This piece contains spoilers for The Legend of Vox Machina season 3 batch 2.
One thing about Critical Role is that it’s been getting gayer by the year. Granted, everyone plays their characters a little omnisexual and down for wherever the story takes them, but we’ve still had some really solid sapphic characters over the three campaigns. But before there was Imogen and Laudna, before Beau and Yasha, before we even knew Vex was bisexual (though us Vexleth shippers always suspected), we had Lady Allura and Lady Kima, members of the Tal’Dorei Council who, while a little off-put by our vagabond heroes at first, come to care for and show up for Vox Machina time and time again.
In this season of The Legend of Vox Machina, we get to dive a little more into Kima and Allura’s backstory, something that’s harder to do when they’re NPCs at a table both played by the same man. The animated series gets to flesh out these characters and make them even more dimensional than Matt Mercer was able to on his own, which was already pretty great to begin with. Indira Varma and Stephanie Beatriz breathe new life into Allura and Kima, making them all that more fun to root for, and making me all that more excited when they pop up to help out.
Last week, we met someone from Kima and Allura’s past, Dohla, who once had eyes for Kima and seems extremely jealous. Although she claims it’s not because of their relationship, but because of the accolades and titles Kima and Allura received after their last adventure together. Dohla ended up betraying Kima and Allura (and Vox Machina by association). I won’t lie. It was a little cathartic, as a viewer of the first campaign, to see a red dragonborn who was flirting with Allura and Kima and a pest to Vox Machina get squashed by a dragon.
In this week’s batch of episodes, we get even more insight into Kima and Allura’s past and present relationship when the pair get separated by the aforementioned dragon. Kima had run into danger and Allura lost sight of her, and was ready to punch a dragon to get back to her girl.
As they try to find each other again, we get to see flashbacks of how they met…and how they didn’t always get along. Kima is more a woman of action, Allura more patient and careful. Kima can be impulsive, Allura can be controlling. But we also see how they learned to work together, how Kima running into danger is actually what drew Allura to her in the first place.
It was love at first chimera.
When they’re first reunited, Allura is pissed at Kima for running into danger, and Kima is pissed at Allura for trying to keep her on a leash and running into the danger after her (especially because her magic can be done from afar, unlike Kima’s hammer-smashing moves.)
They’re not QUITE sunshine + grumpy but it’s close enough for me!
But eventually they realize their fight isn’t really a fight. They just care about each other so much and want to keep each other out of danger. They re-learn to trust each other and to support each other, and lead Vox Machina to victory once again.
What’s a little dragon goo between gal pals.
And, of course, throughout these episodes, we get plenty of the regular Vox Machina shenanigans we know and love. I was personally delighted by some of the winks and nods to critters, with the phrase “toothy maw” and the flash of Keyfish in the Chateau. Honestly the Chateau in general — right down to the kitchen only serving chicken. And I know this was a few episodes ago, but the song about the Ruby of the Sea delighted me almost as much as it delighted Laura Bailey when she convinced Matt to sing it at the launch party.
This season definitely has more heavy moments than the last two, but that’s how the campaign went in real life (and many D&D campaigns do). I continue to enjoy the things they keep almost word-for-word the same as the things they choose to tweak and change to keep it fresh and new and more apt for the animated medium. Every season I worry about the shorter format hampering the beautiful tale they told, but every season they exceed my expectations and make me feel, rage, cry, and laugh all over again.
The Legend of Vox Machina streams on Prime Video.
I’m enjoying this season, perhaps more than the previous two – it’s been a while.
I know the source material. I find that NOT actually knowing the story here, because they’re rewriting it to be coherent in six hours or so while still telling the arc, squeezing in so many favourite scenes and loads of easter eggs for the critters, makes it feel fresh and fun.
Not that I wouldn’t have been watching anyway of course. But watching it being retold in a different way, different structure, is making it feel new. And that’s always great fun too.
My sister, more fool her, came to visit and got subjected to episodes 4-6 yesterday. We then started from s1e1. The magic works on non-Critters too!