LARP-ing goes big budget in the trailer for Disney Plus reality show The Quest

Today, in “Holy hell, we wish this had been around when we were kids” news: Disney+ has released a new trailer for its upcoming fantasy/reality competition show, The Quest.

Set to debut on the streaming service on May 11, the series sees eight teens enlist as “Paladins” in the service of a fantasy kingdom with a really good production budget, as the series blends scripted material with the kids competing and improvising their way through various challenges.

Scholars of reality show history will know that this is actually the second season of The Quest, with the original airing on ABC way back in 2014. That version of the show, though, focused on adult contestants, who are maybe a little less capable of generating genuine wonder than a bunch of kids who seem pretty thoroughly immersed in the world of “Everealm.” (It’s also not clear whether the new season will maintain the weekly elimination structure from the original show, which feels a lot more mean-spirited when you’re kicking some well-meaning nerd child out of Narnia like they’d just developed an interest in lipstick or boys.)

The production bona fides on The Quest are pretty unimpeachable, meanwhile, with alumni from both The Amazing Race and The Lord Of The Rings films on hand to make sure everything looks a cut above the average LARP. (If nothing else, they’re doing a hell of a job of making Calistoga, California look like a distant fantasy kingdom.)

Of course, the real appeal here, as in so much reality TV, is going to come from these kids, who all seem like…well, the sorts of kids who would sign up for Disney Plus fantasy camp. (We’re especially in favor of the one ready and willing to bust out some elicit power bombs on any nearby orcs.)

We’ll see more of The Quest when it debuts on Disney+ on May 11.