Comic Book Vampires

Discussing Masque of the Red Death
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Manofevil
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Comic Book Vampires

Post by Manofevil »

400 years ago, my vampiric kiss transformed the woman I loved into a soulless thing called Mary, Queen of Blood. Today, she seeks undead domination of the planet...while I seek to stop her before it is too late. I, Andrew Bennett... I...VAMPIRE!

That's how one of my favorite comic book series would always begin back in the eighties. It was initially a backup series in DC's flagship horror comic House of Mystery but it took off in popularity. Here's the basic breakdown from Wikipedia.

In 1591, after being turned into a vampire himself, Lord Andrew Bennett turned his lover, Mary Seward, into a vampire, and she became corrupted by the power. She took the name Mary, Queen of Blood and created a group of vampires called The Blood Red Moon bent on taking over the world. The series followed Bennett into the modern day as he tried to undo his mistake and take down Mary and The Blood Red Moon.

He was helped by his two companions Deborah Dancer, a beautiful young woman who Bennett saved from Mary at Woodstock (and who was also his girlfriend) and Dmitri Mishkin, a Russian man whom Bennett rescued from Mary (and his own mother, turned by Mary) when Mishkin was a child.

To try to keep his humanity, Bennett made a vow to only drink the blood of animals and bottled human blood (which created a subtext of alcoholism). In the original series, Bennett keeps his companions at arm's length, particularly Dancer. For a time he stays away from them altogether for fear of putting them in danger.

Storylines included Mishkin's quest to find and destroy the vampire who was his mother, Bennett's pursuit of Mary through time periods leading back to a time before either of them were vampires (motivated on Mary's part by a desire to escape a strange sickness killing vampires in the present), and finally an experimental 'cure' for vampirism which leads to the final confrontation between the surviving protagonists and Mary.

Later stories[edit]
Bennett has attempted suicide on several occasions to end his curse, and has also been brought back to life after each attempt due to a higher power, as seen in the 1988 run of Doctor Fate. During this run, we also see Andrew Bennett interact with the Lords of Chaos and Order to seek an end to time, which does occur due to the vampire's involvement but is later reversed. He also appeared in Day of Vengeance as a background character in the Oblivion Bar, which became Shadowpact's headquarters. He appears as a supporting character in Doctor Thirteen backup stories in the 2006 miniseries Tales of the Unexpected.

There's also a reimagining in the new 52.

Powers and abilities[edit]
Andrew Bennett has the powers of an Elder Vampire, as according to the DC Universe.[3] He can transform into mist, a bat, and a wolf,[4] and he has superior strength far beyond that of a mortal man. He is immortal and possesses the ability to turn others into vampires, a healing factor, and limited telepathy. His image cannot be seen, such as reflected in a mirror or captured on film.

However, he also has the weaknesses of a vampire. He is severely weakened by sunlight, losing most of his vampiric powers,[4] and he can be killed by silver, decapitation and/or a stake to the heart..

The point Of this thread is that I love comic book vampires and intend to lost as many as I can in detail. I placed it in Masque of the Red Death since almost all of them are set on earth but they can be translated very easily to Ravenloft. see you soon with more. If anyone else would like to share memories or opinions of comic book vampires on this thread, go ahead.
Do us a favor Luv, Stick yer 'ead in a bucket a kick it!

So, gentlemen, that's how it is. Until Grissome.... resurfaces, I'm the acting president, and I say starting with this... anniversary festival, we run this city into the ground! :D
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Re: Comic Book Vampires

Post by Manofevil »

He has killed again. Where is his remorse? He searches himself...and finds No Regrets. For the first time since his curse began, Drinking blood has brought not just relief, but satisfaction. If he must drink blood, let it be the blood of the corrupt, of those who deserve to die. The blood of the guilty.

History- Michael Morbius was born in Greece. He was a Nobel Prize-winning biochemist, who had attempted to cure himself of a rare blood disease with an experimental treatment involving vampire bats and electroshock therapy. However, he instead became afflicted with a far worse condition, "pseudo-vampirism," that mimicked the powers and bloodthirst of legendary vampirism. Morbius now had to digest blood in order to survive and had a strong aversion to light. He gained the ability to fly, as well as superhuman strength, speed, and healing abilities. His appearance, already ugly, became hideous—-his canine teeth extended into fangs, his nose flattened to appear more like a bat's, and his skin became chalk-white. He also gained the ability to turn others into similar "living vampires" by biting them, infecting them with the disease of pseudo-vampirism. He continually seeks a cure for his condition. Later, a wounded Morbius was treated by one Doctor Langford, who while treating Morbius' wounds, was actually trying to kill him. After Martine Bancroft, Morbius' ex-fiancée, found out that Langford was trying to kill him, Langford shot her and she bled to death. Morbius found this out and was enraged to find his ex-fiancée dead. He later avenged the death of Martine Bancroft by killing Langford. Morbius then vowed he would only drink the blood of the guilty from then on.
Do us a favor Luv, Stick yer 'ead in a bucket a kick it!

So, gentlemen, that's how it is. Until Grissome.... resurfaces, I'm the acting president, and I say starting with this... anniversary festival, we run this city into the ground! :D
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Re: Comic Book Vampires

Post by Spark »

Ooh, great! I can help here!

Two nice examples I stumbled upon a while back are Varnae and Varnay, the first great vampire from an antediluvian age and a Cromwell-era moper who managed to twice immolate himself in a volcano respectively.
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Re: Comic Book Vampires

Post by steveflam »

What about Blade? I Know he is a Half Vampire, but still interesting :)
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Re: Comic Book Vampires

Post by Five »

Friedhof/"Giurescu", as found in the comic "Sir Edward Grey, Witchfinder : City of the Dead".

http://hellboy.wikia.com/wiki/City_of_the_Dead

Haigus, as found in the illustrated novel "Baltimore, or, The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire ", and its subsequent comic book series.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore ... he_Vampire

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_(comics)

That's two that I can think of right now, off the top of my head. Great reads and even greater inspiration, IMO.

Oh, and one more:

Lord Malagen, Atrelegis, and some others as found in the comic series "Warlands". More fantasy than the previous two...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warlands
"A very piteous thing it was to see such a quantity of dead bodies, and such an outpouring of blood - that is, if they had not been enemies of the Christian faith."

- Jean Pierre Sarrasin, "The Memoirs of the Lord of Joinville"
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