Bran Castle, Transylvania, Romania Veslemoyprois

Bran Castle, Transylvania, Romania    veslemoyprois

Tarot of Marvel - “Loner” 

Art by Jack Bloom || IG

I guess I never figured you for the religious type.

Uncanny X-Men #165: The Brood Saga

My favorite thing about the original Dracula novel is that in it Van Helsing isn’t some kind of vampire hunter, he’s just a regular ass doctor. Like he originally shows up to treat a disease, and it just so happens that killing vampires is a hobby of his.

Slavic mythology: Vampires

Fairies | Dragons

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So, I wanted to tell you guys about vampires and their origins.

It is safe to say that the most popular vampire in the world is Count Dracula (or, like, Edward, but that’s just pop culture). We all know his story and how he is tied to Transylvania, which can lead to a conclusion that that is where the myths about vampires are from.

Wrong.

Since I am from Serbia and I love my culture, I am here to tell you the true origins and first myths about vampires, which have spread across the world and changed a lot ever since.

Note: Here I will be talking about the most common vampire myths and not those originating from Africa and Asia, since they are entirely different beliefs, entirely different origns and entirely different stories.

Origin

The first myths about vampires come from Slavs and their beliefs.

“A vampire, especially on Balkan and in Ukraine, is considered a ghost of a dead person or a corpse which has revived. It was revived by an evil spirit or the devil; it is a decedent whose soul cannot pass to the other world, instead it stays trapped in the dead body.” ~Slavic Mythology, Nenad Gajić

The word “вампир” (vampir), meaning “vampire” (obviously) originates from Serbian language and it has spread worldwide, starting from the rest of the Slavic languages.

About vampires it has been written in the Emperor Dušan’s Code (1349) in the 20th clause, without naming them.

Soon after that, there was a story about a Serbian haiduk (loosely translated: rebel/brigand) called Arnold Paole (many think that this is an incorrect name and that the real one is Arnaut Pavle, where the first name isn’t a name at all and is actually a title). He claimed that he had encountered a vampire while he was serving in the army of the Otoman Empire. After his death, some residents of his village claimed that they have seen Arnold as an apparition. Soon after, the four people who had claimed this have died a mysterious death.

Other mentions of vampires include a book by Milovan Glišić called 90 Years Later, which tells a supposedly true story about Sava Savanović, one of the first vampires in literature.

After that mentions of vampires have only increased. For example, in 1923. Belgrade’s newspaper Time published an article about Paja Tomić, who has supposedly became a vampire.

Other than these, there have been many similar stories about people who have became vampires.

According to Slavs, how does one become a vampire?

The interest thing is that in Slavic mythology the belief that the bite of a vampire turns you into one does not exist.

So, if not by biting, how does one become a vampire?

Slavic superstitions about funerals and burying the deceased are tightly connceted to the beliefs about vampirism. Examples include:

If an animal jumps/walks over the corpse or if a bird or a bat flies over it, the corpse can revive

If someone’s shadow falls on the corpse, it can revive

If a person walks/jumps over the grave within the 40 days following someone’s funeral, the deceased can revive (it is also believed that if after these 40 days the person does not revive, they probably will not become a vampire in the future; this is connected to the belief that it takes a sould 40 days to pass onto the other world)

If a person succeeds in killing a vampire and if the vampire’s blood splashes them in the proccess, they become a vampire after they die

If any of the above is to happen, the revived starts to crawl out of their grave during the night, they choke people and drink their blood. When this happens, a crack appears on their grave through which they crawl in and out.

It is also believed that people who have sinned are most likely to become vampires.

Abilities, behaviour and appearance

“According to this South Slavic belief, in this critical period (refering to the 40 days) the vampire can be seen as a shadow or cannot be seen at all, but he has the ability to turn into the animal which has jumped over his grave. Then he feeds on human blood, but also animal blood. His habitat is the cemetery, where he always returns when the sun starts to rise. If the vampire isn’t destroyed in the first 40 days of his “life”, he will, from the blood he has drank during the previous nights’ roamings, become so strong that he won’t need to go back to his grave in a long time. Then, he can also be seen at crossroads, in mills or in the houses of his closest relatives, where he stays for a long time.

Usually vampires are middle-aged people, mostly men. They have sharp canines and long nails, since their teeth, hair and nails keep growing even after death […] They are stronger than ordinary men, they can move at high speed, turn into different animals, cross any obstacle “except for water and throns.’’”  ~Slavic Mythology, Nenad Gajić

Furthermore, some myths say that a vampire sometimes wisits his widowed wife and can have children with her. These children don’t have a shadow, have less bones than the norm and a large head. They have the ability to find, see and kill a vampire.

Protection and prevention

Slavs prefered prevention to protection, but, according to them, there are ways to protect yoursef from a vampire.

First of all, to discover a vampire, a horse can be brought near the grave, since horses can sense vampires. Also, ash or dirst can be spread near the grave where later footsteps will be seen, if the vampire crawls out of the grave. Also, if the grave is dug out and the corpse turns out to not be rotten, its eyes are wide open and its hair and nails haven’t stopped growing, this means that the corpse has revived and is a vampire.

How is this vampire destroyed? It has to be dug out, stabbed with a stake and thrown into the flames.

As for the methods of prevention, they include:

burying a corpse face down

cutting off limbs or the head

sliting the tendoms under the knees

stabbing a hawthorn’s peg into the forhead

When it comes to methods of protection, this is where the Slavis beliefs meet today’s myths:

a (pre-Christian) cross painted on the door of a house

garlic

iron

So, there you have it! Slavic myths, based on my personal research. Please take into consideration that all of this had to be translated from Serbian, somwhere even adapted, and I am only an amateur.

Either way, I hope you liked it!

The evolution of Doctor Strange's outfit

Notes:

- When I say “classic outfit”, I’m referring to the blue robe, Eye of Agamotto and red Cloak of Levitation. The sash/belt may change.

- Some pictures are from different issues in order to offer a better view of the outfit. Every issue is addressed with its proper numbers.

- I left civilian outfits out of this list because I wanted to focus on combat uniforms.

- I left some “variants” (such as Paradox) out of the list because he’s one of Stephen’s sides that became sentient so not really him. Same goes for minor changes (such as Anti-venom and venomized Doctor Strange).

- I left alternate universes out of the list because it would be too much to make a comp but I can make a separate post on that matter.

History

Doctor Strange debuted in Strange Tales #110 (1963) wearing a blue long-sleeved robe, orange gloves and sash, the Amulet of Agamotto and black/bluish pants. As I was doing my research, I noticed that Stephen’s debut  didn’t feature his blue “lesser” cloak of levitation, which was only introduced in Strange Tales #114, thus becoming a permanent part of his outfit. It was substituted with the red Cloak of Levitation in Strange Tales #128 (1964), along with the Eye of Agamotto after Stephen triumphs over Dormammu.

From Strange Tales #115 and #128, respectively.

In Doctor Strange v1 #177 (1974), as part of the plot, Stephen begins to wear a more “heroic” looking, adopting a blue mask and… underwear over pants. The look doesn’t last much and Stephen goes back to the classic red Cloak and no mask.

From Doctor Strange v1 #177.

In Doctor Strange - Sorcerer Supreme #10 (1989), a small change can be seen: Stephen loses the “skirt” in his robe, which is now under the sash (reference from issue #12).

From Doctor Strange - Sorcerer Supreme #17.

After long years of no apparent change, the 90′s came and gave us this atrocity in Sorcerer Supreme #75 (1995). Stephen now wears a black suit with white ornaments, mask/dark glasses and long hair. No goatee/beard (outrageous!).

From Doctor Strange - Sorcerer Supreme #76.

Thank the Vishanti, the outfit only lasted 5 issues, being substituted with a white shirt featuring golden ornaments and black pants, while the Cloak of Levitation took the shape of a trench coat in Sorcerer Supreme #80 (1995 - reference from issue #82).

From Uncanny X-Men #329.

The next outfit only lasted two issues in the pages of Spider-Man Family v2 #5 (2007) and it’s not like anything we’ve seen before: long-sleeved red and blue shirt with yellow shoulder pads and edges, blue pants and a yellow sash. All the rest featured Stephen either in his Sorcerer Supreme lastest outfit or his classic one with the red Cloak of Levitation.

From Spider-Man Family v2 #5.

Stephen will only leave his classic outfit behind when he finds himself unworthy to be the Sorcerer Supreme. He then wears a long-sleeved black turtleneck and gray pants and trench coat in New Avengers v1 #51 (2009 - reference from issue #59). Little changes are made, mostly based on colors. First of them is recognized by both his pants and trench coat that now become brown in Fear Itself - The Deep #1 (2011). Next, the pants become gray while the trench coat remains brown in New Avengers v2 #1 (2010). Lastly, the trench coat gets a greenish shade in New Avengers v2 #34 (2013). You can also notice a regular belt. Note: it is not the first time we see him in turtleneck and brown pants and trench coat, as seen in Quasar #19 (1991). This look, however, is not a battle outfit like the others. Still, the inspiration is clear.

From Quasar #19 and New Avengers v2 #2, respectively.

Finally, Stephen debuts his black and red outfit in Defenders v4 (2012). The sash and gloves are now red, as well as the symbol on his chest. No cloak is featured but he can still fly. When he takes the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme back, little changes except for the Cloak of Levitation and Eye of Agamotto, although the black suit gets some shades of blue due to Mike Deodato Jr.’s art.

From Defenders v4 #1.

It’s only in Secret Wars (2015) that Stephen gets a really bad haircut and a full black suit with ornaments in yellow, along with a lilac cape.

Stephen then is “rebooted” to Doctor Strange v4 (2015), having his Cloak and Eye back, although with a new belt featuring a bag and new boots. In Doctor Strange v4 #12, however, Stephen has his cloak tore by Imperator, and begins to wear a blue cloak (not confirmed to be the original from Strange Tales).

From Doctor Strange v4 #18.

In Doctor Strange v1 #384 (2018), Stephen momentarily takes the shape of the God of Magic, wearing a long robe in white and gold and holding a staff. His hair also grows a little bit. It doesn’t last much, but I figured it was worth mentioning it.

Back in Doctor Strange v5 #5 (2018), Stephen crafts the space suit, also known as kink suit: a black (and tight) suit with belts and white ornaments, Cloak of Levitation, Eye of Agamotto, jackboots and a golden checkered gauntlet on his right wrist. Hair is all pulled back.

From Doctor Strange v5 #10.

Lastly, Stephen is back to his classic outfit in a modern rereading within the pages of Dr. Strange - Surgeon Supreme #1 (2019): the “skirt” now has a V shape, the yellow sash is larger and a small belt with a bag crosses his waist transversely. It’s the standard for today’s comics.

From Black Cat v2 #1.

And this it! Lemme know if I missed anything and feel free to share your favorite! Mine is obviously the kink suit but I also adore the newest version.