‘The Mighty Nein’ review: Critical Role hits new highs with their darkest series yet

My first exposure to Critical Role wasn’t a clip from any of their campaigns, but instead, a GIF set of their animated introduction for Campaign 2. Scrolling past it on Tumblr, I immediately became bewitched by the characters. Who was this joyful blue tiefling fighting foes with glowing lollipops and unicorns? What lay in the past of this clearly traumatized, fire-wielding wizard? And how had this disparate crew of goblins and humans and orcs and more banded together?

With those questions in mind, I set off right down the Critical Role rabbit hole, discovering the adventuring party known as the Mighty Nein. Yet as much as I enjoyed witnessing these characters’ stories play out in an improvised Dungeons and Dragons format, I couldn’t help but yearn for an expansion on the animated introduction that had exposed me to them in the first place.

Now, that expansion is here in the form of Critical Role’s new animated series The Mighty Nein. And it’s as glorious as I had hoped.

What’s The Mighty Nein about?

The Mighty Nein is Critical Role’s second animated series with Prime Video, following in the footsteps of The Legend of Vox Machina. While the latter took a few episodes to nail the balance between bawdy humor and high fantasy, The Mighty Nein hits the ground running, delivering a darker, more mature story right from the get-go.

That story begins with a heist: A strike team of formidable wizards from the Dwendalian Empire steals the powerful Luxon Beacon from the Kryn Dynasty. The sequence plays out almost wordlessly, punctuated by beats of lethal magic and hand-to-hand combat. It’s a gripping reintroduction to the world of Exandria, one that sets the stage for a devastating war between nations. It’s also a darkly funny choice for The Mighty Nein‘s starting point, because while the Dwendalian wizards and Kryn soldiers are elite, highly organized forces, our titular heroes are… not.

By the time The Mighty Nein begins, the actual Mighty Nein crew is far from being assembled. Each of the team’s members (and despite what the name suggests, there are only six of them) is scattered to the winds, dealing with their own woes. And trust me, The Mighty Nein does not skimp on the traumatic backstories. Dirt-covered wizard Caleb Widogast (voiced by Liam O’Brien) scrounges for magical components while running from his past. Goblin thief Nott the Brave (voiced by Sam Riegel) drowns her sorrows at every waking moment. Cobalt Soul monk Beauregard Lionett (voiced by Marisha Ray) faces derisions from her superiors, who dismiss her detective work based on her hotheadedness.

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Elsewhere, shipwrecked sailor Fjord Stone (voiced by Travis Willingham) awakens with magical powers he didn’t ask for and doesn’t know how to use, while prankster Jester Lavorre (voiced by Laura Bailey) can’t get her patron god (and best friend) to answer her call. Rounding out the group is Mollymauk Tealeaf (voiced by Taliesin Jaffe), a circus ringmaster oozing with charisma, yet plagued with worries about his circus going under (and some unsettling memories).

In short, these six have nothing in common. However, the brewing conflict over the Luxon Beacon will bring these outcasts together in unexpected ways and offer them the chance to prove that maybe, just maybe they can make a difference for the better. Based on the skills shown by both the Dwendalian and Kryn forces in the opening, though, they have their work cut out for them.

The Mighty Nein builds a formidable team.

Credit: Prime Video

The Mighty Nein takes no shortcuts when it comes to bringing its team together. There are arguments and in-fighting aplenty in the series, each a perfect showcase of the distinct personalities the show is working with. Yet from these arguments emerge strong bonds of camaraderie, made all the sweeter by the conflict it took to get there.

The Mighty Nein manages to preserve all of the wonderful relationships players crafted at the table during Campaign 2: Nott and Caleb’s protection of one another, Jester and Fjord’s playful friendship, Beau and Caleb’s growing respect and trust, Mollymauk’s ability to bring everyone together… I could go on, as the webs The Mighty Nein weaves between its characters are as rich and varied as the characters themselves.

The complexities of these characters and their relationships come through, not just in dialogue but also in The Mighty Nein‘s jaw-dropping action sequences. The Legend of Vox Machina already set the bar high on how to translate Critical Role’s battles into animation, but The Mighty Nein more than meets that bar, even surpassing it when it comes to magic usage.

That’s because each magic user in The Mighty Nein has their own unique way of casting. Caleb uses material components to create destructive spells, Jester summons sparkling herds of mini unicorns and candy, Mollymauk wields blood magic that even he seems surprised he has access to, and Fjord sends out watery blasts without quite knowing how. In the case of all four, but especially the latter two, watching them fight means watching them discover enchanting new abilities on the fly. You’re seeing heroes grow into themselves in real time — and in spectacular fashion, thanks to dazzling animation from Titmouse.

This sense of discovery turns The Mighty Nein into an unforgettable story of becoming something greater than you ever thought you could be, and of finding belonging you never thought you would. It’s the found family trope done to a tee, and honestly, when I dreamed of an animated series based on the Campaign 2 intro all those years ago, never did I expect it to hit as hard as this.

The first three episodes of The Mighty Nein premiere Nov. 19 on Prime Video, with a new episode every Wednesday.