Genre: Action/Comedy
Company: Kadokawa Shoten
Format: 26 episodes
Dates: 4/4/1997 to 9/26/1997
For Lina, Gourry, Zelgadis and Amelia, long periods of rest and relaxation are not common. One minute they’re saving the world, the next they’re being assaulted by a gold dragon. If that is not enough, a mysterious woman named Filia comes to ask the gang for assistance. If they do not comply, Lina will have to deal with the one person in the world that she fears: her big sister.
summary by Kei
Reviewed: 06/20/2003 by
Grade: 66% 
Highs: Great musical score; superb seiyuu cast, as usual
Lows: Broken Slayers formula; far too many characters; weak plot and comedy
The saying “third time’s a charm” does not apply at all to Slayers Try. Being the third television incarnation of the Slayers franchise, I expected the same wisecracking and spell-slinging with a somewhat twisty-curvy plot thrown in. For the most part, it was there… but it just didn’t feel the same.
To be blunt, Slayers Try did not meet the comedy standards that the first two television series set. Slayers and Slayers NEXT had hundreds of comedic moments to reflect on. Looking back on this anime, it’s hard to remember a time where I even chuckled. Don’t get me wrong; Slayers Try is funny, just not as much so in comparison. Also, there were too many characters. You have the standard cast of Lina, Gourry, Zelgadis and Amelia. Xellos from Slayers NEXT makes regular appearances, too, along with new face, Filia. Throw in half a dozen different bad guys, and suddenly it is a tad hard to keep track of everyone.
The Slayers franchise have never been known to have amazingly deep plots, but those plots provided enough twists to make them enjoyable to watch. Slayers Try seems to have broken this tradition with a story that seemed more like a twelve-year-old’s first Dungeons & Dragons game rather than a plot that could be deemed worthy for anime. Comedy and wisecracks were traded in for something resembling drama, while the filler episodes for this twenty-six-episode fetch-quest continued.
At the very least the music was enjoyable (so tradition remained intact). While not as good as its predecessors, Slayers Try is worth a watch for Slayers fans of all ages.
Slayers Try is licensed in the U.S. by Funimation, and episodes may be viewed legally in the United States HERE on Youtube.
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