Hello everybody, I would love to give all of you a little tip, if you want to learn something about Vlad Tepes, I can't recommend you enough the Netflix documentary drama Mehmed vs. Vlad, which is the second season from the Rise of the Ottomans series. The whole series is really interesting, because it focuses on the life of the sultan Mehmed II, but the second season touches upon his relationship and conflict with the Wallachian prince Vlad the Impaler and it is really well made, there's a lot of talented actors and the man who plays Dracula is really amazing. The six episodes of the season talk about some of the key events in Vlad's life that shaped his hatred of the Ottomans and then it follows the course of his war against the sultan that, while it turned out to be futile and ended up in Vlad's death, solidified him as one of the best medieval warriors and most fascinating figures in human history. 😊👌
Parallels between Vlad, The Impaler and Nandor, The Relentless.
I'm watching a series on Netflix called “Rise of Empires. Otomman: Mehmed VS Vlad” and noticed some similarities in the history of the famous Vlad who inspired Count Dracula, coincidence or not.
Vlad III
Vlad was, in summary, a prince voivode, who grew as a prisoner in the turkish court of the ottoman empire. He was trusted to be the Wallachia's ruller, wich was his birth right. However, he later decided to ally himself with the enemies against the ottomans for Wallachia's freedom, since it was a vassal state.
Now, to give a context, Vlad was famous for having a dark and cruel personality, but was also extremely skilled with the sword and had a reputation for being a fierce warrior, like Nandor did.
He dared to go against Mehmed II, who at the time was not only the most powerful sultan in the East, but also a Vlad's childhood friend, since they grew up together, which made the war between them having a personal character. Vlad ignored the bonds and memories between them for his beliefs.
Now... Vlad grew in a society that was always at war trying to expand and normalized cruelty, this kind of fucked him up.
Nandor finds it difficult that even eternal mystical creatures like the Djinn don't understand his appeal for barbarism.
One of Vlad's control techniques was fear, his reputation for the exquisite torture methods gave him the title of Impaler and rumors that he drank from his enemies' blood. Vlad can be perceived as a monster, but in fact it was a very political strategy.
Such as Nandor, Vlad didn't accept any supplication; He didn't spared elderly, women or even children.
In his way of facing Mehmed, Vlad not only rebelled, but did it so arrogantly and disrespectfully, that it threatened Mehmed, the most fearsome personality for Europe, to gaining a fame as weak.
I remembered this passage watching the E01S05:
"The Impaler lord’s message to his childhood friend is written in the blood of thousands , “Come and get me”. That kind of disrespect was something that a ruler like Mehmed II could never forgive because in this kind of world, reputation is everyting”
These rules applied to Nandor, just as for Vlad and Mehmed, even if Al-Quolanudar it's fictional. Nandor may have distanced himself from the war mentality and have become soft and pathetic, but in his own way that will always be part of his identity.
Nandor can be soft in many ways, he can accept to be beaten, deceived, kidnapped, stolen and threatened with death. But what he cannot accept is a public humiliation that threatens his reputation. Perhaps another vampire may, like Deacon, but Deacon was no warfare.
To Nandor, this MUST be paid with death "What choice do I have?"
It made me think "Guillermo is really fucked".
Guillermo has seen many faces of Nandor, but I think this is the very first time he really saw The Relentless.
Only left to us to find out if Nandor's love for Guillermo can overcome his centenary pride, his own identity, in this path of violence.