And so we approach the very end of the slayers, perhaps the best anime I own, or have ever seen.
The series has some very good points: Setting aside strong female characters, or not hyper-sexualized characters, the series functions both as a comedy and a drama…mostly because it doesn't mix up "drama" and "Murder/angst festival".
When bad things happen in the show, it's not simply so that something bad happens to balance out the comedy; it happens because the plot calls for it. In short, the show is a saga, not a soap opera.
it has it's weak points, but everything does.
Another interesting feature is the very muted romances. While yes, it is telegraphed that Gourry and Lina are an item, Gourry and Sylphiel is just as clearly telegraphed. Basically, it could go either way.
Hell, Sylphiel/Lina is reasonably well telegraphed. The two like each other. A lot.
All of the show's romances are implied at best - besides lina/gourry, once at the end of the second season, but that's not exactly concrete.
I used to be a Sylphiel/Gourry shipper, but of late I have switched to Sylphiel/Lina.
And not just because "Lesbians are neato".
Also, I ship Xellos/Fillia.
And not just because I HATE Valgaav.
The show and the books diverge on several points, and despite watching the show before reading the books, I have to say that the books are better, when it comes down to it.
Not better then the show itself, just better in the places that are different.
I can't defend my Lina/Sylphiel ship very well, save only to say that despite supposedly being in love with the same man, they get along unreasonably well. One of the few defences I do have is that it's almost like they both like gourry, but want each other to be happy more then they do to be with him. I.E. They like each other more then they like gourry.
Though what do I know, I can't even tell if I'm using I.E. right.
This is my only completely unreasonable ship.
Possibly the best aspect of the show, however, is Xellos.
Xellos is awesome. He's a Bad Guy, but he never does anything bad ON SCREEN, and that is important, because that makes his evil into an Informed Atribute, and so the audience only half believes it. This means that he can function as a Good Guy for all intents and purposes, story wise. The audience loves him, and so do the protagonists. If he gets hurt, we get angry.
What we end up with is a character who can do whatever he wants - because he's technically evil - but who the main characters get along with. This is largely because while he occasionally threatens and fights the main characters, he never actually hurts them badly. He even appears to go out of his way to not hurt them. He is an incredibly complex and interesting character.
He's also unbelievably cool, and his (Japanese) acting is excellent. Also, I love the "Open/Closed eyes" shtick - it transforms his entire character in an instant. He's almost two people. he can change the entire tone of the scene in an instant.
My favourite line of his is "I value your will."Out of context, it doesn't mean much, but in context - which I won't spoil - It's epic.
Cool as Xellos is, however, he is not my favourite character. That position he just barely loses to Lina Inverse herself.
What I love about Lina is how unapologetically "Herself" she is. She is a violent nutcase, but insists that she is a delicate lady. Anyone who disagrees is severely punished. This is brilliant. Because she refuses to be defined by other people's terms, and this refusal is both sub-concious and automatic. If she doesn't fit into the box that someone expects her to fit into, be it man, god, or society itself - then she doesn't angst about it, or even think about it all. The world is just WRONG for trying to place her somewhere she doesn't fit. She cleaves her own path through life, and also through anything that stands in her way.
As the show draws to a close, I'd like to focus on the good, rather then the bad. It really has been a good time watching the whole series through.

DAMN The Slayers is a good show!

Valgaav is back. Though I may have been wrong about the whole "Genocide" thing. Still, he's a monster and worse, a mary sue. God, is he annoying. I see him on the screen, he talks, and I yell "Shut up!"
But he doesn't listen.
Bastard.

Season three is also the "Zelgadiss is awesome" season. This is fine though, as he IS awesome.
Seriously though; In this season, there is nothing he can't do.
He is shown to be a mathematician, an engineer, and even a safe cracker.
He's just awesome.

The slayers is divided into disks with 6 or 7 episodes on them. This gives one 150-175 minutes of time in-between disk changes.
Ranma 1/2 is broken into disks with 4-5 episodes, delivering 100/125 minutes between disc changes. Not as good as the slayers, but it rarely is that good.
Aria brings 3-4 to the table, or 100/75 but even that is pretty good compared to the normal amount.
Valkyrie drive clocks in at an obnoxious 2 episodes per disk. And, to make matters worse, one disk of valkyrie drive can cost as much as 100$, which is more then FIVE disks of ranma.

Valgaav SUCKS!

Valgaav isn't on the 3rd disk of season 3 at all! Yay!

So I have been marathoning the slayers recently. 26 episodes a day.
Season one is good. Made cheaply, but good.
Season two has a lot of fan service, but it's good too, none the less.
Season three…
Put bluntly, I HATE VALGAAV.
I HATE HIM.
HATE HATE HATE!
He is an unbelievable author's pet, has so much power "Because" to the point where he can beat the slayers+a god dragon+a god+xellos with one hand. He keeps surviving long past when he should be dead, and worst of all, he's an idiotic, self-centred @$$hole whose sole motivation is wanting to destroy the world because his life is unpleasant.
Over the course of the season, he:
•Commits genocide
•If that first one isn't enough for you, then you need counselling
•Is repeatedly a gigantic hypocrite
•Forces one of the characters to do/see things that she doesn't want to, and in an exceptionally rape-y way

All in all, he's the kind of villain who you are highly anticipating the death of. But NOOO, he's a mary-sue, and so he gets reincarnated as a good guy at the end.
GOD, I HATE THAT BASTARD.

Other then that, Season three is a lot of fun.