If one thing is true in a post-Twilight world, it is that audiences love a vampire. However, not all vampires are built the same. The vampires that fans consume can range from horrifying monster to sexy stranger who happens to have fangs.

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Most vampires, especially on TV, have a lot in common. They generally have a taste for blood and a taste for a human ingénue. In the world of TV vampires, it is a slippery slope between being a bloodthirsty creature of the night to just downright thirsty.

Bloodthirsty: Katharine Pierce — 'The Vampire Diaries'

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Image via The CW

Katherine (Nina Dobrev) is the original love interest for the Salvatore brothers and is the reason they become vampires in the first place. Over the course of the show, the Doppelgänger spilled a lot of blood. Katherine held a lot of contempt for Elena and could seemingly never be killed.

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Katherine is downright one of the meanest vampires to grace the small screen and one of the most bloodthirsty. Though Katherine used her sexuality often to get what she wanted, her priority was always bloodshed. Her cold and ruthless nature made her the perfect cutthroat villain.

Bloodthirsty: Barnabas Collins — 'Dark Shadows'

barnabus collins dark shadows

Barnabas (Jonathan Frid) returned to his family mansion after being trapped in a coffin for 200 years. He is faced with a new generation of family members he must learn to deal with if he is to search for his wife Josette (Kathryn Leigh Scott). Along the way, he finds some humanity in his undeadness.

As Barnabus enters Dark Shadows, he is a scary, looming figure looking to kill. Though he yearns to find Josette, he is also focused on blood after being trapped in a coffin. He is undeniably a bloodthirsty TV vampire for the ages.

Bloodthirsty: Niklaus Mikaelson — 'The Originals'

Joseph Morgan as Klaus Mikaelson in "The Originals", a spinoff of "The Vampire Diaries"

First introduced in The Vampire Diaries, Klaus (Joseph Morgan) is a stone-cold antagonist who only looks after his own interests. His time in The Originals shows a more well-rounded version of the ancient vampire. Klaus starts a family of his own and begins to see what is important to him.

Klaus starts as a nasty bloodthirsty vampire and begins to shift into someone more concerned with protecting his family. Before this transition, of course, he lends himself to being a perfectly thirsty vampire in his own right. He does not lack examples of falling in and out of love with the women in his life.

Bloodthirsty: The Countess — 'American Horror Story: Hotel'

the countess lady gaga

Fans of American Horror Story are briefly introduced to The Countess (Lady Gaga), the mysterious and very sexy owner of the Hotel Cortez. Her vampirism is danced around for a period of the season until the audience becomes privy to her bloodthirsty ways. She is cunning, manipulative, and loves a bit of spilled blood.

The Countess lends herself as an example of a cruel and dangerous vampire with whom one would not want to cross paths. However, The Countess is not at all unfeeling; when she discovers her lover and maker are still alive, her priorities shift. She is one of the most sexual vampires on TV, and her exploits are as compelling as her murders.

Bloodthirsty/Thirsty: Spike — 'Buffy The Vampire Slayer'

Buffy and Spike standing outside in an alleyway from the episode Once More, With Feeling

The infamous Spike (James Marsters) is the bleach blonde villain who tormented Buffy (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and her friends. Spike could not honestly decide whether he was evil or not throughout the long run of the show. Spike remains in a very gray area for most fans, though he was definitely charismatic and fun to watch.

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Spike is equal parts bloodthirsty and just thirsty for Buffy. He would flip-flop from wanting to kill Buffy to being madly in love with Buffy from season to season. Spike was willing to do anything for Buffy and do anything to kill Buffy once and for all.

Thirsty: Damon Salvatore — 'The Vampire Diaries'

Stefan and Damon Salvatore in The Vampire Diaries

The bad boy Salvatore brother, Damon (Ian Somerhalder), underwent some of the most character development in the show. Though he repeatedly tried to remain the bad guy, his feelings for Elena always got in his way. He was tricky, smoldering, and earned his spot as an iconic TV vampire.

Damon had his share of bloodthirst, however, he was ultimately an extremely thirsty vampire. Damon spent most of his time pining after either Katherine or Elena unapologetically. He was guilty of using his sexuality more than his undead abilities.

Thirsty: Angel — 'Buffy The Vampire Slayer'

Angelus Buffy the Vampire Slayer- David Boreanaz
Image via WB

Angel (David Boreanaz) was Buffy's primary vampire love interest and, without a doubt, one of the noblest vampires on TV. One of Angel's main traits was his self-loathing over his vampirism. He made it his life's mission to protect human beings from the violence of vampires.

Though heroic, Angel was a picture-perfect thirsty vampire. He had little interest in anything other than destroying vampires and Buffy. Angel wanted Buffy but consistently held himself back and always pushed her away, only to pull her back in again.

Thirsty: Nadja and Lazlo — 'What We Do in the Shadows'

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The comedic vampire couple, Nadja and Lazlo (Natasha Demetriou and Matt Berry), are rarely without one another because of their burning passion. What We Do in the Shadows introduces the couple as long-time partners who have been creating havoc for centuries. In their current life, they are relatively docile after becoming comfortable in Staten Island.

After hundreds of years on Staten Island, Nadja and Lazlo have become lazy hunters and have familiars to bring their victims to them. For these reasons, the married couple is far more focused on their sex lives than drinking blood. Nadja and Lazlo are still very attracted to one another after all this time and carry on extramarital activities with humans.

Thirsty: Eric Northman — 'True Blood'

Alexander Skarsgard True Blood

The brooding vampire sheriff, Eric (Alexander Skarsgård), is over a thousand years old and violent in his own right. He develops from a frightening quiet figure, fixated on Sookie (Anna Paquin), to an obsessive suitor. Over his thousand years, Eric's violent ways have cooled, and his thirstier tendencies have only intensified.

However, Eric's bloodlust is heavily outweighed by his love for Sookie pretty quickly into the show. Eric is unbelievably thirsty for Sookie, dwarfing Bill's (Stephen Moyer) love in comparison. Eric all but abandons his villainous Viking beginnings to Sookie's dutiful boyfriend.

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