American Representations of Romania in 'X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula'
Specs:
Title: X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula
Genre: Comic Book, Sci-Fi, Action, Adventure, Superhero, Vampire
Series: X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula
Issue: no. 1
Artist: Clayton Henry
Writer: Frank Tieri
Publication date: April 2006
Publisher: Marvel
Country: USA
Characters: Vlad Tepes/Vlad the Impaler/Dracula, Radu, the Romanian army
Setting: Romania; Egypt; London.
Outline/synopsis:
Vlad Tepes and his army fight against the Ottomans on the battlefield (somewhere in Romania), and after defeating them, a new foe appears: a mythic army that scatters his men. However, the Romanian ruler continues to fight alone, but is defeated by Apocalypse, the leader of the new army. Centuries later, strange things occur in London where various victims wearing an odd tattoo are found dead, with strange puncture marks on their necks.
Tropes:
The brave warrior = Vlad and his army;
The endless armed conflicts that take place on Romanian territory;
The brave leader = Vlad;
Romanians as superstitious people;
The deserted land.
Personal view:
The first issue of X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula opens with a war scene that takes place in Romania, in 1459, in which Vlad Tepes is introduced as leading his small army against the Turks. From the very beginning, he is described through a caption stating that “Men [were] killing for religion. Others killing for much less. Men such as Vlad Tepes. A man appropriately referred to as Vlad the Impaler. But more infamously known as Dracula.” The Romanian ruler is thus depicted as a bloody leader, well known for his coldness and love for impaling his enemies. The images present him as a proud and courageous man, ready to fight for the ideals he believes in. His army also proves to be loyal and brave, though, once the new challenger appears, after the defeat of the Ottoman army, they cower. Their leader, however, proves both bravery and irrationality, because he decides to fight the entire new army, which is covered in mystery, on his own, despite the slim chances of victory he has.
Regarding Romania, as Robert Kaplan mentions in his Balkan Ghosts, this is “one of the wildest and least known portions of Europe”, a deserted place, where not much vegetation grows, and where, as it is shown throughout the first issue of the comic book, wars are easy to wage. This also points to the barbaric traits of the people inhabiting these lands, as they are always fighting, usually against the Ottomans, whom Edward Said describes as people who impoverished and devastated the country. Furthermore, by extrapolating William Stowe’s remarks on Henry James’s Europe, according to which Europe is a combination of freedom, danger and wickedness, one could argue that Romania is also alluring, threatening, and mystical, especially since, as shown in the comics, Romanians are superstitious people, and, moreover, the country always seems to lure new enemies on its territory.
Overall, even though, in the beginning, the portrayal of the Romanian people seemed to be positive, by the end of the war scene, it all proves to be an illusion, leaving room to tropes such as the barbarian, the deserted land, and the irrational leader.
