The World Is A Vampire
Spike: “I want to save the world.”
Buffy the Vampire Slayer “Becoming” (Season 2, Episode 22)
Buffy: “You do remember you’re a vampire, right?”
Spike: “We like to talk big. Vampires do. “I’m going to destroy the world.” That’s just tough guy talk. Strutting around with your friends over a pint of blood. The truth is, I like this world. You’ve got dog racing, Manchester United, and people. Billions of people walking around like Happy Meals with legs. It’s alright here.”
Every culture has legends about vampires. Perhaps they are sinners who rise after death to drink the blood of the innocent. Perhaps wicked sorcerers separate their souls from their body to feed on life force. A creature that looks almost human sends its head to hunt for misbehaving children. There is no end to the vampire variants.
The stories have changed in the past century. The horrific monsters slowly transitioned to new roles. Now a vampire might be the brooding love interest of a love story or a disposable mook in an action movie. Is it any surprise that vampires might become superheroes? That they might choose to defend their meals- er, fellow humans from all manner of threats? Yes, it is a bit odd, but it happens.
There are dozens of heroic vampires out there, but we’re staking a claim to the five best. Don’t worry, none of them sparkle. So who are the best vampire superheroes? Let’s find out.
Scene Select
#5 Jubilee
Played by Lana Condor and Alyson Court
Jubilee: [narrating] “I feel like I’m drowning in my own blood and I’m terrified to open my mouth because I don’t know whether I’m going to breathe or drink.”
Wolverine and Jubilee #1
There are plenty of human vampires on this list, but our youngest vampire superhero is also a mutant.
Jubilation Lee was an orphan living in a mall. While fleeing mall security, her mutant ability to conjure plasma “fireworks” activated. The X-Men rescued Jubilation from a band of mutant hunters and offered her a place at their school. She accepted and re-named herself Jubilee, because every day would be a celebration for her.
Jubilee worked with the X-Men spinoff Generation X before joining the team. She formed a close bond with Wolverine, serving as his sidekick and surrogate daughter. Their bond would be Jubilee’s undoing when the X-Men were targeted by Dracula’s son, Xarus.
Xarus planned to turn Wolverine into a vampire and have him lead a vampire army against The X-Men. He had Jubilee turned to serve as a double agent. The X-Men killed Xarus, but there was no cure for Jubilee. She would have to learn how to control her bloodlust and not be helped by the team refusing to trust her.
#4 Angel
Played by David Boreanaz
Hamilton: “Let me say this as clearly as I can. You cannot beat me. I am a part of them. The Wolf, Ram, and Hart. Their strength flows through my veins. My blood is filled with their ancient power.”
Angel “Not Fade Away” (Season 5, Episode 22)
Angel: [vamps out] “Can you pick out the one word there you probably shouldn’t have said?”
Not all vampire superheroes wear capes. Some prefer noir settings and detective trappings. The quintessential vampire detective is Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Angel.
Liam was a drunken layabout in 18th century Ireland. While staggering home from a pub one night, he was bitten by a vampire named Darla. A demon took control of Liam’s body and transformed him into the vampire Angelus.
The newborn vampire slaughtered his family and began traveling the world with Darla. He turned a psychic named Drusilla, who in turn bit a man who would be known as Spike. The quartet became known as the Scourge of Europe for their sadism and massacres. This ended when Angelus fed on a Romani girl. Her family used magic to tie Liam’s soul to Angelus’ body and force him to suffer all the pain he had inflicted.
Liam, now calling himself Angel, went into seclusion. He reappeared in Sunnydale when a monster hunter named Buffy arrived. He fell in love with Buffy and helped her fight monsters attacking the town. Angel eventually left Sunnydale for Los Angeles. He became a detective to protect L.A. with the help of new and old friends.
#3 Seras Victoria
Played by K.T. Gray and Jesse Nowack
Zorin: “Zat look… how?! I cut out your eyes! How can you look at me like that?!”
Hellsing Ultimate: Abridged “A Scythe For Sore Eyes” (Season 1, Episode 7)
Seras: “Fuck you, that’s how! …Zorin, was it? Listen, Zorin, this whole fucking place is my house. You ain’t the queen vampire bitch here; I am. And you know what we Brits always say… God. Save. The Queen.”
She may not be the most popular vampire superhero on this list, but Seras is arguably the strongest.
Seras Victoria was a police officer who investigated a church massacre. She found herself surrounded by an army of zombies led by a serial killing vampire. Seras was captured and about to be killed when another vampire called Alucard appeared to slaughter the undead. Seras was used as a human shield, but Alucard shot through her to kill the vampire.
Alucard saw that Seras had a strong will to live and turned her into a vampire. He brought her to the organization he worked for, Hellsing, to work as his partner. Seras struggled with her new circumstances, trying to hold onto her humanity while her vampirism drove her into berserk rages.
Seras and the Hellsing organization soon found themselves at war with an army of Nazi vampires. Seras tore through platoons by herself, wielding fangs, claws, and an anti-tank rifle. At one point, she even shot down a Nazi fleet with a backpack mounted anti-aircraft gun. And all of this before drinking blood to gain her full vampire powers.
#2 Blade
Played by Wesley Snipes and Mahershala Ali
Dracula: “Funny, isn’t it? My people were trying to create a new kind of vampire, when one already exists. I don’t need to survive. The future of our race rests with you.”
Blade: Trinity
Our penultimate vampire superhero single-handedly resurrected the superhero movie genre. He may not be an Avenger yet, but everyone in the MCU and DCEU owes Blade a debt.
Eric Brooks was born into a nightmare. A vampire named Deacon Frost fed on Eric’s mother while he was being born. The vampiric taint spread to Eric, transforming him into a being that was half-human and half-vampire. Most vampire lore calls these hybrids Dhampir, but Marvel chose Daywalker.
Eric grew up wanting revenge on all of vampire-kind. He studied under a retired vampire hunter to prepare for his war. Even better, Eric learned that being a Daywalker gave him vampiric strengths without their weaknesses. After completing his training, Eric began a crusade to eradicate the vampire race. Eric’s skill with wooden knives and a katana earned him the name Blade.
Blade is usually a solo act, but occasionally works with others. He got his start fighting alongside a group of vampire hunters led by a descendant of Van Helsing. Unfortunately, that team was slowly picked off by Count Dracula. Blade has also served on a team called The Midnight Sons alongside our number one vampire superhero.
#1 Vampire Superheros: Morbius
Played by Jared Leto and Nick Jameson
Morbius: “If I must drink blood, then let it be the blood of the corrupt, of those who deserve to die. The blood of the guilty.”
Morbius: The Living Vampire #1
Every vampire superhero on our list has a supernatural nature, but that is not the only path to vampirism. Disease, desperation, and a foray into the realm of mad science created our number one vampire superhero: Morbius, the Living Vampire.
Dr. Michael Morbius was an award-winning scientist suffering from a terminal blood disease. He created a serum made from vampire bat DNA and combined it with electroshock therapy to cure the disease. The procedure worked better than expected.
The disease was cured and Dr. Morbius gained superhuman strength, speed, durability, and flight. Sure it made his skin pale, sharpened his teeth and nails into fangs and claws, and gave him an unquenchable thirst for blood, but those are fairly minor complaints in the face of death.
Morbius realized that he had accidentally transformed himself into a vampire and fled from his laboratory. He lived as a supervillain for a time and fed on innocent people as he searched for a cure. Their deaths weighed heavily on Morbius, leading him to feed exclusively on criminals in the future to assuage his guilt.
Who is your favorite vampire superhero? Is there one who sucks even more than these five? Tell us in the comments.
Jared Bounacos has written for Movie Rewind since 2016.
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