This series is written by acclaimed comics writer Warren Ellis and it definitely shows. Every character with more than five lines has a complete and distinct personality with different motivations and backstories. Even minor characters that only appear for one scene, except for the magician Isaac fights at the climax of season 3, whom we learn nothing about and does not even have any dialogue. The hand drawn animation is very well done and though this is often compared to an anime, I think it resembles western comic books more. Many of the supernatural elements are superbly done such as the demons in Isaac's horde, which are given diverse and creative designs and the depiction of hell and other dimensions in the infinite corridor. The action scenes are also very creative and well done, especially the one at the climax of season 2, where we get to see the trio use their combined powers. I was not overly fond of the outcome of that fight though, as Dracula basically has a mental breakdown and gives up.
The best character by the end of season 3 is Isaac. He has a compelling backstory, is highly intelligent and philosophical despite his genocidal motivations and has a cold, stoic personality. His storyline is definitely the best in season 3.
One minor criticism in season 2 is how the story starts focusing so much on the villains. While they are not bad characters, they consume so much focus that the heroes spend most of their time literally hanging out in a basement. As for the other storylines in season 3, I didn't think any of them were bad but I thought Hector's should have been shorter and faster paced and that Taki and Suma's betrayal of Alucard lacked any foreshadowing and their motivations for doing so did not make much sense. I think the overall idea was good but it could have been executed better. But I thought the other plot twist about the true nature of the Judge was well foreshadowed and executed.
So, overall, if you haven't seen this, then you shouldn't have read this spoiler filled review.
Review of Castlevania
