My favorite Slayers is the television series, but the OVA/movies are mighty fine entertainment in and of themselves with no larger stories or arcs to follow; just a string of hilarious episodic mayhem and slapstick comedy. Slayers is among my favorite anime series' and Lina is a fantasy anime icon that all should know well. This is a nice little set that compiles the 5 films of this classic anime series which take place before the first season of the television show. My only complaint is that the awesome OVA's "Excellent" and "Book of Spells" aren't included. Personally, those are my favorites of the non-television releases and with them, this set would've gotten 5 stars easily. On to the review. "Slayers: The Motion Picture" is a really fun flick and a decent introduction to Slayers. It features a younger Lina Inverse, sorcery genius and master of the dreaded Dragon Slave technique (which she often has used to lay waste to entire cities) coming across co-collaberator/rival sorceress Naga the Serpent and the excessive fanservice that always accompanies her. As usual with the two of them, chaos ensues. The story features the best villain in all of Slayers anime lore in the demon Joyrock and is the longest and most epic of this bunch. "Slayers: Great" is my favorite of the films. The plot revolves around feuding father and son golem makers. It features first a duel between the two (anti) heroines with hilarious results and then a duel between Lina and Naga golems with even more hilarious results. "Slayers: Premium" is the odd duck of the series since it features the cast of the television series and is a very short 30 minutes. That's not to say we don't see a glimpse of Naga in the closest we'll ever get to a crossover between Lina's two lives, but let's just say it's an underwhelming affair. Not worth much on it's own, but as part of this set, I'd take it. "Slayers Return" is a fun little romp that introduces a lot of cool characters who share very little screen time. The story is about a village enslaved by an organization consisting of two people who seek world domination. You've gotta aim high, right? When an ancient weapon is unearthed the madness tht ensues is pure Lina and Naga. "Slayers: Gorgeous" is more derivative then the rest and seems to have slipped into a creative rut as we see a lot of the same gags and plot devices Slayers fans have seen before, but that doesn't mean it isn't worth your while. After all, this one features a dragon army. That's a good start to any fantasy flick, wouldn't you say? The set as a whole is incomplete in my eyes without the aforementioned OVA's, but if fantasy anime and slapstick comedy are your bag then you should buy this set along with "Book of Spells", "Slayers: Excellent", and the television series and get ready for countless laughs. If you're unsure about this series, give "Excellent" a try as it's probably the best of the OVA releases. If you likey, there's plenty more where that came from right here!
