Castlevania: Nocturne 2023 / Dynamic action and art direction liven up this familiar dark fantasy animated series

While this spin-off of Netflix’s previous Castlevania series doesn’t have the most interesting take on vampires, Nocturne’s stellar action scenes and its use of the French revolution as a historical backdrop are enough to give it a personality worth keeping an eye on beyond the first two episodes watched for this review. There isn’t all that much plot in these early installments, and neither are there memorable vocal performances that really capture these characters. But when the show has to be grisly and exciting (which is often), it hits the stake on the head. And even in its more static moments, the vampire characters cast a large shadow over everything, appearing exactly as seductive and monstrous as they’re meant to be—just like the aristocracy they’re meant to represent.