Castlevania: Nocturne Is Back, And Season 2 Marks Netflix’s Best Anime Ever
Anime fans might remember the air of skepticism when Netflix's first adaptation of Castlevania was announced ahead of its 2017 premiere. Time and time again, Netflix has proved their capability in handling what's become one of their hottest original animated series, and the second season of Castlevania: Nocturne is no exception. In fact, season 2 might make Castlevania: Nocturne Netflix's best anime yet.
Castlevania: Nocturne is a sequel to Castlevania. Both build on Konami's classic franchise by the same name, a mainstay of the video game world since the days of the NES. Now spanning more than 25 entries, Castlevania has provided ample grounds for a wide world the breadth of which has hardly been fully explored. It's transcended its video game origins to become a series worthy of a hands-off binge-watch. Castlevania: Nocturne has made that more apparent than ever with its latest season.
Castlevania: Nocturne Is Back, and It's Amazing
The Second Season Is Receiving Rave Reviews
The second season of Castlevania: Nocturne premiered on January 16, 2025. It comes a year and a half after its first season, which premiered in September 2023. Netflix decided to release every episode of the second season concurrently, and it's all there right now for viewers to enjoy. The first season of Castlevania: Nocturne received a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, but the second season outdid it, earning an effortless 100% across critical reviews.
From Castlevania: Nocturne's animation to the acting to the storyboarding, the second season builds up and out from the first. On every front, Castlevania: Nocturne is a force to be reckoned with, and even fans who might normally be turned off by it for one reason or another should give it a chance.
Castlevania: Nocturne Demands Your Attention
Netflix's Best New Anime Is a Must-Watch
Castlevania: Nocturne is nominally a horror anime. But much like Berserk and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, it transcends the horror label and captures so much more. Berserk is actually a convenient reference; the series has always drawn attention for its clear inspiration from Miura's classic horror-action manga, and Castlevania has frequently made references or allusions to Berserk in its different forms of media. From the first season of the original series, Castlevania has only been getting better over time.
Some anime fans are turned off by what can broadly be called anime-influenced animation: anime-influenced works encompassing as wide of a range as Blue Eye Samurai, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and The Boondocks. For its entire run, the Castlevania franchise has shown that Western animation is capable of convincingly capturing the magic of anime, and Castlevania: Nocturne is the latest testament to that fact.
With clean, gorgeous animation well-worthy of the likes of Ufotable and MAPPA, killer fight choreography, and a beautifully gripping story, anime fans across the board need to try Castlevania: Nocturne.
Castlevania: Nocturne - Season 2
- Release Date
- January 16, 2025
- Network
- Netflix
- Series
- Castlevania: Nocturne
- Episodes
- 8
- Season Number
- 2
Your comment has not been saved