Tomb of Dracula
Encyclopedia
The Tomb of Dracula is a horror
comic book
series published by Marvel Comics
from April 1972 to August 1979. The 70-issue series featured a group of vampire
hunters who fought Count Dracula
and other supernatural
menaces. On rare occasions, Dracula would work with these vampire hunter
s against a common threat or battle other supernatural threats on his own, but more often than not, he was the antagonist
rather than protagonist
. In addition to his supernatural battles in this series, Marvel's Dracula often served as a supervillain
to other characters in the Marvel Universe
, battling the likes of Blade
, Spider-Man
, Werewolf by Night
, the X-Men
, and the licensed Robert E. Howard
character Solomon Kane
.
relaxed some of its longstanding rules regarding horror comics, such as a virtual ban on vampires. Marvel had already tested the waters with a "quasi-vampire" character, Morbius, the Living Vampire
, but the company was now prepared to launch a regular vampire title as part of its new line of horror books. After some discussion, it was decided to use the Dracula character, in large part because it was the most famous vampire to the general public, and also because Bram Stoker
's creation and secondary characters were by that time in the public domain.
At first, The Tomb of Dracula was plagued by an inability to keep a steady writer, with the first half-dozen issues written by Gerry Conway
, Archie Goodwin
, and Gardner Fox
. But the title gained stability and hit its stride when Marv Wolfman
became permanent scripter with the seventh issue.
The entire run of The Tomb of Dracula was penciled by Gene Colan
, with Tom Palmer
inking
virtually all (although Gil Kane
drew many of the covers for the first few years, as he did for many other Marvel titles). Colan based the visual appearance of Marvel's Dracula not on Bela Lugosi
, Christopher Lee
, or any other actor who had played the vampire on film, but rather on actor Jack Palance
. Palance would play Dracula in a television production
of Stoker's novel the year after The Tomb of Dracula debuted.
Colan, already one of Marvel's most well-established and prominent artists, said he had lobbied for the assignment.
The Tomb of Dracula ran for 70 issues, until 1979. As cancellation loomed, Wolfman made to wrap up the storyline and lingering threads by issue #72. But Jim Shooter
, then the editor-in-chief, retroactively cut two issues after the artwork had been completed for three. As Wolfman recalled,
Twelve of those pages, which Wolfman had saved as photocopies, appeared in the hardcover reprint collection Tomb of Dracula Omnibus Vol. 2. The series culminated with the death of Quincy Harker and Dracula's apparent death and dispersal.
The color title was succeeded by a black-and-white magazine, with stories also drawn by Gene Colan, that lasted six issues. An earlier magazine, Dracula Lives!, published by the Marvel imprint Curtis Magazines
, ran from 1973 to 1975. The color comic was also supplemented by a "Giant-Size" companion quarterly that ran for five issues in the mid-1970s.
, the vampire lord was revived. Marvel published a four-issue Tomb of Dracula miniseries, reuniting Wolfman and Colan, under its Epic Comics
imprint in 1991, and revived Dracula and his foes in the short-lived Nightstalkers
and Blade
series in the 1990s. Some unresolved plot threads from The Tomb of Dracula were addressed in the final three issues of Nightstalkers
. These included the fates of Dracula's bride Domini, their son Janus
, and vampire-hunter Taj Nital. Dracula took the title role in the miniseries Dracula: Lord of the Undead.
Two more four-issue miniseries followed. Stoker's Dracula continued and concluded the adaptation of the original Bram Stoker
novel Dracula
by writer Roy Thomas
and artist Dick Giordano
, which had begun in Dracula Lives 20 years prior. Another Tomb of Dracula miniseries followed found Blade joined a new team of vampire hunters to prevent Dracula achieving godhood. Apocalypse vs. Dracula featured Dracula battling Apocalypse
, an immortal foe of the superhero team the X-Men, in Victorian London.
, Marvel published a four-volume, black-and-white Essential Tomb of Dracula collection, with the first three collecting the 70 issues plus selections from the black-and-white Tomb of Dracula magazine. The fourth reprinted the comics stories from Dracula Lives and the remainder of the stories from the Tomb of Dracula magazine.
In 2008 Marvel launched the first of three Marvel Omnibus
reprinting Tomb of Dracula.
The comics have been collected as part of the Essential
series of trade paperbacks
. The volumes are:
Some of the nudity was removed from the fourth volume. Publisher Dan Buckley
explained, "That wasn't because we were going to bookstores, or because we were exclusively going to hobby shops. It probably had more with where we were at from a ratings standpoint and the editors felt that was the appropriate thing to do, considering how we communicate what's going on in our books from a packaging standpoint. ...We generally avoid nudity, unless it's a MAX
title. We don't want to take an Essential volume and start calling it MAX; then you get into branding issues." Retailers' opinions on the matter are split.
A Marvel Omnibus
collecting The Tomb of Dracula #1-31, Werewolf by Night #15, Giant-Size Chillers #1, and Giant-Size Dracula #2-4 was released in November 2008. The second volume, collecting The Tomb of Dracula #32-70, Giant-Size Dracula #5, and Dr. Strange #14 was released in October 2009. The third volume, collecting Tomb of Dracula Magazine #1-6, Frankenstein Monster #7-9, and Dracula Lives! #1-13 was released in January 2011.
In 2010, Marvel began publishing the series as full-colour trade paperbacks
. The volumes are:
television movie
based on The Tomb of Dracula was released. The film was called Yami no Teiō: Kyūketsuki Dracula (Dracula: The Vampire Emperor of Darkness). Much of the main plot was condensed and many characters and subplots were truncated or omitted. The film was animated in Japan
by Toei
and sparsely released on cable TV in North America
in 1983 by Harmony Gold
dubbed into English and under the title Dracula: Sovereign of the Damned.
, a character introduced in The Tomb of Dracula, has been featured in a series of three films: Blade
(1998), Blade II
(2002), and Blade: Trinity
(2004), as well as a short-lived television series titled Blade: The Series
(2006). Other Tomb of Dracula characters, Deacon Frost
and Hannibal King
, have been featured in these films (Frost in Blade
, King in Blade: Trinity
), albeit in heavily revised forms. Reference to the Tomb of Dracula series is made in Blade: Trinity
when King shows an issue of the comic to Blade.
Dracula himself does not appear in the series until Blade: Trinity
, in which he goes by the name of "Drake" and features an origin and powers that differ from the comics. He is played in the film by Dominic Purcell. Given Drake's age and origin, he, more than any other vampire that followed, can harness a much greater and more dynamic range of abilities. He possesses superhuman strength, much greater than that of Blade, as well as incredible speed. Like those he sired, he is capable of leaping great distances and seems to be knowledgeable of sword fighting techniques, even rivaling Blade himself. Drake's true power, however, is derived from his origin as the first of his species. The manipulation of energies which lead to his first resurrection left Drake with two forms: human and a demonic alter ego. In this form, Drake is much stronger, resilient to all forms of damage and much taller than his human form. He also possesses very keen senses, allowing him, for example, to catch an arrow in mid-air.
and Gene Colan
returned to Dracula comics with The Curse of Dracula, a three-issue miniseries
published in 1998. The miniseries was published by Dark Horse Comics
and was not officially associated with Marvel's Dracula series. A trade paperback
collection was published in 2005.
Horror fiction
Horror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series published by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
from April 1972 to August 1979. The 70-issue series featured a group of vampire
Vampire (Marvel Comics)
Vampires are fictional characters found in the Marvel Universe.-History:They were created roughly 15,000 years ago when a small band of sorcerers from the legendary city of Atlantis discovered a book known as the Darkhold, an indestructible text filled with arcane lore and dark magic written...
hunters who fought Count Dracula
Dracula (Marvel Comics)
Dracula is a fictional character, a comic book supervillain appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. He is based on the vampire Count Dracula from the novel of the same name by author Bram Stoker, and is also influenced by Universal Studios' version of the character.-Publication history:A...
and other supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
menaces. On rare occasions, Dracula would work with these vampire hunter
Vampire hunter
A vampire hunter or vampire slayer is a character in folklore and fiction who specializes in finding and destroying vampires, and sometimes other supernatural creatures....
s against a common threat or battle other supernatural threats on his own, but more often than not, he was the antagonist
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
rather than protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
. In addition to his supernatural battles in this series, Marvel's Dracula often served as a supervillain
Supervillain
A supervillain or supervillainess is a variant of the villain character type, commonly found in comic books, action movies and science fiction in various media.They are sometimes used as foils to superheroes and other fictional heroes...
to other characters in the Marvel Universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
, battling the likes of Blade
Blade (comics)
Blade is a fictional character, a superhero/vampire hunter in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Marv Wolfman and penciller Gene Colan, his first appearance was in the comic book The Tomb of Dracula #10 as a supporting character.The character went on to alternatively star and co-star...
, Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
, Werewolf by Night
Werewolf by Night
Werewolf by Night is a fictional character, an antiheroic werewolf in the Marvel Comics universe. The Werewolf by Night first appeared in Marvel Spotlight vol...
, the X-Men
X-Men
The X-Men are a superhero team in the . They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1...
, and the licensed Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
character Solomon Kane
Solomon Kane
Solomon Kane is a fictional character created by the pulp-era writer Robert E. Howard. A late 16th / early 17th century Puritan, Solomon Kane is a sombre-looking man who wanders the world with no apparent goal other than to vanquish evil in all its forms...
.
Original series
In 1971, the Comics Code AuthorityComics Code Authority
The Comics Code Authority was a body created as part of the Comics Magazine Association of America, as a tool for the comics-publishing industry to self-regulate the content of comic books in the United States. Member publishers submitted comic books to the CCA, which screened them for adherence to...
relaxed some of its longstanding rules regarding horror comics, such as a virtual ban on vampires. Marvel had already tested the waters with a "quasi-vampire" character, Morbius, the Living Vampire
Morbius, the Living Vampire
Morbius, the Living Vampire, is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Roy Thomas and penciler Gil Kane, the character, a living human suffering from vampiric abilities resulting from scientific rather than supernatural means, first appeared as...
, but the company was now prepared to launch a regular vampire title as part of its new line of horror books. After some discussion, it was decided to use the Dracula character, in large part because it was the most famous vampire to the general public, and also because Bram Stoker
Bram Stoker
Abraham "Bram" Stoker was an Irish novelist and short story writer, best known today for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula...
's creation and secondary characters were by that time in the public domain.
At first, The Tomb of Dracula was plagued by an inability to keep a steady writer, with the first half-dozen issues written by Gerry Conway
Gerry Conway
Gerard F. "Gerry" Conway is an American writer of comic books and television shows. He is known for co-creating the Marvel Comics vigilante The Punisher and scripting the death of the character Gwen Stacy during his long run on The Amazing Spider-Man...
, Archie Goodwin
Archie Goodwin (comics)
Archie Goodwin was an American comic book writer, editor, and artist. He worked on a number of comic strips in addition to comic books, and is best known for his Warren and Marvel Comics work...
, and Gardner Fox
Gardner Fox
Gardner Francis Cooper Fox was an American writer best known for creating numerous comic book characters for DC Comics. Comic-book historians estimate that he wrote over 4,000 comics stories....
. But the title gained stability and hit its stride when Marv Wolfman
Marv Wolfman
Marvin A. "Marv" Wolfman is an award-winning American comic book writer. He is best known for lengthy runs on The Tomb of Dracula, creating Blade for Marvel Comics, and The New Teen Titans for DC Comics.-1960s:...
became permanent scripter with the seventh issue.
The entire run of The Tomb of Dracula was penciled by Gene Colan
Gene Colan
Eugene Jules "Gene" Colan was an American comic book artist best known for his work for Marvel Comics, where his signature titles include the superhero series, Daredevil, the cult-hit satiric series Howard the Duck, and The Tomb of Dracula, considered one of comics' classic horror series...
, with Tom Palmer
Tom Palmer (comics)
-Biography:Although Palmer has done a small amount of pencilling work , the vast majority of his artistic output since the 1960s has been as a comic book inker...
inking
Inker
The inker is one of the two line artists in a traditional comic book or graphic novel. After a pencilled drawing is given to the inker, the inker uses black ink to produce refined outlines over the pencil lines...
virtually all (although Gil Kane
Gil Kane
Eli Katz who worked under the name Gil Kane and in one instance Scott Edward, was a comic book artist whose career spanned the 1940s to 1990s and every major comics company and character.Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and...
drew many of the covers for the first few years, as he did for many other Marvel titles). Colan based the visual appearance of Marvel's Dracula not on Bela Lugosi
Béla Lugosi
Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó , commonly known as Bela Lugosi, was a Hungarian actor of stage and screen. He was best known for having played Count Dracula in the Broadway play and subsequent film version, as well as having starred in several of Ed Wood's low budget films in the last years of his...
, Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
, or any other actor who had played the vampire on film, but rather on actor Jack Palance
Jack Palance
Jack Palance , was an American actor. During half a century of film and television appearances, Palance was nominated for three Academy Awards, all as Best Actor in a Supporting Role, winning in 1991 for his role in City Slickers.-Early life:Palance, one of five children, was born Volodymyr...
. Palance would play Dracula in a television production
Dracula (1973)
Dracula is a 1973 television adaptation of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula written by Richard Matheson and directed by Dark Shadows creator Dan Curtis.-Plot summary:"Bistritz, Hungary May 1897"....
of Stoker's novel the year after The Tomb of Dracula debuted.
Colan, already one of Marvel's most well-established and prominent artists, said he had lobbied for the assignment.
The Tomb of Dracula ran for 70 issues, until 1979. As cancellation loomed, Wolfman made to wrap up the storyline and lingering threads by issue #72. But Jim Shooter
Jim Shooter
James Shooter is an American writer, occasional fill-in artist, editor, and publisher for various comic books. Although he started professionally in the medium at the extraordinarily young age of 14, he is most notable for his successful and controversial run as Marvel Comics' ninth...
, then the editor-in-chief, retroactively cut two issues after the artwork had been completed for three. As Wolfman recalled,
Twelve of those pages, which Wolfman had saved as photocopies, appeared in the hardcover reprint collection Tomb of Dracula Omnibus Vol. 2. The series culminated with the death of Quincy Harker and Dracula's apparent death and dispersal.
The color title was succeeded by a black-and-white magazine, with stories also drawn by Gene Colan, that lasted six issues. An earlier magazine, Dracula Lives!, published by the Marvel imprint Curtis Magazines
Curtis Magazines
Curtis Magazines was an imprint of Marvel Comics that existed from 1971 to 1980. The imprint published black-and-white magazines that did not carry the Comics Code Authority seal. Initially, page counts varied between 68,76, and 84 pages....
, ran from 1973 to 1975. The color comic was also supplemented by a "Giant-Size" companion quarterly that ran for five issues in the mid-1970s.
Post-series Dracula appearances
Several years later, Dracula resurfaced in an issue of The Uncanny X-Men. Although Dracula (and all other vampires in the Marvel Universe) were eventually destroyed by the mystical Montessi Formula in the pages of Doctor StrangeDoctor Strange
Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, and first appeared in Strange Tales #110 ....
, the vampire lord was revived. Marvel published a four-issue Tomb of Dracula miniseries, reuniting Wolfman and Colan, under its Epic Comics
Epic Comics
Epic Comics was a creator-owned imprint of Marvel Comics started in 1982, lasting through the mid-1990s, and being briefly revived on a small scale in the mid-2000s.- Origins :...
imprint in 1991, and revived Dracula and his foes in the short-lived Nightstalkers
Nightstalkers (comics)
The Nightstalkers is a fictional trio of preexisting characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. A team of occult experts, they reluctantly banded together to fight supernatural threats....
and Blade
Blade (comics)
Blade is a fictional character, a superhero/vampire hunter in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Marv Wolfman and penciller Gene Colan, his first appearance was in the comic book The Tomb of Dracula #10 as a supporting character.The character went on to alternatively star and co-star...
series in the 1990s. Some unresolved plot threads from The Tomb of Dracula were addressed in the final three issues of Nightstalkers
Nightstalkers (comics)
The Nightstalkers is a fictional trio of preexisting characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. A team of occult experts, they reluctantly banded together to fight supernatural threats....
. These included the fates of Dracula's bride Domini, their son Janus
Janus (Marvel Comics)
Janus is a fictional comic-book character in the Marvel Comics universe.-Fictional character biography:The Golden Angel was a possessing spirit who claimed to be an angel, a messenger and warrior of God. This angel was revealed to have appeared to Dracula and thwarted his will in the past...
, and vampire-hunter Taj Nital. Dracula took the title role in the miniseries Dracula: Lord of the Undead.
Two more four-issue miniseries followed. Stoker's Dracula continued and concluded the adaptation of the original Bram Stoker
Bram Stoker
Abraham "Bram" Stoker was an Irish novelist and short story writer, best known today for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula...
novel Dracula
Dracula
Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...
by writer Roy Thomas
Roy Thomas
Roy William Thomas, Jr. is an American comic book writer and editor, and Stan Lee's first successor as editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics. He is possibly best known for introducing the pulp magazine hero Conan the Barbarian to American comics, with a series that added to the storyline of Robert E...
and artist Dick Giordano
Dick Giordano
Richard Joseph "Dick" Giordano was an American comic book artist and editor best known for introducing Charlton Comics' "Action Heroes" stable of superheroes, and serving as executive editor of then–industry leader DC Comics...
, which had begun in Dracula Lives 20 years prior. Another Tomb of Dracula miniseries followed found Blade joined a new team of vampire hunters to prevent Dracula achieving godhood. Apocalypse vs. Dracula featured Dracula battling Apocalypse
Apocalypse (comics)
Apocalypse is a fictional character who is an ancient mutant that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in X-Factor #5 , created by writer Louise Simonson and designed by artist Walter Simonson...
, an immortal foe of the superhero team the X-Men, in Victorian London.
Major characters
- DraculaDracula (Marvel Comics)Dracula is a fictional character, a comic book supervillain appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. He is based on the vampire Count Dracula from the novel of the same name by author Bram Stoker, and is also influenced by Universal Studios' version of the character.-Publication history:A...
- Dr. Quincy HarkerQuincy HarkerQuincy Harker is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe which is based on a character in Bram Stoker's Dracula.-Publication history:...
, son of Jonathan and Mina Harker, and disabled leader of the vampire hunters; he died in battle with Dracula. - Dr. Rachel van HelsingRachel van HelsingRachel van Helsing is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Fictional character biography:Rachel van Helsing was the great-granddaughter of Abraham Van Helsing, the legendary vampire hunter whose exploits against the vampire lord Dracula were chronicled in Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula...
, granddaughter of Abraham Van HelsingAbraham Van HelsingProfessor Abraham van Helsing is a protagonist from Bram Stoker's 1897 novel, Dracula.Van Helsing is a Dutch doctor with a wide range of interests and accomplishments, partly attested by the string of letters that follows his name: "M.D., D.Ph., D.Litt., etc." The character is best known as a...
, and leader of the vampire hunters upon Harker's death; she was turned into a vampire by Dracula and subsequently given a mercy killing by WolverineWolverine (comics)Wolverine is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Born as James Howlett and commonly known as Logan, Wolverine is a mutant, possessing animal-keen senses, enhanced physical capabilities, three retracting bone claws on each hand and a healing...
of the X-MenX-MenThe X-Men are a superhero team in the . They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1...
. - BladeBlade (comics)Blade is a fictional character, a superhero/vampire hunter in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Marv Wolfman and penciller Gene Colan, his first appearance was in the comic book The Tomb of Dracula #10 as a supporting character.The character went on to alternatively star and co-star...
, son of a woman bitten by a vampire during pregnancy and a valued, yet reluctant ally to Quincy Harker's band of vampire hunters. Blade possesses quasi-vampiric abilities, including a greatly prolonged lifespan and the ability to sense supernatural creatures, as well as an immunity to complete vampirism. - Frank DrakeFrank Drake (comics)Frank Drake is a fictional character appearing in publications from Marvel Comics, most notably the Tomb of Dracula series created by Gerry Conway....
, descendant of Dracula and charter member of Quincy Harker's vampire hunters. Note: Drake's bloodline is based on one of Dracula's marriages prior to his vampirism. - Hannibal KingHannibal KingHannibal King is a fictional character, a supernatural detective appearing in publications from Marvel Comics. He first appeared as a supporting character in the 1970s comic book The Tomb of Dracula.-Fictional character biography:...
, a vampire hunter and private investigator who is himself a reluctant vampire, frequent partner of Blade & Drake. He subsisted solely on blood he acquired from blood banks or corpses he found and had never taken blood directly from a human being. Thus he was able to survive the Montesi Formula and be restored to normal human status. - Taj Nital, a mute HinduHinduHindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
vampire hunter of considerable strength (sufficient to temporarily restrain Dracula) whose sonAdri NitalAdri Nital is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:Adri Nital first appeared in Tomb of Dracula #28-29 , and was created by Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan....
was vampirized, and who was later transformed into a vampire, and destroyed in NightstalkersNightstalkers (comics)The Nightstalkers is a fictional trio of preexisting characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. A team of occult experts, they reluctantly banded together to fight supernatural threats....
#18. - LilithLilith (Marvel Comics)Lilith is the name of two fictional American comic book characters owned by Marvel Comics. Both characters exist in the Marvel Universe.The first of these two to appear was Lilith, the daughter of Dracula. Like her father, she is also a vampire, although her powers and weaknesses differ from most...
, the daughter of Dracula, an immortal vampire who was cursed to never die until her father was permanently destroyed; when slain, she was reborn into the body of a woman who was full of hate. - Deacon FrostDeacon FrostDeacon Frost is a fictional character appearing in the Marvel Universe. He appears in The Tomb of Dracula and in the Blade limited series.- Publication history :...
, the vampire responsible for the death of Blade's mother and Hannibal King's vampirism. He was an upstart contender for the title of Lord of the Vampires, a title held by Dracula at the time. - Harold H. HaroldHarold H. HaroldHarold H. Harold is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:Harold H. Harold first appeared in Tomb of Dracula #37 , and was created by Marv Wolfman and Gene Colan....
, a hack writerHack writerHack writer is a colloquial and usually pejorative term used to refer to a writer who is paid to write low-quality, rushed articles or books "to order", often with a short deadline. In a fiction-writing context, the term is used to describe writers who are paid to churn out sensational,...
who befriended the vampire hunters in an effort to get material for a book he was writing. He fell victim to Dracula and became a vampire (in Howard the DuckHoward the DuckHoward the Duck is a comic book character in the Marvel Comics universe created by writer Steve Gerber and artist Val Mayerik. The character first appeared in Adventure into Fear #19 and several subsequent series have chronicled the misadventures of the ill-tempered, anthropomorphic, "funny...
Magazine #5)—though this did not stop him from becoming a successful Hollywood film producerFilm producerA film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
. However, like all vampires, he perished as a result of the casting of the Montessi Formula. - Anton Lupeski, a Satanic priest through whom Dracula manipulated a cult while impersonating Satan.
- Domini, a member of Anton Lupeski's cult whom Dracula chose as his bride.
- JanusJanus (Marvel Comics)Janus is a fictional comic-book character in the Marvel Comics universe.-Fictional character biography:The Golden Angel was a possessing spirit who claimed to be an angel, a messenger and warrior of God. This angel was revealed to have appeared to Dracula and thwarted his will in the past...
, the son of Dracula and Domini, who was possessed by an angel. He was returned to his child form, and at age five was kidnapped by the vampire Varnae (in the back story of NightstalkersNightstalkers (comics)The Nightstalkers is a fictional trio of preexisting characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics. A team of occult experts, they reluctantly banded together to fight supernatural threats....
#16–18). - VarnaeVarnaeVarnae is a fictional villainous vampire in the Marvel Comics universe. He has been an adversary of several of Marvel's supernatural and fantasy-related heroes, and is a major character in Marvel's Dracula mythos...
, the first vampire (and, at one point, enemy of Conan the BarbarianConan the BarbarianConan the Barbarian is a fictional sword and sorcery hero that originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films , television programs, video games, roleplaying games and other media...
). He was the Lord of the Vampires prior to Dracula, and although he died in the process of making Dracula his heir, he was later revived. He was inspired by the 19th century character Varney the VampireVarney the VampireVarney the Vampire; or, the Feast of Blood was a Victorian era serialized gothic horror story by James Malcolm Rymer . It first appeared in 1845–47 as a series of cheap pamphlets of the kind then known as "penny dreadfuls". The story was published in book form in 1847...
. - NimrodNimrod (vampire)Nimrod is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:Nimrod first appeared in Dracula Lives! #3 , and was created by Marv Wolfman and John Buscema....
, another Lord of the Vampires prior to Dracula, who killed him in Nimrod's first appearance (Dracula Lives! #3). When Dracula's origin was revised in Bizarre Adventures #33, Nimrod was no longer the true Lord of the Vampires; instead, he was a mentally imbalanced servant of Varnae, and had been empowered by his master as a test of Dracula's worthiness.
Collected editions
From 2003 to 2005, as part of its Essential Marvel series of trade paperbacksTrade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
, Marvel published a four-volume, black-and-white Essential Tomb of Dracula collection, with the first three collecting the 70 issues plus selections from the black-and-white Tomb of Dracula magazine. The fourth reprinted the comics stories from Dracula Lives and the remainder of the stories from the Tomb of Dracula magazine.
In 2008 Marvel launched the first of three Marvel Omnibus
Marvel Omnibus
Marvel Omnibus is a line of comic book series collections published by Marvel Comics. These collections provide full color compilations of several comics, aiming at complete runs...
reprinting Tomb of Dracula.
The comics have been collected as part of the Essential
Essential Marvel Comics
Essential Marvel is a line of American comic book reprints. It consists in a series of black-and-white paperbacks containing about 20-30 issues of mostly Silver Age or Bronze Age Marvel comic book reprints each...
series of trade paperbacks
Trade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
. The volumes are:
- Volume 1 (560 pages, 2003, PaniniPanini ComicsPanini Comics is an Italian comic book publisher. A division of Panini Group, best known for their collectible stickers, it is headquartered in Modena, Italy...
, ISBN 1904159621, MarvelMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, ISBN 078510920X)- Collects Tomb of Dracula #1-25, Werewolf By Night #15, Giant-Size Chillers #1
- Volume 2 (592 pages, 2004, PaniniPanini ComicsPanini Comics is an Italian comic book publisher. A division of Panini Group, best known for their collectible stickers, it is headquartered in Modena, Italy...
, ISBN 190523905X, MarvelMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, ISBN 0785114610)- Collects Tomb of Dracula #26-49, Dr. Strange #14, Giant-Size Dracula #2-5
- Volume 3 (584 pages, 2004, PaniniPanini ComicsPanini Comics is an Italian comic book publisher. A division of Panini Group, best known for their collectible stickers, it is headquartered in Modena, Italy...
, ISBN 1905239068, MarvelMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, ISBN 0785115587)- Collects Tomb of Dracula #50-70, The Tomb of Dracula Magazine #1-4
- Volume 4 (576 pages, 2005, PaniniPanini ComicsPanini Comics is an Italian comic book publisher. A division of Panini Group, best known for their collectible stickers, it is headquartered in Modena, Italy...
, ISBN 1905239203, MarvelMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
, ISBN 0785117091)- Collects Tomb of Dracula Magazine #2, 4-6, Dracula Lives! #1-13, Frankenstein Monster #7-9
Some of the nudity was removed from the fourth volume. Publisher Dan Buckley
Dan Buckley
Dan Buckley is the publisher of Marvel Comics and the chief operating officer of Marvel Entertainment's publishing division. -External links:...
explained, "That wasn't because we were going to bookstores, or because we were exclusively going to hobby shops. It probably had more with where we were at from a ratings standpoint and the editors felt that was the appropriate thing to do, considering how we communicate what's going on in our books from a packaging standpoint. ...We generally avoid nudity, unless it's a MAX
MAX (comics)
MAX is an imprint of Marvel Comics aimed at a niche 'adults only' audience, launched in 2001 after Marvel broke with the Comics Code Authority and established its own rating system...
title. We don't want to take an Essential volume and start calling it MAX; then you get into branding issues." Retailers' opinions on the matter are split.
A Marvel Omnibus
Marvel Omnibus
Marvel Omnibus is a line of comic book series collections published by Marvel Comics. These collections provide full color compilations of several comics, aiming at complete runs...
collecting The Tomb of Dracula #1-31, Werewolf by Night #15, Giant-Size Chillers #1, and Giant-Size Dracula #2-4 was released in November 2008. The second volume, collecting The Tomb of Dracula #32-70, Giant-Size Dracula #5, and Dr. Strange #14 was released in October 2009. The third volume, collecting Tomb of Dracula Magazine #1-6, Frankenstein Monster #7-9, and Dracula Lives! #1-13 was released in January 2011.
In 2010, Marvel began publishing the series as full-colour trade paperbacks
Trade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
. The volumes are:
- Volume 1 (264 pages, July 2010)
- Collects Tomb of Dracula #1-12
- Volume 2 (272 pages, October 2010)
- Collects Tomb of Dracula #13-23, Werewolf by Night #15, Giant-Size Chillers #1
- Volume 3 (248 pages, January 2011)
- Collects Tomb of Dracula #24-31, Giant-Size Dracula #2-4
Television
In 1980, an animeAnime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
television movie
Television movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
based on The Tomb of Dracula was released. The film was called Yami no Teiō: Kyūketsuki Dracula (Dracula: The Vampire Emperor of Darkness). Much of the main plot was condensed and many characters and subplots were truncated or omitted. The film was animated in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
by Toei
Toei Animation
Toei Animation Co., Ltd. is a Japanese animation studio owned by Toei Co., Ltd. The studio was founded in 1948 as Japan Animated Films . In 1956, Toei purchased the studio and it was reincorporated under its current name...
and sparsely released on cable TV in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in 1983 by Harmony Gold
Harmony Gold USA
Harmony Gold is a television production and distribution company established in 1983. It is best known as the “creator” and main distributor of the anime series Robotech. It also partially dubbed the Dragon Ball series in the late 1980s....
dubbed into English and under the title Dracula: Sovereign of the Damned.
Cast
- DraculaDracula (Marvel Comics)Dracula is a fictional character, a comic book supervillain appearing in books published by Marvel Comics. He is based on the vampire Count Dracula from the novel of the same name by author Bram Stoker, and is also influenced by Universal Studios' version of the character.-Publication history:A...
: Kenji UtsumiKenji Utsumiis a Japanese voice actor and actor from Kitakyūshū, affiliated with the self-founded Ken Production. He is married to fellow voice actress Michiko Nomura.... - Domini: Hiroko SuzukiHiroko SuzukiHiroko Niizuma Suzuki is a Japanese professional wrestler, valet and promoter best known in the United States for her work for World Wrestling Entertainment on its SmackDown! brand under the ring name Hiroko...
- JanusJanus (Marvel Comics)Janus is a fictional comic-book character in the Marvel Comics universe.-Fictional character biography:The Golden Angel was a possessing spirit who claimed to be an angel, a messenger and warrior of God. This angel was revealed to have appeared to Dracula and thwarted his will in the past...
: Kazuyuki SogabeKazuyuki SogabeKazuyuki Sogabe was a Japanese voice actor born in Chiba Prefecture. Sogabe retired from voice acting on December 31, 2000 when he felt a weakness in his own voice. After his retirement, many of his current roles went to voice actors Tetsu Inada and Ryotaro Okiayu. Kazuyuki, however, was active in... - Quincy HarkerQuincy HarkerQuincy Harker is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe which is based on a character in Bram Stoker's Dracula.-Publication history:...
: Yasuo Hisamatsu - Rachel van HelsingRachel van HelsingRachel van Helsing is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Fictional character biography:Rachel van Helsing was the great-granddaughter of Abraham Van Helsing, the legendary vampire hunter whose exploits against the vampire lord Dracula were chronicled in Bram Stoker's novel, Dracula...
: Mami KoyamaMami KoyamaMami Koyama is a veteran seiyū and J-pop vocalist who was born in Nishio, Aichi. She was once married to fellow seiyū Tōru Furuya, her co-star in Mobile Suit Gundam, Urusei Yatsura, Dragon Ball, Saint Seiya, and Casshern Sins... - Frank DrakeFrank Drake (comics)Frank Drake is a fictional character appearing in publications from Marvel Comics, most notably the Tomb of Dracula series created by Gerry Conway....
: Keiichi NodaKeiichi Noda', born September 16, 1943 in Yamaguchi Prefecture, is a veteran seiyuu and narrator. He is currently affiliated with Aoni Production. His real name is .... - SatanMephisto (comics)Mephisto is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in Silver Surfer #3 and was created by Stan Lee and John Buscema, loosely modeled on Mephistopheles - a character from the Faust legend.Debuting in the Silver Age of comic books,...
: Hidekatsu ShibataHidekatsu Shibatais a Japanese voice actor from Asakusa, Tokyo who is affiliated with Aoni Production. He was a classmate of Yasuo Fukuda at Azabu High School. He is married to voice actress Akiko Sekine.... - LilithLilith (Marvel Comics)Lilith is the name of two fictional American comic book characters owned by Marvel Comics. Both characters exist in the Marvel Universe.The first of these two to appear was Lilith, the daughter of Dracula. Like her father, she is also a vampire, although her powers and weaknesses differ from most...
: Reiko Katsura - Anton Lupeski: Junpei TakiguchiJunpei Takiguchi, better known by the stage name , was a Japanese voice actor and narrator from Chiba Prefecture.Besides his many narration and dubbing roles, he was also known for his roles in Time Bokan , Yatterman , Mazinger Z , Tekkaman: The Space Knight and for his narration roles in Burari Tochūgesha no...
- TorgoTorgo (comics)Torgo is a fictional character, a vampire in the Marvel Comics universe.-Publication history:Torgo was featured in The Tomb of Dracula volume 1 #70, although he was first mentioned in The Tomb of Dracula #69....
: Yasuo TanakaYasuo Tanakais a Japanese novelist and politician. He served as the governor of Nagano prefecture from 2000 to 2006, became president of New Party Nippon and has been elected to Japan's legislatures.- Early life :... - SaintSaint (comics)Saint, in comics, may refer to:*Saint , a Chinese comic from Hong Kong manhua artist Khoo Fuk Lung*Saint, a Marvel Comics character who has appeared in a number of horror comics...
: White God - Narrator: Ryō IshiharaRyo Ishihara', born March 31, 1931 in Kumamoto, Kumamoto, is a Japanese seiyū and narrator. He is represented by Aoni Production. His real name is '.-TV Anime:*Yuusei Kamen *Sally the Witch *Cyborg 009...
Film
BladeBlade (comics)
Blade is a fictional character, a superhero/vampire hunter in the Marvel Comics universe. Created by writer Marv Wolfman and penciller Gene Colan, his first appearance was in the comic book The Tomb of Dracula #10 as a supporting character.The character went on to alternatively star and co-star...
, a character introduced in The Tomb of Dracula, has been featured in a series of three films: Blade
Blade (film)
Blade is a 1998 vampire superhero action horror starring Wesley Snipes and Stephen Dorff, loosely based on the Marvel Comics character Blade. The film was directed by Stephen Norrington and written by David S. Goyer. Blade grossed $70 million at the U.S. box office, and $131.2 million worldwide...
(1998), Blade II
Blade II
Blade II is a 2002 superhero vampire film based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Blade. It is the sequel of the Blade film series. It was written by David S. Goyer, who also wrote the previous film...
(2002), and Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity is a 2004 American superhero vampire action film, written and directed by David S. Goyer, who also wrote the screenplays to the first two Blade films...
(2004), as well as a short-lived television series titled Blade: The Series
Blade: The Series
Blade: The Series is a 2006 American live-action television program based on the Marvel Comics character and film series. It premiered on Spike on June 28, 2006...
(2006). Other Tomb of Dracula characters, Deacon Frost
Deacon Frost
Deacon Frost is a fictional character appearing in the Marvel Universe. He appears in The Tomb of Dracula and in the Blade limited series.- Publication history :...
and Hannibal King
Hannibal King
Hannibal King is a fictional character, a supernatural detective appearing in publications from Marvel Comics. He first appeared as a supporting character in the 1970s comic book The Tomb of Dracula.-Fictional character biography:...
, have been featured in these films (Frost in Blade
Blade (film)
Blade is a 1998 vampire superhero action horror starring Wesley Snipes and Stephen Dorff, loosely based on the Marvel Comics character Blade. The film was directed by Stephen Norrington and written by David S. Goyer. Blade grossed $70 million at the U.S. box office, and $131.2 million worldwide...
, King in Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity is a 2004 American superhero vampire action film, written and directed by David S. Goyer, who also wrote the screenplays to the first two Blade films...
), albeit in heavily revised forms. Reference to the Tomb of Dracula series is made in Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity is a 2004 American superhero vampire action film, written and directed by David S. Goyer, who also wrote the screenplays to the first two Blade films...
when King shows an issue of the comic to Blade.
Dracula himself does not appear in the series until Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity
Blade: Trinity is a 2004 American superhero vampire action film, written and directed by David S. Goyer, who also wrote the screenplays to the first two Blade films...
, in which he goes by the name of "Drake" and features an origin and powers that differ from the comics. He is played in the film by Dominic Purcell. Given Drake's age and origin, he, more than any other vampire that followed, can harness a much greater and more dynamic range of abilities. He possesses superhuman strength, much greater than that of Blade, as well as incredible speed. Like those he sired, he is capable of leaping great distances and seems to be knowledgeable of sword fighting techniques, even rivaling Blade himself. Drake's true power, however, is derived from his origin as the first of his species. The manipulation of energies which lead to his first resurrection left Drake with two forms: human and a demonic alter ego. In this form, Drake is much stronger, resilient to all forms of damage and much taller than his human form. He also possesses very keen senses, allowing him, for example, to catch an arrow in mid-air.
The Curse of Dracula
Marv WolfmanMarv Wolfman
Marvin A. "Marv" Wolfman is an award-winning American comic book writer. He is best known for lengthy runs on The Tomb of Dracula, creating Blade for Marvel Comics, and The New Teen Titans for DC Comics.-1960s:...
and Gene Colan
Gene Colan
Eugene Jules "Gene" Colan was an American comic book artist best known for his work for Marvel Comics, where his signature titles include the superhero series, Daredevil, the cult-hit satiric series Howard the Duck, and The Tomb of Dracula, considered one of comics' classic horror series...
returned to Dracula comics with The Curse of Dracula, a three-issue miniseries
Limited series
A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
published in 1998. The miniseries was published by Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
and was not officially associated with Marvel's Dracula series. A trade paperback
Trade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
collection was published in 2005.
External links
- The Tomb of Dracula fan site by Adrian Wymann (Issue-by-issue guide and reviews)
- Review of Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 1 from Pulp and Dagger
- Review of Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 2 from UGO
- Review of Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 1 from Comics BulletinComics BulletinComics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...
- Review of Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 2 from Comics BulletinComics BulletinComics Bulletin is a website with an emphasis on the American comic book industry, updated daily with news, reviews, interviews, and editorial content. Coverage ranges from mainstream to independent/small press comic book and graphic novel publishers.-History:...
- Japanese anime adaptation of The Tomb of Dracula