As far as Marvel’s superheroes and supervillains go, the publishing house is full of very interesting characters, most of which can be used to make very interesting comparisons. As you know very well, we at Fiction Horizon have a tradition of making comparisons, using different characters from different companies. Such a comparison is going to be the topic of today’s article, as we are going to compare Blade, Marvel’s most famous vampire hunter, and Marvel’s Dracula, the publishing house’s version of the most famous vampire in history. Enjoy!
Despite Dracula being stronger than all other vampire characters and definitely Blade’s most dangerous vampire opponent, we are of the opinion that Blade would be able to defeat him. Ultimately, however strong he might be, Dracula is still a vampire and Blade’s specialty are vampires.
Our comparison is going to be divided into three sections. The first is going to bring an overview of the two characters, after which we are going to compare their powers, including their signature weapons. Finally, we’re going to bring you a detailed analysis of the two characters to determine which one would win in a direct clash.
How did Blade become a Vampire hunter?
Blade, real name Eric Brooks, is a superhero created in 1973 for Marvel Comics by writer Marv Wolfman and artist Gene Colan. Blade was initially a supporting character in Tomb of Dracula in the 1970s, and played a starring role in several comics thereafter.
The man named Blade was born in a brothel in Soho, Britain. Blade revealed that the exact date of his birth was October 24, 1929 – a date also known as “Black Thursday” when the stock market crash that led to the Great Depression occurred. Blade said he was 72 years old but his vampire powers make him look much younger.
Blade’s mother, Tara Brooks, was a prostitute at Madame Vanity’s Brothel, who suffered several severe complications and experiences during childbirth, so much so that a doctor was called. The “doctor” was named Deacon Frost and was actually a wild vampire. Frost feasted on Blade’s mother during Blade’s birth, killing her, and accidentally passing enzymes into the baby’s own blood.
This resulted in providing Blade with superhuman abilities, such as immunity to vampire metamorphosis, the ability to “smell” supernatural creatures, and a greatly extended lifespan. On the other hand, it also engendered a certain sensitivity in Blade to the light of the city.
While in the Marvel Comics version the character of Blade was featured as a British and London-born subject, the film and television versions of Blade produced by New Line Cinema show him as a Chicago-born American. Other than the point of the two versions of the story of his mother’s bite being bitten by vampires while she was giving birth to him, there is little agreement between the films and the comic book versions of Blade. However, due to the success of the film, efforts were made by Marvel Comics to make a version more in line with the character of the film.
This was achieved by confessing that Blade was bitten on the arm by Morbius. The injury resulted in Blade becoming a half-vampire, giving him all of the advantages of a vampire but none of his weaknesses. He has increased strength and great agility comparable to that of a vampire but, due to his human side, is not sensitive to sunlight.
Before being bitten by Morbius, Blade’s only unusual attributes were immunity to vampire bites and his aging slower than humans – both due to his unique physiology. As Morbius was not a true vampire, but some type of variant, Blade was not immune to his bite like other vampires and his physiology changed becoming similar to that of Morbius.
However, in the current Blade series, Blade now states that Morbius’s bite did not affect his body in any way and that he was a half-vampire from birth. Frost was chased away by Blade’s mother’s coworkers before he also killed the baby. They raised him until he was nine years old. Although he has superhuman physical abilities, he has trained to become an Olympic-level athlete and a seasoned melee fighter.
He has notably become an expert in the handling of bladed weapons, mainly knives, and daggers.
Who is Marvel’s Dracula?
Dracula is a fictional character from the Marvel Comics universe. Created by Gerry Conway and Gene Colan, he debuted in the first issue of the comic book Tomb of Dracula in April 1972. He is inspired by the character of Count Dracula created by Bram Stoker for his novel Dracula published in 1897.
Vlad Tepes, who would later be known as Dracula, was born in 1430, in Transylvania, Romania. He is the second son of Vlad Dracul. In 1444 he accompanied his father, Vlad II and his brother Radu to discuss a peace treaty with the Ottoman Empire. They fall into a trap. Radu and his brother are then imprisoned by Sultan Murad II to force Vlad II to side with the Turks and face Hungary and other Christian kingdoms with them.
Years pass and Radu ultimately died, having been tortured for nearly five years. Vlad the Elder and his youngest son, Mircea, are also killed, but by Vlad’s advisers under the orders of John Hunyadi (regent of Hungary). The 18-year-old Vlad is the only survivor. He managed to escape Turkish prisons and returned to Wallachia, where he took the title of voivode. But he is later forced to flee, threatened by his father’s assassins.
He returned to his country in 1451 to deliver himself to Jean Hunyadi. The latter accepts his allegiance and introduces him to the art of war. Vlad is however forced to marry Zofia, a woman he despises more than anything, for an arranged marriage. They will have a daughter, Lilith. Vlad eventually repudiates his wife to marry Maria, who will give him a son, Vlad Tepelus. He will then have another son, Janus, with his third wife, Domini.
Vlad also seeks revenge on his father’s assassins, whom he all impales. In 1459, he received deceptive “visions” from the Lord of the vampires. The latter, tired of his immortality, then seeks a worthy successor. Vlad Dracula is ultimately killed in a battle against the Turkish armies, led by the eternal mutant En-Sabah Nur (aka Apocalypse). Seriously wounded, he was however spared by the Turkish general Turac.
Vlad is brought to the gypsy Lianda, who is actually a vampire. She uses her healing powers on him turning him into a vampire. Returning from the dead, Dracula cannot prevent the rape and murder of his wife Maria by Turac. However, he takes revenge by killing him. Dracula must then face Nimrod, the alleged lord of the vampires, who is in reality only a henchman of the true lord.
Dracula then tracks down and kills many Gypsies, to take revenge on Lianda. After repelling an assassination attempt in 1471, Dracula relinquished the throne of Wallachia, but would continue to inhabit his castle for more than a century. He will be forced to kill his own son, Vlad Tepulus, raised since his death and that of his mother Maria by Gypsies who hate Dracula.
Comparing the powers of Blade and Dracula
Our second section will contain a comparison of the two characters’ powers. It won’t be a direct comparison as much as a listing of their powers abilities, which is going to serve as a basis for our analysis in section three of our article. Now, let us begin.
Due to an enzyme in his bloodstream that results from his mother being bitten by a vampire giving birth to him, Blade is immune to typical and supernatural vampire bites. In certain cases, he also seemed to be immune to vampire hypnosis. However, he lacked superhuman physical attributes and relied solely on his considerable skill and determination until Morbius, an atypical and scientifically created vampire, bit him and Blade became something of a dhampir.
Blade possesses superhuman strength, stamina, speed, agility, heightened senses, and a rapid healing factor that attacks any foreign substances (chemicals / viruses) in his body and eliminates any chance that he will be left defenseless or maimed from the inside and unaffected. by daylight and most other traditional vampire weaknesses.
He also ages very slowly (although he is not immortal) and can supernaturally sense supernatural activity. Blade is a master of martial arts mastering styles such as boxing, capoeira, Escrima, Jeet Kune do, Hapkido, Jujutsu, Shotokan Karate, Kung Fu, and Ninjutsu. He is also a skilled swordsman, marksman, and street fighter. He is adept at using throwing knives.
He is very knowledgeable about vampiric lore and the supernatural. In “Dracula’s Gauntlet”, Blade and Deadpool are surrounded by monsters and Blade threatens to turn into a bat and leave Deadpool there to die. He may have all of the vampire powers, but has conflicts overusing those that make him appear less human.
Dracula acquired the powers of a vampire from his transformation into a vampire after being bitten by the vampire Lianda, and gained additional power through Varnae. Dracula possesses powers far greater than most vampires.
He is superhumanly strong (to the point of standing face to face and defeating Colossus in single combat), and also possesses superhuman speed, stamina, reflexes, and transvection. He is immune to aging, conventional diseases, disease, and most forms of injury. He cannot be killed or permanently injured by conventional means. He is unaffected by most attacks and due to his healing factor, he can quickly regenerate damaged tissue.
Dracula can manipulate the minds of others, and command animals at his will, such as rodents, bats, and wolves. With limited exceptions, he can control other vampires. He has the ability to mentally control the victims he has bitten, and can temporarily hypnotize anyone with his gaze. He is able to shapeshift into a normal-size bat, or regular-looking human, or even a wolf without losing his intelligence, and has the ability to manipulate weather, such as summoning electrical storms.
Like some vampires in other works of fiction, Dracula does not cast reflections. His powers have been greatly amplified and his weaknesses eluded by magical sources, such as spells from the Darkholders.
Dracula has a dependency on ingesting fresh blood to maintain his existence, and an inability to withstand direct sunlight. He falls into a comatose state during daylight hours and has to spend a lot of time in contact with his homeland. He has vulnerabilities to garlic, silver (which can cause severe pain), the presence of religious symbols (carried by someone who believes in their spiritual significance), and can be killed by beheading, a wooden stake through the heart, or blades. made of silver.
He can also be destroyed by the Darkhold spell known as the Montesi Formula. Dracula is a skilled melee combatant and swordsman with centuries of experience, specializing in 15th century warfare and militaristic strategy. He has a gifted intellect, and has studied with different tutors in his youth in Transylvania.
This is an overview of their powers, from which we can deduce that the two annul each other. Now, let us see how the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z (2010) compares the two characters:
| Blade | Dracula | |
| Intelligence | 2/7 | 3/7 |
| Strength | 4/7 | 3-4/7 |
| Speed | 2/7 | 2-3/7 |
| Durability | 4/7 | 2-6/7 |
| Energy Projection | 1/7 | 1-6/7 |
| Fighting Skills | 5/7 | 4/7 |
Who would win: Blade or Dracula?
And now for the most important and interesting section of our article – the analysis. Here, we are going to use what we have found out about these two characters and analyze how all these facts would (or would not) help them in a fight against each other. Blade and Dracula couldn’t be more different in almost all relevant aspects, which made this text so interesting and fun to write. Let us continue.
The decision here seems to be quite easy, right? And for the most part, it absolutely is. Blade is a skilled vampire hunter while Dracula is the typical definition of a vampire. Shouldn’t be too difficult, right? Well, while it is true that Blade could certainly defeat Dracula, it wouldn’t be that easy.
Namely, Dracula is a vampire, but he is stronger than all other vampires and he would certainly be the toughest opponent that Blade has faced. Blade’s usual methods wouldn’t work due to Dracula’s enhanced powers, but in the end, due to his experience and determination, we’re certain that Blade would come up with a plan to defeat Dracula in battle.
And that’s it for today. We hope you had fun reading this and that we have given you all the information you were looking for. See you next time and don’t forget to follow us!
