified_gmt":"2008-10-23T02:07:56","slug":"slayers-season-1-anime-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/2008\/10\/22\/slayers-season-1-anime-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Slayers Season 1&#8211;Anime Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/image\/stars\/3o5.gif\" alt=\"3 Stars\" \/><br \/>\nSometimes the popularity of an <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#anime\">anime<\/a> series can be measured by its longevity. In this case the original 1995 television season was followed by 5 movies, 2 <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#OVA\">OVAs<\/a> and 3 more TV seasons, the latest of which has just finished broadcasting in Japan.<\/p>\n<p>The longevity probably has as much to do with the strength of the stories&#8217; setting as with the popularity of the characters. This sword-and-sorcery parody is set in a well-drawn fantasy universe, with stories that are comic, but just dark enough to hold an adult&#8217;s interest.<\/p>\n<p>It is interesting to compare the first season to the latest effort. The visual style has changed over the years. The latest series looks different, largely because the anime industry has shifted from hand-drawn cel animation to all-digital techniques. Yet I think the most important difference&#8211;and the main reason to check out the first season if you haven&#8217;t already seen it&#8211;is in the writing. The first season is a lot funnier and tells a better story.<br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<ul class=\"ItemList\">\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Original Title<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Slayers (<em>SUREIYAAZU<\/em>) <\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Genres<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Fantasy, Comedy<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Languages<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Japanese with subtitles, English.<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Demographic<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Shounen<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Contents<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">26 Episodes on 4 DVDs<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Based on<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">A series of <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#light_novel\">light novels<\/a> by Hajime Kanzaka<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Director<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Takashi Watanabe<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Series Composition<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Takao Koyama<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Script<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Takao Koyama<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Character Design<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Naomi Miyata<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Art Director<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Toshihisa Tojo<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Character Conceptual Design<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Rui Araizumi<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Animation producer<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Koji Ogiwara<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Music<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">Osamu Tezuka<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Animation Studio<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">\tE.G. Films<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Broadcast<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">TV Tokyo 1995<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div class=\"Item\">Region 1 Publisher<\/div>\n<div class=\"Description\">FUNimation Entertainment<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Parental Advisory<\/h3>\n<p>I don&#8217;t recommend this for young children. There is a lot of violence, and while most of it is comic slapstick, some of it is not, and people sometimes get killed. Age 10 might be a reasonable minimum.<\/p>\n<h3>Availability<\/h3>\n<p>This is one series that Netflix does not carry, even though it is in print. (I guess they just don&#8217;t reorder new discs when the old ones wear out.) However the box set is inexpensive and available from most of the usual online vendors.<\/p>\n<h3>Premise and Characters<\/h3>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/worldofslayers.png\" alt=\"World of Slayers\" title=\"World of Slayers\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1858\" \/>The world of <em>Slayers <\/em> is a hemisphere <a href=\"#Note_flat\">[1]<\/a> balanced on top of a giant staff or pillar. As in most such stories, the world is a battleground between gods (<em>shinzoku<\/em>) and demons (<em>mazoku<\/em>, called &#8220;Monsters&#8221; in the subtitles.) The <em>shinzoku<\/em> want to preserve the world and the <em>mazoku<\/em> want to destroy it. The <em>mazoku<\/em> are always busy with their plots while the <em>shinzoku<\/em> are rarely evident.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\nMagic plays a central role in this world. There are three types:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Black Magic<\/strong> Destructive spells performed by calling upon the power of the <em>mazoku<\/em>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>White Magic<\/strong> Healing and protective spells, presumably powered by the <em>shinzoku<\/em>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Shamanistic Magic<\/strong> Spells that draw on the power of the spirit world. These are morally neutral, but some are quite destructive.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Any magic user can perform all three types of magic, but it generally pays to specialize. Anyone who is really good at one type will probably be bad at the others.\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/lina2.png\" alt=\"Lina Inverse\" title=\"Lina Inverse\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1850\" \/><strong>Lina Inverse<\/strong> is a sorceress who is an expert in Black Magic. That doesn&#8217;t mean she is evil. Just&#8230;ethically challenged. She&#8217;s actually quite an engaging character, a bright, cheerful, energetic girl who clearly enjoys blowing things up. Her crowning achievement is a spell called &#8220;<strong>Dragon Slave<\/strong>&#8220;, which seems roughly equivalent to a tactical nuke.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/linabandits.png\" alt=\"Lina and Bandits\" title=\"Lina and Bandits\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1851\" \/>Lina enjoys eating, fighting and stealing treasure. Of course she only steals from people who more or less deserve it. At the beginning of the story she beats up a troop of bandits and makes off with a large quantity of loot.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/gourry.png\" alt=\"Gourry\" title=\"Gourry\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1848\" \/>At this point she encounters <strong>Gourry Gabriev<\/strong>. Gourry is your basic hero type: tall and handsome; honest, loyal and brave; a mighty swordsman; stronger than an ox and almost as smart. He possesses a magical weapon of immense power: the legendary <strong>Sword of Light<\/strong>.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/gourrylinaeating.png\" alt=\"Gourry and Lina Eating\" title=\"Gourry and Lina Eating\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1849\" \/>Lina decides to tag along with him, hoping to acquire the sword for herself.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/mysteriouspursuers.png\" alt=\"Mysterious Pursuers\" title=\"Mysterious Pursuers\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1852\" \/>It soon develops that Lina and Gourry are being shadowed by mysterious pursuers. Somewhere in the bundle of treasure that Lina stole there is a magical item that the pursuers will go to any lengths to obtain. If they get it, the consequences for the world could be disasterous&#8211;but Lina doesn&#8217;t know which item it is.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/zelgadis2.png\" alt=\"Zelgadis\" title=\"Zelgadis\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1862\" \/>The pursuers are led by <strong>Zelgadis Greywords<\/strong>, a grim, relentless man; a skilled wizard and a mighty warrior. He is a chimera: part human, part stone golem, and part brass demon. He is an expert in the art of Shamanistic Magic.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/dilgear.png\" alt=\"Dilgear\" title=\"Dilgear\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"size-full\" \/><strong>Dilgear<\/strong>,\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/rodimus.png\" alt=\"Rodimus\" title=\"Rodimus\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"size-full\" \/><strong>Rodimus<\/strong>,\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/zolf.png\" alt=\"Zolf\" title=\"Zolf\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"size-full\" \/>and <strong>Zolf <\/strong> are Zelgadis&#8217;s henchmen.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/rezo3.png\" alt=\"Rezo\" title=\"Rezo\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1854\" \/>A helpful stranger turns out to be <strong>Rezo the Red Priest<\/strong>, a blind wizard famous for his many acts of benevolence. Rezo is reputed to be one of the greatest masters of White Magic in history. He offers to help safeguard the treasure, but Lina doesn&#8217;t fully trust him.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/shabranigdo.png\" alt=\"Shabranigdo\" title=\"Shabranigdo\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1856\" \/><strong>Ruby Eye Shabranigdo<\/strong>, the Dark Lord of the <em>mazoku<\/em>, is very bad news.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/princephil.png\" alt=\"Prince Phil\" title=\"Prince Phil\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1853\" \/>He may look like a common thug, but <strong>Prince Philionel El Di Seyruun<\/strong> actually a man of royal blood and noble character. He is a devout pacifist who believes that all disputes can be settled by rational discussion in good faith, and he is prepared to beat the crap out of anyone who refuses to cooperate. He is the ruler of Seyruun, a city famous for it&#8217;s many holy places and practitioners of White Magic. He has no magic powers but possesses immense strength.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/amelia.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"Amelia\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1845\" \/>Philionel&#8217;s young daughter <strong>Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun<\/strong> is a priestess <a href=\"#Note_priestess\">[2]<\/a> and sorceress. An idealist like her father, she fancies herself a great Champion of Justice. It might be better if she were on the other side. Her clumsiness, gullibility, inept spell-casting and general poor judgment often make her seem more of a threat to the good guys.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/zangulusvrumugun.png\" alt=\"Zangulus and Vrumugun\" title=\"Zangulus and Vrumugun\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1868\" \/><strong>Zangulus <\/strong> and <strong>Vrumugun<\/strong> (l-r) are bounty hunters pursuing our heroes.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/sylphiel.png\" alt=\"Sylphiel\" title=\"Sylphiel\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1857\" \/><strong>Sylphiel Nels Lahda<\/strong> is a priestess who seems to be in love with Gourry. She is extremely good at White Magic, but hopeless at the other kinds.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/10\/eris.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"Eris\" width=\"240\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1847\" \/><strong>Eris<\/strong> is a sorceress who is up to no good.\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Character\">\n<\/div>\n<h3>Anime Versions<\/h3>\n<h4> TV Series<\/h4>\n<ol>\n<li><em>The Slayers<\/em> 1995. Reviewed here.<\/li>\n<li><em>Slayers Next<\/em> 1996.<\/li>\n<li><em>Slayers Try<\/em> 1997.<\/li>\n<li><em>Slayers Revolution<\/em> 2008.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h4>Movies<\/h4>\n<p>These are prequels to the TV series, in which Lina has not yet met Gourry and is travelling with a scantily-clad sorceress named <strong>Naga the Serpent<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><em>Slayers The Motion Picture<\/em> 1995. <\/li>\n<li><em>Slayers Return<\/em> 1996.<\/li>\n<li><em>Slayers Great<\/em> 1997.<\/li>\n<li><em>Slayers Gorgeous<\/em> 1998.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h4>OVAs<\/h4>\n<p>These are also prequels featuring Lina and Naga.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><em>Slayers Special<\/em> 1996.<\/li>\n<li><em>Slayers Excellent<\/em> 1998. Shows the first meeting between Lina and Naga.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h4>Short Feature<\/h4>\n<p><em>Slayers Premium<\/em> (2001) is a short feature shown on a triple bill with two unrelated anime spinoffs. The story involves Lina and Gourry, though Naga also makes an appearance. <\/p>\n<h3>Links<\/h3>\n<p>Wikipedia <a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Slayers\">entry<\/a> (spoilers).<\/p>\n<p>Anime News Network Encyclopedia <a href=\"http:\/\/www.animenewsnetwork.com\/encyclopedia\/anime.php?id=657\">entry<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Notes<\/h3>\n<p><a name=\"Note_flat\">[1]<\/a> This detail seems to have been forgotten in the latest TV series.<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"Note_priestess\">[2]<\/a> She is called a &#8220;<em><a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews\/#miko\">miko<\/a><\/em>&#8221; in the dialog, but since the local religion is only vaguely related to Shinto, &#8220;priestess&#8221; seems as good a translation as &#8220;shrine maiden&#8221;.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sometimes the popularity of an <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#anime\">anime<\/a> series can be measured by its longevity. In this case the original 1995 television season was followed by 5 movies, 2 <a href=\"\/fun\/terms-used-in-anime-reviews#OVA\">OVAs<\/a> and 3&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/2008\/10\/22\/slayers-season-1-anime-review\/\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[212],"class_list":["post-1760","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-anime","tag-slayers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1760","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1760"}],"version-history":[{"count":31,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1760\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1871,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1760\/revisions\/1871"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugfox.net\/fun\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}