Vassalord is a Josei manga by Nanae Chrono about a cyborg vampire named Charley who happens to be a vampire hunter for the Vatican. No, really. Since it's a sin to ingest the blood of a human, Charley lives off his master, playboy Johnny Rayflo, also a vampire. Cue Unresolved Sexual Tension and buckets of Ho Yay.
The manga was serialized in Comic Blade Avarus from 2006 to 2013, and compiled into seven volumes. The first four volumes are available in English from the now-closed Tokyopop. A few drama CD's have been released, and an OVA was produced and released along with Volume 7.
Tropes:
- Anguished Declaration of Love: Sort of. Charley uses the lines of the Phantom Of The Opera - because it's, well, appropriate - to finally yell at Rayflo how much he loves him and can't stand him being with Barry (allegorically). Rayflo tries to brush it off but for once Charley is pretty damn persistent.
- Anywhere but Their Lips:
- Of all the places Charley kisses (and bites) Rayflo, none are on the lips. All the better to heighten the
Ho Yay! - By the time the series ends the two still have not visibly kissed on the lips.
- Of all the places Charley kisses (and bites) Rayflo, none are on the lips. All the better to heighten the
- At the Opera Tonight: Charley is invited to one in Chapter 16. He and Rayflo even directly quote a few lines The Phantom of the Opera.
- Attractive Bent-Gender: Rayflo in chapter 2. And boy, does he get a lot of stares At least that's what it looks like at first.
- Cloud Cuckoolander: 86, who spends most of his days high as balls and is convinced angels are talking to him. Rayflo also has his moments.
- Death by Origin Story: Craig's wife was supposedly killed in an accident and his daughter Olivia was murdered by a newborn vampire unable to control his hunger. The vampire killed himself out of grief, but that doesn't stop Craig from getting on the Vassalord case.
- Destructo-Nookie: Charley seems to think attacking Rayflo with assorted heavy weaponry counts as foreplay. Rayflo seems to agree.
- Double Entendre: Rayflo's nickname for Charley, "Cherry," is a reference to him being a virgin.
- Raylfo's countless "suck me"-type comments. Amusingly appropriate considering they're vampires.
- Green-Eyed Epiphany: Although Charley doesn't want to admit it, every time Rayflo pays significant attention towards someone else or lets them feed on him, he tends to get very jealous. However, this is taken to a whole new level when Barry comes into the situation and he pretty much loses it.
- I Know Your True Name: Figuring out Barry's true name, Belial, is what gives Cherry the power to defeat him. In order to do it, however, Rayflo has to quote a passage from the Bible, which ends up killing him.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: The original reason why Rayflo gave up Charley to the church when he was a child.
- Mad Eye: This is 86's default expression. And when 86 gets serious, somehow, his eyes get even more crazy looking!
- Making Love in All the Wrong Places: In the back room of a church, in an airplane bathroom, in a prison-cell, in an opera house...
- Mr. Fanservice: Rayflo.
- Later invoked with Charley, who becomes a fashion model meant to advertise the glamour of being a vampire to the wealthy, who in turn will buy Alford Wayne's Vassalord and become Noctians under his control.
- Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: Charley's a cyborg vampire who works for the Vatican.
- Justified in Volume 5. In order to serve God and become a decent vampire hunter, Charley became a cyborg, replacing the parts of his body affected by holy symbols with robotic ones. For example, a vampire cannot quote from the Bible out loud, so Charley switched his vocal cords with mechanical ones.
- Charley also has a robotic rottweiler. He helps him fight crime.
- Official Couple: Chris (Charley) and Rayflo at the end of the manga. Rayflo professes in tears that "My partner can only be Chris" while stepping in to die with him as he'd decided would be the case centuries back, and later after they survive, Chris realizes that on the day he was originally dying the rain had hidden Rayflo's tears and muses that so much time had been wasted with his misunderstanding, they finally consummate their relationship, and Rayflo ends the manga by beginning to tell Chris his real name, determined that what time they have together, he'll spend cherishing it with him.
- Older Than They Look: Charley is 145, Rayflo's hundreds of years older. Likely applies to almost all the vampires that appear.
- Opposite-Sex Clone: Rayfell to Rayflo. The demon even created her from Johnny's rib as a twisted homage to the Book of Genesis.
- Our Vampires Are Different: The first volume is peppered with references to Eastern European folklore, like the case of Arnold Paole, boneless vampires, krsniks and dhampirs. (Which was fortunately mostly explained, either in-manga or in the footnote page.) Rayflo has demonstrated the ability to walk around in sunlight and transform into a flock of bats, and sleeps in a coffin filled with dirt.
- Vassalord turns out to be the name of a drug used to create "Noctians" (basically vampires) out of wealthy clients who desire eternal youth and beauty.
- Rape as Drama: When Rayflo gets violently assaulted and dismembered by his old master, Barry.
- Moresoever, there is heavy implication that for hundreds of years before hand, their relationship consisted of Barry chasing after Rayflo and repeatedly violating, dismembering and torturing him when he caught him. It runs very close to And I Must Scream territory.
- Sexy Priest: Charley, although he's not technically a priest. He'd really like to be one, though— At least he's pretty holy. (All things considered.)
- Smoking Hot Sex: Rayflo has a habit of doing this. Of course, he seems to chainsmoke.
- Spotting the Thread: When Rayfell is pretending to be a genderflipped Rayflo, Charley finally figures out the ruse when she kisses him and he notices that she doesn't have Rayflo's forked tongue.
- Succubi and Incubi: Barry, an incubus. From what Rayfell tells Charley, Barry's father, the original, seems to be some sort of great demon. Or Eldritch Abomination.
- Tsundere: Charley, towards Rayflo. Though his dere side comes out quite often, despite his best efforts to pretend otherwise.
- Undying Loyalty: There is quite a lot of this running around. Including the pets/combat partners/servants.
- Unresolved Sexual Tension: Boatloads between Charley and Rayflo, since despite their blood-drinking (and overall relationship) comes off as overtly sexual, though this is never confirmed and the two don't seem to be together in a "couple" sense; Charley even talks about their bond in a familial sense at times (which it certainly was when he was a child), though the rampant sexual tension they carry regardless might warp that during the present day. Finally resolved in the bonus pages of the last volume, wherein it seems they have sex along with Charley's usual blood-drinking.
- Visual Innuendo: Charley impaling Rayflo's torso with a huge phallic spiked rod, among many, many others.
- Voluntary Shapeshifting: Barry. We get to see him do it twice in Chapter 8. From male, to child, to female.
- Walking Shirtless Scene: Rayflo always seems to have his shirt unbuttoned, if not completely off.
- Wife Husbandry: Apparently Rayfell's plans for Cheryl, who seems to be quite happy with it as well.
- Words Can Break My Bones: Reading the Bible has this effect on vampires.
- Rayflo actually does this to himself in Chapter 18, quoting the scripture to give Cherry a hint as to what Barry's true name is.
