Netflix's award-winning animated series She-Ra and the Princesses of Power has roots in the iconic tabletop role-playing game (TTRPG) Dungeons & Dragons.
Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, showrunner ND Stevenson described the inspiration he took from his and his wife's high school-themed D&D campaign. "I got really into all the spells that I could do with a warlock. One of them was the teleportation spell, the Misty Step. My wife, [The Owl House writer Molly Ostertag], who was the DM, I managed to make her life a living hell with that spell by just teleporting into the third act boss battle in the first five minutes," he stated and went to explain how that encounter influenced Glimmer's teleportation powers.
The New She-Ra Cartoon
A reboot of the 1980s series, She-Ra debuted on Netflix in November 2018 and ran for a total of five seasons. The story follows Adora, who after discovering she is the legendary Princess of Power, leaves the evil Horde and joins the Rebellion. Alongside her new friends, Glimmer and Bow, the young warrior begins rebuilding the Princess Alliance and learning to wield her awesome strength. Aimee Carrero brings Adora to life with Karen Fukuhara and Marcus Scribner voicing Glimmer and Bow, respectively.
The series received substantial praise from critics and viewers, particularly for its positive representation of LGBTQIA+ characters and themes, and She-Ra achieved recognition from multiple prestigious institutions in the entertainment industry. Not only did it win a Daytime Emmy in 2020 and a GLAAD Media Award in 2021, but the final two episodes were nominated for a Hugo Award.
Of course, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power isn't the only recent pop culture IP to draw inspiration from D&D. Most notably, Critical Role's The Legend of Vox Machina directly adapts the company's first live-play campaign. Targeted at a more adult audience unlike the Netflix original, The Legend of Vox Machina follows the titular group of adventurers as they encounter villains, monsters, vampires and even gods, and the series is overflowing with direct references to the TTRPG system. Moreover, Critical Role has revealed that its second live-play campaign, The Mighty Nein, will reveal an animated adaptation as well. Other prominent shows influenced by D&D include Stranger Things, Gravity Falls and My Little Pony.
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power is available to stream in its entirety on Netflix. Stevenson is currently developing a film adaptation of his graphic novel Nimona, which is scheduled to premiere on the streaming platform on June 30.
Source: Entertainment Weekly