The Highlight Reel: Frankenstein vs. Dracula!

If you have a pulse, you'll recognize the two gentlemen on the left as Boris Karloff's Frankenstein Monster and Bela Lugosi's Dracula...quite simply the greatest of Universal's pantheon of movie monsters. 

Of course, the only thing marring their combined greatness is the fact that these guys never actually fought each other in any of the Universal horror movies. Sure, the characters co-starred in plenty of movies like The House of Frankenstein (1944) and The House of Dracula (1945), but none of their interactions (with the exception of one schlocky 70's movie) ever approached that of an actual mano-a-mano slugfest (click here for a long overview of their non-fighting history). 

So, with movies missing the boat on a Frankenstein-Dracula clash, it would eventually fall to a comic book to make that fantasy-fight a reality...specifically in Marvel's Frankenstein Monster #8 and #9 (1973).

Befriending a gentle gypsy named Carmen, Frankenstein's monster was tricked by the young woman's scheming grandmother to unleash the evil of Dracula. Wasting no time, the Lord of Vampires began a killing spree that counted Carmen herself as one of his victims.

After he escaped from the standard gang of angry villagers, the monster sought refuge in a dark mountain cave, only to be attacked by Carmen...who was now a savage, blood-hungry vampire! With the stage now set, let's join the tormented creature as he sadly does what must be done...followed by the entrance of her imperious new master...

(click on the pages for a monster-sized view)

At this point in his career, few artists could surprass the sheer emotional impact of John Buscema's pencils. Merging superheroic dynamism with wonderfully expressive faces and body language, Buscema (along with underrated inker John Verpoorten) made this battle every bit as exciting as we always imagined it could be....

Battles like this are notorious for ending in unresolved "draws", as not to favor one character over the other (i.e. the many Superman vs. Flash races). However, this battle ignores that frustrating tradition by offering a clear and convincing winner. "One Must Die" as the cover proclaimed, and "one" certainly did...in a decisive, savage, and emotionally powerful sequence worthy of any Universal horror classic:

This fantastic (albeit brief) battle makes it all the more perplexing as to why Universal Studios never staged anything similar in their long series of monster movie crossovers. Perhaps Frankenstein's Monster and Dracula simply appearing in the same movie together was a big enough thrill for their original audiences, while violent physical battle may be something we comic book fans tend to impose upon these sorts of things.  Well, whatever their reasons for not filming what could have been History's Greatest Battle, at least Marvel Comics went where nobody else was willing to go with these two Titans of Terror.

Comments

[suedenim]

I've never quite understood what Universal was thinking way back when - especially why they *never* brought Lugosi back as Dracula until *Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein* (which is a great movie, by the way, and treats the monsters very seriously.) Why no 1934 production of "Dracula's Return" or somesuch, for instance? I've read a lot about these movies over the years, and never have found a quite satisfactory answer. I think Lugosi was considered "difficult" in a lot of ways, and had terrible career judgement (e.g., preferring starring roles in horrible Poverty Row stinkers to supporting roles in A-list prestige pictures), but that doesn't explain everything, on either side.

By the way, I haven't seen anyone talk much about it, but this week's "Monster-Sized Hulk Special" is great stuff. The first story, where Hulk meets a Frankenstein and her monster, is neat, and there's a pretty good story with Banner meeting Jack "Werewolf By Night" Russell, and a very funny 2-pager involving Hulk and some classic Kirby Monsters....

But the highlight is an illustrated text story by Peter David showing the first-ever encounter between the Hulk and Dracula! Marvel Dracula is one of my favorite characters, but also one* who I think has generally been written a little "off" everywhere *except* the original Tomb of Dracula series. But this is the Dracula I remember. And even Dracula, who has seen so many strange things over the centuries, has never seen anything quite as strange as the Hulk....

(* the other, who has virtually nothing else in common with Dracula, being DC's Captain Atom.)

[Mark Engblom]

Yeah, from what I've read, Lugosi was charitably what one might classify as "difficult". In fact, he was the one who originally turned down the role of the Frankenstein Monster because it didn't have dialogue worth of his acting ability.

"By the way, I haven't seen anyone talk much about it, but this week's "Monster-Sized Hulk Special" is great stuff. "

Wow. Sounds cool. I think I'll pick it up next week at the shop. Thanks for the recommendation! That Dracula story alone makes it worth the purchase price.

[Andrew Wales]

I wasn't familiar with Marvel's take on ol' Frankie. I'll have to look for this in the back issue bins! Awesome comic. The power of the cross!

[Andrew Wales]

I wasn't familiar with Marvel's take on ol' Frankie. I'll have to look for this in the back issue bins! Awesome comic. The power of the cross!

[Andrew Wales]

I wasn't familiar with Marvel's take on ol' Frankie. I'll have to look for this in the back issue bins! Awesome comic. The power of the cross!

[Zetaman]

John Buscema was the man. I love Thor and especially the 80's Conan, back when people actually had to draw the human figure. How to Draw the Marvel way was a book I constantly struggled with when I was trying to be a cartoonist.