I guess we'll chalk that up to a disagreement because I personally liked the subtle hints at Death's involvement, with the Necromancer's at the beginning, his statue being present with Trevor explaining what he is to Sypha, and Varney vaguely hinting who he really was while he was egging everyone else on. I also liked his manipulations of St Germain. But if you didn't like that stuff, I'm not sure what to say. I didn't feel it was required that Death announce is presence and operate with transparency like he's Skeleton.
I also thought Isaac's transformation from a villain to hero was one of the best parts of the series and that Carmella was a good antagonist for his own story. So, I completely disagree that Dracula is a required presence. He was the best villain they've had so far, but repeated appearances given the way his arc was handled would just diminish his presence IMO. I do agree it might be interesting to imagine how this arc could have gone if it was sustained longer, and he was a repeated villain. But we already got an amazing fight scene with him, and his motives have all been addressed.
I admit I haven't seen any of Nocturne yet, but I'm excited to see what they can do with more of the characters in the mythos.
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I've got the Oscar fever! Hope you've got it too! Pour me some bubbly now it's all you gotta do!