Warning: The following contains spoilers for Vampire Dormitory episode #5!

A new anime romance on Crunchyroll called Vampire Dormitory is continuing to expand upon its unique take on the vampire mythos by introducing additional concepts rather than relying on its incredible first installment. As of episodes #4 and# 5, these new additions include “destined partners” and the dhampir hybrids, respectively, and Vampire Dormitory is using them to further complicate the already nuanced relationships between the human Mito Yamamoto, the vampire Ruka Saotome and the recently revealed dhampir, Ren Nikaido.

The odd arrangement between Mito and Ruka was already rife with the high potentiality to break the hearts of those involved, since it was predicated on a lie surrounding Mito’s gender. Ruka is only with Mito because he believes Mito is male when she’s not. Ironically, the concept of the “destined partner” would actually solve this dilemma, since Ruka’s “destined partner” can only be female, but, because of this aforementioned miscommunication, he has been pushing her away, creating complications in their relationship that only make the story more appealing.

Meanwhile, the fact that Ren is a dhampir serves as another complication because it will likely exacerbate the strained relations between him and his enemy Ruka, while bringing him and Mito closer together.

Vampire Dormitory Understands That It’s Just As Much About Vampires As It is Romance

Produced by Studio Blanc; based on the original manga by Ema Toyama

Ruka has always disliked Ren for his close ties with Mito, while Ren has returned those feelings in full, since he despises vampires. However, Ruka always had the obvious upper hand because of his vampiric strength and powers, even though Ren was already quite strong for a human. After episode #5, however, this no longer seems to be the case, with Ren possessing many, if not all, of the most important vampiric traits as a dhampir, including the desire and ability to suck blood.

Vampire Dormitory could have easily rested on the laurels of its incredible first episode … but [instead] further contextualizes the already intriguing vampiric world of Vampire Dormitory.

While Ren’s hatred for vampires is now much more nuanced as a dhampir than when he was just a human, the true appeal of this reveal is that Ren’s identity and background now brings him closer to Mito. Ren has suffered the same fate as every other hybrid in fiction, which puts him in a similar situation as Mito, who is an orphan. Moreover, the fact that Ren can suck blood means that he has the potential to fulfill Mito’s unique needs, which were explored in Vampire Dormitory episode #1. Initially, only Ruka could accomplish this as a vampire, making Ren even more of a threat now to Ruka since he possesses the vampiric gene.

Although there are many appeals to Vampire Dormitory, one of its greatest strengths has been its specific take on the vampiric mythos and using it to enhance its own romantic story. Before episodes #4 and #5, Vampire Dormitory could have easily rested on the laurels of its incredible first episode, which introduced the concept of how a victim’s blood could change based on how much the victim has loved and been loved. But making Ren a dhampir and constraining Ruka to the vampiric belief system of a “destined partner” further contextualizes the already intriguing vampiric world of Vampire Dormitory.