The first thing that came to my mind when watching The Record Of Lodoss War was Tolkien: J.R.R. Tolkien to be exact. The six companions in Lodoss very much reminded me of the Ring Bearer and his companions (although they originally had nine). The two stories share an elf, a dwarf, a knight (or ranger), and a wizard. I’m not implying that Lodoss borrowed ideas from Tolkien, but I will say that anyone who enjoyed Lord Of The Rings will enjoy The Record Of Lodoss War. Before I got too off-topic, I’ll move on to the bulk of the review.
Lodoss War is set in a time of knights and kings. Nobility and chivalry were still very much alive in this period, and Lodoss does a nice job of showing this. Parn, a novice but strong spirited knight aims to please King Cashew in certain scenes. When Cashew invites Parn to fight alongside of him, Parn is more than happy to serve the king. Chivalry is shown when a group of travelers are attacked. The men begin to fight while they take care to make sure the women and children get out of harms way.
The character design reflects the time period very well. Old, rural designs little Lodoss and go hand in hand with the backgrounds and storyline. Some viewers may be turned off by the old design, which can sometimes get bland, but most are sure to enjoy the artistry. The biggest problem with the art isn’t even really the art; it’s actually the movement of the art. Animation can get a little dodgy in places, and downright terrible in others. There are some sequences that save the show from being unbearable. Action scenes are usually executed nicely and have a steady flow.
By far, the worst part of the show is the English language dub. The Japanese voice acting is mediocre, but it sounds like music compared to the English one. Parn, voiced by Billy Regan, does a good job during action sequences and normal dialogue. His voice can get kind of rough during moments of surprise or astonishment. Deedlit is the best voice of the bunch, done by Lisa Ortiz. Only once did her voice bother me, but it was at the very beginning and by the end of the show, I had long since forgotten about it. Ghim, voiced by Greg Wolfe is also a strong part. Ted Lewis, the voice of Etoh, has successfully topped my charts as the worst voice actor ever. Moments of surprise and action are totally ruined by him. When yelling, Lewis sounds completely inexperienced and strained. The first two episodes are nearly ruined by his voice. The last few feature only small parts by him, and are not as atrocious as before. Slayn, Woodchuck and Karla are decently done, but could have been much better.
The DVD itself has quite a few problems. One major problem that I noticed right of the start: The only way to get to the menu is with a remote control. The DVD goes right into the intro (and in Japanese) and forgoes the menu completely. Playing the DVD all the way through does nothing but cause it to start over again. Hopefully no one loses his or her DVD remotes. The video quality on the DVD could also use some work. The video is compressed to slightly intolerable levels, with artifacts and blocking appearing anytime the background is stagnant.
The Record Of Lodoss War is a nice mix of action and adventure that suffers from being an early DVD. Bad video compression and even worse voice acting take away from an otherwise pleasurable experience. If you can tolerate the voices, Lodoss is definitely something to check into.
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