When it was announced that Netflix was releasing an animated series based on Castlevania, I was simultaneously elated and terrified. One of my favorite gaming franchises is getting an anime adaptation. Though this isn't the first time a game series has been adapted into anime. Devil May Cry, Bayonetta, Fatal Fury, Street Fighter and other popular game franchises have received anime versions, and they usually don't turn out terribly well.
Thankfully the first season of Castlevania hit last year and my fears were eased. It was a mature and beautifully crafted vision of the game series. While season one was just a mere four episodes, it set the tone for what was to come. Season 2 was recently released, so does it continue on what made season 1 great or were the first four episodes a fluke?
Castlevania season 2 starts right where season 1 ended. Without spoiling anything, Trevor Belmont has teamed up with spellcaster Sypha and Alucard, half-human son of Dracula (3 of the 4 playable characters from Castlevania III) to put an end to Dracula's reign of terror.
We're reintroduced to the reason Dracula has decided to wage a war with humanity in a flashback, where his human wife was slaughtered by corrupt officials from the church, claiming she was using witchcraft when she was simply the town doctor using science she'd learned from Dracula.
The senseless murder of his wife sent Dracula into a rage that incited him to wage a war on the human race, which is where season 2 picks up. Dracula has been building an army of monsters with the aid of two humans, Issac and Hector. They're known as 'forgemasters', who have the ability to reanimate the dead or turn them into monsters loyal to Dracula. Each has pledged their allegiance to Dracula and have their own separate reasons for helping bring on the end of the human race.
There are three primary plot lines in season 2. In the first, we follow Trevor, Sypha and Alucard as they try to find the Belmont estate where all of the artifacts and collected knowledge of the family has been stored away. The second follows Dracula and Issac, who plan out their war on the human race. The last involves the vampire Carmilla who joins Dracula's war council, but secretly plots to overthrow him.
One of Dracula's henchmen is a vampire pirate named Godbrand, who is rough around the edges and dips his toes into both Dracula's and Carmilla's sides, as he's concerned about the war on humanity destroying their supply of human blood. He bounces back and forth between sides and helps tie them together.
If you enjoyed season 1, season 2 is better in every way. There's double the number of episodes, the story is much more interesting and there are more characters to explore. Each is well defined and go through their own arcs where they grow or evolve. Most surprising is Dracula, who you develop compassion for. How much he loved his wife is made clear and seeing an immortal being lose the one thing he had to live for is tragic. There is some legitimate drama that happens with Dracula as he realizes he's fighting his 'little boy' and the struggle within Alucard's fight against his father also pulls at the heart strings. And for us fans of the games, there are many nods to the source material -- familiar music, finding an item hidden in a wall, recognizable monsters, references to other Castlevania games and other odds and ends.
Most of the series is dialogue and plot progression, so I would have enjoyed a few more fight scenes. Because the fights we are presented are just amazing! There are so many badass moments and creatively choreographed action that when a battle scene began, I was glued to the screen. While most of the series is a little light on the action, the entire seventh episode is nothing but the assault on Dracula's castle and non-stop excitement. There's an iconic fight in the entrance to the castle where the popular tune "Bloody Tears" with the three heroes taking on a room full of monsters and vampires, and it was just amazing.
That being said, there are a few issues I have with season 2. The story involving Trevor, Sypha and Alucard seemed to be a bit shallow and lacking. There was some good character development, but they spent most of the season going to and hanging out in the Belmont archives. And while the artwork is beautifully drawn and creatively colored, the action scenes feel a bit low-budget due to low frame counts in otherwise expertly animated action scenes.
For those who think that video games cannot transition to movies (or TV), Castlevania destroys that argument. They've taken the source material and crafted a compelling story while keeping the tone, stories and lore of the games intact. It can be done, but Hollywood just doesn't understand how to do it properly. The team who made Castlevania does and I commend them for doing this classic franchise justice.
Season 2 ended in a way that would be a satisfying conclusion, but still leaves itself open to a potential season 3. I love what they've done so far, so I'm hopeful that they continue the story of these adventurers or jump to another point in the Castlevania timeline to explore other characters in the Belmont family.
Have you watched the Netflix Castlevania series? If so, what did you think? Let's discuss!
