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PLOT: Veteran warriors Ax Battler, Tyris Flare, and Gilius Thunderhead once again battle to save Yuria from the evil giant Death Adder, who just won’t seem to stay dead.
REVIEW: When Paramount+ first announced an animated series based on SEGA‘s 1989 beat ’em up video game, I was skeptical. Is there really enough material in Golden Axe to mine for a full series? Do these characters have enough personality to carry an entire season of sword-and-sorcery shenanigans? Thankfully, the answer is an enthusiastic yes. The series not only pays loving homage to the arcade classic but also thoughtfully expands Yuria’s world into a genuinely fun, funny fantasy adventure.
While I eventually had a blast with the show, it took a few episodes to adjust to its self-aware, tongue-in-cheek humor and over-the-top violence. Early on, most jokes landed as mild chuckles rather than laugh-out-loud moments, and splitting up the party felt like a misfire given how iconic the trio of Ax Battler, Tyris Flare, and Gilius Thunderhead is to the brand. However, as the plot progressed, the method to the madness became clear. By the mid-season mark, the show had fully found its footing and had me completely along for the ride.
In the series co-created by Mike McMahan (Star Trek: Lower Decks) and showrunner Joe Chandler (American Dad!), Ax Battler (Liam McIntyre), Tyris Flare (Lisa Gilroy), and Gilius Thunderhead (Matthew Rhys) learn that their nemesis, Death Adder, survived their last encounter, and must be destroyed using the Golden Axe, a legendary weapon enchanted by a shard of the Emerald Blade. Because the trio is always at odds, they split up, with Gilius angrily searching for the Golden Axe while Ax Battler and Tyris take a different tack.
During Gilius’ journey, he crosses paths with Hampton Squib, an inexperienced rookie adventurer with dreams of becoming a worthy warrior of Yuria. Together, they set out on an epic quest to find and defeat Death Adder, crossing paths with everything from skeleton hordes to enchanted townsfolk and massive giants. Their Odd Couple dynamic makes for some of the best character chemistry in the series, with Gilius’s reluctance to take Hampton under his wing eventually paving the way for a meaningful partnership.
Meanwhile, Ax Battler and Tyris are determined to beat Gilius to Death Adder’s throne room, but not without the help of Chronos “Evil” Lait (Carl Tart), a panther-man introduced in Golden Axe III. Throughout their adventure, this newly formed trio crosses paths with a masochistic imp, chases sentient body parts, and becomes trapped in a side-quest designed to waste their time and talents.
The split narrative creates a variety of off-the-wall scenarios for each party. It also allows the writing team to include a basketful of Easter eggs from the Golden Axe games for hardcore fans of the franchise to discover as waves of nostalgia wash over them like so many waves of mead and blood. Moreover, the humor is evenly distributed among the characters, including the enemies we meet along the way. I laughed just as much while listening to Gilius gripe about the pitfalls of Yuria as I did when a skeleton or helmeted guard would quip about their lot in life. The characters in the series like to go on tangents, and oftentimes that’s where the best jokes are hidden.
If you’re a Golden Axe fan, rest assured, there’s plenty here for you to freak out about. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the fifth episode has some stellar callbacks to the game series, and the guest characters in that chapter offer some of the best comedy in the show overall. I was pointing at my monitor like Leo in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood when bosses I loved to beat the tar out of back in the day showed up, making me laugh and adding a bit of heart to the show.
For all of its absurdity, crude language, and deep cuts, Golden Axe would not be as good as it is without its rock-solid voice cast. While Gilius (Rhys) and Tyris (Gilroy) are by far my favorites of the bunch, every voice actor approaches their character with boundless energy and a lack of self-seriousness that makes them memorable and fun to follow throughout the animated odyssey. Humor is subjective, so your mileage may vary on the jokes, but as I said, the show finds its footing halfway through, so don’t give up if the first few episodes don’t split your sides.
As a long-time fan of the Golden Axe franchise, this show not only lives up to its namesake but also highlights how ridiculous the land of Yuria has always been. The characters, while dim-witted, approach every obstacle with gusto, letting their blade do most of the talking. While some want this series to take a more sober approach to the source material, the frivolity is a welcome tone for a franchise that, despite providing hours of beat ’em up fun, didn’t have much of an identity before this show. Don’t get it twisted, the Golden Axe games have an iconic look and feel, but how much can you say about the dialogue and earnest high-fantasy tone?
While Golden Axe gets off to a slightly abrasive start, it eventually finds an entertaining balance. I went from thinking the show was okay to genuinely laughing and enjoying the entire presentation in the span of its fifth episode. The interplay between the core cast is sharp, witty, and as snarky as you’d like. Still, the series fleshes out Yuria in ways that make it feel more alive and hilariously dysfunctional than I anticipated. I’m perfectly aware this show won’t be for everyone. Still, I was eventually charmed by it in a way that makes me want another season, if only to hear more banter between the party members or listen to more world-weary chatter from the support cast.
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