REVIEW: ‘Sand Land: The Series’ Is A Beautiful Adventure

The late Akira Toriyama is a beloved creator, known mostly for his work on Dragon Ball and his character design for the Dragon Quest video games. His early 2000s manga Sand Land flew mostly under the radar, until now. Sand Land: The Series adapts the original manga and includes a new arc overseen by the legendary creator before his death.

Sand Land: The Series takes place in a barren wasteland covered in, you guessed it, sand. Water is incredibly scarce so the people struggle to survive. Humans and demons alike fight to live in a world controlled by the king. Since the king has access to the world’s only water source, he holds all the power.

Enter Sheriff Rao. Rao believes there is a lost water source out there that would change everyone’s lives. This legendary spring would take away the king’s power and give the humans and demons more control over their lives. To find the spring, Rao enlists the help of the demon king’s son Beelzebub and the demon Thief.

The trio is such an unlikely combination. They have distinct personalities that don’t work well together at first. Rao is a hardened man who, as the series explores, has been through a lot. He has seen true devastation firsthand. Now that he is older, he wants to use the time he has left to help others. Beelzebub, in contrast, is a hot-headed child who just wants to play video games and be the Fiend Prince. Thief is closer in personality to Rao, but since he is a demon he serves more as a guardian of sorts for Beelzebub.

What Sand Land: The Series does really well is molding this trio into a true team. It happens pretty quickly too. They realize the severity of the water scarcity and, even if their motivations might be different, all share a common goal. Demons and humans don’t see eye to eye, but this is not a typical “humans fighting demons” story. The real villains are the king and his Royal Army.

Sand Land: The Series explores themes of oppression constantly. The Royal Army has abused its power so dramatically that the entire world has fallen into despair. Part of Rao’s backstory is how he contributed to the oppression and found a way to escape. He struggles to come to terms with his past sins, something the series does a great job of focusing on.

The trio steals a Royal Army tank shortly into their adventure which serves as their main mode of transportation. It allows them to traverse the desert and fight back against the monsters they encounter along the way. It also highlights the incredible animation from the teams at Sunrise, Kamikaze Douga, and Anima. The way these studios worked together to bring the world of Sand Land to life is most evident once the action takes place.

Tank combat is fascinating in general. It is fun to see powerful vehicles zip around the desert launching powerful shots at each other. What Sand Land: The Series does takes that fun to a whole new level. The tank is not just a vehicle for the trio. It is essentially the fourth member of their team. It feels like as alive as the rest of the group, and the way it floats across the sand is beautiful to watch.

There are so many chances to see the team in combat too. Whether it is tank against tanks or more intimate hand-to-hand combat, there is a lot to enjoy. Enemy monsters are animated with such care that those close-up combat moments are exhilarating. There is a particular battle in the sixth episode that really sticks out. It shows not only how great the enemies are animated, but how incredible the heroes are as fighters. Combat is definitely a great selling point for Sand Land: The Series.

But none of this would be possible without the genius mind of Akira Toriyama. His tragic passing has allowed many to reflect on how influential he was for both manga and anime. His legendary creativity is on full display throughout Sand Land: The Series. Characters are so diverse and creative. There are new designs and ideas constantly being shown, some of them just sitting in the background.

His influence goes beyond character designs too. The world of Sand Land is dripping with style. The desolate towns evoke feelings of desperation in viewers. At the same time, the power and might of the Royal Army are evident in the areas they live in. Then there is the emotional response to seeing the spring for the first time. The sight of water juxtaposed with the dreary desert resonates so well because of the wonderful art direction.

Sand Land: The Series is a masterful blend of creativity and storytelling that showcases why Akira Toriyama is so revered. The beautiful world of Sand Land is just waiting to be explored and viewers will not be disappointed.

Sand Land: The Series episodes 1-7 are streaming now on Hulu and new episodes release every Wednesday.