My gut says Round 7 of the Alpha Showdown 2012 is going to be another close call. Two vampires — always favorites here at VBC — and they both have huge followings.
Things will get bloody.
I’m okay with that.
Today we see Eric Northman, the Viking vampire from Charlaine Harris’ ultra popular Sookie Stackhouse books, take on Tohrment, one of the beloved members of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood. Will Eric make Tohr live up to his name? Will the Brother send the Viking to the Fade? You decide.
Read the pitches, then make the call. Who should advance to the next round in the Alpha Showdown? The poll at the end of this post will be open for two days (closing at 11:59 p.m. CST on May 21). Remember, alphas don’t share titles. Your votes decide who advances in the Alpha Showdown 2012.
You know him/her from: The Southern Vampire Mysteries (a.k.a. the Sookie Stackhouse books) by Charlaine Harris
First appeared in: Dead Until Dark (Buy it at Amazon)
Supernatural status: Vampire
Championed by: Kate from I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read! | @sithereandread
Luscious blonde flowing hair? Check. Piercing blue eyes? Check. Tall and broad shouldered? Check. One whose ass could win an international butt competition? Check, check, oh, hell yes, Check! But besides his drool-worthy good looks, this born alpha was a Viking in his human years, bringing his cockiness and strength to his undead status as a 1,000 year-old vampire.
And! He can fly! (How cool is that?)
His day–er–night job is Sheriff of Area Five in Louisiana. His status gives him quite a lot of power in the area, but keeps most of his time open for running the vampire bar Fangtasia. Eric Northman takes anything and anyone he wants. But in the case of Sookie Stackhouse, he wants more. He loves the only way he knows how to and gives her anything she wants, including her mortality.
So let’s recap: Strong, hot (hot hot!), able to fly, man with a job (hard to come by nowadays), and he has the capability of actually loving someone. This man is the epitome of an alpha so I encourage you to vote for the baddest and best vampire out there.
You know him from: Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward
First appeared in: Dark Lover (VBC review, Buy it at Amazon), but his story is told in Lover Reborn (Buy it at Amazon)
Supernatural status: Vampire
Championed by: Colette from A Buckeye Girl Reads | @buckeyegirl31
Tohr. Just his name alone makes him a sigh-worthy alpha. He’s a vampire and one of the more tortured brothers of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. He lost his mate, has been to hell and back because of that loss and then he gets saddled with a wisecracking angel that won’t cut him any slack or let him give up on life.
He is on a mission to take out the Lessening society, the mortal enemy of his kind. Things don’t go as planned, and while forced to stay and recover from an injury, he finds a romance when he least expects it. This forces him to re-examine everything and we get to see another side of him. Every family has a heart, and he is the heart of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. When he came back after leaving, the brothers became an unstoppable fighting machine.
Tohr is arrogant, standoffish, and a bit of a jerk. Underneath it all though, is a softer side brought out by love and it makes him a man of worth and worthy of the title Alpha, true?
For me this is the hardest one so far…
Same here. The battles just keep getting tougher and tougher!
This is a hard one YIKES!! But I choose Eric, because he knows what he wants and goes after it – even when he loses his memory!! Tohr, although I love him and the BDB, just kind lost it….
I have only recently started the BDB series and while I’m loving them, Eric Northman was my true first book boyfriend. He is an Alpha in his own way who has only one weakness-Sookie.
How in the world can anyone NOT pick Thor? OMG not only is he hot hot hot but he totally runs the brotherhood and is the only one who can make Wrath see reason. Thor totally has my vote.
On first thought I said she can’t be f**ng serious not again”
But on second thought there is really no competion in this round!!!!!! Eric is and will always be one of the most sexy kick ass vamps in the history of paranormal literature!!!!!!!
<3
I love Eric more, but I think Thor would kick his ass.
I definatley choose Eric, and I totally agree with Marina!!!
Tohr all the way!!! I would choose ANY of the BDB over any other vampire ANYDAY!!!!
They are skilled warriors…
I ❤ Eric, so he gets my vote.
Looking at the man/male right off… I thought it was going to be very difficult. Tohr has been my favorite brother. Unfortunately for him, the voting comes when I’m still irritated with the contents of Lover Reborn, and Eric Northman… Well, he’s been my favorite vampire for a very long time now, so it wound up being no contest after all.
My vote is for the one and only Eric Northman!
I’ve never been all that impressed with Eric as an alpha…in the books or the TV series. Any member of the BDB is too alpha for words, so I’ve got to go with Tohrment.
Come on folks….SVM is no match for BDB on all levels. Don’t think of TB and vision AS as EN…that is not what this is about….Vote based on the books and you would have to agree the writing, the plot lines and character development are far superior in BDB and Thor is by far a more complex, sexy, male.
Ah, but this isn’t a battle of SVM vs. BDB. It’s not about the books, but the characters. 🙂
Now you can vote for whomever you like for any reason, but the goal of this one is for readers to pick which character — based on the character — is either a) the most Alpha or b) would win in a fight. (Really, both.) However, sometimes you just have to pick your favorite. And there’s nothing wrong with that either.
Eric Northman has been my favorite book character since I started reading at five years old. He is vampire yes, but Charlaine Harris writes him in a way that makes him almost real with very human emotions and feelings. It is mostly his dry sense of humor and his almost comical love of fighting that puts him above all the rest. I love all the brothers, Rhage and Vishous most of all, but Eric has my heart.
tohrment hands down. eric only fights if he has to. tohrment fights nightly to protect his king and people. and really tohrment would hand eric his ass and or head. i mean yead, eric’s old and powerful, but he’s not a top dog to survive on his own on a field of top dogs. what tohr had to go thru to become on e of the brother’s, well i don’t think eric could hang
Eric was a freaking Viking! If there’s another people group more fierce and feared (at least in Western culture)than Vikings I don’t know who it is and now he’s a vampire.
Yeah Tohrment is super strong and stuff, but do you think he’d be man enough to wear a hot pink unitard to a backwoods Louisiana orgy? I didn’t think so.
Eric for Alpha.
FYI: This hot Viking has permission to pillage my village anytime he wants.
That makes me want to go back and re-read the unitard scene.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I couldn’t have said it better myself!!!!!!
How could you make me decided between this two, that is impossible. How am I suppose to chose between two of my favorite vamps. OMG this one is the hardest one yet!!!
Eric Northman, no question! He’s such a strategic thinker and has a backup plan for every single alternative…I don’t think there’s any contest — physical or strategic — that he couldn’t win.
Eric Northman,He can DEFEAT IN EVERYONE IF THEY COME IN HIS WAY!!!! NO ONE DON’T W/ A 1,000 YRS. OLD VAMPIRE!!!!
OMG!!!
How can you make us choose?!
There really is a problem trying to compare these two.
Eric is definitely the alpha in SVM but Tohr is one of many in
BDB. We havea face to the name for Eric…and that tends to help in recognizing the Sheriff of Area 5. Our imaginations have to conjure Tohr. Just for sheer badassness…I would have to go with Tohr
No question, no hesitation, no contest…
Does Tohr always make the best decisions? No, but no one does. If it came down to a match between him and Eric, Eric doesn’t have a chance. I love Eric for the role he has, but he’s no match for a brother… Tohr would tear him apart.
@lostinspace,
“Eric Northman, no question! He’s such a strategic thinker and has a backup plan for every single alternative…”
You mean like when he killed King Russell’s bf? or
like when he tried to stop Marine?
or like when he stormed Newlin’s church?
Just sayin,
BDB are the best, no question.
@Tigereyes What are you talking about? Lol!
Yes, what are you on about? You do know this is voting for book Eric, not True Blood Eric right? Those things you mention did not happen in the SSN as you should know (if you read them that is). Thanks for proving that some people can’t separate the books from the show.
Since this is about book Eric vs Tohr, I think your issues with TB Eric are irrelevant.
Viking all the way!
This poll is about the books. Definitely the examples you used are show action only. None of that happened in the books.
*cough* confusing TB with a book series like the Brotherhood? *cough*
omg. lmfao!
People are melting down over the fact that no one gives a crap about Bill Compton (he didn’t even get a teaser) so they are attacking Eric where ever they can even though they have never read the books. Some people just can’t separate reality from fiction, it’s sad.
Excuse me, TigerEyes, but I seem to recall you saying this on another blog.
“OMG, the lengths that you people go to. You people will never get it, the show is separate from the books, AB will do whatever he feels if right, regardless of what is in the books, but keep up your delusions, it’s really hilarious, I needed a laugh today LOL.”
So, since you said this, I am really confused as to why on what is so very CLEARLY a BOOK site you are bringing things up from the SHOW. So, I guess (using your words) YOU are the one that will never get it.
Tohr is hands down a true warrior over Eric. Tohr’s job is to hunt enemies of his King and the protect the innocent. Without any gain for himself. I’m a true BDB Cellie, and must admit that I’ve never had an interest in the Sookie Stackhouse books so I don’t know the book Eric. I do like the True Blood Eric.
Eric is more Alpha than Thor. He can fly, 1,000 years old, intelligent… I like Thor, but Eric would tear him apart.
This battle I don’t care that much for. I have read BDB but I have not caught all the way up, I know much about Tohr and love him, but I haven’t read his book and so far, I wouldn’t say he would be the last one standing in the end, b/c they’re are better suited alpha’s. Eric. I have no read the books. I watch the tv show but I can’t stand the show, but I do skip to watch all the Eric scenes. Hahaha! Maybe one say I’ll read the books, maybe not. I’ll vote for Eric just for his HOTNESS! 🙂
Normally I would have voted for Eric but… have you read the DeadLocked yet? I didn’t really like him there and he seems to be on the way out so I’ll put my faith on Tohr this time. ^-^
Thor on so m any levels….I fell for him when I first saw him in the first book of the BDB and for me he IS the winner here. 🙂
My precious vote goes to Tohr on this one – I read both series and Tohr is a fierce beast!
I read BDB. Ok, the vampires are very Alpha but they can’t compete with more powerful vampires like Bones, Eric Northman & Lothaire. When compare with these vampires, BDB vamps are weak. .
Tohr, he stole my heart in the first book & has kept a piece of it since. I like Eric, but I haven’t kept up with the Sookie series lately.
Ok, this was kind of tough, but I made my choice. Yes eric is super hot, but Tohr is a brother, a warrior. I think it would be a close fight, but in the end tohr would win
I thought this was going to be difficult, but when I thought about it, it wasn’t. When Eric lost his memory and showed his softer yet still totally fierce side, he claimed me for his forevermore.
Eric, hands down.
Thor is definitely not the best character of the Brotherhood, maybe if it was vs Rhage who is my fave, but Eric is a true fighter, a 100 years old Viking, smart, cocky, loyal, capable of deep and unexpected love. He got my vote.
Yes Eric is beautiful,and sexy,and funny,and strategic, but don’t forget,the man is a WARRIOR! Remember how Sookie notices how happy a good fight makes him? Don’t be fooled by his sexy,fangy smile and playful manner,that vamp is LETHAL. We always read about Tohr fighting and stuff so I get why people would think he’s the superior fighter,but I think…push comes to shove,Eric would wipe the floor with Tohrs ass 😀 no offense! Just my opinion.
torment!!
Eric!!! This is fun thanks for the showdown.
Although Eric may be hot, I have to give this one to Tohr, The man went thru hell and came out swinging!! But….going up against Bones or Lothaire are a different story. 🙂
Eric the Viking Northmen’s name (by design) announces who and what he is, at his core, before he ever utters a word or performs any act. Throughout history, Vikings were known as fierce warriors that pillaged of many a village and exacted revenge, hence the ancient litany “The Vikings are coming! God save us from the fury of the northmen!” The beauty of Eric Northman is that he’s been cultured and refined over the millennium. He is patient, clever, shrewd and amusing. He is also ruthless, when necessary. He knows when to cage his barbarous instincts and vampire nature and when to unleash the beast. I’m rolling with the Viking *\o/*
Amaaaaziing. Go vikings !