Huh, That would be an interesting plot twist, if Basil was a just a human servant to a vampire, being just a right hand of a greater, hidden evil... But there is no proof of Basil's master's existance, besides that contradicts all the evidence we gathered here...

Well, we can always theorize whether Willa wasnt the greater evil. I dont know how ambiguous it was which of them was the boss. In my universe it was Basil, with Willa as an ally who helped Basil with his image of a terrifying netherworldly ruler, like giving Basil the illusion of vampirism.

Perhaps it was left ambiguous, just like the stories of Vlad the Impaler.

Great post, very thought provoking.

Very interesting--thanks for bringing this up!

I'm biased towards this being not true, because the 2002 Studios Vampire is my favorite minifigure. And I always have and continue to feel that he's the first Lego Vampire; the king, the master vampire above all others.

That being said, your argument, while relying largely on implication is rather good. It's not hard for one to assume Basil is an actual vampire--Lego seemed to go a long way to imply that without saying it (for whatever reason). And although I don't really consider Lego Racers to be a strong source--it is undeniable that the alternative face implies his vampire status. That and the whole motif makes the suggestion clear.

Still though, the good thing with Lego canon is that it can be really whatever you want it to be. So although Basil is a lot like Vlad, and both have connections to vampires, I'll be keeping the Studios version as the tip top of vampires in my mind.

But Vampires never wear armor or helmets because they are immortal.

That's not true, I've seen plenty of movies and shows were the vampires were armor, I think its more to hide what they are.

Edited September 30, 20159 yr by Dr.Cogg

I'm biased towards this being not true, because the 2002 Studios Vampire is my favorite minifigure. And I always have and continue to feel that he's the first Lego Vampire; the king, the master vampire above all others.

Mmm but he is not a vampire, strictly talking.

He is supposed to be an actor on disguise. It's the Studios theme...

Mmm but he is not a vampire, strictly talking.

He is supposed to be an actor on disguise. It's the Studios theme...

He's most often referred to as the first vampire, even officially by Lego. Plus he doesn't show any implications of being a non-vampire other than being in a studios set (which were just designed that way to facilitate the Lego Camera theme anyways) The only studios monster that can appear "human" is the werewolf--he's the only one with a human face (well and the scientist). Does anyone consider the first Frankenstein or the studios Mummy non-monsters because they were in studios sets? The first Spider-Man minifigure came from a studios set--does that make him not Spider-Man but an actor minifigure?

The argument that the Studios Vampire as not an actual vampire is just as ambiguous/weak as claiming Basil is one. The latter is implied, but the former is confirmed by Lego (through books and whatnot).

The argument that the Studios Vampire as not an actual vampire is just as ambiguous/weak

I was just thinking on the minifigure in the context it was released: as a character in a movie filmation. I'm sorry if my post was upsetting

Man. I guess I never realized that was a moustache. I always thought Batlord (Basil, whoever) was just making a really weird facial expression.

Edited October 1, 20159 yr by obsidianheart

So the Studios vampire movie set is like the movie Shadow of the Vampire? If you are not familiar with the plot, it is about how the movie Nosferatu was filmed with an actual vampire as Count Orlok.

Believe what you will. Your minifigs can be whoever you say they are.

That's not true, I've seen plenty of movies and shows were the vampires were armor, I think its more to hide what they are.

Ok, so he is Vampire Lord disguised as a mortal by the helmet even in his own castle. The helmet also makes his primary weapon and most iconic feature useless - his fangs. I think armored vampires are a very rare exception, maybe a very modern idea to make them look special in the abundance of supernatural creatures in mainstream fantasy. One important feature of vampires is their superhuman strenght and invulnerability although they look Human und normal. A helmet destroys that effect.

A gothic setting and the bat logo do not automatically make him a vampire. The resemblance to Vlad the Impaler I would not count, because he was not a vampire but the real source for the dracula myth. The only strong evidence I accept are the fangs in his drivers licence.

Maybe he is a human Vlad the impaler before he turned into a vampire.

Edited October 1, 20159 yr by Wardancer

A gothic setting and the bat logo do not automatically make him a vampire. The resemblance to Vlad the Impaler I would not count, because he was not a vampire but the real source for the dracula myth. The only strong evidence I accept are the fangs in his drivers licence.

Maybe he is a human Vlad the impaler before he turned into a vampire.

Hi,

I think you're right. He is probably a normal human, as Vlad the impaler (who was just a bloodthirsty warlord and not a vampire) but he is still a terrible ennemy.

For me, in my childhood he became THE Arch-ennemy of both my dragon lord and my lion king when I bought it. He was not a vampire by the way, just an awful warlord.

But, perhaps, TLG seeing he was so gothic, they decided he was a vampire for the racers video game.

Or perhaps, he turned vampire after being a warlord.

But Vampires never wear armor or helmets because they are immortal.

Lord Harkon from Skyrim would Disaggree

So do Vampires in Heroes of Might and Magic VI

Or Kain, From Soul Reaver (Ok, maybe not the best example, but look, Pauldrons and Gauntlets are a part of armor right?)

And for God's sake, the man himself, Gary Oldman Dracula, in 1992 movie:

So, yeah, plus, a helmet would protect from sun, and a steel breastplate would easily block a stake to a heart, so Vampires + Armor = Yes!

Edited October 1, 20159 yr by Eggyslav

Dagon/Dracula/Drake from Blade Trinity had armor in his Sumerian days. Viktor wore armor in Underworld: Rise of the Lycans and in the flashback sequences of Underworld: Evolution. Even if they can't die from most wounds, armor is still prudent when fighting with edged weapons.

Edited October 1, 20159 yr by gedren_y

The whole idea of vampires fighting with weapons or armors seems to be a very modern idea. Skyrim, Blade, Underworld - who cares? That has little to do with the traditional iconic vampire. I doubt TLG wanted to make a modern Hightech Fantasy vampire when they made Basil. Of course exceptions exist, but I still believe that centuries of gothic literature (not Computer games a few years old) include a vampire archetype which is in most cases unarmored.

I think he was supposed to be like Vlad the Impaler (who wore armor), and this conversation is just like the myth. Was Vlad a Vampire? Maybe, who knows? Was Basil a Vampire? Maybe, who knows?

Edited October 1, 20159 yr by x105Black

Yeah, It is very ambigous, whether Basil was meant to be a vampire, or not, that's why I started this topic, to provoke discussion on the subject. At first, I also thought that Basil was just a mortal man, perhaps with some dark magical powers, which would explain his control over dragons, and undead thralls (It might as well being Willa's doings, as Basil's court mage and right hand), but then I played Lego Racers, and put some thought together, and now the evidence I collected convinced me that Basil the Batlord is a blood sucking nosferatu in minifigure form, his overall theme, general likeness in appearance to a real life evil warlord, who also was suspected of being a vampire, and the ingame material seems to point in that direction...

Well he is a vampire now!

https://imgur.com/a/5Ba7sN6

https://imgur.com/kPU9f7G

Last year, when there was 90th annivesary going on, there was CMF Series 23. Most of us mentioend “Basil the Batlord” and I was like “Uhh…who?”. 

I looked him up and he did look like he was a vampire to me!

Wow, this ended up being pretty prophetic. Well done!

11 hours ago, SirBlake said:

Wow, this ended up being pretty prophetic. Well done!

or maybe they read this thread and @Eggyslav's theory made them retcon Basil as a vampire 

 

Its actually called "Vampire Knight" in the press release

(Vampire Lord would had been better IMO) 

Edited December 6, 20231 yr by Robert8

Well, then Theory confirmed! With official approval from TLG, no less! :D

But I still prefer your version Robert!

Edited December 6, 20231 yr by Eggyslav

Or Vampire Warlord?

A fun headcanon thing worth doing if you want is imagining the new CMF version of Basil is him after having been 'corrupted' by WIlla's magic for so long. It turned him into an actual vampire (versus his more human appearance back 1997!)