#like I have seen this used effectively as a metaphor for marginalization (undead murder farce) and an exploration of how society

[musical-chick-13]

Can somebody please explain to me what the appeal of vampires is.

#I'm genuinely curious #people seem to go absolutely feral over this concept and I want to KNOW I want to UNDERSTAND #and there are some really excellent vampire aus that I love and I want to love them MORE because I want to GET IT™ #because all I see are like...societally conventionally attractive people with fangs. who maybe (depending on The Lore™) #can't go out in the sun. and that just...doesn't resonate with me? #like I understand metaphors for 'othering' and the concept of monstrosity but I feel like that gets a little lost if there isn't anything #actually UNPALATABLE about them. like if they just look like what we culturally have idealized in human appearance then how can #they serve as a metaphor for ostracization or being misunderstood? #is it primarily an aesthetic thing? is it a *danger is sexy* thing? #but ordinary humans can be plenty dangerous too (see: 90% of the female characters I'm obsessed with) #so is it in the sense of you can vicariously experience that danger and heightened emotion in a situation that's removed from reality #so it feels less overwhelming when you're watching/reading the piece of fiction??? #like I have seen this used effectively as a metaphor for marginalization (undead murder farce) and an exploration of how society #defines a 'monster' (shiki) but that doesn't seem to be the way most people or works engage with this concept #is it just that people like when characters are covered in blood because I DO understand that one lmao #I just feel like vampires have been branded as a Key Aspect of Bisexual/Gay Culture and I feel like I am on a separate plane of existence #because It Is Not Clicking For Me #(tbh I feel like there are a lot of Quintessential Queer Experiences™ that don't apply to me but. that's a whole separate thing.) #ANYWAY would love to hear people's thoughts! #I am cooking up a Meta Post™ about fandom reaction to the concept of monstrosity and I want to gather as much information as possible