WiC Binges: Castlevania season 2

Episode 1: “War Council”

I know that we don’t have a ton to go on, but I did not expect an episode of Castlevania to be mostly about table-setting.

On the one hand, I get it. The first season of the show was a success, so now Shankar — together with the other producers and writer Warren Ellis — has to find a way to make this show last. So in this episode, rather than stylish fight sequences and soapy plot twists, we get a long prologue about what happened to Dracula’s wife Lisa before she was burned at the stake, scenes of Dracula directing his war council, and the introduction of several new characters, including Hector and Isaac, Dracula’s human generals.

On the other hand, most of this was pretty dull, especially compared to the pressure cooker feel of the first four episodes. The prologue is the best part of the episode. Giving Dracula a sympathetic backstory is an interesting idea that could pay dividends down the line, and Lisa’s tale is appropriately harrowing. She’s a human doctor who genuinely wants to help people, but because this is 15th century Europe, the local clergy brands her a witch and kills her, earning Dracula’s wrath. The show can do a lot with that, but in this episode, it basically does nothing. There is no plot momentum here. I hope Castlevania remembers how good it is when it’s simple and moving along.

I can’t continue without talking about Godbrand, a Viking vampire voiced by Peter Stormare, a fine actor who’s appeared in everything from Fargo to Minority Report to Dancer in the Dark. This is not his finest hour. His voice work here is awkward to the point of distraction, stilted and halting, like he’s uncomfortable with not just his lines but with English. But hey, the first season of Castlevania was over the top in all the right ways; maybe we should treat Godbrand as a camp character?