# Slayers Premium (スレイヤーズぷれみあむ)
**Slayers Premium** (スレイヤーズぷれみあむ) is a 2001 Japanese theatrical anime short, the fifth and final Slayers movie, in which Lina Inverse and her companions visit a seaside resort town where people cursed by eating octopus can speak only the octopus language. It premiered in Japanese theaters in December 2001 as part of a four-film roadshow package, and it is the only Slayers movie built on the television series' cast and continuity rather than the earlier Lina-and-Naga films.[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) • [2](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Position in series | Fifth Slayers theatrical movie; the first, outside the Slayers Royal 2 video game animation, to connect the movie/OVA continuity with the TV series continuity[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) |
| Premiere | December 2001, in a theatrical package with the Di Gi Charat, Azumanga Daioh, and Sakura Wars movies[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) • [2](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers) |
| Runtime | About 30 minutes, against a little over an hour for each of the four earlier films[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) • [5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html) |
| Staff | Directed by Junichi Satō; animation by Hal Film Maker; production by Kadokawa and King Records[5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0462717/) |
| Cast | Lina, Gourry, Amelia, and Zelgadis from the TV series, with Xelloss in a small role and Naga the Serpent reduced to a cameo[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) • [5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html) |
| Japanese home video | DVD released July 3, 2002, in a limited edition with a bonus drama CD and a standard movie-only edition[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) |
| North American release | ADV Films DVD, May 11, 2004[4](https://www.absoluteanime.com/slayers/index-premium) |
## Spoilers
### Story
Lina and Gourry arrive in the town of Acassi, famous for its octopus specialty restaurants, after a day of helping local fishermen. At dinner the two fight over a piece of octopus, and Gourry ends up eating it. Anyone who eats the cursed octopus loses the ability to speak any language except Takogo, the octopus language, and Gourry promptly falls victim.[7](https://anime.mikomi.org/series/720/Slayers%20Premium.html) • [8](https://anilist.co/anime/866/Slayers-Premium)
The curse is no accident. Beneath the sea, the octopus king, tired of his people being served as human food, plans to break a long-standing seal and release a demon against humanity. Because the octopi cannot break the seal themselves, they need human emotional energy, so they spread a gas over Acassi with the same property as the cursed meat. The whole town, including the newly arrived Amelia and Zelgadis, begins speaking octopus language, and the resulting confusion generates the energy the octopi harvest.[5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html)
The young white-magic apprentice Ruma, whose master left three years earlier in search of a cure and returned without finding one, cannot lift the curse herself. When Lina loses the ability to cast spells, Ruma must heal her in time to unleash the Dragon Slave, and the group confronts the octopus king and his servant at an underwater sanctuary before the demon's resurrection is complete.[5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html) • [7](https://anime.mikomi.org/series/720/Slayers%20Premium.html)
[Megumi Hayashibara](https://www.edgepedia.org/megumi-hayashibara), Lina's voice actress, performed the ending theme, "Feel Well".[6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0462717/)
## Production and place in the series
The first four Slayers movies, released between 1995 and 1998, starred Lina Inverse and Naga the Serpent in stories set before the television series. Slayers Premium broke that pattern: it brings back the TV series cast of Lina, Gourry, Amelia, and Zelgadis, with the sorceress Naga appearing only in a brief cameo. AnimeNation described it as the first Slayers anime, outside animation made for the Slayers Royal 2 RPG video game, to connect the movie and OVA continuity with the TV series continuity, and in practical terms the first "TV series" movie.[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) • [5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html)
Production changed hands as well. All earlier Slayers animation came from other studios, while Hal Film Maker animated this film, and the director was Junichi Satō, known for [Sailor Moon](https://www.edgepedia.org/sailor-moon) and Magical DoReMi. It was also the first Slayers anime produced digitally, seven years before the Slayers Revolution TV series reunited the original staff and studio.[5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html) The character designs are closer to Rui Araizumi's original illustrations than those of the TV series and earlier movies.[3](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers_Premium)
The premiere date is given as December 12, 2001 by the KanzakaDex wiki and Absolute Anime, and as December 22, 2001 by IMDb and the same wiki's episode infobox; both dates fall in December 2001.[2](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers) • [4](https://www.absoluteanime.com/slayers/index-premium) • [6](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0462717/) • [3](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers_Premium) The screening bundled four very different shorts and features: the 30-minute Slayers Premium, a 20-minute Di Gi Charat movie, a 5-minute [Azumanga Daioh](https://www.edgepedia.org/azumanga-daioh) movie, and the 85-minute Sakura Taisen movie, all for the price of one ticket.[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/)
## Home video and adaptations
The Japanese DVD appeared on July 3, 2002 in two versions: a limited edition including a bonus drama CD, which extends the story with a prologue and epilogue to the animated adventure, and a standard movie-only edition with different cover art.[1](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/) • [9](https://gestjowarvi.weebly.com/uploads/1/4/8/6/148650564/anime-slayer.pdf) In North America, ADV Films released the film on May 11, 2004, and later included it, as the only anamorphically enhanced disc, in its 2005 five-movie box set, with a commentary track by Cynthia Martinez (Lina) and [Crispin Freeman](https://www.edgepedia.org/crispin-freeman) (Zelgadis).[4](https://www.absoluteanime.com/slayers/index-premium) • [10](https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/18322/slayers-5-movie-box-set/)
The film was adapted into two one-volume manga, Slayers Premium and the epilogue Slayers Premium Plus One, written and drawn by Hajime Kanzaka with Tommy Ohtsuka. The main manga ran in Comic Dragon Jr. from September 2001 to January 2002 and was published in book form in April 2002; the Plus One epilogue was included as a bonus on the limited edition DVD.[2](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers) • [5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html)
## Reception and standing
Commentators have treated the film as an oddity in the series. At roughly half an hour it is far shorter than the hour-long earlier films, and the French reference site Planète Jeunesse judged it closer to a seventh OVA than a fifth movie, calling it diverting but slight.[5](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html) A 2025 retrospective review scored it 2/10, criticizing its short runtime and early-2000s CGI inserts, while noting that it remains the only Slayers movie featuring the TV series cast.[11](https://gundamanimeblog.blogspot.com/2025/12/slayers-premium.html?m=0) On aggregate databases it holds moderate scores: 7.15 on [MyAnimeList](https://www.edgepedia.org/myanimelist) and 67% on AniList.[8](https://anilist.co/anime/866/Slayers-Premium)
Because it follows the TV continuity, fans generally place it between the second season, Slayers Next, and the third, Slayers Try, or anywhere from the middle of Next to the end of Try; AniList lists Slayers NEXT as its prequel and Slayers TRY as its sequel.[8](https://anilist.co/anime/866/Slayers-Premium)
## References
1. [Ask John: What is Slayers Premium?, AnimeNation Anime News Blog (July 10, 2002)](https://www.animenation.net/blog/ask-john-what-is-slayers-premium/)
2. [Slayers, KanzakaDex (Fandom)](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers)
3. [Slayers Premium, KanzakaDex (Fandom)](https://kanzaka.fandom.com/wiki/Slayers_Premium)
4. [Anime Profile: Slayers Premium, Absolute Anime](https://www.absoluteanime.com/slayers/index-premium)
5. [Slayers Premium, Planète Jeunesse](https://www.planete-jeunesse.com/fiche-3210-slayers-film-5-slayers-premium.html)
6. [Slayers Premium (Short 2001), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0462717/)
7. [Slayers Premium, anime.mikomi.org](https://anime.mikomi.org/series/720/Slayers%20Premium.html)
8. [Slayers Premium, AniList](https://anilist.co/anime/866/Slayers-Premium)
9. [Anime Slayer (Spanish-language franchise overview)](https://gestjowarvi.weebly.com/uploads/1/4/8/6/148650564/anime-slayer.pdf)
10. [Slayers - 5 Movie Box Set, DVD Talk (October 21, 2005)](https://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/18322/slayers-5-movie-box-set/)
11. [The Gundam Anime Corner: Slayers Premium (2025)](https://gundamanimeblog.blogspot.com/2025/12/slayers-premium.html?m=0)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Films by genre, form, and subject › Animated and short films › Individual short films*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license