10 most shocking moments from Castlevania: Nocturne
2) Comte de Vaublanc’s painful and slow death
If you say you didn’t cheer at this evil being’s demise, you’re lying. It’s not just the fact that he died, but how. Annette cages him with Christian crosses, preventing him from escaping his fate: to become barbeque. The name of the episode, “Natural Order,” is a big nod to what happens in this scene. Previously, Vaublanc had talked about how the world would be returning to its “natural order” when Erzsebet, the Devourer of the Sun, takes over. Then, vampires will enslave and control every town and kingdom. His argument for vampire superiority gets completely flipped on its head in this exchange.
The irony of having Annette, his former slave whose mother’s neck he snapped in front of her when she was a child, not only kill him but cage him — taking away his freedom, his sense of safety, leaving him stunned and scared of the impending threat of death — felt like the most satisfying, justified check-mate I’ve ever seen. Of course, he spills all the beans he can about Erzsebet, the Messiah, and her desire for world domination before he’s toast (hehe), but he dies feeling the same thing his victims did on his plantation as he tortured and killed them: like a caged animal with no control over their lives, waiting for death to knock. And death didn’t just knock for him, it tore the door off its hinges.
3) Edouard’s death
Though I was not a big fan of the little grieving song he sings to our sweet Maria as she buries her familiar, I was actually very sad to see Edouard die so soon. He seemed like he had so much more to give, and him dying felt premature.
Of course, Edouard does have more to do on the show, but as a night creature, a sentient night creature who can reach into the depths of the minds of vulnerable night creatures and remind them of who they once were. And, even though he dies in the second episode and it initially feels like wasted potential, his death is actually a great plot device to advance Annette’s character arc.
With Edouard’s unexpected death, Annette shows just how unafraid she is of facing her own demons. She wants revenge and eventually outsmarts the man she hated the most and ensures that he won’t be tormenting other little girls and their mothers anymore.
This is something Nocturne does a little better than the original series: the show humanizes the characters and make them very relatable, showing their vulnerabilities and flaws and how they all complement each other.
4) Edouard remembers who he was
Annette can’t catch a break. She not only has to see someone she loves die while she can’t do anything about it, but she then has to see said person come back as a night creature. At that exact moment, the resurrected Edouard undoubtedly saves her life by ripping another fellow night creature to pieces as it prepared to claw her to bits. The other night creatures sense that something is clearly not right with Night Creature Edouard and whisk him away to the abbey.
What a discovery: night creatures can be faulty. Edouard becomes more and more self-aware and remembers his past life, and is able to coax other night creatures to do the same thing. Annette talks about the fact he could see the color of people’s souls; maybe that ability has something to do with him being able to “break the spell” of the demon-making machine from hell that stays in the basement (that seriously needs to be a horror movie title).
Imagine the possibilities: night creatures can willingly fight back against their vampire creators and masters. That’s a real game-changer for Richter and company, and it could hint at a massive and epic battle that we could possibly see in the future.