The CastleVania Dungeon - Vampire Hunter D

When I first began this site, I got a few e-mails regarding an anime known as Vampire Hunter D. Some of these people stated that this inspired the Castlevania series, while an equal number shot down those claims. I've finally gotten a chance to view it, and the parallels in some cases are frigtening.
There are two Vampire Hunter D movies - the original, and "Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust". Both have been released on DVD. The first movie was released back in 1986, where Bloodlust was made in 2000. Both are well worth picking up.
First off, the original movie: Vampire Hunter D takes place many, many years in the future, where everything looks like 18th century Transylvania yet laser guns and cybord horses are abound. A young peasant girl named Doris was hunting when the evil Count Magnus Lee (a vampire, of course) bites her, thus infecting her. A vampire hunter named D (yes, just one letter) comes out of nowhere and takes up Doris' offer to hunt down the Count and kill him. If he accomplishes this task, then she will be healed. Eventually though, the Count kidnaps Doris and tries to marry her, while D must stop him.
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is a sequel, though other than D, there are no characters in common. D is hired by a rich old man to find his missing daughter. Apparently, she has been kidnapped by the vampire Lord Magnus. D sets off to hunt him down, competely with another family of bounty hunters, each with their own interesting array of weapons (most interestingly, a big armored car with cross-shaped headlights.)

If you intend to see the anime, don't continue any further, as things are spoiled!
How is this related to Castlevania, you ask? The most obvious comparison seems to be that of the relationship between D and Alucard. Both have very long hair and have rather pale faces (although Alucard is much whiter than D.) They are rather quiet, but when they have something important to say, they'll say it. Their main weapon is the same: they both handle swords. Both wear long flowing capes. D and Alucard struggle with who there, being basically part "monster", and they both despise their own heritage. The most striking one though, is that both of them are dhampires...that is, they are half human, half vampire. And at the end of the film, it is revealed that D is actually the direct son of Count Dracula himself...yes, just like Alucard.
The other idea the developers of the original Castlevanias first got from Vampire Hunter D was the whip. Doris' main weapon is a magical whip that can electrocute bad guys when it wraps around them. It's also arguable that Sonia from Castlevania: Legends was based off of Doris, although other than the whip and appeareance, there's not much parallel between the two. Again, this may or not be true, given the time in which the first CV game and anime were released (both in 1986, I think.) Finally, at the end of the first movie, Count Lee's castle sinks into the ground as the view changes to a nearby cliff, much like pretty much every ending in Castlevania.
Many people have asked me if a Castlevania anime is in existence...I don't believe so, but the Vampire Hunter D animes are about as close as you'll get. It's very cool indeed, with plenty of gore and excitement to keep the kids happy (um, no, wait, scratch that. You don't want to show your little four year old this unless you want to give 'em nightmares.) Watch them, and enjoy it!

This is a scan of one of the video tape releases of Vampire Hunter D. In this picture (drawn by Final Fantasy character designer Yoshitaka Amano) D looks especially like Alucard.

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