Much to the shock of Lina and The Slayers, Rezo the Red
Priest is still alive…or is he?
Regardless of the mans return, he’s still more dangerous than ever. Even with the return of Zelgadis and aid from
Gourry’s old friend, Sylphiel, the team is way more outmatched than ever. The only hope of bringing Rezo down for good
is to track down his ancient vault and retrieve Rezo’s Legacy, whatever it may
be. It wont be easy as the last of
Rezo’s forces stand in the teams way, and theyre the deadliest bunch yet. The end is in sight and it’s time to settle
old scores and, quite possibly, save the world in the process. The Slayers are on it.
I cant really put it any better than Lina did. It doesn’t matter if this new Rezo is the
original or a clone. Watching him blow
up half off Syraag without much remorse is probably the coldest, darkest moment
of Slayers yet. And this is a Rezo using
his own power, no Demon Lord hidden within him (at least not yet). Though im not sure if, beyond this, I can
accept this new emotionless Rezo. When
he appeared last week I was excited, hoping maybe he could make up for some of
his lackluster appearances in the first half of the series, especially after
Shabranigdo showed up and totally outclassed him. Now, Rezo’s just a smug smile with a lot of
firepower…and that’s about it. There are
still four more episodes to turn him around.
Which is more than I can say for his overzealous fangirl servant Eris,
who has done absolutely nothing since she appeared last week and proclaimed
herself Rezo’s Number One Fan. Just what
is her connection to the Red Priest and is she in for more than just ultimate
power if she finds Rezo’s Legacy? Yeah
not even a cute outfit can forgive any of Eris’ shortcomings and that’s saying
a lot coming from me.
But where the main villain and his “number two” have
failed, Zangulus made up a lot this week.
He’s always been a blast, whether serious in combat or the comedy
department and this week was a good combo of both. Best of all, it looks like we got a solid
conclusion to his arc as he and Gourry faced off in one last duel. There was no doubt in my mind Gourry was
going to win, especially after Lina fibbed about making him dinner if he did
come out the victor. But to see Zangulus
take his defeat like a man and offer The Slayers one crucial bit of intel
before dipping out, you cant ask for a better resolution to one of the best
antagonists of the series. Heck, Gourry
even gave Zangulus his due as a great swordsman. Here’s hoping Zangulus pops up again in later
seasons, especially for his fun banter with Gourry.
As we get ready to head into the end of The Slayers
(Season One), it does feel like everything is coming to a head. While the hunt for “Rezo’s Legacy” dragged on
for far too long (especially the cast stuck in a labyrinth led by a deceitful
chicken…it’s Slayers just run with it), there was excitement to be found in
other spots. Lina seems to have become
quite the leader of the band, coordinating spells and maneuvers utilized all of
the teams magic users (theyre up to four now), and she isn’t afraid to step
back and let the others get some of the glory when she cant use her most
powerful attacks. It shows growth in
her…and gives a good excuse for Zel to kick all kinds of monster ass
(seriously, if I had seen this show alongside Dragon Ball Z long ago, id’ve
killed to see Zel and Future Trunks team up.
The series even took a moment to shed some light on how far Lina and
Gourry have come as a pair. Last week
saw the introduction of Gourry’s old friend Sylphiel, who is basically just a
female version of Gourry with poor magic skills and a more airy
personality. She hasn’t contributed much
to the tale besides being a conduit to explore a potential Lina and Gourry
romance and to reflect on the possibility that she herself might not end up
with the dim witted but gallant swordsman.
Sylphiel just isn’t doing it for me and the team feels one magic user
too many because of her. Extra bonus
points go to the war of the Chibi Linas and Gourry’s during the cloning machine
disaster, showcasing once again that even with a nuclear wizard on the loose,
The Slayers still knows when to crack a joke under pressure.
Heading into the final stretch, my feelings
are…mixed. Ive enjoyed this first season
for the most part but I cant help but wonder if the best is still to come in
later seasons and its really just a matter of getting through these last four
episodes and enduring the good (Lina, Gourry, Zel…even Amelia) and the not so
good (Rezo, Sylphiel, Eris). Who knows,
next weeks finale might end up surprising me.
We’ll see, one more week to go and then we’ll discuss when were getting
to Slayers Next. See ya then.
No comments:
Post a Comment