Lodoss-tou Senki

After watching so many fantasy story I can say finally I found the true fantasy story I've been looking for something fimiliar to final fantasy or maybe elden ring or even lots of the ring something that can the complete universe of fantasy story with various factions such as humans, elves and dragons something has hat that classic typical story about good and evil something that talking about legends and heroes, this anime could be the ultimate fantasy story you can find in anime community, no overpowered main character , and there is no friendship power , no harem bullshit , just a story that could be too realistic than entertaining, and trust me ain't exaggerating at all , it has some dark theme elements like berserk , ppl here can easily die and every fight they struggle and they face their weaknesses. im sick of shitty isekai or OP MC I wanna see something that will make love all characters without favorite any one of them , with some true love story without harem and over ecchi things , and we don't have that silly or cringe comedy here like most of shows have . the soundtrack were stunning I loved em , classic and fancy and honestly that's why I prefer 90s anime , at that time ppl create stories with pure love , you can feel how much hard work they put on it , short amount of episodes with decent stories no filler no several seasons . i really hope this anime get a reboot because there is a lack of lore hereI feel the plot needs more episodes to explain the universe during my walkthrough I noticed they kinda rushed the story to the end and that's why can't give it full besides that I believe the source material here needs at least 25 episodes to adapt it .

Record of Lodoss War is a basic high fantasy story that is carried by its gorgeous art, outstanding designs, and wonderful music. There's not much to say about the stories, characters, and themes. Your average RPG starter character Parn gets together with a group of RPG archetypes to go on a quest to stop a war orchestrated by some dark deity. The characters in the group are fine; they're not given much exploration, development, or backstory but they're each competent at what they do and their dialogue and interactions are fine. Deedlit falls into that category as well--- despite having an awesome character design that suggests she would play a bigger role, she's just there to be the chick to Parn. The story opts to focus on fledgling hero Parn, who of course talks a lot about saving people and rushes into battle but doesn't have any of the fighting skill to back it up. He's pretty much a noob who tries to be a hero up until the very last episodes and it gets tiresome to watch him get bailed out by the other, much more competent characters in the group. The emphasis on Parn over the more capable and potentially more interesting members of the group severely hurts the story. Speaking of the story, the group also just doesn't do much in general; for the first 8 episodes or so they simply travel from place to place. There's nothing egregious about the plot (except for one thing), but it would have had some life if the battles that they fought were actually well animated. I understand it was 1990 and their budget was limited, but still the slowness and reliance on still frames for the action sequences limits their entertainment value. That's not to say the art is bad, though. The backgrounds and characters are beautifully drawn and really convey that classic fantasy setting. I was OK with the plot until they damseled Deedlit so that Parn could finally man up and save her. Not only did they damsel her, they also seemed to use this as an opportunity to sexualize her. This is a cardinal sin in my book- they took a character with a strong design and objectified her. When Parn saves her, they act like he's a big hero who's gone through a lot of development, but in reality he didn't learn much and his sword skills made an inexplicable jump from noob to master. Anyway, enough about the plot and characters. Let's talk about the art and design. Like I said, the art is gorgeous. The designs are some of the best I've seen in anime and in fantasy in general. Parn's suit is a great knight design and Deedlit's outfit, with its broad shoulder pads, is powerful and elegant. The face designs are among my favorite in anime. Each character's face is unique and handsomely constructed, achieving a perfect blend of anime beauty and realism. The male faces are actually handsome and not pretty in the feminine way that anime designs usually do it. Parn's eyes, in particular, do a lot to soften my dislike of him. The second series blindly discarded these face designs in favor of more generic ones. The music has an otherworldly beauty that capture the finest feelings of the fantasy genre, doing the job that the story and characters couldn't. The opening and ending songs feel like they embody the quintessential fantasy adventure aesthetic. The design and music alone make the series worth checking out, but don't expect too much from the actual story.

first anime I ever watched and i been hooked on the genre ever since!!! I just loved how it was basically an RPG come to life, tell me an epic story any day of the week!!! From start to finish character development/progression is prevalent in ALL characters, not just the main. even the villains have motivations for their actions. I honestly wish it was longer but even for 13 episodes it felt like an 'epic' tale without sacrificing the pacing at all. Depending on the time frame you pick this up, you may be off-put by the art style but for the early '90s this was gold, pure animated goodness!!! though its been a while between this review and my actual watching of the show i can't recall the musical score being anything but appropriate. bass drops occurred in time with the action beats, not a whole lot of 'BIG EXPLOSION' moments but the fight choreography was impressive and well thought out between knights crossing swords with wizards chanting spells from the rear to assist everyone was in place where you would expect them to be and if they weren't... then things most likely didn't go well for the side that slipped up. All in all great work done well with lots of care and it shows. give it a view and see for yourself!!!

Thousands of years have passed since the war amongst the two gods of dark and light had ended which, broke off a piece of land from the main continent and the island "Lodoss" was formed. Now the forces of darkness brews once again as the dark ruthless armies of Marmo begins to invade and threaten the inhabitants of the island. After his village is attacked by a a horde of strangely behaving goblins, the badly untrained and rash Parn is sent out to investigate the source of the darkness. Joining him is an unruly party of six each journeying for their own reasons - his priest-in-training and friend Etoh who chose to accompany him, Ghim the dwarf in search of his daughter, Slayn the self-taught mage who sees potential in Parn, Deedlit the curious High Elf and Woodchuck a thief they rescued during a raid. Soon they discover there are much greater forces at play. This show is based on Ryo Mizuno's 7 volume novel series which are actually a novelisation of recorded Dungeon & Dragon gameplay sessions. Think RPGs with pen and paper without any electronics, just dices to determine what happens. As such, the setup is very RPG-like with your party member of humans, elves in their familar classes such as mage, warrior etc. It's very much your classic Western fantasy world setting filled with legends and the simple plot of a party setting out to adventure to vanquish the evil that leaves a trail of ruin wherever it goes. Complete with the evil laughs too. Art is good and suits its fantasy setting. I think the character designs are beautifully done and aren't done as fan service heavy like most shows these days. You do notice the repeated animations used during battles and how short duel scenes are but, with the amount of work involved in doing cel animation you'd probably give them some slack for it. You can also see the lack of animation sometimes such as when a troupe of knights are moving like a cardboard stand. The emotional "twinkly eye" animations feel overdone and overly used and, there's a bit too much flashing of scenes sometimes. There's lots of blood but little gore. You could say the 13 episode OVA is roughly based on the first half of the novels but has its original ending as the novels were still ongoing at the time. RPG fans should find the fantasy premise entertaining as it is with the familiar battle scenarios and party setups.

Record of Lodoss War was recommended by a classmate back in university, during a time when VHS was still a thing. Anime releases in North America back then were generally abysmal, favoring titillating shows or big productions over diamonds in the rough, and you usually were stuck with shows with low-budget dubbing, replacing passable or overacted Japanese acting with terrible acting by unknown actors or extras furiously trying to stay in sync with the animation. When I watched this in the university dorm (complete with so-so fan subtitles), I couldn't wait for the next episode. And the next. Great shows always leave you wanting more (terrible shows leave you demanding a refund), and Lodoss War is probably the anime that, to me, sets the bar for quality. So, yes, the animation is dated. Well, think about the computers that were available in 1988-89. Apple IIs, greyscale Macs, an Amiga if you cared about graphic quality. None of these were used in the animation business at the time (that I know of, anyway-- graphical processing power just wasn't up to snuff). Anime was hand-drawn on cels, every single frame, 24 frames per second. Sometimes they will loop an animation and zoom out the camera to save a few yen, but that kind of shortcut breaks the illusion easily and was used sparingly. If the director or anyone in charge of production calls for a retake of a scene, it had to be redrawn, completely. If the colors were off, you didn't have color correction, you had to redraw it. Don't believe me? Watch Shirobako. They're not kidding when they say animation was extremely hard work in these days. Just as Steamboat Willie was state-of-the-art in its day, so was the animation in Lodoss War, and doubly so because OVAs allow a good production staff to take its time to make sure everything was right, unlike the mad dash of a weekly television series. Sure, showing the glint of the blade tip rather than the full animated swing is a shortcut, but it is undeniably effective (and no anime since has used this nearly as effectively). The animation staff knew exactly how to employ the imagination of the audience and draw them in. I'm sorry to say, this is a lost art today largely because animators now have the tools to show us all the gory details, overload our senses, and leave plot and characterization in the dust. The soundtrack. Oh, yes, the soundtrack. The score's soaring battle themes evoke Carl Orff's Carmina Burana (which is fitting, because that was the soundtrack of the film Excalibur). The composer, while he's no Yoko Kanno (let alone Howard Shore, James Horner, or John Williams), nevertheless demonstrates his mastery of every section of the orchestra, from tracks that would probably evoke zombie apocalypses, to tracks that Vivaldi could've written for a royal court, to tracks that could be the backdrop of Eomer's counterattack in The Two Towers. I usually don't remember anime soundtracks because they're totally unimpressive (or I remember them because they're terrible)-- I cannot say that about the soundtrack to Lodoss War. Adesso e Fortuna is the only anime song with a tango beat that I can remember (it's a slow tango-- listen to the bass line and the harp), and while romance isn't a particularly important part of the show until the final 3 episodes or so, it turns out to be a great match. The ending theme is good as well, but I never really got into it nearly as much. The voice acting is very well cast, written, directed, and performed. How do I know this? As another reviewer mentioned, there is chemistry. In the behind-the-scenes to Star Wars, we see that one reason why George Lucas cast (a very young and terrified) Carrie Fisher wasn't because of her Hollywood star parents, but because of her chemistry with Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill. If you want to see why casting matters, look at early deleted scenes of Star Trek: Voyager with a very different Captain Janeway. Poor casting (especially political casting) is never a benefit to a production, and thankfully here all the voices fit like gloves. Now, sure, it seems like an anime cliche-- fantasy theme, RPG party of a fighter, a mage, a healer, a dwarf, a thief, and an elf, now go and fight {dragon|evil warlord|wizard}. But you need to understand that you are watching the series that in my opinion set the standard for this genre. In fact, it probably did its job too well-- nearly every fantasy anime I've seen since was either a cliched copy of this party, or a parody (intentional, in the case of Slayers, or otherwise, in the case of follow-up productions). Without a good script, the characters can't grow. Without good direction, the audience won't care about the characters. Here, the characters have depth, they don't remain who they are in the beginning, and they all have journeys, for good or ill. Good casting, great script, good direction. Part of me wishes that there are more episodes, and part of me dreads what happens when there isn't enough plot to go around. The pace is just right to me, and other than an introductory episode, there isn't much of "jumping around" to my recollection (which means I should rewatch the DVD). The story does meander a bit, and despite all the stuff happening, the show never loses its focus on the main cast. For all the liberties taken with the original RPG/novels, this is the best adaptation to animation, hands down. Am I biased in thinking this is the bar for all fantasy anime? Damn straight I am, and proud of it too.

The age of this series shows, but the OVAs still hold up today as a classic high fantasy anime. The story itself isn't anything special and plays out like a D&D campaign, and the characters are pretty much ripped out of a D&D session as well. But that's the charm of it, It's just a straightforward high fantasy story. I'll also admit the influx of the "Isekai" genre has influenced my review as the most generic fantasy plots are masterpieces compared to that garbage. Animation and sound wise it still holds up fairly well for something it's age, and the first episode in particular had animation that puts some series today to shame in comparison. Story wise as I said before, it's pretty much a D&D campaign in animated format. Your enjoyment of it hinges on whether you like those kinds of plots, I did so I liked it. The characters are all pretty generic, but that's what makes them endearing. They aren't some ridiculous over the top anime trope like a lot of "fantasy" anime does these days. Parn the main character isn't a Japanese teenager who got killed by a truck and sent to this fantasy world where he's given a ridiculous OP power that's considered weak. He's just the son of a knight who starts off as a complete greenhorn, and by the end you see his progression both in his combat skills and his personality. All in all, it's a classic series that I'd recommend anybody who loves Fantasy or those who are tired of the bland self insert Isekai genre to check out.

This show is based on the first novel of THE classic Japanese high fantasy series. If you were born in the '60s or '70s (if you were Japanese) or '90s (if you were anywhere else) you must have heard of Lodoss at least once. The novel series was based on an actual TRPG playthrough of the series' writer Mizuno Ryou and his friends: the story involved was modified after the playthrough was done. This show cut down on almost every sidequest/filler within the novels, and some more: hence the story is abrupt, confusing, and not very well developed throughout the whole running time. The story has a tendency to either jump between certain points in time, or not explain what happened between events. Notably, the transition from episode 5 to 6 was quite confusing, so much that I thought I'd turned on the wrong episode by accident. Also, no one gets any character development time, not even Parn, and if our protagonist is susceptible to this then no one is exempted. Deedlit is in love with Parn out of the blue because reasons, and everyone else are likewise cookie-cutter characters, such as the supportive wizard, the gruff dwarf fighter, the morally gray rogue, the mentor/father figure and king, the scheming advisor, etc. Expecting a well-woven, fantastic and complex story of a grand scale in a meager 13 episodes is the fastest way to disappoint yourself: Treat this show as an appendix to the novels, as a teaser video series of what a properly visualized Lodoss could have been, because the visuals, while a bit static (or borderline ridiculous) in a few key action scenes, are for the most part absolutely gorgeous and emblematic of the late 80's ~ early '90s aesthetics, with animators that worked on/would go on to animate incredible visuals from various works like Galaxy Express 999, Akira, Ghost in the Shell, RahXephon, Cowboy Bebop, and many more. This OVA series' greatest contribution to the otaku subculture is how they managed to perfectly animate Deedlit, arguably the most influential elf character in ALL of Japan--at least, in terms of character designs. Blonde, long and pointy ears, well-endowed with a slender frame, green clothing, nature something something, with a high chance of being a tsundere? That's from Deedlit. I can immediately think of five elf characters with similar hair and cloth color coding--and most of them originate from NSFW material. To say that Deedlit influenced EVERY female elf character in Japan since her creation might not be an overstatement. It's not just her character design though: Deedlit is probably the best 'character' (if anyone can properly be called so) in Lodoss, simply because she gets so much screentime even when it's not her turn to shine, in addition to having the best voice acting. Deedlit is strong and resourceful without being overpowered (unlike Parn), wise and composed (unlike Parn), haughty but not overbearing, compassionate yet level-headed, possesses unrivaled beauty, and, most importantly, has the power to significantly increase the budget of the sakuga and frames of every scene she's in while Parn stares at her or zones out into the distance. Truly the fantasy girl that every otaku wants. I talked more about Deedlit than the actual plot. That should tell you what to expect from this show: a visual feast and a narrative famine.

As a big fan of fantasy, Record of Lodoss War is one of my very favorite anime. This is an old show. I remember watching it streaming on Cartoon Network's web site when I was a kid, before streaming was really even a thing. I instantly loved it. The story is very good. I like the theme of light/dark and balance. The characters are interesting, though not very complex. The art is really good. It has more detail than a lot of anime. And the music is really beautiful as well. I really wish there were more anime like this one out there, because in my opinion, it truly is a masterpiece. If you have the choice, watch it subtitled. The dubbed version is pretty bad. I don't notice it much due to nostalgia, but when I pay attention to it, the dubbed version is noticeably bad in comparison. If you are looking for a good fantasy anime, one that isn't too complex, but also is quite enjoyable, I think this would make a really good choice.

Lodoss follows in the tradition of D&D rather than literary fantasy, and it suffers from it. It has a nostalgic appeal, but only because back in the 90s, we didn't have many options for medieval fantasy anime, and this scratched that itch. It does have its good moments, but it is otherwise forgettable. Let's get this out of the way first: "Record of Lodoss War" is an adaptation of a D&D campaign run by the author. No attempt is made to hide it. The grand back story and world building by the DM/author are used for flavor and to motivate events, but they otherwise have little connection to the story. The characters are straight out of the early D&D manuals, and obvious choices at that: fighter, elf, dwarf, cleric, magic user, thief. In episode 8, the group must have got their hands on a supplementary D&D manual, so they introduce a berserker. The final battle is at the bottom of a multi-level dungeon, just as you expect. Even villains seem to come straight from the D&D manual—you can pick out the chaotic evil and lawful evil villains the moment they appear on screen. In the end, what makes up the story? A love story for the hero, training to become a better fighter, and a bit of a tragic love story in the background, all set in front of an eternal battle between light and dark. This comfortable predictability makes it an excellent target for nostalgia. The pacing becomes problematic as the series goes on—more characters, more stories, more viewpoints, and more exposition all slow things down towards the second half. The story then lurches forward to meet an ending that it hasn't quite earned. In the meantime, characters and plot seem to happen independently of each other. But it's not really that bad. In spite of the cookie-cutter character concepts, the characters themselves are filled out and seem real. We sympathize with heroes and villains alike. The story treats its setting and characters with respect. Finally, he animation and soundtrack are great—at least, much of the time. So if you can't get enough medieval fantasy, or if you're on a nostalgia kick, Record of Lodoss War is just what you need. However, if you're just curious, don't bother. The 90s has better series to offer.

It was... ok. I think that the greatest achievement of this anime series is definitely the art and its designs; they're beautiful to look at, the detail in every frame of celluloid is astounding. Also kudos on being the series that set the tone for the anime elf archetype design that would become famous in the next years. Deedlit was one of the first elves to be designed with not just pointy ears but very long ears in the anime world. A trait that is still very popular today (cough cough, Frieren, Marcille). The plot is an overly average medieval/magic/dark fantasy story. Nothing that really pops out in terms of writing. A bit bland for today standards, tbh. I recomend this series only if you are a big fan of the genre. If you're a fan of LOTR, Fire Emblem or stuff like that, you'll love it, otherwise I think it will be hard for you to even finish the series.

"Record of Lodoss War" is the closest thing you’ll find to a Dungeons & Dragons campaign brought to life in gorgeous, hand-drawn 90s animation. Originally based on a series of RPG replay novels (yes, actual tabletop sessions turned into books), this OVA embodies everything great about high fantasy: noble heroes, epic battles, ancient evils, and enough sorcery to make a wizard’s spellbook blush. But what sets Lodoss War apart from other fantasy anime isn’t just the story, it’s the sheer atmosphere. The animation oozes medieval grandeur, with shadowy castles, misty battlefields, and enchanted forests so vividly drawn that you can practically hear the dice rolling in the background. The soundtrack? A sweeping, orchestral masterpiece that elevates every moment, from heroic clashes to tender character beats. Deedlit is everything an 80s/90s anime fan could ask for: elegant, powerful, and effortlessly enchanting. Her flowing blonde hair and mystical green eyes are framed by some of the most stunning animation of the era, and her airy, playful personality adds a touch of lightheartedness to the grim fantasy setting. She’s essentially the dream of every teenage D&D player who ever rolled up an elven bard and imagined them as way cooler than the dice allowed. There’s an undeniable charm in Lodoss War’s straightforward, trope-heavy storytelling. It doesn’t try to subvert fantasy conventions. The world is filled with political intrigue, cursed kings, and a looming dark force. Despite being made in the early 90s, the OVA’s animation still holds up remarkably well. The fight scenes have weight, the magic effects shimmer with old-school cel animation charm, and the dark fantasy aesthetic is perfect. It’s all the magic of a tabletop adventure without anyone at the table arguing over rules. While the series is a gem, it’s not without its flaws. Some pacing issues crop up, especially as it rushes towards the finale, and Parn, while an earnest protagonist, has about as much character depth as a first-level Fighter who just picked up his first longsword. But that’s part of the charm. Lodoss War isn’t here to deconstruct fantasy, it’s here to celebrate it. There are also some stale animation scenes with the Dragons that felt awkward at times. "Record of Lodoss War" is a masterpiece of high fantasy anime, a love letter to D&D, and a must-watch for anyone who appreciates classic, beautifully animated adventure. It may have some rough edges, but its strengths - gorgeous animation, immersive world-building, and Deedlit’s sheer perfection far outweigh any shortcomings. Roll for initiative.

7.0/10 ~ Man they really dont make em' like they use to I watched this as a child and remember enjoying it but couldn't remember anything about the series other then, " Man, they had no business drawing those elves that way" . After rewatching it again this week I have to say I really really enjoyed this more then it had any reason to. When I think of the show objectively it has so, so many flaws its kinda funny. - Annoying MC - bad pacing - bad writing --> Someone explain to me why all the EXTRA dragons started appearing at the end but had no actual impact on events? - very little character depth or growth --> MC just is handed everything - charecters just kinda do things, and you are expected to believe it based on their Class, Race or Alignment, fitting for a show based off a DnD Champaign from the 80's But at the end of the day I cannot always articulate why I enjoy something but I will try my best: - Fantastic art direction - Great late 80's/ Early 90's animation that I so crave these days - just actually a DnD Champaign - my favorite setting, high Fantasy - Classic story of Good vs Evil, dont think about it - Deedlit - correct length, didnt feel to long or short Its hard to say that I am blinded by nostalgia, when the show brought out nostalgia for just my childhood in general, but in reality nothing to actually do with the show. If I had to objectively rate the show as a critic I would place it somewhere in the 4/10 to 5.5/10, but I rate things on here solely based on my enjoyment and I really enjoyed this one despite all its flaws. On the the "sequel" TV series...

Watching Fantasy Anime part 1: The classics I've been playing dnd and getting into fantasy books/series lately cause i like the worldbuilding,aesthetics and the story( when i'ts good of course). Decided to give a shot fantasy type anime so here we go. Lodoss-tou Senki or Record of Lodoss war is you standard medieval high magic type adventure anime, you got your hero swordsman, elfs, dwarfs, wizard, evil warlods/witches/magicians trying to take over the world, orcs, goblins, kobolds, and most important dragons. Its inspired by a novel who also took inspiration from a tabletop game and it shows. With that out of the way lets dive into the aspects of the anime. Story: Parn is a not so good swordman from a village that got attacked by a group of goblins, after helping fend then off with the help of Deedlit the elf, and others. He goes into a journey with his party members to save the continent of Lodoss from Marmo a evil empire that is trying to control everything, an evil spirit, and a crazy wizard that is trying to revive an ancient godness or something to destroy everything, thats pretty much it. I'ts old school dnd fellas, it doest not really have a very deep and interesting lore for you to get invested or a bunch of worldbuilding like other fantasy godfathers like Game of Thrones, LOTR, Narnia, Conan the Barbarian, etc. It doesn't help that the pacing very rushed and the characters barely have any time to develop, So what else does Lodoss has to to offer? lets find out. characters: Parn-> Anime protagonist short black-brown hair, green jumpsuit, brown armor, and holy shoulder pauldrons they are huge, thats all i can remember of him, because other then that Parn is pretty much a cardboard. He starts off like really shitty swordman, gets better and a little bit more mature and laters is able to defeat the villain that in earlier episodes could easily stomp him and his intire party if he wanted too, he doesn't have any other personality and really generic props for him for being one of the first cardboard protagonists. Deedlit-> Honestly one of the best of the bunch in my opinion, she is a pretty elfy lady with a very kind personality, thats falls in love with our MC,their romance feels very forced again because of the rushed pacing. She is elven royalty that really cares about her people, uses nature based magic, and she is very cute i guess. Some peole i saw around here were bragging about how she was the 90s waifu or some shit because she was so hot, but to be honest other then her pretty face her design is not that sexualised. I feel like in the novels and the spinoff games there is more stuff about her backstory, more dialogue that shows more about her kind personality. Etoh->carboard on cleric clothes, he is there Ghim->grumpy dwarf that makes sometimes talks about how Parn is reckless and gets grumpy with Deedlit cause she is a elf, he had some backstory with some princess that made him go into a adventure to save world, i'ts not very fleshed out again because of the pacing. Slayn->Very calm and colective wizard, i kinda love how everytime he casts spells he does a long chatting to summon then kind like in real dnd Woodchuck->Rogue asshole, greedy and sometimes likes to annoy our MC others: We got Lodoss Knight, Evil Knight, Evil Wizard, Evil Witch than wants to keep the balance between good and evil, and that hot black elven chick that was friends with evil Knight Art/Animation/Music: thus far one of the best things about the anime( except the PNG moving dragon) is that in my opinion the art was really good, i love the weapon designs, the visuals of the monsters, the armors, the visuals of the dragons and for a old ass 90s anime the animation looks really good and doesn't suffer from being slow and static like a lot of counterparts. Music was alright some adult contemporary ballad for the opening, some good ambient and half decent battle music i guess. Conclusion: it was pretty alright for a anime, loved the visuals and animations, but din't liked the pacing wich was very fast and it din't let the story breathe a little very much and the MCs dint feel very fleshed out and pretty generic. Anyhow a 5/10

Record of Lodoss War Review Record of Lodoss War is one of those oldtaku “classics” that a lot of people have heard of but in my experience you find less and less who have actually seen it, especially with the oldtaku continuing to age out and newer younger generations joining the fandom in much larger numbers. Nowadays it’s kind of most notable for being that thing Lisa Ortiz was in before Slayers, and that series that Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth was based off. I only know two people who have seen Record of Lodoss War other than me, both only saw it once and one saw it over 20 years ago. Where I live, in the US, we have only received a handful of Lodoss properties but in Japan it’s quite a bit bigger with multiple novels and games in addition to the couple anime that were released in the 90s. However the two anime are meant to stand on their own and the OVA series was the first of these two making it the entry point to the series for many people, such as myself. Did it succeed in properly introducing and explaining the world of Lodoss Island to fresh audiences? Kinda. Lodoss is a by the books fantasy story. What's the first thing that comes to your mind when I say “fantasy adventure party”? The mental image you just got there is identical to the composure of the Lodoss group. We get Parn, the warrior, his friend Etoh, the priest, Slayn, the wizard, Ghim, the dwarf, Deedlit, the elf, and Woodchuck, the thief. None of them are really all that notable other than Deedlit, who is strikingly beautiful and has a personality that isn’t as easily summed up as just stating her character class. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for Parn, who at times comes off as so empty he feels like an RPG player character still awaiting a player to come in and personalize him. Parn is the main character. The people in charge of the anime though clearly knew who you were gonna watch it for however. Both the opening and ending heavily feature Deed, with the ending cutting all party members who aren't her. Pretty artwork of a pretty elf to keep you going. But other than the party make up what is Lodoss like? Pretty standard. The basic plot outline of Record of Lodoss War is that the party is on a quest to stop an invasion by the evil emperor of Marmo, Beld, and to take down his powerful ally, the witch Karla. Ghim and Slayn are looking for Leylia the daughter of Ghim’s friend Neese who went missing seven years ago. If you want to know the particulars of why, read the novel. An English copy currently has an asking price of around $70 so hopefully you got one while they were still in print. Salyn and Ghim get roped in with Parn and Etoh after they help them fend off some goblins attacking the town they live in. They meet Deedlit when she shows up to warn them of the attack. Woodchuck they meet in prison when the party is arrested for a miscommunication later in the series. However this is not where Lodoss chooses to start. Instead the first episode is smack in the middle of their adventures when they are already on their way to meet the sage Wort. Unlike some series, Berserk for instance, having the first episode set ahead then flashing back does not help establish a tone or foreshadow anything. Instead it’s more akin to Violence Jack, just having one random episode out of order. It’s odd and confusing because the viewer doesn't know any of these characters yet and they've just been thrown into the middle of the story. In addition Parn’s first two lines are both negging Deedlit which doesn’t help endear him to you. This weird out of order episode left one of my friends so confused it effected his ability to understand the story. He told me “Yeah they were like ‘okay we’re gonna go see the wizard’ then the next episode they’re like ‘okay now that we saw the wizard’ and you never see them go there!” I had to tell him they did, they just did it in the first episode then flashed back for seemingly no reason. However this is not the biggest flaw of Record of Lodoss War. It’s biggest flaw would be its pacing. The strength of any fantasy rests on the back of its lore. From Lord of the Rings to Game of Thrones all successful fantasy franchises have had deep lore. Record of Lodoss War is no different. It opens every episode with a brief summery of the history of Lodoss’ creation. However there are only 13 half hour episodes of the original OVA franchise, they were never going to be able to pack everything in. This did not stop them from trying. Things move at an absolutely break neck pace in Lodoss War. In those 13 episodes alone there are 4 separate villains. That means there are 4 separate climaxes. You barely have time to rest on the end of one part before the series has moved on to the next. Okay they’re fighting Beld, now they’re fighting Karla, now they’re fighting Ashram, now they’re fighting Wagnard. Those last two take place during the final three episodes leaving them feeling even more rushed and crammed than anything that came before them. Characters can be introduced and then made lifelong friends or bitter enemies in what seems like an instant because the show cannot slow down if it wants to get everything in there at once. I’ve watched it multiple times and I can’t say for sure if Wagnard is possessed by Kardis, the god of destruction, or if he just remembers his evil scheme in the middle of a battle. Personally I don’t think he should have been in the series and that they should have cut both his and Ashram’s battles using those last 3 episodes to slow the series down a bit and ending it with their battle against Karla. She was the villain with the most connection to the main party and the battle against her felt the most climactic out of the 4 villain battles. If, however, you can get past a level of pacing so fast it would pass an F-1 qualifier there are things to enjoy in the series. Lodoss has some genuinely good fantasy action and designs. The dragons are huge and intimidating. The sorcery, while standard at times, gives you that classic fantasy magic feel. And the larger party means there’s more of an opportunity for individuals to use unique class abilities. Not to mention for those into that sort of thing Deedlit is total eye candy. Her ability to commune with the spirits of nature sets her magic apart from the type used by Slayn so it doesn’t feel like they just did the same character abilities twice. And for those willing to put in the time and attention to detail there’s some pretty interesting lore behind the scenes. Such as how emperor Beld wields the demonic sword of the demon king that he previously felled and that it grants great power but in exchange will corrupt the user. I also think the sword my crave blood and has a mind of its own but it is hard to tell given the speed at which this information is dumped and how easy it all can be to miss. Ghim’s obsession with rescuing Leylia, while lacking in the motivation provided by the novel, ads a more personal component to the group’s questing beyond just “stop evil thing from destroying world”, a personal connection later echoed when Parn has his battle against Wagnard at the end of the series. Karla makes for a fairly interesting antagonist. Unlike many fantasy villains who’s motivation is “I am evil because I am evil” Karla is trying to strike a balance in the world. She believes that the world can be neither fully good nor fully evil and will throw her weight and influence behind whichever side she deems weaker in the sake of maintaining a perfect balance. If you’re willing to look past the under cooked characters and rushed delivery you can appreciate Lodoss on its aesthetics and world then later return and finish cooking the characters yourself with additional research. It’s a very standard fantasy, but that also means it’s not a poor fantasy. In the end it’s hard for me to recommend Record of Lodoss War, and this is entirely because of its insanely fast pacing. I personally enjoy it, and f…

Simple. Straightforward. Quality. For what it was and when it was, it knocked it out of the park. Put on your nostalgia goggles for this one, folks. Story Dungeons and Dragons as an anime. All the classic stuff. Fighter, elf, dwarf, mage, cleric. They level up and fight stuff. Good vs. evil. There is a mirror evil team too. I believe that the story was a transcription of a D&D campaign so all the standard plot events were here. Gobins attacked our fighter's home village. He started adventuring, met allies, ran into enemies, and inserted himself in the middle of war between good and evil. Nothing is new about this now. But I imagine it was groundbreaking material back then. It was for me when I first saw it. The real story took place in the first 7 or 8 episodes. The stuff that happened after seemed like an after thought. It was stakes and the conflict was resolved halfway through the season. Apparently, it was because the producers were adapting books couldn't find a good way to spread out the story over 13 episodes. In any case, the story is average at this point but really good in 1990 or if it is your first foray into the D&D world. Characters The characters were straightforward. Lodoss was actually my first dive into D&D. I liked fantasy things before then but never got the real D&D experience. As tropey as they were, they were new and fresh to me. Parn was our guy. He started as a low-level warrior and took his lumps as he leveled up. He made up for his lack of skill with his conviction to duty and honor. I found it refreshing that he got his ass kicked by just about everyone. He was a budding swordm and had to earn every inch of ground he got. In the first few episodes, he could barely hold his own against basic goblins and guards. He was the shonen protag. Deedlit is our gal. Waifu S-tier for sure. She just kind of showed up and fell in love with our guy. It was shallow, but how else were the producers going to maximize her screentime? I like that she acted like an elf. In the prologue, she haughty and a little childish, was at odds with the dwarf, and got distracted by random bling. She was madly in love with Parn for some reason. It seemed random, but I rolled with it just because it made for a good story. She was our original anime elf girl. The other members of the crew are basic but solid. My only gripe was that Etoh, the cleric, didn't really get to do anything cool until the last or second to last episode. And I thought he was a girl for most of the show. There was a mirror evil team too. Pretty cool group. Art The art was pretty good for the most part. The character designs were solid. The action was not good. The art seemed to focus on the faces. It's been a while since I watched it, but I remember the director zooming in on faces for dramatic reactions. The magic was cool. But the fighting was not well animated. The fighting used a lot of streaks of color and reused footage instead of showing the characters in motion. I remember hearing that it could have been a measure to conserve the budget. Who knows. The character designs were cool. I remember giant shoulder pads. Maybe this is where Warcraft got its inspiration. Deedlit is the character you're going to remember. Sound The voice acting was good. Everybody sounded like they should. I wasn't sure if Etoh was a guy or a girl for most of it. The sound effects were okay. Nothing great but it was a professional production. I love the opening theme and visuals. It captured the epic fantasy romance feel perfectly. The OP is one of the best parts of the show. The ending theme was decent. Surprisingly, it was more upbeat than the OP. It was not as epic, sweet, or catchy as the OP but still got the fantasy vibe right. Decent song. Enjoyment Lodoss was one of the first animes I saw. It was my introduction into the D&D world and high fantasy in general. I had a great time with it. That said, there were shortcomings. The first episode is the best one out of the lot. The prologue is awesome. I love creation myths and we are given one that was animated as paintings on a ruined dome. Badass. This is where most of the animation budget probably went. We're thrown into the middle of the story. Our adventurers are going through a dwarven tunnel to consult the great sage. The sage and a witch decide to toy with our heroes and throw some challenges their way. Our guys show off their character attributes it's cool. The episode ends with a confrontation with a minor dragon. Our characters do their character stuff complete with tension between the elf and the dwarf. It's cool as hell. But then after the first episode, things never get quite as good. The action isn't as good, the spells don't hit as hard, and the characters don't have their stereotypical moments. I mean, the rest of the show is still decent, but not as awesome as it could have been. They started on a high note but weren't able to keep it up with the art, action, or storytelling. Another thing is that the MC is underpowered for most of the show. It's a stark contrast to the OP MCs of modern isekais. I haven't seen too many isekais, but I'll say that being OP takes the piss right out of the story. If our guy is effortless, then what's it really all about? There's no tension. We are confident in our guy prevailing so I don't worry. I don't get invested. I like underpowered MCs because it makes the W feel earned. Parn got his ass kicked so much through the story. Toward the end, when he was finally making his way through the final castle, he was taking down normal baddies left and right and it felt good. This was ROTJ Luke Skywalker handling shit. He was always headstrong but now he had the skills to back it up. He wasn't the same little boy no more. I loved the growth. Overall It shows its age now, but Lodoss was awesome when I saw it. I loved the underpowered MC who grew up, the OP, and that Deedlit is bae.

An excellent classic anime. If you like medieval, legendary creatures and elves, Record of Lodoss War is your anime. For fans of the role and the fantastic medieval atmosphere Lodoss is a feast for the eyes. The beings that appear, the history, the music, the art of the places make you want to see LOTR or play a D&D role-playing game. The story centers on Parn, a young warrior who goes out in search of his father and why the orcs are more active, accompanied by the classic role-playing team: His friend Etoh the cleric, Slayn the sorcerer, Ghim the dwarf warrior, Woodchuck the thief and the elf Deedit. Together they visit kings, fighting against necromancers and other creatures that appear. Loddos includes sequels, manga and even video games, so if you get hooked, you can continue addicting for a while. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Un excelente anime clasico. Si te gusta lo medieval, las criaturas de leyenda y las elfas, Record of Lodoss War es tu anime. Para los fanaticos del rol y la aentura medieval fantastica Lodoss es un festin para los ojos. Los seres que van apareciendo, la historia, la musica, el arte de los lugares hace que te den ganas o de ver LOTR o jugarte una partida de rol de D&D. La historia se centra en Parn, un joven guerrero que sale en busca de su padre y por el porque los orcos estan mas activos, acompañado del clasico team de rol: Su amigo Etoh el clerigo, Slayn el hechicero, Ghim el guerrero enano, Woodchuck el ladron y la elfa Deedit. Juntos van visitando reyes, peleando contra nigromantes y otros bichos que van apareciendo. Loddos incluye unas secuelas, mangas y hasta videojuegos, asi que si quedas enganchado podes seguir viciando para rato.

Lodoss-tou Senki (Record of Lodoss War) is a very western-style fantasy story. The protagonist is a village-boy-turned-swordsman, his love interest is an elf, they’re joined by a priest, a wizard, a dwarven warrior, and a thief. They fight against evil wizards, dark elves, orc-like beastmen, and ultimately an evil kingdom, all of which are in service of resurrecting an evil god. They meet various allies throughout the series, including kings, lords, and mercenaries. They explore ruins and travel the land. If you’re a fan of fantasy novels or video games, all of this probably sounds fairly familiar. I don’t know what Japanese audiences would have thought, but Lodoss is rather cliché. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, of course. Cliché stories can be comforting (eg. in the form of nostalgia) or sources of easy entertainment. And even a bad story (cliché or not) can be saved by having exciting or complex characters. But this is where the first real problem with Lodoss’ writing emerges: the characters aren’t particularly great. Of maybe half a dozen major characters, only one, the protagonist Parn, sees anything resembling character development. Parn starts out as a reckless teenager who doesn’t know how to use a sword. Over the course of Lodoss, he learns how to use a sword, becomes less reckless, and appears to mature at least a little. However, these changes are rather superficial. Parn is fundamentally the same person at the beginning of the story, in the middle of the story, and at the end of the story. Likewise, Parn never seems conflicted or in doubt about his choices, nor does he ever despair in the face of evil. Parn’s entire personality and character arc could be summarized with one word: protagonist. The other characters don’t differ, really. They all fit into familiar archetypes, none of them demonstrate any hidden depths or complex motivations, and, unlike Parn, none of them have any kind of character growth. None of this is to say that there aren’t any likeable characters – Ghim, Woodchuck, and Ashram all stood out for me – but for every likeable character, you can probably find at least one or two who feel superfluous. For example, I can vaguely recall both Slayn the wizard and Etoh the priest doing things, but neither really felt integral to the plot, despite being two of Parn’s companions. A lot of these problems with characterization could be solved if Lodoss was better paced. Lodoss’ pacing is odd. The OVA was adapted from a series of novels; however at the time, only the first three of seven novels had been published, and only three more would be published by the OVA’s conclusion. And whilst those novels were, in turn, adapted from a DnD campaign run by the author and his friends, at best that would have only provided an outline to the production company. Whilst one can’t know for sure, I suspect that this had some impact on the production, pacing, and writing of the episodes. Lodoss’ first episode is in media res, taking place probably around the same time as episode six. It doesn’t really spare much time in introducing the characters. As a story about six companions adventuring in a dungeon, it’s pretty entertaining, but I admittedly found it hard to follow at times, especially when it cut away from our heroes to focus on conversations being had by various villains and supporting characters. The second episode is the true beginning of the story, and from there the series progresses normally. Lodoss is primarily about a war staged between the evil empire of Marmo and the various other kingdoms of Lodoss, and this war transpires over the course of the series. However, for the first eight episodes, at least some of the narrative focus is on Ghim’s quest to find a young woman, Leylia, who had disappeared some years before. These eight episodes are probably the best part of the series, and if the story told during them had been expanded to the full thirteen episodes, I suspect that many of my complaints regarding characterization would have been moot. Unfortunately, after episode eight, Lodoss’ story takes a nosedive. The last five episodes concern the bulk of the war against Marmo, and five episodes isn’t enough to tell the story of a war. Often times, I felt as I were missing something – as if, for example, the characters had decided something or come to some realization between episodes. I’ll admit that I had trouble maintaining interest by this point, so I may simply have missed something, but these final episodes definitely felt rushed when compared to the eight that preceeded them. If there is a bright spot to Lodoss, it is the fantastic art. The characters designs are all richly detailed and are an interesting blend of Eastern and Western art styles. Any one of the characters wouldn’t look out of place in a DnD manual from the eighties. On the other hand, the animation leaves something to be desired. I’m not the greatest judge of these kinds of things, but I suppose one expects a bit more fluidity from an OVA, whereas Lodoss – character designs aside – felt more like a television series in terms of quality. That’s maybe not the best way of putting it, but I’m not an art guy. The color palette is also more muted when compared to other fantasy anime (such as Slayers), though I think that’s fitting given how seriously Lodoss takes itself. As I mentioned before, I think that Lodoss would have been more enjoyable overall had the story arc of the first eight episodes been extended to all thirteen. However, as it is, I don’t think Lodoss is without it’s appeal. It is a solid, if predictable and cliché fantasy story, and I suspect those with an interest in the fantasy genre will find something to enjoy here, whether it be the nostalgia or the art. Likewise, I don’t know how faithful it is to the novels, but I imagine fans of the novels would appreciate the OVA, as well (and perhaps get a lot more out of it). Then again, fans of the novels might take issue with any deviations the OVA made, and given the OVA was being released before the series was fully published, I can imagine there were a few. However, you probably already know whether Lodoss is the kind of series that will interest you. It is exactly what it seems to be, for better or worse.

Was so looking forward to this due to my sword and sorcery craze, but left pretty disappointed and still glad I watched it. The first and especially can't stress this enough final episode are so incredibly on it makes the middle portion all the more disappointing. A crazy ending will usually make me like something overall, but that wasn't the case here. I wish it had been 6 or 7 episodes, not 13. Ok so the animation is consistently I'd say a little better than average. Nowhere near the highs of classic OVAs with shorter run-times, but always decent. It's really carried in parts by such strong character designs and really gorgeous backgrounds. Especially in that middle though, there are SO MANY sliding JPGs it started to get distracting. I have a lot of patience for beautiful old Cel animation, but it really took me out of most of the action near the end. Like, this is an epic dragon showdown this should be awesome, but watch them slide in and out of frame at each-other. Oh. I'm bored as hell. (the dragon designs are phenomenal though, really scary!) The plot is straight-forward traditional fantasy which could and should have been wonderful, but just became a mess in the middle. Something can be very genre and still incredible if it hits all those notes (Dragonslayer 1981!!!) even in a post-Peter Jackson LOTR/Xena etc. world (fantasy at it's most emotional and intense with great character work, before the post-fantasy ironic hell we're in now). Around episode 5 the plot just crawled along, it was predictable but also lacked any real action or spectacle for the majority of the time, I just found it very difficult to push through to the end even though I was into what it was doing overall. There's still some good there ofc, evil sorceress, heroic sacrifice, final showdown, crazed berserker, the cycle of good vs evil, new heroes and villains replacing the old, but it never is portrayed or described very effectively, it just lacks energy. The main cast is fine, they become pretty likable by the end if never really fleshed out. The one benefit of the longer run-time. It's really Deedlit's show though, if there is one thing that kept me watching it was her. You can tell a lot of love went into portraying her, and she's such a competent, active force in the story, brings some much needed life and lightness. I can't actually put into stupid human words how obsessed I now am with her, I LOVE DEEDLIT! Now the bad, I at first liked Parn, again I don't hate tropes and I got he was the every-man hero growing into his strength, ok. He remains so boring throughout the show and is so incredibly stupid, like idiotic, near the finale I really came to dislike him. Ashram and Pirotess were significantly more interesting to me at times. Now I'm going to go full Steinem-san so get ready. She got a pretty developed character at the end, but ofc there is some natural iffy-ness about having the evil "dark" elves literally being darker skinned and more scantily clad compared to the good "light" elves. But it was the 90s and that's the design they were adapting, context and everything. Minor spoilers for the finale (you can probably guess what happens though) the fact that my girl Deedlit was so op with her elf powers and easily the best part of the show and then she gets fucking captured to be sacrificed at the end, fuck this show. I wasn't surprised, but I was disappointed. HOW FUCKING LAME SHE WAS THE ONE PART I REALLY WAS ENJOYING! Final thoughts: Watch the first and last episode, watch comps of Deedlit's scenes, watch the OP and ED which are simple but great. I liked the ending and there are worse things to watch for sure, but I can't help but think about how much more impactful it would have been after 6 eps of a more focused show. Also who else thought Parn was kind of gay for Kashue? ALL HAIL DEEDLIT!

Record of Lodoss War looks, sounds, and feels amazing. What it is (direly) lacking in pacing, character dialogue, and plot cohesion it absolutely makes up for with fantastic atmosphere. There is an earnest generic fantasy nature to this, but when it came out it was actually quite different and unique. What feels today like well-worn trope, was actually once fairly fresh and it's very cool too see one of Japan's first 'serious' non-comedy Fantasy anime properties. I love the way the music and the character designs do serious heavy lifting for the storytelling here. If I had my wish, the content would be a little more evenly paced, drawn out, and slowly revealed, because there are just too many sudden gear shifts and character introductions for most people to manage. Besides just basic dialogue explaining what is happening, it would be nice to have Indiana Jones-style travel montages over a map to give some sense of the scale of what's happening and who is going where. It's pretty clear the creators anticipated the audience to already have read the manga and/or light novels, because sometimes they don't even say the names of certain characters until halfway into an episode. If you're willing to really focus and pay close attention to character and place names you shouldn't be too lost on the first watch even if this is your first exposure to this media. It's quite good, but certainly not for everyone.

I've been watching dark fantasies this 2025 and I have to say Record of Lodoss War comes to one of the best discoveries this year. This OVA centered on the recovery of Lodoss a cursed island formed by the battle between mother earth Marfa and the goddess of Destruction Kardis. It has everything a fantasy medieval adventure should have at the right amount. Elf, a wanna-be knight with a tarnished family reputation, gnomes, magicians. Every one is in its right place taking its role and everyone helps to the development of the story. It's an harmonious storytelling that makes a masterpiece. The animation is superior for the time it was made. Beautiful color palettes. Specially the design of Deedlit and the movement of the forces of nature she controls. Maybe it'd have been nice that they have some rest since one incident comes after another. But that's all I can say. It's really interesting to see how they grow and get closer to each other..there's a bittersweet feeling with some loses on the way and the never-ending battles. I wish Parn and Deedlit could get a kiss and more romantic action.