I don't think vampires are to blame as much as technological improvements. Old-time werewolves are often basically wolves with human intelligence and no other powers. In the Medieval or Early Modern era, that was scary enough. Wolves were wild animals, large dangerous predators that sometimes attacked livestock or even humans. But humans aren't afraid of the big bad wolf anymore. We have high-powered rifles and cars and helicopters we can shoot from. Wolves are endangered because we've gotten so good at killing them.
Werewolves without tons of extra powers aren't just losing an arms race with vampires; they're losing an arms race with ordinary humans. Even without vampire fiction, they'd still need extra powers to keep up. Look at the difference in power between the Martians in Wells's The War of the Worlds and in the 1953 movie adaptation.
I think to counter it stories would have to go much more in a murder mystery direction. Treat werewolf antagonists as human murderers instead of as monsters. Their wolfishness can be relate to the mystery and/or to their motive. Protagonist werewolves can be more slice-of-life or the nonsuperpowered type of action. The horror and urban fantasy genres demand creatures that can pose a credible threat to modern humans, so for more traditional werewolves step outside those genres. CSI, like you said.
Do you think Wilde Life pulls it of well? I don't think Cliff has been caught by traces like you mention, but his powers do seem mostly limited to being a wolf and don't automatically help him deal with other supernatural stuff. "What did you want me to do? Turn into a wolf at it?"
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2018-12-08 10:46 pm (UTC)Werewolves without tons of extra powers aren't just losing an arms race with vampires; they're losing an arms race with ordinary humans. Even without vampire fiction, they'd still need extra powers to keep up. Look at the difference in power between the Martians in Wells's The War of the Worlds and in the 1953 movie adaptation.
I think to counter it stories would have to go much more in a murder mystery direction. Treat werewolf antagonists as human murderers instead of as monsters. Their wolfishness can be relate to the mystery and/or to their motive. Protagonist werewolves can be more slice-of-life or the nonsuperpowered type of action. The horror and urban fantasy genres demand creatures that can pose a credible threat to modern humans, so for more traditional werewolves step outside those genres. CSI, like you said.
Do you think Wilde Life pulls it of well? I don't think Cliff has been caught by traces like you mention, but his powers do seem mostly limited to being a wolf and don't automatically help him deal with other supernatural stuff. "What did you want me to do? Turn into a wolf at it?"