Netflix "Castlevania: Nocturne" Series Talkback

[Yojimbo]

I pray for you, Richter Belmont

Release Date: September 28, 2023

As revolution sweeps France, Richter Belmont fights to uphold his family's legacy and prevent the rise of a ruthless, power-hungry vampire ruler.

1. A Common Enemy in Evil

An attack on their camp spurs vampire hunter Richter and young mage Maria to seek the help of the Abbot of Machecoul. Strangers bring news from abroad.

2. Horror Beyond Nightmares

As the threat of a Vampire Messiah looms, Tera's past holds dark omens for the future. Annette, Edouard, Richter and Maria head for the château.

3. Freedom Was Sweeter

In shock after a loss, Annette shares the story of her escape from slavery and her journey from Saint-Domingue. Chaos erupts at a public gathering.

4. Horrors Rising from the Earth

Olrox voices doubts to Mizrak about the Abbot's alliances. Desperate to help a friend, Annette leads a risky mission over Richter's objections.

5. The Natural Order

Drolta makes a persuasive pitch to Olrox, and Annette encounters an old enemy. Revelations shed new light on Maria and Richter's family histories.

6. Guilty Men to Be Judged

While Richter learns about the Belmont legacy, Annette searches for the wisdom of her own ancestors. Edouard attempts to get through to a comrade.

7. Blood Is the Only Way

Emboldened by her victories, the Vampire Messiah steps into the spotlight. Richter flexes new abilities. Olrox makes a surprising proposal.

8. Devourer of Light

With the Abbot poised to make an unthinkable sacrifice and Erzsebet's plans already in motion, Richter and his allies hurl themselves into battle.

External Links
-Netflix page

Related Links
-News and Discussion
-Castlevania Series Talkback

First 7 minutes

 

[AdrenalineRush1996]

Saw it two days ago and it's definitely a worthy follow-up to the first series.

 

[Yojimbo]

I was optimistically cautious about the massive timeskip to the French Revolution but Powerhouse and the Deats delivered again. The intertwining of secrets and lies, guilt and sacrifice, and finding identity and belief all set during the backdrop of revolution and calls for freedom was well crafted. Another interesting facet to the villains this season was their ties to ancient empires and how one sees it pointless to create a new one while the other worshiped as a god aiming to make one - Orlox the Aztec and Erzsebet a Russian countess who seemingly drank the blood of an Egyptian goddess and caused an eclipse.

Pretty unexpected turn starting with Orlox seeming like a straight up villain murdering Julia then kind of redeemable with a sad backstory and some sympathetic characteristics i.e. heartbroken, in love. And so we know when he finally meets Erzsebet, we know he won't bow until some prodding from Drolta. I guess seeing it from Orlox's side, his point to young Richter was balance. A life for a life. He doesn't care about the greater good or evil. Doesn't excuse murder by any means but shows they focused a lot of characterization for Orlox while making leaving the actual villains like Drolta and Erzsebet as two dimensional psychopaths. Have a feeling we'll still see Richter and Orlox have their fated battle at some point in the series. I admit I am a little confused on why he's powerful among vampires - because he uses magic and/or has a talisman that powers him up?

Man, not much has changed in centuries. Speakers can't catch a break.

Was intriguing they didn't go with a true Forgemaster, and as a result the Abbot didn't create perfect night creatures. Sure, Isaac had deep conversations with the one night creature in past seasons. But this subplot with Jacques and Edouard seems to hint they're going to go deeper into the possibility that the night creatures can retain even more of their humanity.

I loved how they expanded the world of this show with Annette and her magic is from vodun with Ogun and Papa Legbe and of course how her arc delved into identity, slavery, and freedom. Even seeded sparks between her and Richter after he came back. Didn't think they would until next season.

Was a pleasant surprise they got in Juste Belmont from Harmony of Dissonance! Even namedropped Maxim and Lydie, his prodigal magic skills, and when he mentioned his friend and wife's deaths from a vampire - made me wonder if that means it's still the Dracula Wraith and they kept it vague to avoid confusion or somebody else like Orlox. Interesting they made it so this version was Richter's grandfather. It was quite funny he lived so close to Richter the whole time and kinda realized he was bribing Tera to keep silent. And that contrast - young and old, young Richter wouldn't leave his mother and she got killed, while old Juste wouldn't go with Julia but both had guilt built up in themselves and as a result stifled their ability to use magic.

Was on the fence about some stuff. Like it was a little confusing with some tweaks to the rules of the show like all of a sudden the whole cult of vampires could fly - before it seemed like only the real powerful like Dracula and Alucard could. Or even how vampires react to crosses, here it was a real handicap against to Vaublanc (side bar-who seemed to be a total reworking of Shaft). 8 episodes felt too short, should have been 10. But I totally eyerolled at the the unoriginal reveal the abbot in the name of God allying with vampires, and he had a secret illegetimate child with a foreigner. Oi.

The only real gripe is not much back story/flashbacks for Erzsebet. If she was a human before in Russia, how did she encounter an Egyptian war goddess and as a vampire feed on her and become go Super Saiyan. Drolta did say she a priestess of Sekhmet. Is that still Erzsebet or she now a fusion of both Erzsebet and Sekhmet? But so many gaps. It looks like all she has is gravity manipulation powers - powerful enough to artificially cause an eclipse, deflect attacks and people, etc. Carmila, Morana, Striga, and Lenore were far more fleshed out. I could see some fans not liking this season because there was a lot of PTSD and mental health themes and less fighting and more the power of love conquers all and it made Richter, Maria, and Annette less charismatic than Trevor and Sypha and more whiney but this is a whole new storyline and this cast are pretty much 19 year olds still a ways into becoming heroes - just they have to do it in the worst situation. Totally different character arc.

Guess there's gotta be a season 2. Wicked ending. All hope is lost - they lost Tera who got turned, no one stood a change against Erzsebet, they couldn't send back the machine - and Alucard shows up and pwns Drolta and we end on a note of hope. Curious what Orlox will do. Will Tera go full villain? What of the Abbot. And Edouard. But hopefully the action picks up next season and less monologuing. Oh, and Richter gets more weapons from the games. Totally want to see him to do Grand Cross.

 

[The Overlord]

I was optimistically cautious about the massive timeskip to the French Revolution but Powerhouse and the Deats delivered again. The intertwining of secrets and lies, guilt and sacrifice, and finding identity and belief all set during the backdrop of revolution and calls for freedom was well crafted. Another interesting facet to the villains this season was their ties to ancient empires and how one sees it pointless to create a new one while the other worshiped as a god aiming to make one - Orlox the Aztec and Erzsebet a Russian countess who seemingly drank the blood of an Egyptian goddess and caused an eclipse.

Pretty unexpected turn starting with Orlox seeming like a straight up villain murdering Julia then kind of redeemable with a sad backstory and some sympathetic characteristics i.e. heartbroken, in love. And so we know when he finally meets Erzsebet, we know he won't bow until some prodding from Drolta. I guess seeing it from Orlox's side, his point to young Richter was balance. A life for a life. He doesn't care about the greater good or evil. Doesn't excuse murder by any means but shows they focused a lot of characterization for Orlox while making leaving the actual villains like Drolta and Erzsebet as two dimensional psychopaths. Have a feeling we'll still see Richter and Orlox have their fated battle at some point in the series. I admit I am a little confused on why he's powerful among vampires - because he uses magic and/or has a talisman that powers him up?

Man, not much has changed in centuries. Speakers can't catch a break.

Was intriguing they didn't go with a true Forgemaster, and as a result the Abbot didn't create perfect night creatures. Sure, Isaac had deep conversations with the one night creature in past seasons. But this subplot with Jacques and Edouard seems to hint they're going to go deeper into the possibility that the night creatures can retain even more of their humanity.

I loved how they expanded the world of this show with Annette and her magic is from vodun with Ogun and Papa Legbe and of course how her arc delved into identity, slavery, and freedom. Even seeded sparks between her and Richter after he came back. Didn't think they would until next season.

Was a pleasant surprise they got in Juste Belmont from Harmony of Dissonance! Even namedropped Maxim and Lydie, his prodigal magic skills, and when he mentioned his friend and wife's deaths from a vampire - made me wonder if that means it's still the Dracula Wraith and they kept it vague to avoid confusion or somebody else like Orlox. Interesting they made it so this version was Richter's grandfather. It was quite funny he lived so close to Richter the whole time and kinda realized he was bribing Tera to keep silent. And that contrast - young and old, young Richter wouldn't leave his mother and she got killed, while old Juste wouldn't go with Julia but both had guilt built up in themselves and as a result stifled their ability to use magic.

To be fair, since Dracula more or less gave up villainy in season 4 of the previous show, Juste's friend and girlfriend were killed by another infamous vampire, Lord Ruthven.

Lord Ruthven (vampire) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Was on the fence about some stuff. Like it was a little confusing with some tweaks to the rules of the show like all of a sudden the whole cult of vampires could fly - before it seemed like only the real powerful like Dracula and Alucard could. Or even how vampires react to crosses, here it was a real handicap against to Vaublanc (side bar-who seemed to be a total reworking of Shaft). 8 episodes felt too short, should have been 10. But I totally eyerolled at the the unoriginal reveal the abbot in the name of God allying with vampires, and he had a secret illegetimate child with a foreigner. Oi.

To be fair again, to the Abbott was more sympathetic than the Bishop in the last series and the Church did oppose the French Revolution and sided with the nobles.

The only real gripe is not much back story/flashbacks for Erzsebet. If she was a human before in Russia, how did she encounter an Egyptian war goddess and as a vampire feed on her and become go Super Saiyan. Drolta did say she a priestess of Sekhmet. Is that still Erzsebet or she now a fusion of both Erzsebet and Sekhmet? But so many gaps. It looks like all she has is gravity manipulation powers - powerful enough to artificially cause an eclipse, deflect attacks and people, etc. Carmila, Morana, Striga, and Lenore were far more fleshed out. I could see some fans not liking this season because there was a lot of PTSD and mental health themes and less fighting and more the power of love conquers all and it made Richter, Maria, and Annette less charismatic than Trevor and Sypha and more whiney but this is a whole new storyline and this cast are pretty much 19 year olds still a ways into becoming heroes - just they have to do it in the worst situation. Totally different character arc.

I think Erzebet was a vampire when she attacked Tera in Russia.

I am curious if Erzebet is Hungarian and found an ancient Egyptian god in the Middle Ages or she is from ancient Egypt and became a Hungarian Countess later on.

I am not sure Erzebet will anything besides a psychopath with a god complex. Given Erzebet's real life crimes, she is not given sympathy in her media adaptations.

It was kinda fun to see that Erzebet was voice by Lola from the German film "Run Lola, Run."

Guess there's gotta be a season 2. Wicked ending. All hope is lost - they lost Tera who got turned, no one stood a change against Erzsebet, they couldn't send back the machine - and Alucard shows up and pwns Drolta and we end on a note of hope. Curious what Orlox will do. Will Tera go full villain? What of the Abbot. And Edouard. But hopefully the action picks up next season and less monologuing. Oh, and Richter gets more weapons from the games. Totally want to see him to do Grand Cross.

 

[Yojimbo]

To be fair, since Dracula more or less gave up villainy in season 4 of the previous show, Juste's friend and girlfriend were killed by another infamous vampire, Lord Ruthven.

Oh, I thought the Dracula Wraith in the game was a completely separate character. But yeah, d'oh, totally missed the end of that line from Juste in the episode mentioning Ruthven. On rewatch, yep, totally mentioned the name of the killer.

To be fair again, to the Abbott was more sympathetic than the Bishop in the last series and the Church did oppose the French Revolution and sided with the nobles.

True, but it's still that cynical thing to make the Church side with the villains on television kind of cliche.

I think Erzebet was a vampire when she attacked Tera in Russia.

I am curious if Erzebet is Hungarian and found an ancient Egyptian god in the Middle Ages or she is from ancient Egypt and became a Hungarian Countess later on.

I am not sure Erzebet will anything besides a psychopath with a god complex. Given Erzebet's real life crimes, she is not given sympathy in her media adaptations.

It was kinda fun to see that Erzebet was voice by Lola from the German film "Run Lola, Run."

Ah, ok. For some reason, I had thought in 1 episode Tera talked about how Erzsebet was a psychopath even before she was a vampire. I probably misheard. EDIT: But yeah, I doubt there will be anything revealed that we'll empathize with. She'll just be that OP character to overcome. No doubt it will be done in spectacular fashion i.e. like Trevor vs. Death.

That makes sense she was originally Egyptian or perhaps the less controversial, visited ancient Egypt, drained Sekhmet, lived through different empires and eras taking on different identities up until taking on the name Erzsebet Bathory in the 1500s, and for whatever reason decided just before episode 1 she would make her own empire. Hm, she could potentially be one of the oldest vampires if she was already a vampire in ancient Egypt. Around longer than Dracula. EDIT: She clearly has an accent that suggests Hungarian or Russian but is it her original accent or just acquired over the centuries? Hmm.

 

[The Overlord]

Oh, I thought the Dracula Wraith in the game was a completely separate character. But yeah, d'oh, totally missed the end of that line from Juste in the episode mentioning Ruthven. On rewatch, yep, totally mentioned the name of the killer.


True, but it's still that cynical thing to make the Church side with the villains on television kind of cliche.


Ah, ok. For some reason, I had thought in 1 episode Tera talked about how Erzsebet was a psychopath even before she was a vampire. I probably misheard.

That makes sense she was originally Egyptian or perhaps the less controversial, visited ancient Egypt, drained Sekhmet, lived through different empires and eras taking on different identities up until taking on the name Erzsebet Bathory in the 1500s, and for whatever reason decided just before episode 1 she would make her own empire. Hm, she could potentially be one of the oldest vampires if she was already a vampire in ancient Egypt. Around longer than Dracula.

Erzebet seems to suggest she was ancient in the final episode, but that might be real or she may be lying. A lot of the really gruesome stuff associated with Erzebet Bathory has not appeared in this show, she usually gets depicted as a serial killer rather than a conqueror and often bathes in the blood of young women to stay young herself. She does seem to have a creepy obsession with young women and even children in this series, given her desire to turn Maria and later Tera.

 

[Yojimbo]

Erzebet seems to suggest she was ancient in the final episode, but that might be real or she may be lying. A lot of the really gruesome stuff associated with Erzebet Bathory has not appeared in this show, she usually gets depicted as a serial killer rather than a conqueror and often bathes in the blood of young women to stay young herself. She does seem to have a creepy obsession with young women and even children in this series, given her desire to turn Maria and later Tera.

10/2: Yeah, it was kinda vague - at least to me - if that was Erzsebet talking about being ancient or some of Sekhmet's personality coming through. The conqueror aspect seems more like Sekhmet since she was a goddess of war. Even being adulated by the town+vampires and the rose petals being rained down she loved seemed something more Sekhment than Erzsebet.

10/5: "My Sister" song. Digital soundtrack on sale Friday.

 

[khuddle]

Hey this is my first post in ages. Glad to have the site back and good to see all the regulars here.

Yeah, I got to watching Nocturne over the weekend. It was good, and in places, great. 8 out 10 for me.

The 8 episodes is just about right in order to develop characters and care about them. I thought Richter, and Olrox were the highlights, with Annette possibly being the one that I struggled most to take to.

The 2 main villains are probably a weak point as well, insanely over powered and one dimensional motivations. They can't compare to the heft Dracula brought.

Finally as a Castlevania fan, you're made wait for those freak out moments but when they came for me, I felt goosebumps all over. Really well done by the people behind the show and the art department.

Can't wait for Season 2!

 

[The Overlord]

I heard that the usual suspects on twitter and YouTube were mad that Annette was Haitian in this series and that they showed the Haitian rebellion in this series. I however, like combining fiction with real historical events and having a vampire involved in the Haitian slave trade plays the vampires as blood sucking autocrats. Plus it's a good change of scenery, you never see Castlevania take place in a tropical island like Haiti.


Also Annette was a shallow love interest and a damsel in distress on the old Castlevania games, this series gives her stuff to do besides be Richter's girlfriend.