The monsters are coming!  Ever since the announcement of Blade joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), speculators have been trying to figure out how the character will fit into the bigger narrative for Marvel.  We are just kicking off Phase V, but I am sure Disney and Marvel are looking to profit well into Phase VIII - The Ocho (See Here) and beyond!  So what implications does the addition of Blade actually mean and how can the average speculator find value in their collection?  Let's grab our crucifix and hunt down some winners!

For those unaware, Blade has a cool nickname in the Marvel Universe...he goes by Blade the Vampire-Slayer.  You can see it right on his first appearance book in Tomb of Dracula #10 from 1973, which has seen prices, of a 9.8 grade, nearly double since the announcement.  Now, I am not one to dig in too deep for hidden meaning or try to get the yarn out and discern what may be the next 3 steps after a clue.  Don't overthink the room...there will probably be some Vampires involved.  Marvel does employ a vampire you might know named Dracula (he's kinda a big deal).  Yet, if you dust off the cobwebs in your head you can remember that Marvel made a set of Blade movies in the 1990s and 2000s, and it had some vampires in it and the final movie in the trilogy had Dracula and bore, bore, bore.  If Marvel remakes that again, I am out.  So what do we need from Blade?

Hopefully, you have been paying attention, because what Blade needs is monsters to fight that are more complex than vampires.  There is an opportunity for Werewolf by Night to make an appearance as a foe/friend.  You could even utilize the upcoming Spider-Man offering to introduce John Jameson (son of the now introduced J. Jonah Jameson from the credits of Far From Home) as the Man-Wolf to keep that monster theme and drop Blade into your arguably biggest franchise to give him a boost!  There is also the Living Mummy, which could be a nice transition to the introduction of Moon Knight or vice-versa.  You could also see the monsters come in a more alien form.  Since the Marvel Universe is expansive and mysterious, you could have a darker and less sentient race come to earth for a horror type flick.  Imagine the Brood coming to earth and beginning to take over heroes...oh, yeah, and I just gave you a nice way to drop the X-Men into the MCU.

As a speculator, your best hope is always to evolve into your own franchise.  Perhaps the Legion of Monsters is on the radar for Marvel.  You may not get Morbius due to him being slowly destroyed by Jared Leto over at Sony, but I know that Marvel has enough gruesome monstrosities to rotate in and out of a team line-up.  A more likely team would be something akin to the Nightstalkers or the Midnight Sons, a few of the groups that Blade has spearheaded.  With the risk Marvel is willing to take, I would not even rule out some sort of Avengers of the Super Natural.  Makes perfect sense considering the heroes that still remain after End Game.  Dr. Strange, Scarlet Witch, and the lot are making noise on the speculation front but we will see what the future may hold.

Are you excited about Blade in the MCU?  Which monster are you hoping makes an appearance?  Drop your comments and join the speculation!

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