Critical Role Season 1 Finale Recap: Vox Machina Rises to the Occasion

Throughout the primary season of The Legend of Vox Machina, Amazon’s animated adaptation of Critical Role took its time permitting the titular adventuring social gathering to develop into the heroes that tens of millions of followers know from the unique streaming present. The first half of the season was a strong journey for Vox Machina because the group embarked on a revenge story, however the second half manages to convey many threads collectively to weave a thrilling, chaotic story.

After the first half of the collection confirmed Vox Machina rising to prominence solely to comprehend the gravity of their sudden struggle in opposition to Delilah and Sylas Briarwood (voiced by Grey Griffin and Matt Mercer), the second half was naturally in regards to the heroes lastly rising to the event. Several of them have had ample alternative for the present to focus on how badass they’re, like twins Vax (Liam O’Brien) and Vex (Laura Bailey), or Grog (Travis Willingham) and Percy (Taliesin Jaffe). After all, it’s straightforward to look effortlessly cool for those who smash heads, throw blades, or shoot arrows and bullets.

But the social gathering’s extra magical members—Scanlan (Sam Riegel), Keyleth (Marisha Ray), and Pike (Ashley Johnson)—hadn’t totally gotten their due but. Each of them have had glimpses of potential teased all through the season, and all three of them get the highlight within the season’s second half. After a number of episodes of briefly checking in on Pike, “A Silver Tongue” is generally dedicated to unpacking her efforts to achieve her patron, Sarenrae (Tracie Thomas). It’s right here, and in a number of different storylines like the blooming romance between Keyleth and Vax, the place you could want episodes have been longer than 22-24 minutes, or had tighter pacing.

Outside of the premiere, the present doesn’t promote Pike because the group’s ethical heart, or make it really feel like she was all that torn up about ingesting and killing along with her associates. Because the one one she spends quite a lot of time with is her BFF Grog, and the social gathering’s origins have been solely glossed over at this level, the present doesn’t totally have the proof wanted to assist her conflicted soul. Primarily, this storyline feels prefer it’s writing round Johnson’s authentic absence throughout this arc when she was a collection common on a TV present, and it’s a disgrace. Johnson breathes quite a lot of earnestness into Pike and her plight. While it was thrilling to see her reunite along with her associates (through astral projection) to offer Whitestone’s folks a combating likelihood, and her return is suitably epic, it doesn’t hit as laborious because it may.

Of the three, Scanlan naturally will get the funniest triumph in his episode, “Scanbo.” Striking out on his personal so the remainder of the social gathering can rescue Percy’s sister Cassandra (Esmé Creed-Miles), the bard will get right into a succession of chaotic insanity as he meets the Briarwoods’ lieutenant Duke Vedmire (Rory McCann). You know virtually immediately that there’s a punchline on the best way, and the present fortunately delivers by recreating one of many marketing campaign’s most infamously chaotic moments. “Scanbo” doesn’t attempt to peel again the layers of its attractive bard, and it doesn’t really want to. Watching Scanlan polymorph right into a triceratops and wreak havoc inside a home, then burp all of it into flames is the sort of enjoyable stupidity that each makes tabletop video games enjoyable to play and has helped Critical Role obtain success.

The most constant arc all through the season belongs to Keyleth, the group’s bubbly druid. Her a number of makes an attempt to attach with the Sun Tree of Whitestone have been met with failure (and rising disdain from Vex). Repeatedly, Vox Machina has proven her to be an elemental powerhouse throughout the social gathering’s most dire moments, whereas additionally highlighting how out of her depth she is in comparison with everybody else. The penultimate episode, the action-heavy “Whispers at the Ziggurat,” looks like a painful reminder of this reality when Sylas simply kicks her ass earlier than shifting on to take care of Pike. It’s when issues are at their worst that Keyleth each connects with the Sun Tree and burns Sylas to a crisp in probably the most visually beautiful second of the collection.

When io9 spoke to the Critical Role solid forward of Vox’s premiere, Willingham mentioned how the Briarwood arc functioned as an excellent ensemble piece for everybody. But it’s nonetheless Percy’s story on the finish, and “The Darkness Within” is one thing of a bottle episode as Vox Machina and Cass lastly get the possibility to deal with the elephant within the room that’s Percy’s vengeful patron, Orthax. Whenever Percy’s been prepared to drag the set off at these chargeable for his household’s demise, Orthax has been there as a malevolent guiding hand, and the gunman can’t simply brush off the group’s questions anymore. Mercer’s efficiency provides the demon the menace it very a lot deserves within the story, and the episode has a handful of hanging moments as stands behind Percy, bathing him in smoky shadow. It comes as a giant aid when Percy lastly manages to exorcize the being from his soul by blasting himself within the hand.

Legend of Vox Machina has been criticized for its jarring shifts in tone, which is actually legitimate, notably for those who’re coming in recent and don’t understand how the supply materials operates. You can see the way it’s shaping as much as be one thing really particular, however just like the adventuring social gathering themselves, the present can get in its personal manner by asserting itself as “fantasy, but for adults.” But it’s not the frequent blood and titties that made followers fall for the marketing campaign; it was the characters and the chemistry of the actors. In the ultimate third of the season, it feels just like the present has realized that. There are some actual spectacular moments to look at throughout the finale which are positive to really feel like rewards for the followers because the solid’s chemistry shines and the animation goes all out with one struggle scene or visible stunner after one other.

We can hope that when season two arrives, the present will have discovered the suitable stability between the rousing fantasy story it needs to be, and the goofy D&D insanity that impressed it. With 4 large dragons able to raze Emon to the bottom, the legend of Vox Machina guarantees to be larger than earlier than, and the present might want to hearth on all cylinders.

Critical Role: The Legend of Vox Machina is offered on Prime Video.