Castlevania: Nocturne works out its freshman growing pains with a more focused and emotionally powerful second season that’s rich in monsters, mayhem, and dark magic.

“Despair will rot you from the inside out.”

Castlevania was an incredibly consistent animated action series for Netflix that helped kickstart the streaming service’s impressive track record with video game adaptations. Castlevania reached great heights that made it far more than just a vampire series or video game adaptation and the end of its run after four seasons was met with disappointment. However, the announcement of a spin-off that’s immersed in the lore of Rondo of Blood had many excited for the Castlevania universe’s expansion. Unfortunately, Castlevania: Nocturne’s first season was decent, but forgettable. It was perfectly fine, which is not exactly the benchmark that one strives for with a spin-off to a series that was so subversive and passionate.