RATING: 4/5 Stars
Warning: this review contains spoilers for the third season of The Legends of Vox Machina
Season 3 of The Legends of Vox Machina has dropped and thanks to Amazon, I received early access to the show. Ever since the successful Kickstarter campaign, this D&D-themed animated series was able to share the tale of Critical Role’s first campaign in an easy-to-digest format, especially for new fans who don’t have the time to watch hours of D&D campaigns that span hundreds of episodes.
For those who don’t know what this show is about, it stars the original Critical Role cast – Laura Bailey, Taliesin Jaffe, Ashley Johnson, Liam O’Brien, Marisha Ray, Sam Riegel, Travis Willingham, and of course, Matthew Mercer. All of them reprise their roles that form the Vox Machina team, who travel across Tal’dorei to stop various enemies, while also forming some alliances. While many thought that Season 3 would feature a new campaign, it was actually a continuation of the Chroma Conclave – the second arc of the Vox Machina story. So was this latest installment able to tie this story together within the 12 episodes it received?
Warning, I will be spoiling the show, so if you want to watch it blind, steer clear for now. Also, this review is written by someone who hasn’t watched the original livestreams.
In Continuation of the Chroma Conclave arc
Season 3 continues where season 2 left off, where the Vox Machina team finally learns about Thordak’s plan and somewhat forms an alliance with Raishan. Unlike season 1, where it was able to tell the entire Briarwood arc, the Chroma Conclave story was extended into two parts, with season 3 merging multiple side quests and story arcs into 12 episodes. While it does try to make it work, it seems like some of the stories felt condensed to keep the ball rolling, especially if the show wants to move on to its next story arc in season 4 (more on that later). Not to mention, it’s clear that some changes needed to be made, especially if they were to tell this story for a Television/Streaming size format. It’s not all bad as it gives greater focus on our characters.
Less action, More Relationship Building
The previous seasons of The Legends of Vox Machina showcased so much action and adventure, something that’s reminiscent of many Dungeons and Dragons games. But season 3 flips that format and decides to focus on the relationships our characters have. Whether it’s Pike’s trust in the Everlight, Vax and Keylith’s will-they-won’t-they situation, and Percy and Vex’s situationship, all of these relationships get a fair amount of time in the spotlight and play a role in how our characters develop, not only as themselves but also as a team. And it’s not just the team dynamic, even those outside the party like Scanlan’s daughter, Vex and Vax’s father and mother, and Allura and Kima, these external characters also play a role in the team’s development. It’s really great how The Legend of Vox Machina showcases that our source of power is from the people we’re close with, not just from physical strength alone. If you’re invested in the relationships that have been formed since the show’s beginning, it’s best to grab some tissues because you’re going to need them.
The adventure isn’t over yet.
Fans of the original livestream know what happens to Vox Machina at the end of the campaign. So the way that season 3 ends shows that the adventure isn’t over. The final episode teases another big bad is on the horizon, while our team splits up for the time being to work on themselves. It’s quite a heartfelt ending, while also teasing there is more to come. While a season 4 (or possibly a season 5) has yet to be announced, The Legend of Vox Machina has prepared itself to tell one or two more final story arcs before it moves towards the Mightly Nein campaign.
Overall thoughts
In all honesty, The Legends of Vox Machina Season 3 feels a bit rushed. While it did conclude the Chroma Conclave story in this season, some story beats had little development and you wished the show did more with it. But it also makes sense why it was condensed the way it was due to the amount of time and episodes the show has. Despite some of its flaws, it’s also a fun season, with more relationship-building, music from Sam Riegel, LGBT+ themes, and the usual Dungeons and Dragons antics translated into an adult animation show.
Viewers will be on the edge of their seats, and there may be tears, but in the end, it wraps up another story arc that needed two seasons to showcase its conclusion.
The Legends of Vox Machina Season 3 is now available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
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