I LOVE Castlevania (though, I might like Metroid a little bit more-and Metroidvania fans know why I compared the two). So, with a second season of Castlevania: Nocturne on Netflix, you know I just had to binge all eight episodes in one sitting.
However, here's the thing. Even though I liked a lot about the first season, I felt like it could have been better. I mean, it definitely wasn't as good as the first Castlevania animated series, which I consider peak television.
That said, I'm happy to report that I think the second (and hopefully not last) season of Nocturne is way better than the first, and I have a few reasons why.
Oh, and major spoilers up ahead.
Alucard Being Prominent Throughout Season 2 Adds A Crucial Element Not Present In Season 1.
Look, I like Richter Belmont as much as the next person. However, I’m not sure if I like this version of the character. The Richter I love (i.e., the one from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night) would run up to Dracula, and say, “Die, monster. You don’t belong in this world!”
However, the Richter in Nocturne definitely wouldn’t do that. In fact, this Richter feels like a much younger version of the character, which makes sense, because the show takes place during the French Revolution, which is when Rondo of Blood occurs (1792) and when Richter was only 19.
That’s all fine and good, but coming after the excellent first Castlevania show in which we got the manly Trevor Belmont, I wasn’t really vibing with this younger (and greener) protagonist.
Enter Alucard, who is the connective tissue between the first series, and Nocturne. The Alucard we saw originally was from Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse. That game, however, takes place in 1476. Rondo of Blood takes place 316 years later, and the Alucard here sounds so much more tired and world-weary.
He also livens up this series a lot more than what we got in the first season, in which Alucard arrived in the final episode. His fight scenes in Nocturne are amazing, but I really love how he works with Richter, Maria, and Annette, as opposed to how he gelled with Trevor and Sypha from the first series. It’s more of a contentious relationship this time around, and it really works. Alucard just makes this season so much better.
I Also Like The Bigger Role Of The Belmont Family In Season 2
One reason why I loved the first Castlevania animated series, which even Castlevania producer Koji Igarashi thought was “great,” was because of how it developed Trevor, who is one of my favorite members of the Belmont family.
Trevor is chronologically the first Belmont to slay Dracula, and we really learned about his lineage all the way up to the final season of the animated series. However, one character who I loved that they added in Nocturne (besides Richter, of course) was Juste Belmont, who is in one of my favorite entries in the series, the vastly under-appreciated (Shut up, the music is awesome!) Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance.
Juste was in the first season, but his role is even more prominent this time around since he is trying to steer Maria away from the dark side of magic. And, I just love this. I thought it was cool that they made a new character in Julia Belmont in the first season of Nocturne, but there’s a lot more interactions between Juste, who is Richter’s grandfather, and Richter himself.
The thing I love the most about Nocturne is how Alucard reflects on his interactions with the Belmont Clan, even, at one point, considering them “family.”
In one great scene, Alucard is talking to Juste, and Juste admits that he didn’t get visited by Alucard in the same way as some of his ancestors, to which Alucard makes a joke of how he apologizes for not being there on holidays.
As a massive Castlevania fan, I just love learning more about one of my favorite video game families, and Nocturne nails that.
The Character Drama Is Heightened Even More This Time Around
Though these two Castlevania animated series could be considered family dramas, at their stake-driven-through hearts, they’re essentially vampire shows.
In the previous series, we learned to have sympathy for Dracula and his half-vampire son, Alucard. However, in this season, we have sympathy for Maria’s mother, Tera, who was transformed into a vampire in the last season in order to protect her daughter.
This brings the drama to new heights, as Maria detests her father, who is an abbot and also a forgemaster for the series’ big bad, Erzsebet (voiced by Franka Potente, the one and only actress from one of the greatest running movies ever, Run Lola Run).
Maria wants to murder her father, and Tera is conflicted, because on the one hand, she’s succumbing to the dark side of being a vampire, but on the other hand, she’s trying to maintain herself as Maria’s mother, which brings about a whole load of drama.
I find that this is a lot more tension than what we got in the first season. Tera was an interesting character before, but she’s so much better as a conflicted mother who just wants to be there for her daughter. We also have the drama between gay lovers, Mizrak and Olrox. Mizrak’s conflict is that he’s a man of God, which brings about self-loathing because he’s gay, but also in love with a vampire, both of which go against his faith. Olrox is conflicted because he loves Mizrak, but he also has to put on a front that he serves Erzsebet, who is a very conceited vampire.
It all just makes for a very tense eight episodes, and I like it a lot more than the first season, which felt kind of bland in comparison.
The Stakes Are Through The Roof This Season
I mentioned Erzebet, but also in the series is her lover, Drolta, who Alucard killed at the end of Season 1.
Well, Erzebet pines for her lover, and Drolta is brought back from the dead with a vendetta against Alucard, who must also stop Erzebet.
At the same time, we have Richter who is still learning the ropes, or rather, the whip, which adds a lot of internal drama that was present in the first season, but is much more pronounced here.
The thing is, Richter has to get his act together, and fast, because Erzebet isn’t waiting around for him to improve. This ratchets up the tension, as we really want to see Richter become the vampire hunter we know he can be, but is still struggling to be.
Then, there’s Maria’s story of trying to understand what kind of magician she wants to be–one who harnesses dark magic, or light. Not only that, but we also have Annette’s story, in which she’s being stalked by demons, only to realize that it’s really the dead who are trying to summon her in order to imbue her with the power of an ancient god.
There’s just so much going on this season, which I couldn’t entirely say for Season 1.
It Also Feels Even More Like The Games Castlevania: Rondo Of Blood And Symphony Of The Night
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is one of my favorite games of all time, and I love how this Alucard definitely feels like the one from that game. But, I also love how Maria feels even more like her counterpart in Rondo of Blood, making this the perfect blend of the two titles.
It just makes me want to play the games even more, which I feel that all video game movies and TV adaptations should do.
Watching Juste in action made me want to boot up a save file of Harmony of Dissonance, and just watching these shows in general makes me want to play Castlevania titles.
That said, I think this season in particular feels even more like the video games than the last season, in both the interactions between the characters, as well as the action.
It’s all done to perfection in Season 2, and I really, really, really want a Season 3. Either that, or do another Belmont next. Hey, they haven’t done Simon yet.
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