Blood Bath: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

[[File:Eminembath 4165.jpg|link=Eminem|frame|In this variation, a man harnesses [[The Power of Blood]] to rejuvenate his music career.]]

 

A character, typically evil or sadistic, bathes in a bathtub filled with nothing but blood. Often, any blood used for such a purpose will be a type of [[Applied Phlebotinum]] intended to cause some fantastic effect on the bather.

 

See Also: [[Liquid Assets]], [[Life Drinker]].

{{examples}}

* Based on both the Elizabeth Bathory legend and Vlad the Impaler, one of the scariest villains of ''[[Ghost Hunt]]'' was a Japanese lord who bathed in the blood of numerous servants in the hope of extending his life and took up the moniker "Urado" (Vlad).

* In the Korean [[Manhwa]] ''Horror Collector'', the protagonist seeks to resurrect Elizabeth Bathory from a doll that she had apparently sealed her spirit inside of through one of her blood bathing rituals. Bathory herself is shown to be surprisingly compassionate, despite bathing in the blood of her victims.

* In ''[[Voltron]]'', the evil witch Haggar bathes her cat in blood (although [[Bowdlerised|it's called a "lava bath"]] in the English version).

 

* [[Nikolai Dante]]'s invitation to a gathering of the Cadre Infernale led to him meeting the High Priestess of the order, [[Carmilla|Camilla]] [[Shout-Out|Le Fanu]], bathing in what Nikolai at first thought was red wine. She alludes to the rejuvenating effects of Blood Baths being discovered by Bathory but insists that, unlike Bathory, she gets her blood from young women who are ''willing'' to donate a few pints in exchange for a tax exemption. However, it turns out that jobless women who can't pay taxes are [[Kill the Poor|bled for all they got]].

* [[Garth Ennis]] once wrote a ''[[Batman]]'' comic where the villain was a drug lord who got people hooked on a drug so he could kill them, fill a pool with their drugged-up blood, and get high by bathing in it.

** In ''Batman: The Cult'', Deacon Blackfire bathed in blood, supposedly to make himself immortal.

* The [[Journey to the Center of the Mind]] one-shot ''[[Spider-Man|Carnage]]: It's A Wonderful Life'' has a sequence where Carnage (wearing swim trunks, goggles, and a bathing cap) is shown high-diving into a luxury pool filled with blood, as two babes cheer him on.

* One chapter of the ''[[2000 AD]]'' strip "A Love Like Blood" features the vampire king Karkossa lounging in what appears to be a blood ''jacuzzi'' while also being fellated by female vampires.

 

* In the "[[Kingdom Hearts]]" fic [http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3872861/1/The_Blood_Game The Blood Game], {{spoiler|Marluxia}} forces {{spoiler|Vexen}} to bathe in a tub full of blood with him.

* In Lauralot's fic ''[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4679528/1/Act_Like_We_Are_Fools Act Like We Are Fools]'', the Joker fills a bathtub with blood in a misguided, possibly intentionally traumatizing, attempt to alleviate Jonathan Crane's dislike of baths.

 

* The first ''[[Blade]]'' movie opens at a vampire rave called "Blood Bath" where all the vampires get ''showered'' in blood through the sprinkler system.

** In ''Blade II'', Vampire Lord Damaskinos wades into a small but literal pool of blood. Then, later on, Blade is rejuvenated when he takes a nosedive into one such pool.

* The Japanese fantasy film ''[[Legend of the Eight Samurai]]'' has the [[Big Bad]] villainess bathing nude in blood to rejuvenate herself.

 

* The character Elizabeth ''Bartholdi'' appears in [[Mercedes Lackey]], Eric Flint, and Dave Freer's ''[[Heirs of Alexandria]]'' [[Historical Fantasy]] series. She bathes in a special tub carved from a single slab of marble, and the blood keeps her eternally young in an attempt to avoid the price of her deal with the Devil.

* James Follett's book and radio play ''Ice'' has a bizarre variation on this one. When the heroine is dying from hypothermia at sea, one of the heroes cuts a human-sized hole in a Blue Whale's skin, [[It Makes Sense in Context|which promptly fills with warm blood]].

* A demonic shower room which features shower heads that shoot blood shows up in a dream sequence in ''[[A Nightmare on Elm Street]]: Dreamspawn''. Freddy (whose [[Squick|wearing absolutely nothing but a towel around his waist]]) finds it refreshing, while his intended victim is completely horrified, especially when the drains fail to work and the room starts filling up.

* ''[[Belgariad]]'' sees the [[Evil Sorcerer|Evil Sorceress]] and priestess of a [[Religion of Evil]], Zandramas, show a fondness for cutting out people's hearts and bathing in their blood.

* In ''The Day of the Dissonance'', a group of fairies decide to sacrifice a young girl who they have captive, believing that bathing in virgin's blood will help them. The sacrifice is called off, however, when the girl breaks into hysterical laughter after being told this. It seems she was held captive by pirates for quite a while and is no longer a fitting sacrifice.

* According to events in ''[[Count and Countess]]'', Elizabeth Bathory's blood baths began as a means to cure her epilepsy. {{spoiler|It didn't work.}}

 

* One prank on ''[[Scare Tactics (TV series)|Scare Tactics]]'' set up the target as a new employee at a health spa "for professional clientèle" that uses "very expensive ingredients". Along with female clients who come in for rejuvenation treatments is a list of younger women and their corresponding blood types. The exact scare prank involved the target walking in as one young woman is being bled over a bathtub that an older client was bathing in.

* The first episode of ''[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]'' had [[Big Bad|The Master]] hanging out in a pool of blood while [[Non-Nude Bathing|fully dressed]].

* In ''[[The X-Files]]'' episode "Sanguinarium", Nurse Waite is discovered lying in wait for Dr. Lloyd at his house, submerged in a bathtub filled with blood.

 

* Metal band [[Cradle of Filth]] released the concept album ''Cruelty And The Beast'' about Countess Bathory. The album cover depicts her in a bathtub filled with blood.

* The song "Bathe In Blood" by metal band [[Evile]] references both using blood to restore youth and the vanity that would entail.

* [[Venom (band)|Venom]]'s song "Countess Bathory" from their album ''Black Metal'' is obviously about the [[Trope Maker]] and makes mention of this practice.

 

* [[Eminem]] is seen taking one such bath in the video for his single "3 A.M.".

 

* Poet Peter of Eboli alleged that Court of Norman member [[wikipedia:Matthew of Ajello|Matthew of Ajello]] attempted to cure his gout by washing his feet in the blood of children.

* According to Christian legend, when Roman Emperor Constantine I contracted leprosy, the pagan priests told him to bathe in the blood of babies as a cure. Refusing to do this, he allegedly sought counsel from Pope Sylvester I, who cured him. This legend is the background for the Donation of Constantine, now shown to be a forgery, which purported to grant the entire Western Empire to the papacy.

 

* ''[[Vampire: The Requiem]]'' has a bloodline of vampires called the Galloi who bathe in blood to make themselves more beautiful. They're not related to Bathory, though; they take their unique Discipline from the worship of Cybele, which often involved initiates being bathed in the blood of a bull to symbolize cleansing (and...[[Groin Attack|other things]]). Additionally, both Macellarius and Noctoku tend to feast on blood in this manner; the Noctoku can absorb blood through their skin.

** The predecessor, ''[[Vampire: The Masquerade]]'', had the Blood Bath as one of the sacred rites of the [[Religion of Evil|Sabbat]]. It wasn't about youth, but more a ritual of baptism and consecration interpreted through the Sabbat's "Crusades-era Catholicism on PCP" lens.

* Vampires in ''[[GURPS]] Fantasy'' can only heal their injuries by bathing in blood.

 

* McFarlane Toys included an Elizabeth Bathory figure bathing in a tub of blood in their [[wikipedia:6 Faces of Madness|6 Faces of Madness]] line.

 

* The female villain in ''[[Ninja Gaiden]] II'' for the [[Xbox 360]] is seen bathing in a pool of blood at one point and is even named "Elizabet" as a [[Shout-Out]].

* One monster in ''[[Diablo II]]'', dubbed "The Countess", is described as having "bathed in the rejuvenating blood of a hundred virgins" in the tome that initiates her quest.

* An old magazine ad for ''[[Blood]]'' featured some dude, presumably Caleb, in a bathtub full of blood with the tagline "Blood? You're soaking in it."

* The ''[[Warcraft]]'' user map ''[[Defense of the Ancients]]'' has the Demon/Orc hybrid [[Names to Run Away From Really Fast|Strygwyr the Bloodseeker]], who bathes in the blood of his slain victims to heal his wounds—including those that can otherwise prove fatal.

* ''[[Ōkamiden|Okamiden]]'' sees the player travel through time to prevent Akuro from becoming perfect through bathing the vessel he wishes to possess in Orochi's blood.

* The Sumerian demon Inanna in ''[[Clive Barker's Jericho]]'' is encountered while taking a blood shower. As a skilled sanguimancer, she can use the blood to summon the Sumerian Puppet God. Some of the pools in the Roman baths are also filled with blood. (In case you were wondering, the other pools are filled with vomit and excrement.)

* Variation in [[Mortal Kombat 9|the]] ''[[Mortal Kombat 9|Mortal Kombat]]'' [[Mortal Kombat 9|remake]]: the stage at the Bottom of the Pit has blood ''showers''. And yes, standing under them gets your character completely drenched in crimson.

 

* The human royal couple from ''[[Drowtales]]'' hunted Elves for this purpose in order to gain immortality. Whether it actually worked is not stated, though. Their castle, Chactice, is even named after the modern name for the castle where Elizabeth Bathory lived, [[wikipedia:Čachtice Castle|Cachtice Castle]].

* [[Karate Bears]] [http://www.karatebears.com/2011/07/innocent-bath.html like taking baths in the blood of the innocent.]

 

* An early ''[[Neurotically Yours]]'' short with Germaine getting attacked by the Ghostface Killer from the ''[[Scream (film)|Scream]]'' movies ends with Germaine continuing her bath in the killer's own blood while his body is seen hanging from the ceiling in the background.

* During the midst of the ''[[Harry Potter (novel)|Harry Potter]]'' craze, humor site Cap'n Wacky made [http://www.capnwacky.com/reviews/harrypotter.html a parody review] of a book in the series called ''Harry Potter Bathes in the Blood of Virgins'', in which Harry seeks to find some way of staying young forever.

* ''[[The Gungan Council]]'' features a family with the surname Bathory that enjoys partaking in the activity most often associated with their historical namesake.

 

* ''[[Hellboy (comics)|Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron]]'' featured a vampire Elizabeth Bathory as the villain. {{spoiler|She gets killed when Professor Bruttenholm sneaks some holy water into her blood bath.}}

* In an episode of ''[[Family Guy]]'', God gets pissed at Peter for creating a religion based around himself and starts attacking the Griffins with the ten plagues of Egypt, one of which sees Stewie's bath water turn into blood. While the rest of the family is freaked out, Stewie is enjoying himself.

* The ''[[Moral Orel]]'' episode "Innocence" follows Orel as he tries to obtain blood to profess his innocence to God and stay young forever (after separate conversations with the Christeins and Coach Stopframe "teach" Orel about the powers of blood). This leads to his father, Clay, discovering Orel in a bathtub surrounded by Doughy, Billy, Tommy, and Maryenetta, with their wrists cut open and bleeding into the tub in the episode "Grounded". The show itself, however, presents all this in [[Anachronic Order]] with the conclusion to these events in "Grounded" being aired first and the set-up in "Innocence" being shown later.

 

* [[Older Than Feudalism]]: The Christian apologist Prudentius accused the priests of the Magna Mater of bathing in bulls' blood in their Taurobolium; he may have been exaggerating, but the trope at least appears in his anti-pagan writings.

* The rituals associated with joining the Mithratic cult supposedly involved bathing in the blood of a sacrificed bull.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Bathing Tropes]]

[[Category:Aging Tropes]]

[[Category:Horror Tropes]]

[[Category:Older Than Feudalism]]

[[Category:Alliterative Trope Titles]]

[[Category:Shout-Outs Index]]