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REVIEW: Castlevania Season 3


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#Synaesthesia



Joined: 30 Jan 2019
Posts: 157
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 11:37 am Reply with quote
I actually found this season the most bingeworthy out of the three.
The pacing and dialogue was done so well that I was compelled to watch the next episode right after the previous one ended! Also, they introduced so many interesting new characters that really added to the overall story (Lenore being my favorite) I really liked Hector's arc, the poor bastard Laughing The music, bg art, voice acting was also spot-on (kudos to the voice director!) This was the best season of Castlevania yet.
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Beatdigga



Joined: 26 Oct 2003
Posts: 4352
Location: New York
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 1:16 pm Reply with quote
It’s clear at this point that the current generation in the narrative Ellis likes is just out of gas from a storytelling standpoint. It goes in circles because Ellis doesn’t want to write Simon or Richter, which is fine, but then just let it end next season.

As it stands this is just a big ol meh, and for the fans who did want this series to become a saga of descending Belmont’s in the style of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, check your expectations and hope next season brings the series to a satisfactory close.
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Lord Vaultman



Joined: 03 Mar 2017
Posts: 810
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 2:15 pm Reply with quote
This show is better than sex (if ya know what I mean wink wink)
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El Hermano



Joined: 24 Feb 2019
Posts: 450
Location: Texas
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 2:23 pm Reply with quote
Beatdigga wrote:
It’s clear at this point that the current generation in the narrative Ellis likes is just out of gas from a storytelling standpoint.


I don't think he has a preference per se. He said he's never even heard of the Castlevania franchise until being approached to write this show. Which is pretty obvious given how little it has to do with the games.
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Scion Drake



Joined: 25 Nov 2017
Posts: 941
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 2:36 pm Reply with quote
El Hermano wrote:
Beatdigga wrote:
It’s clear at this point that the current generation in the narrative Ellis likes is just out of gas from a storytelling standpoint.


I don't think he has a preference per se. He said he's never even heard of the Castlevania franchise until being approached to write this show. Which is pretty obvious given how little it has to do with the games.


It's not like there's much to have preference over anyway. I recall hearing that none of the era's have much in the way of actual characterization & plot. So this show is the most Trevor & Dracula have gotten in the way of that.
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Beatdigga



Joined: 26 Oct 2003
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Location: New York
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 2:52 pm Reply with quote
El Hermano wrote:


I don't think he has a preference per se. He said he's never even heard of the Castlevania franchise until being approached to write this show. Which is pretty obvious given how little it has to do with the games.


This is true, but I think he found something to latch onto with the Curse of Darkness characters and that plot. And he has no desire to leave them for the Barbarian cursed by Dracula, or the cult of Shaft, etc.
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TranceLimit174



Joined: 21 Jul 2004
Posts: 958
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 3:48 pm Reply with quote
El Hermano wrote:
Beatdigga wrote:
It’s clear at this point that the current generation in the narrative Ellis likes is just out of gas from a storytelling standpoint. It goes in circles because Ellis doesn’t want to write Simon or Richter.


I don't think he has a preference per se. He said he's never even heard of the Castlevania franchise until being approached to write this show. Which is pretty obvious given how little it has to do with the games.


You ask me, it’s about rewarding the VA cast with a continuing gig while also not having to hire a new one.

Beatdigga wrote:
This is true, but I think he found something to latch onto with the Curse of Darkness characters and that plot. And he has no desire to leave them for the Barbarian cursed by Dracula, or the cult of Shaft, etc.


IMO, it is more about wanting to start at the beginning and maintain continuity with the cast. Probably isn’t a lot of faith that viewership will be willing to get attached to a whole new cast, not to mention a lack of desire to go through the work of setting them up only to re-tread the same basic story beats.
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tintor2



Joined: 11 Aug 2010
Posts: 1804
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 4:26 pm Reply with quote
Episode 9 was awkward to watch. There were some epic action scenes but during every five minutes we jumped to vampire sex. It must be the weirdest thing I ever watched.
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DavetheUsher



Joined: 19 May 2014
Posts: 505
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 4:47 pm Reply with quote
Scion Drake wrote:
It's not like there's much to have preference over anyway. I recall hearing that none of the era's have much in the way of actual characterization & plot. So this show is the most Trevor & Dracula have gotten in the way of that.


Nah, I wouldn't say that. There's a lot of development for Dracula in the various games, especially Lament of Innocence which is basically his origin story. 3's cast has some clearly defined personality and background stories and traits that were either ignored or outright contradicted in the Netflix version. I mean, we're talking about a show that didn't include the 4th member of the party because a writer didn't like his name. Laughing But we're 3 years into this show now so it's a bit of a dead horse at this point. I just treat it like I do any other Netflix adaption.
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doctorx0079



Joined: 26 Jun 2010
Posts: 55
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 5:18 pm Reply with quote
DavetheUsher wrote:
3's cast has some clearly defined personality and background stories and traits that were either ignored or outright contradicted in the Netflix version. I mean, we're talking about a show that didn't include the 4th member of the party because a writer didn't like his name. Laughing
Honestly, that would just annoy me. I would like to see that story developed further and made deeper but it's quite clear by now that they don't care.
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The Scream Man



Joined: 01 Mar 2020
Posts: 148
Location: Sydney, Australia
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 5:23 pm Reply with quote
I didn't mind it as much as James, but its a weaker season than 2 thats for sure.

i actually preferred Alucards story to Hecotr and Issacs. I kinda feel like they should have been left out of the season, then we get a shock when they come back, and then they maybe get a Flashback episode to show how they got to where they re-enter the story. Seeing Alucard lonely, then hopefully and happy, then just wrecked was actually more compelling and sad to me.

Also I believe the series is confirmed for a Season 4 at least. So yay for that!
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Animegomaniac



Joined: 16 Feb 2012
Posts: 4070
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 6:41 pm Reply with quote
For a hyper violent adult vampire story based on the action video game classic of Castlevania 3, this is more boring than I can have ever possibly imagined.

Season 3 is what happen AFTER that. So not only is it more boring, it's also not as smart or surprising as it thinks it is. Also, this show has the amazing knack to place characters where they will have the least amount of impact possible at any given time. ... Until the ending when SOMETHING has to happen.

I stopped at episode 5 because I have already guessed the ending which I had already guessed from the ending of season 2.

At least I still like Castlevania 3. Where was the pirate anyway? They should have kept Grant, dropped "Spell my name backwards, Dad" Alucard. What I heard is that they dropped the pirate because except for the times Dracula went to sea, he never went to sea. That's the kind of thinking that went into this series and I should not have been surprised at the quality of the end result.
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nightjuan



Joined: 22 Jan 2008
Posts: 1473
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 7:03 pm Reply with quote
Boredom is such a subjective human emotion. I didn't really feel that during my viewing experience of Castlevania in general or this season in particular, so it's hard for me to put myself in the same shoes as the reviewer. That said, I will admit the Alucard sub-plot was the weakest part of the season, but I didn't have any significant issues with the other arcs.
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Gasero



Joined: 24 Jul 2009
Posts: 939
Location: USA
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 7:57 pm Reply with quote
I wasn't bored while watching season 3. I enjoyed much of it despite the voice acting being uninteresting. I think the either some voice actors or voice acting directors should be replaced because the dialog does not match the emotion of the words. As the reviewer mentioned, it seems like everyone is whispering.

One issue that I had about the four plotlines is that they failed to converge in a meaningful way. I think That Alucard's story in season 3 would have been much more interesting if it had been used as a way for Alucard to provide exposition for the magic that everyone else was using throughout the season. Differences between human, vampire, elemental, forging etc magic abilities would have been interesting to learn about from Alucard as the other characters experienced it.

I also did not like the ending to Alucard's plot. I would have very much preferred that Alucard had a positive relationship with the apprentices and the cast of the show expanded to include them.
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BadNewsBlues



Joined: 21 Sep 2014
Posts: 5886
PostPosted: Mon Mar 16, 2020 9:21 pm Reply with quote
DavetheUsher wrote:


Nah, I wouldn't say that. There's a lot of development for Dracula in the various games,


Outside of Symphony of The Night not really and even with that in mind just barely.
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