Dragon's Dogma, Netflix's original anime series, has pulled in fans of video games and anime alike. Yet, there are still some details that managed to slip by the eyes of most viewers on their first watch.
Regardless of the knowledge that fans bring to their first watch of this Netflix series, there are details that will require in-depth knowledge of the overall plot to notice. It is only after a viewer has seen the entire series that they will begin to notice the intricate ways that the creators of this show set up the plot throughout its seven-episode run. This list consists of those details viewers missed on their first watch. While some of the details may have been noticed, the real depth hidden behind these details is revealed only after seeing them a second time.
10 Magical Kin
Balthazar is one of the most memorable characters in the Dragon's Dogma Netflix series thanks to his long blonde anime hair and glowing blue sword. The magic that encases the sword is one of the coolest things in the show, even though it is never explained where this magic comes from.
Viewers may not have originally caught it, but the eye of the lich is encased in the same blue magic that encases Balthazar's sword. This is a brilliant piece of visual foreshadowing that connects the episodes titled "Envy" and "Greed."
9 A Cyclops' Diet
Thanks to the plot reveal at the end of the episode, "Gluttony" is full of small details that might slip by viewers on their first watch. The revelation of the cyclops' motivation makes for a new lens to look through during a second watch. One of these small details comes from the dialogue offered up by the victims of this episode. If his word is to be trusted, the town sacrifices one girl every six months to the cyclops and then assumes this diet satisfies the beast.
This idea leaves viewers with the idea that the cyclops must be finding other sources of food. Could it be possible that the mayor throws his scraps to the cyclops instead of sharing with his own citizens? Or, perhaps the cyclops has a much smaller diet than viewers might assume.
8 Cassardis Prequel
The hero of this journey begins his adventure as the Arisen by rising out of the ashes of his hometown: Cassardis. This village might sound familiar to those who have played the original game. This metropolitan fishing village is the same as the small town that the Arisen in the game calls home.
Viewers that caught the name may have also noticed that this large city dwarfs the size of the town in the original game. Perhaps what we see in the game is the city that rises up out of the ashes of the Cassardis that Ethan called home. Is it possible that the curse of the Dragon is linked to this city? Or is it just a coincidence that two separate men began the path of the Arisen from the same part of the world?
7 The Mayor's Goons
The episode titled "Gluttony" depicts a greedy and cruel mayor that uses his position of power to steal from the people around him. His citizens feed his calorie dependency out of fear while his henchmen feed his power dependency by creating fear. It is a well-oiled machine that has gifted this man a disgusting demeanor and a full stomach.
Viewers may not have originally noticed that the same goons that are found sitting at the mayor's feast are the ones that stole food from the family Ethan had just saved from the cyclops. This may be the result of budgetary restrictions on the show, but it also says something about the scale of this operation. Perhaps it doesn't take a system as complicated as the one found in West Rose to show corruption.
6 Hannah: Ethan's Mother, Daughter, & Pawn
During the second episode of Dragon's Dogma, Ethan shares a personal detail about his life in a conversation with his new Pawn. The blonde-haired woman who appeared out of thin air is to be named. Our protagonist shares a story about his mother, and introduces the name Hannah, just before slipping in the fact that this is the name he would have chosen for his baby daughter. The name then goes to the Pawn, a substitute for the daughter taken by the Dragon.
As Hannah's character progresses throughout the series, she learns from Ethan. She becomes more and more human, making it all the more tragic when Ethan succumbs to the curse of the Dragon.
5 Ethan & Theo
Theo is a character that would be easily forgotten in a show as epic in scale as One Piece or Dragon Ball. Here, the sparsity of the world demands that viewers remember Theo, though he is not a very memorable person.
Just after surviving the devastation of his own home, Ethan runs into two survivors, each of which should be compared because of the similarities of their recent struggles. Ethan is a strong, courageous survivor, while Theo is weak and frightened. RPG video games are known for their black and white, good and evil, morality-based decisions, which makes the clashing of these two characters a question for the viewers as much as it is a random coincidence.
4 Berserker Rage
Fans of the Dragon's Dogma games were probably caught off guard by the berserker rage that randomly took over Ethan while he was in battle. While this ferocity in battle is something common to the fighters in the game, there is no ability quite like this rage that changes Ethan's eyes red and grant him buffs in combat.
As the series progresses and the truth of the Dragon's curse is revealed, the rage fits into a perfectly explainable and spoiler-filled plotline. It ends up serving as a tiny bit of foreshadowing that probably slipped by fans of the series and casual viewers alike.
3 More Pawns?
There is very little information given to the viewers about the Pawns. Hannah is the only Pawn introduced and it is clear that she is tied to Ethan because the scar on her hand looks kind of like the scar on his chest. She shows later on that she is very powerful, but the source of this power is also unexplained. It is very peculiar then when the gluttonous king from episode two mentions the existence of other Pawns.
Could it be that other Pawns walk this world and offer the same kind of help that Hannah has offered Ethan? If this is the case, Ethan should surely quit working so hard to please humanity and work to find himself an army of Pawns. Imagine the possibilities of an Arisen with an army of magical Pawns. The dragon wouldn't stand a chance.
2 The Sound Cue
"Lust" feels a bit too much like a filler to fit into the grandiose tone set by the other episodes in this short series. Part of this "filler" effect is created by the episodes focus on flashbacks and the conversation between Hannah and the innkeeper that feels twice as long as the run time shows.
With the reveal of the succubus in mind, a second watch through will reward viewers with a subtle hint at the reveal. Just before Ethan is woken by a vision of his wife, viewers can hear the slightest creak as the beast sneaks into his room through the window. The sound is enough to warn viewers of the reality of this moment and draw a fine line between the scenes that Ethan stood face to face with the succubus and the scenes he was dreaming.
1 A Conflicted Child
In episode two, Ethan takes it upon himself to save a girl who has been offered up to a cyclops for dinner. The first watch through makes Ethan look like a hero, saving the life of a helpless little girl.
As Ethan smashes at the chain that holds the girl down, she is bewildered by Ethan's actions, as if it is unclear that she is being saved. It's a bit of foreshadowing that hints at the complicated nature of her position as a sacrifice. The girl may not be as helpless as she seems, and deserves to be credited with the belief that her cause was noble.