NDMC Beowulf Character and Design Analysis
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Beowulf isn't terrible in terms of character design but I do have a few notable issues and I think it comes down to art style.
First and foremost, I know I am not the only one who was unsure if the horn on top of his head was hair at times. Like I do not know what the animators thought and maybe it is suppose to be a horn that looks like hair but it doesn't come through like that. It's one of those things where I can't tell if it's intentional of not because the art style has such little detail to these things that it could just be a side effect of simplifying the design. And if they wanted to copy the in game design exactly then they need to make the horn smaller on top of the head as well as make Beowulf bigger in general and fix some of the proportions like the torso. Also comparing the two designs you can tell they really made Beowulf in the show have human proportions when he is suppose to be more animalistic.
This is a gym bro:
This is a monster:
Now his voice... I know the voice actor died back in 2024 I believe, Rest in Peace King. However, the voice for Beowulf is a disappointment. This one is entirely opinion base because I think the voice does work with what they were trying to accomplish with this character. A very annoying minion to Mundus.
But to me, the original will always be the better one especially since he was so terrifying to fight for the first time and you get these badass gauntlet weapon that is so iconic that Vergil has never taken them off in any of his game iterations (Not canon since he did throw them out when he fell in DMC3). Again this entirely my opinion and besides the horn I do think the show accomplished what they intended to do with the character even if I found it waste and it wasn't in my taste.
That being said Beowulf is a very minor antagonist in the show. He is more of an annoyance then an actual threat, unlike in DMC3 where he almost won against Dante, with his presence in the show it is more humorous than anything. My favorite scene with him is when he turns to look at Mundus as Mundus defends Sparda's honor. Obviously this Beowulf still hates Sparda but is loyal to Mundus who is apparently still in love with his former employee. I think Beowulf should have stayed alive instead of being killed off at the end of S2 because having him just be an exasperated minion to Mundus, trying to convince him that Sparda wasn't doing things for the Demon World's best interest, could have been a funny gag through S3.
Style Ranking:
Style and Sexiness: 8/15. I am not a fan of Studio's Mir artstyle for Beowulf but I much prefer this than the CGI. I think the horn looks bad and in general he just kind of ugly with his proportions. I wish he was more glowy like he was in the games.
Functionality: 5/10. Wings being out all the time can cause issues. Much rather they didn't exist.
Originality: 5/10. I think when they shrunk Beowulf and it kinda worked for his position as annoying minion. Other than that it is a worse version of his DMC3 counterpart.
OVERALL: 18/35 points.
STYLE RANKING IS:
BEARABLE BUT STILL UGLY!
