Saturday Suggestion – Animation: Castlevania (Netflix)

If you’ve lurked around on my blog long enough, you’ll know I’m not a huge fan of gore unless it’s Walking Dead (and I think I’ve just been desensitized to it to be honest). If I told you I enjoyed watching Castlevania… you’re probably scratching your head right about now. But let me tell you why someone who turns away at animated blood and hides when a body get sliced in half actually loves this video game adaptation so much.

Brief intro: The vampire Count Dracula declares war on the people of Wallachia after they falsely burn his human wife at the stake for witchcraft. With an army of demons, Count Dracula wreaks havoc across the lands. People are scared and distrustful of everything and everyone. Enter our heroes: Trevor Belmont who comes from a long line of monster hunters who has been outcasted, Sypha Belnades who is a nomad scholar and talented elemental magician, and Alucard, a half-vampire and Dracula’s only child.

Review: My husband requested that I give this one a go considering how much I love vampires. I went through a phase in middle school and I just never quite got of it. Long story short, I have an obsession with just about anything that vampires are in. However, I was hesitant to give Dracula a try after my husband warned me about the amount of gore I was in for.

Not gonna lie y’all. The first few episodes were a bit hard to watch from behind my fingers each time someone died horribly. I banned it from being watched while eating dinner as some of the scenes really grossed me out. BUT I was able to put the queasy, gory scenes aside to enjoy the story and characters. I did more than come to enjoy Castlevania though; I fell in love with it!

First, I just have to gush over the voice actors. They are all superb. I can’t tell you how many times I turned to Alec and told him the voice acting was amazing while we were watching seasons 1 through 3. Dracula was simply *chef kisses* with how the voice actor conveyed his emotions. Honestly, this was some of the best voice acting I’ve ever heard.

Gore and violence aside, the art and animation are beautiful. The art was heavily influenced by Japanese animation, and it shows in the best way. From the character design to the creatures from hell, the art is unique and well done. I enjoyed the animation of the fight scenes the most, and that’s where I think the animation team shined the most.

Now I do have to confess that I have yet to play the video game that Castlevania is based upon. I’m sure there are plenty of inconsistencies as there often are in adaptations, but I firmly believe Castlevania has a place as one of the best game adaptations simply based off story-telling, art, voice acting, and animation. This one gets five stars in this vampire-living gal’s book.

Bottom Line: Despite short seasons, this video game adaptation is one of the best of its kind and is a must see.

Official Rating: TV-MA

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