Castlevania Nocturne is POLITICAL (Deal With It.)

[@Bonsaipop]

Use code 50BONSAIPOP to get 50% OFF plus free shipping on your first Factor box at bit.ly/4fxIFZe! Watch our first Castlevania Nocturne video for greater context on the series!

[@CerealMilkDVD]

you mispronounced juste they say his name correctly in the show ,how did you say it wrong im confused

[@SleepyMook]

0:55 genuinely insane how popular the animated series is for Castlevania yet Konami has done nothing to capitalize on it by making a new game. They brought back Metal Gear and Silent Hill, Please for the love of god Konami let Castlevania be next and have a new game.

[@FelipePalha66]

they are testing the waters. silent hill and metal gear are way easier to sell than castlevania

[@dhampirdp3489]

Right Capcom saw onimusha do good and was like new game time

[@thelegendofner0]

They can't do all at once lol and I'm Happy they're doing MGS and SH first ❤

[@dominiquepowell3158]

Yeah I'm waiting for a new Castlevania game to go

[@malcire]

@@SleepyMook More Pachinko.

[@dhampirdp3489]

Small spoiler but if you didn't feel all the fuckin hype when alucard pulled out this father's attacks when PISSED you are not a castlevania fan

[@ChadKakashi]

Not a fan? My copies of the games disagree. Alucard pulling out Dracula’s attacks sounds very cool though, not gonna lie.

[@Ninjaananas]

​@@ChadKakashi If you want so see it, search for "Richter and Alucard vs Drolta". Big spoiler, though.

[@Terron29]

@@Ninjaananas Had a lot of issues with season 1 but watched some fights of season 2 and yes, they are indeed badass. Great action.

[@Ramsey276one]

Had 2 thoughts at THAT: Vampire Survivors, LOL then ... WAIT, is he going to go dark like Maria almost did?! 0_o

[@TifffanyTaylor]

His eyes looked just like his dad's did when he got serious. Then he used his meteor attack & everything. So sick dude. Alucard is pure dope.

[@malcire]

You mean the cartoon that spends a large portion of it's run dealing with revolutions, the corruption of the nobility and the church, actually has something to say about politics?

[@shizuwolf]

I'll bet the people who hate the politics of this show think the "God's NOT Dead" movies are apolitical

[@madness_lab]

You haven't met any Helldivers fans I assume 💀💀

[@cloudbankcity]

gamers continue to be very dense i fear

[@malcire]

@madness_lab Worse. I hang around warhammer fans.

[@Digidragoon7]

I think the issue is that, although the French revolution serves as the backdrop of the show, very little of it influences the motivations of characters. In Bonsai Pop's own words, despair and loss are the focus of the story, and the despair and loss that the characters feel aren't those born specifically from an unfair system, but ones that are caused by the actions of individuals and their own weaknesses. Even trying to use vampires as an analogous stand in for parasitic bureaucrats doesn't fully work because the show uses several characters to emphasize the internal humanity someone can display even when physical humanity is stripped away. So, it seems more accurate to say that Castlevania Nocturne has politics in it, than to say it is political.

[@jamesszasz2535]

Crazy that anyone could think a story set during the French Revolution wouldn’t be political, the whole idea of vampires from the outset of Dracula is that the nobility were parasites on the masses and the French Revolution was about (in large part) killing said parasites, and you then parallel this to our protagonists killing actual vampires, not exactly subtle

[@Alacaelum]

It is beyond not subtle, during the mansion invasion with Richter and co, I was thinking... "they are killing blood sucking parasites that prey on the weak and vulnerable for their own profit and amusement using the trappings of culture and refinement"... that isn't subtext, that is just text. Don't get me wrong, I don't believe in "subtext is for cowards", that is actually stupid, but the "allegory" is so on the nose that it is paradoxical.

[@Roark787]

Leave out the events of the Reign of Terror, and your "political art" is being disingenuous of the full actual events directly caused by the Revolution. They were literally just slaughtering people after getting their way and paved the way for the rise of Napoleon, effectively putting them back under the equivalent of a monarch with absolute power. Personally, it be funny as Hell in a darkly tragic way to have the main cast witness the people they were fighting for degrade into such acts of bloodshed.

[@ericschuller908]

I love how people are throwing fits about it being a political season but only bring it up in regards to Annette being black. Aristocrats are getting their heads chopped off after generations of exploiting people and that's somehow not as political as a black girl being featured in the show as one of the main characters.

[@BrandonShea-ux5fk]

Viva la Résistance.

[@Z-Man7]

@@ericschuller908 Maybe the show called Castlevania should actually be about Castlevania, just a thought.

[@Alacaelum]

You know, there is one thing that bugged me about people's opinion about the 1 season... the perceptible lack of patience and comparing a ongoing narrative with one that is complete, acting like the first one didn't had any bumps in the road. The first series is amazing, i love it, i really don't have anything bad to say about it, but it start or execution was not perfect, the first season had only 4 episodes and was more of a shot in the dark to get attention, which worked. Nocturne, had a much more solid start, sure like you said... we kinda started after the beginning... but so did the first series, we don't see Trevor journey to become an accomplished hunter, he already was, even at his lowest point he was still an incredible fighter and strategist, he was young all thing considered, but not Richter young. What i think affected Nocturne popularity really is... that people still wanted a direct continuation of the first series, i notice this for years now... people don't want new characters, even when the claim to want new characters, they just want new stories with the same characters. Nocturne isnt a perfect story, i will never claim that, but it still is a great story. With all that said let me leave something clear... i am not trying to preach for "truth", if you have your opinion i entirely respect that, but i need to say this now, because when this series got all that dislike and even hate in the first season it... got me down, i really like this second series since the start, i saw the little flaws, but it was really fun and i was ready to see the story continue, but people were acting like what we got was all that would ever be, and what we got was a sacrilege, i didn't share the feeling so it left me sad.

[@porridgeramen7220]

ironic that theyre ragging on the story being incomplete when season 1 of the original was equally incomplete

[@ChadKakashi]

You liked season 3? Where practically nothing happens? I’d have to say, the first show started stronger.

[@Alacaelum]

@ Ok, in advanced, sorry for the wall of text, but i want to be as precise as i can with my opinion. I like everything, but as i said... the first series isnt perfect. But as far as i can say at this moment, were I don't have every one of those details fresh in my mind, they were minor things, mostly because of how many episodes per season the series had. But most of all... it is how I see a serialized story... when I go to a story like this one, where the story follows a narrative, but it is divided in seasons, I know that I won't see the entire story in that season unless the creator say "this is the final season", I know that what I am seeing is one part of the story. Sure... I know the season has to have a structure, it has to have a primary plot, and secondary ones, and has to develop and complete those, but unless it is the final season of a story, I know that I only will have one fragment of the story, so I put all that in consideration. I don't expect to suddenly have all the answer, or that the story HAS to tie all its threads, I wait and see. In the first season of the first series, the only thing it did for me was make me want to have more of it, we didn't have anything of Trevor, Sypha or Alucard, much less Dracula. Trevor and Alucard banther only came in play in the second, Sypha's true awesomeness only was show then, Isaac and Hector only came around then too. To me... wanting everything in a single season equates to wanting nothing, I control my expectations, I see what I am given... and work with it.

[@Raziel312]

Yeah, the French Revolution did create a government by the people, for the people.. eventually. VERY eventually. But first came The Terror. Then rose Napoleon who came to power because he could slap the plebs back into place. But after the whole turning France into an Empire with Napoleon as Emperor thing.. sure, liberty and democracy.

[@daralic2255]

Now I do believe that’s what season 3 will touch on. A big bad using political and social chaos to gain power and lead people astray

[@LazarSoljaga]

I remember the original Castlevania making it pretty obvious that its only the first half of a story. Even tho they didnt have season 2 confirmed.

[@marekantonin7850]

Funny how Maria uses almost the exact same words as Carmilla did "Stupid/mad old men"

[@tyriqgreen9487]

Season 3 is gonna be dark and more complex having richter, Annette, maria, alucard, juste, tera, olrox confronting old man coyote who is the embodiment of Satan manipulating the scenes involving maria and tera in the mix and alucard has not notice it yet of this ever present evil in the shadows.

[@Catalanskrr]

Nah bro, I really don't think a third season would make sense. Where would the story go? They currently have no big goal you know. I fucking loved the second season man. Would be happy if we got a 3rd one, but I can't find any sense to it.

[@robertwest8033]

​@@CatalanskrrSo the writers have confirmed that the goal for Nocturne was to eventually do a symphony of the night adaptation. They only reason they resolved everything was because there not guaranteed a 3rd season. But I think there's plenty of open threads to pick the story back up. It just depends on how well this season dose.

[@Catalanskrr]

@@robertwest8033 what exactly happens in symphony of the night?

[@robertwest8033]

@Catalanskrr You should play the game or watch a timeline video to get the full story. You start the game playing as a suped up Ritcher fighting the end boss from Rondo of blood. That's the prologue. Then u play as a suped up alucard for the first 5 minutes till death appears and takes all your equipment. Then you explore the castle, fight bosses , find equipment that helps access new parts of the castle. Most of the story is told though the boss encounters.

[@drewcifur3443]

Lol more like Annette and maybe Maria will confront old man coyote while richter and Alucard hold their k

[@thelegendofner0]

Another important thingy in the heroes journey is the "Want". The want is kinda a false belief for the hero to achieve his dream or goal. Of course the hero fails to achieve his goal with his want, thus he needs to sacrifice it. This sacrifice turns the want into a need: not what the hero wants, but what he needs. And in doing what he needs to do, he usually achieves his goal/dream. Interestingly the villain most of the time has the same want as the hero, but he never sacrifices it, thus never discovering his need and thus fails to achieve his goals (is defeated in the end) All of this is very noticable in the first seasons of the first Castlevania series.

[@Icynova]

I was warded off Nocturne by your last video. Looks like it’s time to correct that error. Thanks for the update!

[@ryandaviddaley4989]

Come on Konami! Give us more Castlevania!

[@AlienToppedPancakes]

10:25 Yes, want a video on Annette! Whenever there's a lot of research and cultural aspects surrounding a character, and the media depicting that character is either really good or really bad, then it's totally worth exploring the source of those inspirations to get a better understanding and to see where it comes from. Always worth learning.

[@meowy2k]

this season was amazing

[@kingdomhreats23]

Did people really think season 1 was a complete storyline?

[@stoop..kid..]

So glad you guys are still doing it. Hope to see some more of the signature break downs this year.

[@kyluki9962]

Definitely want to see another video on Nocturne as whole. Either to deep dive into some of the stuff jist toucjed upon here or just to gush and nerd out over all the cool shit. Really wish this season had like two more epidodes to flesh out the new group dynamics. Juste and Maria, Alucard and Richter dynamics had a lot of potential.

[@Cathmore0]

I really liked season 2. It's still not as good as the original series, but I think it's mostly due to not getting enough time with the much larger cast of characters and a slightly lower animation quality(it could just be the art style). I am excited to see what happens in season 3. Maria might be chill for now, but it looks like she's going to be a Season 3 or 4 villain.

[@Catalanskrr]

I have the same opinion, but bro some of the fights are fucking delicious when it comes to animation. Will there really be a season 3? What's their goal for season 3, did I miss something?

[@jdolce7898]

Your video roasting the first season of Nocturne is seared into my brain, so it's very interesting to see this view of season 2. I'll go into season 2 with an open mind now.

[@jeffcowan2773]

The French Revolution did not create a democratic nation "by the people, for the people." The French Revolution resulted in Napoleon rising to power, a literal Emperor. An absolute monarch. It was the American Revolution which created a democratic nation "by the people, for the people." Well, at least in theory. ;)

[@peetsaman8889]

7:21 I don’t know how anyone can watch season 1 and possibly reach your conclusion. It literally ends with a cliffhanger how could you think season 1 was all there was gonna be?

[@deathdoor]

I think it's because the first season had a more standalone feel to the individual seasons.

[@Lovellyoungwolf]

Yeah I agree with you. I have no idea how anyone could watch season 1 and not realize it was a cliffhanger ending. Like really?

[@TylorHuebner]

I think he more just means: season one was really unsatisfying as a product by itself. Season one is pretty much all set up and building action and while I personally liked it a lot (minus some weird limited animation) I can see why some wouldn't have vibed with it enough to be patient for the payoffs in season 2

[@abcde6081]

That was genuinely the worst summary of the French revolution I have ever heard in my life lmao.

[@mc0014]

Poor Maximilien Robespierre, what a sad fate for someone so dedicated to the symbol of the revolution /s

[@SwitchMaxFX]

Do better then. Explain.

[@jameshall1600]

Not the original commenter but I'll take a stab at it. Simply put one can explain it like this death and chaos lead to more death and chaos until after far too much death and chaos the broken people left in its wake managed to piece together the broken remainders into the imperfect system they have today. Don't get me wrong I am not now nor will I ever defend monarchy or aristocrats I'm very proud of my country overthrowing one tyrant and placing a man in charge who was thank God not tempted to become another or if he was didn't give in to said temptation not going to pretend to know what went through Washington's head but at the end of the day I have found that political revolutions that sway to far to either side end in death and destruction.

[@Roark787]

@@SwitchMaxFX Well, in terms of linking the narrative context of the show with it's real world counterpart― After deposing of the blood thirsty aristocracy, the people of the Revolution will quickly degrade into an era of paranoia and hair triggered blood shed, dubbed 'The Reign of Terror' due to the growing fears, distrust and insanity within the Revolutions leaders, via Robespierre. Basically, the humans threw out one set of blood thirsty monsters, only to find themselves degrading into something similar afterwards, and paving the way for a man to seize absolute control over everything (Napoleon) and effectively putting France back under a new type of monarch/dictator.

[@jessmith7324]

@@jameshall1600 Facts!

[@brontesaurusrex7235]

Note to self: Bug y'all into watching The Rose of Versailles

[@Lovegearss]

I was shocked how much of a improvement this was to the first season. It wasn't reach the heights of the first three seasons from OG,but I am excited what they'll do next. I wonder if they're gonna adapt evil richter. There so much story potential they can explore if they do.

[@grandadmiralzaarin4962]

I think it's good, but I do think the first series of Castlevania anime does a lot better with the character development and pacing.

[@Roark787]

If Nocturne doesn't go into the events of The Reign of Terror, then I ain't bothering. If you're going to use real world political events, you better not hide the whole picture.

[@chris_kyleartist279]

Lost his humanity??? Did you watch the show?? His whole thing is being a Night Creature that retains his humanity….are you purposely saying these things just to get people to comment?

[@tensai_kodai]

I think season 2 did a great job closing up some of the plot holes from season 1. Looking back, it was strange that the main cast went to the Abbey to destroy the Machine… when the Night Creatures were not much of a pressing issues compared to Erszbet blocking out the Sun for all her vampires… I loved how Season 2 expanded on the universe like the original series did with the Infinite Corridor. Showing us realms of different Gods and explaining their interactions with each other and Earth. And those ending fight scenes were blowing my mind!!! I can’t wait for season 3!!

[@-Sparagmos-]

There has to be a season 3. This was so good.

[@zianawind2970]

Good. Do the video on Annette since you already have a cue it’s a win win go for it. I really enjoy the videos on less known subjects and you do them well so I look forward to you jumping on the opportunity

[@Emolokz]

We already know the shadow is Mephistopheles. This is told to us when Olrox sends the book of the forgemaster back to hell...

[@chronicallyartsy]

The reason why a lot of game fans are mad is that they aren't even ""adapting"" Castlevania anymore. Even the games with more simpler stories, they don't even use what's there. It's its own thing, and it's not even that good as it's own thing. There was so much potential here, and it all got shot to hell and back.

[@monkey238]

Bro said this wasn’t the adaptation he wanted either, but given what it was, it felt good for the time and place.

[@lonelywolf5659]

​​@@monkey238 how because richter is the last belmont in the games, there's no more belmonts. After him they can't use the whip, because he got cursed and he's supposed to be the most powerfully, I don't see that in him to be honest. Hell they nerft the whip so badly that Dracula couldn't even be fazed by it. When in the games he was so scared of it, he had to put a curse on it.Just so they can f*** off. That made the church and other people rise up to go fight him. So I don't see why people are like a little disappointed richter, supposed to be really freakin powerful. And during that time with Camilla, they're supposed to show the other branch from the Belmont, you know, the people I forgot their names, but the warmth of the spear and the whip from bloodlines, they rose around, they are a part of the belmont's butt. If they use that whip, it kills him. Because they're not fully. Like, this is all so weird. And when the curse got broken, it took his son to go inside the whip and fight Richter, and he says, thank you 4 relieving the curse. In continuing near bloodline, I don't see that happening here. Then the last belmont, from the modern age, finishes off dracula for good that time. That he reincarnates and becomes a regular person. See how people are kind of little mad about that

[@Alaspooryorick98]

Ima just be real with you. If you think the writing for some snes games was genuinely worth a 1:1 adaptation then cope LMFAO

[@turbakon8]

The anime can be its own thing, you want the story of the games then the games are available. l like the story of the anime even if it deviates from the established lore.

[@SleepyMook]

@@lonelywolf5659you forgot Julius who is truly the last Belmont since he’s the one who finally managed to kill Dracula for good.

[@ALL4ONE5288]

tera is still alive just a vampire and possessed by the cayote man.

[@chris_kyleartist279]

I don’t think she’s possessed I think he’s just influencing her.

[@paperboy1116]

Very late, but I am glad that you came around to Nocturne, Mike, especially with pointing out that Nocturne felt split in half-I feel that way about the first Castlevania anime’s first two seasons. But with that said, much like its predecessor, Nocturne season 2 added so much to its series that there’s WAY too much to talk about in just one video. Even if this one doesn’t do insane numbers, I hope you guys find the time, passion, and energy to do another! Annette has so much going on with her and Richter’s arc is particularly interesting in contrast to Trevor.

[@NinetailPhoenix]

Yes, when you have to time and mental bandwidth I would love an Annette video

[@thamsanqajantjies2228]

Castlevania season two was incredible. Brilliant story and epic fights.

[@TheCreepypro]

glad to hear that now that both parts are out it feels much more complete and worth watching, gonna have to give it a go now and hopefully this video does well so we can hear more of mikes thoughts on it!

[@BradleyLayton7]

I love you, and wish you free healthcare regardless 😂💙

[@cyphruss]

Castlevania - Aura of Holy Might (2/3/2025 - 3 Previews Available Now)

[@jonathany6359]

Keep the Castlevania Nocturne content coming Mike! Also, perhaps consider discussing Chevalier D'Eon, and its parallels to Nocturne via the French Revolution and how the two cover similar events. Fascinating material, and very much keeping the present in mind.

[@timmynoir]

I wanted to like this more. The politics of it was fine, kind of wanted more of it. The plotting just felt very "Disney Marvel" to me. Bring the heroes together to fight the villains in big fight sequences with basic set pieces and quippy banter inbetween. None of it was all that bad, a lot of the fight sequences were very well animated. It didn't really feel like Castevania. They threw out all of the Rondo of Blood/Symphony of the Night storylines and just used the characters we know from them. They still don't use any of the creature designs from the games. They barely used any of the music, something Castlevania is best known for. In the end it's fine, but if they changed the names and some character designs, it would be a decent gothic action/fantasy romp. I'm interested where its going after this. If they conclude Nocturne with season 3, it'd be interesting for them to use Bloodlines/The New Generation as the next story arc if they want to stay with the politics, what with the WWI background. But then again, that's where Elizabeth Bathory was supposed to be the main villain.

[@Kurotaisa]

12:28 i thought robespierre was executed because he went mad with power and was executing a lot of people?

[@komerihimura]

Yes he did, I think a year or two after King Louis was executed too

[@panthekirb7561]

​@@komerihimura You got to give the French props for this. In many other countries a person like him would be a dictator for life yet the French removed this monster and treated him like he deserved.

[@Z-Man7]

This franchise has a mountain of lore and storylines they could have pulled from. I went into this series expecting Rondo of Blood and to lead into Symphony of the Night. Instead we got French revolution fanfiction and Ricther Belmont with mommy issues.

[@j.l.5966]

THIS RIGHT HERE. Damn disappointed at the fan fiction 🤦🏽‍♂️

[@motherplayer]

Admittedly, given how loosely thing have been adopted before, it really shouldn't be all that shocking it's still it's own thing with some elements from the games. It's not quite something like the "Resident Evil" Neflix series that really just seems like it was just using the brand name to sell an entirely unrelated story, this still FEELS like Castlevania where it counts and can be identified as such. Though I also admit I wasn't a fan of the first season because it was more a moping session before confidence came near the end of the season. Also, it really doesn't do the "rude" vibe as well as the previous series. It's efforts come off more awkward and just there because the previous series was crass.

[@cloudbankcity]

bruh what story 😭 Castlevania is all gameplay and "kill the big bad vampire" all over

[@mirrorzone5224]

The game story is ass. Sorry not sorry. Also there's no way Nocturn could have possibly executed a faithful adaptation of RoB and SotN. The first Castlevania series changed Dracula into an actually interesting and sympathetic character who became a better man. He no longer has the sauce to be the big bad anymore. What's he going to do, go against the wishes of his wife and son and try to annihilate humanity AGAIN? We already saw that story. It was cool, but it's done now. Let him have his peace. Personally, I kind of hate that the first show actually brought him back from Hell. He should have stayed there with his wife were they could chill and not be bothered by the world's problems. Now he's a Deus ex Machina waiting for when the plot needs him to bail out the heroes of some future story.

[@myduckisonqauck7227]

​@@cloudbankcityThanks for letting us know you've never played a castlevania game.

[@jaythegemini]

This show couldn’t have come out at a better time

[@HeroicJei]

I didnt expect anything from Nocturne. Warren Ellis is a genius so the first series reflected that. Without him i had no will to try it.

[@baconberries8097]

I think each of our 3 main characters also represents a part of Sekhmet's soul; war, retribution, and healing. But they each needed to learn the other two aspects to become balanced. (Yapping alert) Richter represents healing. He wants nothing more than to protect the people he cares about because he was unable to save his mother, but he's unable to do so to the best of his abilities until he can overcome his trauma (and what I think was an inferiority complex.) In doing so, he finds the will to fight when things get tough, and the ability to take his retribution from Olrox. In the final battle, he even decides to let Annette go, and accepts the fact that she may not survive being Sekhmet's avatar because he knew Annette wouldn't want him to get hurt trying to stop her. Annette represents war. She's willing to give life and limb for her revolution, but she never really considered that she was putting lives in danger other than her own, and she lost Edouard because of it. She had to realize her abilities were not meant to just destroy her enemies, but also to connect with and protect others. In the end, it was her reaching out to Sekhmet's third soul that let the heroes achieve victory, and not her abilities as a fighter. And lastly, Maria is retribution. But the thing is, she hasn't achieved balance like the other two. She's still obsessed with destroying the old system, which the revolution has deemed completely and absolutely evil. She thinks that the old system is completely at fault for all of society's issues, and their involvement with the vampires has only reinforced that belief. I think that Juste's guidance and her regret from killing the abbot has gotten the ball rolling, but she's not as far along as the other two. They could make a super compelling plot line out of this in the third season.

[@Book_worm.75]

So we got the Dune treatment, whereby part 1 established most of the characters and some of the story, and then part 2 just capped and made it whole. Just like Dune Part 2, not many characters were introduced, Feyd, the emperor, Irulan, and chani's friend were introduced. Other characters we knew from part 1, but they were now more flashed out

[@noirangel6416]

While not perfect, this season really amped up alot of what the first season built up on. Plot, character arcs, animation. I'd even argue it has the best fights of either series. (There i said it) And I liked the growing romance between Richter and Annette.💙

[@chris_kyleartist279]

Not a telekinetic sword. It’s his Familiar.

[@Erickrojastang]

I have no attachment to the games, and I still think these are great shows on their own right, I think the first Castelvania series was great, but Nocturna still keeps a great story and flesh a lot the villains best part of the series in my opinion, thanks a lot for share your views on it

[@FelipePalha66]

My only experience with Castlevania Is playing Lord of shadows 2. I gave a chance os nocturne s1 bc the original show s1 wasn't that spectacular (compared to later seasons) either but s2 made me lose all interest, all fireworks, stuff happening on a blink with little to no investment with the sole exception of Annette's power up, by the end it seemed they were more focused on creating setups than telling a story. I am not looking forward for next seasons, will watch them to see if gets better but I'm not craving for more

[@SleepyMook]

I’ve played the games (my favorites being Symphony of the night, Aria of Sorrow, Rondo of Blood and Order of Ecclesia) and honestly the series is okay but it’s far from a good adaptation that many people claim it is. Seasons 1 & 2 are the most faithful to the games but past that is when they really stopped following the games or only loosely followed them and when I lost interest in the show. They’re decent shows in their own right but personally as a fan of the games, im not a huge fan of them all that much. I can however appreciate the series to keeping interest in the franchise alive in a period of there being zero games releases by Konami.

[@anitaremenarova6662]

@@SleepyMook Idrc honestly, if the writing is good that's all that matters. Everyone loved OG Castlevania show even if it wasn't faithful to the games whatsoever.

[@SleepyMook]

@@anitaremenarova6662 again power to them, i’d a rather a more faithful adaptation in couple with good writing but eh, at least it’s keeping the franchise alive and hopefully drills a hole into Konami’s thick head that people want a new game.

[@anitaremenarova6662]

@ That's what I'm saying, obviously both would be ideal but it's not netflix witcher levels of bad that makes you wish it'd rather never be made.

[@Shonenboiss]

Castlevania Nocturne Season 2 was Very Solid. I feel the creators took the criticisms of S1 and improved the quality of the show for season 2. Juste and Maria’s Grandpa/Granddaughter dynamic was one of my favorite additions to Season 2

[@Jon_East]

Here to leave some positive vibes. Really glad you enjoyed this season! It's my personal favorite out of all the Netflixvania we got so far. And makes me hopeful we might get a Shanoa or (more likely) Soma series next.

[@anitaremenarova6662]

It wasn't as good as OG Castlevania but they improved a lot on the disaster of last season.

[@Jon_East]

@anitaremenarova6662 Disagree, but that's the nice thing about subjective tastes!

[@anitaremenarova6662]

@@Jon_East It was too rushed and they made Alucard too incompetent and rude for me to enjoy it. You do you though!

[@tomo8940]

I'll never forgive them for turning one of the most shounen like protagonists into an edgy crybaby. He was suppose to be the next Joseph Joestar what a joke of a characterization. The writers deserve to get hate.

[@er9779]

Oh, so you wanted a cartoon when a teenager is just the perfect indestructible hero from, like, birth. Wow, that sounds like a really unwatchable show. Eight episodes of no character development at all. We missed out on that, thankfully.

[@tomo8940]

@er9779 He was never suppose to be a teenager lol. Only hot topic/Twitter stands like you made him into one because of "muh epic dark fantasy" show. Trevor was loved because he wasn't that which is why season 1 was so beloved. And Nocturne screwed that up from the beginning. Though I hope you enjoyed that show because it's the last time you'll see something like that ever again lmao 🤣. You're in the minority with bad taste in writing.

[@david.9633]

Thanks for the episode

[@DamienAlexander-Ducroix]

So where does Tera fit into this narrative though? She was forced to become a vampire by her daughter being in danger, and she didn't exactly dance to Erzesebet's tune.

[@monkey238]

Anime is almost always political, people who think otherwise are simply ignorant of the larger themes at play. Artists are political creatures, generally because they struggle under regimes that do nothing but actively work against their best interests. It’s why so much anime is about struggle against corrupt power.

[@neoasura]

There's a difference in being politically nuanced, which a lot of anime is, and then having politics shoved down your throat, which people don't like regardless of the political spectrum.

[@sadderall8]

​@neoasura how is politics being "shoved down your throat"? sounds like you have a gagging fetish 😂

[@rc59191]

Lol Gundam Wing was my Game of Thrones as a kid so I learned all about politics at a young age because of that and other Gundam shows from the Universal Century timeline. Any good anime should have some sort of underlying message but with Castlevania Nocturne it's less about the message and more about the action.

[@Jamal-bl7yh]

To Be Honest I'd Rather Watch Nikki on KZbin which I'll do later In the year but Castlevania Nocturne was pretty Badass low key

[@smougy]

I know in the grand scheme my comment and number doesn't mean anything here but I'm choosing to stop watching your content. You are unable to talk about politics without being political and you insulted a core group of your audience. Thank you for the quality content you have made that I have enjoyed but this will be the last time I watch a video of yours.

[@Drakno2]

The first of the 4 seasons of the original castlevania series also was just introducing the characters and wasn't complete before the second season (season 1 ended with Trevor and Sypha waking and fighting Alucard if I recall) so why did you expect the first season of Nocturne to be a self contained story? I always saw season 1 as setting up the board so to speak so I was always fine with how it was. I think the next parts will introduce Shaft who will be the corrupted soul of Maria's dad whose soul and remains old man coyote claimed who with the cooperation of Terra might possibly manipulate Richter like what happens in SoTN

[@1Deep43VA]

You always start off on the wrong foot when you come off as combative. Not saying you are. I’m just saying, I read “Deal with it” and I automatically want to resist

[@monsaemon]

Other’s feelings are not their responsibility. It is good to think about language and communication, but politeness politics doesn’t achieve results. See the Democratic Party as a whole as an example.

[@1Deep43VA]

@ No one said it was his responsibility. I think it’s just good advice if you want to grow a channel and/or not potentially alienate your audience.

[@neoasura]

@@monsaemon We must've been in different circles, because being called an uneducated white privileged male without even knowing who I am as a person was far from the "politeness" that you think the Democratic Party is. People didn't vote for Trump because the Dems were polite, come on now.

[@monkey238]

@@1Deep43VAthey’ve constantly reiterated that they aren’t interested in appealing to the majority. They’d rather take the hit in subscribers than compromise the message they’re trying to put forward

[@1Deep43VA]

@ Well, I tip my hat to him then.

[@sablenance64]

I’m a huge Castlevania fan. the animation was amazing but i hated the story and thought it was dogshit.

[@EmrysMerlin8807]

I dunno man. Just seems like Nocturne gave up quality storytelling in lieu of sending a message.

[@anitaremenarova6662]

Not really? The second season was good, easy 7/10 if full numbers maybe 7,5/10 otherwise.

[@rc59191]

Yep I figured that out when in season 1 they were talking about casting aside the "god of the whites" it started out as a good show now they're inserting modern politics back into it.

[@EmrysMerlin8807]

@ The problem is that it's a 7/10 when it could have been a 10/10 if the writers hadn't leaned in so hard to the message that they forgot that no one's going to care about the message if the story is barebones.

[@kid_mishka]

​@@rc59191Y'all are the most sensative cry babies. You hear white and fall to pieces. The French revolution and the uprising in Haiti are real. Slaves and poor people rising up and fighting against their oppressors only upsets the oppressor.

[@b1merio]

The show was fine. Not as good as the previous series. But it was fine.

[@arilumani6194]

0:57 Hey, hey, hey, cheer up Mike. There's the Silent Hill 2 remake which is really good and there are 2 new Silent Hill games coming out soon. There's also the upcoming MGS 3 remake which looks promising. Guess you could say Konami is entering a bit of a renaissance. Hopefully this also means a new Castlevania game in the future.

[@nobodyexceptme7794]

Season 2 was much better than season 1 they used the budget better as well.

[@rus.t]

I really liked Season 2 more than Season 1. Probably the only thing Season 1 did better than Season 2 would be Edouard's songs. Despite not knowing French, his singing scenes in Season 1 felt better for me.

[@tacoman1690q8]

Season 1 would have increased in quality if they cut all of Annette and Edward. That’s how a lot of people felt back then and it’s still true. Now that season 2 finished they earned theirselves an apology tho. they cleaned them up well obviously if they where cut from season 1 season 2 would have suffered. Honestly the whole series was doomed from the start due to not being able of having Dracula

[@rammisalami]

That ending was what I enjoyed. It’s real. Life isn’t always sunshines and rainbows for most people. That’s what makes redemption and fighting for your morals so worthy a battle.

[@Raziel_Hijikata]

I just speedrun the entire season 2 in one night so I could watch your video on it lmao. Ironically my opinion went the opposite of yours. I went from liking season 1 to not liking season 2 as much. I felt like you were correct in the first video that the formula and lore were just too different from established Castlevania so I couldn't enjoy it as much. The action was good at least and the monster designs were top notch especially all the dragons. It could've used more whip and cowbell but it is what it is.

[@1908d2]

great insight. love it. at least I aint the only one who saw the political slant in this season and was ok with it.

[@andresjpedroza5884]

Wtf… “telekinesis sword”, is his familiar 😵

[@Eliagiulio]

I gotta say, while I liked Season 2 more than season 1, Nocturne just suffers too much from the sins of its first outing. Richter and Annette especially never really get the chance to be properly built up into interesting characters as their introduction was speedrun in S1. And the worst part is that they have very little chemistry in a story where their bond of love is a central part of their character arcs. Maria I'm much more hopeful for. While she did kill one of the more interesting characters from S1 (the abbot), it does spur her character arc and with Robespierre at the height of his power after the execution of the king, I imagine the next season is gonna center around the period of the Terror in French revolution, aka the moment the ideals of the french dream got corrupted by infighting, bloodlust and paranoia. And I can well see a conflict brewing between Maria and Alucard based on their opposing view of Revolution, with Juste in the middle. I like that the show at the last second decided to take a more nuanced approach to the topic rather than showing the revolution as just happy times and liberty. The issue I still have with S2 is that does repeat some of the issues from S1 where some of the characters just don't get to shine as much as they should. I mentioned the abbot already (who still was one of the better cases), but Olrox and Edouard are similarly undercooked this season (tbf Edouard is barely interacting with the rest of the cast since his transformation. Really hate what they did with him) Ultimately, Nocturne suffers from a core cast that is both larger and not as strong as the OG series. Its first season is some of the worst serialized storytelling I've seen in a while imo, it's an absolute mess pacing-wise and doesn’t manage to establish a main cast in 8 episodes the way the OG managed to do in 4. Probably because Nocturne is so concerned with its overarching plot rather than its main cast imo. And while you called this season political, I don’t think it really was that much. Considering the setting, I would've honestly expected much more, but the only characters that really have a connection to the revolution are Maria and those connected to her story like the Abbot, Mizrak and Olrox. Most importantly, Richter has little to no interest in the whole thing and Annette doesn’t really have much input despite her backstory because she's too preoccupied by her personal struggles and those aren't lined up with the setting and events as well as Maria's. Legit, if they make a S3, I kinda want it to just focus on France (and the whole love/abuse dynamic Olrox and Mizrak have), I do not care for Richter, Annette and Edouard. Which imo just spells a failing on the part of the show, if I don't want to see more of the two main leads

[@FelipePalha66]

I have zero interest on Maria at all, she has no personality, her whole arc is going from perfect good kid to a insufferable angry brat in a blink, no build up and they tried to carry her angst scenes with over the top animation. I really wished that dragon got her.

[@anitaremenarova6662]

What? I'd much rather watch the crew that went into America, this includes Olrox and Mizrak.

[@TheIrishManXVI]

It’s just not a good show. We’re all grasping for things to like, which I understand cause this IP has huge potential, but there’s simply nothing there to sink your teeth into (pun intended)

[@anitaremenarova6662]

@ It is a good show (S2) but you're right that it has nothing on the greatness of the original netflix castlevania.

[@Eliagiulio]

@ That's fair. I think Season 2 would be much better if the characters actually got a base to stand on in Season 1, which makes the sequel hard to judge as a lot of it is just tainted negatively by the bad start

[@chrismiller8622]

Off topic and I know you're really busy but PLEASE watch Orb. You will feel fear, you will be horrified and you cry like a baby , sometimes all at once!

[@sanchocalleja2541]

It can be as political as it wants be... I just wanted a good show 😕

[@lebarak69]

All art is political in a sense, people just get triggered because they don’t want to admit they don’t want to consume that type of media. They also cry because they know that if they did stop watching anything progressive/left leaning they would have nothing to watch 😂

[@RankaZer0]

No it's a shallow and partisan perspective on media used by people who seek to further their ideology through cultural influence.

[@lebarak69]

@ imagine actually using your influence to further your own goals, crazy

[@godofsquirrels494]

I dealt with it by simply not watching

[@sadderall8]

.... ok???

[@Z-Man7]

Based.

[@roninjimojisan2572]

Would love mire depth. Wish I could give the review 5 stars

[@esteban5628]

Great comprehensive review

[@crisslymonster]

So good! Always love these videos!

[@ambersandboyland6240]

I'm really exited to see what they do with Terra and the Smiling Shadow Demon. Something is very wrong with Terra, but its unclear whether thats a result of her transformation into a vampire or her corruption by reading the abott's book and becoming linked to Mephistopheles. I have a feeling she might play a part in stoking the fear and hatred that leads to the French Revolution going completely out of control. Can't wait to see how it plays out, if we get a third season.

[@gabrielwalton4097]

I really enjoyed Castlevania Nocturne overall, not perfect by any stretch but a satisfying watch overall. i also like Annette's portayal, despite how different she is from the game. It is cool to see africa Religion and folklore brought in and used well :) 👍

[@Catalanskrr]

Dude i dont get the hate? Yes, season 1 really was a slow burner (but that was also like this in castlevanie) but season 2 is sooooo much better. Lets not forget the animation also lol

[@gerardesc7221]

I honestly found season kind of mid, story wise. For me Anette really didn't do anything for the last fight, I read people who had the feeling that she was just put in the bench and Drolta coming back to life was kind of unnecesary, like Ersebeth know about her plan, it wasn't really neccesary for her to come back.

[@Catalanskrr]

@gerardesc7221 I mean, she was helping from outside bro. Ich she would've died while fighting the beast, sekhmet wouldn't have been able to stay in her body. At least thats what I believe. I mean yeah, it would've been cooler if she herself would fight together with the other guys, but honestly all her feats she displayed throughout the seasons made me think that she wouldn't have had a chance to keep up with the others anyways. And yeah, i didn't need the purple haired bitch to get resurrected, but otherwise we wouldn't have had those crazy good fights lol 😂 Do you really think ersebeth knew the planned to take the powers?

[@WinspearUltima]

This is a cool video, I may check it out but I’m just waiting for the Saint Seiya video whenever it happens

[@ctdxii8007]

Yes, please, give us a deep dive on Annette's power system, we need it Bpop! Badly! With how surprisingly solid the original Castlevania was right out of the gate it's cool to see Nocturne has managed to pull itself together for season 2; this just put both seasons of Nocturne on my watch list! From clips I gotta give some kudos to the studio their use of shading and compositing. Compared to the OG's rather flat look the softer use of shadows really gives the series some blushes of Ayami's illustrations and looks genuinely fantastic in some shots.

[@malchionmajere]

Love the Castlevania stuff!

[@TheAntagonistHero]

Glad you came around on Nocturne The first season was all buildup and it really did pay off.

[@jasterthefathyena1843]

French metal band, Gojira, opened the Olympic ceremonies in France this year, doing a version of an old French revolution protest song, while performing on the side of the castle where Antoinette was beheaded, alongside actors playing out being the beheaded upper class..... Powerful messaging from an already awesome band, from a nation that apparently hasn't forgotten what happens when we willingly relinquish our power to the oligarchy. Meanwhile, over here, the right wing jingo's immediately saw 'metal band', 'headless' people', and accused the EU of being Satanists.... completely, and utterly missing the point, while inserting their own small viewed narrative (this is the same group, who demanded Jimmy Kimmel apologize for having Knocked Loose play, and scaring their teens with scary music, lol... it's 2025 and the PMRC is alive and well too, it seems). My point? Sadly, the people who need to understand these messages the most, any 'subtly' or reference to history and actual facts seems fly over their heads. It saddens me. Oh.... and my other point? Gojira is a fucking great band.

[@lebarak69]

No most people weren’t complaining about Gojira, it was about the mockery of the final supper in a supposedly “Christian” nation, nice omission btw

[@kami_in_the_skye]

Last Supper, dingleberry. If you're gonna pretend to care about it all this time after the fact, at least have the decency to get the name right. Which wasn't even the painting being referenced anyway (Also, y'all are gonna be *pissed* when you find about what Mel Brooks did to the Last Supper 45 years ago 😂). Christofascist cucks just want to self-victimize themselves, accuracy of the thing they're butthurt over be damned. Ironic.

[@Bane8877]

@@lebarak69Hardcore conservatives were calling Gojira satanic, and some conservative media groups. It was brain rot

[@maxkogan3785]

I feel I would enjoy it so much more if they improved on the voice acting. Some are great but a lot suck. Sometimes it feels like they're reading the script for the first time and told to do so as if they were as bored as possible. There were many awesome moments that fell flat for me because of the lack of emotion. I feel Annette suffers the most from this. She's such a cool character with an awesome backstory and refreshing powers (earthbending), but the VAs delivery is so very often out of tune with the scene that I tend to not like her dialogue that much. Some other characters have it way worse, but yeah I would say thats my biggest problem. My second issue was Alucard. They always made his power fluctuate to fit the plot, but they played that up more than ever with season 2. He goes from not even being able to cut Drolta to going toe to toe with that same drolta as 2/3 of a deity bc of a bloodlust boost (and btw she is stronger than Erzebeth since Erzbeth was just a vampire when she ascended). The inconsistency really bothered me. Other than that, the action was cool so Ive rewatched the battles a couple of times

[@snugsmchuggsly5449]

Ah yes the extremely shallow depiction of the French Revolution was “integral” Nocturnes themes. I could’ve gotten a much more interesting, in depth examination of the French Revolution through actual documentaries and with more interesting characters too with the historians over these puddle deep Castlevania uhh characters I guess?

[@kyluki9962]

Sorry, did you come to the pretty vampire martial arts anime to learn about the French Revolution?

[@er9779]

Puddle deep? That's the thing about art, movies, shows, books. What you get out of it is what you bring to it.

[@nuckle5525]

PEAK ANIMATION, PEAK FIGHTS, PEAK CHOREOGRAPHY AND PEAK CINEMA

[@hedgehoundable]

Good to see the turn around on Nocturne.

[@superanxiety261]

You can honestly use the major reactions to both castlevania shows as a weird little insight into the growing culture war and right wing influence on the internet. The stuff that was objectively political and woke about the first show, while it had its backlash, it wasn't nearly as vitriolic or loud as it is now. Oh and spare me the usual excuses cause the shit thats being said now is the same EXACT shit that was being said about the original show since season 2, it was just less people saying it. Also they hadn't started using dei as a buzzword yet. It's interesting yet alarming.

[@anitaremenarova6662]

The issue is this show's first season was atrociously bad, I'm saying this as a leftist. Even after fixing Anette's character I was still on my guard the entirety of S2 for her to say something rude for no reason but "luckily" they only decided to ruin Alucard's characterization this season.

[@Z-Man7]

Castlevania 2017 was still entertaining enough despite being written by someone who is left leaning. Warren Ellis is just a better writer than Clive Bradley. Nocturne has none of the good stuff from the original series.

[@Treesicle]

Gamers having gamer moments in the comments

[@Z-Man7]

Gamers kept Castlevania alive as a franchise this long, lmao

[@Seminooos]

Season 2 was definitely better than season 1 but it still doesn’t change my feelings that I had about season 1. Also I noticed how they went all in on trying to get the viewers to like, respect, and support Annette in season 2 after how atrocious and unlikable she was in season 1 but the damage was already done and too great imo and because of that I can never truly like her.

[@DragonBall-Manga-1984]

I am playing right now. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate on my SmartPhone

[@brownpanda8320]

Yo alot of people woke up grumpy this morning lol enjoyed the video 😶👍

[@FelipePalha66]

This is going to be an interesting watching because Nocturne's portrayal of the french revolution was so incredibly shallow and unimportant that it made Assassins Creed Unity portrayal good.

[@er9779]

It wasn't a show about the French Revolution, it was a show that took place during the French Revolution. If it had gone into a lot of detail about the French Revolution you would be complaining about that.

[@vicman3122]

Hey @Bonsaipop, guys thanks for your EXCELLENT WORK, I have a question for you, Have you watched Gun smith Cats??

[@joshbourne9679]

Vampires until of late have always been meant to represent the upper echelon of society. So it was a breath of fresh air to really see that in this adaptation and how yeah if vampires were real they would makeup a vast majority of the most powerful people.