Slayers tells the story of Lina Inverse, a brilliant sorceress with a firey temper and hair to match. Self-absorbed and obsessed with riches and food, she has the reputation of being a merciless bandit killer. The epithet is well-deserved; Lina robs from thieves and gives the loot to herself! On one of her escapades she meets Goury Gabriev, a talented swordsman who is all brawn and no brains. The unlikely alliance works better than expected, and the two embark on adventure.

As Lina and Gourry travel they meet with several other characters that expand their group. My favorite of these has to be Amelia Seyruun, a pint-sized sorceress with a huge love of justice. Add Zelgadis, a grumpy human that has been cursed with stone skin, and Slyphiel, a priestess with a crush on Goury, and all the necessary ingredients are present for an exciting and enjoyable adventure. Humor abounds in Slayers, and there is a nice mix of episodes devoted to plot development and those devoted to fun.

Slayers is the first season and in it Lina and Gourry battle Rezzo the Red Priest and the demon Shabrinigdo. Slayers: Next is the second season and finds the pair battling demons once again. This time they face off against the demon lord Hellmaster foiling his plans to destroy the world. There is a third season of Slayers, but I have not seen it yet. Rest assured that I will provide a review once I have seen it.

Slayers was created in the 1990's, and the anime stle reflects this. There are no fancy computer graphics and the background scenes are all hand drawn. I find the style charming and nostaligic as it reminds me greatly of the cartoons I watched as a child, but modern fans of anime may find it lacking in polish.

Concerning the voice acting, I will be honest and state that the english dub has some rough spots. In the first season, the voice of Zelgadis is horrendous. The dialog is stilted, unnatural, and quite painful to hear. Mid-season, however, that voice actor is replaced with Crispin Freeman, and while it was odd at first to hear a different voice for the character, it is quickly apparent that the change is an improvement. With the addition of Freeman, the dialog begins to flow naturally and smoothly and greatly enhances the experience of the viewer.

Slayers is a very enjoyable swords and sorcery escapade and I highly recommend it. I liked it so much I've added Slayers to the accepted series list!