The Halloween 2023 episode of Critical Role brought joy to the hearts of many fans, as it featured a brand new title sequence. Fans were surprised to see the Bells Hells adventuring party, now rendered in stunning animation. We learned ( via Comic Book Resources) that the new title sequence paid homage in different ways to each of the character’s backstories, and had shout-outs to current campaigns. You can watch the full title sequence for the Halloween episode of Critical Role below. After the title sequence ends, you can see the Critical Role cast actually react to seeing it for the first time.
In this year’s Halloween episode, the Critical Role cast wore costumes based on the Lord of the Rings characters. In the actual episode, we witnessed the Bells Hells return to Whitestone. There, they crossed paths with several iconic Vox Machina characters. The special animated credits came courtesy of Kamille Areopagita, Kevin Areopagita, Mark Adams, and Peggy Shi. Critical Role’s Mighty Nein campaign also showcased a fan-favorite animated intro. And ever since, Critical Role fans have wanted to see the Bells Hells get some animated love too. And now, their wish has come true.
This latest version of Campaign 3’s opening title sequence is the third one overall. And so far, every version has had the theme song “It’s Thursday Night,” sung by the cast, in some form. One version of Campaign 3’s opening introduction had the cast dressing up as explorers. Versions without all the fantasy trappings. Meanwhile, another had Bells Hells rotoscoped in watercolor style. We highly doubt the Halloween episode of Critical Role is the last time we’ll see an animated opening sequence. The Bells Hells will return in both their animated and live-action character forms on Thursdays in November at 7 PT, on Twitch and YouTube.