Twinkel stars, fangs and talking ashes...

So today it is again time for a new little Spotlight, the last Spotlight was done a little while ago and was part of What if... a series of posts, which actually has that one post in it. I should really do a series update :)
You can re-read it here: Time Traveling 1 
Basically Spotlight is something we are doing on our website every month. One of us is picking a topic, an author, series, artist or something else we think deserves the attention, and talks about that topic a little bit.
So today I chose one of my favorite topics: Vampires.
But don't be scared away!
We will not talk about that pop-culture phenomenon and about all the hype (though that is surely an interesting topic). We will look at it from a more childish point of view. So this is going to be a little strange. There are two ways in which you can see this following post: First you think it's embarrassing and I should grow up all ready or you think it is interesting and maybe kind of cute.
Tell me in the comments what you are thinking about this, but remember if you think I'm childish that's the best compliment you can give to me, because in 50 years you will all wish to be young again...

So enough with the pre-talk let's start already. May I present to you my most favorite Vampire in history:

Well that is Oskar. And I would put him on one step with Stefan Salvatore and Edward Cullen. Why? Because he has all a pop-culture-vampire-hero needs:

1. He is desperately in love with a beautiful human girl, which he can't have because of his dark Vampire-side
2. He doesn't drink human blood, because he doesn't want to be a monster, and he simply can't stand it

Oskar is the Protagonist in an amazing and really cute little German TvShow called The school of little vampires. 
And what do I love most about this show? Besides the lovely characters and the talking ashes?
Just look at this:

It is a picture of Gary Oldman playing the role of Dracula in the 90's movie Bram Stoker's Dracula
And this is a picture of the headmaster of our little vampire school Count Alerich von Horrificus:

Here we have the lovely Lucy on her funeral in the same Dracula movie:

And a picture of one of the teachers at our little school Lady Kryptina:

You see the resemblance, don't you?
The vampire hunter that plays a very important role in this TVshow is called Polidori. Does that ring any bell? Yeah, you remember him. John Polidori, the good friend of Lord Byron who wrote in 1816 the first story with the modern vampir in it.
I just love how this little show is such a great homage to the beginning of vampire-tales.
You should definitely check it out if you're able to understand a little bit German!
Greetings
KJ

What if... Time travelling 1

Welcome to the first part of "What if..."
The rules are easy and you will get it without me explaining it :)

So, what if I had a time machine that I can only use once? I would travel in time, of course :) To be more specific I would travel 195 years back in time into the wonderful 1816. And I wouldn't just travel anywhere I would travel to the Lac Lerman, the lake Geneva.
Back than was the literature period of romanticism (I'm a huge fan of that time) and people stopped thinking with their heads and started acting like they felt. Desire, night, nature and love were expressed in all forms of art. A young English poet leaves his wife to abscond with a young girl. They travel to Geneva were one of the greatest gothic novels in history is written.
I'm talking about Percy Bysshe Shelley and his love Mary Godwin, later known as Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. They travel with Marys Half-sister Clara Clairmont, because she is searching for her lover George Gordon, who you all know as Lord Byron, one of the most famous english poets.
So the trio stays over the summer in Byrons mansion Diodati with Byron and his personal doctor Giovanni "John" Polidori.

On a stormy night the little circle decides to make a contest. They want to find out, who is able to write the best gothic tales. But the only ones finishing their stories are John and Mary.
In this night, inspired by the discussions about the "Prometheus spark" a few days ago, Mary W. Shelley creates one of the most misunderstood monsters ever and it's creator: Dr. Victor Frankenstein and his monster.
John Polidori writes The Vampyr, which is said to be one of Bram Stokers inspirations and the first story of modern-Vampires.
To finish this little story I want to say that I admire the work of those wonderful poets and writers and would love to spend one night with them in the Diodati mansion discussing Shakespeare, Voltaire, Goethe and how far a scientist can go...

Did you know that, based on the night when Mary Godwin gave birth to Frankenstein, a horror movie was created? It's called Gothic, but I haven't watched it yet, should I?
Have you read Frankenstein? And how did you like it?

Best wishes and weeks full of words
KJ