Castlevania season 2, episode 3 recap: Shadow Battles
By Wade Wainio
In episode 3 of Castlevania’s second season, one of Dracula’s war council members questions the merits and integrity of his scheme.
Castlevania may be an animated version of a classic video game franchise, but it makes plenty of room for character development and exploration. This episode is a great example, as it doesn’t emphasize action like one might expect. Here we gain further insight into what animates Dracula (Graham McTavish) and his loyal followers. They’re not necessarily all about evil for evil’s sake.
In a flashback sequence, we see the young forge-master Hector (Theo James) bring a dead dog back to life. Now, as an adult, he brings a demonic, winged night creature to life. We see that, at one point not long ago, Dracula actively ought him out, aiming for what they considered “a merciful end to the human plague.”
We also learn a key bit of information: The reanimated dead are loyal to their forge-masters (that is, those who bring them back from death). This explains how Hector (or presumably anyone else) might not have their throat ripped out after reviving a deceased demon (or, again presumably) any other reanimated creature.
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Magic door
The episode doesn’t totally neglect Trevor Belmont (Richard Armitage). When he and his crew reach the hidden entrance of the Belmont estate, they struggle with opening the door. Interestingly, it’s not Trevor who opens it. That’s the job of some magic words from Sypha (Alejandra Reynoso).
It turns out the Belmont house is pretty large and probably easy to get lost in. Trevor finds a morning star in a case (for those who don’t know, the morning star is a more powerful vampire-killing whip, as seen in the video games). While Trevor is pleased to be in his family’s home, Alucard (James Callis) is not at ease there. Being half-vampire, he considers it a museum dedicated to the extermination of his people.
What if the blood runs out?
Meanwhile, back at Dracula’s place, the barbarian vampire warlord named Godbrand (Peter Stormare) has a pretty good question for the Drackster: Where will human blood come from if they wipe humans out? He says pig blood upsets his digestion, and wonders if extermination is practical. Dracula gets pretty upset about it, threatening to do damage to his life bar (if you know what I mean).
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Afterward, Godbrand discusses the matter with Carmilla (Jaime Murray), who seems eager to manipulate him. He tells her that, for Dracula, it’s not about war but suicide. She has also publicly doubted Dracula’s plans as if to plant seeds of doubt in his leadership. She says she wants to take the fight to the port town of Brăila. (Interesting fact: Brăila is a real city in Romania). So, while this Castlevania episode doesn’t feature much action, it has a decent amount of information. It’s fairly entertaining and gives a sense of what a real vampire army might be like.
That’s it for this Castlevania recap! What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments!