AWRIGHT CHUMS LET'S DO THIS
TREVOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
R BELMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONT
(obligatory spoiler warning, don't read if you ain't seen all four yet)
Visuals:
On the whole, I like very much how it all looks. Very reminiscent of Hellsing at times in scene composition and general lighting/detailing. I also notice a particularly poignant use of contrasting warm-cool hues, namely the use of firelight which takes center stage anytime it's used. Very nice.
There are some squibbles here and there I caught, like Trevor's single bang-hair over his nose disappearing and reappearing between frames, or the outline of someone's face disappearing during a frame of mouth movement. Ultimately these are just an extremely minor annoyance, and while they bug me a bit I don't consider them severe enough to detract from the overall visual quality. But these animation flaws do exist, nonetheless.
The Castle's appearance finally gets an explanation in the form of it basically being a demon version of Howl's Moving Castle. While I'm iffy still on how it generally looks, the function it serves in-universe is fine in my book and I can begrudgingly accept its appearance to that end. Very much a case of "I get it, but I don't have to love it" for me here. That the Castle's bizarre look finally has an explanation is enough for me to suspend my distastes and view it as what it was intended.
Music:
Much as I'd like to hear classic tunes make a comeback, I can't say I'm in the camp of disliking vehemently that it's not present thus far. Yeah, I'd love to hear Beginning as Trevor kicks ass, but I'm not gonna lose sleep over it if it doesn't happen.
The current soundtrack I happen to like very much, actually. Again, it reminds me at times of Hellsing in how it sets tone, despite the genres being wildly different. I particularly like the use of the synth bass drum kicks (they sound like they might be 808 or 909, I'd have to listen deliberately to tell).
Adi had said that he wanted to move away from sweeping orchestral score and return to what he considers the rocky and intense music from the games themselves. As a musician who has experience with both orchestral libraries and a long history with chiptune and chipsounds, I can understand this mindset totally. And, as it happens, I'm in agreement with him about it. I myself never heard the classic NES tunes and thought to my self that they were meant as grand orchestra pieces--they were quick, sharp, punchy, and hard-hitting. Since the series of course can't just slap a straight-to-form tune from CV3 in there and expect it to work (it's rare that one writes a scene to accommodate a piece of music after all, there's a reason it's almost always been the inverse in film and television), it comes as no surprise to me as a musician that those tracks we all not-so-secretly hope to hear have gone ignored thus far. A song written for a fast-paced platformer cannot work the same in a narrative animation with a completely different structure and flow of action, and I wouldn't have expected it to.
I never had high hopes of classic tunes making it in for these reasons, so I can't say I'm too shaken up by them not being present. That doesn't mean I'm against them showing up, though. Just not in the forms we've come to identify them with.
What's more, let's consider two distinct problems:
Should they just remix a classic song to fit the show, then it could be argued that what's there is no longer the song as we know it and wanted to hear it. At that point, all it becomes is a series of notes we have nostalgia for. The tone is no longer the same. Any musician worth their salt could easily remix Beginning or Riddle to suit the series, but this falls back into the problem of writing the scenic context AROUND the song, rather than using music to establish tone. And that's not a good thing to do in most cases.
And secondly, I would actually fear the possibility (or probability, if I'm being honest) that classic tunes would actually overshadow the events of the scene. Obviously this wouldn't be unanimous for every series-veteran viewer, of course. But imagine Beginning suddenly blasting out of nowhere. I at least would probably be so enamored that HOLY SHIT IT'S BEGINNING IT'S BEGINNING YOU GUYS HOLY SHIT THIS IS AWESOME that I might actually lose focus on the scene itself. Again, not necessarily a likelihood for literally everyone or even a majority. But definitely something I can foresee happening. And I'm sure this train of thought came up during development, and was decided against for obvious reasons. I of course can't speak with certainty, as I wasn't there, but this is definitely something I would consider in their shoes. And if some 23-year-old schmuck on the Internet thinks of this, why wouldn't someone producing a Netflix original series with shitloads of money and prestige at their back?
On the whole, I like the music for what it is and what it aims to do. I'm very mildly disappointed in lack of classic tunes same as everyone else, but I fully understand some of the probable rationales behind their absence and don't take any serious issue with them not being here (thus far).
Plot:
People gonna dislike it. I can say that with certainty. It's not quite the elaborate IGAverse with Mathias' tragic backstory or the extensive symbolism and power that fuels everything that happens in Castlevania. It's not quite the simple "Dracula bad person, go kill him" premise that we had when CV3 first came out. It's somewhere in the middle, and I actually like that.
We have the SotN involvement of "Dracula fully lost his shit when the commoners killed his wife under misguided accusations of withcraft." We have Alucard's relationship with both his father and mother laid out before us (we even have his SotN appearance, to boot, thank god).
But we also have the very simple premise of "bad dude, wiping whole cities off the map, has black magic and monsters, you're the hero so go kill him and save everyone."
And for the most part I like how they've tried to tie the two together. They only took from the non-CV3 lore what was appropriate and suitable enough to enhance the basic story. Lisa shows up because it gives causation for Dracula's war on humanity. Alucard's dispute with his father over how to react to her murder shows up because it gives causation for Alucard to oppose him, as well as to develop Dracula as a villain a bit more and to illustrate the lengths his grief and rage have driven him to--to attack and more or less disavow his own son, the only living remnant of his beloved wife.
There are things that, as a canon-digger and somewhat canon purist, I of course have teensy issues with here and there. But honestly, the changes and deviations are not so glaring that I would consider the work as a whole to be of poor quality. I feel this and that and those could be better, but by no means do I dislike what exists currently.
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I like the invention of the Speakers and the dichotomy they bring to the table.
We have Trevor wandering in cynical exile. We have this order of samaritans in similar pariahdom, only they do not take a defeatist attitude. From a storytelling standpoint, he and they operate as two halves of the socially-outcast coin. It gives another light to the Belmont exile and lends a more altruistic perspective than the already-established "well fuck these guys for kicking me out when I was trying to help them."
They also give Sypha a more solidifed role in the story. Yes, originally she was explained away by simply being with the Church. For the context of a game not driven much by extensive story, this was sufficient.
But it no longer is sufficient.
While I'm sure we're all sick by now of "Church is evil" plot devices, it does bear repeating in this context at least. Simply looking at the plot details and the actual time period answer that well enough.
-Lisa was a practitioner of more scientifically and biologically-based medicinal practices
-The Church historically was 200% NOT OKAY with these kinds of people
-The Church historically was 200% TOTALLY OKAY with declaring anyone doing anything more advanced than what they allowed witches and killing them
So right off the bat, we already have a million and one reasons to implement "Church is evil" here, because historically the murder of Lisa and its reasoning would've been just another day at work for the Old Church. Let's continue the list.
-Sypha is a hero
-Sypha sides with the side that fights for the people
So here we have a very simple reason why Sypha being in the Church's corner becomes problematic. Someone who genuinely cares for the people would not sit by idly while their order and life system slaughtered the innocent. While true this could easily be made to work as Sypha being with the Church, realizing their sins and misdeeds, and breaking off from them, that would require even more airtime to tell in proper measure.
As a result, it simply becomes more pragmatic to give Sypha over to another new group already in-line with her ideals and moral compass. And when that group serves secondary storytelling purposes of being the Yin to the protag's Yang and helping him see the error of his ways and return to the light, then all the more better. I also foresee the Speakers having somewhat more prominent of a role than simply those two things, given that they're people of the people for the people, and the Church's influence doesn't seem like it's gonna last too long in the story.
So the Speaker's invention and Sypha's changing to their side makes complete sense to me, both from a narrative as well as a practical development time standpoint.
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I know a lot of peeps are gonna hate it, but I fucking love that Trevor's a cynical drunk. I don't care that it "doesn't make sense" for CV3's base story or even his personality in CoD. This series' story is neither wholly those things, though echoes from each can be seen in Trevor's dialogue and mannerisms.
Fact is, if I spent my life training and fighting for my country only for that country's people to exile and regard me either as a monster or as if I wasn't even there, I'd probably take up drinking and cynicism too. I mean, how many veterans do we see in the worldalready that either get antagonized by the anti-war crowds and/or forgotten on the side of the street because they're just another bum and fuck 'em who cares? Not meaning to get political here, just drawing similar situations by their principles in-common.
Fighting for a cause and having that cause completely exile and demonize you would certainly cause a lot of trust and self-worth issues. That this consequence of those actions has this result so frequently only speaks more highly of the Speakers, I should think, enforcing their aforementioned story worth.
So I don't mind that Trevor's a wandering miserable cynical drunk. Given his place (or lack thereof) in the world I see no problem with it.
Plus, a drunken Belmont is a funny sight to see.
Yes, the goatfucking bar fight might've been a bit uncouth and uncharacteristic for Castlevania, but let's be fair here. We're talking about shitfaced peasants arguing in the local inn in the rural countryside. We all know cattlefucking is a thing that happened and still happens, so let's not pretend it's suddenly out of form because the historical period we're dealing with has heavy fictional elements.
And a sloshed Trevor kicking the shit out of them despite his inebriation is just a humorous break in all the violence and intensity to establish that this dude's a badass even when tanked out of his mind. It's dumb, it's funny, and I enjoyed the shit out of it.
Quite a few of you will disagree (probably vehemently) with me on that front and that's totally fine. But I for one find it incredibly fucking funny that the seasoned supernatural-mercenary badass spends his off time totally slammed and washing his troubles away with smallbeer and ale and getting into fights with equally-shitfaced locals.
Why? Because fiction or not, this was the Middle Ages. Even the biggest toughest badasses of the period at some point or another got shitfaced in a tavern and punched a few locals in a barfight. And a Belmont doing this was honestly a breath of fresh air and humor for me.
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Small sidenote: I like that the Castle is this Frankenstein-esque monstrosity of science and (presumably) alchemy and gears and pistons and cogs. I liked it in LoS, I liked it in Van Helsing, and I like it here. It's pure Steampunk and I am 100% on board with it.
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I also like that Dracula does the whole "you have one year before I wreck your shit" thing. Some might argue it as out-of-character, but honestly I like what it implies. He's pissed and scathing in his grief, but he still does this one last thing to honor Lisa's memory. He gives his wrongdoers a final chance to atone and gives them a good long while to do it before unleashing his fury. And seeing as they did exactly as he accused and celebrated Lisa's murder rather than atone for it, his wrath became deserved and his threat fulfilled. And actually, he also does no harm to the old woman visiting the remnants of Lisa's home and even gives her the warning to leave the country while she still has the safety to do so. For all things considered, we actually see a very well-performed and honestly quite complex and conflicted side of Dracula's last shreds of humanity being tested and coming undone at the seams.
I'm still in Al's corner of "yeah go butcher the fuckers that killed her and paint the country with their entrails, but leave the innocents alone," but this iteration of Dracula raises a very good and nice point that's never been seen before.
(paraphrased and extended for thematic/symbolic purposes):
"Any one of them could have stood up and said 'no.' Any one of them could've tried to stop it. If the whole of those commoners has the humanity to stand up and say 'no' they could have overpowered the murderers and clergy responsible without effort or resistance. But not one of them saw an innocent woman, a healer of the sick and the needy, be burned alive for nonexistent crimes, and thought to themselves that this was wrong and that it should be stopped. Instead, they all stood by and did nothing but shout and cheer and revel in her suffering."
This one bit of dialogue lends credence to a side of Dracula we've never really seen before. This idea that Lisa gave him such a gear-change on humanity that he is not only furious at her murder, but perhaps even more furious that the very people she worked to help and save wouldn't even raise their voice in opposition to her murder, that they would be content to stand in indignant and ungrateful petulance and ignorance while one of their very own was wrongly murdered in brutal fashion.
This particular line and exchange between he and Alucard was fucking brilliant on the part of the writers and masterfully executed by the actors in question. I absolutely love and cherish this scene and everything it implies.
Writing:
Writing I'm not entirely in favor of, but not for reasons relating to the OG series or nostalgia vision or anything. Some lines just feel a bit clunky in their actual form. I don't feel I can really blame cast delivery here, since I enjoy the cast and acting very much. Even the best actors and actresses don't sound "good" when they're reading a shoddy script or a poorly-written line. Such is the case here.
Though while definitely not so bad that I'd consider it cringe-inducing, it's not always where I might prefer it, either. Seems very much a case of hit-or-miss in a lot of lines. Some are absolutely magnificent, others are just kind of...ehhhhh.
It's not unlike the B-grade action/horror films we got so many of the last 15 years or so, really. Some really goofy or awkwardly-written dialogues, and a LOT of cheese and camp. Doesn't necessarily make it a BAD thing, just something not trying to be deathly serious. And I can respect that despite my misgivings.
Acting/Casting:
Plot might have some iffy bits, writing might have some iffy bits, but the casting and acting is fucking stellar. No embellishment, not long-winded explanations for this one. I think they're all fucking great. That they're actually using relevant accents and dialects just makes it a hundred times better.
Overall impressions:
I like it, in short.
Yes, it might disregard aspects of the original series that we veterans might take a bit of offense or dislike to.
Yes, it might alter this or that element for its own purpose.
But you know what? I like it all the same.
I think it's actually become very clear now that it's out that this was not a series intended as a fanservice love letter to the series veterans and the series veterans alone for enjoy with dozens of little injokes and references nobody else would get.
No, this doesn't feel like that to me. This feels like something that tries to get in the middle--something that has elements longtime fans would enjoy, and something that is just vague enough about its original context and story to garner interest from new viewers unfamiliar with the series at large.
And if I'm right in this assessment, then you know what?
Take Grant out. Make Sypha part of another group. Keep Trevor as a foulmouthed drunk. Make the Church as conniving and sinful as you possibly can.
Why?
Because if my assessment has even a remote measure of accuracy to the intent of the developers, then this series may very well prove to be the reboot of interest we've all been screaming and shouting for for years. This series doesn't feel at all like it was made solely for us to enjoy. This series feels like it's trying to please a few oldies at the same time as trying to tell enough of the old stories to spark a new interest, a new breath of life and fresh air, into the series as a whole.
And for all the things this series does that I might not like, or that might grind my gears or rub me the wrong way, if it has the potential and power to do that? To give a new jolt of electricity into the Creature so that we all might collectively shout "it's alive, it's alive, IT'S ALIIIIIIIVE!" as we've been dreaming to for years?
Then fuck my personal nostalgia and pride and egotistical stake in the series. Let it bring in the new fans, who will learn the old canon and old stories on their own time just as every single one of us did all those years ago as kids.
Would I like to see Grant make it in somewhere? Of course I would. Would I like to hear Beginning and Aquarius and Overture and Big Battle blasting while the heroes kick monster ass? Of course I would.
But you know, if this thing has the potential to revive interest in the series, however small, then I'll gladly abandon my personal ideas and pride in what I consider to be "appropriate" for the series at large, because I don't have the place to declare my singular opinions as the series standard. We've already seen the likes of LC2 generate a ridiculous amount of hype from fans old and new alike. And that was just a fan project. How many oldtime fans played LC2, liked it, told their friend who knew nothing of CV about it and that friend liked it and got interested? Those word-of-mouth friends aren't gonna give a fuck if Grant shows up in the animated series, they don't even know who the guy is!
All non-fans are gonna know is that Dracula's got a sympathetic plight that led to him going apeshit, a band of misfit heroes taking up arms to stop him, and some crazy magic-throwing whip-slinging action to wrap it all up.
And hey, if that's enough to get folks interested in Castlevania again, then godspeed to Adi and his people. I'll gladly shove my personal tastes and desires in the back of the closet if it means this thing can generate new life and interest in the Castlevania. The series' potential to have a measure of revival with this is more important than my pride.
In many ways, it's not unlike Link Between Worlds starting the trend of shifting what Zelda was (tell me that wall-painting mechanic wasn't a fucking masterpiece that changed how we looked at the ENTIRE Zelda series), and then Hyrule Warriors and BotW came along and both introduced a shift in what defined a Zelda game. And now BotW has overtaken the gaming industry with its innovations and impact and will in all likelihood with GOTY 2017 and has gotten so many new players and fans of the Zelda series.
I feel like this animated series has the potential to be that first little pebble. It remains to be seen if that pebble will cause a landslide, but the potential remains regardless. I'd like to think that landslide of Castlevania interest can definitely happen...if people can allow themselves to be more open-minded about a shift in Castlevania.
Keyword though, a good shift. We've seen past shifts in the series that weren't too good. But this animation I feel can very well BE a good shift if treated with the right attitude about it and what it aims to do and the narrative purpose it means to tell. And by "treated with the right attitude," I refer to both the series fans and the developers themselves. Obviously the series still has rules to follow, it IS an adaptation of an existing work, of course. But I think this puppy has some serious potential if both parties handle it and themselves well.
All in all, I enjoyed the thing. Things I didn't like were there (mostly how rushed certain bits felt, more than anything else honestly, but that's the fault of the medium and the episodic method), but on the whole there was more good and potential for good here than there was bad and potential for bad.
I enjoyed it, I liked it, and I eagerly await to see more. I have no doubts in my mind many of you will disagree. This is fine and fair. But I'm quite sure many series veterans run the very real risk of nostalgia and decades of emotional attachment obscuring their interpretation of what this series means to do. So as a result of acknowledging this very real and very valid potential issue (I had to get over my own hurdles too, y'know), all I'd want to see now is fans judge it on its own merits, and not the merits of the series it derives from and was known from the start to not be following verbatim.
If y'all can suspend disbelief and enjoy a bit of campy over-the-top nutty action in the likes of Van Helsing or Underworld, then I see no reason why one can't do the same thing here. Though if you don't or can't enjoy the campy B-horror/action films, this doesn't apply to you.
This concludes my long-ass review that still paraphrases and condenses a shitload (it'd likely be two or three times this long if I didn't condense things). Thank you for your time and reading if you actually finished this whole thing.
Grade:
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