Grandville
Written by Bryan Talbot
Pencils by Bryan Talbot
Dark Horse Comics
I have to start this review by simply stating that whenever a graphic novel is afforded the luxury of a hardcover printing, it just gains a level of aesthetic enjoyment that is difficult to explain. I suppose in part it’s the satisfaction of seeing a medium I’ve loved for years reach the acceptance level to warrant hardcover treatment.
As you may have guessed by now Grandville is a hardcover. It has a ‘leather-look’ cover, with raised lettering, which gives it an old-book look and feel. That is again an esthetic plus.
However, a cover only attracts the eye to a book. What’s inside is ultimately what’s important.
In this case creator Bryan Talbot has created a tale which draws on a number of classic elements.
The main character Detective Inspector LeBrock of Scotland Yard is equal parts Sherlock Holmes and James Bond, and oh yes did I mention he’s a badger.
Yep, Talbot has populated the story with talking critters, who all hold a higher station in life in this alternate reality tale than do humans. That in itself is not new either, but it does add to the fun. Anthropomorphic tales are generally fun romps.
And while this is a rather gritty detective story with blood splashes on a few pages, one can’t help but get a few smiles either.
The setting is a ‘steampunk’ one, set in a more or less Victorian age, in a reality where England and France are not on good terms -- OK that’s pretty standard too.
The art here is lavish and striking, and that will bring a lot of readers to Grandville. Once you get into the story you will enjoy it as a detective yarn in the grandest tradition.
Talbot said a number of classic tales were in his mind as Grandville took shape.
“I got the original idea while looking at a book of illustrations by the early 19th century French artist Jean Ignace Isadore Gerard, who worked under the pen name JJ Grandville. He did many drawings of anthropomorphic animals in then contemporary dress,” said Talbot. “Britain also has a long tradition of anthropomorphic comic characters and I grew up reading comics like Rupert the Bear, Harold Hare and Korky the Cat. By the way, the apparent suicide near the beginning of the story takes place in Rupert Bear’s village, Nutwood, and you can see his dad gardening in the background. So Rupert was a big influence, as was Kenneth Graham’s The Wind in the Willows.
“The French illustrator Albert Robida was another. He was really the first science fiction artist and something of a visionary.
“Other influences are the Sherlock Holmes stories of Conan Doyle and some of Quentin Tarantino’s films.”
Talbot said the development of Grandville was really quite a departure for him in as much as everything fell into place rather quickly in terms of story and design.
“I usually think about graphic novels for a long while before starting them, often for years, but in this case I had the idea in one big rush and sat down and wrote the first draft of the script in a week,” he said. “It was like taking dictation. I was so excited by it I had to do it as my next book.”
The art style came along easily too.
“I did a sample illustration in the style I used in the book at the same time that I did the proposal, so that publishers could get an idea of what the artwork would look like,” said Talbot.
The final result is one the creator is rightfully proud of.
“I’m extremely happy with both. I’ve never really done a book like it,” said Talbot.
For the fans of Inspector LeBrock, and that is likely to be anyone who gives Grandville a read, the good news it that there is more to come.
“In Grandville Mon Amour, Detective Inspector LeBrock of Scotland Yard is pitted against a crazed serial killer, an urban guerrilla fighter who’s an old adversary,” said Talbot.
The creator added “there are some sample pages and a trailer here: http://www.bryan-talbot.com/grandville/index.php#grandvilletourdates
Check it out, this is one well worth picking up.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Review -- LUTU: WARRIOR OF THE NORTH
Lutu: Warrior of the North
Written by Steve Coffin
Pencils by Steve Coffin
Ronin Studios
It’s always refreshing to see a comicbook creator who is willing to go against the grain so to speak. Steve Coffin has done that with Lutu: Warrior of the North.
Lutu is part Xena Warrior Princess and part Groo the Wanderer. That is to say Coffin mixes the tried and true storyline of a warrior that might be Red Sonja, yet mixes in the humour.
Coffin also has drawn Lutu different than you might expect. He uses a more cartoon-oriented style, again reminiscent of Groo. I like that for a change of pace.
And, then there is Lutu herself. The tendency is to draw female warriors as skinny amazons, with overly developed breasts.
Coffin has created a more bodacious, chubby heroine, which is refreshing in a world where we seem preoccupied by some media imposed vision of perfection.
Not surprisingly, the idea for Lutu actually started with a woman.
“The original idea for Lutu Warrior of the North came from my wife,” said Coffin. “She suggested that I do a parody book of all those muscle-bound Barbarian stories but that the central character not be your typical warrior woman.
“Then, over time, Lutu was born and the character became a plus size cook who is the twin sister of a famous warrior.”
Artistically, Coffin said he was trying something different with Lutu.
“Previously I had done the comic Kung Fu Engine which was a very stylized art style the borrowed heavily from the Manga Chibi style,” he said. “This time around I wanted a more cartoon style and I went back to one of my old favorites Asterix the Gaul for inspiration.”
Overall, Lutu is just different enough to make it stand out amid the norm in the current comicbook field. It’s not an overly fantastic story, average really, but the attempt to make it different makes it a title to check out.
Coffin is certainly satisfied with Issue #1.
“I am very pleased with the book. I feel that it establishes the central characters and sets the scene for the adventures to follow,” he said. “The book was completely hand drawn and inked which was a complete departure from my previous digital work. Issue two is going to be half and half thanks to the new pen tablet.
“Also I would like to thank the pinup artists Cal Slayton and James V. West for their contributions.”
And Coffin said he has more story to tell too.
“Issue two is coming next, that is due out in the new year under the Ronin Studios Banner, and this will complete the first part of the story,” he said. “Issue three, which is a one-shot, is in the pipeline and I am also working on a pitch for an independent comic publisher at the moment.”
Lutu Warrior of the North #1 can be found online at www.indyplanet.com
Also the Lutu Website is at: http://www.stevecoffin.com/lutu with the publisher website: http://www.ronin-studios.com/
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Written by Steve Coffin
Pencils by Steve Coffin
Ronin Studios
It’s always refreshing to see a comicbook creator who is willing to go against the grain so to speak. Steve Coffin has done that with Lutu: Warrior of the North.
Lutu is part Xena Warrior Princess and part Groo the Wanderer. That is to say Coffin mixes the tried and true storyline of a warrior that might be Red Sonja, yet mixes in the humour.
Coffin also has drawn Lutu different than you might expect. He uses a more cartoon-oriented style, again reminiscent of Groo. I like that for a change of pace.
And, then there is Lutu herself. The tendency is to draw female warriors as skinny amazons, with overly developed breasts.
Coffin has created a more bodacious, chubby heroine, which is refreshing in a world where we seem preoccupied by some media imposed vision of perfection.
Not surprisingly, the idea for Lutu actually started with a woman.
“The original idea for Lutu Warrior of the North came from my wife,” said Coffin. “She suggested that I do a parody book of all those muscle-bound Barbarian stories but that the central character not be your typical warrior woman.
“Then, over time, Lutu was born and the character became a plus size cook who is the twin sister of a famous warrior.”
Artistically, Coffin said he was trying something different with Lutu.
“Previously I had done the comic Kung Fu Engine which was a very stylized art style the borrowed heavily from the Manga Chibi style,” he said. “This time around I wanted a more cartoon style and I went back to one of my old favorites Asterix the Gaul for inspiration.”
Overall, Lutu is just different enough to make it stand out amid the norm in the current comicbook field. It’s not an overly fantastic story, average really, but the attempt to make it different makes it a title to check out.
Coffin is certainly satisfied with Issue #1.
“I am very pleased with the book. I feel that it establishes the central characters and sets the scene for the adventures to follow,” he said. “The book was completely hand drawn and inked which was a complete departure from my previous digital work. Issue two is going to be half and half thanks to the new pen tablet.
“Also I would like to thank the pinup artists Cal Slayton and James V. West for their contributions.”
And Coffin said he has more story to tell too.
“Issue two is coming next, that is due out in the new year under the Ronin Studios Banner, and this will complete the first part of the story,” he said. “Issue three, which is a one-shot, is in the pipeline and I am also working on a pitch for an independent comic publisher at the moment.”
Lutu Warrior of the North #1 can be found online at www.indyplanet.com
Also the Lutu Website is at: http://www.stevecoffin.com/lutu with the publisher website: http://www.ronin-studios.com/
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Review -- TALON
Talon
Written by Scottie Watson
Pencils by Scottie Watson
Spa Comics Group
If you’re a comicbook geek, the idea of a beautiful woman wearing very little in the way of armor, but carrying a really big sword, is automatically a character that is going to attract attention.
If you fit that mold, you have to take a long look at the promo edition of Talon by creator Scottie Watson. Talon is the atypical medieval sword swinging heroine. Add in a big baddie with magical powers, and you have a storyline that is older than Lord of the Rings, but still as popular as ever.
“Originally, I developed the concept for Talon after being introduced to T. H. White’s ‘The Once and Future King’ by a friend,” said Watson. “I was just a kid and I was so caught up in the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Roundtable that I started reading more books set in the medieval time period which eventually led to watching every film I could as well as researching books at the library that was set in that time period.
“It wasn’t until after I read about Joan of Arc years later that I knew I wanted to make Talon a strong lead female character. Her story really moved me. I felt strongly that I wanted the story of Talon to move people in the same way Joan of Arc’s story did with me.
“Joan’s story led me to delve deep into the Hundred Years War and Joan’s role in it. I began developing more characters and working them into the time line of the Hundred Years War mixing fiction with fact. For example: King Gervase, the evil ruler in Talon, is responsible for the creation of the black plague in my story. He’s also responsible for Joan of Arc’s demise. It’s a case of mistaken identity. He believes Joan is Talon.
“There are tons of plots and sub-plots to keep readers interested. By blending fact with fiction Talon's story is sure to entertain readers of all ages.”
That is one of the shortcomings of a preview issue of course, the creator doesn't get to reveal a whole lot of the overall story vision in only 12-pages. That said Watson’s ideas do bode well for the future of Talon.
Artistically, Watson’s renderings are all right here, but in checking out some of his other art online, he can do better.
Talon is in black and white, and at times Watson has used too much black, leading scenes to sort of get lost in the gray zone. I would expect moving forward Watson improves on the art side.
“My artistic style is still evolving really,” he said. “I hope it never stops.
“But as for the look of Talon, yes, there is a plan. In the beginning of her story the art will be lighter because she’s still so innocent but as she see’s more death and encounters even more battles the art will become darker to set the tone and mood, matching the story content.
“Just like in real life where we have days that are joyous and days that are dark so will Talon. Her tale is one that will test morality unlike any before it and the art will reflect this.
“I try to convey emotion within my art by varying the overall look in hopes of creating the visual atmosphere needed to relay the appropriate feeling to the reader. Much like music where certain sounds are used to evoke feelings of anger, love, sadness and fear as examples, I try to do the same with my art.”
While there are shortcomings given it is a promo, Watson himself is satisfied with what he established with the book.
“I’m very happy with the story. Issue 0 introduces readers to some of the characters from the regular series without giving anything away,” he said. “There are so many planned cliffhangers in the regular series that after each issue readers will be asking questions while at the same time others will be answered.
“Since I’m an independent I don’t have the same rules as the mainstream titles have in regards to marketing and can write interesting stories that will shock readers. Who knows what I’ll do with these characters and that keeps it interesting for me and the readers.
“Talon’s look will change as the story develops and situations arise that require her to wear a full suit of armor and just as the story will grow so will the look of the characters. Talon will be a thrill ride from the first issue to the last both visually and contextually.”
In terms of story, Watson really is thinking in rather epic terms.
“Right now I’m writing the 128 page Talon graphic novel, Issue 1 of the Talon Animake Over series which is Talon made over Manga style as well creating a Talon sketchbook,” he said.
“Talon is being published by Dimestore Productions but is also being carried and marketed by Red Handed Studios.
“Unfortunately it’s not being carried by comic shops but the plan is to get them in the stores by fans demanding it. The thing about creating a new property is it doesn’t stop at comics. There are other ways to get the product name out there to create the demand so I’ve been producing Talon eCards and Talon merchandise such as mugs, T-shirts, hoodies etc. All of this and more about Talon can be found on the Talon fan site at http://www.facebook.com/l/b53c2;www.thetalonchronicles.ning.com
The book is available through the same website.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Written by Scottie Watson
Pencils by Scottie Watson
Spa Comics Group
If you’re a comicbook geek, the idea of a beautiful woman wearing very little in the way of armor, but carrying a really big sword, is automatically a character that is going to attract attention.
If you fit that mold, you have to take a long look at the promo edition of Talon by creator Scottie Watson. Talon is the atypical medieval sword swinging heroine. Add in a big baddie with magical powers, and you have a storyline that is older than Lord of the Rings, but still as popular as ever.
“Originally, I developed the concept for Talon after being introduced to T. H. White’s ‘The Once and Future King’ by a friend,” said Watson. “I was just a kid and I was so caught up in the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Roundtable that I started reading more books set in the medieval time period which eventually led to watching every film I could as well as researching books at the library that was set in that time period.
“It wasn’t until after I read about Joan of Arc years later that I knew I wanted to make Talon a strong lead female character. Her story really moved me. I felt strongly that I wanted the story of Talon to move people in the same way Joan of Arc’s story did with me.
“Joan’s story led me to delve deep into the Hundred Years War and Joan’s role in it. I began developing more characters and working them into the time line of the Hundred Years War mixing fiction with fact. For example: King Gervase, the evil ruler in Talon, is responsible for the creation of the black plague in my story. He’s also responsible for Joan of Arc’s demise. It’s a case of mistaken identity. He believes Joan is Talon.
“There are tons of plots and sub-plots to keep readers interested. By blending fact with fiction Talon's story is sure to entertain readers of all ages.”
That is one of the shortcomings of a preview issue of course, the creator doesn't get to reveal a whole lot of the overall story vision in only 12-pages. That said Watson’s ideas do bode well for the future of Talon.
Artistically, Watson’s renderings are all right here, but in checking out some of his other art online, he can do better.
Talon is in black and white, and at times Watson has used too much black, leading scenes to sort of get lost in the gray zone. I would expect moving forward Watson improves on the art side.
“My artistic style is still evolving really,” he said. “I hope it never stops.
“But as for the look of Talon, yes, there is a plan. In the beginning of her story the art will be lighter because she’s still so innocent but as she see’s more death and encounters even more battles the art will become darker to set the tone and mood, matching the story content.
“Just like in real life where we have days that are joyous and days that are dark so will Talon. Her tale is one that will test morality unlike any before it and the art will reflect this.
“I try to convey emotion within my art by varying the overall look in hopes of creating the visual atmosphere needed to relay the appropriate feeling to the reader. Much like music where certain sounds are used to evoke feelings of anger, love, sadness and fear as examples, I try to do the same with my art.”
While there are shortcomings given it is a promo, Watson himself is satisfied with what he established with the book.
“I’m very happy with the story. Issue 0 introduces readers to some of the characters from the regular series without giving anything away,” he said. “There are so many planned cliffhangers in the regular series that after each issue readers will be asking questions while at the same time others will be answered.
“Since I’m an independent I don’t have the same rules as the mainstream titles have in regards to marketing and can write interesting stories that will shock readers. Who knows what I’ll do with these characters and that keeps it interesting for me and the readers.
“Talon’s look will change as the story develops and situations arise that require her to wear a full suit of armor and just as the story will grow so will the look of the characters. Talon will be a thrill ride from the first issue to the last both visually and contextually.”
In terms of story, Watson really is thinking in rather epic terms.
“Right now I’m writing the 128 page Talon graphic novel, Issue 1 of the Talon Animake Over series which is Talon made over Manga style as well creating a Talon sketchbook,” he said.
“Talon is being published by Dimestore Productions but is also being carried and marketed by Red Handed Studios.
“Unfortunately it’s not being carried by comic shops but the plan is to get them in the stores by fans demanding it. The thing about creating a new property is it doesn’t stop at comics. There are other ways to get the product name out there to create the demand so I’ve been producing Talon eCards and Talon merchandise such as mugs, T-shirts, hoodies etc. All of this and more about Talon can be found on the Talon fan site at http://www.facebook.com/l/b53c2;www.thetalonchronicles.ning.com
The book is available through the same website.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Review -- DEADLY ARTISANS
DEADLY ARTISANS
Written by Jan-Michael Franklin
Pencils by Jan-Michael Franklin
Epsalon Press
The idea of a couple of badly injured agents being rebuilt with high tech augmentation is not a new idea, going back farther than the campy Six Million Dollar Man and spin-off Bionic Woman of my youth.
Jan-Michael Franklin takes the same basic premise and shifts it into high gear forcing the rebuilt agents here to be essentially a duo sent out to murder on the orders of their superiors.
Suddenly the main characters are faced with the angst of following orders which essentially has them as hit men. A nice touch indeed.
Franklin said the characters developed over time, evolving as time passed.
“As a beginning writer I think that the characters started out rather two dimensional in earlier manifestations,” he said. “My life experiences and resultant maturity allowed me to inject some depth into the story and characters for the final version. My first wife and I were in a situation with the Army where we were both stuck there. This was a big part of how Malcolm and Sierra eventually turned out. There will be more layers to the characters exposed in later stories as well.”
The influences are those that are more general than being ones he can pinpoint directly.
“It’s hard to pin down exactly what inspired Deadly Artisans (DA). I would say it was most likely a combination of things that I was really into as a kid, such as The X-Men, G.I.Joe, and various other sci-fi creations,” said Franklin. “However, more recently I would attribute the meat of the story to my experience as a criminal investigator and paratrooper for the Army.”
The art is sharp and clean, and Franklin is at his best when the agents, Stiletta and Tangent are in the ‘hero’ costumes and in full action. He can lay down the pencils on a hero action scene very well.
“Early influences are Paul Smith, and John Byrne,” said Franklin. “More recent influences are Brian Stelfreeze and Ron Garney. All of these guys put storytelling before flash, and that’s what I try to do also.”
When a creator both writes and draws a book, it is always interesting to learn which was the hardest.
“I would say that the art is definitely more labor intensive, especially since I do all of it myself,” said Franklin. “As a writer/artist these things happen mostly all at the same time. Paul Pope has a similar process, and I believe that this is the case for many creators that write and draw their own stuff.
“Artists are never 100 per cent satisfied with their work. DA is as good as I could do at this stage in my development, but I am constantly improving. This is as it should be. Artists should always be growing as artists. I don’t do this for the money, so my first thoughts are not about acceptance. I would love to get DA out to a larger audience, and as I learn more about marketing, I believe this will happen. The good thing is that these books don’t get stale. This is also my first project, so I expect constructive criticism.”
The trade paperback, which collects the four-issue mini series in a single 102-page volume is a great way to get this series. A squarebound comic takes it that extra little step closer to being a ‘real book’ (*smile).’
It is a story you are going to enjoy, and Franklin said more is to come.
“This is the first of three volumes for DA,” he said. “I’ll be doing an unrelated project before I return for volume two, but the other volumes will definitely see the light of day.”Check it out at www.epsalonpress.com
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Written by Jan-Michael Franklin
Pencils by Jan-Michael Franklin
Epsalon Press
The idea of a couple of badly injured agents being rebuilt with high tech augmentation is not a new idea, going back farther than the campy Six Million Dollar Man and spin-off Bionic Woman of my youth.
Jan-Michael Franklin takes the same basic premise and shifts it into high gear forcing the rebuilt agents here to be essentially a duo sent out to murder on the orders of their superiors.
Suddenly the main characters are faced with the angst of following orders which essentially has them as hit men. A nice touch indeed.
Franklin said the characters developed over time, evolving as time passed.
“As a beginning writer I think that the characters started out rather two dimensional in earlier manifestations,” he said. “My life experiences and resultant maturity allowed me to inject some depth into the story and characters for the final version. My first wife and I were in a situation with the Army where we were both stuck there. This was a big part of how Malcolm and Sierra eventually turned out. There will be more layers to the characters exposed in later stories as well.”
The influences are those that are more general than being ones he can pinpoint directly.
“It’s hard to pin down exactly what inspired Deadly Artisans (DA). I would say it was most likely a combination of things that I was really into as a kid, such as The X-Men, G.I.Joe, and various other sci-fi creations,” said Franklin. “However, more recently I would attribute the meat of the story to my experience as a criminal investigator and paratrooper for the Army.”
The art is sharp and clean, and Franklin is at his best when the agents, Stiletta and Tangent are in the ‘hero’ costumes and in full action. He can lay down the pencils on a hero action scene very well.
“Early influences are Paul Smith, and John Byrne,” said Franklin. “More recent influences are Brian Stelfreeze and Ron Garney. All of these guys put storytelling before flash, and that’s what I try to do also.”
When a creator both writes and draws a book, it is always interesting to learn which was the hardest.
“I would say that the art is definitely more labor intensive, especially since I do all of it myself,” said Franklin. “As a writer/artist these things happen mostly all at the same time. Paul Pope has a similar process, and I believe that this is the case for many creators that write and draw their own stuff.
“Artists are never 100 per cent satisfied with their work. DA is as good as I could do at this stage in my development, but I am constantly improving. This is as it should be. Artists should always be growing as artists. I don’t do this for the money, so my first thoughts are not about acceptance. I would love to get DA out to a larger audience, and as I learn more about marketing, I believe this will happen. The good thing is that these books don’t get stale. This is also my first project, so I expect constructive criticism.”
The trade paperback, which collects the four-issue mini series in a single 102-page volume is a great way to get this series. A squarebound comic takes it that extra little step closer to being a ‘real book’ (*smile).’
It is a story you are going to enjoy, and Franklin said more is to come.
“This is the first of three volumes for DA,” he said. “I’ll be doing an unrelated project before I return for volume two, but the other volumes will definitely see the light of day.”Check it out at www.epsalonpress.com
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Review -- THE DARK DETECTIVE: SHERLOCK HOLMES
The Dark Detective: Sherlock Holmes
Written by Christopher Sequeira
Pencils by Philip Cornel
Black House Comics
With the new Sherlock Holmes movie starring Robert Downey Jr. being a box office smash, even though the action hero take on the famous Sir Arthur Conan Doyle character is not for everyone, the character is again a household one. That is in itself amazing considering Holmes first came to the printed page in 1887.
Now if you are seeking a more traditional Holmes tale, you won’t go wrong finding The Dark Detective comic from Australian publisher Black House Comics.
The mood, story and look of The Dark Detective sets Holmes in a sort of film noir world of London. There is an edge of darkness to the streets and to the cases Holmes finds himself on.
The preview edition of the comic is entitled The Ghost of Mart Shelley and introduces the Marquis of Frankenstein, while issue one is The Claws of the Chimera. Both offer up images of a couple of famous storylines of horror.
Writer Christopher Sequeira does a smooth job of blending the cerebral detective Holmes with the classic horror elements. It really works perfectly when you consider a classic Doyle tale such as Hound of the Baskerville's has definite horror overtones.
Sequeira said the books actually began because of thoughts of doing a Holmes movie.
“International make-up and creature shop Oscar nominee Dave Elsey approached me about writing a screenplay for a Holmes movie based on a concept of his a few years ago,” said Sequeira. “We started working on the project on spec. We had knocked a big chunk of it when the new Holmes movie got announced - but other than being sure to not do anything that early reports said they were doing it had little impact on my plot or take, other than to make us pretty sure our movie would have little chance of being made as a movie!
“Then publisher Baden Kirgan came along and read my 45-page outline and asked us to do a comic on it -- but to set the story before the events of our movie. The extra background to all of that is that Dave, Phil Cornell and myself have been mad-keen Sherlockians for decades -- so we bring years of ideas to the table that have sat in the backs of our brains waiting to be unleashed.”
When it came to inspiration Sequeira said he basically drew on the character’s rich past.
“This is me writing the way I write, the publisher letting me write the way I write, for characters I love,” he said. “The only influences are Doyle, and perhaps a dollop of inspiration in ‘feel’ from the best Hammer Horrors -- although our pacing is purposefully faster.”
Art wise, Philip Cornel has a style that reminds me much of Classic Illustrated of old, which is where many tales such as Holmes first came to life for young readers in my era.
The covers by Dave Elsey show a painted approach with Holmes the focus. The great detective is dour-faced, grim and determined in the art.
“The art style grew out of Phil Cornell’s ideas and style blended with suggestions from Dave (and the occasional one from me),” said Sequeira. “We wanted something faithful and yet unique, we wanted accurate Victoriana but we wanted an edge. The end result is a superb mix that I bow down to in admiration of; Phil with Dave has produced something masterful.”
This is a great title, one closer to my fondest memories of Holmes than the aforementioned movie. Certainly one to highly recommend for its fresh stories centred on the iconic Holmes.
In true creator fashion Sequeira said he could see things to improve, although he is right this very good as is.
“I’m never happy, we can always reach a tiny per cent more,” he said. “But we’re closer
than anything else I’ve worked on, I suspect!”
And there is more to come, which is fantastic news.
“There are years' worth of stories planned if the market is there; a hundred issues that lead up to the climactic storyline of the screenplay,” said Sequeira. “The current storyline is set in 1887, and the screenplay is set in 1894. All the Doyle stories are woven into our timeline, too. Having said that, issue #4 is a surprise - a real cracker, and issues #5 to #8 are a story we teased in the free preview.”
www.blackhousecomics.com has all the cool stuff and in January sometime international readers will be able to order their hard copies (Aussies can get them from newsstands currently)!
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Written by Christopher Sequeira
Pencils by Philip Cornel
Black House Comics
With the new Sherlock Holmes movie starring Robert Downey Jr. being a box office smash, even though the action hero take on the famous Sir Arthur Conan Doyle character is not for everyone, the character is again a household one. That is in itself amazing considering Holmes first came to the printed page in 1887.
Now if you are seeking a more traditional Holmes tale, you won’t go wrong finding The Dark Detective comic from Australian publisher Black House Comics.
The mood, story and look of The Dark Detective sets Holmes in a sort of film noir world of London. There is an edge of darkness to the streets and to the cases Holmes finds himself on.
The preview edition of the comic is entitled The Ghost of Mart Shelley and introduces the Marquis of Frankenstein, while issue one is The Claws of the Chimera. Both offer up images of a couple of famous storylines of horror.
Writer Christopher Sequeira does a smooth job of blending the cerebral detective Holmes with the classic horror elements. It really works perfectly when you consider a classic Doyle tale such as Hound of the Baskerville's has definite horror overtones.
Sequeira said the books actually began because of thoughts of doing a Holmes movie.
“International make-up and creature shop Oscar nominee Dave Elsey approached me about writing a screenplay for a Holmes movie based on a concept of his a few years ago,” said Sequeira. “We started working on the project on spec. We had knocked a big chunk of it when the new Holmes movie got announced - but other than being sure to not do anything that early reports said they were doing it had little impact on my plot or take, other than to make us pretty sure our movie would have little chance of being made as a movie!
“Then publisher Baden Kirgan came along and read my 45-page outline and asked us to do a comic on it -- but to set the story before the events of our movie. The extra background to all of that is that Dave, Phil Cornell and myself have been mad-keen Sherlockians for decades -- so we bring years of ideas to the table that have sat in the backs of our brains waiting to be unleashed.”
When it came to inspiration Sequeira said he basically drew on the character’s rich past.
“This is me writing the way I write, the publisher letting me write the way I write, for characters I love,” he said. “The only influences are Doyle, and perhaps a dollop of inspiration in ‘feel’ from the best Hammer Horrors -- although our pacing is purposefully faster.”
Art wise, Philip Cornel has a style that reminds me much of Classic Illustrated of old, which is where many tales such as Holmes first came to life for young readers in my era.
The covers by Dave Elsey show a painted approach with Holmes the focus. The great detective is dour-faced, grim and determined in the art.
“The art style grew out of Phil Cornell’s ideas and style blended with suggestions from Dave (and the occasional one from me),” said Sequeira. “We wanted something faithful and yet unique, we wanted accurate Victoriana but we wanted an edge. The end result is a superb mix that I bow down to in admiration of; Phil with Dave has produced something masterful.”
This is a great title, one closer to my fondest memories of Holmes than the aforementioned movie. Certainly one to highly recommend for its fresh stories centred on the iconic Holmes.
In true creator fashion Sequeira said he could see things to improve, although he is right this very good as is.
“I’m never happy, we can always reach a tiny per cent more,” he said. “But we’re closer
than anything else I’ve worked on, I suspect!”
And there is more to come, which is fantastic news.
“There are years' worth of stories planned if the market is there; a hundred issues that lead up to the climactic storyline of the screenplay,” said Sequeira. “The current storyline is set in 1887, and the screenplay is set in 1894. All the Doyle stories are woven into our timeline, too. Having said that, issue #4 is a surprise - a real cracker, and issues #5 to #8 are a story we teased in the free preview.”
www.blackhousecomics.com has all the cool stuff and in January sometime international readers will be able to order their hard copies (Aussies can get them from newsstands currently)!
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Review -- ATHRA
Athra
Written by Nathaniel Sullivan
Pencils by Nathaniel Sullivan
Indie
Athra by Nathaniel Sullivan is one of those titles you can tell is being created by a comic fan. I say that because the creator is tossing a bit of everything into the mix.
The story starts out what appears to be a pretty normal medieval world, but about a dozen pages in the full splash page of a woman in what appears a space suit says there are going to be twists and turns along the way.
The creature that appears part demon and maybe a bit vampire also shows Sullivan is bringing a lot of comic ideas together in Athra.
The story, after only one issue, is intriguing enough that you want to find out more though, and that is a key thing.
It is also obvious Athra is near to Sullivan’s heart the way he talks about how the book evolved as an idea.
“I spend a great deal of time, as much as possible, outside, hiking, working, walking with my dogs and I really began to conceive of the story, of Athra, in terms of images,” he said. “Walking through the woods, crossing fields, hiking beside rivers, I more or less filled the landscape with images, with fragments of stories. I've always done that and I've conceived any number of stories that way. By the time I actually began working on Athra, I had a slew of images in reserve.
“So, for my part, I begin with images. In the case of Athra, images of a rather small, isolated, rural, relatively primitive community, mountains, streams, rivers, and so forth.”
Onto the canvas of the idyllic village, Sullivan said he had to overlay a conflict to create a story.
“Understandably enough, I proceeded to introduce change in the form of a very basic threat and a very basic answer,” he said. “Aristotle observed that a man who can live apart from others is either a god or a beast. Needless to say, such a man is a threat because he’s either far better or far worse than man. I chose the latter, a man who’s a beast, a basic threat to the community, a killer that comes in the night and a basic answer, Athra, a soldier, presumably a deserter, who needs a place to hide and in no position to refuse to try to kill the threat.
“I should add that, for the moment, the story is, in essence, Beowulf. That was the basic inspiration for the storyline. And yes, we'll see the monster's mother, Kaldgrani’s mother.
“That said, I decided very early on in the process that that story should, simultaneously, resonate with a much greater, and for Athra personally, altogether mysterious world. Accordingly, in the first issue, Athra briefly encounters a woman in tears, dressed in some kind of astronaut gear, who knows him and claims to have loved him, before disappearing. In short, there will be science-fiction elements as well and any number of mysteries.
“If I had to sum Athra up very simply, then I'd probably describe it as Conan and Lost. Or the thinking man's Conan.”
Sullivan’s vision is one on a grand scale.
“I should add that Athra is caught between mysterious, warring forces, forces he doesn’t understand, and those forces will intrude on Athra from time to time, sometimes in small ways, sometimes in significant ways.
“I should also add that I won't be cheating. Mysteries will be answered. I have no interest in leading readers down rabbit holes and leaving them there. So, rest assured, the mysteries have answers and answers will be provided.
“Think of Athra walking a long a shore. Sometimes slight ripples from a distant, powerful storm will reach him. And sometimes waves will sweep over him and carry him away.
“The book should be very nearly operatic, tremendous soaring highs, abysmal lows, and great passions surging through the story.
“That was a rather conscious choice. If you read Walter Scott’s novels, then you find that the hero is always a middling man, a man caught between great forces opposing one another. And that will be Athra. Athra is caught between opposing forces, some of which are native to his world and some are greater, much more sophisticated warring forces that are not native to his world.”
Sullivan’s art at times seems a little uninspired. There is for example one two-page spread with 10 panels, with all but one basically a head shot. He does a solid enough job of faces, but at time he needs to mix it up just a bit more.
At other times a page can be quite striking. I particularly like the full page treatment of Athra with a bowstring drawn. The concentration Sullivan captured in the character’s eye was dramatic.
“From the start, Athra has been black and white,” he said. “That was a conscious choice. Given that I’m the writer and artist and that there’s no one else, colour just isn’t an option. With that being the case, I set about trying to construct a book that wanted to be black and white. By that I mean that I decided that Athra wouldn’t look like a book waiting for a colorist. I decided that Athra was going to be a book that worked in black and white that wanted to be black and white.
“And making that work required a lot of experimentation.
“Initially, I composed the pages in pencil and then added ink. Frankly, it was a disaster. The pages were just lifeless. There just wasn’t any energy. One of the things that makes a drawing interesting is line variation. If all the lines of a drawing are the same
weight, executed at the same speed, the same amount of pressure on the paper, then the drawing will just be awful. If you look at master drawings, then you’ll see a great deal of variation in the lines. I just wasn’t able to achieve that doing pencils and adding ink. The drawings just looked labored, dead, lifeless.
“So I started over and changed things radically.
“I began doing a lot of the drawing, and eventually most of it, digitally. I begin with very loose gestural drawings and cover the page with sketches, very light, fast lines. Then I tend to add some weight and some of the dark areas. Then I come back with white ink and cut away at the black. Nearly all of this is done digitally. I continue that process until I have a drawing that really has some spontaneity and as much energy as possible. The process is somewhat akin to etching or scratchboard. In a lot of instances, I’ll add
large areas of black, cut away at them with white ink, and repeat this over and over. The real advantage of this is that it’s not mechanical. Working that way, I can add marks, cut away at them, add more, and keep working on the page, really attacking it, until it’s done. That's not really an option with pencil and ink. Working digitally, I can, and I often do, just eliminate huge areas of art, whole pages sometimes, and come in again and again.”
Sullivan said the effort has been worthwhile, since he is satisfied with Issue #1, although as a self-critic he would change some things.
“On the one hand, I worked very hard, especially on the art and I kept working on the art until I was relatively satisfied,” he said. “To be perfectly honest, however, I’m never satisfied. I spend a great deal of time drawing from life and when the drawings aren’t perfect, and nothing is ever perfect, it’s agony for me. Ingre once broke down in tears because he couldn’t get the eyes just right. I understand that entirely.
“With Athra, I tell myself that there are deadlines, that I have to make progress, and, most importantly, that I’ll improve over time.
“With Athra I set out to make a book that I would really like to read and I don’t read many comic books. I decided Athra was going to have to be something that I would really like, that I would really take an interest in and be passionate about. If you’re planning on doing something like Athra, then you’re going to be spending a lot of time on it. With that being the case, it’s a good idea really to enjoy the endeavour. And I enjoy Athra a great deal. Working on Athra is tremendously rewarding. I don’t find myself approaching the task with anxiety or reservations. To be honest, I really don’t think there’s anything else I’d rather be working on.”
As you might expect with a story conceived on a grand scale, Sullivan has much more to come with Athra.
“As far as what’s next for the title, in the short term, romance. We’re in the midst of the first arc which deals for the most part, with the fight against Kaldgrani -- the monster,” he said. “The third issue is, however, a kind of interlude, a love story, a romance between Athra a rather mysterious, and complicated woman, Saegird, pictured standing over him on the cover of the second issue.
“The fourth issue, the end of the first arc, brings the battle between Athra and Kaldgranit to a decidedly violent and bloody conclusion.
“I should stress that we’ll learn a great deal about Athra’s past and his motivations in the third and fourth issues. And some of those motivations may be disquieting. Athra is motivated by a certain ethic, a certain moral code, but it’s a very harsh and demanding code and will probably lead him to engage in some genuinely horrific and brutal acts in fighting Kaldgrani.
“The first arc will end with Athra returning to the village and to the heroine, Hild.”
There is certainly enough here to want to be around for issue two to see how Sullivan handles the varied plot threads he has laid out in the inaugural issue.
Athra is available at www.athra.net. Sullivan posts a new page every Thursday and the entirety of the first issue and half of the second are available there now.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Written by Nathaniel Sullivan
Pencils by Nathaniel Sullivan
Indie
Athra by Nathaniel Sullivan is one of those titles you can tell is being created by a comic fan. I say that because the creator is tossing a bit of everything into the mix.
The story starts out what appears to be a pretty normal medieval world, but about a dozen pages in the full splash page of a woman in what appears a space suit says there are going to be twists and turns along the way.
The creature that appears part demon and maybe a bit vampire also shows Sullivan is bringing a lot of comic ideas together in Athra.
The story, after only one issue, is intriguing enough that you want to find out more though, and that is a key thing.
It is also obvious Athra is near to Sullivan’s heart the way he talks about how the book evolved as an idea.
“I spend a great deal of time, as much as possible, outside, hiking, working, walking with my dogs and I really began to conceive of the story, of Athra, in terms of images,” he said. “Walking through the woods, crossing fields, hiking beside rivers, I more or less filled the landscape with images, with fragments of stories. I've always done that and I've conceived any number of stories that way. By the time I actually began working on Athra, I had a slew of images in reserve.
“So, for my part, I begin with images. In the case of Athra, images of a rather small, isolated, rural, relatively primitive community, mountains, streams, rivers, and so forth.”
Onto the canvas of the idyllic village, Sullivan said he had to overlay a conflict to create a story.
“Understandably enough, I proceeded to introduce change in the form of a very basic threat and a very basic answer,” he said. “Aristotle observed that a man who can live apart from others is either a god or a beast. Needless to say, such a man is a threat because he’s either far better or far worse than man. I chose the latter, a man who’s a beast, a basic threat to the community, a killer that comes in the night and a basic answer, Athra, a soldier, presumably a deserter, who needs a place to hide and in no position to refuse to try to kill the threat.
“I should add that, for the moment, the story is, in essence, Beowulf. That was the basic inspiration for the storyline. And yes, we'll see the monster's mother, Kaldgrani’s mother.
“That said, I decided very early on in the process that that story should, simultaneously, resonate with a much greater, and for Athra personally, altogether mysterious world. Accordingly, in the first issue, Athra briefly encounters a woman in tears, dressed in some kind of astronaut gear, who knows him and claims to have loved him, before disappearing. In short, there will be science-fiction elements as well and any number of mysteries.
“If I had to sum Athra up very simply, then I'd probably describe it as Conan and Lost. Or the thinking man's Conan.”
Sullivan’s vision is one on a grand scale.
“I should add that Athra is caught between mysterious, warring forces, forces he doesn’t understand, and those forces will intrude on Athra from time to time, sometimes in small ways, sometimes in significant ways.
“I should also add that I won't be cheating. Mysteries will be answered. I have no interest in leading readers down rabbit holes and leaving them there. So, rest assured, the mysteries have answers and answers will be provided.
“Think of Athra walking a long a shore. Sometimes slight ripples from a distant, powerful storm will reach him. And sometimes waves will sweep over him and carry him away.
“The book should be very nearly operatic, tremendous soaring highs, abysmal lows, and great passions surging through the story.
“That was a rather conscious choice. If you read Walter Scott’s novels, then you find that the hero is always a middling man, a man caught between great forces opposing one another. And that will be Athra. Athra is caught between opposing forces, some of which are native to his world and some are greater, much more sophisticated warring forces that are not native to his world.”
Sullivan’s art at times seems a little uninspired. There is for example one two-page spread with 10 panels, with all but one basically a head shot. He does a solid enough job of faces, but at time he needs to mix it up just a bit more.
At other times a page can be quite striking. I particularly like the full page treatment of Athra with a bowstring drawn. The concentration Sullivan captured in the character’s eye was dramatic.
“From the start, Athra has been black and white,” he said. “That was a conscious choice. Given that I’m the writer and artist and that there’s no one else, colour just isn’t an option. With that being the case, I set about trying to construct a book that wanted to be black and white. By that I mean that I decided that Athra wouldn’t look like a book waiting for a colorist. I decided that Athra was going to be a book that worked in black and white that wanted to be black and white.
“And making that work required a lot of experimentation.
“Initially, I composed the pages in pencil and then added ink. Frankly, it was a disaster. The pages were just lifeless. There just wasn’t any energy. One of the things that makes a drawing interesting is line variation. If all the lines of a drawing are the same
weight, executed at the same speed, the same amount of pressure on the paper, then the drawing will just be awful. If you look at master drawings, then you’ll see a great deal of variation in the lines. I just wasn’t able to achieve that doing pencils and adding ink. The drawings just looked labored, dead, lifeless.
“So I started over and changed things radically.
“I began doing a lot of the drawing, and eventually most of it, digitally. I begin with very loose gestural drawings and cover the page with sketches, very light, fast lines. Then I tend to add some weight and some of the dark areas. Then I come back with white ink and cut away at the black. Nearly all of this is done digitally. I continue that process until I have a drawing that really has some spontaneity and as much energy as possible. The process is somewhat akin to etching or scratchboard. In a lot of instances, I’ll add
large areas of black, cut away at them with white ink, and repeat this over and over. The real advantage of this is that it’s not mechanical. Working that way, I can add marks, cut away at them, add more, and keep working on the page, really attacking it, until it’s done. That's not really an option with pencil and ink. Working digitally, I can, and I often do, just eliminate huge areas of art, whole pages sometimes, and come in again and again.”
Sullivan said the effort has been worthwhile, since he is satisfied with Issue #1, although as a self-critic he would change some things.
“On the one hand, I worked very hard, especially on the art and I kept working on the art until I was relatively satisfied,” he said. “To be perfectly honest, however, I’m never satisfied. I spend a great deal of time drawing from life and when the drawings aren’t perfect, and nothing is ever perfect, it’s agony for me. Ingre once broke down in tears because he couldn’t get the eyes just right. I understand that entirely.
“With Athra, I tell myself that there are deadlines, that I have to make progress, and, most importantly, that I’ll improve over time.
“With Athra I set out to make a book that I would really like to read and I don’t read many comic books. I decided Athra was going to have to be something that I would really like, that I would really take an interest in and be passionate about. If you’re planning on doing something like Athra, then you’re going to be spending a lot of time on it. With that being the case, it’s a good idea really to enjoy the endeavour. And I enjoy Athra a great deal. Working on Athra is tremendously rewarding. I don’t find myself approaching the task with anxiety or reservations. To be honest, I really don’t think there’s anything else I’d rather be working on.”
As you might expect with a story conceived on a grand scale, Sullivan has much more to come with Athra.
“As far as what’s next for the title, in the short term, romance. We’re in the midst of the first arc which deals for the most part, with the fight against Kaldgrani -- the monster,” he said. “The third issue is, however, a kind of interlude, a love story, a romance between Athra a rather mysterious, and complicated woman, Saegird, pictured standing over him on the cover of the second issue.
“The fourth issue, the end of the first arc, brings the battle between Athra and Kaldgranit to a decidedly violent and bloody conclusion.
“I should stress that we’ll learn a great deal about Athra’s past and his motivations in the third and fourth issues. And some of those motivations may be disquieting. Athra is motivated by a certain ethic, a certain moral code, but it’s a very harsh and demanding code and will probably lead him to engage in some genuinely horrific and brutal acts in fighting Kaldgrani.
“The first arc will end with Athra returning to the village and to the heroine, Hild.”
There is certainly enough here to want to be around for issue two to see how Sullivan handles the varied plot threads he has laid out in the inaugural issue.
Athra is available at www.athra.net. Sullivan posts a new page every Thursday and the entirety of the first issue and half of the second are available there now.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Review -- HERCULES: THE KNIVES OF KUSH
Hercules: The Knives of Kush
Written by Steve Moore
Pencils by Cris Bolson
Colours by Doug Sirois
Radical Comics
When it comes to fantasy, myth, legend and lore, all cornerstones of the comic book industry, few characters are truly more iconic than Hercules. In many respects he was one of the world’s first superheroes, and while he has been used as the central figure in various stories, it’s hard to resist when a new one comes down the pike.
When the new book comes from Radical Comics, a small company with a growing stable of high calibre titles, the allure is even greater.
The Knives of Kush is a follow-up series to the previously produced Hercules: Thracian Wars.
Writer Steve Moore has created a somewhat grittier telling of a Herculean tale. The talk of chopping up the bodies of captured women and children to spread the pieces before the advancing army is darkly descriptive and graphic. It is likely a truer picture of the era than many white-washed telling of Hercules, but it may not be for everyone.
Personally I accept the gritty realism of the story, and quite enjoy Moore telling an adult story.
Asked how it was to write an established character, Moore said he simply focused on his own story.
“Well, actually, I never really thought of Hercules as someone else’s creation. Sure, there are the ancient legends, which I reread in summary before I started thinking about what I wanted to do, and Radical came to me and briefed me on a few basics: that the story should be set in the ancient world, should concentrate more on Hercules’ human side rather than the mythology, and so on,” he said. “But then the development of the storylines, the secondary characters, and suchlike, were all pretty much down to me, and Radical very kindly didn’t interfere in anything I wanted to do, story-wise.
“So I tend to regard these two series (‘Thracian Wars’ and ‘Knives of Kush’) as pretty much ‘my’ Hercules … the story and characters are very much the way I wanted to present them, and I studiously ignored everyone else’s versions of the character, whether that be in comics, movies, TV, or whatever.
“I pretty much wanted to approach this as if I was an ancient Greek storyteller, providing new tales of the original Hercules, and not doing anything stupid like bring him into the 21st century, or turn him into a rubbishy superhero.”
The art by Cris Bolson, aided by Manuel and Leonardo Silva has a sort of Illustrated Classics feel, and those books are fondly remembered from childhood.
Again there are more splashes of blood than those old books, but you are with the same feeling of subdued realism.
Moore said he had input into the art which he appreciated as the writer.
“Yes, I had quite a lot of input into the look, as I decided right from the start that I wanted this to look as authentically Bronze Age as possible, within the constraints of it being a modern comic-book,” he said.
“So right from the start I was providing loads of reference pictures for costumes, architecture, etc. And, of course, being an old-time pro, I write a very detailed script, occasionally with a page or more of description for a single panel.
“Things have worked out better with the second series as well, as the editor, Renae Geerlings, has been sending me everything to look at, from layouts to pencils, colours, etc., so I’ve been able to keep an eye on things at all stages and get things changed if necessary, which wasn’t always the case with the first series.
“So I’m generally happy with the art style and, of course, being set in Egypt, this series gives us a much richer visual texture than the earlier series, which was set in more barbarous Thrace.
“And, Cris Bolson, the penciller, has put in a tremendous amount of work on costume, architecture, etc., while the ‘painted’ finish adds that extra touch of realism. It’s probably about as good as I could have ever hoped for, taken over all.”
Beyond the art Moore, who said he finds himself “in a position where I can retire from mainstream comic-book writing” said his last series is one he is satisfied with.
“Generally I’m pretty happy with things,” he said. “The story’s pretty much exactly what I wanted to write and, like I said, the artists have done a great job. There’ve only been two minor problems. Because of scheduling constraints, the artwork has got a little behind and we’ve had to bring in assistants in the final couple of issues. They’ve done a really nice job, but obviously it would have been great if Cris Bolson and Doug Sirois could have completed the book on their own.
“And because I’m told the distributors won’t allow it, I’ve had to slightly overdress the female characters … there was a lot more nudity in the ancient world, but it seems that modern America prefers to live in a sort of Victorian fantasy-world, rather than face historical facts.
“Apart from that, though, I’m pretty pleased with things.”
The five-issue mini series looks great. The story is great. That just about says it all. Mark this one as well-worth seeking out.Readers can order Hercules: The Knives of Kush from their local comic book store. If they are unable to find it there, they can always order it from http://www.radicalcomics.com or via www.radicalcomics.com. The trade collection of Hercules: The Knives of Kush will be distributed by Random House and will be available in May 2010 in bookstores such as Borders and Barnes & Noble.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
Written by Steve Moore
Pencils by Cris Bolson
Colours by Doug Sirois
Radical Comics
When it comes to fantasy, myth, legend and lore, all cornerstones of the comic book industry, few characters are truly more iconic than Hercules. In many respects he was one of the world’s first superheroes, and while he has been used as the central figure in various stories, it’s hard to resist when a new one comes down the pike.
When the new book comes from Radical Comics, a small company with a growing stable of high calibre titles, the allure is even greater.
The Knives of Kush is a follow-up series to the previously produced Hercules: Thracian Wars.
Writer Steve Moore has created a somewhat grittier telling of a Herculean tale. The talk of chopping up the bodies of captured women and children to spread the pieces before the advancing army is darkly descriptive and graphic. It is likely a truer picture of the era than many white-washed telling of Hercules, but it may not be for everyone.
Personally I accept the gritty realism of the story, and quite enjoy Moore telling an adult story.
Asked how it was to write an established character, Moore said he simply focused on his own story.
“Well, actually, I never really thought of Hercules as someone else’s creation. Sure, there are the ancient legends, which I reread in summary before I started thinking about what I wanted to do, and Radical came to me and briefed me on a few basics: that the story should be set in the ancient world, should concentrate more on Hercules’ human side rather than the mythology, and so on,” he said. “But then the development of the storylines, the secondary characters, and suchlike, were all pretty much down to me, and Radical very kindly didn’t interfere in anything I wanted to do, story-wise.
“So I tend to regard these two series (‘Thracian Wars’ and ‘Knives of Kush’) as pretty much ‘my’ Hercules … the story and characters are very much the way I wanted to present them, and I studiously ignored everyone else’s versions of the character, whether that be in comics, movies, TV, or whatever.
“I pretty much wanted to approach this as if I was an ancient Greek storyteller, providing new tales of the original Hercules, and not doing anything stupid like bring him into the 21st century, or turn him into a rubbishy superhero.”
The art by Cris Bolson, aided by Manuel and Leonardo Silva has a sort of Illustrated Classics feel, and those books are fondly remembered from childhood.
Again there are more splashes of blood than those old books, but you are with the same feeling of subdued realism.
Moore said he had input into the art which he appreciated as the writer.
“Yes, I had quite a lot of input into the look, as I decided right from the start that I wanted this to look as authentically Bronze Age as possible, within the constraints of it being a modern comic-book,” he said.
“So right from the start I was providing loads of reference pictures for costumes, architecture, etc. And, of course, being an old-time pro, I write a very detailed script, occasionally with a page or more of description for a single panel.
“Things have worked out better with the second series as well, as the editor, Renae Geerlings, has been sending me everything to look at, from layouts to pencils, colours, etc., so I’ve been able to keep an eye on things at all stages and get things changed if necessary, which wasn’t always the case with the first series.
“So I’m generally happy with the art style and, of course, being set in Egypt, this series gives us a much richer visual texture than the earlier series, which was set in more barbarous Thrace.
“And, Cris Bolson, the penciller, has put in a tremendous amount of work on costume, architecture, etc., while the ‘painted’ finish adds that extra touch of realism. It’s probably about as good as I could have ever hoped for, taken over all.”
Beyond the art Moore, who said he finds himself “in a position where I can retire from mainstream comic-book writing” said his last series is one he is satisfied with.
“Generally I’m pretty happy with things,” he said. “The story’s pretty much exactly what I wanted to write and, like I said, the artists have done a great job. There’ve only been two minor problems. Because of scheduling constraints, the artwork has got a little behind and we’ve had to bring in assistants in the final couple of issues. They’ve done a really nice job, but obviously it would have been great if Cris Bolson and Doug Sirois could have completed the book on their own.
“And because I’m told the distributors won’t allow it, I’ve had to slightly overdress the female characters … there was a lot more nudity in the ancient world, but it seems that modern America prefers to live in a sort of Victorian fantasy-world, rather than face historical facts.
“Apart from that, though, I’m pretty pleased with things.”
The five-issue mini series looks great. The story is great. That just about says it all. Mark this one as well-worth seeking out.Readers can order Hercules: The Knives of Kush from their local comic book store. If they are unable to find it there, they can always order it from http://www.radicalcomics.com or via www.radicalcomics.com. The trade collection of Hercules: The Knives of Kush will be distributed by Random House and will be available in May 2010 in bookstores such as Borders and Barnes & Noble.
-- CALVIN DANIELS
-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra
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