The Legend of Vox Machina is back! We’re being graced with 12 AMAZING new episodes over the course of the next four weeks. The first three episodes were released today on Prime Video and are now available for streaming. Before we dive deep in, let’s do a little recap.
Last time, on D&D…
Season 1 ended with Sovereign Uriel Tal’Dorei renouncing the throne and ceding the government to the Tal’Dorei Council. He believes he ultimately failed as a leader, and praises Vox Machina for helping the country in its time of need. His speech is cut short as the Chroma Conclave, a group made out of
five
four ancient chromatic dragons, attack the the city of Emon.
We focused on Pike and Percy’s character arcs last season, with Pike struggling to find her holy path within the Everlight and Percy raining down revenge on the Briarwoods for murdering his family and ruining Whitestone. This season, we focus on a few other characters.
This season strays further from the source material than the last. But all pieces of the puzzle fit right in and make sense.
With no further ado, let’s dig into the first three episodes of Vox Machina season 2. WARNING: FULL-ON SPOILERS AHEAD!
Vox Machina Episode I: “Rise of the Chroma Conclave”
The season 2 premiere opens right where the season 1 finale ended: during Sovereign Uriel Tal’Dorei’s speech in Emon. The attack on the city by the Chroma Conclave feels like an animated House of the Dragon episode. It’s beautifully executed; the animation is smooth, and I love the level of details on the dragons and their destructive powers.
Let’s talk about how Raishan, the Diseased Deceiver, literally pulls a Daenerys Targaryen (or pulls a Drogon, rather) and sprays civilians with poison gas. Then Umbrasyl, the Hope Destroyer, doubles back and rains acid down on the same people. Brutal.
Vax sees a mysterious woman walking along the debris, but she vanishes just as quickly as she appears. Will he see her again? Who is she? He clearly looks surprised, so it’s not someone he knows. Speaking of Vax, I really enjoy the sweet flirtations between him and Gilmore. It shows off a sweet side of Vax we don’t often get to see.
This episode shows off just how powerful this Chroma Conclave is, and how dedicated they are to wiping out the population of Tal’Dorei. Keyleth puts it succinctly:
"This might be the end of the world."
However, Vex has a hopeful rejoinder: “Not for us.”