Dragon Slayer Eiyuu Densetsu: Ouji no Tabidachi

Dragon Slayer is good old classic fun. It's got dragons, it's got magic, it's got action, it's got it all. The story might be the most technically generic it could possibly be, with an evil sorcerer and a boisterous prince who was spirited away after his kingdom was conquered, and who is destined under the tutelage of an old mentor to return and defeat that evil that despoiled the land, as he cultivates his physical and metaphysical prowess. Add on a scrappy resistance movement and a journey to retrieve an ancient weapon, and you've basically got yourself a paint-by-numbers 90s fantasy action OVA. Even its ... name is generic! This isn't to say that it's not fun- it is! That's just to say that it's not all that special in the storytelling department. More of a beer and pizza with friends kind of affair rather than engaging with a work of art type deal. The biggest problem the story has isn't its lack of originality, but rather the fact that its pacing feels lightning fast, like it's panicking to shove everything it can into the scant two episode run it has to work with. It's almost as if they took 12 episodes worth of storyboard and processed it into an overcrowded OVA run. In any case, you're watching it more for the monsters and battles than the story, and that is something the art of Dragon Slayer certainly delivers on.

The art nails what it needs to get right, and it is for this reason that it's the strongest aspect of the anime. Overall, the art direction is pretty typical for this type of show, with a boilerplate fantasy world with weapons, armor, and sorcerer garb that is pretty consistent with what you'd expect. Even the character designs kind of feel like a Japanese translation of your usual western fantasy fare. However, the whole thing comes to life when the fight scenes happen. The animation all of a sudden becomes flashy and fluid, playing with an ambitious sense of perspective that gives each major blow a sense of weight and consequence. These moments really shine, and indeed, you don't have to wait too long at all between them, as they are quite abundant throughout.

The sound is solid, meeting the basic standards of quality for the time, even if the voice work is a little lacking.

The characters are also sufficient for the story at hand, filling their roles and archetypes well, even if they feel as though they're being led around by the story and its various necessities and whims. At the end of the day, Dragon Slayer is just a good old classic experience, where you can turn your brain off and enjoy the big flashy fight scenes that they paid special attention to. If Blockbuster were still around, this would be the perfect fit for their shelves, and an item I'd recommend you check out on a slow night for sure.

This anime is fun nothing more nothing less

Not even close to a masterpiece,maybe not even decent for most people but if you like the most generic fantasy plot ever made with some great art/animation give it a shot,Don't expect anything from the characters tho and the pacing is terrible too but this might be just what you need with only 2 episodes the only thing you have to lose is your time

Art 7/10
Animation 9/10 (moves great)
Sound 7/10 (most fantasy sounding thing you will find)
Characters 5/10 LUL
Enjoyment 10/10 (seen it at the right time at the right place)

7/10 would slay dragons again

Rate a 6
English Dubbed

Story
-Is modern life growing dull? Do you need excitement in your life? Do you wonder what life happened shortly after the caveman era but long before your life? While no one can vouch for the authenticity behind the show it is a nice thought of what could have happened. When you see the show it might provide more pleasure and respect to our airplane crew.

-Introduction was delivered in an appropriate fashion by having narration before the actual story unfolded.

-Conclusion. Most show i have seen modern and old are fairly simple with their endings. Either a character wins the battle or loses. ... Here we get that and a bit more comedy wise. While they don't announce the final joke they make a good hint at with the drawings. A very cleaver idea of show vs tell. Which forces the audience to remain glued to the screen even though the show is arriving to an end.

Also, I find the conclusion fairly interesting. The way the story was left off leaves room to a sequel.

Art
-aside from the art getting a more toned look(less bright) the background was its biggest issue. I am not saying the art wasn't appropriately drawn more its timing. I am unsure to what cause the timing to be delayed(choppy), background slowly zooms in and out but could be due to age, production, or dubbing. Given how the dubbing seemed to be on cue i think that was the reason for the delay. If so, rather than doing what they did to extend out a lengthy character line they should have shortened the message.

Sound
-Main female character's voice was pleasant but hard to follow at times. Due to the clear change in pitch. Maybe it was intentional because it was comedy but it was not a pitch change one might expect. In other words you know the: do, re, me fa.... bit? Well, her voice let us at normal falls at so but when angry or scared jumps straight to both dos.

Overall: A show that will surprise you. Some say a cover-shot and a title provides insight to their show. I am not saying that is wrong but given a writer/artist's skill they can change what you may think will happen. For that i applaud them. In terms of audience for the show i would recommend teens and over because of violence.