Thursday, August 30, 2018

A formula that makes vampires more emo? Better put a stop to that.


Vampires always were a bit emotional, though, weren't they? Throw in some gruffness from Blade and season with the usual Spidey responsibility and guilt, and you get this issue! From 1998, Marvel Team-Up #7, "Sun-Walkers!" Written by Marv Wolfman, pencils by Thomas Derenick, inks by Tom Palmer.

At Empire State University, a vampire kills a janitor, a friend of Peter's; and Spidey beats the stuffing out of him. But the next day, the vampire is busted out of Riker's Island, by Blade! Why? Well, the vampires had been running a long-term research project, into eliminating their weakness to sunlight, and this was their first test subject, Henry Sage. Blade takes the captured Sage to New Orleans to be studied, but notices him beginning to show uncharacteristic emotions like remorse.

Meanwhile, shortly after the janitor's funeral, Spidey has to say so long to Mary Jane, so he can get to New Orleans "with only ten dollars and a coupla tuna fish sandwiches" to his name. Spidey's mad at Blade, but Blade rightly notes if Sage had been left in prison, he would've turned everyone there into vampires soon enough. During Blade and Spidey's fight, Sage escapes, but only as far as a cemetery: the sun-walker treatment was bringing back memories and feelings that he couldn't live with, and Sage attacks Spidey to force Blade to kill him. Blade decides the treatment wasn't going to turn the tide against the humans, he might even let the vampires keep trying it.

One thing that doesn't quite line up: Sage had been turned into a vampire by Dracula himself, who had also killed his family. So...wouldn't they have all been turned into vampires? What's he complaining about, then?

This was the last Spider-Man team-up of this short series; next issue Namor would take over until the book ended with #11.

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