[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome back to the Capes and Tights podcast right here on Capesandtights.com, i'm your host, Justin Soderbergh. This episode is once again brought to you by our friends over at Galactic Comics and Collectibles at galactic comics and collectibles.com this episode is Chris Condon, comic book writer of books such as that Texas Blood, the Enfield Gang Massacre, Ultimate Wolverine, Green Arrow, the upcoming Far Down Below at Mad Cave Studios, which is coming March 26 to a local comic book shop near you, as well as the May release of a book called the Goddamn Tragedy over at One Press. But this episode we talked mostly about Far Down Below, which is coming March 26, like I said, to your local comic book shop. But before you listen, check us out on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Blue sky threads, all that stuff. You can rate, review, subscribe over on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you find your podcasts. You can also find us on YouTube as well as reviews, opinions, countdowns, all that stuff
[email protected] but this is comic book writer Chris Conan talking far down below from Mad Cave Studios. Yeah, enjoy everyone.
Welcome to the podcast. Chris, how are you today?
[00:01:11] Speaker B: I'm well. How are you?
[00:01:13] Speaker A: I'm doing well, Doing well. It's, it's starting to, I live in Maine and starting to warm up a little bit. The last couple weeks have been snowy and, and you know, cold. So it's, it's warming up today. That's a good thing.
[00:01:24] Speaker B: Yeah, for sure. I mean, it's, I'm in New Jersey and it's like kind of warming up a little bit, but I don't trust it.
[00:01:32] Speaker A: Well, it's funny, I feel like, been like a young kid, I lived in New England my entire life and I just feel like it's always been like snow and then slightly warmer, you know, like a shoveling snow the next day. You feel like almost, you don't want need to wear a winter hat or something like that. Just like warms up a bit. The past few snowstorms here in Maine, it's been like snow and then frigid, frigid, frigid temperatures, which means like all that snow and slush that like catches in your wheel well just freezes and doesn't melt. So like I've like had like you turn my wheel in my car and I just like, you hear like just scraping. It's weird. And so it's, it's warming up a little bit now and finally the snow is melting off my car which is, which is a good thing. But you know what? I'm a Mainer. We complain about the weather. It's what we do. And so it's going to be too warm here in a second. So it's, it's how we, how we live our lives. It's too hot or too cold, but. Yeah. Well, welcome to the podcast. I really appreciate you taking, taking the time out to chat comics with us, Chris, here on the podcast. But let's get a little dive a little bit into how did you get into writing comics in the first place? Let's just touch on that a little bit before we get too far into Far Down Below.
[00:02:40] Speaker B: Well, how did I get into it? I got into it by accident, kind of. I mean, I was, I was trying to do a film and Jacob Phillips did some concept art for me. And then I got frustrated with trying to get funding together to make a film.
And I always loved comics and was like, hey, Jake, you don't have a comic and I don't have a comic. Do you want to make a comic instead? And he was like, yeah, let's do it. And then we came up with that Texas Blood, which was originally going to be a film, and so that sort of blossomed and became its own thing. And then we just kept doing our own thing. And then, you know, editors would reach out and then, you know, little by little built up a little bit of fan base and, and a little bit of cred. And, you know, next thing I know, I'm writing Ultimate Wolverine and that's how it happened.
[00:03:32] Speaker A: Yeah. Next thing you know, you're, you're taking tackling new Wolverine stories for Marvel. That's pretty crazy. You know, it is. It's funny how some people are like, they grind, grind, grind for years and years and years and years, and they just, they get to do like a one off, like one shot for Marvel. And then there's other people who, you know, grind. You're still grinding doing this and getting their work out there, but all of a sudden I know you're, you're tackling the new Ultimate Wolverine stories at Marvel not too far into starting to write comics. It's pretty much. Must feel pretty crazy.
[00:04:02] Speaker B: Yeah, no, it's, it's, it's pretty wild. I mean, and something like what we're going to be talking about today for Down Below, this is an idea that I've had since high school. So it's kind of just been like full circle in a lot of ways.
You know, even writing Ultimate Wolverine and, and Green Arrow. I mean, that's like, you know, I never got into comics to write superhero books. I kind of just, it was an avenue to tell my stories. And I, you know, I was really fortunate that it took off in the way that it took off and I was just kind of happy to be doing that. And I love comics, so it was like a no brainer for me to just like continue doing it in the way that it was working. Just doing stuff.
But yeah, and then, you know, you get offers to do this stuff and you start thinking to yourself, oh, well, do I have a Green Arrow story to tell? Do I have an Ultimate Wolverine story? Like, how does that, you know, and then you start thinking about and it's like all of a sudden you click back into what it was like to be a kid and like playing with toys and, you know, all that kind of stuff. And it's pretty fun. But yeah, it all just kind of happened by accident.
[00:05:07] Speaker A: Well, and that's awesome. I love that. That's a, that's a fun thing. It also shows proves to people like, anybody really can do this if you put your like, mind and heart into it. Really. Like, it's not as simple as just being able to like, just be able to like, oh, I'll apply for a job. I want to apply for a job at Best Buy. I mean, pretty good chance you're going to get a job Best Buy if you have a good background and so on and so forth. You can't just do that. You can't just be like, hey, Marvel, you know, I want to work with you. Cool. When can you come in for an interview? It's a little bit more how, who, you know, who sees you. But yeah, anybody really can, can do this if you, if you put your mind to. And you're pretty good at it. I mean, do you, do you find yourself now that you've worked on Green Arrow, you've worked on Ultimate Wolverine, these things that you'll, your mind is like, just in case I ever get called to do a, do a Magneto story, I'll have a magneto story.
Or is this one of those things that when it comes up, you'll start, you'll start thinking about it?
[00:05:56] Speaker B: Yeah, when it comes up, I'll be like, let me do some research, you know, and then I'll sit down and like, be tinkering on something. But it's. Yeah, I mean, it's like I never thought to myself I'd get to do Wolverine. So I didn't really have any plan of what I would do. And then for that one, it was like, well, I. One of my all time favorite stories is Weapon X. So I was like, let me try to do a spin on Weapon X, but in this other universe. And, you know, the idea of doing it as Winter Soldier came from doing that. From that. And then so it was just sort of like no brainer kind of things and just like, you know, going back and rereading a lot of, like, the Claremont stuff and rereading Astonishing X Men and like, you know, all this stuff. Just sort of gathering all this information and pulling, you know, whatever I want from it.
But, yeah, it's. It's. It's funny, you know, getting that stuff. But, you know, I don't plan. Like, I'm not sitting there with a story in my back pocket. I mean, there's some characters that I do want to write.
[00:06:52] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:06:53] Speaker B: Like, I have a scarecrow idea I really want to do.
Everybody laughs. But I have a wannabes thing I really into.
So, you know, it's like, there's stuff I want to do that I haven't quite done yet, but, um. Yeah. Do I have ideas that are just like. Do I have, like, Magneto stories and all that? No, no, but I mean, it'd be fun, you know.
[00:07:16] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, it's true. I mean, I'm sure most people who write, you know, Marvel DC Comics don't have stories for every character, but, yeah, they have their favorite, like you just mentioned, or stories that you really want to tell. But, I mean, was it. Do you find yourself that it was more difficult or more of a, you know, trying to wrap your brain around doing something like Ultimate Wolverine versus Green Arrow, you know, has Ultimate Wolverine's like a kind of a fresh start on something. So you have to, like, you have a little bit more playground to play with.
[00:07:41] Speaker B: I mean.
Yeah, no, I mean, it wasn't. I wouldn't say difficult so much. I mean, for Green Arrow, we also kind of had a blank slate in a way because of where Williamson ended his run, which was that there was basically, I mean, I guess I can probably say spoilers since the event ended a while ago. But, like, you know, Ollie turned on everybody and then turned on everybody again by being like, oops, gotcha. And it was like, you know, kind of in that, you know, with that frame and then coming at it with this idea that editorial head, which is that they wanted to go more street level, I just sort of took that as, like a chance to make a clean break and, you know, do something else for a second, and then, you know, slowly start trickling in, you know, more family stuff and all that. But for me, like, personally, like, Green Arrow has always been like, you know, Danny O'Neill and Mike Rel, sort of like this abrasive kind of liberal.
[00:08:46] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:08:46] Speaker B: And so that. That was fun to get to, to do a full arc in which we. We kind of dive. Dove into that. And then with Wolverine, like you said, I mean, it is a blank slate. You're basically given, like, you know, carte blanche. You can do whatever you want, but, you know, at the end of the day, like, it's Wolverine, you know, so everybody knows Wolverine. And it's like, you know, you could do something completely off the wall and, like, go bonkers with it. But my approach to it and, like, my feeling on it as a fan, because I'm. I read books. Like, I literally, like, I have a stack of, you know, I mean, I don't. I have a stack of, like, X Men books here reading through.
But, like, as a fan, I'm like, you know, that might be fun for, you know, an issue or two.
[00:09:35] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:09:37] Speaker B: I think at the end of the day, like, we all know what Wolverine is.
[00:09:40] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:09:40] Speaker B: So it's like, you know, the novelty of the thing would wear off and it's like, well, is anybody going to care about this 10 years from now? You know, so. Yeah, so my approach was really just kind of taking it and being like, what is the most, like, you know, like the actual, like, when you talk about, like, oh, this was the ultimate story of this character. I was like, let me approach it that way and just try to tell a unique, good Wolverine story.
And so that was the idea.
[00:10:07] Speaker A: Yeah. I would imagine. It's like you mentioned a little bit there that, like, doing a one shot for an example, like a what if Wolverine did this? Is a lot more of a go off the wall, do whatever you want, because it's literally just an alternate story of something for fun. Whereas hopefully this ultimate universe lasts a while. And so you do have to set some sort of a foundation for Wolverine moving forward. You can't just be like, oh, I'm gonna go batshit crazy, and then be like, okay, hopefully this lasts 10 years. Hopefully the last five years, whatever it may be, someone else eventually is going to write this story, write this character, and you want to be able to put the foundation together for them not to be like, oh, by the way, yeah, I was really, really, really, really, really out of my mind that time I wrote that comic, so good luck. See you later.
[00:10:48] Speaker B: I mean, that may be the case. I might be out of my mind. But no, I mean, it's. Yeah, for me, it's like I have 12 issues that I'm doing, and so I have an end in mind. And I like that. I like that I have an end in mind, you know, that everybody always wants you to do more. And, like, are they going to extend it or are they going to extend. I'm like, I don't. I hope they don't, you know, because I don't want to. I like my story. I think it works as a. As like a, you know, as a single story.
And I know that some people don't necessarily like that, you know, they. They want to continue reading it, but I think that sometimes things are, you know, things should end. You know, I always love, like, a mini, you know, I love, you know, there's like, finite stories that you end up really loving, like that Venue one or Weapon Ax. You know, you have, like, these, you know, serialized stories that do have an ending. And I think that's great, you know?
You know, and I don't want to. I don't also don't really have any, like, desire to be, you know, writing for Marvel or dc, like, indefinitely. Like, I love those companies and, like, what they do and what they represent, and I'm really fortunate to be doing it. But I also don't want to be like, that guy.
[00:12:00] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:12:01] Speaker B: Like, doing only Marvel and, like, he's like, excels at do, you know, like, sort of like, you know, Donny Cates with, like, Venom or, you know, whatever. Like, I don't want to be that guy. So I just kind of. I would like to, if possible. I don't know if it's possible in a. In a career I'm just, you know, starting out, doing. But, like, I would like to be able to just, like, drop in, tell a story and then leave, you know, and a little. I mean, we, you know, we got extended for Green Arrow, so I'm doing another arc in Green Arrow, but, you know, I don't really plan on staying on that forever, you know, so you.
[00:12:37] Speaker A: Don'T want to do, like, 60, 70 issues of green Arrow, I think. I think.
I thought you mentioned about, like, coming up with a story. If I do I have a story for, like. I feel like that would also be difficult after a while being like, I gotta continue writing these stories.
[00:12:48] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:12:49] Speaker A: New stories for. For Green.
[00:12:50] Speaker B: That was even the thing with this next arc. I mean, the first arc I had the story, I was like, oh, this is pretty good. And then, like, what am I gonna do for the next one? And it's like, what characters do you bring in? What characters? You know, like, how do you do it?
And, you know, I was like, well, people like these characters, but these characters always show up. So I. I, like, went back and I like the adventure comic stuff from, like, the 50s, and found a villain who showed up once and then just disappeared. I was like, I'm going to bring him back. So that's what we're doing. But it's like, it's always funny to be like, you know, what. What do people want to see?
Which I think you do have to think about. But at the end of the day, you just kind of have to, like, tell whatever story you think is the best story. And, like, the story that we're doing in Green Arrow, I think is a nice continuation of what we had in the first arc in terms of being grounded and dark and gritty and all that, you know, all the BS terms.
But at the end of the day, you know, I wanted to push things a little bit further. So we're, you know, we're bringing Roy in, and, you know, so we're doing a little bit more.
Yeah, we're bringing a little bit more of the family into it, which is fun. You know, I get to explore a little bit of that. And there's some stuff that I want to do that I love to do in comics, which I don't really know if anybody else cares, but I like doing it, which is I like to actually, like, be, you know, in conversation with books that came out in the past. I did it in my Daredevil one shot that I did. I do. I do it in. Did it in Harley Quinn, the short story Jacob Phillips, and I did.
So. And that's the thing that I like to do, because I think that it's, you know, there's literally like 70 years of history sometimes with characters, so. So why not, you know, play around with it?
You know, I mean, we do a certain amount of that and in Wolverine as well, but it's obviously different because you're putting your spin on things.
[00:14:46] Speaker A: Yes. Because. Yeah, the ultimate stuff of it. Yeah.
[00:14:49] Speaker B: But, yeah, I mean, I read all the. The, you know, the previous issues and, like, certain characters, and they try to pull as much from that as I can, but then I feel like that's important to, like, get you, like, understand the character, and then you can twist it, you know.
[00:15:03] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:15:03] Speaker B: And do whatever you want with it.
[00:15:06] Speaker A: You've obviously been you're deep in. You're busy now with. With doing Ultimate Wolverine. You've got Green Arrow going on. You've got some one shots things here. You do some stories in Cruel Kingdom and those EC stuff for.
[00:15:19] Speaker B: For.
[00:15:20] Speaker A: For ONI Press there, which is awesome. Those things are phenomenal. All of them. I like any of those anthology. I just haven't got one that has come out from the EC currently that I'm like this sucks. They're all really awesome. Like this is really cool and I love to see it's like different creators getting to play with each other too, which is really cool and all that sense too. But like to that Texas Blood is what a lot of people know you for who if they know your name, they know that you know that series. I mean we went 20 issues. Was that planned for 20 issues? I mean did you have that story, the whole thing or was it like a five issue miniseries that. That you continued on or. I mean we'll get into Far Down Below, but we just wanted to touch like that's a. It was a fun run. So I just didn't know if you had planned. Well, it's not over O.
[00:15:58] Speaker B: We're gonna do more.
[00:15:59] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:16:00] Speaker B: Yeah. I mean the goal is we want to do 50.
[00:16:02] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:16:04] Speaker B: And then we would end and then we could even go further from there. But like the Joe Bob of it all would end at 50.
[00:16:12] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:16:12] Speaker B: Like that would be like where we want to go with it.
But yeah, I mean the. So the idea. So when we pitched it to Image, we pitched it with like the idea of it being a series. Like and that. That was an interesting thing too is breaking down like what. What would a series look like, you know, if we were going to do a series? And like I. For summary, I don't know why, but I had like a million stories and I wanted to tell that took place in Texas already. And so I was like, oh, this is like a good. What if I just like have them all set in one county and then just have these characters like come and then. So that was like really where it kind of came from, the idea of doing the series.
But I just kind of like roughly pitched what we wanted to do.
I mentioned Eversoul, which is in the second arc in the pitch. And then kind of I had an idea for what I wanted to do with each arc. So I. I know where like things are gonna go for the next three or four arcs. But yeah, it was just like it. We sort of had like a soft idea of what we wanted to do. And then once we actually did the first arc and it sold well, well enough. And then like, we had an audience that wanted more from us, then I kind of like really sat down and was like, okay, where are we gonna go from here? And like, does it work? How does it work?
All that? And then, you know, we did the Enfield spin off too.
So, you know, and that, that kind of opened up that gate for us that if we want to do spin offs, we can, you know, which is fun, you know. So I mean, we have 20 issues of like the main title that Texas, but we technically have like 26 issues, which is really fun to be able to play with and expand the world that way, you know, where you're not just, you know, beholden to whatever characters were in that specific thing.
[00:17:56] Speaker A: That's awesome. And it's awesome to hear that there's more to that world that you can build off of. But like, you, you, you. It's, it's, it's great where it is too. So if there ever, ever was a point where it was like, yeah, we can't do any more with this thing, I think that's, it's also great where it is. Which is really kind of a good thing to have. You didn't like, just. It's not like this massive thing where like people are like, oh, we need more of this right now, or we're gonna, we're gonna be really upset. Like, this is, it's really cool how it's sitting where it's at now. But like, yeah, more would be fun. Looking forward to that for sure. But. So you and Jacob did that and you did the Enfield gang massacre together.
Is there so, so far down below? Coming here from Mad Cave Studios, it's you and is it gay? Gay Gigi.
[00:18:36] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:18:37] Speaker A: Gigi Shaw. You. You and Gigi doing this book together.
One of the things I will say right now is the book is well, well, well, well written. I loved it. Phenomenal book. It is beautiful. Like I will tell you right now, this is nothing against Gigi of at all, but is there a real reason why it's not with Jacob or. I know Jacob did a cover, but.
[00:18:58] Speaker B: No, I mean. So Jake and I are doing a book right now.
[00:19:01] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:19:01] Speaker B: The Handsman announced yet? I think it's going to be announced at San Diego and it's not that Texas blood related, so he's just busy and he's doing another book with Tate Brownville as well. So it's like he's just busy doing stuff and then coloring his dad stuff. I'd love to have him on every book.
But there's also. You know, one of the fun things about doing comics is that you get to work with people that you love their work. And Gigi was somebody who. I loved their work on. On Made in Korea with Jeremy Holt. So I. You know, so I was a big fan of their work already. So I was like, oh, well, you know, I pitched a couple names to Mad Cave, who I'd like as an artist on it, and Gigi was one of the first names that I mentioned. And I was really fortunate that Gigi said, yeah, but. Yeah, I mean, you know, we do have Jake on the covers, so there's. We're remaining in family that way, which is nothing.
[00:19:59] Speaker A: I hate to say it, because it almost sounds like I'm putting Gigi's work down, but. But. But, like, it's just one of those things. You see the success of the team that you have and what people are used to seeing and seeing your name with someone else on an independent comic. Like, this is just different. But I love it, too. Is. That's a big thing you mentioned, to be able to work with new people. And to me, I. Like, I said, I fell in love. I opened. I was just. I was. I was amazed. I don't know what it was. There were some of these comics out there that just, like, look good and feel good. And there was something that just, like, I felt amazing reading this book. Like, I actually had this weird, like, euphoric feeling of, like, oh, this is really cool story. But also, like, it's just beautiful. The colors are amazing. The design's amazing. Everything about the book is just stunningly attractive. And I think that was, like, one of those things where I'm like, screw Jacob Phillips. That, no, you need to work with Gigi all the time.
[00:20:45] Speaker B: No, I'm glad you think that, because, I mean, I felt that way. I think that Gigi did a phenomenal job. I mean, so this is, like, full disclosure. I mean, this is an idea that I had in 2008, 2009, before I graduated from high school, you know? So, I mean, this was an idea that I had that I wrote originally, and it was very small compared to what it became. Okay. And just over the years, I just, like, tinkered with it, you know, and I sent it out to, like, screenplay competitions and stuff like that, and, like, you know, got a little bit of heat here and there, but nothing ever happened with it. But it was this idea that I just always loved. I was loved. This idea of, like, paying homage to, you know, 80s Stephen King and like, 80s, like Joe Dante and Spielberg and. But also, you know, paying homage to Jules Verne, which was really important to me in my childhood.
And so, yeah, so handing it off to an artist, you really don't. You kind of have to take a certain amount of it on faith and just be like, you know, I hope you don't screw this up, because it's like, I have an idea in my mind, and then I've been really fortunate that I don't think I've ever had a bad experience with an artist where they've turned something in and I. I've not liked it.
And in the case of Gigi, Gigi just, like, blew it out of the water. Yeah, she just did this amazing job just designing the monolith and the house and just like, gets the vibe of it. All that sort of. That 80s vibe of it.
And like, I was. I was obviously, like, worried that people would be like, oh, this is just like a strangers thing. Rip off. But yeah, I like, did this ideas in the bed in the back of my mind since, like, high school, so I'm like, who cares?
You're like that. Yeah.
[00:22:32] Speaker A: The Stranger Things is a rip off. A far down. I don't know what you're talking about.
[00:22:34] Speaker B: Yeah, well, there you go.
But, yeah, it's just like, it's so cool to actually see it come to life and come to life in such a vibrant way. And like you said, the colors are phenomenal. The drawing is phenomenal.
[00:22:48] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:22:48] Speaker B: And it's just. Yeah, the colors especially, they're just like. They have this, like, great nostalgic feel to them.
I'm really glad you highlighted that.
[00:22:57] Speaker A: And they're different in that sense that, like, dark rooms feel dark. You know, underground. Feels like underground. You know, like, there's vibrancy to some of the colors. There's, there's. There's. There's just different shades. Like, it's just. It's just like every. Every page looked perfect in a sense. I also feel like there's some people who tend to randomly just like, okay, cool, this is the background. I'll do a couple little sketches here and there of, like, what's in the background. But it feels like Gigi, like, actually, like, paid a lot of attention to what's going on in the background too. Like, almost to the point where it's almost too much in a sense that, like, you don't need to do that. But I like that attention to detail too. Or like, in the basement. Like, they're in the basin at one point in the, in their, in this house. They're one of the main character's house. And they're looking through things. Like, you could have just put like a black shelf with like Blur on it basically, and like, it would have been like, okay, cool, we're in a basement. But like, there's actually, there's actually like stuff on the shelves and things like that, which I appreciated because it gave me something to look at. It makes me. There's certain comics where I like to read and I go read it and I'll go, cool, I read it one of these days. Maybe again, I'll read it again. I don't know, we'll see. But like, when issue two comes out, I find myself probably wanting to pick this issue back up and, and read it again to, to prepare myself for the next issue, but also to look at things in the background and look at the nuances that were put into the effort into this comic. And I think that, that, that this one stood out in that sense. It's like, it's so funny because a lot of times I read a comic book like that, I'm like, oh, I should get this person on the podcast sometime. This is great. This is a great. You know, this is an amazing thing. And then I read this one. I'm like, awesome. Chris is coming on the podcast. I can actually talk to the creative team. This is amazing. And it was kind of funny because they almost. I just got it on Friday, which, you know, mad cave. Sometimes it's so far in advance, like there's. It's insane sometimes where I'm like, dude, this comic book doesn't even foc for like two months and I've already seen this comic. But yeah, it was just amazing. So I thought the experience of reading it was just. Was just so phenomenal. And the story. And I love how the fact that you created this story so many years ago and tinkered with it along the way, that maybe that's one of the reasons why I like it so much is you kind of like fine tuned it over the years.
[00:24:53] Speaker B: I don't know. Yeah, no, I mean, it's. Yeah, it's. It's been really fun to just kind of sit with it and see it evolve and, you know, going back and, you know, I'll look sometimes at the stuff that I wrote back in the day and be like, wow, you know, it's crazy to me that it came from that to this and just kind of. And you know, it like fully, you know, it's fully formed now. It's got, you know, a voice. It's got its own, you know, it's got the, its own set of characters and its own set of rules. And it's just, it's, it's, you know, it's really fun to see that come to fruition. I mean, that's one of those wonderful things about just like sticking with things, you know.
[00:25:31] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:25:31] Speaker B: You just, if you just stick with it. I mean, that's the, the. I mean, I'm really fortunate. A lot of the ideas that I've had for years and years and years are finally coming to fruition. The thing I'm doing with Jake is another idea for a long time. But yeah, I mean, it's just, it's, it's really cool. I mean, I don't with that because it's like, I don't want to get into like spoiler territory, but it's like I'm really excited for people to read it because it's, it's a six issue mini or five issue mini. And it's like there could be more if we wanted to do more. I really hope people pick it up because I do think that there would be, you know, a fun way to continue doing this story.
But like, I'm just. It just goes to wild places that I don't think people are necessarily expecting. I mean, in a way you might expect because, you know, there's precedent with, you know, it's a version of Journey to the center of the Earth. Yeah. But you know, it's. I don't think that people are necessarily expecting the twists and turns and the, you know, where things go with personalities in terms of the characters and all that.
And it's just, it's fun for me also to stretch my legs a little bit and do something different because I think people, you know, they expect a certain kind of story from me. And it's like personally I'm like, I'm a little bit of everything, you know, And I feel like I know that, but I don't think that everybody knows that because I think certain people, you know, when you write a book like that, Texas Blood, they sort of expect a certain kind of book. And then when I'm doing Wolverine or Green Arrow, it's like they hire me to be that guy.
[00:26:58] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:26:59] Speaker B: And so I'll deliver that. But I also want to be able to do something that's fun and a little bit spooky, a little bit creepy, but also, you know, fun Funny. That's one of the things, you know, that's one of those things that Gigi just really caught on to, was like, these characters are just like kooks and like, they're funny and. And like they. They have this humor embedded into them that I think is really great.
So I'm really. I'm really excited for people to read. I'm glad you enjoyed it.
[00:27:29] Speaker A: Yeah. And it's. It's. I mean, I was born in 86, so this is not like I was 83 is when this is based. Not. I mean, I'm an 80s kid, so some of these things, Some of these references and things like that are gonna. Gonna hit with me. You know, them playing dominoes and things like that. In. In the comic that does kind of hit with his mom cooking and stuff like that was always pretty funny, but there's comedy in it. But it's like almost like a wholesome horror.
[00:27:52] Speaker B: Like.
[00:27:53] Speaker A: I don't know, it's weird to say. It's like. It's like, it's horror in it. It's sci fi in it. There's this wholesomeness to it. There's this, you know, one kid of the two friends, like, wants to take the risks and was like, stop being a, you know, you know, stop being a wimp. And the other one's kind of like, more reserved. And so there's like that personalities in it that are different and so on. So the characters seem pretty fleshed out. Fleshed out in this. But yeah, it starts out obviously with. With. With back in Time, you know, with. With more of the Jules Burn stuff. And then it just jumps towards 1983. So the whole thing is just. I don't know, I feel like it's a period piece. That's really cool too. I think that it's nostalgia that people love right now. I think a lot of us want to live, you know, back in time, but not really. I want to want the stuff from the 80s I really don't want. I want the good stuff from the 80s, but not like the bad stuff from the 80s, if that makes any sense. And so I think that it strikes a bunch of chords. And I do think you. You know, this is not Stranger Things, I'll tell you that right now in that sense. But, like, it can fit that crowd of people who are interested in that.
[00:28:50] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:28:50] Speaker A: Thing.
[00:28:50] Speaker B: And I just think people paint things with a broad brush, you know, sometimes, so they'll. They'll hear some things like, said in the 80s and they'll be like, oh, it's, it's like that and it's like I, I worried about that a little bit, but at the same time, you can't really worry about that too much because you just gotta tell your story.
And yeah, I mean, I was so. I was born in 91, so I was gonna. But I, my brother was in the. Born in the 80s, so I kind of was like, I'm, you know, everything kind of got pushed into my life from the 80s.
And you know, I could have set this in the 90s, but there's a reason. You'll find out in the next issue of why I ended up going with the 80s. It just made more sense to like go early 80s. And I also, a lot of my nostalgia is for that stuff.
You know, Star wars, you know, Indiana Jones, all, you know, all that kind of stuff was like, I was growing up with all of that. So it was very important to me to set this in that time period and try to capture a little bit of my childhood, but also not just my childhood in terms of like, what happened to me when I was a kid, but in terms of like the things that I was absorbing, the things that I was enjoying and just trying to have a little bit of fun with that.
[00:30:03] Speaker A: It was also fun and fun if you try to, if you, if you base it in current times, they, they ride from one house to another on bicycles. And I don't know if people do that anym. I don't think there's some things where you kind of have to put yourself in this situation. Like, I've always thought that like X Files. There's no way that X Files could be a show on today and based in 2025. Because, like, I feel like half the stuff that we just debunked by like calling each other on a cell phone or like I've always thought like Seinfeld, like half the episodes are them like missing each other, like in the movie theater or stuff like that. Like, if you just had a cell phone, you called each other, you'd be able to figure out where each other is. You wouldn't do this. And so there's certain time periods where like certain stories have to sit in certain places because of that too. And I just feel like I don't think that like my son's 4, but like, I don't think him playing dominoes would be a thing or riding his bicycle with friends is not as much common as it was back in the 80s and early 90s. And so I think that's also part of it to me is like, you know, that, that factor that certain stories have to fit in certain places because of that.
[00:30:56] Speaker B: But yeah, no, absolutely. And I mean, that was again, that was like a big part of my childhood was just like, you're bored and there's nothing to do. And it's like, what are you gonna. You know, we could watch a movie. We could go like, we can go out on our bikes and find some, you know, to get up to. And that's, you know, that was kind of what the whole, you know, idea was for this comic was like, what if there was just like something happened? All these guys are on their, like, adventure.
[00:31:22] Speaker A: I also want to spoil it at all, but I do. There's this one line where he goes, you know, says it's. But isn't it raining outside? He's like, no, it's not. And then it cuts to a scene of it just raining outside. Phenomenal. Because I'm like, that would also be the thing where I'd be like, no, it's not. I'm just gonna go anyway or I don't care. It's raining. Whatever. We're gonna. I just thought it was kind of funny. I'm like, it's raining.
It was great. It was so amazing. But yeah, it has, I guess it has that thing in it. And I will say, you know, glancing at the, at the PDF I have right here on my, on my computer too is speaking of the artwork and design of it is the dominoes scene where he clicks the domino and the domino falls. That like, that's just a beautiful. And I wonder, I mean, it's a two page spread across the top and I'm hoping it lands as much on print as it does in digital. Because obviously in digital there's just seamless there, but it's just, it's just gorgeous in that sense too. So I think that it's not only a fun, wonderful, you know, nostalgic and sci fi horror story, but it's. I mentioned off the top, it's a stunning book to look at and I'm so glad you're finally being able to tell this story after so many years of writing it. I mean, is there a lot that's changed? I'm not that we're going to get into details on this, but like, is there a lot that's changed since the beginning of this?
[00:32:30] Speaker B: I mean, originally it was a very. Just simple sort of. Yeah, I mean, it was very simple to start. I mean, I really didn't. I also, I sort of had To. I went through a period where I was, like, trying to think about how would I tell this story, you know, now, like, with no money. And, like, that's, like, kind of how I would think about things is like, how do I do this? And I just sort of. At a certain point, you go like, well, I'm just gonna go big. Because you go bigger, you go home. And it's like, why not? And so, like, the. The whole thing grew from there and, you know, introduced all these characters and, like, the. You know, what's gonna happen down below and, like, all this kind of stuff. So they really just, like, really grew and expanded. And that probably happened, like, somewhere around, like, 2012, 2013, something like, that was really where, like, the. And it hasn't changed, like, too much since then, but it has changed here and there. And then also, because it was originally, like. Like, Texas Blood. It was originally, like, a film idea that I was gonna do. Okay. Yeah.
And then, you know, readapting it into or adapting it into a comic book, things change there, too.
So there's certain things that I couldn't fit that I wanted to fit because you only have, you know. Well, I don't remember how many pages it was per issue, but I think it was, like, maybe 22, and then 20 for the rest of them or something like that. So it's like you have a finite amount of space, and you only have five issues to tell it in, you know, so how do I do that? So you have to, like, pick and choose, like, how you want to get to a certain place. And sometimes you realize, oh, I don't need this whole scene. So there's certain things that change. But, I mean, overall, it's like, since 2012, 2013, it's been about the same story in terms of, you know, the overall structure of it, which is really fun, too, that it's like, that, you know, something I wrote back then is, like, now happening.
[00:34:20] Speaker A: Yeah. Yeah.
[00:34:21] Speaker B: You know, it's cool because I think.
[00:34:23] Speaker A: There'S a lot of people out there who have these stories from their high school time or age or even younger, and they're like, yeah, I don't want people to read this. So it's kind of funny that, like, yours is actually one. You're like, no, I tweaked it a little bit. But, like, this is something I created in high school that I really want people to read.
[00:34:36] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, no, no. I love the stuff I came up with, you know, I mean, I'm really fortunate that I don't regret this you know, I, I, I'm so happy that I'm finally able to tell these stories because, you know, these are things that I was kicking around for a long time. The thing I'm doing with Jake was a comic that I was drawing in high school myself, just like, tinkering with and drawing characters and drawing bits and pieces of it. And, you know, I drew a couple full pages but never ended up coming to fruition. And I adapted that from a comic into a screenplay while in college. And then now I'm adapting it back into its, its own thing. And it's like, even. And it's changed since then, so it's like, it's very different. And, and yeah, I don't know, it's just, it's fun to get to, you know, because I don't think these ideas really leave you, you know? Yeah, they're, they're with you. And so, and I feel like telling them now, like, you exercise that, that demon and it's like, out of you.
And so it's, it's a little surreal that this is actually happening because I've been sitting with it for so long, but I'm really excited for it to be out there.
[00:35:46] Speaker A: Is when your teacher was telling you to stop writing this. Stop writing right now about the stupid thing. It's never going to be anything. And you're like, now look at this. No, but, yeah, actually.
[00:35:55] Speaker B: So the thing I'm doing with Jake, which I obviously can't talk much about because it hasn't been announced, but I actually got in a fight with my professor about it because he kept, he kept trying to change it. So it's like more, it's like sort of a noirish thing. And like, he kept pushing it further and further into noir. And like, I was trying to straddle this balance of, like, sci fi horror.
[00:36:18] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:36:20] Speaker B: And he just kept pushing it further and further. And I was like, I literally had to, like, go to the department chair and be like, hey, this. He's like, changing it so much. That's not my story anymore. And, like, had to, like, have a talk with him. Like, you know, like, this isn't my, I like what you're coming up with is, like, it's cool, but, like, that's not my thing anymore. And so, and it, like, really, like, it's like, stuck around for a long time. And so it's really fun to, you know, have like, you know, whole life before.
[00:36:50] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:36:51] Speaker B: You know, these things where they, you know, they have, you know, sometimes I'll focus on it. And sometimes it'll sit on the back burner, but it's like it's always there. And to finally now be coming out with them and the, you know, finally going to see what people think about them. It's really fun.
[00:37:06] Speaker A: That's awesome. If it's story as well worth it, it might as well. Just because it was written years ago doesn't mean that you need to write something new. I think that, that, that these stories. I will say right now I've read issue one of Far Down Below, and it was well worth the wait, in my opinion. You know, I obviously didn't know it existed in 2008, 2009, right around then. But I'm glad you made it and glad you made it. I will say that I'm not going to show this to my grandmother because she is a huge Raggedy Ann fan and I'll just leave it at that. And not, you know, I don't want people to piss people off or anything like that. But there's a moment where I like, holy crap. This is like, this would give my grandmother nightmares.
But I was cool. Is also that I recognize the character, which is also one of those cool things. There probably are going to be some younger generations who will read this book and be like, I don't know. That's just a doll. Like, no, that's actually historic.
[00:37:52] Speaker B: That's. That might be true. But I also think that, you know, for. Hopefully there's kids like, who I was, you know, growing up where they'll see something like that and they'll be like, what is that? And I want to know more about him. So they'll start to do their own research and figure out things. I mean, that was how I own, like, certain comics and movies and stuff. Like that was that I would, you know, read something or watch something and be like, oh, I love that. And then I would read about the people that made the thing and then find out what inspired them. And then I'd go out and find that stuff, you know, and so it's like, you know, or, you know, if there's a movie mentioned or comic mentioned or whatever, you know, certain, you know, whatever pop culture reference, like, I'd go out and, like, figure out what that is. So if people do that, I mean, that would. There'd be no greater compliment to me than that.
[00:38:36] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, I hope so. I mean, it's one of those things, too. When you write a book that's based at a certain time period, you have that balance or that. That fine Line to put things in there to let people know, hey, this is 1983. But also not too much where you're like, okay, I get it. It's 1983. I understand that. Like, there's this balance you have. I mean, you have, you know, something on the tv. You have the dominoes. You have, like, the kitchen, the phone. There's. There's things that make it so that, like, okay, I know where we are. And Raggedy Ann is one of those things that potentially puts you in a spot but doesn't overdo it. Like I said, it's not to this point where you're like, okay, I get it. I mean, did you see Y2K, the movie?
[00:39:11] Speaker B: No, I haven't.
[00:39:13] Speaker A: And I mentioned this before in the podcast, but it's like, it's so much. It's. I think it's necessary for that movie. Like, it's part of their whole shtick is the fact that they're, like, overbearingly doing it to say it's Y2K, but it was just kind of funny after a while. Like, okay, I get it. This. This is the year 2000. I understand. I. I figured that out by now. Okay, you need to stop doing this. And like I said, there's that balance. And I think that this book has just enough of that, at least in the debut issue. Premiere issue here.
[00:39:38] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:39:38] Speaker A: To say, okay, now I know where we are. I know what time it is, but it's not to the point where you're smacking me in the face, being like, everything is a reference to the 80s.
[00:39:45] Speaker B: Well, and I think that, like you said, I think that it's important to kind of set up just so that you can stop talking about it, you know? You know, once. Once you say it, and you, like, kind of drive it home, like, this is where we are. This is the time period. Like, blah, blah, blah, blah. Then, you know, and, you know, going forward in the next couple issues, it is very much down below.
[00:40:06] Speaker A: And so, yeah, so it's.
[00:40:08] Speaker B: It's all just adventure from there.
And, yeah, so if you have all that out of the way, you're good. You know, you don't need to worry about it anymore because it's there. You know, you. You said it.
But, yeah, you don't want to, you know, drive it home and keep telling people every issue it's 1983.
[00:40:28] Speaker A: Because unless you're talking about the specific days, not like every day, you're like, 2025. It's just part of your life. So, yeah, it's Pretty. It's pretty cool with that. I mean, you started the issue off with, like I said, we're back in 1865, kind of giving you a foundation of what's gonna happen in the future, what we're gonna find out kind of thing. And you end the issue with a little bit of a cliffhanger and to the point where, like, I'm ready for the next issue, but to the point where we got to know these characters that we're basing this. This book on. And I think that, I think is the. The biggest thing. One of the most difficult things I think, about debut premiere issues of a series is like, okay, we can't go too fast because people need to know who these people are going. Who these characters we're going to follow are. But we also can't go too slow because, like, we only have five issues to tell this story. And I think that you did balance that pretty well on this one. I think we got a little bit of everything. And I did feel like at the very end, I was like, God damn it, I have to wait too long for this next issue to come back. Which I think is great, because, I mean, I think it gives us suspense. And it's part of. Part of Monthly Comics is the fact that you're excited for the next issue. If it wasn't excited for the next issue, no one would buy you have a problem, and I think that would be a problem. Yeah. So I think it's just enough and I think it's. I'm really excited for people to. To experience it. And I think that again, I. I tend to read the comic that the creator I'm talking to. You know, I tend to read it the day or two before, so it's fresh in my mind.
But, you know, I'm kind of wish I was reading this a month ago because I want to read it over and over and over again because I do like it that much. I will say it's crazy. I don't. I don' Just not just because you're on here. I think it's, it's. It's a fantastic debut premiere issue of a series, and I'm excited for more. I'm really excited for more people to. To read into this for sure.
[00:42:04] Speaker B: Thank you. I mean, it's. You know, you got to think about these things for you doing a premiere issue. I mean, whether it's Ultimate Wolverine or your own book, like, far down below, it's like, you need to think about, like, what is going to sell this to People. Because you do. You need to catch people, you know?
You know, same thing with Green Arrow. It's like you need to, like, you need to get people, you know, you need to show people that, you know, you know what time it is and. And you know what you're doing. And, you know, trust me, come along for the ride.
[00:42:30] Speaker A: You know, I'm excited to see what's below the surface there in eastern Pennsylvania in 1983. I'm really, you know, I know it's not a true story because I've heard about it. So this is not like, you know, back in time. No. I'm so glad to see. Excited to see what happens. It's going to be fun adventure to go on with you on March 26th is when it actually comes out. But FOC is right around the corner, too, so people should check that out, too. But I think that it's gonna be fun. I think it's excited. I think it's gonna meet a lot of people. A lot of genre blending to the point where it's gonna meet a lot of different people in a good spot. I think that, you know, sometimes people are like, oh, horror. And they're like, yeah, or they're Joe's. It's a little bit of everything. I think that's where I think that that is gonna do well for it because it does say everything. And the COVID of COVID A is absolutely phenomenal.
[00:43:18] Speaker B: Just wait. They get better.
[00:43:20] Speaker A: I'm sure they.
[00:43:22] Speaker B: It's like, you know, I know you. You like the first one, but it's like, they just, like, keep getting better. And the. The logo design was also done by Gigi, and that's like, she. She did an amazing job on that.
[00:43:32] Speaker A: Yes.
Your cover B, you also. You get horror icon. Really? They're doing your cover B there. Oh, yeah, yeah. Francisco Fancavilla. Like, that's. That's just beautiful as well.
[00:43:43] Speaker B: Yeah, he's amazing. I. I've known him for a number of years.
[00:43:47] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:43:47] Speaker B: And I've been like, floating around each other and, you know, just kind of, you know, now that I'm doing comics, it's like, it's really cool to have him do a cover.
[00:43:55] Speaker A: Yeah, it's.
[00:43:56] Speaker B: It's.
[00:43:56] Speaker A: It's. It's gorgeous in that sense, too. So I'm excited for that to hit. So March 26, that comes out, you know, before we wrap things up here really quickly. You know, I'm so excited for people to read far down below, but we also have something coming out in May is the goddamn tragedy Is it one shot? What is this all about? Just quickly touch on this really quickly.
[00:44:12] Speaker B: So it is. It's a one shot. It tells the story of this fictional sort of idea of what if you took the Shining and you matched it with the Donner Party?
And that's what the idea is. And it's with a fantastic artist named Sean Kuronero who has done some independent work, but hasn't really done anything full length published with a. An American comics company. And so this is his first real foray into doing something like this and I'm really fortunate to have him on board for this. It's dark, character driven, it's, I hope, creepy. And. Yeah, I don't know. It was just a fun idea and I'm happy. I always like doing a one shot. Yeah. So I'm really excited that this is coming out. But yeah, it's like, it's like you mentioned something and I'm like, oh, what's coming out? I'm like, oh, yeah, that one's coming out.
[00:45:11] Speaker A: I feel like it was just too many things now. Was. It was just announced not long ago either. I mean, I don't feel like.
[00:45:17] Speaker B: Yeah, announced it maybe like last month or something. Yeah, just announced like the covers and all that. Yeah, we got.
I don't mean we got Jenna, Chad. Yeah, sickness. We got. Jake did a cover for this too, which, like I said, I like to bring Jake on. You know, the artwork within is really cool. Sean has this sort of.
It's hard to describe, but it's sort of like this like pseudo manga meets Mignola style. And then he also does this watercolor on it and it just. He. His stuff is awesome and I'm really excited for him to, you know, hopefully kickstarter career in American comics because he really should be doing a lot more.
[00:46:06] Speaker A: Yeah, I would say. Yeah. There's interior art in the email I got from. From Oni Press that, you know, it has that watercolor look to it too, which is really. Rick, I don't know if. Is it watercolored?
[00:46:19] Speaker B: I mean, he does fine art work, but I believe this is digital. But it is. It's done in the style, you know, the watercolor style.
[00:46:32] Speaker A: I mean, it kind of. I guess, honestly, this is a little bit messier, but it kind of reminds me of what a legacy of violence style of Andrea Muti does as well. Has that similar. I don't feel like I said Andre has more, but I don't know. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. Has that watercolor feel, which I liked a lot. Legacy of Violence is one of my favorite comics of recent years that came over at Mad Cave. So that's pretty cool. I'm excited for that too. Yeah, it looks pretty cool. Yeah, they do a lot of like 17 emails from. From ONI Press where it's like announcing something and then like covers and then an interior. Like it's a very good, very good marketing on that sense there. They just like.
[00:47:07] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:47:07] Speaker A: Tab it along because this is until May 5th with. For sure.
[00:47:12] Speaker B: I mean, I wish that more companies had their, their marketing strategy because they are very good at what they do.
But. Yeah, no, it's. It's really cool to have this, you know, come to fruition. This is, this was an idea that wasn't like stick sticking around for a long time. This was like a newer idea too.
And yeah, it's just, it's fun. It's. And the watercolor stuff really fits the time period too. I feel like it works for, you know, it sort of has that Godfather 2 kind of like, like drawn out colors kind of thing.
[00:47:41] Speaker A: Yeah, that's. That's coming in May, but you have Ultimate Wolverine right now. You have Dare. Sorry, Green Arrow coming out as well. I really enjoyed the night people, if anyone wants to check that out too. That was, that was really, really good as well.
[00:47:55] Speaker B: Weirdo.
[00:47:56] Speaker A: Yes.
But you know, Far Down Below, pissing.
[00:48:00] Speaker B: On a, on a car in like a shoot too.
[00:48:05] Speaker A: It's great. I think it was a phenomenal series. I don't know what you're talking about. That Texas Blood is also great.
[00:48:09] Speaker B: No, I like it. Don't get me wrong. It's just. It's an odd book.
Yeah, I don't like, I don't know any books like it. It's like, it's weird.
[00:48:17] Speaker A: It did stand out. Stand out on its own for sure. But like I said, Far Down Below is phenomenal. I'm super excited for people to read it March 26 at your local comic book shop. Let your, your comic shop know that you want it so they can get it in there. And I know the distribution world is a little crazy right now, so just, just, it's. No, not too early to let them know. Just let them know you want it and just figure it. We'll get it to you. That's the big thing right now. But yeah, I'm really excited for that and I really appreciate you taking time to come out on the podcast and chat about Far Down Below and so much more. We'll get you back on in the future when something else cool comes up. If that makes any sense to you.
[00:48:51] Speaker B: For sure. Thank you very much for having me. I appreciate it.
[00:48:53] Speaker A: Absolutely. Thanks, Chris.
