The Mighty Nein season 1 review: Makes The Legend of Vox Machina seem like a kids’ show

The Mighty Nein aren’t precisely mighty — not at first, anyway — and so they quantity lower than 9 for that matter too. But the fandom behind this rogue social gathering of seven could be very mighty certainly, as it’s for just about every part created by Vital Position as of late.

Ten years into their reign, the Dungeons & Dragons troupe are again with a second animated sequence based mostly on their tabletop escapades. Set twenty years after The Legend of Vox Machina, The Mighty Nein marketing campaign introduces a complete new group who’re very completely different from the celebrities of Prime Video‘s hit present, even when they’re voiced by the identical actors.  

Whereas The Mighty Nein additionally embody numerous fantasy archetypes, they don’t play good with it. For each quirky character like Jester Lavorre, a prankster who conjures pink hammers and the occasional dildo to combat with, there’s additionally a homeless hearth wizard who smells like shit and isn’t afraid to burn his enemies to ash. Beau, a detective monk from the Cobalt Soul isn’t kidding when she says, “This group is fucking wild,” as they combat off an enormous demonic toad. 

The Legend of Vox Machina isn’t afraid to get darkish when it must — who can overlook that season three demise!? — and it’s fairly attractive for that matter too, however Vital Position’s first animated enterprise is nearly a child-friendly romp compared to the place The Mighty Nein will take you. 

In a single significantly distressing sequence of flashbacks, a personality we’ve been rooting for casually melts a person’s cranium in half and forces one other to disembowel himself. Loveable rogues these usually are not. Properly, not on a regular basis. Characters like the attractive tarot reader Molly swish in with a swashbuckling attraction and the remainder of the group are nonetheless loads of enjoyable to be round too, even when they aren’t outright heroes like Vox Machina. 

It takes a short while longer for The Mighty Nein to determine learn how to have enjoyable with one another. The introduction of every solid member is staggered over the primary half of this season, so some bond shortly whereas others inherently mistrust and even dislike each other. These tensions are mirrored by wider battle between the Dwendalian Empire and the Kryn Dynasty, which drives the broader narrative of the season that brings everybody collectively. 

In each instances, the result’s messy at occasions. That’s very true of the group’s seek for a robust arcane relic often known as The Beacon, which seems in suits and begins, typically within the type of cutaways to different shady characters who’re infinitely much less attention-grabbing than our predominant gamers. The world of Exandria feels extra expansive right here consequently however typically The Mighty Nein will get twisted up in its ambition, juggling too many character arcs and origin tales without delay. 

Even with a barely longer runtime – every episode clocks in at round 40+ minutes – it’s nonetheless not sufficient to craft a transparent, direct via line that brings all these transferring elements collectively. It’s telling that one of the best episode is actually one lengthy dive into the previous which is way extra targeted in its plotting. 

Vox Machina was extra streamlined in that regard, delivering a a lot tighter tempo. However it will have been boring for The Mighty Nein merely to repeat what got here earlier than, and there’s one thing to be stated for the way it prioritises character-driven developments between numerous pairings inside the group at giant. That lengthier episode runtime additionally permits for brand new scenes that depict occasions that occurred “off-screen” within the unique table-top marketing campaign. 

Crucially, The Mighty Nein excels in all of the methods you’d count on a Vital Position adaptation to excel in. Celeb visitor stars together with Alan Cumming, Mark Robust and Anika Noni Rose impress, however it’s the unique voice solid who may have you rooting for our “heroes,” irrespective of how morally doubtful they are often. 

Particular shout out to Sam Riegel who brings heartfelt pathos and humour to an alcoholic goblin named Nott the Courageous, simply as he did for Vox Machina’s raunchy gnome Scanlan. Candid strains like “Aren’t you a bit outdated to scent like shit?” may have you laughing all of a sudden out of nowhere with that signature Vital Position humour, whereas threads of queerness organically woven all through additional reinforce this as one other outsider story, the sort this group does finest. 

In a first-look interview with EW, showrunner Tasha Huo defined how they “actually attempt to deal with the present like a live-action present” to replicate “extra mature, extra elevated storytelling”. It’s necessary to not undersell the animation, nevertheless, which stays visually attention-grabbing all through, whether or not a magic teddy bear is stitching a wound or physique horror transformations carry surprising shades of grotesqueness. That’s particularly necessary for a marketing campaign that’s largely existed within the creativeness of followers up till now.  

The fights are rather less flashy and the tone is extra downbeat, so your bandwidth for The Mighty Nein might very nicely depend upon what you preferred and didn’t like about Vox Machina. However that’s to not say there can’t be room in your life for each. Consider them as completely different flavours of the identical factor. One would possibly cater to your tastes extra, however each provide up a mighty good time in their very own manner. 

Do you have to watch The Mighty Nein season 1?

Adapting a 141-episode, 600-hour tabletop sequence isn’t any small feat, however in doing so, Vital Position have made this present a blast for newbies and diehard followers alike. And crucially, you don’t want any prior information of this world and even The Legend of Vox Machina to get pleasure from it. All you do want is an open thoughts, a love of fantasy, and a smidge of persistence when issues get a bit convoluted.

The Mighty Nein season 1 drops on Amazon Prime Video on 19 November 2025 with the primary three episodes. You’ll be able to join a 30-day free trial of the service right here, with the location’s Black Friday sale beginning this Thursday.