Greetings comic lovers and welcome back to casually comics where we chat all things comics
from reviews of comics new and old to history to anecdotes and beyond.
I’m Sasha and today we’re looking at a classic comic wherein Superman is turned into
a vampire and is actually referred to as the Vampire of Steel.
Love it.
If you’re always ready for a bizarre supernatural adventure hit that like button.
So this tale comes to us from the pages of World’s Finest which was a comic book series
published by dc from 1941 to 1986.
However, it wasn’t always the same initially it was a series of unconnected independent
batman and superman team-up stories even though the covers would feature them together and
often robin giving the impression it was a teamup book so clickbait.
Pagebait coverbait there we go.
Now superman and Batman wouldn’t actually appear in a proper crossover story until 1954
in issue 71 and this was purely because of budget cuts.
The series size had to shrink in terms of pages cause post world war 2 and pre silver
age renaissance there was a superhero decline people just didn’t want to read about them
for awhile and there was a period where other genres of comics thrived.
World’s Finest after that point would almost exclusively ft team ups between these two
though it would grow to feature other team ups as back stories in the issues.
There are some hilariously unintentionally shippy issues of this series and you know
I’ll tell you about them, but today it’s vampire time.
Although honestly if you have your superbat lens on and you read this series you’re
going to find tons of little moments.
So 1978 issues 249 The vampire of steel also ft the phantom stranger.
The issue opens with Superman flying Batman around in a manner that looks really uncomfortable.
There’s been an oil spill and Bruce needs to go deal with it as bruce wayne so he asks
Superman to come with him and he agrees so reluctantly it’s amazing “barring anyone
else needing me elsewhere...ok”
He also sits on the side of Bruce’s private plane while they fly there, why is he sulking
just sit inside he also tells bruce that he never gives Super help to corporations or
private persons even friends.
Listen Bruce this is the last time.
Yeah this was a thing for a bit kind of an oh he needs to not be biased, also a bit of
a reaction to how earlier superman would just do anything anyone asked, but it comes across
as weird like is he just not going to help certain people just cause.
They get to the oil rig and Superman lands the plane for Bruce...cause and we meet captain
kalamari who according to bruce has a reputation that rival's aquaman if I was aquaman i’d
be insulted.
Oil rig captain king of atlantis same thing.
Superman continues to be salty and when the captain tells him maybe he should wait to
dive down he just goes :with all due respect captain i think i can handle it...see you
all in about...one minute” there are so many sassy pauses in his dialogue in this.
Did him and Bruce have a fight off panel right before this issue started..it would explain
so much.
Anyway spoilers he can’t it.
Hes attacked by something mysterious and has to be hauled back up for Bruce to declare
that he’s in a coma.
Even though he mutters Magic, so Bruce knows whatever happened was magical.
That prompts Bruce to change into Batman and dive down for himself….also he can’t leave
unless Clark boosts his plane but seriously they’re not supposed to put two and two
together.
Wow Batman how did you get to this oil rig also where’s bruce wayne...can’t take
Bruce anywhere.
He too is attacked but is mysteriously saved re boarding the rig he pitches magic as the
problem to Captain Kalamari who soundly rejects it, but that night one of the crew turns into
a monster, it turns out the Captain is aware of supernatural forces afoot a creature called
a trillig a kind of sea vampire who is transforming his men one by one.
Batman decides to explore the depths again when suddenly his jet plunges into the water
beside him he’s mildly put out he’ll buy another one he’s more surprised to see the
phantom stranger ok cliffnotes a hero with no proper backstory or origin by design though
4 have been put forth.
He used to stop supernatural hoaxes but later became a supernatural being who dealt with
them and had vague undefined powers.
He’s in that phase now so him just showing up and no one knowing anything about him really
you’re getting the authentic classic experience cause that’s just his deal.
Makes him real narratively convenient but sometimes a deus ex machina.
Him and Batman feel there’s something suspicious about this whole operation and the strange
hidden depths the cre of the rig are trying to get to beneath the spill.
A crack in the sea, more men turn into monsters on the boat and Batman is captured and accused
of being the trilling and no one lifts his mask or assumes he’s bruce wayne.
The stranger creates an illusion for him so he can be bruce during the day providing really
flimsy excuses for where he was.
That night he’s attacked and it;s time for the big reveal that was on the cover Superman
is the trillig, he attacks Bruce but he doesn’t turn into a monster The phantom stranger gets
him off by shining a bright light at him… a supernatural light.
The phantom strange then follows the remainder of the crew who are going for a nice totally
not sketchy night dive down the chasm in the sea and discovers another realm and creatures
being drained of their energy.
He also finds a magical stake we can tell it’s magic cause it’s glowing.
He brings it to the ship and The captain convinces Batman that Superman has to die there is no
cure for marine vampirism other than death.
Batman agrees super quickly “It’s it’s all so fantastic but if superman’s life
must end let it be at the hands of a ...suspicious pause friend.”
Maybe this is why Clark didn’t want to go with him at the beginning.
However the Phantom strange suspicious so he goes back to the ocean and finds one of
the creatures still alive and communicates with it.
Meanwhile Batman is getting ready to stake clark as dramatically as possible right as
the sun sets.
Proclaiming may the universe forgive me.
But the strange stops him Captain Kalamari was the villain all along no not the the aquaman
of oil rigs.
It turns out him and his crew were pirates and the spill disrupted the creatures in this
rift who are forces for good so wanted to stop them.
Superman was a good vampire who was revealing their true monstrous forms with his marine
vampire powers which is why Bruce wasn’t harmed during the attack.
The phantom strange turns the remaining crew to coral with the magic stake.
The crew that were turned into monsters killed each other in the holding cell so that problems
solved and now that the threat is gone Superman just got better and he remembers nothing.
The issue ends with him complaining to Bruce after he asks him to get get the jet that
fell in the water that he doesn’t do favours for friends not even ones who just saved his
life,..admittedly from themselves but it still counts.
Yeah this isn’t the best story in the world and Superman is barely a vampire and he’s
not even a proper one.
The plot is odd and The Phantom Stranger takes up a lot of time away from the main two.
Still I got to say vampire of steel and share with you a salty superman who doesn’t want
to do anything for anyone he knows only strangers.
The backup stories in this look fun though in the one after someone assumes they've found
out Oliver Queen’s secret but they think he’s Batman which is funny for many reasons.
Do you think the vampire of steel needs another chance to shine let me know down below.
Thanks so much for watching casually comics please do all of the Youtube things like share
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I’m Sasha and I’ll see you again soon buh bye