She-Hulk episode 7 spoilers follow.
She-Hulk took Jen to a silent retreat this week, but there's actually whole lot of chatter around the fun supervillain cameos that popped up during her visit. There's one in particular that gives Blade fans something important that they can sink their teeth into.
*Jen-style fourth wall break* — Yes, we're also disappointed that the biggest talking point this week is around other Marvel cameos rather than She-Hulk herself. And no, we're not going to quit it with the puns anytime soon. *End of fourth wall break*
Porcupine, Man-Bull, and El Aguila all have a surprisingly rich history in Marvel comics, including the latter's status as another bonafide mutant in the MCU, but today we're most interested in Saracen, the gloomy goth guy who may or may not be a vampire.
During Jen's therapy session with the group, it's explained that Saracen "thinks" he's a vampire. And while there's technically no confirmation of his undead status here in the actual episode, Sary does seem keen to suck some blood.
Plus, Saracen has a rich comic book history of his own, including some major ties to Blade who happens to get his kicks from killing vampires just like him.
And no, before you start, She-Hulk's version of Saracen is not the mercenary — also called Saracen — who fights the Punisher in Marvel Comics. Given all these vampiric references, the MCU's Saracen is clearly based off a character named Saracen who first appeared in Blade: Vampire Hunter #1 all the way back in 1999.
There, it's revealed that Saracen was one of the first ever vampires to exist on Earth, which also makes him one of the few to survive from those times into the modern era. That places him in a group of other ancient vamps known as the Ancient, cleverly enough, along with buddies including Nosferatu.
In modern times, the comic book Saracen lived under Rome where he enjoyed people meals and summoning ancient demonic creatures to do his bidding. Blade wasn't keen on this, so the two regularly came to blows.
Clearly, the original Saracen could learn a thing or two from the chill vampire we meet in She-Hulk. But, as we already know, a new Blade is actually on his way to the MCU. In fact, Mahershala Ali's Daywalker has already appeared in a voice-only cameo from last year's Eternals, and even though Saracen seems nice enough, this new Blade probably won't take too kindly to him still.
Vampires in general haven't really been a thing in the MCU so far, or at least, they've kept themselves hidden in the shadows, to the point where no one has even seen one yet onscreen. This means Saracen might be the first vampire to appear in the MCU, thereby setting up Blade's imminent arrival.
However, it's worth noting that Saracen seems ok with being out in the daylight in this episode. So either that's ok for Marvel's new take on vampires, or perhaps this Saracen isn't really a vampire at all.
But even if that's the case, She-Hulk already introduced the idea of vampires to this world in a very different way just one week previously.
Episode six included a different kind of ancient being in the form of Mister Immortal, a Great Lakes Avenger, and during talk of his previous relationships, the name Baroness Cromwell came up.
While we're yet to see the Baroness onscreen, Marvel fans might have spotted that Lily Cromwell is actually a notable vampire from the comics, otherwise known as Baroness Blood.
Given Mister Immortal's long lifespan, it's entirely possible that Cromwell might also be immortal as well, which would cement this idea of vampires already operating within the MCU. And that's going to be a problem for Blade.
If Saracen does end up returning beyond this appearance in She-Hulk, we doubt he'll present much of a challenge for the Daywalker. But Baroness Blood? It's entirely possible that she could end up being the film's Big Bad, which would be kind of funny given the context surrounding her introduction in She-Hulk.
But that's all assuming we even get to see Blade's reboot anytime soon. After numerous delays, director Bassam Tariq has now stepped away from the project just days before Saracen's debut in She-Hulk.
So for now, the closest thing we have to actual vampire lore in the MCU is a Cromwell reference and Saracen's all-too-brief cameo. At least that means Blade won't have missed out on too much in the meantime.
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law airs weekly every Thursday on Disney+. Blade is scheduled to hit big screens everywhere on November 3, 2023.
Disney+ Stream She-Hulk on Disney+
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After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.
In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.
David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.
Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends.
As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound.
