18 - Strategy

Hi, everyone!

Sorry for the delay, but July and August were very busy months. Many things happened in a row and I had one or to projects to finish. Besides, in August, Bram and Vlad came to Brazil to pay me a visit. :D Today, we have a strip and the photos of this visit. :D Enjoy!

And the photos! The guys came here to go to a SF&F Symposium, called Fantasticon. It happened in Sao Paulo, in August, 12-14.

I met them at the Tancredo Neves International Airport (a.k.a. Confins Airport), in Belo Horizonte.

"Hum, where are the monkeys, the parrots and the Indians?"

"Vlad, we are going to Sao Paulo, not to Amazonic Forest."

"Welcome, my dears!"

Bram, Vlad and Ana Carolina, a great friend of mine.

Then, we took a flight to Sao Paulo, to watch the symposium opening. Bram loved it. Vlad... Well... He's always a little grumpy when thirsty.

"Hum... It was an intersting lecture."

"You are so nerd, Van Helsing, that it makes me sick."

The night was young, so, we went to a karaoke with some friends. It was great! And I destroyed

"♪ We don't need no education... We don't need no tough control... ♫"

Bram slept in God's arms this night. Vlad prefered Stitch, who is chaotic good too.

In the second day, we saw the Alternative History lecture. See the two in the right? They were in karaoke with us. Don't ask me how they got up early and said coherent things to the public.

"I don't like Rome very much. The Turk invasions are much better."

"Yeah, Vlad, ok. Just be quiet now, please."

And after Fantasticon? BAR!

"Please, Bram, at least PRETEND you drink something manly."

"But... But... It's guarana! Cheap guarana! Authentic Brazilian guarana!"

On Sunday, we went to Liberdade, the Japanese district in Sao Paulo. Bram loves Japanese food. He ate even my gohan, when I couldn't finish it.

"What are you staring at? I can ate with hachi better then you."

A little souvenir from Liberdade.

And in the afternoof, one last lecture, this time with the Brazilian Fantasy bestsellers: André Vianco, Luis Eduardo Matta, Raphael Draccon and Eduardo Spohr. Vianco is famous for his vampiric fiction, so, Bram and Vlad watched him with great interest.

"I've heard his vampires have unique powers, like X-Men. Thankfully, no one of them is Emma Frost."

"Cool!"

Going home was sad, but necessary. But I'm not worried, they return to Brazil in November for the FIQ, the International Comics Festival, in Belo Horizonte! :D

"Do we really have to return to England?"

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V: "Heeeeey!"

L: "Whaaaaat?"

V: "Why are you sleeping with me?"

L: "My mother said that she convinced my father to marry her sleeping with him."

L: "But I guess I'm missing something."

V: "I won't tell you what it is..."

17 - This is love

♪ Is this love, is this love, is this love I'm feeling? ♫

Yeah, it is.

Lucy, as many other girls, just wants a bad boy. Poor Bram and his kindness.

And yeah, the Van Helsings cultivate orange tulips in their garden. They are very proud of their Dutch ancestry.

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B: "To you, Lucy. A tulip from our garden."
L: "You know I like Vlad, don't you?"
B: "But Vlad told me he hates you."
L: "That's the reason I like him."

12 - Lucy

Yeah, this is the 12th strip. The strips #6 to #11 are just random jokes, most of them too silly too translate here.

Trivia: Originally, this strip had 6 panels. I shortened it because 3 panels are easier to edit. xP

Today, I present you to Lucy Harker, descendent of Mina and Jonathan Harker. I didn't call her "Wilhelmina", like her great-great-grandmother because... Well... OK, let's be honest: I like Lucy better. :P And I didn't want to feed the Mina-Dracula shipping, which is utterly absurd, according to the book (HAVE YOU HEARD, DACRE STOKER?).

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B: "Vlad, meet one of my dearest friends, Lucy Harker."

L: "Nice to meet you, Vlad!"

V: "You don't expect me to touch the filthy paws of a human, do you?"

L: "He's always like that?"

B: "Only when he's in a good mood."

05 - Humanity

Trivia: it's the only time Bram has ever mentioned the possibility of becoming a vampire, even as a joke. He knows that Vlad or Bessie could take it way too seriously.

Click to enlarge.

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B: "Vlad, have you ever considerated being human?"

B: "I mean, vampires have wierd weaknesses, hurt people to steal their blood..."

B: "...are stalked by fans and enemies and immortality can be boring. Wouldn't you like to change?"

V: Change? You mean, being a superficial jerkass who destroys the environment and harms my health with bad habits? No, thanks."

B: "Vlad, how much does becoming a vampire hurts?"

Nightmare week

This is the last week of the term, a.k.a. Nightmare Week. I have lots of homework and tests ahead, so, no strips this week. :( The sad life of a Chemistry undergrad... :(

Noooo, I want new strips now!

But don't cry, my friends! Next week, we're back with one or two brand new comics. :D

04 - Junk Food (2)

...And that's why we won't see Vlad biting people very often. This and his age, because vampire children don't have the same bloodlust of adult ones.


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B: "So, my blood is junk food?"
V: "Yeah."
V: "Humans eat a lot of junk these days. Their blood tastes bad and harm the teeth."
B: "Wow. God saves sugar and saturated fat, then."

03 - Junk Food

Hi, everyone! Here we starts Year One. I won't redraw all 56 strips of this season, but only the most important ones, in which characters are presented and shippings are suggested. And maybe a random joke or two.

Now, you can see how Bram and Vlad met:

Trivia: Bram is not descendent of the dead Van Helsing's son mentioned in the book, but from another one. Someday, I will put his family tree here to clarify. Vlad is the grandson of Dracula and his blond wife.


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B: "Hey! You are new here! How are you?"
B: "I'm Abraham Van Helsing IV, but that's an awfully long name, so you can call me Bram. Glad to meet you."
V: "Hi, commoner. I'm Vlad Dracula II, son of Viktor, grandson of Vlad and the next Count of Walachia."
B: "Y-You are a vampire!"
V: "...So?"
B: "Please, don't bite me!"
V: "Naw, my parents told me not to eat junk food."
B: "Wait! 'Junk food'?"

Aaaaw yeah! We are in English, now!

Hello, everyone! o/

Bram & Vlad is a webcomic that I draw for more than four years now. I always wanted to have a English version of its blog, but just now I know enough English to try it (despite the many mistakes I make all the time). I will gladly accept any correction you suggest. Bram & Vlad should be written in British English for full effect, but my knowledge of English is not that good. D:

Enough moaning over my English skills!

Abraham "Bram" Van Helsing IV and Vlad Dracula II are friends (in Bram's POV) or just acquaintances (in Vlad's POV) who talks a lot and are trying to erase the violent past of their famous ancestors. The comic is about vampires, geeks and love interests. Sometimes, there are mini-series of strips, but they are mostly oneshot.

Enjoy them!