Netflix has been making great strides in recent years to put animation back in the spotlight. Whether it be through anime or western animated series, the platform has helped to capitalize on a newfound appreciation for animation in the west.
One of Netflix's leading original animated series is Castlevania, which defied the odds of cursed video game adaptations by embracing adult animation as a format. Season four is soon to release, and it's confirmed to be the series finale. All three of the current seasons have received strong critical praise, and here are 10 exciting things about the finale and what may come afterward.
Alucard's Arc
Season three of Castlevania was an emotional and brutal one for many of the key players in the show, and Alucard took a good brunt of the brutality from a mental standpoint. With Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades off to adventure and help around the country, Alucard committed to reclaiming his family home, along with the Belmont ancestral home.
However, he gradually falls apart from the crippling solitude, and the two people he let in since season two viciously turned on him after convincing him of affection. He ended the season taking ominous strides toward a descent akin to his father Dracula's worst tendencies, and it'll be thrilling and gut-wrenching to see how he progresses and closes his arc in season four.
Carmilla Gone Feral
The development on Castlevania season four was largely silent this past year, with a major dry spell in news from last Thanksgiving very recently. Netflix officially revealed the poster for the final season and, soon after, a release date of May 13. The poster features the main players of the season.
The Vampire Queen of Styria and head of the Council of Sisters have been a driving force for everything that's gone wrong since season two after meticulously orchestrating a coup d'état on Dracula. Now with Hector under the Council's control, she's poised to wreak serious havoc, but her art in the poster suggests she's looking to get her hands even dirtier.
Isaac Confronting The Council
Isaac and Hector are the traumatized and tortured pair of humans from the darkest, cruelest aspects of people and bent the knee to Dracula. But, of the two, Isaac is the one with willpower and determination made of steel.
After Dracula's fall, his only immediate goal was to exact vengeance on Carmilla and her Council. As with the rest of the cast, fans saw Isaac's long path leading up this for season four, and, given their respectively daunting power and willingness for bloodshed, it should be a tense spectacle seeing them finally meet.
Isaac Confronting Hector
Of course, part of Isaac's grand revenge plot includes Hector, as well. He sees Hector as the weakness in the armor for being manipulated by Carmilla into overthrowing and getting Dracula killed, even if indirectly. While Isaac possesses the steely determination, Hector is the more naïve and childlike in terms of ideological outlook.
Given Hector's own cruel upbringing, his stunted emotional maturity is evident and even sympathetic to a degree, though, it's why he's been literally enslaved twice. Nonetheless, Isaac mounts some of the responsibility on his shoulders, making Hector a clear target for him to achieve vengeance.
Hector & Lenore's Dynamic
Speaking of Hector, he also got a brutal ending in season three at the hands of the Council of Sisters. After the torture of being Carmilla's slave, he somewhat got out of that trap only to run into another one in the form of Lenore the Diplomat. While it seemed after Carmilla that Hector would try to learn from his mistakes given the hostile territory he finds himself him, he only fell under the spell of another vampire.
Lenore tricked him into committing his Forgemaster skills to the Council by essentially a blood pact, with him thinking she genuinely fell in love with him. It's another step backward for him, and the season four poster suggests the two will be significant in the finale. Given the somber expressions on the poster and where they left off, it's anyone's guess as to how their "dynamic" will change or progress.
Alucard's Shield
Also with visual information given by the reveal, perhaps Alucard will ultimately triumph over the "sins of the father" fate at some point. The poster showed him equipped with his sword and an iconic shield that'll thrill fans of the video games. It looks like he'll trudge through his father's castle, as that shield features in the critically-acclaimed PlayStation classic Symphony of the Night.
It's the strongest shield attainable in the game, and it's described as his mother's family heirloom. It'd be a beautifully poetic way of having Alucard overcome his inner demons and, presumably, Carmilla's wrath by embracing aspects of both sides of his family, as Trevor alluded to in the series second season.
Simon Belmont Spinoff/Sequel
Though it's a little bittersweet to hear that season four will be the final one, as long as it ends on a strong note then it's preferred to burning out over time. On top of that, however, is the report that came simultaneously with the news of this being the finale. Apparently, Netflix is looking to produce another series set within the same Castlevania universe. Naturally, fans can't help but think that this will mean a series set in the future with another Belmont as the lead.
It makes sense, as the franchise is based on generations of House Belmont and a practically prophetic villain. Simon Belmont is another beloved character from the games—also the first protagonist—and he comes after Trevor. He could, at some point, meet Alucard, as the latter sticks around for ages canonically, but this show could still keep a generally new cast of characters.
Richter Belmont Spinoff/Sequel
Further down the line is Richter Belmont, a descendent of Simon who first featured in the game Rondo of Blood. As superficial as it may seem, the fact that both these Belmonts feature in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will certainly help to boost interest in potential series spinoffs.
A Simon series wouldn't have to run for four seasons, but maybe two seasons of 10 episodes could work before moving on to Richter. Richter even features in Symphony of the Night, so one season with him could work to loosely adapt Rondo and then build up to the latter game in a second. Of course, Simon and Richter could be adapted in one four-season-long show with a time skip partway through.
Alucard In Symphony Of The Night
Going directly off that last point, the grand finale season of this potential sequel show could serve as another loose adaptation, this time with Symphony of the Night starring Alucard once again. It could be done in a similar fashion, as Castlevania blended elements of Dracula's Curse and Curse of Darkness.
It'd be a great build-up to having Simon and Richter take the reigns in driving the story, ultimately culminating in the latter and Alucard teaming up in a Symphony-inspired arc. Up until then, he could have smaller roles in a Simon arc, then become a key protagonist along with Richter later, with these events coming full circle to the original show.
Game Of Thrones-Like Plot Convergence
Season three of Castlevania clearly took a page from the HBO phenomenon Game of Thrones in its strengths in narrative structure. Disastrous final season aside, the show was largely acclaimed, and one of those reasons was for how it handled multiple key characters having different plot lines that eventually converge in some manner down the line.
Since Castlevania is a much shorter series with slimmer runtimes, there weren't many characters being juggled at once, but what was tackled was executed well. Trevor and Sypha had one, while Alucard, Isaac, Hector, and the Council had theirs. Hopefully, fans will see a strong payoff in how these storylines collide in the upcoming fourth and final season.