Record of Lodoss War

Original Title: ロードス島戦記
Romanized: Roodosu-tou Senki
Literal: War Chronicle of Lodoss Island

Plot Synopsis

In the mists of legend the mythical island continent of Lodoss was torn away from the mainland during the war between Falis, god of light, and Falaris, god of darkness. But that peace, won at great cost in the distant past, is threatened by an evil force looming over the land. The evil rulers of the island Marmo are preparing their conquest of the peaceful kingdoms of Lodoss. But they are not the only threat--a mighty sorceress from a time long ago also has a hand in the dealings, and there may be an even more powerful force threatening all that is good. It will be up to a band of young warriors, misfits brought together by fortune, to find the source of the darkness and stop the evil that threatens Lodoss.

Quick Review

Rating: 3 / 5
Reviewer: Marc
Review Date: 2008-02-04

Record of Lodoss War is almost a spectacular fantasy epic. It manages the epic scale, the plot is filled with war, heroes, and political intrigue, the art is beautiful, and the music is the stuff of quality fantasy. Unfortunately, even 13 OAVs wasn't nearly enough to complete the story, so the second half ends up being rushed and rather unsatisfying, the Dungeons & Dragons roots of the fantasy setting are all too obvious, the plot is almost devoid of surprises, and the animation is cheap at best, nonexistent at worst. Also watch out for the English dub--though not bad, it's rather flat, where the Japanese dialogue takes up some of the slack in otherwise lackluster scenes.

The bottom line will depend quite a bit on your taste; I found it watchable and at times good, but predictable, rather uncreative, a bit cheesy, and basically just not all that interesting. However, it is classic fantasy done to the hilt (pun intended), and it's hugely popular among fantasy fans, so if that's your cup of tea, or if epic scale, grand story, and attractive art sound worth it, you should give it a shot.

US DVD Review

USM's old DVD set was minimal but a good deal--you got the entire series on two DVDs that come in a nice little outer slipcase. The discs feature fairly good video transfers (particularly considering the older source material), decent audio in both languages, a subtitle track, and nothing else. There aren't even any previews in the menus--just a chapter index. A minor annoyance was that the episodes were put together in the same way as the VHS tapes; that is, you only see the opening/ending credits after every 2nd or 3rd episode (although all the previews are there). They also lack Japanese casts, as usual for USM's early DVDs.

The remastered "collector's series" version is an improvement, with a full compliment of extra features: Japanese promotional videos, an art gallery, meet the heroes, scripts, cast list and credits, comics, and more.

Content Guide

Some violence, and generally serious situations putting it in at least the 10-up range, though I'd say 13-up.

Violence: 2 - A lot of war, but nothing very graphic.

Nudity: 1 - A loose outfit now and then, and one brief scene early on.

Sex/Mature Themes: 1 - Nothing of note.

Language: 1 - Some light profanity.

Notes and Trivia

Based on a series of novels, which were in turn based on some short stories, which were themselves based on a Dungeons & Dragons game. The novels also spawned a comic book series, which is now available in English. Note that the story after the middle of the OAV series diverges somewhat from the original in order to make it fit into 13 episodes. A more accurate version is taken up in the Record of Lodoss War TV series, which begins by retelling the second half of this series for its first few episodes, then jumps forward several years and continues on.

Among the bonus materials on the DVDs (also on the first VHS volume) is a live action short chronicling the premier of the first OAV installment, shown in a theater as a promotional gimmick. This, though interesting, I found tragic in a way. To elaborate: There are several interviews with fans coming out of the auditorium, all uttering in hushed tones phrases like "I can't explain how I feel now" and "That was just amazing." I'm hardly one to bash somebody else's passion, but to hear comments like that about a mediocre half hour long show (whatever you think about the series, the first episode wasn't much to write home about) is frankly kind of sad.

Availability

The 13 OAV episodes are available on a remastered 2-disc collectors edition set [buy from RightStuf or AnimeNation]. There was also an older 2-disc set with fewer extra features, now out of print, as are the six subtitled or dubbed VHS tapes the series was originally available on.

Looking to buy? Try these stores: RightStuf (search) | AnimeNation | Akemi's a(nime)Store