One of Marvels early successes of the "big screen" was the Blade Trilogy. Three fine films for fans of the horror genre that actually sold more on DVD than tickets in theatres, but hey who's complaining. Rumour is that Wesley Snipes has agreed to another movie. If so I will be first in the queue for another adventure in the tale of the hybrid human/vampire, the day-walker known as Blade.
Oddly Blade has never been able to hold down a successful on-going comic series and his original appearances are somewhat different to the one portrayed on celluloid.
First appearing in Tomb of Dracula #10, Blade was very human. Simply out for vengeance against the vampire who killed his mother during childbirth and his "substitute father" Jamal Afari who after a chance encounter with a young nine year old Blade ended in a fight with vampires and a friendship was born.
All of this is recounted in a "novel-length" adventure in Marvel Preview #3.
Originally planned as a five part series to be published in Vampire Tales which like most of Marvels horror magazine line had been cancelled, the story was published as a "one-off" tale in the new Marvel Previews.
Set in seventies London this grim tale sees Blade framed for the murder of a 12 year old human girl and wanted by the police even though Detective-Inspector Katherine Fraser, a psychic knows he's innocent. Her evidence torn from a dead vampires mind is inadmissible in court. It would be wouldn't it...
Even worse the Legion of Vampires has kidnapped Blades lady, Safron.
The race is on to save her from being turned and prove Blades innocence. The tale is a tragedy as a horror story usually is.
Dracula (who only appears briefly at the end) is unforgiving......
I first caught up with the "The Night Josie Harper Died!" story in MarvelUKs Savage Action monthly issue 6 and loved it, especially Kate Fraser a classic Chris Claremont female character. But did you know Claremont used her again in his early run of Captain Britian, in the Captains own weekly issues 5 and 8. Her psychomancy powers were never mentioned. I would have loved to read more stories with her.
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