Vamps About

Production code:

1034-214

Airdate:

November 17, 2015

Credits

Episodes
Previous "Everything Stays (Stakes, Part 2)"	Next "The Empress Eyes (Stakes, Part 4)"

"Vamps About" is the third part of the Adventure Time miniseries Stakes and the eighth episode in the seventh season of Adventure Time. It is the two hundred and seventh episode overall.

Synopsis[]

Old foes surface from Marceline's past.

Plot[]

Continuing from the final scene of "Everything Stays," the newly revived Vampires—The Vampire King, The Hierophant, The Empress, The Fool and The Moon—play a mellow instrumental piece in a secluded cave. Suddenly, The Fool stops to express his surprise at not only having both of his front fangs back, but also at being alive again. The Vampire King suddenly puts his own mouth to The Fool's, which knocks out one of his fangs, and tells him that to get used to new life. The Empress is surprised at her new surroundings, saying that it was as if the Vampires "fell asleep on a raft and woke up on strange seas." The Hierophant reminds her that "the demon Marceline" staked them all centuries ago, but that he does not care about the exact details of their deaths and is simply eager to get back to eating again.

The Empress suggests that they get back to rebuilding the Vampires' "Old Hive," but the Vampire King is disinterested and simply dances with a nearby cow. The Fool is also neutral to the idea, suggesting that the Vampires simply rent a loft downtown, which incites the Empress to hypnotize him. The Vampire King then bites the cow's neck. The Hierophant says that the Vampires should get back to their old ways, arguing that diverging from these ways led to their vulnerability in the first place. The Vampire King levitates him into the air and squeezes him, asserting his kingship and stating that it is a new era for their kind and that old-fashioned ideas have no place in it. Annoyed, the Hierophant shapeshifts into a warthog and leaves towards another forest. The Empress says that she will build her own army and leaves towards the Ice Kingdom. The Moon silently retreats towards a lake, dropping moon pearls as she leaves. The Vampire King ignores them, continuing to dance as The Fool plays bongos. Jake, who had been hiding under a leaf the entire time, hurriedly rushes away from the scene.

Meanwhile, Marceline and Finn are walking through a field, with Marceline expressing joy at her new mortality and being able to walk in broad daylight again. Jake runs up to them and asks Marceline if she knows about the vampires. Marceline denies it, pointing out that she has just been cured, but is still confused about new reports of vampire activity happening at the same time as her being cured. She tries to fly back to Bonnibel's cabin to investigate, only to remember that she no longer has powers as a result of the procedure. Finn is confused, as he had assumed that her father passed down genetic demon powers to her, but Marceline says that her only natural power as a demon is the ability to suck souls, which she jokingly demonstrates on Jake. Though annoyed, Jake gives Marceline and Finn a ride back.

At the cabin, Marceline asks Bonnibel about the new vampires reported by Jake. Bonny says that the only trace of vampires left should be the black vampiric essence sucked out of Marceline, only to find out that it has mysteriously disappeared from its safety bucket. Peppermint Butler is busy drawing a series of crude sketches of the vampires based on Jake's descriptions of them. Jake dismisses all of them as inaccurate except for the final sketch, depicting the Vampire King. Marceline takes a look at the sketch, which incites a flashback to her final encounter with the Vampire King.

In the flashback, Marceline and the Vampire King are facing off on the humans' boat. The Vampire King tells Marceline that the powers she has obtained from the staked vampires' souls are making her crazy, and that she has yet to pay a price for them. The King then asks Marceline if she is truly willing to wipe out the entire vampire species by staking him. She replies affirmatively, and the two lunge towards each other. Just as Marceline is about to stake the King, he says that there is still one way to save his people. As a dying gesture as he is being staked, he bites Marceline in the neck, turning her into a vampire and thus preserving his species. Marceline's eyes glow red as she screams in agony, signaling her transformation.

In the present day, Marceline says that they urgently need to prepare against the vampires. Peppermint Butler then brings out an entire stash of vampire-hunting supplies, which he had stockpiled for protection in case Marceline suddenly decided to turn on them. Marceline, Bonnibel, Finn, Jake and Peppermint Butler then head out to the vampires' cave, which they find deserted. Marceline tries to sniff for traces of the vampires in the forest and runs into an invisible chamber. After telling her friends to head back to the cabin while she puts together a profile, she enters the chamber to find The Fool and The Vampire King. She tells them that things are different in the new world, with humans long gone, and the Vampire King replies that he too has changed, as he has resolved only to eat animals, "just like everyone else." Despite this, Marceline calls them monsters and rejects the King's offer for friendship, arguing that he had done enough in the past to deserve to get staked thousand times over. She then stakes The Fool and sucks his soul, regaining his power of flight. After a brief scuffle, The Vampire King informs Marceline that The Empress is making her way to the Ice Kingdom as they speak. Realizing that The Empress is going after the Ice King, she rushes to the Ice Kingdom to stop her.

Characters[]

Major characters[]

Minor characters[]

Cow
Humans (flashback)
Snail

Mentioned[]

Trivia[]

The Vampire King's quote "someone's smelling a bit human herself these days" further establishes Marceline's half-human heritage.
This is the first Stakes episode to feature the end title card displaying the recently slain vampires being crossed off one by one.
Not only is The Moon silent during the Vampire Court discussion, but no other vampire other than The Fool so much as acknowledges her presence, let alone her intentions, after they separate.
It is noted that the same audio for Jake saying "Nah, that's not right." is repeated several times.

Cultural references[]

The Vampire King cuts off the Hierophant's "Surely..." monologue by saying "Surely? Shirley J. Temple!" referencing the actress Shirley Temple. This line also serves as a reference to a famous gag from the 1980 film Airplane! involving the conflating of the identical-sounding words "surely" and "Shirley."
Gold leaf is sometimes used to decorate food or drink, typically to promote a perception of luxury and high value; however as the Vampire King stated, it is flavorless.