Who says there isn't style in demon slaying? In the Devil May Cry series, demon hunter Dante brings plenty of flair to his fight against various creatures. However, while the franchise focuses heavily on demon slaying, Devil May Cry does possess a wild story. Dante's missions to save the world often involve resolving his own family issues.
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The Devil May Cry franchise also expands Dante's tales in other media. For instance, Devil May Cry actually had an anime that dealt with Dante's earlier escapades back in the day. Moreover, it seems eagle-eyed fans can spot connections between the short-lived anime and the rest of the games.
10 Enter Tony Redgrave
In one episode, a person mistakes Dante for someone named Tony Redgrave, who left town after his mother was accused of the fire that decimated it. Eagle-eyed fans would notice that "For Tony Redgrave - By .45 Art Warks" is also in the inscription in Ebony and Ivory, Dante's signature pistols.
As it turns out, Dante truly was Tony Redgrave. Apparently, Eva wanted Dante to use this as an alias after the city where they lived, Redgrave City. However, the Tony persona was elaborated in the first DMC novel, where Dante displayed a more carefree and playful nature. In the same novel, Nell Goldstein, the gunsmith owner of .45 Art Warks, created Ebony and Ivory. Nell's adoptive granddaughter, Nico Goldstein, reappears in the game as Nero's associate and chief mechanic.
9 Meet Patty, J.D. Morrison
Fans playing DMC 5 for the first time might dismiss V's companion J.D. Morrison and the girl Patty as old contacts of Dante's that serve as minor characters. However, those who watched the anime will appreciate the callback.
In the anime, J.D. Morrison served as Dante's "handler" and often brought job requests for him to accomplish. In DMC 5, Morrison assumes ownership of Devil May Cry when Dante and Vergil stay in the Demon World to fend off threats. Likewise, Patty Lowell is an orphan mistaken for an heiress that Dante chaperoned for the rest of the anime. At some point, it seems Patty went to school and invited Dante to her birthday in DMC 5. An annoyed Dante will take V's job offer to avoid going to the party.
8 Devils Do Cry
In the anime, Mike Hagel, mayor of Capulet City, contracts Dante to kill Bradley, a man with supernatural healing abilities. Mike suspects Bradley to be connected to the string of killings in the City and wants him away from his daughter, Angelina. Aside from being a Romeo and Juliet analog, the two also give a coincidental nod to the Brangelina pairing (Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie).
Mike turned out to be correct. Bradley is a minor demon who served Belphagor, who the Hagel butler worshipped. However, much to everyone's surprise, Bradley truly loved Angelina. Bradley even saved Mike from lethal injuries while Dante finished off Belphagor. After these events, Mike gave his blessing to Bradley and Angelina's relationship.
7 A Familiar Pair Of Brothers
Prior to the Dark Knight's defection, Sparda spent time as the right-hand man of Mundus himself. However, it was also during that time that Sparda mentored twin brothers Modeus and Baul, both demons themselves. After their training, Sparda entrusted Modeus with his teaching. Prior to his revolt, the three knights made pacts to pursue their aspirations for as long as they lived.
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Modeus and Baul actually chase after Dante in the anime. Modeus aims to kill him to consume his soul and be more powerful than Sparda himself. When Dante kills Modeus in their duel, Baul also dies trying to avenge him. In some ways, Modeus and Baul seem reminiscent of Vergil and Dante, Sparda's twins who become warriors themselves.
6 A Familiar Pair Of Pendants
Alan Lowell, an ancestor of Patty Lowell, used to summon and control demons. However, Alan cannot seem to control the unbridled power of the demon Abigail, said to equal that of Mundus. Alan used a variety of artifacts and sealed a majority of Abigail within the pendant Alan's Tear, which ended up with Nina Lowell. Alan also put a portion of the Tear into another pendant, which ended up with Nina's daughter Patty.
This trope of "two pendants sealing a higher power" seem reminiscent of the Perfect Amulet, an artifact capable of opening a portal to Demon World and activating Sparda's sword Force Edge. Dante and Vergil each had a half of the Amulet, which they fought for in DMC 3.
5 Bars Need Strawberry Sundaes
Throughout Dante's jobs in the anime, he always stumbles upon various bars and restaurants. Servers almost always say no whenever he asks for strawberry sundaes when the place obviously only serves liquor. Interestingly, the anime points out that Dante loves strawberry sundaes just as much as he loves pizza.
Trish even points out that he mentioned to Dante "years ago" that having a diet consisting of those two things would be bad for his body. Regardless, Dante seems to rely on strawberry sundaes as comfort food and prefers to eat alone.
4 The Iconic Guitar Case
It's natural for Dante's designs in other media to sport new types of clothing befitting his stylish nature. However, the anime does drastically change one aspect of his design. Aside from sporting Rebellion from the back of his coat, he sometimes uses a guitar sleeve to carry the blade with him.
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This design choice does make sense in the scope of the series. Since Dante travels around cities during his missions, he can't always carry his blade with him out in the open, especially in public areas. However, Dante does sometimes carry his blade outright, especially at night or in empty areas such as vacant houses and buildings.
3 Never One To Win Bets
Throughout the anime, it's shown that Dante is incredibly bad whenever it comes to games of chance. It's shown that Dante lost to Patty – a child – in a game of poker, and can even lose in coin tosses. The anime also reveals that Dante has a habit of borrowing money from Lady, but couldn't find enough jobs to pay her off.
Additionally, even Dante couldn't repair the shop or improve its facilities due to debt. When Morrison took ownership of the store after DMC 5, he immediately sends Trish and Lady to jobs to help with the bills.
2 That F-Bomb Shocker
Fans know Dante as the ever-arrogant and stylish devil hunter, but he's not necessarily a potty-mouth. This is why "Wishes Come True" came as a shocker for fans. In this episode, Dante needs to help a man from inside a dangerous prison after making a pact with a wish-granting demon.
Dante drops the F-bomb to the prison warden after the latter taunted him, which then had the warden send Dante to maximum security. This episode marks the first time that Dante actually outright used the F-bomb in the entirety of the Devil May Cry series.
1 Met The China Banhammer
Unfortunately, some places don't appreciate the violence, gore, and suggestive material in the Devil May Cry anime. In fact, it's included among 38 manga and Japanese titles that the Chinese Ministry of Culture had blacklisted back in 2015.
As of April 2015, China's new regulations need video streaming websites to "seek approval" in order to stream foreign media, which then coincided with the aforementioned blacklisting. Chinese streaming sites flagged for streaming such material must remove them, or risk losing their licenses to conduct business.