Vampires the Immortals
So, with this being the month for Halloween, I figured I would talk about some of my favorite creatures of the night. Today that's vampires. I have a series currently in process that does involvee vampires. This one involves the a war brewing between differing factions of vampires and enlists the aid of the Fae.
Now, there are many myths and legends out there, and it would take a long time to go through them, so I will just address some of my favorites. One of the main common ties is that one can be turned. Some say you can be born into the race, others say it was a curse that can be transferred to another. I like the idea of it being a mesh of them both. You can see this in many different movies and books. One of my favorites is below.
Underworld:
I have to say, I adored Saleene’s character in this series. She was a kick butt warrior who was only out to take care of what she believed had killed her family. Now, she was misled, but in the end, she went with the truth. I also enjoyed the idea that it all began with immortals that were mutated into the different lines. You have to give them credit; they were able to roll the world of Vampires into the human world quite well. By all accounts, they did not seem to turn new people and had very strict rules for their kind.
Priest:
The vampires in this movie are different than most I’ve seen. They are, in and of themselves, a race of animals that eat everything. There is an intelligence in their world, but you never really see what they are thinking. They have a hierarchy which cannot be missed and they are ruthless. I won’t get into too much in case those reading have not seen the movie, but I have to say, I really enjoyed this movie. If you like different aspects of vampires, this one is a good one to see. It is not your normal run of the mill type vampires. These are beasts, pure and simple. But it makes them really interesting.
Blade:
Okay, I cannot talk about vampires without discussing Blade. His is an interesting twist as he was not turned, nor a pureblood immortal. He was born after his mother was infected. His hatred of the race is impossible to miss when he takes up with his friend and hunts them down. Throughout the series you can’t help but see all the evil they have pushed in this version of the Vampire. However, if you’ve seen Blade III you are introduced to the source of the vampires, Drake. He is the original. Even though they tried to make him evil, he had a code of honor that you could not miss at the end. I liked how they presented him in the last movie.
Dracula:
And then there is the first, and ultimate, vampire. Bram Stoker’s Dracula was the ultimate. He was cursed, by forsaking god and could turn others into vampires as well. In one of the more recent movies, you could see the humanity in the character. He was haunted by his past and the life he lost. To read the story, it is a very dramatic tragedy. Yes there are horrific acts when he takes another life, but there is an underlying commitment he has to the woman he lost.
In the end, I can understand why the vampire has remained a distinct figure in both movies and books. There is a fascination with them, a calling for things that are forbidden, and the belief that one can cheat death. My favorite idea of a vampire would be that they are not cursed, but are a separation from humans. They are a race, of themselves, that cannot be turned but must co-exist. Though they have the possibility of long lives, I prefer the stories that show them as not immortals, but that they just age slower than humans but do have weakness that can be exploited. This is something I plan to explore in a new series coming out sometime in 2013.
I would love to know what you, my readers, like and dislike about vampires. What fascinates you, draws you in and keeps you reading/watching. Is it the act of bloodletting, the ability to remain young or the possibility of never dying? What drives you, compels you, to keep reaching for that next movie or book or do the idea of the vampire completely turn you away?
As always, happy reading and writing.
R.G. Porter
Now, there are many myths and legends out there, and it would take a long time to go through them, so I will just address some of my favorites. One of the main common ties is that one can be turned. Some say you can be born into the race, others say it was a curse that can be transferred to another. I like the idea of it being a mesh of them both. You can see this in many different movies and books. One of my favorites is below.
Underworld:
I have to say, I adored Saleene’s character in this series. She was a kick butt warrior who was only out to take care of what she believed had killed her family. Now, she was misled, but in the end, she went with the truth. I also enjoyed the idea that it all began with immortals that were mutated into the different lines. You have to give them credit; they were able to roll the world of Vampires into the human world quite well. By all accounts, they did not seem to turn new people and had very strict rules for their kind.
Priest:
The vampires in this movie are different than most I’ve seen. They are, in and of themselves, a race of animals that eat everything. There is an intelligence in their world, but you never really see what they are thinking. They have a hierarchy which cannot be missed and they are ruthless. I won’t get into too much in case those reading have not seen the movie, but I have to say, I really enjoyed this movie. If you like different aspects of vampires, this one is a good one to see. It is not your normal run of the mill type vampires. These are beasts, pure and simple. But it makes them really interesting.
Blade:
Okay, I cannot talk about vampires without discussing Blade. His is an interesting twist as he was not turned, nor a pureblood immortal. He was born after his mother was infected. His hatred of the race is impossible to miss when he takes up with his friend and hunts them down. Throughout the series you can’t help but see all the evil they have pushed in this version of the Vampire. However, if you’ve seen Blade III you are introduced to the source of the vampires, Drake. He is the original. Even though they tried to make him evil, he had a code of honor that you could not miss at the end. I liked how they presented him in the last movie.
Dracula:And then there is the first, and ultimate, vampire. Bram Stoker’s Dracula was the ultimate. He was cursed, by forsaking god and could turn others into vampires as well. In one of the more recent movies, you could see the humanity in the character. He was haunted by his past and the life he lost. To read the story, it is a very dramatic tragedy. Yes there are horrific acts when he takes another life, but there is an underlying commitment he has to the woman he lost.
In the end, I can understand why the vampire has remained a distinct figure in both movies and books. There is a fascination with them, a calling for things that are forbidden, and the belief that one can cheat death. My favorite idea of a vampire would be that they are not cursed, but are a separation from humans. They are a race, of themselves, that cannot be turned but must co-exist. Though they have the possibility of long lives, I prefer the stories that show them as not immortals, but that they just age slower than humans but do have weakness that can be exploited. This is something I plan to explore in a new series coming out sometime in 2013.
I would love to know what you, my readers, like and dislike about vampires. What fascinates you, draws you in and keeps you reading/watching. Is it the act of bloodletting, the ability to remain young or the possibility of never dying? What drives you, compels you, to keep reaching for that next movie or book or do the idea of the vampire completely turn you away?
As always, happy reading and writing.
R.G. Porter
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