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Don't You Just Love Vampires, Jess?

[The next installment in our interviews with the writers about vampires.]

Actually, no I don’t. I’m a huge fan of Buffy and Angel, and I really liked the first two Underworld movies, but other than that, I’m not really into vampire lit, media, or culture. It’s not even like I’ve tried the other vampire stuff and not liked it (True Blood, Twilight, Vampire Diaries, Anne Rice, Laurel K. Hamilton, etc.)...

I just don’t have any interest in it. Vampires aren’t my thing, and if there are vampires in it, I’m typically not inclined to check it out.

That said, I’ve always been fascinated by the apparent discontinuity between my complete adulation of the Buffyverse and my total lack of interest in other things vampire. A friend who feels the same way tells me it’s because Buffy wasn’t actually a show about vampires. It was a show about fascinating characters, which used fighting vampires and other freaky things as a way to tell great stories about basic human emotions. He may be right. Because I really don’t like horror stories either, and yet I love Supernatural. But that’s not really a horror show, is it? It’s a show about two really fascinating characters, which uses horror tropes and other freaky things to tell great stories about basic human emotions. Interesting.

So with that said, and my fairly limited knowledge on the subject, here are my top picks for Vampires!

Top 3 movies --- Underworld, Underworld: Evolution (Yes, that’s only two, but I can’t in good conscience put Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans on this list. And I didn’t really care for Interview with the Vampire or Bram Stoker’s Dracula.)

Top 3 TV shows --- Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Supernatural (because they had a couple episodes featuring vampires)

Top 3 books --- I have never read a vampire book. Or, if I did, it has long since faded from memory.

Top 3 vampire kisses --- Now this is hard. Seven seasons of Buffy, five seasons of Angel, and two Underworld movies. I’m glad I don’t have more than that from which to choose.

1) Buffy and Angel’s kiss before she closes the portal to hell, "Becoming, Part 2" (Buffy, Season 2)

2) Spike and Buffy’s kiss at the end of "Once More with Feeling" (Buffy, Season 6)

3) Spike and Drusilla’s near kiss when we first see them together in "School Hard" (Buffy, Season 2) --- I love the way she licks the blood off his face and then they almost kiss before leaning their foreheads together and turning out to face their minions. Quite a first impression!

Top 3 vampire fight scenes --- Should this be any fight involving a vampire, or only fights between vampires? Hmmm … I’ll go with a little of both.

1) Buffy vs. Angelus, "Becoming, Part 2" (Buffy, Season 2)

2) Spike vs. Angel, "Destiny" (Angel, Season 5)

3) Spike vs. Buffy intercut with Spike vs. ‘70s Slayer --- "Fool for Love" (Buffy, Season 5)

My husband requested an honorable mention for the movie From Dusk Till Dawn, which is apparently one long vampire fight scene. :)

Sexiest female vamp --- Celine, Underworld

Sexiest male vamp --- Spike, Buffy/Angel

Vampire universe I would most like to be a vampire in --- The Doppelganger Reality from Buffy’s "The Wish" (because you sure as hell didn’t want to be human in that universe!)

Favorite Buffy quote --- “Hasn’t got a death wish? Bitch won’t need one.” Spike, ‘Fool for Love’

Team Edward or Team Jacob? --- Team Jacob. I know he’s the interfering bastard that lured everyone to the Island, but if he hadn’t done that, we wouldn’t have gotten Lost for six crazy years, right? And I love me some Lost.

Oh wait --- this is a Twilight question, isn’t it? Hmmm … how about Team “Why are either of these guys so hot for that sullen Bella?” Or Team “My mom won't even let me watch Twilight. She says she thinks Kristen Stewart seems like a bitch.” (Tina, Glee)

OK, OK. I guess I’ll go with Team Jacob. Because he’s the werewolf, right? Like I said at the beginning, when it comes to vampires, “I’m just not that into you.” Sorry, Edward. Please don’t bite me.

7 comments:

  1. LOL, Jess. :) I gotta agree with you about Buffy and Supernatural. I don't like horror at all, and yet Buffy is my favorite show of all time and Supernatural is my current favorite. Horror is just the backdrop they use to tell compelling stories that are really about the characters, you're so right.

    Although I clearly like vampires more than you do.

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  2. "It’s a show about really fascinating characters, which uses horror tropes and other freaky things to tell great stories about basic human emotions."
    But... But... That's what defines good horror!

    Why is it that when we talk about horror fiction, every time a piece does something compelling, it "transcends" the genre? Aren't we then semantically limiting the genre to crap?

    I contend, Jess, that you are, in fact, a horror fan. Just one with good taste.

    Loved your answer to the "vampire universe" question!

    ReplyDelete
  3. You have a point, Dimitri. I don't think horror as a genre is crap, and that's not what I'm implying.

    I do think that it's not a genre I enjoy, though. I haven't been to a horror movie in years, and I don't rent them or watch them on television. And sometimes Supernatural gets scarier and/or grosser than I can handle.

    So I don't think I can be described as a fan of horror. I'm a fan of Buffy, Angel, Supernatural and True Blood, that often happen to be described as horror.

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  4. Jess, I agree with most of what you said. Except for your asking Edward not to bite you. He won't. He's too much of a Sissy for that.

    And I'm just as much of a vampire fan as you.

    Dimitri, that's why I almost never think of the movies by genres. I don't even have a favorite kind of movie. When people ask me that, answering is really tricky, because if I say "good ones", people will think I'm snobbish. And it's a lie, because I like some really bad movies, too cough bandits cough

    Billie, what Angelus did to Miss Calender, and worse, to Giles in Passion is worse than anything I've seen in Supernatural.

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  5. Hi Jess,

    Like Billie and yourself i'm not into horror in the slightest. I read Point Horror books as a teen but all other horror has been either inflicted on me by friends or i felt that i was missing out in some way if i didn't at least give it a go. Buffy, like most of the tv i watched during the 90's, i started watching because my friends watched it. What kept me watching was the core characters, snappy dialogue and brilliant storytelling. The Twilight books/films hold no interest for me whatsoever but from what i can tell (ad i may be wrong)they're more aimed at teenage girls.

    Having said that, i also enjoy True Blood and Supernatural. Although i sometimes watch both hiding behind a cushion.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks for the comments guys.

    I guess I should clarify that when I say I'm not into horror, what I really mean is that I'm not into slasher flicks or zombie pictures, which is what I tend to equate with the genre "horror." I guess I don't really like watching shows designed to "scare" me. Although every now and then I do really like a good psychological terror story, as long as it isn't about screaming teenagers trying to escape some kind of sicko serial killer.

    For example, I really LOVE 'Alien.' It is the scariest film I've ever seen. Definitely more of a horror movie than a "typical" science fiction adventure movie. Almost pure psychological terror. (Almost.) So I guess I'm not immune to "good" horror, as Dimitri says. (Or what feels like good horror to me.)

    Gustavo, I'm glad to know that I don't need to worry about Edward biting me. I shall sleep well tonight. :)

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  7. Jess,

    I'm glad your showing some world for 'Underworld'. I love that movie and I feel that not many people appreciate it.

    Also, if your a fan of psychological terror-type movies, check out 'The Others' with Nicole Kidman. It falls into the horror/suspense category, but it manages to scare you without any blood or guts and it's one of my favorites.

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