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Image Expo is kicking off with a stirring speech by Eric Stephenson. We’ll social media it along for you   Image Expo is 10 minutes from starting, and the venue certainly has some swagger to it. #imageexpo pic.twitter.com/ML7zoPbNWd — Christopher Butcher (@Comics212) April 6, 2016 "Whatever you imagine, it can happen." Starting the keynote at […]

Jim Zub, easily my most-interviewed creator, is on a tear lately. In addition to wonderful corporate-owned work like Figment, he more than stuck the landing on Skullkickers and he nailed the second arc of his new series Wayward. I talked to him about both beginnings, endings and everything in-between. When did you map out the overall story […]

This is the first in a planned series of articles about the “Image Effect.” Over the past 20+ years Image Comics has grown from a vanity publisher for the top talents of the 90s into a trendsetter and home to a diverse range of popular titles and creators. How did they accomplish that? Image’s well-known […]

Even though I was never quite in love with the considered-a-classic Samurai Jack TV show, I’ve been infatuated by Samurai Jack the comic book since before Issue 1. The stoic, solemn character interacting with a colorful world works, in my opinion, better in sequential form than it does on the screen. Writer Jim Zub is a big reason why. That’s why I was excited to talk to him yet again, this time about wrapping up his continuation of Samurai Jack with Andy Suriano and other artists.

Art by Andy Suriano.

You said you felt like you could write Samurai Jack forever. What makes the character and the series feel so endurable to you?

Genndy and his crew put together a really powerful alchemical mix of elements when they created Samurai Jack. It’s a genre melting pot, fusing martial arts, fantasy, science fiction, and just about any other type of genre fiction you can imagine. It can be downright silly at times but also surprisingly deep and philosophical. That incredibly broad range, all of it “in-play,” is a wonderful sandbox to play in. It continually generates new ideas and I don’t think I could ever run out.

How was the pre-established history of Samurai Jack a challenge?

Over four seasons the Samurai Jack animation crew tackled a slew of amazing iconic concepts, so a lot of my initial brainstorming would slam up against something that had already been done. At first that was intimidating but over time it became a blessing.

How was it a blessing?

It forced me to push further and come up with unexpected approaches to the stories. It also convinced me that the best way for us to continue Jack’s legacy was to keep moving forward, coming up with new characters and situations instead of only re-using bits from the show.

Art by Andy Suriano.

Given that he worked on the original animated series, what was your collaboration like with Andy Suriano?

It was a real dream come true. No matter what crazy stuff I came up with, Andy was always there ready to take it to the next level with his art and design. The wilder he got with it, the more I wanted to push things with the next issue. We fed off of each other’s excitement.

Andy didn’t use the line-free style of the cartoon, but he channeled the look and feel of the show while optimizing it for the comic page. It wasn’t about rigidly following a model sheet. Andy’s work is all about translating that motion and energy to the page.

Did it take getting used to working with somebody who had been involved with the property since almost the beginning?

I kept expecting Andy to tell me I was doing it wrong, that I was doing something too weird or that “Jack wouldn’t do that”, but that didn’t happen. We just hit the ground running and Andy was 110% supportive of my story ideas. It was genuinely one of the most enjoyable projects I’ve ever worked on and Andy was a huge part of the reason why.

Have you talked about doing other work together?

Yeah, absolutely. At Emerald City Comicon last year we actually talked about the fact that this would end at some point and we should do other stories together. I know he’s super busy with his animation day job and working on Cosmic Scoundrels, but I really do hope we get to build more awesome stories real soon.

An issue Jim did with guest artist Christine Larsen. Art by Andy Suriano.

How is your working relationship different with fill-in artists?

Carlos Guzman, our awesome Editor at IDW, handled most of the fill-in stuff. I would write ahead not knowing who would be doing those one or two part stories and he cast artists based on their strengths.

I pushed really hard to get Brittney Williams on for the two part Scotsman story because I’m crazy about her artwork and felt she’d be a perfect fit. She did a great job.

Sergio Quijada was a huge Jack fan who peppered us with fan art until we couldn’t help but bring him on board. I’m really glad he had the chance to do the two part “Master of Time” story.

Were you involved in the decision to give Suriano an issue to write and draw on his own?

That was factored in early on. Before I was brought on board there was talk of Andy writing and drawing the whole series, so we wanted to make sure Andy could get a story idea he had percolating down on the page. The dialogue free “Caves of Crystal Calamity” story from issue 8 is also one I scripted based on Andy’s story idea.

The issue Andy wrote and drew on his own. Art by, naturally, Andy Suriano.

As a long-time fan of Samurai Jack, what did you think of Andy’s issue 18?

It was great! It felt weird reading a Samurai Jack comic I didn’t have a hand in, but that’s what made it so cool. Andy built a cool action set piece and just went wild with it.

Zub’s longest-running series, Skullkickers, is ending soon after 36 issues. Art by Edwin Huang and Misty Coats.

Samurai Jack is your second-longest work, behind Skullkickers, and your longest on a property that you don’t own. What did you take away from doing a more lengthy run?

It was really nice settling in with a concept, almost indulgently so at times. Weird little ideas I’d brainstorm had time to gestate and I didn’t feel like I had to cram everything in all at once. Almost every story idea I included in my original pitch for the series found its way to the printed page at some point during the run and a lot of other little details or in-jokes made it in there too.

Samurai Jack #20 is such a definitive way to go out. With such a strong ending, would you feel comfortable returning to the character, if given the chance?

Absolutely. “Mako the Scribe” is definitive in a lot of ways and delivers a possible ending to the series, but it’s also cast in the far flung future. Andy and I had a bunch of other story ideas bubbling around in our heads that would happen before that big ending.

When I finished writing the 5 part “Quest For the Broken Blade” story I thought I’d gone as big as I could go with Jack and possible threats he could face, but within a few weeks I came up with a new 5 part epic that would have originally been issues #21-25. If Cartoon Network or IDW ever want us to do that story as a mini-series, standalone graphic novel, or animation (Genndy – Call me! :) ) I’m there in a heartbeat.

An amazing series even for people who have never been to a Disney theme park. Art by John Tyler Christopher.

Between Samurai Jack and Figment, you’ve had a lot of success breathing new life into older concepts. Are there any other forgotten or ignored properties that you’d like to revitalize next?

That’s hard to say. Samurai Jack and Figment weren’t properties I sought out and yet they became near and dear to me during the pitching/writing process. I enjoy the challenge of digging in with something unexpected and finding aspects that resonate with me (and hopefully readers too).

What do you think you added to the character of Samurai Jack during your run?

That’s a really hard thing to answer because the show was already a modern classic before I ever came along. We did our damnedest to build on the amazing work done on the show and tell entertaining stories that pushed Jack to new limits. In the end our contribution is up to the fans and Genndy Tartakovsky to decide. I hope people look back on these stories fondly and that they have a really long shelf life.

What new lessons did you learn from the experience?

A lot of my previous comic work was dialogue and sound effect heavy. I was afraid of letting a panel fall silent, like I was somehow not doing my job properly if there wasn’t a bunch of text jammed in there. Working on Jack opened me up to the strength of silence. He’s the silent stoic center while everything else is loud and crazy all around him.

More than that though, working on Samurai Jack recharged my creative batteries. Right before the Jack gig came along I hit a real low point in my writing career. I was supposed to take over Birds of Prey for the New 52 and when that inexplicably crumbled I genuinely felt like I’d missed my big chance and wouldn’t be able to get out of that slump. Writing Samurai Jack reminded me that this crazy creative career is more than just one opportunity. Making work I’m proud of over the long haul is the true measure of success.

 The entire Samurai Jack series written by Jim Zub is available now. Find Jim on his website, Twitter and Tumblr.

MATT CHATS is a weekly interview series with a person of prominence and/or value in the comic book industry. Find its author, Matt O’Keefe, on Twitter and Tumblr. Email him with questions, comments, complaints, etc. at [email protected].

There are a lot of licensed comics out there that lack a certain legitimacy. Whether they’re good or bad, they’re not the main version of those characters and those worlds, and they’re usually created by people who weren’t involved in the original. IDW’s Samurai Jack circumvents that sense of not feeling like the “real” thing not only by continuing where the animated series left off but also with art by Andy Suriano, character designer of the Samurai Jack TV show. I spoke to Suriano about how it felt to wrap up the comic with Issue 20, along with other projects he’s involved in.

For a day job you’re working on cartoons of Mickey Mouse, who is Disney’s flagship character but has lately been off a lot of viewers’ radars. Does that give you a chance to experiment and get away with more?

I wouldn’t say Mickey Mouse is ever off anyone’s radar, but yes, Disney has been very supportive and encouraging with the type of designs, humor and stories we’ve been doing–playing to the strength’s of our team as well as the climate of today’s viewer, all the while keeping them timeless.

You were considered to write the series as well as handling art duties. How did the plans you laid out in your pitch differ from what you and Jim Zub did together with the series?

I think my stories were more stand alone that intersected occasionally versus Jim’s more connected, linear story arcs, which fit better with the direction they wanted for the book. I’m happy Jim landed the gig because he did a terrific job. But I am happy that a couple of my stories still made it into the final product with issues #8 and #18 which I got co-writing and writing on, respectively. 

What unique elements do you think Zub added to Samurai Jack that weren’t there before the comic book series started?

Well, Jim brought the AWESOME that IS Jim to the series. He came on board with actually more knowledge about the episodes I worked on than even I did. I think he took the rules and framework of what we established with the animated series, and quickly took ownership of the character and was able to expand the mythos in a fun way.

In your mind, what are the most crucial elements of any Samurai Jack story?

Action. Humor. Visual storytelling. 

Zub mentioned that he’s seen you draw a Samurai Jack sketch in less than 10 seconds. How long does it take you to draw a whole page?

It’s not about the time in which I do a drawing, it’s what I put into it. I purposely decided early on to use a more kinetic line quality on the book to intimate a sense of movement and speed, that was so integral to the animated series. It was my way to try and “animate” the stationary printed page. 

A number of pages of Samurai Jack (such as Page 4 of #20) contain multiple actions but don’t use typical panel arrangements. How do you manage to keep everything coherent?

Ha! I close my eyes and hope for the best! Confusion to the reader or viewer is what will kill you, so I experiment a lot in the layout phase and see what works the best–and what leads the readers eye the best, to hopefully create a fluid, organic and fun experience. 

Is Samurai Jack #20 your final stamp on the character, or would you return for more?

If IDW and Cartoon Network decided to do more and asked Jim, Josh and I back, we’d be back!

What did you take away from more time with the property?

I just enjoyed getting an opportunity to live in that world a little bit longer.

After two years revisiting Samurai Jack, where do you go from here?

Well, thankfully I still have my day job on the new Mickey Mouse shorts at Disney, I actively contribute to the new TMNT series at Nickelodeon and I do a weekly webcomic with homestarrunner.com creator Matt Chapman called Cosmic Scoundrels which I encourage you and anyone reading to check out and help us spread the word! 

You can find Andy Suriano on social media like Twitter and Tumblr. Check in next week for my interview with Samurai Jack writer Jim Zub!

And when I say must-read, I mean MUST READ, as it really lays out fundamental changes in how the industry is working for creator owned books.. A few days ago I noted how an old post on the economics of Jim Zub on Skullkickers, his Image comics, had gotten a second life on Facebook with it’s very low numbers on comics profits. In the comment, Zub promised an update, and he’s delivered with an analysis of his new book, Wayward. As you can see from the above graph, it’s a HUGE change, and it’s all due to the rise of Image Comics:

The Image model has always been about investing in yourself and reaping the benefits of that investment if sales are strong. I knew that going in with Skullkickers back in 2010 and, even when our sales were borderline unprofitable, I stuck with the series as a way to establish myself as a writer and show people our team could produce a high quality comic month after month. Now, four and a half years later, I’m seeing the benefits of that consistency and the growing creator-owned market with my new Image series called Wayward.

Zub enumerates a number of ways Wayward has surpassed Skullkickers, including his larger profile in the industry at large, and the material being more suited to today’s market: “Cute supernatural teenage girls (surrounded by cats) kicking the shit out of monsters on the street of Tokyo plays to a bigger audience than a bro-centric slapstick violent D&D tale, especially in 2014-2015.” While you should read the whole thing, one particular bullet point is worth highlighting:

• Retailer Outreach: I’ve also done a ton of retailer outreach over the past four years. Having well regarded work is wonderful but only if retailers feel confident they can sell the books. As we headed towards the launch of Wayward, the crew at Image and I did a lot of communicating with retailers about the series, showing them exclusive artwork and previews, doing everything we could to prove to them that this was a series they could confidently sell to their customers. That lead to several comic shop and convention-exclusive variant covers for Wayward #1, bolstering our launch numbers by thousands of copies while creating extra interest in the series.

While some may see the “variant method” as a danger sign, I think the numbers on these variants are still low enough on an individual basis to avoid threatening overall comics sales. It’s also CRUCIAL that today’s retailers are more open to diverse material. I don’t like to live in the past, but some of my 90s conversations with retailers begging them to consider selling Simpsons comics spring to mind. But you know it was a different world 20years ago. It’s a different world than it was even FOUR years ago. While Zub notes that neither he nor Wayward artist/co-creator Steve Cummings are rolling in dough, they have enough to pay the rest of the team, and for Cummings to work on the book full time. AND they have a war chest to help promote and keep the book on its successful sales trajectory.

Zub notes that the first Wayward trade paperback is coming out in March, so even his numbers post serves as a way to promote the next work.

Good sound tips all.

Above: the triptych cover for Wayward #6-8 by Cummings.

By Davey Nieves

Munchkin #1

Writers: Jim Zub, Tom Siddell, John Kovalic

Illustrators: Mike Holmes, Rian Sygh, John Kovalic

Colors: Fred Stresing

Letters: Jim Campbell

Publisher: BOOM! Box

The world of table top card games is a universe in and of itself. Much like exploring space you have to be willing to come into contact with any life forms you discover. My sea crab nature prevents me from doing so but I can appreciate the cunning and strategy involved in crafting a game like D&D, Magic The Gathering, or Cards Against Humanity. Apparently I’m not the only one; BOOM! Studios BOOM! Box imprint decided to do a comic book series based on the popular card game Munchkin.

Originally a satire of fantasy roleplaying, the game has since taken on non-fantasy and non-gaming elements, and the new comic series is a direct reflection of that. For anyone that’s never played Munchkin; the game is more of a parody take on card gaming, only with a purpose. Kick open the door. Kill the monster. Steal the treasure. Screw over everybody you come in contact with. Welcome to the quirky world of Munchkin. The book features four stories set in and around the world of the game, featuring Spyke, Flower, and all the other characters, monsters, and settings players have come to love.

Let’s just talk about the best and worst of the stories found in this first issue, because there’s a fit for each. Jim Zub writes a great six page story dealing with one of the game’s most prominent themes, betrayal. One experienced character seemingly guides a noob through a dungeon as he’s simply trying to level up. The jokes in the story are sharp enough that you’ll ignore the “saw that one coming” ending. Tom Siddell’s “Humans Got No Class” story definitely lacks the punch that the others in the book capture. The story is about a group of players trying to lure their friend into joining the game only for the rug to be pulled out from under them. While it has its own charm, the punchline of the story just doesn’t make you laugh as much as the other tales did. Tom also writes a three page opening called “What is a Munchkin?” that’s hilarious.

For a book that has three different artist; the style feels universal and not one bit out of place in this cover to cover satire on gaming tropes. Mike Holmes, Rian Sygh, and John Kovalic each illustrate a story (sometimes two) and each capture necessary whimsy the sight gags need to keep the readers attention. While Rian’s work is probably the smoothest of the three none ever feel foreign compared to the others.

Overall Munchkin is a fun read for fans and non-fans alike, but any lasting appeal will only land with hardcore fans. Bonus, there’s even an exclusive Up A Level card for players that ships with the first print of every issue. BOOM! Box knows who they’re selling this book to and have designed it that way. If you already know and enjoy the world of Munchkin go pick this up.

If you remember the word munchkin as something uncle Jesse called Michelle on Full House then follow Dave on twitter@bouncingsoul217

Yep, it’s our annual survey of the comics landscape, from the mainstream to the indies and everything in between. Each year we send out surveys to as wide a swath of comics pros around the world as we can muster…among the answers you’ll find lots of news of 2015 projects, predictions of the year ahead…and right off the bat some startling news from Jeff Trexler about a possible legal bombshell in 2015…and the return of Casey from James Sturm’s epochal comic strip “The Sponsor.” Hold on to your hats and let’s get going.

Jeff Trexler, lawyer

I write for The Beat and TCJ.com. My personal sites are in hibernation, but one day, I shall come back. Yes, I shall come back.

2015 Projects: I have an active law practice, so …

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Catching up on all the articles I planned to write based on my notes from the San Diego and New York Comic Cons. There’s some fun stuff, not all of it legal.

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? The biggest legal story would have to be the Kirby settlement. That case was on its way to the same fate as previous attempts to flip work-for-hire judgments under the 1909 Copyright Act, but the denouement was straight out of a Mister Miracle comic.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? This might not be the biggest legal story, but one thing that many people don’t realize is that the Siegel and Shuster Superman lawsuits are still alive, with more decisions likely in 2015 and even 2016.

How can this be, you ask, when one of 2014’s other big stories was that the Supreme Court had dinged both of these cases?

The Siegel case situation is somewhat bizarre. You might recall that after the Supreme Court let stand the 9th Circuit’s ruling that the 2001 term sheet between DC & the Siegels was actually a final settlement, Toberoff tried to keep the case alive with a few new arguments . They weren’t particularly novel – rather basic, actually – but they were the sort of thing a lawyer typically would have tossed in the mix from the beginning. As I pointed out on The Beat, by failing to raise these arguments earlier he had actually waived them, thus illustrating one of the dangers of getting so swept up in what you might win that you lose sight of the details that can help you get there.

The court followed the same line of reasoning – arguments waived; case over. But then, at Toberoff’s request, two months later the court amended its judgment to throw in a declaratory judgment that the Siegels’ termination filing in 1999 was valid in regard to Action #1, Action #4, Superman #1 (page 36), and the first two weeks of the Superman newspaper strip. In other words, the material was officially not work for hire.

This ruling was rather unusual, given the 9th Circuit’s determination that the 2001 settlement agreement made everything afterward moot. Perhaps the judge thought that this was a harmless sop to history given the other legal hits to the Siegel, but it was at base a trap. Toberoff didn’t ask for this to make the Siegels feel good; he was setting up yet another appeal. His argument: the lower court should have exercised its discretion and considered the waived anyway. Were Toberoff to luck out and get a more sympathetic panel, it just might flip the lower court’s ruling re the Siegels claim that they voided the agreement but uphold the ruling that the termination was valid.

DC responded to this as one might expect. Since the 9th Circuit had declared everything after 2001 to be moot, the court had authority to issue a declaratory judgment that the termination filing was valid.  What’s more, DC doubled down on the problems with Toberoff’s waived arguments and returned to one of its own earlier arguments that the Siegels’ 2004 lawsuit was invalid, since it was filed a year after the statute of limitations had expired.

Will the Siegels win? Well, the case will go before a new panel so there’s always a possibility. Should they win? I’ll leave the moral and ethical questions to each of you, but legally, let’s just say that there are some judges who would find Toberoff’s appeal here to be so disrespectful of the 9th Circuit’s previous ruling and the fundamentals of procedure as to be offensive. Again, there are others that might welcome the opportunity to flip the case back to the Siegels, so we’ll just have to watch what happens.

As for the Shuster heirs/Mark Peary case, the appellant here is in fact DC Comics. On December 9th, 2014, filed notice with the 9th Circuit that it is appealing the lower court’s denial of its state law claims that Toberoff unlawfully interfered with the 1992 Shuster settlement agreement and 2001 Siegel settlement agreements. The issue, in short, is not Superman but Toberoff.

The Siegel appeal is well underway – the briefs were filed as of September, and now we wait for oral argument (if any) and the court’s ruling. The briefs in Shuster/Peary case are scheduled to be filed by July 2015.

Sarah Gaydos, editor IDW

2015 Projects: Editing: Edward Scissorhands, Star Trek, Powerpuff Girls: Super Smash Up, Disney, Infinite Loop (US release)…and more!

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? I can whittle it down to three: the rise of the creator, Amazon purchasing Comixology, and the continuing rise of women as creative forces and readers.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? I *hope* it is more and more innovation on how to get more comics in the hands of new readers. I’ll certainly do my part.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Any and all Li’l Bub videos.

Eleri Mai Harris, cartoonist/editor

2015 Projects: I just finished working on an epic about bear hunting that drove me nuts

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? Clearly Simon Hanselmann’s wedding to Comics at SPX in September was the society highlight of 2014? For The Nib, our story of the year was a comic by an anonymous artist about her rape

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? I’m hoping that the biggest story will be a clear shift from more traditional news media outlets to creating dedicated comics sections, as Fusion did with Jen Sorensen in 2014.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Reading the entire Tony Edward’s Captain Goodvibes collection on the beach in Australia in January.

Alison Sampson, artist

2015 Projects: I’m drawing a creator-owned book with Steve Niles- Winnebago Graveyard is a classic scary story. Our Think of a City project will run through all of 2015 and into 2016. Right at this minute, I’m working on a cover, and I’m hoping to be doing more design work and illustration including more unorthodox comic pages, next year

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? Rights ownership leading to big financial wins for some- Image creators, Boom! Studios, Marvel films, and the rise of the comics-to films and tv interface.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Fallout from the rise of creator-owned work and the increased confidence around it: previously silent voices being heard, and the rise of more genuinely diverse work from companies known for their superheroes.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Drawing to expand the form of comics, and I’d like to visit the US again. The guilty pleasure would be eating seafood every day when we do get to the US.

Jim Zub, writer

2015 Projects: Wayward and Skullkickers for Image, Samurai Jack and Dungeons & Dragons for IDW, Conan-Red Sonja for Dark Horse.

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? Diversity in comics, both in the fictional characters we read and the creators who weave their stories. The discussion of people of color, gender roles, LGBT, sexism, and our expanding social consciousness reflected itself in mainstream news and filtered down to the way the comic industry sees itself. It’s slowly changing the business in a good way and I hope the trend continues.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Reboots of reboots. Both DC and Marvel are trying to find the magic mix of new #1’s/new directions while clinging to their legacies with old + new universe crashing crossover events. It looks like they’re both going to reach critical mass in 2015 and seeing if they succeed or fail will be fascinating stuff that people will analyze and discuss for years to come.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Chip Zdarsky’s Howard the Duck series. I’m curious if Chip’s no holds barred humor will flourish in the Marvel Universe or if they’ll have to sand off the edges.

Michael Davis, artist/publisher

2015 Projects: Milestones2: African Americans In Comics, Pop Culture and Beyond:curator Dec 2015  -the immediate squeal to the wildly successful galley show Milestones:African Americans in Comics, blah, blah, blah.

The show opened Dec. 2014 for a 4 month run and was immediately extended. Making it one of, if not the most successful shows at The Geppi Entertainment Museum.

The Hidden Beach Project Winter 2015: a co venture with Hidden Beach Records. A never seen before merging of music & comics

The Underground 2015? Really? A story of the Underground Railroad—over 10 year odyssey written and illustrated by Michael Davis Dark Horse Comics

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014?  Spiderwoman’s ass
What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? The Static Shock Live Action show
What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? The reaction of Variant Comics when they get called on the carpet legally. They continue to leave up untrue information and have been asked repeatedly to correct the issue.

Casey Gilly, journalist

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? First ever Bay Area Comic Arts Festival

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Treatment of women in the comics industry.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? More pictures of Justin Jordan’s cat, Tom Waits.

Ivan Brandon, writer
2015 Projects: DRIFTER

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014?  WOMEN. The fictional women inside the comics, the real-life women crafting their stories, the readers that made all of that possible. Women dominated the sales charts on original content and corporate properties and dragged the industry kicking and screaming into the present.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? I’m gonna go with women again. I haven’t seen this kind of fire in the audience in my whole career.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015?  Can I say Howard the Duck? I’m not really feeling guilty about it, but I’m pretty sure Chip will figure something out.

Calista Brill, Senior Editor at First Second
2015 Projects: Jay Hosler’s amazing LAST OF THE SANDWALKERS! It’s like Watership Down with insect scientists!

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? Ms Marvel! And by extension the continuing (if grudging) trend of mainstream comics inviting a wider variety of readers into the club.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Scott McCloud’s THE SCULPTOR.
What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Finally catching up on SLEEPY HOLLOW!

Joe Keatinge, writer
2015 Projects: Writer of Shutter and Tech Jacket, for Image Comics

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? It’s a tie between The Walking Dead show having more viewers than NFL football and Raina Telgemeier changing the definition of what a “mainstream” comic is in the 21st century by consistently dominating the New York Times bestsellers list with multiple perennial titles.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? The Walking Dead show and Raina Telgemeier announcing a joint Presidential run for 2016.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? I don’t like the idea of “guilty pleasure” as people should just like what they like, but in terms of just things I’m looking forward to in 2015 — I am excited Master Keaton’s getting released so I can resume having a new (to me) serialized Urasawa book every other month.

James Sturm, cartoonist, educator

2015 Projects: I’m working on a kamishibai project in collaboration with a performer and a kid’s book. I just wrapped up a nine-page comic for the D&Q 25th anniversary book—The Sponsor comic was the first two pages.

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? The story I am most fascinated by for 2014 and 2015 is seeing how comics are spreading into the world-at-large as an indispensible tool for communication and education. Graphics medicine, comics journalism, and graphic facilitation are just three examples of ways that the language of comics is being applied in various fields.

The other thing that is very exciting: how much truly fantastic work is being produced right now. It’s hard to keep up.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Guilty pleasure and masochistic pleasure: following the Knicks and the Mets as they go from awful to awesome (in my heart I am an optimist).

Giulie Speziani, writer

2015 Projects: A few titles coming out in the new year that I can’t mention yet.

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? The Milo Manara Spider-Woman variant cover. It was an extremely divisive topic–everyone had a strong opinion about it. People got in heated debates about the pose, the artist’s history, what it means for women in comics etc. My twitter feed was very entertaining that week.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Something Star Wars related.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Mad Max: Fury Road. Judging from the trailer it looks over-the-top amazing so I don’t feel that guilty about it.

Ian Harker, cartoonist/publisher
2015 Projects: GHOULANOIDS – Derek Ballard

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? Breakdown Press

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Emily Carroll

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Potential BLADES & LAZERS Special Edition

Jeffrey Brown, cartoonist (Photo by Jill Liebhaber)
2015 Projects: Darth Vader and Friends will be out in April, while Jedi Academy 3 comes out in the fall. Currently working on a middle grade series about Neanderthals.

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? I don’t even know, because the past few years all of the biggest stories in comics are overshadowed by film and TV stories related to comics adaptations. So the biggest comics stories are actually really, really tiny.  So I’m just going to say Mike Dawson’s essay about what it means to ‘make it’ in comics.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Instead of big budget film adaptations of comics, independent producers will begin adapting single comic pages into youtube videos.

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? Episode VII

Van Jensen, writer

2015 Projects: I’m working on The Flash and Green Lantern Corps for DC, and I’ll have a new creator-owned series coming out from Dark Horse, plus the occasional bit of journalism.

What was the biggest story in comics in 2014? Honestly, I have no clue. The deeper I am in the comics world, the less I feel like I have a grasp on it. It felt like a very fractured year, with lots of really excellent books and also a lot of noise. It did seem like maybe we crossed some kind of tipping point with new audiences finding and consuming comics in really large numbers, and that influence starting to spread across even mainstream books. But I think it’ll be some time before we can really process that.

What will be the biggest story in comics in 2015? Other than the DC move to Burbank?

What guilty pleasure (of any kind) are you looking forward to in 2015? I’m really looking forward to our son starting daycare so I can have more writing time, but I feel incredibly guilty over that. So it goes.

By Matt O’Keefe

Jim Zub has been on a tear since Skullkickers debuted in 2010. In four years he’s gone on to establish himself as writer of properties such as Pathfinder, Samurai Jack, and Disney Kingdoms: Figment. Now he’s going back to his creator-owned roots with Wayward, a comic book series from Image with Steve Cummings about a group of teens taking on the supernatural in Tokyo, Japan. I spoke with Jim about the thrill of launching a new title, and the journey that led to Wayward.

Art by Steve Cummings and Ross A. Campbell.

This is your first new creator-owned book since 2010. Is launching a new series more exciting, or terrifying?

I thought it would be easier but, the minute the press release went out and Wayward was fully announced, I realized I’d forgotten that stomach-wrenching fear of putting out a new creator-owned series. It’s wonderful, but there’s definitely a bit of fear wrapped up in it.

Establishing a new title and getting people to try it out, that can be a tough prospect. I’m doing everything I can to make sure readers and retailers can see that we’re hauling ass on this and doing everything we can to launch strongly.

Japanese mythology has been left largely unexplored in Western fiction. It must be exciting to introduce such a rich world to readers who are largely unfamiliar with it.

Absolutely. Japanese mythic lore is such fertile ground for exploration on so many levels and I’m incredibly stoked to be able to use that foundation and bring a modern spin to it. Readers won’t need any prior knowledge in order to dive in and enjoy the character story but, by the time they’re done reading, I hope they’re intrigued and want to read more.

Cover art by Alina Urusov.

What kind of Japanese mythical elements will we see in Wayward? Ghosts? Demons? Gods?

Yes. Yes. No comment. :)

The sheer variety of yokai at our fingertips is kind of staggering. I feel like our first story arc is just scratching the surface and that’s a very cool feeling.

That being said, I don’t want people to get the wrong idea that it’s all monsters all the time. Yes, the creatures and spirits are important, but it’s a really a story about these teenagers in Tokyo and their struggles.

Is Wayward Rori’s story, or do you consider it more of an ensemble piece?

It’s an ensemble, but Rori is our touchstone character who brings readers into that world, so the first arc is heavily weighted around her experiences. As the story goes on it expands past her and takes on a larger scope.

How far have you laid out Wayward? Is there an overarching story you’re telling?

The first arc is obviously tightly written and I know where our second arc goes, though Steve and I are still brainstorming ideas that will be a part of it. I’m really hoping readers connect with our cast and we launch strong so we can have a long and healthy run where we can explore bigger ideas about myth, belief, and supernatural elements in the modern world.

Interior art drawn by Steve Cummings with colors by John Rauch and Jim Zub.

You and Steve Cummings created this series together. What were some of the benefits of knowing who was going to be drawing your story from the start?

Building a story with an artist and feeding off each other’s strengths right from the get-go is really empowering. There’s an enthusiasm and interplay that I don’t think you get when you’re writing a concept for no one in particular. Steve wanted to do an urban supernatural story set in Tokyo and I was eager to write something dark and engaging to meet that vision. The visual elements were right there from the start and in a visual medium like comics that’s ideal.

How has what you’ve learned about the comics industry since starting Skullkickers informed Wayward?

Well, right off the bat, I’m hoping 4 solid years of writing comics, more and more each year, has improved my storytelling abilities. I have a better sense of what’s possible on the page and how to communicate those ideas to an artist.

Beyond those aspects of the craft, I’ve promoted Skullkickers steadily at conventions, stores, online… slowly but surely broadening my network and hopefully proving to readers and retailers that the comics I create are worth supporting.

Over the past 4 years I’ve had other creator-owned projects I’ve developed but something always got gummed up – artist availability was the most common, but there were other projects that didn’t feel like the right book at the right time. I used to get freaked out that if I didn’t have a follow-up project out immediately I wouldn’t be able to “make it” in this business but now I’m more zen about it. I don’t want to have my name on something half-baked just because I can put it out. Wayward is Steve and I both putting our all into it.

Interior art drawn by Steve Cummings with colors by John Rauch and Jim Zub.

You’ve talked a lot about productivity in the past. Is it harder to work on a creator-owned series like Wayward than a licensed book that has firm deadlines like Samurai Jack?

It’s definitely harder at the start because you don’t have a baseline. World building is always tough. It’s creatively satisfying to have it all be “yours” but setting up that framework and making those decisions is a lot of work compared to gathering reference material and building on what’s already there.

Even still, once I get rolling on a creator-owned project there’s a tremendous amount of pride there. The freedom to make big decisions quickly and to feed new ideas as they come to me is really wonderful. I really do enjoy balancing both creator-owned and work-for-hire projects. They flex different creative muscles and make me a better storyteller.

What’s inspiring you, in or outside of comics?

Comic-wise I’m loving, in no particular order, Saga, Daredevil, Swamp Thing, Conan, Amazing Spider-Man, The Sixth Gun, Shutter, Invincible… lots more.

Outside comics I’ve been reading quite a bit of non-fiction. My cousin gave me a great book all about social systems and the way we make decisions called “Nudge” that I quite enjoyed. I’m midway through Nate Silver’s The Signal and the Noise about predictability and data sets and it’s also pretty fascinating stuff.

I don’t get many chances to play tabletop RPGs any more thanks to my intense work schedule, but I tried out a storytelling improv-centric game that plays out all in one session called “Fiasco” a few months ago and it was stellar. Within a few hours you and your friends build a crazy crime story from scratch and play it through to an unexpected, and almost certainly hilarious, end. Creative, fun, and really fulfilling.

Follow Jim on Twitter @JimZub and at his website full of awesome tutorials. Pre-order Wayward #1 at your local retailer with the form above.

Jim Zub’s 2014 is picking up some real speed right now. Most well-known for his series Skullkickers with Edwin Huang and Misty Coats, which is soon heading towards the penultimate arc, he’s building up a head of stream to take him straight through into 2015. Alongside his creator-owned fantasy sword-swinging monster-kicking fighty fight series, he’s also now writing various projects for DC, Marvel, Dynamite and many others.

One of the most interesting things about Zub as a creator, and what first caught my attention, is his openness about his career and creative process. The extensive comic book tutorials on his website offer some brilliant advice on a range of topics, from publicity to building a creative team, and right through to the tricky stuff nobody else talks about – like, for instance money.

Which means there’s a lot to talk to him about! Ahead of issue #25 of Skullkickers – which you’ll get to see preview pages from below – he spoke to me about building Skullkickers, assembling the team, and how he’s managed to keep interest in the series so high.

Steve: Skullkickers started as two short stories in Image anthology collections. Why take it to an ongoing series? What about the characters or world made you want to continue on with their story?

Jim: Erik Larsen, who was publisher at Image when the Popgun anthology came out, really liked those two short stories. He was the one who asked if we wanted to do a full comic with the same characters.

I think the concept, two mercenary monster-mashers get themselves into capers and have to violently find a way out, lent itself to a continued adventure. It was open-ended and became a vehicle I could use to explore and poke fun at well worn fantasy storytelling tropes.

Steve: The original two shorts were with Chris Stevens, although for Skullkickers proper you’ve been working with Edwin Huang. How did you connect with him?

Jim: Chris and I did the Popgun stories and he was originally on board as the artist for the proposed 5 issue mini-series, but in order to work on the regular series with any regularity he’d need to stop doing freelance work for months at a time and financially that just wasn’t possible. Add in some other curveballs that were thrown into his life and it quickly became apparent that it wasn’t going to happen. I mothballed the Skullkickers first issue script and expected it would never be illustrated.

Cut to about a year and a half later. Edwin was getting ready to graduate from art school and he’d contacted the UDON studio, where I was working as a Project Manager, looking for a job. There weren’t any positions available but I liked the quality of his samples so he and I stayed in touch. I recommended that he have more sequential samples in his portfolio and, when he asked if he could work from one of my scripts, I passed him the script for Skullkickers #1. Within a few pages I could see that he’s be a great fit and thankfully he felt the same way. He finished up issue #1 and I re-pitched it to Eric Stephenson, who gave it the green light.

Steve: What about his art drew your attention? Were you looking for something particular for Skullkickers?

Jim: Edwin’s style is clean and crisp with clear storytelling and great expressions. It’s cartoonish where it needs to be without slipping into something too exaggerated or loose. Even when he’s drawing grim and violent stuff there’s a playful quality to it that reminds me of Mike Wieringo or Paul Smith.

Steve: Misty Coats has been colouring the series since the start, and has become a firm part of the creative team. Did you invite her to the series, or was she recommended by Edwin? 

Jim: Misty was recommended to me by colorist Christina Strain. We had line art all done for issue #1 and I knew that Christina knew all kinds of colorists who were just getting their start. I showed her the line art and explained the colorful-animated look I wanted for the series and she suggested Misty. The first two pages of issue #1 are actually Misty’s sample pages. They were perfect.

Steve: As the series has gone on, how do you feel that the style of the comic has changed? Do you think that, as you’ve all grown closer as a creative team, you’ve experimented more?

Jim: When I’m in the midst of working on an issue it kind of feels like it’s always looked the same, but when I refer back to earlier issues and compare I’m amazed at how far we’ve come. There’s a far greater understanding of how we all work well together – the humor, the art, the lettering, all of it. I’m not afraid to try weird things and the rest of the team trusts that there’s a method to the madness, which is very encouraging.

With work for hire I always send a completed script whereas with Skullkickers I’ll sometimes just send Edwin a handful of pages to work on as I squeeze in some Skullkickers writing time inbetween other projects. He’s an absolute pro and just rolls with it.

Steve: Although obviously it’s great that Skullkickers has continued on for such a long time, does it also get harder to promote and talk about the series, the longer it continues? Have you found that attention starts to fall off a little over time, and PR becomes more important?

Jim: Absolutely and it’s something that’s really hard to explain to people. Getting readers to stay excited and committed to a longer running series can be quite difficult. There’s an understandable obsession with the ‘new’ thing –new series, relaunches, the latest announcements. We’re all guilty of jumping to the new shiny thing and taking older stuff for granted. That’s the kind of thing we mocked with our 5 new #1’s in 5 months thing last year (Uncanny Skullkickers, Savage Skullkickers, etc.), but it’s become bizarrely prophetic since then.

Our newest solicit for Skullkickers #27 kind of sums it all up:

“Not a new #1 - Not a reboot - Not a paradigm-shifting crossover event… and yet, still totally worth picking up and reading, we promise!”

Steve: How did that relaunch/rebranding idea come about – and did it actually prove to give the series a boost in sales?

Jim: Like a lot of the jokes in Skullkickers that relaunch/adjective thing happened because I wanted to take something real and exaggerate it to a ridiculous degree. The sheer number of first issues that were being announced at the time, with the DC New 52 and Marvel Now at the forefront, was mind-boggling. It felt like every bit of promotional press was being sucked up by those first issues and that a bunch of wonderful long running series weren’t getting any attention at all.

I love that books like The Walking Dead, Invincible, and Savage Dragon have been able to continue doing what they do issue after issue, arc after arc. Artists like Ryan Ottley should be lauded for their commitment and consistency, but that’s just not how the attention span of the industry seems to work.

Skullkickers is a funny book and I felt like we could poke holes in relaunch-itis by pushing it to an extreme. I figured we’d get some interest and mild amusement, but I didn’t anticipate that we’d almost double our sales for a few months and be a talking point in the whole relaunch culture. That was unexpected. Our print sales settled back down over time, but I could instantly see why publishers get so tempted by that shiny red ‘first issue’ button. It’s Pavlovian. Readers and retailers respond.

Steve: Do you think that comics can even be pitched as lasting for, say, fifty issues anymore? Do you think we’re heading (as companies like Marvel seem to be considering) into a place where stories last for a set run, maybe 12 or so issues, and then wrap up the storyline?

Jim: Skullkickers wasn’t pitched as a long run and I doubt many stories are or should be, to be honest. I think it’s good to plan a story that could work in a shorter run but has potential to go further and delve deeper if the market responds well to it. Better that than expecting a massive run and having to truncate it awkwardly when it doesn’t work out.

Superheroes function as a perpetual license extension of the characters and concepts, so they defy standard storytelling expectations or most finite runs, but I think this is where creator-owned comics work so well as a singular vision of those creators. The length of the comic is built for the story, whatever that may be. I love that John Layman can say “Chew will be 60 issues” once it launches successfully – and then carry that out.

Steve: How soon into starting the series did you plan out your ‘exit plan’, so to speak? At what point did you decide how the story would end?

Jim: When sales numbers came in for issue #3 Eric Stephenson asked if we wanted to make the series ongoing. At that point I sat down and planned out the bigger story framework, with six arcs as my ‘ideal’ length. When I wrote issue 4 I started foreshadowing future storylines and we’ve rolled it out from there. Although I wrote other comics before it, Skullkickers really feels like the start of my comic writing career. I’m really happy we’re going to see that 6 arc master plan through.

Steve: How do you think the comic market responds to comedic titles, at present? It seems like recently there’s been a visible movement towards comedic titles like Quantum & Woody, Deadpool, Harley Quinn and so forth.

Jim: It shouldn’t surprise anyone that people want to enjoy their escapist entertainment and that stories that bring a smile to their face have great value. That I even have to explain this to people is kind of ridiculous. People like being happy – Full stop. Bringing joy to an audience is not something to be ashamed of.

Marvel’s capitalized on this very well with their movies. Each and every one of the Marvel Studio films is a crowd-pleaser with a strong mix of action and humor. When people leave the movie theatre they’re smiling and are quick to recommend them to others.

Thankfully comics seem to be finally shaking off the “we’re serious, dammit, so please take us seriously” shtick. You get reflected back what you give. The industry tried serious grim self-loathing for the last 25 years and that’s what it got back in return.

I have serious stories in me but, by and large, I want to read joyous energetic adventure and that’s what I tend to put into my work. Call me crazy, but I want to write raccoons with laser machine guns more than brooding navel gazers with blackened seeds of hate in their heart.

Steve: Issue #25 of Skullkickers is out this March, heading towards the penultimate story arc for the series. As you start to wrap up the overall story, what can readers expect from the next few issues?

Jim: In our third story arc we delved into Rex’s past and showed where his golden gun came from. This story arc, A Dozen Cousins and a Crumpled Crown, will show more background on Rolf, our pint-sized murder machine. Expect lots of dwarves – dwarven problem solving, dwarven history, and dwarven justice.

All of the seemingly random and ridiculous threads we’ve put out in the first four story arcs are starting to tie together in weird and wonderful ways. If you’ve been reading from the beginning you’ll see larger patterns emerging, but the current story is still fun and accessible. It’s still all about frantic fantasy fun.

Steve: While Skullkickers may be wrapping up shortly, you have a number of new projects coming up – you’re writing Samurai Jack for IDW, you have an Amanda Waller one-shot at DC Comics. How do you balance your various projects against each other?

Jim: Probably the most valuable thing I learned while working at UDON was how to gauge my own productivity and how to break larger tasks down into smaller more manageable tasks I could schedule around.

On an ongoing series you’re always multi-tasking – Issues are being planned, solicits are dine up, scripts are written, pages are being drawn, coloring and lettering is being proofed. It’s a constant barrage of material on 3-4 issues at the same time and it’s never boring. I enjoy the process and, more often than not, I enjoy having a lot of different projects on the go at once.

Steve: A repeated mantra in comics is “it’s not hard to get into comics – it’s hard to STAY in comics.” Is it difficult to keep a sense of momentum, as a creator?

Jim: I think you go through little personal booms and busts, definitely. You can get neurotic about whether or not you’re doing it “right”, whatever that means, and where things might be a year from now, 3 years, 5 years. All of that just distracts you from doing the best job you can in the here and now. I try to just focus on making my current writing the best it can be and hope that readers, retailers, and editors enjoy what I’m doing enough to keep asking for more.

If creators want to be visible and stay in the business they need to keep creating and that’s easier than ever. Digital outlets, conventions, and publishers of all sizes coupled with professional quality art/publishing tools at our fingertips gives almost anyone the ability to create and get in the ring.

Steve: What else do you have coming up over the next year? Do you have any further creator-owned projects in the works, at all?

Jim: Honestly, it’s pretty nutso right now, in a good way.

If you total up the projects that have already been announced with projects that haven’t been revealed yet I have 7 different comics I’m working on with 6 publishers – Marvel, DC, Image, Dark Horse, IDW, and Dynamite. I’m excited to show people a greater range to my work.

At least one of those is a new creator-owned series that I think that’ll turn heads when it’s revealed in a couple months.

2014 is incredibly exciting so far and I can’t wait until people see what’s coming up.

I hope that if people are enjoying Skullkickers, Samurai Jack, or Pathfinder they’ll check in with other comics I’m working on as they’re announced and released.

The best way to keep up on what I’m doing is through my website: www.jimzub.com. In addition to announcements and interviews I’ve got tutorials about writing, pitching, and working in comics that people may find helpful.

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Many thanks to Jim for his time! Skullkickers returns after a hiatus this March with issue #25 – the final order date being March 3rd. As mentioned, you can find out more about Jim on his website – or follow him on Twitter!

Fans of Cartoon Network’s Samurai Jack are finally being tossed a bone. Nine years after the series finale of Genndy Tartakovsky’s show, IDW Publishing has announced a new comic book featuring the continuing adventures of Jack, the dimensionally displaced warrior and his epic quest to destroy the wicked overlord Aku.
Written by Jim Zub (Skullkickers) and illustrated by Andy Suriano, the new comic will pick up where the series left off, beginning with a five-issue storyline called Rope of Eons. Suriano, who designed characters for the show, reflected on returning to the popular character via press release: “Returning to Samurai Jack is such a personal experience and labor of love for me. It’s like stepping through a time portal back to characters I know as friends and a world that really launched my animation career.”

The first issue of Samurai Jack, which will begin in October, will feature a variant cover by show creator Genndy Tartakovsky, as well as one by Rob Guillory (Chew).

(via Comic Bastards)

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Frequent collaborators on mysteriously short-lived Image projects, Jim Zub and Edwin Huang have been announced as the creative team for a new issue #1 from Image in June, Dark Skullkickers Dark #1. And that’s not a typo – the extra Dark is there for a reason.

And that reason is because the comic is dark.

This is, of course, the most recent ‘relaunching’ from the Skullkickers team, who have spent the last few months designating each new issue of Skullkickers as a different #1 relaunch. Each time they relaunch, they add a different adjective in front, like ‘Mighty’ or ‘Savage’, poking fun (but also emphasising) the bizarre importance that the comics market puts on relaunches and short-term storytelling.

Next month will probably see Trinity of Sin: Skullkickers announced. In a fun press release (and you know there’s nothing I find more entertaining than a press release, guys!), Zub quotes Image’s PR and Marketing Director Jennifer De Guzman thus:

It’s a pale reflection of the industry’s need to spin rebooted series through endless hype, turning the crazed hamster wheel of entertainment promotion until it’s fallen apart. Good-bye, integrity.

This whole thing – which has generated consistently higher sales for the series – is a pointed criticism aimed at all the comic book websites which value a quick spike in internet traffic over covering important or worthwhile news stories. Here’s the variant cover for the issue!

Where was I? Ah yes, comic sites which are obsessed with printing press releases and quoting verbatim rather than writing something new or useful for readers. Here’s a quote from Zub about the subject:

Fun comic books are a thing of days past. In order to grab a modern audience I’ve dipped into the darkness of my own heart and spilled my blood upon the pages of this sequential masterpiece. Oh yeah, there’s beer in it too.

(The first issue of Dark Skullkickers Dark will be out in June.)

TweetUncanny is such a strange word to use to describe a comic, much less a range of different comics which tend to feature characters who aren’t unexpectedly familiar – they’re the X-Men and Avengers, they’ve been around for decades. Which is why it’s nice to see that the Skullkickers creative team of Jim Zub and [...]