Xanadu Dragonslayer Densetsu

Xanadu is based on one of the earlier jrpg franchises out there and thus feels like a part of a bigger universe. Its premise is extremely interesting, with a futuristic ai assisted combat tripod being isekai-ed into a world of magic and mind baffling schizo tech. On top of that, there is a world destroying dragon of legend present in the story. There is an exciting promise of an epic showdown between these extreme destructive powers from two very different worlds.

But just look at that run time! At little over 50 minutes, we all know how this will turn out. Like other fantasy ovas such ... as Gude Crest or Wizardry, the hype built up for this great evil force is for naught and the role played by the isekai elements eventually takes a back seat to story elements from the rpg games instead.

Despite the squandered potential of a cool premise, the anime still has plenty of wackiness to offer as one would expect from an obscure old ova. Some of my favorites are:
-Combined arms attacks with howitzers and, sword wielding men at arms?
-mech pilots being torn apart by bugs, these anime always pull their goriest tricks too early
-on the topic of gore, the bizarre contrast of indiscriminate civilian slaughter and then a comedic skit not even a minute later
-loli airship captain!
-its a fantasy setting but there are advanced magitec aircraft, guns (which are never used in actual battles) and radios!
-tentacles!

Sadly this anime isn't a Gasaraki meets Dunbine classic. What we get is decidely mediocre. A must watch if you've actually played the original Xanadu series of games. Fans of nonsensical oldschool fantasy anime will also get a kick out of this. The rest of you, bump down that score to 5 or 6 and watch a seasonal isekai instead.

Xanadu Dragonslayer Densetsu was conceived as a prequel to the PC-88 and PC-98 game of the same name developed by Nihon Falcom in 1985. This OVA therefore offers a broader look at the characters, giving them names and a backstory. The anime is perfectly enjoyable even without having played Xanadu, although its overall quality is somewhat uneven.

Produced in 1988 by Toei and directed by Atsutoshi Umezawa, it stands as an early example of isekai at a time when the genre was not yet particularly popular. The protagonist, Fieg, is transported to a fantasy world filled with magic, dragons, and monsters during a war in Russian ... territory. The narrative is at times mixed, perhaps a bit too much so, resulting in a direction that feels somewhat all over the place. Brutal fighting scenes alternate with classic comedic skits, from which even the enemies are not exempt, thereby diminishing their sense of menace. This is something also seen in the Dragon Half OVAs, which would be produced only five years later but adopt a very similar narrative approach.

Despite this, Xanadu manages to tell a generally cohesive story within its roughly 50-minute runtime. Its main flaw is that the characters move through different settings in a very short span of time, a negative aspect that speeds up the pacing due to time constraints. It is not a masterpiece, and the animation also shows noticeable highs and lows, with greater care devoted only to key moments. All things considered, it is an acceptable product for fans of fantasy and classic sword-and-sorcery tales, from which more popular works such as Slayers would later draw significant inspiration.

Story: 1/2
Direction: 1/2
Animation: 0.5/2
Characters: 0.5/2
Music: 1/2
Bonus points: 1.5/2

Final score: 5.5/10

This show is bad in almost every regard. The pacing is absolutely awful, with no sense of flow. The dialogue often has this strange pace because of how quickly some characters respond to each other. The plot is basically a generic JRPG quest with some mecha randomly thown in. And deus ex machina is everywhere.

The characters include a generic annoying protagatist, useless damsel-in-distress love interest, forgettable supporting characters, and comically evil villians. The music is mediocre at best, but only if considered on its own. When put in the context of the film, the music sometimes feels out of place. One of the major battle ... scenes was probably supposed to be full of tension, but it had this relaxed, almost cheerful music that didn't fit at all.

Also, the ecchi scenes are just really unnecessary. There's already the perverted bishop, who's essentially a generic dirty old man. But then you also have the main villian and villainess, who are basically lolicons. No, I am not throwing that word around offhandedly. She literally calls him that, says she's "interested" too, and then they just laugh it off together. Even if the film lampshades it, it really doesn't makes it any better.

The only things that aren't absolutely awful about this film are the art, which is fairly average compared to other shows from the era, and the fact that the film shows you some mercy by keeping its runtime under an hour.