Mike McMahan was working as a script doctor on the Sonic the Hedgehog movies when he received an offer: a Sega executive asked if he had any other properties he'd want to adapt into a series. McMahan, without hesitation, chose Golden Axe. "I'm very old," McMahan explained his choice, "When the NES came out, that was amazing for me, and before then, I played an insane amount of Golden Axe."
Golden Axe is a series of beat-'em-up fantasy video games first released by Sega in 1989 as an arcade cabinet. While not a recent franchise, a new game was announced by Sega at the 2023 Game Awards and is reportedly still in development. The series' potential seemed endless to McMahan, whose fond memories of the game date back to his childhood.
Series co-creator and showrunner Joe Chandler sees another advantage in adapting a less defined property like Golden Axe. The game's "swords and sorcery" world, while seemingly generic, is filled with peculiar characters and settings that offer ample room for creative interpretation. "You have all this weird stuff," Chandler noted, "like the guy you kick for potions." This creative freedom allows the adaptation to explore elements like "Eagle Village"—a village on the back of a turtle or eagle in the game—without strict adherence to existing lore.
All 10 episodes of the Golden Axe animated series are now streaming on Paramount Plus.
Addressing the Game's Absurdities
The original Golden Axe game centers on the quest to defeat the villain Death Adder, who has captured the King of Yuria and stolen the Golden Axe. Players choose from three warriors: Ax Battler, Tyris Flare, or Gilius Thunderhead. Chandler and McMahan both admitted to frequently picking the dwarf, Gilius, which became a natural starting point for the series. The show leverages Gilius's perceived status as the "third greatest warrior in the world," exploring his feelings of being unappreciated.
The series also directly addresses the oddity of Ax Battler, a character with "ax" in his name who primarily wields a sword. "That was on the list of like 10 things we had to do when we started the writers' room," Chandler said. McMahan also pointed to the unique quirks of the game's localized versions, such as boss battles named after brands of beer, as indicative of a less corporate era in game development.
Expanding on Bizarre Mechanics
While Tyris Flare receives less character development, the series introduces Hampton Squib as an audience surrogate. The show also delves into the backstory of the game's "Thieves"—gnome-like creatures who drop magic pots when attacked.
McMahan described these characters as "memorable" and their mechanic as "great." The series imagines a legion of Thieves who actively enjoy being attacked by the heroes, a concept derived from the sprite's grinning expression in the arcade game. This leads to a surprisingly deep exploration in a later episode, giving the Thieves motivation and a point of view.
Future Seasons and Sega Crossovers
The first season concludes with the heroes triumphant but leaves the door open for future installments. Chandler noted that "Death Adder always comes back in the games," suggesting a natural antagonist for a potential second season. The creators have also expressed interest in incorporating other Sega properties, though they emphasized a desire to first expand on the existing Golden Axe universe.
"Right now, we're so proud of this first season that we'd want to spend more time with these characters and see where we could expand the show in a place that still feels like the games," McMahan stated, indicating a focus on deepening the current narrative before exploring broader crossovers.