WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Legend of Vox Machina Episode 9, "The Tide of Bone," now streaming on Amazon.
The Legend of Vox Machina just ramps the stakes up more and more with each episode, building up to a climactic battle with a demonic horde in Episode 9 that nearly saw the entire team laid to waste. Vox Machina fought plenty of hard battles before, but in their most recent adventures they struggled to make up for the absence of their healer Pike, whose abilities were sorely missed.
Which is why the triumphant return of Pike at the battle's most desperate moment turned the tides in Vox Machina's favor. Critical Role's and Dungeons & Dragons' campaign could not fully capture the suspense of the moment quite like the anime did, and it may just be one of the Amazon series' best battles yet.
Pike originally left Vox Machina after suffering a crisis of faith. Noticing her religiously-based powers of magic and healing were fading, she departed on a quest to a temple where she could reify her faith. Pike's departure came much to the heartbreak of her allies -- in particular the barbarian Grog, who was brought to tears during moments of reflection when he missed his old friend. Since then, Vox Machina fulfilled their roles as the Protectors of the Realm while delving into Percy's backstory, which put them in opposition to the villainous Briarwoods.
Their latest battle revolved around the fate of Percy's hometown of Whitestone, where the Briarwoods set a demonic undead army against the townspeople and Vox Machina that quickly tipped the scales toward the side of evil. Facing down undead soldiers and giants alike, the adventuring party's resources grew strained as their injuries mounted. This is when, suddenly, a beam of light from the sky bisected one giant. In a glowing brilliant light, Pike emerged on the battlefield to lend her aid just in time.
Pike healed her teammate Scanlan, rejuvenating Vox Machina's forces in a rallying cry that turned the battle's tide in the team's favor. It proved a victorious and triumphant moment that stands out all the more because of its emotional resonance. A key moment in the battle even included Vax confessing his feelings for the druid Keyleth, and in its usual manner The Legend of Vox Machina showcased its deft understanding of adventure tropes by having Keyleth point out how the pitched battle was the worst moment possible for such a confession.
Such mixture of leaning into classic tropes while also undermining them proves the masterful storytelling at work, and the triumph of Pike's return proves all the more so. Her comeback also manages to have its cake and eat it too -- though Pike offered her assistance in battle, it turns out it's merely her astral form rather than the gnome herself who arrived at the battle. Capable of maintaining Pike's presence on the team while still fulfilling her personal character arc during her solo adventure, The Legend of Vox Machina ably navigates the various arcs and subplots that make up its story.
That's proved more than anything by Episode 9's menacing ending, with the narrative briefly visiting the Briarwoods who decide in the wake of the battle to accelerate their designs further. That prepares the way for the final episodes of The Legend of Vox Machina Season 1, promising viewers that as exciting as the battle against the demonic horde was, there is a fight even greater yet to come.
Such moments show just how capably The Legend of Vox Machina manages to improve on its source material. Pike's departure in Critical Role was difficult to follow individually given the team-based focus of the Dungeons & Dragons game that provided its structure. In a TV series with the benefit of hindsight, all the various story elements are free to balance against one another to offer a narrative far more streamlined than ever before.
