BRING IT ON S2!! 🌕🌗🌔

characters who are absolutely depraved are fun, but you know what's more fun? characters who start off having deeply held moral beliefs but who become so obsessed with a goal that they compromise some of the most important parts of their beliefs in order to achieve those goals

and they cant turn back because they've gone so far now - if they admit that the ends didn't justify the means, they will have lost their soul for nothing

In defense of Abbot Emmanuel from Castlevania Nocturne

I've seen a lot of people saying that the Abbot sucks, and while they aren't wrong I feel like there might be a misunderstanding when it comes to his character in the arguments they provide.

I think he could've really worked as a very solid character AND villain if they'd just made some things more clear.

1. Above all else, he seems to believe that the church is more or less the source of goodness and light in the world and in humanity. He believes in human goodness but believes that it comes from a connection to the church and God. He clearly cares for the people in his church as well as the people close to him. This is why he's willing to go so far to defend the faith from the revolution. He doesn't ever really say anything about all that "natural order" shit that all the vampires and nobles spout about their place in the world. He also doesn't seem to be doing it to stay in power himself as we never see him really reveling in the benefits of being a wealthy priest.

2. He absolutely hates everything about what he's doing. He hates the vampires, he hates his night creatures, and he hates himself for making them. We also see that he treats the creatures as tools/weapons because he can't allow himself to treat them as anything else. If he starts thinking of them as anything else, he'll start turning further into the darkness that he's already stepping into in an attempt to save what he believes is true and good. Even his method of forging gets across how much he hates it. The other practicing forge masters we've seen use tools (they usually look like dope weapons too but primarily they are tools one would use for crafting). Hammers forge iron, blades cut wood and both are personal tools one would use to make art. However, his tool is a large machine, he barely has a hand in the process at all. He wishes to be as far away from the process as humanly possible. We see in the final episodes that everything he's doing is absolutely killing him. He cares about these people and his family. He recites the story of Isaac and Abraham begging God to let him save his daughter. Because in his mind it is his daughter or the world.

3. He's not stupid for making the night creatures for the vampires. I see this come up a lot and I'm not sure that people get why he's doing it. It's kinda subtextual but not really in that he's doing it because he knows that if he doesn't do it, then they will just find someone else. There aren't many forgemasters around I would assume but I would imagine that the ones that are aren't exactly upstanding citizens and even then I'm sure there are people that the vampires could convince to sell their soul for that power fairly easily. So, he wants to be in control of the vampire's army simply because he doesn't want it to be anyone else. Even if the person they enlist would also betray them its almost impossible that they'd have goals that are as morally "good" as the Abbott's.

Conclusion: I do think he needed to be written better. More time on screen explaining his motivations and aspects of his personality but still, I have a hard time seeing why people say the things he does don't make any sense, because like, they do to HIM and for a character that's what's important.

Castlevania Nocturne pt. 3

Love that Kat also did a young Abbot as well~ (one of our lovely artists on Nocturne)

ehehe he can join my drawing of him now

I would just like to say...

I blame him.

I don't blame him for all of it, but I do blame him for most of it.

Because seriously dude, what the fuck were you thinking?

writing this for all of the five people who care about this ship

Another… two things about the new Castlevania series.

One i like second… not so much.

I’m going to begin with the second one.

Am I the only one who’s constantly irritated by Maria? It may be partly because I’m Christian and it kida pains me when I hear people talking bad about the church. And I’m aware it’s not without its faults and that the girl was right this time… but that’s not what actually irritates me. What is annoying here, is the fact she doesn’t even try to stop and think otherwise… she’s just stuck with that one thought that nobles and abbot etc are evil and that’s all. She believes only in revolution and doesn’t see it also hurts innocents. It’s… sad.

The first thing, which I said I like, is the concept of Sekhmet. I remember researching both Vampires and gods of ancient Egypt some time ago for a fanfic and to help a friend with their book. And how Sekhmet, goddess of war, was in some way the first vampire. It’s nice to see that somewhere else than wikipedia or wherever I read about it (I don’t remember it was long time ago). Although it would be nice if it wasn’t Batory again… this one is actually clishe.

Oh, and I do like seeing grandfather-grandson relationship. I don’t see much of them in tv series or films, at least not good relationships. Or maybe I just don’t know where to look. 😂

i don’t care how evil this man becomes, or how badly he corrupts the church— that voice of his is just so perfect

ive seen a lot of people complaining that they dont like the voice actor for richter and its like... i didnt at first? it was odd hearing him initially considering how richter sounds in his other voiced appearances in games and other media, but as the VA got the chance to cry and scream and i listened to him more the voice just grew on me so i began to appreciate it more.

and i think that his voice sounding very boyish and nowhere near as rugged as trevors did is a very intentional decision. richter at this point is only 19 and very much still a boy in the eyes of most of the people hes going to be dealing with. and unlike trevor, richter didnt have to grow up really fast, thanks to tera adopting and looking after him. he had the chance to have a family, even if they weren't his direct relatives. trevor was on his own since he was about 12 or 13.

all this is to say: richter is not trevor. hes not witty, snarky and disillusioned. hes comparatively a lot more innocent than trevor was. hes softer. hes strong and stubborn too, but theres a gentleness there.

and honestly considering what happens to him between rondo and symphony?

hes going to lose that innocence. and its going to hurt. im excited to see what kind of shit hes going to be put through.

Just spitballin here about themes…

Thinking of Dracula being alone all that time and then he met Lisa, who encouraged him to travel and see the best of people, the same Dracula who tore down the Church for her, and Alucard being a manifestation of the love they had for each other

Meanwhile, Tera lost all who she knew and probably saw the lowest of low for humanity, met Emmanuel who was part of the Church who believed his own hypocrisy, and kept his love for Tera and Maria secret

Castlevania: Nocturne deleted scene

Mizrak: Abbot, I have a confession to make. Mizrak: Despite God's teachings, I...regularly have intercourse with the same sex. Abbot Emmanuel: Abbot Emmanuel: Mizrak...what part of the pact we have with Hell makes you think I give a shit

i really hope Mizrak from Castlevania Nocturne stays loyal to his faith through this series. He's a critical thinker and only becomes more sharp-minded as he develops in this first season, and i like the idea that his faith remains part of him in all he goes through. i don't know if you guys feel this way, but I like to think of Mizrak as a convert from Turkey who joined up with Abbot Emmanuel on his way to Malta. i guess i like the idea of him being a convert and taking great comfort in christianity for the same reason i love seeing trans women enjoy the gender i couldn't -- i'm not a christian anymore, but watching someone else pick up and embody the ideas that just couldn't exist within me feels like watching someone else fulfill a role i was taught only i could fill. but i could never have filled it! i was a bad christian because i wasn't happy there and i was a bad woman for the same reason. Mizrak being a good man and a good christian is an incredibly freeing depiction of that feeling that i didn't fail in giving up that life, that it just wasn't for me, but it is for someone, and that someone is going to do great things with it. i love Mizrak so much, i can't wait to see where he goes from here 💕

anyway. mizrak be upon ye

Happy Halloween. 🎃👻🧡🖤🤍

Castlevania Nocturne pt. 4

This is an edited repost of the Erzsebet Bathory character analysis I wrote yesterday that I refuse to let go to waste. I tried doing the right thing and tagging all of the necessary trigger warnings only for this post to be completely hidden from the Castlevania Nocturne and Erzsebet Bathory tags. Since I can't afford to tag the proper trigger warnings without being punished please do not read this post if discussions of rape or sexual assault triggers or upsets you in any way. I don't take these topics lightly and they are vital to this analysis of Erzsebet Bathory.

This post also contains major spoilers for this first season of Castlevania Nocturne.

This may seem presumptive of me to say but this thought has been stuck in my head for several hours: Erzsebet Bathory is the most rapist adjacent villainess I've ever seen without her actually being a rapist.

The first and smallest point against her is how often she mentions virgins. I know that Erzsebet's initial mention of virgin sacrifices is supposed to tie into the origin of her alter ego and consumption of Sekhmet but it's super fucking weird that it played into why she wanted to sacrifice Maria.

Next point against her is the lawyer's daughter. I'm not sure if this lady was a virgin but when she's first brought to Erzsebet she's already terrified and too dazed to fight back. It's obvious that she doesn't want to be there and that even if she did that she can't really express that desire. But Erzsebet still takes this lady out of a literal gilded cage, sits down and sits this lady on her dress to admire her despair before drinking her blood. The next time we see the lady she's still dazed. The only differences are that she's dolled up and seems more suggestible. Even with hundreds of people in this ballroom scene the lady is literally ignored by everyone except for Erzsebet who dances with her and parades her around for her own amusement. Everyone else knows that Erzsebet likes to make her victims suffer and they still refuse to acknowledge the lady because Erzsebet has made it clear that she's her possession. Hell the only person who is unhappy enough with Erzsebet to go rogue at this point is Olrox and he STILL IGNORES THIS LADY. When the lady is dragged outside to be fed on again without anyone batting an eye it reminds me of a rapist roofying their target and proceeding to do everything in their power to seem interested in their victim's well-being in order to take them to a second location. And no one speaks up since Erzsebet is the Harvey Weinstein, Prince Andrew or Thomas Jefferson of the vampire world; the embodiment of people in power getting away with abuse until the damage has already been done.

The last and biggest point against Erzsebet is the entire scene where she turns Tera into a vampire. For me personally that is just an allegorical rape scene and it's executed very well. Erzsebet makes her entrance at the abbey as a lioness of a woman, a literal predator who wants to take Maria as a sacrifice and turn her into a vampire to ensure Emmanuel the Abbot's loyalty. Tera protests and offers herself to Erzsebet instead. This is such blatant coercion that Tera refers to herself as the ram Abraham sacrificed to God instead of Isaac. And the only question or concern Erzsebet has at this point is if her sacrifice should be a virgin. The only reasons she accepts the sacrifice are Emmanuel's genuine love for Tera and the fact that Tera is a powerful sorceress. Once Erzsebet settles for Tera and physically lifts her to her level no one can stop her. Maria gets knocked out for trying and Richter gets bodied immediately after. Their only option is to get the hell out of there once Annette makes an opening and Richter rightfully runs for his life. Even Maria, the only person that could look back and see Tera turn, is knocked out and that feels like an intentional writing choice to give Tera one last shred of dignity. Erzsebet holds Tera really close in this sort of hug as she feeds on her and once she's fed she literally sits Tera on her lap for her turn to feed. Then Erzsebet cuts herself and the blood starts dripping down on Tera, starting at her skirt, going to her blouse and reaching her face. At first Tera doesn't react but then her body responds to the blood and she feeds even though she doesn't want to. Even though no one wants this for her. And that is exactly what it's like when someone has an unwanted orgasm. Tera's body is protecting itself the same way a victim of assault would and that paired with the blood on her skirt being reminiscent of the blood on a woman's thigh in the aftermath of an assault hammers home the rape allegory. It's very sad and uncomfortable to think of Tera's turn to vampirism this way but the thought lingers hours after like a grimy film on my brain.

I 100,000% believe that Erzsebet would have been an actual rapist if Netflix Castlevania didn't romanticize Lenore raping Hector and ending their relationship on friendly terms. Not to mention Sumi and Taka's sudden shift from allies to sexually assaulting Alucard out of spite. Castlevania Nocturne seems to shy away from rape and sexual assault in favor of allegories or moments so brief that I missed them unlike its predecessor. So I'm blaming the gratuitous depictions of sexual assault in Castlevania on Warren Ellis, the creator of Netflix Castlevania, who doesn't work on this show for a very good reason.

Everything from her size as Sekhmet to her tendency to torture women and girls before killing them contributes to the allegory of Erzsebet being the vampire equivalent of a rapist. She exudes power and not only does she enjoy making others feel helpless she's also great at it. She is a sadist without honor, willing to parade her lady victim of choice around vampire high society or hang a young girl on hooks to drain dry rather than let any of them die a quick death. The dragged out, needless suffering Erzsebet inflicts along with her preference for women and virgins frames her feeding as something more sexual in nature than the other vampire nobles who simply indulge in their gluttony. Even Olrox feeding on his former boyfriend isn't framed sexually, it's framed as a desperate, romantic gesture to keep his lover alive. And every vampire I remember from Castlevania has their feeding framed as a tool for political power or sheer, simple gluttony. Even the vampire general Cho was shown to be more of a tyrant or a general sadist clinging to power in Japan than a deviant.

Erzsebet's sheer sadism actually contrasts quite well with Dracula's humanity and restraint. He understood humanity, only feeding to survive or strike down the merchants who slighted him. (He probably also used feeding as a tool for political power but I don't think we saw that directly.) Dracula ultimately came to understand humanity so well that he fell for Lisa Tepes, the exemplar of what it means to be human. And that love is why I believe he respected Lisa's wishes and let her keep that humanity instead of turning her into a vampire. And after Lisa's death Dracula stopped feeding entirely, hoping to extinguish his life and take out as many people as he could because he believed that humanity should've been better. He believed that the people who lived alongside Lisa would've stood up for her and they betrayed her out of a mix of fear, religious reverence and apathy. Meanwhile Erzsebet doesn't care about humanity, seeing people like the lawyer's daughter as possessions or people like Tera and Emmanuel the Abbot as pawns to further her own rule. She might be taken aback by Drolta's death once she learns of it but there's an equal chance that she wouldn't even bat an eye.

So what do these points of analysis mean for Erzsebet and Tera's future dynamic as master and pawn? The one thing that's certain is that Tera has been fundamentally changed, forced into an unprecedented nightmare scenario that will drag her down a dark path. But I'm an optimist and I believe that Tera will ultimately be redeemed. She may never be human again but her humanity, her love for her son and daughter will save her soul. Ultimately I hope that Tera lives and recovers from the trauma of Erzsebet turning her. I hope that she goes home to her children and is taken in with open arms. But if Tera dies she will die as Tera, not as a pawn, and that is because Erzsebet could never kill her humanity.