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Summary
Blood Hunters
#3.
Hellcow’s gruesome nature may be too dark for MCU audiences.
Steve Gerber’s surreal and bizarre creative vision brought life to the weird vampire cow character.
Warning: contains spoilers for “The Fall of the House of Udder,” appearing in Blood Hunters #3!
Marvel has brought back what might be its goofiest character ever, but with a twist way too terrifying for the MCU. The vampires of the Marvel Universe have risen up in Blood Hunt, the publisher’s summer crossover event. In the story “The Fall of the House of Udder,” appearing in Blood Hunters #3, Marvel’s weirdest vampire returns with a gruesome new gimmick that might be too much for MCU fans.
“The Fall of the House of Udder” from Blood Hunters #3 is written by Josh Trujillo and drawn by Claire Roe. Levi is working as a hand on a farm, alongside a quiet old man. The work done on the farm is mysterious, and Levi asks no questions. One night, he finds the old man being eaten by Hellcow, the vampire cow.
Levi then enters into an arrangement with Hellcow: he brings her new victims, and she does not attack him.
Levi thinks he has a bond with Hellcow, but the story ends with him falling victim to Hellcow too.
Hellcow Is the Product of the Gloriously Weird Vision of Steve Gerber
Hellcow Is Anything But Cute–She is a Cold-Blooded Murderer
Hellcow is one of Marvel’s weirdest characters, a product of the mad genius of Steve Gerber. First appearing in Giant Sized Man-Thing #5, Hellcow was once a regular cow, who fell victim to Dracula. Desperate for blood, Dracula bit the cow. Three days later, she returned as a vampire and began stalking the countryside. She eventually encounters Howard the Duck, and during the melee, was staked through the heart, seemingly ending her reign of terror. However, she would return many years later, teaming up, appropriately enough, with Deadpool.
Steve Gerber’s landmark Marvel work of the 1970s was surreal and left of center, often challenging conventional comic book tropes–and Hellcow is one of the purest distillations of his creative vision.
Steve Gerber’s landmark Marvel work of the 1970s was surreal and left of center, often challenging conventional comic book tropes–and Hellcow is one of the purest distillations of his creative vision. Gerber employed the strange and the bizarre better than anyone at Marvel at the time. The concept behind Hellcow is goofy, but Gerber made it work. Hellcow’s original story, despite its surreal and humorous overtones, is scary and disturbing. Vampires had just entered the Marvel Universe themselves around the time of Hellcow’s debut, and Gerber left his mark on them as well.
Hellcow Maybe Too Much for MCU Audiences
If They Do Not Take Hellcow Seriously, They May Find Her Disturbing
“The Fall of the House of Udder” keeps the spirit of Gerber’s original Hellcow story alive, but it is unquestionably too dark for the MCU. MCU audiences may have trouble buying the concept of a vampire cow in the first place. Also, MCU films largely play to a “PG-13” audience, but a vampire cow devouring people in bloody ways might stretch the limits of that rating. “The Fall of the House of Udder” pulls no punches in showing just how horrific and gory Hellcow is, and it may prove too much for the MCU.
Blood Hunters #3 is on sale now from Marvel Comics!
“The Fall of the House of Udder,” appearing in Blood Hunters #3 (2024)
Writer: Josh Trujillo Artist: Claire Roe Colorist: Neeraj Menon Letterer: Joe Caramagna Cover Artist: Greg Land & Frank D’Armata
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