For nearly three decades, the “Tomb Raider” franchise has been a staple of the action-adventure genre across games, movies and shows. The newest entry to the franchise, “Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft,” is another great addition to the long line of Croft’s adventures.
Taking place after 2018’s “Shadow of the Tomb Raider,” the series is a deep dive into the psyche of the titular archaeologist and adventurer as she goes on a globe-trotting mission to stop a mercenary from destroying the world with powerful magic artifacts.
With a bingeable eight-episode first season, the series is an epic journey with good writing, pacing and a varied cast of characters.
Due to the series’ short length, character development takes a backseat to the plot, but the main characters are still full of personality.
Lara Croft is as witty and badass as ever, and Croft’s friends, the tech-savvy Zip, the big-hearted Jonah and her childhood friend turned Interpol agent Camila, provide much of the show’s emotion and humor.
Sadly, the show’s villain isn’t as great of a character as the do-gooders he goes up against. Charles Deveraux, a mercenary and thief who gains supernatural powers through the artifacts he steals, falls flat as a villain.
With a barebones motivation based on revenge, a lack of a real backstory and limited time on screen, Deveraux lacks the depth to be the main villain for the entire season.
Even with the characters being written well, they aren’t much without phenomenal voice acting by a veteran cast. Hayley Atwell shines as Lara Croft and puts all the proper wit into her performance of the archaeologist-turned-adventurer.
Atwell’s talent is matched by Richard Armitage, who puts on a deviously delightful performance as Charles Deveraux.
While not as prominent as Atwell or Armitage, the rest of the cast does a great job. Zip, Jonah and Camila are voiced by Allen Maldonado, Earl Baylon and Zoe Boyle, respectively.
While some of the series’ characters and its plot are original, “The Legend of Lara Croft” does subtly reference the games by including game mechanics such as over-the-top parkour, elaborate puzzles and the many tools from Lara Croft’s game inventory into several scenes.
These nods to the games are both entertaining for those new to the franchise and fun Easter eggs for fans of the many games.
“The Legend of Lara Croft” also takes new steps for the franchise and delves deeper into the magic and mythology of the world. With a main focus on Chinese mythology, the show adds spirits, magic and gods to Croft’s adventure.
The series pulls off its ambitious scope with its fantastic animation done by Powerhouse Animation, a staple of Netflix’s original animation catalog and a major studio behind other great shows such as “Castlevania” and “Skull Island.”
Unlike most animated shows, “The Legend of Lara Croft” doesn’t compromise between detail and fluidity, leading to a high-quality and aesthetically pleasing product.
Even with a great plot, cast and animation, the show isn’t perfect. The season finale is a mess that tries to tie up the plot and wrap up character arcs but ends with a cliffhanger that leaves more questions than it answers.
Another flaw in the series is its lack of accessibility to newcomers to the franchise. While it does show flashbacks to 2013’s “Tomb Raider,” the show assumes the viewer has some knowledge of the trilogy of games that lead up to the series’ plot.
Even with its handful of flaws, “The Legend of Lara Croft” is a fantastic entry into the “Tomb Raider” franchise and is a must-watch for fans of the games and the action-adventure genre.