Rating: 4/5 stars
The Castlevania series is one of the longest franchises in gaming history and one of the first in the Metroidvania genre. The gothic horror action series follows a Belmont family member as they defeat the lord of the night, Dracula. The franchise’s history in the real world and in game can be somewhat convoluted and long. This is why the Castlevania series on Netflix surprised Western viewers and was dubbed “the best video game adaptation” at the time. Despite its deviation from the games, the story builds upon them and flushes out the world building. It ran for four seasons following Trevor, Sypha and Alucard defeating the vampire’s reign of terror in Wallachia. The series stays true to its roots in the first season rather than deviating into various mature plotlines.
Castlevania “Nocturne” is a spin-off, instead following the descendent of Sypha and Trevor Belmont hundreds of years after the original series plot had ended. Richter Belmont (Edward Bluemel, “Killing Eve”) is a fan favorite; he was even a playable character in the popular game Super Smash Brother’s Ultimate. The legacy of the character would change the direction in game and narrative of the franchise as well. His mother, Julia, is killed by Olrox (Zahn McClarnon, “Reservation Dogs”), a powerful Aztec vampire leading to lifelong trauma for Richter, unable to use magic ever since.
What is interesting about the direction of “Nocturne “is the interest of keeping historical real world events and context as a focus. The original series made Wallachia more of a general European medieval setting. Nocturne is set in 1792 during the French Revolution, and that era comes with many historical backgrounds: the American Revolution, Haitian Revolution and the acknowledgement of slavery and the feudal system. Annette (Thuso Nokwanda, ”The Woman King”) is a sorceress that ran away from slavery, helped the Haitian Revolution and eventually travels to Europe to stop the powerful so-called Vampire Messiah Urzebat (Franka Potente,” Conjuring 2”), the Devourer of the Sun. The Castlevania world retcons history with the fantasy elements of vampires and occult.
Olrox is sympathetic and justifiable despite killing the main character’s mother. Drolta (Elarica Johnson,” P-Valley”) is incredibly camp and gorgeous with a new outfit change every episode, instead worshiping only Urzebat and being cruel to everyone else. When facing these larger than life figures, the main cast does not have as easy of a time as their predecessors.
The animation is just as beautiful as before with a more accurate bishounen style following the Ayami Kojima art style. She is the main character designer for some of the franchise’s most iconic games: Symphony of the Night, Aria of Sorrow, Dracula X and more. These are also the games Richter, Alucard and Maria Renard (Pixie Davis, “Mary Poppins Return”) are the main characters.
Do you need to watch Castlevania first to watch Nocturne? The answer would be no, but if you do watch the original series you understand the legendary heroes Sypha, Trevor and Alucard. It is understandable and coherent, and if anything there are more easter eggs and cameos for fans of the Castlevania games.
Image from Netflix via Youtube.com
