Saint Germain (animated series)

Count (also written as Saint-Germain) is a character in the Castlevania animated series. He is a mysterious man investigating the events of Lindenfeld and its priory.
He was voiced by Bill Nighy in the English version of the show.
==History==
Saint Germain arrived in Lindenfeld before Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades. He met the two travelers, along with the Judge and Sala, explaining he came to Lindenfeld to study books from the priory. After failing to gain Trevor's assistance, he encounters Sala with other monks, and after a bit of persuasion, Sala grants him limited access to the priory.
Saint Germain was in reality in Lindenfeld to find something seemingly in Sala's cult's possession and took every chance he could to discretely progress further into the priory. He then met Trevor and Sypha again and was threatened into explaining the real reason for his presence: Saint Germain suspected the priory hid a portal to the Infinite Corridor, a gateway to other dimensions, which he wants to use to find his lost partner. He showed a magic gem he had in his possession and which reacts to the presence of the Infinity Corridor, confirming his theory. However, after he discovered the Visitor crucified in the basement of the church, he quickly escaped the priory, encountering Sala and the monks and using his cunning words to get away.
As Sala and the monks enacted their plan, Saint Germain, along with Trevor and Sypha, rushed into the priory's basement to confront the Visitor, now freed. The cult wanted to bring Dracula back from Hell and managed to open a portal to the Infinite Corridor to allow his return. As Dracula tries to reach for the portal, Saint Germain places his gem in the Visitor, changing the portal's location to that of his partner, and jumps in the portal. He was last seen falling into the Infinite Corridor to close it.
While still trapped inside the Infinite Corridor, Saint Germain is met by a mysterious woman who introduces herself simply as the Alchemist. She tells him that in order to save his long lost beloved, he'll have to commit completely to Alchemy and be willing to sacrifice human souls to tap into the power of death. To achieve this end, Saint Germain would also need to create a Rebis, a pure fusion of two souls into one body, both male and female. According to her, the Rebis would be able to control the Infinite Corridor. She then gives him a key with which he would be able to exit the Corridor.
Back in the real world, Saint Germain begins down a dark path to collect the necessary items and information, killing and blackmailing along the way. He is eventually contacted by a vampire called Varney via a transmission mirror and agrees to work with him on their mutual project.
Six weeks later, Saint Germain arrives to the town of Danesti, where he meets Alucard and Greta, the town's headwoman. Carrying on with his plan, he convinces Alucard to relocate everyone in the village to Dracula's castle for their supposed safety.
Once at the castle, Saint Germain begins placing strange devices around the building - these mark the same sign that the Visitor used to collect souls in Lindenfeld. As night falls, monsters march toward the castle, guided to its location by Saint Germain's signal. Inside one of the transports, there is a body being created for the "Great Work", a vessel for the Rebis. The refugees take up arms and stand their ground as the horde of monsters approaches. Some lose their lives, and their souls are guided to Saint Germain via the channel he laid out through the castle using runes. He then uses the key given to him by the Alchemist to begin the "Great Work".
During the struggle, Alucard and Greta find Saint Germain upstairs opening a portal into the Infinite Corridor. He tells them to stay out of it and explains he's using the souls of Greta's people to fuel it. Alucard recognizes the Death Magic being used to open a portal to Hell. Saint Germain adds that he's going to pull Dracula and his wife from Hell and fuse them together into the Rebis. Naturally, this upsets Alucard, but the ritual has a barrier keeping him from harming Saint Germain. Unable to stop the madman, Alucard and Greta focus on helping the others fight downstairs, where they're later joined by Trevor and Sypha Belnades.
Meanwhile, Dragan and his group of female vampires arrive to the castle and head toward Saint Germain and Varney with the Rebis's vessel completed. As the time approaches, Saint Germain asks Varney to help with the final steps of their plan.
Suddenly, Varney reveals that he's actually the Alchemist in disguise. Not only that but he's actually been Death portraying them both. Dracula was prepared to end all life on Earth, which would give the Death spirit infinite power. This potential was taken away from him when Dracula was killed. Death needs Saint Germain to return Dracula to life, fusing his soul with his wife's to drive them both mad. Death intends to use Dracula and Lisa's maddened state within the Rebis to bring human demise on an unimaginable scale. He forces Saint Germain to open the portal into Hell, forcing Dracula and Lisa out.
After Dragan and his warriors are defeated, Trevor, Alucard, and Sypha confront Death and Saint Germain. Death keeps them out of the room with a force field, and Trevor recognizes him. Saint Germain initiates the horrific ritual and traps Dracula and Lisa's souls inside the Rebis vessel. Trevor breaks through the force field, and Saint Germain decides to go back against his decision. He places the portal behind the Rebis and signals Trevor to attack, successfully splitting them back up.
The explosion from the diffusion leads Trevor and Saint Germain outside. Trevor's cross-knife breaks and a piece of it lands in Saint Germain's chest. He sees his love disappear in the Infinite Corridor before passing away.
==Personality==
Count Saint Germain puts up a charlatan-like front in order for others to think of him as a traveling scholar and trickster. In reality, he is a wizard specializing in alchemy. Saint Germain may be immortal and from a different space or time. Saint Germain possesses knowledge many would consider heretical and eccentric, stemming from a lifetime of diverse adventures. He prefers not to share his knowledge as few would understand or accept it. Saint Germain can also be impatient and arrogant, sometimes coming off as condescending.
Saint Germain's greatest motivation is reuniting with his the love of his life, whom he lost in the Infinite Corridor. It is for this reason that he had come to Lindenfeld (the town's priory was a portal to the Infinite Corridor). The study of alchemy is Saint Germain's second passion. He is especially interested in achieving the ultimate alchemical goal, the creation of a Rebis. Saint Germain always believed that the Rebis was a perfect being formed by "two persons who have gone through death and rebirth". A being so pure and glorious that it could "save the very world".
Experiencing the infinite Corridor and losing his lover in it has left Saint Germain with posttraumatic stress disorder – It is shown that he no longer sleeps peacefully, often waking up from flashback-nightmares of the Corridor. It can be inferred that it is for this reason that he sleeps fully-dressed, as the ritual of sleep has eluded him since his encounter with the Corridor. Trevor and Sypha both note that he is deeply sad and lonely. They also suspect that he was happy to drop his act with them, so he could once again have friends who really understand him.
The Alchemist convinced Saint Germain that there was a way to simultaneously reach the love of his life, control the infinite corridor like a god, and create the fabled Rebis. However, to achieve all his dreams Saint Germain would have to sacrifice his morals in the pursuit of them. Desperate to see his loved one again and achieve godhood through alchemy, Saint Germain begins killing and manipulating people to get what he desires. He had no issue manipulating and setting up the residents of Danesti in order to gather souls for death magic and was also willing to work with vampires. However, he does still have a conscious, as after realizing that he himself had been manipulated by Death, he used the last of his strength to save Trevor's life instead of his own.
==Powers and abilities==
*Master alchemist: Saint Germain is one of the greatest alchemists in history. He is deeply knowledgeable of alchemical principles and magic. He succeeded in building a Rebis. However, this Rebis was a monstrosity schemed up by Death. Brilliant as Saint Germain is, he is far from achieving the ultimate goal of philosophy.
*Magic: Using a special gem, Saint Germain is able to exert some control over the Infinite Corridor and some monsters. He was also shown using a spell to create a small sphere of light so he'd be able to work on his diary at night. He was also capable of partially reenacting the ritual of the Visitor, using the alchemical sign of Saturn to harvest the souls of the deceased in order to fuel the opening of the Infinite Corridor. Using said ritual, he erected a protective force field around himself and pulled the souls of Dracula and Lisa from Hell, which he then forced into inhabiting a homunculus-like body meant to become a Rebis. He lamented, however, that left alone, he was not strong enough to control the energies of the Infinite Corridor.
*Persuasive: Saint Germain is talented at negotiation, shown when talking his way into the tightly-guarded priory and recruiting Trevor and Sypha to his cause. He was also highly skilled in etiquette and courtesy, as he had spoken with several influential people in hopes of finding a portal into the Infinite Corridor.
*Highly educated: Knowing multiple languages, Saint Germain was able to teach educated priests about the details of their own books and the obscure meanings of the different alchemical symbols. Saint Germain is exceptionally knowledgeable and the foremost expert on the nature of the Infinite Corridor.
==Appearances==
	
==Quotes==
*"You are practically the Jesus of murder." (to Trevor in "The Reparation of My Heart")
*"I am immortal and glorious, and all these other people smell of piss." ("The Reparation of My Heart")
*"Ugh! Christ alive, do you people *** on the grape?" ("A Seat of Civilisation and Refinement")
*"Never wanting to sleep. Not until I find you. Not until I live in the good in the good dream again. Not until you're back." ("The Good Dream")
*"I feel as if I've been led here. To find the Infinite Corridor, to achieve the ultimate goal of philosophy, and to be... a hero. From discreet and respectful distance." ("What the Night Brings")
*"Well..." (laughs) "I'm so sorry. I'm-I'm-I'm simply not used to people being kind to me for no reason." ("What the Night Brings")
*"All this to bring back Vlad bloody Tepes? All this death and horror for that leech?" ("Abandon All Hope")
*"Show me what I want to see you *** bastard!" ("Abandon All Hope")
*"I'm closing the Corridor! Get out now! Thank you! Thank you both! I'll see you again!" ("Abandon All Hope")
*"I'll do anything... anything to be able to actually tell her... that I love her." ("You Must Sacrifice")
*"Oh, God! Oh, God. Wh-wh-why didn't you just--wh-why couldn't you just help me?! Oh, God, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to. I--Why couldn't you help me?! Why won't anyone just *** help me?! And now look at you. Uh, now... look at me." ("You Must Sacrifice")
*"That was indeed the most suave tale about sexual congress with livestock that I've ever heard in these parts, but before you lift your stinking jar to your stinking jaws, you will now tell me, what was the final location of Dracula's castle?" ("You Must Sacrifice")
*"Ah, yes. Remember the drill, old boy. "Charming place. Weary traveler. Many coins. Just a simple place to sleep." It'll all be over soon enough. What a damned shame. All these little lives. Straighten up, man. They all have lives. You have nothing. Is that fair?" ("You Must Sacrifice")
:– Alucard: Why, man? What possible reason?
:– Saint Germain: Two reasons. The woman I love is lost somewhere in the Infinite Corridor. And I am an alchemist. I seek perfection of knowledge, the achievement of the great work, the magnum opus, which can be reached by the creation of the Rebis, the divine hermaphrodite, the fusion of male and female into an alchemical creature of perfect power and knowledge. And I can *** ride it, Alucard. I create it. I bind it. I own it. I will find my love. I will command the Infinite Corridor. I will have complete access to a million different worlds. Like God.
:— ("Death Magic")
*"I once observed to Sypha Belnades that God had quite gone out of fashion. God is now standing right in front of you. And soon, very, very, soon... he's going to have sex again." ("Death Magic")
*"Oh, my God. What have I done?" ("The Endings")
*"Belmont! Make yourself useful!" ("The Endings")
==Gallery==
===Screenshots===
I'd like two apples.png
Snack time.png
Such an entrance.png
The alchemical sign of sulphur.png
A system of doors to other lands.png
Saint germain notepad.jpg|Saint Germain's diary.
Saint germain diary cover.jpg|Cover of Saint Germain's diary.
Saint germain rings.jpg|Saint Germain's rings.
Take my hand.png
Saint germain light ball.jpg|Saint Germain using a light spell to work at night.
Do not disappoint me.png
A shocking discovery.png
His life flashed before his eyes.png
I'm closing the Corridor.png
Visitor and saint germain.jpg|Saint Germain reflecting in the Visitor's eyes.
Saint germain controlling the visitor.jpg|Saint Germain controlling the Visitor with his lithomancy jewel.
Saint Germain S4.jpg|Saint Germain searching for his partner in the Infinite Corridor.
===Concept art===
Saint germain concept design.jpg|Concept design by Katie Silva.
Saint germain model sheet.png|Model sheet for Season 3.
Saint Germain Season 4 Model Sheet.png|Model sheet for Season 4.
Saint Germain Season 3 Art by Katie Silva.jpg|Saint Germain Season 3 art by Katie Silva.
Saint Germain Season 4 Model.jpg|Saint Germain Season 4 model.
Saint germains jewel.png|Saint Germain's lithomancy jewel model.
Saint Germain Head Model (With and Without Hat).jpg|Saint Germain (with or without his hat) head model.
Saint Germain Entrance Outfit including his COD outfit (S4E4) Model Sheet.jpg|Entrance model sheet from "You Must Sacrifice".
Saint Germain Outfits from S4E4 Model.jpg|Saint Germain outfits (from "You Must Sacrifice") model.
Saint Germain Expressions Model.jpg|Saint Germain expressions model.
Saint Germain's Journal Model Sheet.png|Saint Germain's journal model sheet.
Saint Germain's Pocket Watch Model Sheet.png|Saint Germain's pocket watch mirror model.
===Storyboard and key art===
Castlevania S4E4- Saint Germain Key Model 1.jpg|S4E4 layout and key art by Sam Deats (storyboarding by Kyle O'Neill and Mariel Hester).
Castlevania S4E4- Saint Germain Key Model 2.jpg|S4E4 layout and key art by Sam Deats (storyboarding by Kyle O'Neill and Mariel Hester).
==Trivia==
*The Saint Germain's triangular diary, seen in the series, is a reference to the real Triangular Book of St. Germain.Main article: Castlevania (animated series) Easter eggs: Saint Germain's diary
*Katie Silva, the character design supervisor for Season 3, described her approach to Saint Germain's design:
::"For Saint Germain, the big deal was trying to figure out how to adapt a preexisting character for a show where he has a different function in the story. I put him more solidly in the Tudor time period, like he's a few years more advanced than the rest of the folks clothing-wise but not as much as the vampires. I gave him a Shakespearean doublet because I thought he was an actor playing a part and because they're hot. His cane actually is the same rough design as the sword he carries in the concept art. The really hard thing for him was that he was described as wearing really fine clothes that were broken down and worn with age, but that's hard to do with flat colors because [to me] it implies a textural element. Saint Germain has the greenish coat because that's kind of the color a fine, rich, black coat gets when it's been in the sun too long. Saint Germain keeps his shirt untucked because he really is tired and isn't looking to really impress these Lindenfeld folks as much as if he were younger."The Blood, Sweat and Vampires of Anime Castlevania at VFX Voice (September 22, 2020).
*Saint Germain's design for Season 4 was based on his original outfit from Castlevania: Curse of Darkness.
*Saint Germain's actor, Bill Nighy, also played the vampire elder Viktor in the Underworld franchise. Theo James, who played Hector, also appeared in Underworld as a vampire. Curiously, both Saint Germain and Hector made their first appearances in Curse of Darkness.
==See also==
*Infinite Corridor (animated series)
*Saint Germain
==References==
==External links==
*Saint Germain (Netflix's Castlevania) at the Villains Wiki
Category:Alchemists
Category:Deceased Characters
Category:Humans
Category:Male Characters
Category:Supporting Cast
Category:Witches and Wizards
Category:Castlevania (Animated Series) Season 3 Characters
Category:Castlevania (Animated Series) Season 4 Characters
Category:Castlevania (Animated Series) Characters