Dragon Striker Is the Coolest & Most Ambitious Disney+ Series Yet (Review)

Dragon Striker has really come out of nowhere, and it’s sure to be a major obsession with Disney animation fans. Disney Television has had some great hits in the past as the latter decades have seen their efforts skew more towards longer form storytelling over the former episodic format. With an increase of shows favoring expanding on their lore, animation audiences have come to love seeing a longer, more serialized story told over multiple potential seasons. It’s something anime fans have all the experience in the world with when it comes to their shows too.

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Dragon Striker strikes at the heart of both of these kinds of vibes. It’s a fresh fantasy action series that introduces fans to an expansive world with a deep and rich history. But it’s only scratching the surface of so it all so far. It’s also been imbued with all sorts of cool anime inspirations and style to become something that takes it even further beyond. Disney has been seeking for a way to enter into the world of anime with something unique, and Dragon Striker is quite literally the best foot forward to this future.

Rating: 5 out of 5

PROS	CONS
Expansive world with lots of potential for future adventures	Dropping all the episodes at once is going to hurt longevity
Introduces a group of great underdogs you want to see win
Incredible character designs, power ups, and fluid action

Dragon Striker Looks Absolutely Incredible

The first thing that needs to be addressed off the bat is the fact that Dragon Striker looks absolutely incredible. Sylvain Dos Santos and Charles Lefebvre have crafted their world with tons of different inspirations, and the animation production team at Le Chouette Compagnie have helped to make it all look very fluid in motion. Characters are designed with not only bold anime aesthetics in mind, but with traditional animation in mind as well. Each and every single character has a unique personality of their own that comes through with just their design, and it makes the visual language of the series easy to grasp from the jump.

Dragon Striker is set in a world where “Gorotama” (a super powered enhanced version of soccer) rules above all. Key (Akshay Kumar) is hoping to leave his farm life behind and join the elite Kal Asterock academy in the hopes of being a pro player, but discovers it’s a lot more difficult to do so as the best students in the academy are all equipped with unique powers known as “Tama.” As Key suddenly discovers he’s got a secret power within him, he and his friends then try and carve out their own path to the top of the school and face all sorts of challenges along the way.

This fantastical setting for the series is lifted even higher thanks to how well everything is designed. The world seems fully realized with colorful landscapes, and interesting looking landmarks within the academy itself. It really shines when it comes to the characters as thanks to each individual needing their own specific power, it’s made clear early on that their character designs have been developed with matching their powers well. It’s intelligently done as it’s clear that each character’s personality matches their visual aesthetic, and even more so by the power they get to use.

Those Tama abilities themselves are what seem to be influenced by anime the most. Attacks and abilities are called out by name much like you would see in an anime, and are used to make each game more intriguing to watch. It also adds another layer of action to where the show is able to skirt around traditional violence, but still have lots of high impact moves. These powers clash, and characters are often in danger, but it’s still something that fans of all ages can watch on Disney without any issue. It’s a balance that never tips too far in either direction.

Dragon Striker Has a Fun Shonen Style Underdog Story

Dragon Striker‘s anime influences are more than just skin deep, thankfully. While it makes an impression with an opening theme sequence that will put you right into the mood, and designs that back it all up, it manages to nail the Shonen anime spirit perfectly. Sports anime are often some of the best shows out there as they usually follow a team of scrappy young underdogs as they take on increasingly tougher opponents, and Dragon Striker is able to tap into that energy for its own presentation as well. Key and his friends need to work from the ground up for their own goals.

It leads to Key’s team needing to defeat some notable teams, and often puts you on the edge of your seat for how close some of the games get. The show often has high stakes for each of the games, and that’s not even going as far as putting any of the characters’ lives on the line either. It just feels like their lives are over if they lose a game, and that’s not something that’s easily emulated when it comes to comparable anime hits like Haikyu!!, Eyeshield 21, Inazuma Eleven and more. But Dragon Striker then adds its own layer on top it too.

Because it’s not just aping anime or using it for its own ends, Dragon Striker is able to take some of the better elements of those stories to expand on its own fantasy world. There’s a core mystery that builds throughout the series thanks to the root of Key’s own power, and it feels like it comes straight from some of the best Shonen anime greats. It’s incorporated into this world in a cool way, and does have a payoff that feels like it’s the start of a much bigger mystery. But that also ties into the unfortunate flaw underneath it all.

Dragon Striker Unfortunately Has One Major Flaw

Dragon Striker has one “flaw” at its core, but it’s not something that is actually the fault of the series itself. It’s going to be releasing all of its episodes at once with Disney+, and that’s going to unfortunately hurt in the long run. Its broadcast release with Disney XD is the much more favorable way to watch the series as its built with the kind of story that’s just perfect for a week to week breakdown. Cliffhangers for each episode are built in a way that you’ll immediately want to see what’s next, and that does work well for its binge release format.

But it’s also got the kind of expanding story that is perfect for those fans seeking a long running serialization where it’s allowed to build on each development. There’s a fear that with this single drop that Dragon Striker will not be able to fully explore what its potential teases, and that’s something lingering over the experience. Dragon Striker is a fantastic watch, and has a story you’ll want to see through to the end. But it captures the anime spirit so well that a weekly release where you can decompress and talk about each episode with other fans would benefit it in the long run.

Dragon Striker’s “flaw” is only in the fact that there’s not enough of it. You’ll want to see the show as quickly as possible because it’s so intriguing and cool looking, and might even find yourself watching it through in a single weekend (or even a day in some cases) because it’s that fun. Maybe pace yourself a bit as this sports series can easily become your next obsession.

Dragon Striker premieres with Disney+ and Hulu on June 10th. What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!