You might be asking yourself, Aaron, why is this review in the Games section and not in the Movies section? The obvious home of this Dungeons and Dragons DVD set. Well, the answer is simple… Any ‘ol Frood can bang out a DVD review, add some pithy observations about cartoons ‘back in the day’, slap a rating on it and call it good… Hell, I normally am that Frood… This time it will be different. This time, with a new campaign waiting in the wings, I’ve decided to explore the usability of the classic 80s cartoon within the current D&D 3.5 role-playing game…
However, because I love to impress the ladies with my mad D&D knowledge and my phat TV skills, I can’t pass on a chance to do both in one fell swoop…
The Dungeons and Dragons animated series started in 1983 and ran for 3 seasons on Saturday morning. It featured six unlikely heroes transported from our world via the Dungeons and Dragons roller coaster. (A ride that really does need to be built). Anyway, they are all given mystical weapons by Dungeon Master… Wander the land trying to get home… Fight Tiamat and her enemy, the Optimus Prime voiced Venger… (Actually, they pretty much only ran from the above two villains)… Within the series, they never made it home… The show was finally canceled after a slow decline in ratings. (Not from religious protests, as much as overly protective moms like to brag). There, show review over…
On to the dice rolling!
As most gamers have come to expect from any Wizards of the Coast product, the Animated Series sourcebook is pretty to look at and has good production values. Just because this wee tome of a sourcebook clocks in at 29 pages does not mean WotC skimped on the quality, the darn thing even feels like one of their sourcebooks… If a bit lighter. Inside, the reader will find a quick note from Dungeon Master (not to be confused with The Dungeon Master, or simply the DM). Oh no, this is the little Yoda’esqu figure we Geeks of the 80s came to know and love. (And, likely tried to make an NPC in our ill conceive epics of old). As is his want, Dungeon Master is cryptic in his syntax as he explains what other books you will need to play the included adventure, The Dragon’s Graveyard. Honestly, it would have been nice if WotC included an uber-barebones version of the 3.5 rules, allowing the buyer to play “out of the box” as it were. Although something tells me, Wizards only included this book to entice buyers of both the DVD and the game… Then again, I am willing to bet the folks who buy this DVD set also play the game, so… No harm, no foul. (Really, how can one get mad at such a cute little sourcebook)?
Beyond Dungeon Master…
Fear not brave adventurers, you now have official stats of your favorite Ranger, Cavalier, Wizard, Barbarian, Thief, and…Ah yea… Acrobat! To make things even more interesting for the reader, they’ve tossed in stats for that annoying Uni, but said sweetness is balanced out by the inclusion of Venger and his Shadow Demons. Sweet! In addition to official (and semi-balanced) stats for each character, the Animated Series sourcebook also has stats and abilities of each characters signature weapon… Are they balanced for typical PC use? Hell no! Are they a blast and potential story fodder as “Legendary Weapons”? Damn skippy! I mean, what ranged based character wouldn’t have a field day trying to find and take as their own a bow that fired Magic Missiles and made use of their Strength bonus and Power Shot!? Gold my friends, gold! Okay, I know I am making light of this book, but don’t mistake my jovial musses for disappointment… I really do see some potential in the hands of a skilled and eager gaming group. Imagine if you will… The average age of the players at your table is 30, give or take some years… Most have seen and, likely remember with fond memories, the adventures of the 6 youths in the Realms of Dungeons and Dragons… Now imagine, your DM places these new players within that same world…albeit 30 or 40 years later. Did these original 6 make it home? Did they find peace with their destinies? Did they all survive? Does Venger still haunt the lands? With a little work, a DM could create adventures that are both compelling and nostalgic… I’ll let you know how it turns out!
What else makes this DVD work, as a game?
Honestly, a lot… If you are willing to have a little fun with your D&D. The DVD set comes with a reprint of a map of the world used during early promotions. Like all fantasy-based maps, it is both vague and explicate… Need to find the lost staff, rumored to be hidden away in the Ice Caves? No problem, they are just a hop, skip, and a jump from the Lair of Tiamat! Whoa buddy, did you just say Lair of Tiamat? You betch’a’ I did… See where a DM could have loads of fun with this DVD set? Each episode has at least one nugget of information that a DM could slip into their campaign. It seems, of late, that many of the hobbies we Geeks knew and loved from out childhood grew up with us… Superheroes dealing with “real-life” issues, Sci-Fi epics now have more political metaphor than they have spaceships and laser, and even the venerable Dungeons and Dragons grew a tad more sophisticated. Perhaps we need to inject just a little bit of that sugary cereal we used to shovel down back in the day… Does that mean we need to make all our games simple one-shot style quests where all we do is rescue the princess? No, not really… But, that doesn’t mean we can’t toss in the occasional Uni or absent-minded Wizard who keeps his power in his hat…
If you were looking for a solid DVD review of this box set, them I’m sorry… I’ve nothing to give you… Pure, unbridled nostalgia has completely overwhelmed my critical eye… The DVD set of Dungeons and Dragons has taken me back to a time when both the real world and rules heavy stats took a way, way, way backseat to good old fashion make believe…
Now if you don’t mind… I’m off to the Realm of Dungeons and Dragons!!!