Marvel’s Most R-Rated Event of All Time Begins with a Seriously Underrated Villain

Warning: contains potential spoilers for Blood Hunt #1!

Blood Hunt, Marvel’s most R-rated event ever, begins with a seriously underrated villain. The next major Marvel event, Blood Hunt will debut in stores later this Spring, but the seeds have been sown for a while now, as Earth’s vampires consolidate their power. Now, in a special first look at Blood Hunt #1, a surprise, and underrated, villain inaugurates what promises to be Marvel’s bloodiest event ever.

Marvel shared a first look at Blood Hunt #1, which will be written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Pepe Larraz with Marte Garcia, with AIPT. In the preview pages, shared below, various users of the Dark Force start losing control of their powers, flooding the Earth in darkness and setting the stage for a massive vampire attack.

In one scene, the Scarlet Witch investigates a Dark Force disturbance and fans learn the villain Blackout is behind this particular incident.

Blackout May Seem Like the Last Villain to Start a Major Marvel Event

Blackout Has a History at Marvel Comics

Blackout is a powerful but unsung villain. First appearing in 1978’s Nova #19 and created by Marv Wolfman and Carmine Infantino, Blackout is Marcus Daniels, a nuclear physicist who gained the ability to manipulate Dark Force energies thanks to exposure to cosmic radiation. Like all users of the Dark Force, Blackout can teleport through it as well as create simple shadow constructs. Other uses of the Dark Force include Cloak and Moonstone, but Blackout never achieved their levels of recognition, instead becoming another generic Marvel villain.

Yet Blood Hunt may just change all of that. Although Blackout was a villain, his actions in the preview are far beyond what fans have seen of him in the past. Blackout, and other Dark Force users, have seemingly lost control of their powers, and while no reason is given for why, it becomes clear who is behind it: the vampires. Blood Hunt is the culmination of years worth of vampire stories in the Marvel Universe. Titles such as Blade and Moon Knight have featured Earth’s vampires, and hinted at something larger coming down the line.

Will Blackout and the Rest Survive Blood Hunt?

Or Will He Succumb to the Darkness As Well?

And now, with Blood Hunt on the horizon, that time is now. Earth’s vampires have hijacked the Dark Force, using it to cover the planet and allow them to attack. Marvel has promised the event will be the bloodiest in their history, and have even crafted special “red band” editions of the tie-ins. These special editions will feature extra stories and art too “violent” or “extreme” for younger audiences–something that has never been attempted in mainstream comics. Blood Hunt has the potential to break new ground for superhero comics, and it all starts with the death of an underrated villain.

Source: AIPT

Blood Hunt #1 is on sale May 1 from Marvel Comics!