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Aggressors - The new hero pulp

Reading reviews of a genre

Posts tagged with "Dracula"

Andy Warhol's Dracula Anno Dracula 1978-79 by Kim Newman (1999) in THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF VAMPIRES 2004 edition

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Kim Newman's Anno Dracula series is one of the more interesting alternate history series of recent times. The series started with the novella "Red Reign" in the original edition of The Mammoth Book of Vampires, where he posed the question "What if Dracula had won?" Newman then expanded the idea to novel ANNO DRACULA set in 1888 various Victorian characters become involved in Jack the Ripper murders. THE BLOODY RED BARON is set set in WW1 where an exiled Dracula has declared war on England many pulp characters appear including the Shadow, Monk Mayfair and Captain Midnight all appear. JUDGEMENT OF TEARS (aka DRACULA CHA CHA CHA) has Dracula in Rome in 1959 where secret agent Hamish Bond hunts Dracula.

For a full list of characters and stories I recommend this page

Anyway Kim Newman is back to his trick with this tale of the Anno Dracula Universe. Set in 1978 -79 this story tells the tale of Johnny Pop a vampire who declares that he is a descendant of Dracula and one of the last vampires to be sired by Dracula. Like his ancestor Pop is moving to conquer a new world - in his case America. Pop arrives in New York and starts selling his blood, called Drac it becomes the new Drug sensation.

Eventually, Johnny becomes hunted by a group of fearless vampire hunters including Blade, Shaft, Shaggy and Scooby Doo, Popeye Doyle, Hellboy, Travis Bickle (Taxi Driver), Thana (Ms .45), Paul Kersey (Death Wish film series) and The Punisher.

Now Newman only hints at these characters such as the exterminator with skull on his chest, and the architect on his own crusade to avenge a family bled dead by dhamps.

These characters are in the story for a small time but it was neat that Newman allowed a few Aggressors to team up to battle the heir of Dracula.

Brad

PENTRATOR #45 Quaking Terror by Lionel Derrick (1982)

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The first of my October Halloween series of The Aggressors meet the supernatural. In this adventure of the Penetrator Mark Hardin meets Vlad Dosadan Magarac, Count Dracula. Magarac claims to be a descendant of the original Count Dracula, who was cruelly defamed by Bram Stoker. Upset by this, Magarac has decided to use a vibrating weapon to set off earthquakes which activates a volcano chain.*

The Penetrator arrives to stop this madman, who claims to be a true vampire. He discovers that several bodies have turned up around the site of the first tremors totally drained of blood.

As if this isn't bad enough the Mafia has also arrived to stop Magarac who is disrupting their activities and there is an uprising of the local indians. The Penetrator is certainly a busy boy.

After wiping out the mobsters, who decided that killing The Penetrator would be a nice side benefit to their mission. Mark manages to subdue the Indian rebellion by getting them to help him storm Magarac's headquarters.

There is nice touch where a corrupt ATF agent working for Magarac is killed by the attacking forces is surprised that The Penetrator and his allies have automatic weapons because automatic weapons are illegal in that state.

Magarac flees and is followed by the Penetrator and the pair eventually battle using chainsaws in a forest. The image of the Pentrator and the black cloaked vampire dueling with chainsaws lopping tree limbs struck me as a very cool image and would be cool to see on film. This was the one image I had kept from my first reading of this book two years ago.

**Spoiler** to head just highlight the next bit.



Not surprisingly Magarac is killed by impalement on one of the lopped tree branches through the heart.

**End Spoiler**

So it is never clarified if Magarac is a real vampire or just one sick puppy.


A very groovy work.

* This was the same weapon seen in Penetrator #21 The Supergun Mission, now nowhere is this explained in the book. Whilst the footnote can be overused by other writers (Joseph Rosenberger to name one) it can be really handy to direct us to other books like in this case.
December 2009
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