Newswise — HBO’s True Blood is all the rage and Eclipse, the latest movie installment of Stephanie Meyers' hit Twilight Series, is sure to pack theaters and leave female Cullen fans feeling bloodlusty.
Two Texas Tech University experts can discuss the appeal of vampires and why they have shed their monster status to resurface in the improbable role of heartthrob.
Rob Weiner is a pop culture author and subject librarian for Texas Tech University Libraries who has extensive expertise in the horror genre.
He said that vampires have gone glam in recent years, losing a bit of their bite as writers such as Stephanie Meyer and Anne Rice dolled them up. This could play a part in their recent resurgence, as younger viewers have flocked to more romantic bloodsucker flicks while zombies have re-emerged as the kings of horror.
Weiner has expertise on topics ranging from the Grateful Dead to American presidents in film. His books include “Perspectives on the Grateful Dead: Critical Writings,” “Graphic Novels and Comics in Libraries and Archives,” and Marvel Graphic Novels and Related Publications: An Annotated Guide.
Erin Collopy, associate professor of classical and modern literature, teaches The Vampire in East European and Western Culture. She can discuss the transition of vampires from horrific creatures of mythology to the modern, sensitive and seductive vampire of pop culture.
She said that movies like Eclipse are more gothic romance than true horror. She also notes that Meyers took a different spin on the vampire myth — that the Cullens are too beautiful, rather than too cursed, to be seen in the daylight.
This is but one key element that has changed recently to make vampires appealing to love-stricken teenagers, expanding their appeal beyond traditional horror buffs.
However, she points out that vampire romances are not new to the genre.
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