Summary
It leaves many loose ends open, but “Devourer of Light” is clearly intended to be less of an ending and more of a promise for what may come in the future.
“Devourer of Light” seems a fitting name for Countess Bathory, who, in Episode 7, blotted out the sun, and here in Episode 8, the ending of Castlevania: Nocturne Season 1, is fully channeling the Egyptian goddess of war, Sekhmet, as if being a murderous vampire wasn’t enough.
Yes, folks, we’ve reached the end of the first season. There’s a lot going on here, so what follows is our breakdown of the most impactful turns and developments, not to mention cameos, that cap off the first batch of eight episodes.
Enormous spoilers will follow, naturally.
Of particular concern in the finale is preventing Maria from being sacrificed by the Abbot. The second objective is sending the Abbot’s infernal Forgemaster machine back to Hell. The problem is these things need to happen at the same time.
The good news is that thanks to switching allegiances, the heroes have slightly better numbers. Mizrak is as determined to stop the Abbot as anyone else at this point, and Olrox, while probably not the most trustworthy overall, certainly has no loyalty to the Countess.
Drolta, however, does, and her final, evolved form proves a match for Richter, Maria – newly freed – and Mizrak all at once. The tension in this “final boss fight”, which is very much what it feels like, is also exacerbated by the fact that Tera is present, trying to recite an incantation to open a portal to Hell so that Annette can use her powers to fling the Abbot’s machine through it.
The Portal Closes
It’s only when Countess Bathory herself arrives, in a new cat-like form, that things start to really go bad. With things looking bleak, Olrox spirits Mizrak away to safety, clearly getting flashbacks of his previous lost love. Mizrak, however, is having none of that and immediately returns to the battlefield.
In the dungeons, Annette doesn’t just have the machine to deal with but also some Night Creatures, though some of them, including the one fashioned from Jacques, decide to help her. She also gets her touching final moment with Edouard.
However, her mission is ultimately a failure. She can’t get the machine through the portal, since Tera volunteers herself as a sacrifice to Countess Bathory to save Maria, which causes the portal to close when she is turned.
So, the heroes technically lose. They have no choice but to flee, and Annette arrives to blow a hole in the wall so that Richter can carry Maria to safety, leaving Tera behind.
Alucard
Drolta gives chase. And just when it seems like all hope is lost, she’s killed instantly and out of nowhere by Alucard, who emerges out of his own series and into this one with no warning whatsoever.
Alucard says that he hopes he hasn’t arrived too late. He seems right on time to me!
