The adult animated show Castlevania turned out to be one of Netflix’s most artistic and unique originals. Adapted from the classic video game series of the same name by producer Adi Shankar, the show deals with a crazed Count Dracula and his violent, bloody, interactions with a vampire-hunter and his own son who wish to stop him for good.
However, this version of Dracula is not a one-dimensional vampire; he too has faced the brunt of society and aims to take revenge at humanity for its blind devotion to the corrupt Church. As the third season debuted on March 5, 2020, this is the perfect time to look back at some of the details that might have been missed in the previous seasons.
Alucard’s name
Alucard is the son of Dracula who grieves his mother’s death by the Church, but at the same time, he doesn’t plan on punishing every human for this, unlike his father. On closer observation, fans would notice that the word ‘Alucard’ is an anagram for Dracula itself.
This happens in the games too and some suggest that it’s a direct reference to the 1943 film Son of Dracula. Since then, Alucard (the name) has appeared in a variety of vampire-themed media, including Castlevania and Hellsing.
Sypha’s family
Sypha is a Speaker, a group of mystical sorcerers, and joins Alucard and Trevor on their journey. While no cult of Speakers exists in the original video game, Sypha is indeed a character in the game Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, where she belongs to a family called the Belnades.
In the show too, Sypha subtly mentions the name Belnandes once while introducing herself to Trevor. While this connection to the game franchise is little more than a slight nod, it is a welcome one nonetheless.
Game of Thrones & Lord of the Rings’ secret cameos
This is a claim based on speculation and close observation by fans but it does prove to be a really cool Easter egg in the show. In Season 1, episode 2, Trevor is speaking to a local swordsmith in the village.
The sword on the left appears to bear resemblance with Long Claw, the sword of Jon Snow from Game of Thrones. Another sword (right behind the swordsmith’s head) also resembles Anduril, the sword of Aragon in Lord of the Rings. If not the grip and guard, the pommel (head) of the sword is definitely similar to that of Anduril.
Sypha is a closeted Heavy Metal rocker
Sypha uses several finger gestures for her spells. One of them is funnily similar to the heavy metal ‘horns’ gesture which was first popularized by Ronnie James Dio but has since been used by several rockers and rappers.
Interestingly, Dio felt this gesture helped ward off evil spirits, which seems surprisingly apt when placed in Sypha’s context.
Blue Fang’s Influences
Blue Fang is a many-eyed, sharp-toothed, demon leading Dracula’s army in a flashback scene involving the burning down of the Church and the massacre of everyone in its vicinity. While Blue Fang is not taken directly from the video games, its character design seems to be a mix of a few other classic characters.
Some feel that the design is based on Worgs from the game Castlevania: Symphony Of The Night. Conversely, others feel that it’s a direct reference to the devilish boss Pazuzua from another Castlevania game called Harmony of Dissonance.
The Impaler
Vlad the Impaler was a Romanian ruler during the medieval era who was reputed for his cruelty. The sobriquet of ’the impaler’ also came probably from the fact that he impaled his enemies in torturous ways. But Vlad’s name also included ‘Dracul’ which was reinterpreted as Dracula. For this reason, it is generally believed that Bram Stoker, in writing his iconic horror novel Dracula, borrowed Vlad’s name and characteristics to create his legendary vampire.
The opening shots of the first Castlevania episode also seem to be referencing Vlad, as the scene shows several human skeletons impaled in a field. It’s a harrowing yet visually enthralling frame.
Trevor’s Scar
Trevor Belmont is a witty, drunk, vampire-hunter and the main protagonist of the Netflix series and some of the games. In the latter, he sports a big scar over his left eye, a result of a duel with Dracula.
In the series, however, Trevor has the scar even before he encounters Dracula. It seems that, in this case, the scar was a result of an altercation with the Church while it was persecuting his family.
Trevor’s fashion & appearance
With his fur coat, scraggly beard, and garb with laces, viewers were quick to jump to the conclusion that Trevor was the Jon Snow of the Castlevania world.
While this holds true, producer Adi Shankar noted that another character that inspired Trevor’s look was Squall Leonheart from Final Fantasy VIII. It seems somewhat fitting that a Castlevania TV show would look at gaming for inspiration, even if Square Enix’s JRPG is quite a departure from Konami’s franchise.
Lisa’s last words
Lisa Tepes was the wife of Dracula, a human with a passion for science and research. However, the Church saw this as blasphemy and Lisa was persecuted. This event triggers Dracula, convincing him of the destructive nature of humanity.
In a painful scene from the first season, Lisa burns at the stake and says the words ‘‘Don’t hurt them! They don’t understand! I know it’s not your fault, but… if you can hear… they don’t know what they’re doing. Be better than them. Please!"
Even though the show questions dogmatic faith, these final words by Lisa are a clear reference to Jesus Christ’s last words. Similarly, Jesus was persecuted by humans but still believed in forgiving and protecting them. In this case, Dracula refused to hear any of Lisa’s pleas…
Dracula’s Army & Folklore
Writer Warren Ellis revealed through his Twitter account that the main generals of the Death Horde (aka Dracula’s Army) had names and characteristics driven from local folklore around vampires and other supernatural characters, and not just the Transylvanian/Romanian tropes.
For instance, Godbrand was given the appearance of a Viking. There are indeed Viking vampires in Nordic folklore. These are undead warriors called the Draugr who have done evil things in life and are denied entry in Valhalla. They then lead a life of torment, and prey on others transmitting this torment. Similarly, the characters of the Indian and Japanese vampires draw on other folk legends.
