The Travel Channel has sunk to a new low. Attempting to cash in on the “documentary” market, the network developed a preposterous show where America’s only self-professed vampire hunters Eric Streit and Marcel Von Tingen seek out these blood thirsty creatures. Two. In the entire nation.

Honestly, it is difficult to know where to begin. First, don’t waste time or money on this show. Here’s why.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons (NamUS) database estimates that 600,000 people go missing in the United States every year. Most cases are resolved within a year. There are roughly 17,000 unresolved missing person cases open in 2022. However, what is important to note it that the agency states that missing person cases have declined in the last decade due to enhanced communication and ability to locate these people. Of the open cases, only 2 of the 4 Southwest states are listed in the top 10: # 3 Texas and #4 Arizona. Combined, they total 2,161 cases. California, the top state, has 2,133—less than 30 case difference. The Southwest is not a hot bed for missing persons. (https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/missing-persons-by-state)

Further, none of the four Southwest states are listed in the top ten for murder rates. None. In fact, Louisiana holds the top spot, which any serious vampire hunter would know. These two “vampire hunters” don’t even know the statistics. Neither does Travel Channel.

According to Eric and Marcel, who claim that there are over 20,000 vampires in America, vampires are pre-historic and formed in Romania. (Obviously.) Vampires came to the US during the “chaos” of the Civil War. Not sure why vampires didn’t come over during the “chaos” of the Revolutionary War. This is comical. However, there are people who watch this and believe it to be true. Think mermaid “documentary.”

Marcel Von Tingen claims to be the 25^th generational vampire hunter in his family. That would take his family tree back to the 1500s. Lucky him! I can only take my family back to the 1600s (20 generations).

Most of the claims they make in the 4-minute trailer are lifted from popular culture. In fact, some even reminded me of poorly written science fiction/horror books I’ve read. Or maybe it was a B-movie. No matter. It’s conjecture and unsupported.

As consumers of paranormal content, we need to demand more from Travel Channel. There are so many more qualified people within our wide and varied field. It’s time for the network to pony up some money and hire them.