Top 5 Vampires
This post from Robot6, got me thinking about the Top 5 vampires I would like to share a drink with – a poisoned drink because I don’t really like vampires.
1. The Enterprising Vampire from 30 Days of Night.
OK, sure his idea didn’t go over so well but you have to admire the guy for trying. Finding a town that spends a month in darkness? Brilliant! Admire him, then drive a stake through his heart because he is scary!
2. Lestat de Lioncourt as played by Tom Cruise
This vampire is supposed to be sexy. He’s not supposed to be clammy with long greasy hair. I think he needs to have a poisoned drink then be reborn with another face…and better hair…and taller – oh forget it, he should just stay dead.
3. Nosferatu
This guy gave me nightmares for a week! What kills me (heh) is that they air this movie during Halloween as if it isn’t scary. Yes, it’s old but effective.
4. Kaname from Vampire Knight
What can I say? I’m on Team Zero.
5. Cassidy from Preacher
I’m torn on whether I would actually try and kill Cassidy. I kind of like him and drinking with an Irish vampire would be fun. Except, on the other hand, he’s kind of a jerk.
Top 5 “Melodrama” Picks
I don’t want to give the impression with my Saturday post that I dislike emotional porn. Good heavens, no! Quite the opposite in fact. I’ve left my freshman college English major self in the dust. While it’s true that I don’t think teenage girls emulating the likes of Bella Swan is a good thing, I do think it’s perfectly wonderful to imagine that somewhere, sparkling in a tree, Edward Cullen waits. Hmm, I know far to much about this Twilight business than I should considering I couldn’t make it through the first book.
Ok, on to my top 5!
1. Vampire Knight – I do despise Yuki with her cow-chewing-cud stare but this story has three things that I can’t resist: Boarding schools, hot (shirtless) vampires and hall monitors with guns. Throw in the occasional ball and I am all over it. I’ve kind of quit reading but the first few volumes are yummy.
2. Absolute Boyfriend - so good. So so good. And here’s why. The love triangle includes a horny robot. I’ll repeat horny! robot! The first volume even features said robot, neked with a bow. I know! Making a robot fall in love and deny his robot self is unadulterated emotional porn.
3. You’re so Cool – Here he is, the bad boy. Not “bad” in the sense that he wants to suck your blood but really really bad. He’s cruel, taunting and you are the only one who can melt his cold heart.
4. Chocolate – Hello, boy band.
5. Fake – remember in those tv dramas, Moonlighting, X-Files, Bones – all that will they/won’t they stuff? Well this is like that only the Hayes/Scully/Brennan character is much hotter and also male. Be warned though, it includes a sweet side story that annoyingly gets in the way of the fun.
What are your top 5? Recommend some to me!
Vampires as Metaphors for Banality
UPDATE: I’m not the only one who thinks Vampire Knight is emotional porn. Lianne at Sleep is for the Week talks about the melodrama and SEXY VAMPIRES that have young teens hooked – and some adults too 
Thanks for pointing me to the post, MangaBlog.
I was working on this post last week to coincide with shojo head-meet-wall manga Vampire Knight topping the New York time bestseller list but then some other news happened and I had to write about that just to show everyone I knew what was going on. See! See! I know what’s happening, I do – wah don’t leave me behiiiinnndd. I’m an insecure blogger.
But then Vampire Knight went and did it again so this post is revived.
Before I launch into what might be a long and rambling rant of sorts, I want to be clear that I’m all for teenagers reading whatever they want. However, if I accept the idea that books can change minds for the better I must also accept that they can give you ideas that are, oh, not so good. The thing about literature is that most times you can read something and enjoy it for what it is without actually agreeing with everything or incorporating it into your identity. What I’m saying is, I’m sure many bright young women read books like Twilight and Vampire Knight without then turning into glass eyed dolls.
I can see why they read them. These books are essentially emotional porn. They fulfill the typically female, typically teenage fantasy of being the only girl in the room. In Twilight, Bella is the only girl whose thoughts Edward can’t read. In Vampire Knight, Yuki is the only human allowed into the vampires world. The new series, X-Men Misfits takes it one step further by making Kitty Pride literally the only girl in the school. This emotional porn doesn’t really bother me, in fact, I’m sure I’ve indulged in a few or a hundred dream sequences of me attending a ball with every hot guy I’ve ever met. I don’t even really mind that these books kick it up a level by having all the men fall in love (read: become obsessed) with the main character. That’s part of the appeal I suppose.
What bothers me is what the men become obsessed with, which as far as I can tell, is nothing. Yuki and Bella are boring. Less than boring. They are helpless, pretty creatures that spend most of their time innocently looking coy and confused. What message does this send? I admit, maybe I’m analyzing these books too much and I should just relax and enjoy the making out but - I don’t know. The other thing that bothers me is that the female antagonist in these books is often outspoken and demanding and, you know, eeeeevil. So to me the point is clear – you want all men everywhere to be obsessed with you? Um, yes. Well, then shut up, sit down and open your top a little. Try and put yourself in danger with your own stupidity. Engage your target with a little chatter about how you simply can’t love him because he’s too big and strong and ohhh, what to do?
The thing is, you can get all your fantasies without actually having to sacrifice self worth. The hilarious Ouran High Host Club is about a girl who has to join the all hot-all male host club to pay off a debt. Of course, all the boys fall in love with her but there’s a lot to love. She’s funny, level-headed, hard working and actually calls them out on their many flaws. And by flaws I mean, weaknesses, not being supernaturally hot – which isn’t a flaw at all but I’m sure you got that. Unlike Yuki and Bella who are themselves flawless (being clumsy doesn’t count as a flaw), Haruhi is distrustful, painfully shy and at times, pretty snobby. These are things she has to overcome before finally falling in love herself.
Like I said at the beginning, I’m sure many readers are able to read Vampire Knight for enjoyment without imitating the heroines. But what I would like to know is if these readers actually like Yuki/Bella or if they just see them as blank vessels that the reader can step into, filling them with their own personality and then indulge in the fantasy?
Shojo Beat brings it – mostly
Yay, the post I requested on Friday is up at Warren Peace Sings the Blues!
I really enjoy hearing what other people think of the monthly installments. Sometimes it makes me go back and reread a series I may have ditched, like Vampire Knight.
For the most part I agree with Matthew Brady. I really really enjoyed the preview of Kimi Ni Todoke. Mainly because the manga-ka didn’t shy away from making heroine actually look creepy! I can see why everyone runs from “Sadako”. To often in manga I find myself with a 90210 complex of everyone pretending so and so is ugly when they are clearly gorgeous. Plus, this series seems to have a sweet heart and it’s summertime so sweetness is in.
I still cannot get behind Crimson Hero. The semi-rape scene was too much. There was nothing to suggest Kaz would take things this far and having Yushin bust in went beyond cliche. Then there’s Nobara who’s naivete is just unbelievable. Maybe a volleyball hit me in the face when I was a baby or something because I can’t seem to get past my hatred for this series. All the terrible haircuts don’t help.
Sand Chronicles – I can’t add anything. This was a really good assessment:
“This series has gone from a wonderful bit of recognition at the complexities of relationships to a painful observation of the things people do that can hurt themselves and others when they aren’t willing to move on from traumatic moments.”
It keeps getting more and more painful and yet doesn’t go overdramatic.
Honey Hunt and Honey and Clover are sort of boring me at the moment….
