Slayers is one of the greatest anime series to be released from the 90's because it is the apitamy of 90's anime.
The story as a whole is an action, adventure saga, following Lina Inverse on a quest to become rich as fuck with as little effort as possible. She meets a sword weilding hero named Gourry with the same desires as she herself, and with this chance encounter, the most humerous, dynamic duo in anime history is formed.
As the story unfolds before the viewer, you quickly begin to realise that the plot is just as simple as the characters themself. Lina and Gourry meet, cheat, and defeat the evil-doers of the world, then treat themselves to every piece of food within a 10 mile radius. It's simple, it's beautiful, and it's a real treat to watch. Some might claim that the lack of plot makes this series an uninteresting watch. Those people are brainless retards. Whatever is lacking from the story, the humor thoughout certainly makes up for it.
Gone are the days where jokes about glutenous overeating, small breasts, and dumb jocks rule supreme. Gone are the days where facial misformations (ie. bulging eyes, huge sweat beads, a mouth taking up 95% of the face) make the viewer laugh til they pee themself. However, The Slayers capitalize on a time where jokes were funny, jokes were ongoing, and jokes were what strenghtened the plot. The interaction between Lina and her companions WERE the plot.
This being said, Lina and her travelling family might seem on the outside to be nothing more than walking jokes, however, this is not true. We get a taste a humanity out of each and every character that grace the screen. We see the hurt in thier face when one gets hurt. We see the pride in their eyes when one accomplishes something. They cry, there're determined, they fight for what they believe in, but they all do it with such low-class that we can't help but to smile at everything they do.
Lina herself is the reason that the show has become a maga-smashing hit that will last long after the Bible is forgotten. She destroys towns and still asks for payment from the mayor. She'll beat the snot out of her companions and still get them to pay for dinner. She steals from theives. She fucks up the villians who plague the Earth. She can eat more then 10 men together. She is SOOOOO loveable.
The rest of the cast all have their quirks which make you smile and root for them too. Gourry is exactly like Lina just in a dudes body. Zalgadis is rude and right to the point. Amilea is the enbodiment of truth and justice in a bumbling little girls body. Each and everyone will make you crack a grin or 10.
As for the animation, we are also talking about yet another grade A+. The use of brilliant and vibrant colors throughout is obvious. The characters are uniquly drawn with outfits and uniforms that will stand the test of time. Side note: The characters will remain in their outfits throughtout the entire series, and never change clothes. I love the 90's :) The veiwer can easily distinguish between goblins and werewolves, socerers and knights, kings and commoners. Just as much detail is spent of the backdrops as well.
The fight scenes, for animation purposes, might be a little lacking. It usually follows a bright magical spell and is followed a huge explotion. This is the only thing about The Slayers that I think could have used a bit more detail. But regardless, the spells are bad ass and the explotions are HUGE.
The music that accompinies the series is a nice piece of work as well. Usually single keyboard strokes, it sets the mood perfectly. You know when something funny is going to happen with the lighthearted little dingles and you know when trouble is near from the thudding bass. On top of that, the catchy OP and ED really keep par with the awesomeness. It's a poppy-rock song that you will find yourself humming too even after the episode is over.
I've said it before and I'll keep saying it until I turn everyone over to my side. As much as I enjoy the anime being produced today, we owe it all to our groundbreaking fore-fathers like The Slayers. There still is very few action-adventure series that focuses on humor as heavily as this title, and certainly none that come even close to being as awesome as this series. If you're on the fence about reliving the good old days or are curious about what anime was like before it became the prefabricated clones we watch today, start with The Slayers.
