The Slayers is an anime based on a light novel series written by Hajime Kanzaka and illustrated by Rui Araizumi.

The Slayers follows the adventures of a 16-year-old sorceress named Lina Inverse and her companions. Lina loves money, treasure and food, and uses her magic in a reckless, yet comedic manner. She has a reputation for being evil, powerful, destructive, and diminutive; Lina has also acquired the nicknames "Bandit Killer" and "Dragon Spooker" (although she doesn't like either of these nicknames).

At the beginning of the series, Lina destroys a gang of bandits called the Dragon Fangs and takes some of their treasure. As she heads for the nearest town, Lina is ambushed by the remaining members of the gang. Lina ends up being rescued by the valiant Gourry Gabriev.

Gourry is a wandering swordsman, and he carries the Sword of Light. While Gourry may be skillful with a sword, he isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. After meeting Lina, he decides to serve as the "little girl's" unpaid bodyguard. Gourry is kind, loyal, and considerate of others. However, he makes it pretty clear that he feels Lina's physical attributes are a little underdeveloped for her age.

There are three types of magic in the Slayers universe: Black Magic, White Magic, and Shamanistic Magic. Black Magic spells can cause enormous damage. White Magic spells are used for healing and protection. Shamanistic Magic spells are used for manipulation and altering the natural world.

While The Slayers is set in a Dungeons & Dragons type world, the series doesn't take itself too seriously; in fact, there's actually quite a bit of humor in it. While there's nothing visually that would be inappropriate for younger viewers, some of the dialogue (especially Gourry's comments about Lina's physical attributes) really aren't appropriate for young children. Personally, I would recommend Slayers to anime viewers who are 14 years of age and older.

Title	Episodes	Release Year(s)	Director	Studio	N.A. Licensor
The Slayers	26	1995	Takashi Watanabe	E.G. Films	FUNimation Entertainment
Slayers: The Motion Picture	N/A	1995	Kazuo Yamazaki/Hiroshi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	ADV Films
Slayers Next	26	1996	Takashi Watanabe	E.G. Films	FUNimation Entertainment
Slayers Return	N/A	1996	Kunihiko Yuyama/Hiroshi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	ADV Films
Slayers: The Book of Spells	3	1996-1997	Hiroshi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	ADV Films
Slayers Try	26	1997	Takashi Watanabe	E.G. Films	FUNimation Entertainment
Slayers Great	N/A	1997	Kunihiko Yuyama/Hiroshi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	ADV Films
Slayers Excellent	3	1998-1999	Hiroshi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	N/A
Slayers Gorgeous	N/A	1998	Hiroshi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	ADV Films
Slayers Premium	N/A	2001	Junichi Sato	J.C. Staff	N/A
Slayers Revolution	13	2008	Takashi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	FUNimation Entertainment
Slayers Evolution-R	13	2009	Takashi Watanabe	J.C. Staff	FUNimation Entertainment