Although Shine has gone more multifandom recently, it's still a Hellsing fancomic, and it helps to know the background of that series. A brief, mostly spoiler-free intro:

It's the story of the Hellsing organization, England's special secret sect that defends God, Queen, and country against the threat of the undead (and certain Catholics). The mission of the Order of Protestant Knights: Search and Destory! Their secret weapon: Alucard, a vampire who answers only to the leader and director of the organization, Sir Integral Wingates Hellsing.

The series begins with the transformation of Seras Victoria, a young police officer, into a vampire, when she chooses un-life over death. Since then Alucard, who turned her, has been her master, much as Integra is master of Alucard. (Or Walter - the butler/cook/chauffer/bodyguard - but Walter doesn't need any supernatural cause to serve Integra.)

Conflict abounds. A rash of cheap, reckless, barely self-aware vampires of unknown origin plagues England. The Iscariot organization, Hellsing's Catholic counterpart, considers use of vampires profane, and as such keeps trying to kill Alucard and Seras - and everyone else in Hellsing, while they're at it. (You'd think they would cooperate, as they both want to keep people safe, but nooooo.)

The TV anime covered most of the material in the first two manga volumes, then veered off in its own direction; Shine picks up after that. Subsequent manga volumes have revealed a much longer and more interesting story than the TV anime came up with. Some of the manga plot points have showed up in Shine, and more will in the future.

In the manga, Hellsing hires a group of mercenaries called the Wild Geese, led by Pip Bernadette. Working on a tip from Enrico Maxwell (head of Iscariot), they end up on the tail of the group producing the cheap vampires: Millennium, a collection of - what else - Nazis. The leader of Millennium has no very complicated motive; he just likes war.

As Millennium and Hellsing plunge forward (with Iscariot trying to keep up), battles break out, culminating in a massive - and ongoing - bloody struggle in London. Several canon characters and countless extras start dying. It's a mess. But it's great fun.

Shine takes a far lighter tone than Hellsing itself. Between rabid fangirls, desert islands, parodies of Disney songs, and homages to Dr. Seuss, it's mostly comedy, not drama -- much less horror. More elements of the manga plot may insert themselves, turning the storyline darker . . . but not yet. Not yet. I'm having too much fun right now.

For more about Hellsing, its plot, its characters, and its origin, check out And Shine Hell(sing) Now.

For more about Victorian Romance Emma, a little-known series that plays a large part in the Shineverse's history, visit And Shine England Then.