Slayers Gorgeous

Release

The film was theatrically released in Japan on August 1, 1998, distributed by Toei Animation. It was screened as a double feature together with Martian Successor Nadesico: The Motion Picture – Prince of Darkness. Kadokawa Shoten's home version was released on the VHS and LaserDisc in April 1999, and re-released on the DVD alone in 1999 and as part of the EMOTION the Best Slayers Movie Edition DVD-BOX (EMOTION the Best スレイヤーズ 劇場版 DVD-BOX) collection of all Slayers films in 2010. It will be included in the collection of digitally remastered Slayers films and OAV series, released on Blu-ray in Japan on October 30, 2015.

The film was released by ADV Films on the DVD in North America on February 17, 2004. Return was later released by ADV with the other four Slayers movies in a "Movie" boxset, and with the other four movies and both OVA series in a "Movies and OVAs" box set. The English dubbing version was directed and produced by Sandra Krasa. The film was also broadcast in the English version by ADV's broadcast on Anime Network and distributed by Madman Entertainment in Australia and New Zealand, by Déclic Images in France, and by ACOG and OVA Films in Germany (dubbed to German by into German by Circle of Arts).

Soundtrack

A 39-track original soundtrack Slayers Great: The Motion Picture "Go" (KICA-415) was composed by Takayuki Hattori and released on CD in Japan on September 9, 1998. It features three songs with vocals by Megumi Hayashibara: "I & Myself", "Raging Waves" and "Raging Waves (Turquoise Mix)". The songs were later included in the CD collection The Best of Slayers Vol. 2 (From OVA, Movie & Game).

Other media

A 102-page companion guide book Movie Edition Slayers Gorgeous was published by Fujimi Shobō in the Dragon Magazine Collection in August 1998 (released also in the low-budget "miniartbook" version), followed by Slayers Gorgeous Anime Comic (with a B&W section of production art and character designs) in November 1998. The scripts for Return, Great and Gorgeous were published in the book Slayers Original.

Reception

The film was well received by most Western critics, often regarded as one of the better installments of the franchise. Helen McCarthy included it on her list of essential anime films and gave it a perfect score of A, while Mania.com's Chris Beveridge gave it a B+. According to Fred Patten of Animation World Network, "Slayers Gorgeous is recommended both on its own and as a sample for viewers wondering whether to invest in one of the 26-episode Slayers TV series."

The Video Librarian too recommended this "genuinely funny entry" in the Slayers anime series, awarding it 3 out of 4 stars and adding that "what distinguishes this particular episode is an exquisite sense of comic timing and constantly upended expectations." According to Mania.com's Dani Moure, who gave it a score of B, Gorgeous is "a good fantasy-comedy that isn't going to move any mountains, but it will give a lot of laughs and entertainment." Megan Lavey from that same website scored it a B-. John Huxley of Homemademech favorably compared Slayers Gorgeous to Slayers Great: "Both may be of a similar quality but Gorgeous is Goldeneye to Great's Thunderball. The same but better."

Dan Houston of DVD Talk gave Slayers Gorgeous a more cautiously positive review, writing that "much like Slayers Great, the premise of this release was somewhat limited but I can't deny the appeal of the show," and also noting that having less adult innuendo compared other Slayers films "makes this a better volume for kids or younger audiences." Polish fantasy writer Aleksandra Janusz, writing for the magazine Kawaii, opined it was "good enough", even if somewhat weaker than its predecessors. On the other hand, DVD Verdict's Rob Lineberger gave the film a relatively rare negative review, calling it "bland and downright annoying" despite "some amusing bits in the movie." DVD Verdict's review of The Slayers Movie Box by Brett Cullum, however, opined the set "makes for a giggly good time at an affordable price."