[00:00:00] Speaker A: Welcome back to the Capes and Tights podcast right here on Capesandtights.com, i'm your host, Justin Soderbergh. We once again are brought to you by our friend over at Galactic Comics and
[email protected] and as well at 499 Hammond street in Bangor, Maine. This episode, we welcome back comic creator Patrick Horvath to the show. Horvath is the creator of Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees in its sequel series, Rite of Spring. Patrick is also writing stories for DC Horror Creep, showing love, love ignited and more. He also has a book out called Free for All over oneypress. He's here to chat all things Beneath the Trees, especially Right of Spring and the upcoming Beneath the Trees Halloween special, which hits stores in October and touched on a little bit of the new announced Archie in Hell series coming. But mostly Beneath the Trees, Samantha and all things Woodbrooks. But before you listen, check us out on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, bluesky, threads, all those places you can rate, review, subscribe over on Apple, Spotify or wherever you find your podcasts. As always, you can watch the video portion of this podcast over on YouTube.com and if you want so much more, you can check out capesandtights.com this is Patrick Horvath chatting Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees and so much more. Enjoy everyone.
Welcome back to the podcast. Patrick, how are you today?
[00:01:20] Speaker B: I'm doing great. Thank you so much for having me.
[00:01:22] Speaker A: Absolutely. This is a couple of times we've been on here, but it's always exciting to have you back on to chat comics and such because it's just, you know, I can't get enough of it. We were just, I recorded this morning, actually recorded a like mid year checkup kind of thing with my local comic book store. Like we did like a 20, 26, like roundup so far and so on and so forth. And it was like, I told him, I was like, January, February, March was like, oh, okay. It was good. Yeah. A lot of finishing issues from previous series that you're excited to read and things like that. And all of a sudden I don't know where I feel like the past couple of weeks I'm just like, it's just gonna be an amazing summer so far.
[00:01:59] Speaker B: Yeah.
I feel, I mean like even in the past week or even weekend, it felt like all this stuff dropped that was like, whoa. Yes. Like, I don't know. I mean it's, it's definitely felt like gears have shifted. Like, we're in, like, almost, like, overdrive. And, like, we're. I mean, it's. I'm ready. Ready. It's going to be good eating for the rest of the year and into next year is what it sounds like.
[00:02:25] Speaker A: It's awesome because, I mean, I do feel like we have that, like, San Diego Comic Con. And I know you guys are probably going to announce something special at San Diego Comic Con, but, like, usually right around that time, you see. Okay. People are waiting for that weekend to announce stuff. Like, they're like. They're like, okay, we got something cool coming. But, like, that weekend. But I feel like it's, like, oozed into June now, and it's like, dude.
[00:02:41] Speaker B: Yeah. I feel like all that stuff happened just happen.
So I'm curious to see what's gonna be revealed next.
[00:02:48] Speaker A: If anything's bigger than that. It's gonna be amazing. It's gonna be so much fun. And you got this. The trade for Beneath the Trees Rite of Spring is coming out right around that time, too, which is really cool because get that out there and get people reading it. I mean, you're now multiple years into writing. Samantha, are you. Is it, like, second nature now?
[00:03:11] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, I feel like at this point, it's. I feel super comfortable in it, even though it's. It's. It's. It's a challenge to take it, like, as I'm. I'm in the.
You know, more than just the beginning, but, like, I'm getting into the third volume as we speak, and so it's like. It's sort of the same. You know, it's new challenges trying to take it to a new place while it still feels genuine and true to the direction it's been traveling.
But it's a. It's definitely, like, Feels super comfortable. For me. The characters feel super comfortable. Like, I very much understand them as well as anyone can, and which. They're all extensions of me, you know, to some degree.
[00:04:04] Speaker A: Right.
[00:04:04] Speaker B: So, like, it's kind of a hilarious, fun place to be.
[00:04:08] Speaker A: I'm glad. And it's also. It's one of those things I just feel like we had as readers and people who either stumbled upon or were anticipating Beneath the Trees, the first volume, it was like, we got it. We're like, this is exciting. This is so much fun. A lot of people liked it, got Eisner nomination. It was just, like, awesome. And then when we found out there was more, it was like, oh, my gosh. We get to continue living. We, as readers, get to continue Living in it, let alone someone who enjoys writing comics and illustrating comics is. Is get to a little bit more. And then Halloween special in the future and all this stuff. It's just like, we thought we had this miniseries, and now we're just getting so much more, and I feel like it's just. It's fun. I mean, is it different for you now? I mean, like, when you first started making this original series, you were hoping, obviously, that it was successful and hoping that you get more to do either other jobs or more of this specific Beneath the Trees series.
What's. Is it different now? Is like. Is life different? Is. It's not like life has changed completely, but it's life different now with the success of the series so far?
[00:05:09] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like, between. I mean, now and when I started, it's radically different.
I still had, like, a foot in the movie world when I started this, the very first volume, and I still also just had a day job.
And both those things have sort of gone away, and comics has sort of become the main game for me right now, which is awesome, to be totally honest, but I didn't expect that. So I. I mean, when I put it out, it's. It was. I was hoping, you know, some people would pick it up, probably the trade. Like, I didn't think anybody would. I was hoping some people would read the Singles, but I was a known name and it was.
I had really, you know, modest expectations.
So to see, like, the incredible response to it was really, like, really honest. I'm kind of wrapping my head around it now, but, like, it took me a long time to sort of be able to just really appreciate that and get out of my head about feeling like an imposter. And then the rest of it is like. I mean, like, when I sit down to the table now, it's with that success of the first book and the second book, and so it's.
I guess there's just more confidence to me doing what I'm doing. I guess I'm just less in my head about it.
I was very much in my head when I did the second volume. When I did Write a Spring, I was like, I don't know if people are gonna go for this. Like, it's that, you know, because there was the expectation, I guess. And so number two always feels maybe even harder than the first because there's no expectation with the first.
And you're. You can just sort of do whatever you're gonna do and be like, well, I. You know, I did my best that was it.
And now it's like you have this whole specter of, like, what folks are expecting.
So you're like, you know, how do you want to deliver on that?
And are you. You know, I think I really got tied up in that, the beginning of it, until I kind of just settled in and realized it's going to have to be what it's going to be. It's going to be different, and it should be, like. Just. Because I really did feel like if we did a rehash of the first volume, it would have been pretty obvious. And I kind of felt like sort of lackluster and maybe, like, perfunctory.
And I immediately just got like, I did not want to do that. It was obvious that that was not the way.
So it's. Yeah, it's. It's great. It's wild, like, to be where I'm at right now.
I'm thrilled to be doing this. I'm thrilled to be able to do other projects, too.
And so it's. It is very much like me sort of, you know, sitting in the saddle and starting to feel comfortable.
[00:07:55] Speaker A: It was just awesome. And I think that it's funny how there's also these series that, like, transcend comics in a sense, too. You're in the film industry, so, you know, some of, like, the crossover between things. But, like, I feel like there's so many people that I know that just don't read comics that are, like, have been recommended the first volume to read or hand by a friend or, hey, go to the comic shop and buy this. Because. Because it's. It really is an entry point for people who are horror fans. Because the juxtaposition of the artwork and the horror is something that'd be like, you gotta see this. You gotta read this thing. Like, you gotta see what this is all about. And I think that that's kind of what drew me into, like. We've obviously talked comparisons, and it's even been compared to Dexter is the. Is the. The.
He's a police officer. Detective that. That. Or detective that murders people.
And so you're like, oh, I gotta check this thing out. And then. So that comes over here. But then you add the different artwork in this. That makes it. So it's like, what am I reading? And I think that, to me, a lot of people have grown to that and drawn to that. I think that's what some of the success has been, is that some of those people who may not even normally read comics are coming over to try to see what this is all about. And you didn't invent obviously this style of creating different artwork that doesn't really match the story as much.
But I think that a lot of people got some success. You. And then the whole. We mentioned before, like Tony and Trish and stray dogs and telling stories in a similar fashion.
But I mean, the other side, Rick Remender just did escape with bears and animals and things like that are in war and stuff like that. So it's fun to see these things. And I think that one of the things I told my friend on the other episode we did about 2026 so far is the things that surprised me in such a good way so far this year. But you did that a couple years ago with this.
This year was like, I don't know, I was really happy to read Godzilla versus or Sonic the Hedgehog is coming out soon. I got an advanced copy of that and I was like, I shouldn't like this as much as I. Yeah, yeah.
[00:09:54] Speaker B: Awesome. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[00:09:55] Speaker A: It's like I want more of that. And I think that's what originally Beneath the Trees is like. And so we get more of it. And I think that's amazing. I get T shirts now too. Look at this T shirt.
[00:10:03] Speaker B: Yes.
Yes.
[00:10:06] Speaker A: That's awesome. Which is also fitting how it like works so well. Like the color of the shirt is like just the color of the shirt and the design works. I love the shirt, but it's just grown so much. And I think that that's cool to see. But you've also done other things. Like you've been doing short stories in here and there and stuff like that. It's kind of like, like, you know, palate cleansers for yourself in a sense because. Oh, it's not like, it's not like it's palate cleanse. Like you're writing a romance story. Like full on romance stories. Like you're still writing creepy horror stuff, but like you did the DC horror things and you did Creep show in Love and obviously you did Free for All as well. But like, um, has that been nice to just like pop into those places too to. To take yourself away from this? Does it help like cleanse? Like, is it how I say cleanse? But like, does it help like escape Woodbrook together? Oh, sure.
[00:10:55] Speaker B: I think that I, I'm. I love it because especially shorts, basically you can dip out and just put your head somewhere else for a bit.
And the exercise of doing that is just really. It's wonderful. Like it's.
It's just, you Know, as you would imagine. Like, it's just like nice to have variety and not had just completely be sucked into this one sort of story world the entire time.
And it's fun to just stretch different muscles and you know, even just drawing, literally drawing people instead of animal folks is nice. Like, it's funny because like I didn't. All my drawing up to this was mostly just people. It was all just regular people. I didn't, I didn't like make a career just drawing animals.
But you did the one thing and then you're like, oh, I'm like the animal guy. Like just sort of. You just do it. And then you're like, well, it's sort of undeniable. I can't really say that I'm not going to do this anymore.
And so it's, you know, it is fun. It's a really, it's a really fun break.
[00:11:59] Speaker A: And that's like I said, these small things. You haven't written and done anything like long, like long for like there's like five issue miniseries coming out. It's been living in, in this, in this series.
Did you.
[00:12:09] Speaker B: Yeah, it's. Well, the only thing that, I mean it's. I'm starting to do on work on Archie and like that was like that. That has been like the big, the big change.
And so that's like. And it's new for me too. So like the whole just the experience of writing for somebody else and also putting my head in a whole different thing for like 12 iconic character too.
[00:12:29] Speaker A: It's not like, it's just like this another series that someone's having you create. This is like a. In so many people have touched these characters in different ways in different formats and stuff like that in Riverdale and with Archie. And so like you're not just reading something.
[00:12:42] Speaker B: Sorry, Sorry to switch gears on this whole thing.
We don't have get into Archie quite yet if you don't want to.
[00:12:47] Speaker A: No, that's fine. It's fine. We just jump back to beneath my head somewhere though.
[00:12:52] Speaker B: It's like been huge. It's been huge to totally just dive into a complete different thing. And I'm doing them at the same time.
[00:12:59] Speaker A: So. Yeah.
[00:13:01] Speaker B: Which has totally been a fascinating experiment.
[00:13:04] Speaker A: So Samantha shows up randomly in Riverdale.
Don't worry about it.
It's an accident though. It's not on purpose. Wow. That dog and the bear in the background looks a hell of a lot like Samantha. No, in your writing.
You're writing that story, right? You're not. You're not illustrating that one. Right. You're just writing.
[00:13:20] Speaker B: Correct. Yeah. Tyler Crook's drawn. That's exactly, that's exactly the right reaction. It's his stuff on. It's been incredible.
And it's. It's just such a treat because he's been such a big hero for me as an artist anyway, so that like when we got paired up on it, I was just like, this is. I mean he was the top of the list, but I also didn't really think we'd be able to get him.
And when he said yes, I was sort of like kind of beside myself. But it's been so cool.
[00:13:50] Speaker A: Is it hard when you do like they say specifically this series, like them someone like, this is Oni's first crack at RC2, right. Because it's moving over to Oni on this one. Oni press for them not to be like, hey, can we do it Beneath the Trees variant on this comic book? I feel like it's the same way. I feel like anytime Tony or Trish or any of these people, like with these books that are like, have had these like very, very specific variants that go on to their series that, that attached. They're always. And they're writing something new. Hey, Deathstroke, how about we do a Stray Dogs variant? Is it hard to have people not want to do that or force that into it? Kind of like ride the coattails.
[00:14:27] Speaker B: So far that hasn't happened.
[00:14:28] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:14:28] Speaker B: I've definitely done like Beneath the Trees variants and other stuff for like. Because, well, it's specifically like speaking to Tony. We did like a Stray Dogs thing for the first run Beneath the Trees. And then I just recently did a, like a return on that, which was sort of. That was honestly like in the cards way back when we. When we was like, yeah, if we'll figure it out. But like I want to do a thing for Pharaoh where we do Beneath the Trees. And I was like, of course, yes, let me know. And it finally came to pass.
But it's been a. For Archie. It's been.
Hasn't shown. I mean that hasn't really come up yet. And I think I'm definitely going to be doing stuff. Like it would be crazy if I wasn't doing some covers for this.
But. But the. But yeah, not no crossover stuff yet.
[00:15:15] Speaker A: I mean, it's hard because Beneath the Trees is such a long title too. It's not like, you know, it's not like feral trying to do a cover for something else that's also a one word thing. So like feral is just feral issue 25. Because it has to. Because it's like, it would just look funny if it was just Feral across the top in the Beneath the Trees, you know, font and stuff like that. But. And you had to write why Tony Fleece and Trish Forstner's right underneath that. Yeah, it's a pretty cool cover. I mean, it's. I mean, it's. It's. It is fit the people who are big Beneath the Trees fans. You are going to like feral25's variant.
[00:15:43] Speaker B: I mean, it is. It's hilarious. How so? I ended up tabling next to Tony at WonderCon 2024, and it was right when I think, like, at that point, issue three or four of Beneath the Trees was coming out, and.
And it was like, really just one of those wonderful. Like, thank God I got tabled next to him. You know what I mean?
And because we hit it off and we just got to talking, like, for. Throughout that con.
And it was funny to find out. And at that point, too, I'd already had signings, had people be like. Because I hadn't checked out Stray Dogs yet. And. And there was like, oh, well, you have to read Stray Dogs. So I read it, and I was like, oh, yes, this is awesome. I understand why people were showing up excited for Beneath the Trees just from the subject matter alone.
And our fan base is kind of like, almost like Venn diagrams. Like, almost a circle. Like, it's so, like, overlapping and same with Feral. So, like, it was a. It was just. Yeah, it's a. I mean, we've been on a panel together. Just talk. Specifically talking about it. So it's. It's been a. It's been a really fun thing.
[00:16:52] Speaker A: It's fun, too, though. Like, the funny thing about that theory, that issue 25 for feral is that.
I don't know.
[00:16:59] Speaker B: I think I'm gonna have to buy
[00:16:59] Speaker A: all of the covers. Like, I don't know if you've seen the other covers. There's a Tone Rodriguez has the faculty variant, and there's the 1 in 50, which is the absolute Batman variant. And so, like, it's like, all those covers on one one issue are worth. I mean, it's a milestone issue. It's end of a story.
But, yeah, it's a. It's funny how, like, sometimes, like, all those match up in a way that you're like, I now own seven issues of issue 25, one issue of all the rest of them, but now I own seven of one. One comic. And then I always get Thrown off because I put them in my CLZ database and I'm like, why do I have seven issues of this one comp. And then, oh, that's why. You actually see the covers. And you're like, oh, that's. That's probably a good reason why I have that. But. But yeah, seeing these and you see them, it's. It's an iconic, like the T shirt. It's become an iconic cover because again, you have to almost like look at it three or four times before you understand what's going on. You see this, like, you know, Richard Scarry style artwork. And you see this, you know, colorful trees, and you know, you're like, wait, is that blood in a bag?
It's my son. It's paint, I'll tell you that much. He's carrying. He painted red, you know, trees, and then had to throw the paintbrushes away and he's dragging the paint. You know, my son's name is Nova. Hey, Nova, you saw me take that trash bag out the other day that was leaking. That's the same thing. But this is the same thing.
He's like, grow up and be like, dad, you lied to me so much.
But yeah, it's, it's again, it's that just juxtaposition that makes you go, oh my gosh, I want to read this thing back to the actual series itself because you obviously derailed us to go to Archie. You know, I had a plan here and you just jumped way ahead.
That's it. No.
Did you. And I don't think I asked you when we talked about the pre launch of issue one of this when you were on. Because we're really here to talk as the series. We're not going to spoil much, but like, as you. The series is now. The second volume is now over and the trades coming out. I really wanted to talk to you again, but did you ever even contemplate the idea of leaving Samantha's story behind and then trying to find another way to get in? Like I said, not rehashing and redoing it. You always wanted to just. Samantha was the character I knew pretty
[00:19:08] Speaker B: much by like the end of issue three of the first run, like, what the second series is going to be, and then subsequently like the third, the.
The idea of like having.
Family members, a previous victim that had been living with this like essentially like, you know, grief of like death in absentia, which is even like, you know, the, the family member just goes missing. You don't even have that closure. And then what that would do to a person over like a huge span of time. Which is part of the reason why I wanted to do such a big time jump was to like let that twisting sort of happen for Monica to feel really horrible saying. But like that. But that was the thing. And so then I was like. Cause she's at. In the issue three, in the first run, she's at the funeral for Martin the Goat and is seeing like the effect on the community. Right. And so. And understands like intellectually like what that is. She has no sort of emotional intelligence at all for that. Because she just doesn't have like emotions really. But she gets it on some level.
And then I was just like, yeah, like we obviously need to explore that. Like, what would that be? Because there's a fascination to it for her. But there's not. Again, like I said, it's like it's intellectual level tied into how she sort of moves through the world. But not like an emotional level at all. And so.
And so that was it. There was always that. And the reason that the. One of the reasons why issue. Like the first couple of issues are structured as they are for Rite of Spring was initially we were going to like. There was going to be the shift of IDW for IDW Darks books to be like these three issue double sizes.
And it was going to be like kind of flip flopped where I was going to start with Samantha and then get into Monica's thing. But when we. And then they were like halfway through that, they were like, actually we're just gonna go to the regular like, you know, six issues. Like, thank God.
Because that's. A lot of people are expecting that. Like, I don't know why, you know, it was whatever. I mean, these things happen. They're just ideas that happen.
So when we went back though, it was kind of like, well, I kind of want to still start with Monica. Or like, I want to kind of like move Monica from the back end to the front end. Like, could we? Because that'd be a really great issue one.
And then.
And then it's a bit of a throw for a loop. And it was just like. It did all these interesting things that kind of shook stuff up in an interesting way.
Because it was tied to this murder that Samantha had done and all this stuff. So that's kind of how that. What the origin was for that.
And also the talk around it was interesting and that folks were kind of down for maybe being something that was away from Samantha. But at the same time they were happy to see her. So it Was like kind of both. We kind of realized, like, people were sort of into it in both. Both regards.
But. But, yeah, man, from the beginning, it was very much like some. It's going to be. The whole thing is going to be Samantha's story.
[00:22:14] Speaker A: I mean, it makes sense. I mean, there is. Obviously, there is an alternate universe where you could have gone somewhere else, but in the same sense, it does make the most sense to do this because we would have had. You would have had people been like, where the hell, Samantha? At the same time.
So it's not. And I've said this to you, and I've said to other people talking about this series and other creators on here and stuff like that too. It was like, I absolutely. Beneath the Trees was my favorite comic of that year.
It was phenomenal. It was amazing. I couldn't get enough of it. I've read it multiple times before Red of Spring came out. But then I literally had no faith in you, Patrick.
For some weird reason, there was this block on, like, they're not gonna be able to do this again. This, to me, if there was a small part of me was like, this seems like a publisher being like, we need more of this because it was very popular and so on and forth. And I could just. In my mind, I'm having inner dialogues that you. I'm projecting onto your argument with IDW that, like, no, we can't do this. This is done this way. Da, da, da. And then I read the first issue and I was like, shut up, Justin. You were so wrong about everything. Patrick knows what he's doing. This was like, this is a good.
Because it was so right.
Surprisingly surprising to me the way you went with it, but also right in the way you went with it. Like, there was like, it just made so much sense. It also solidified to that, like, why we as people want to cheer for Samantha in all of this. Like, it's so weird. We're all like, I'm still. To this day, even after the end of issues this series, I'm still like, I don't want Samantha to get caught. Like, it's. It's this weird thing. It's the same thing. I guess we went with multiple seasons of Dexter was like, the dude's killing people. And we're still like, it doesn't matter what you're doing, good, bad, or ugly, you're still killing people. We're all like, I really hope Dexter doesn't get caught in the end or doesn't die or whatever. And we're this way like we should have felt for Monica at the beginning.
[00:24:06] Speaker B: I know. Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, I feel well and I feel like I still feel bad for. I mean like it was, it was that one. I actually, as soon as I got into it. It's funny because when I was doing issue one of Rite of Spring and it was just the opening and it's like her like lighting a cigarette and the precinct that she's leaving and like all that stuff, she's like, God damn the city, God damn the grind. Like all that stuff. And I was like, oh man, I think I'm falling in love with Monica. Like, this is like too good. Like I don't. And I knew what was going happen but I was like, oh. Like I don't like this is. I don't like this. And so, so I just didn't like, I didn't like what I had to do. But I mean like that to me felt like that was the right. That was good.
I'm glad that I felt that strongly about this character and that she.
It. But again, like the whole thing was like very like her obsession was problematic. She had a very unhealthy way of processing this. But I don't blame her because it was such a horrible thing that she was sort of dealing with, with her brother and it all like, you know, it, you were rooting for her, but it was also like she was also toeing that line of like getting into the darkness. And so it was all that stuff and it felt like it needed to be messy.
And I. And it's also like the kind of joke I keep having with myself and other people I talk to is like, I feel like doing these books is. They're large like send ups of why we should not be rooting for Samantha.
Like just reminders of like she's like, she's like a snake. Like she's cold blooded. Like you can't, cannot trust her. She's not your friend. She is not your friend. And so, you know, she'd be great one up until the moment she flipped.
But like you just weren't, you were, you were a problem or whatever, you know, because. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Because it's very much just an impersonal. Like she's almost like a robot in that regard. It's just like, oh, this is, you know.
[00:26:02] Speaker A: And again, I think your way you've illustrated these things and made the artwork and these things makes it even harder to say she's bad because she's so cuddly and so nice looking and so like, it's so childish in a sense, like on the surface. But yeah, it was like. And I also remember like again, it's the whole thing we talked about before about the whole like richer, scary part of it where there's like a pig hanging in the window of the butcher shop. And we talked about before about how like they're scared of animals being in town when they are animals. Like this whole like weird thing. I felt the same way. It's like. Did you ever watch Howard the Duck the movie?
[00:26:37] Speaker B: Oh yes.
[00:26:38] Speaker A: Where like they. At the very beginning there's like that. The Howard the Duck boobs and like the shower scene. And it's like we had this joke when we watched it on the podcast, as we watched it, discussed it a couple years ago, my buddy and I, and we talked about how that's like the first boobs like nudity in any Marvel movie probably was then with the duck boobs.
And I was thinking myself, I'm like, there's been sense thing. Because like a man thing was a made for TV movie they did. There was a. Like it's a horror movie. So obviously in the horror movie you've got to have topless women and horror. I guess just they go together, I guess.
But yeah, so that we were laughing about that and I was like seeing Samantha walk around her or Samantha Monica walk around in her apartment in her underwear. And I was just like, it just reminds me of like how funny that is to see like it's like a. It's a hot thing for it. It's a human being doing it. But then you're like, that is so weird that that animal is walking around.
[00:27:32] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Or it's specifically, I thought, I mean there was just like they're like intimate. They're like intimate moments. I have the same thing when I have her like going to the bathroom.
I think in like the hotel. And it's just like it's. It's very much like these like weird. Which is funny to me because I don't. I'm not like obsessed with going to the bathroom necessarily, but I'm constantly like one of my things that always dips me out of like a lot of superhero stuff or whatever is. I'm constantly thinking about, like, where are they going in the bathroom? Like where. You know what I mean? Like, like I always think about this. Like, I'm just like, do the suits allow me to go to the bathroom? Like what? Like anytime I see aliens in a movie, I'm like, are they. Do they have Are they just like aliens with no outfits? Or like, did they travel space with a spacesuit? If they don't have a spacesuit, do they just, like, poop where they walk? Like, what is. Like, what's the.
[00:28:22] Speaker A: What's the situation?
[00:28:24] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah. What is the deal?
So, like, I'm like, it's. I'm always thinking about this stuff. And so whenever I can have intimate moments in things, like, I'm. I'll put them in all the time.
[00:28:36] Speaker A: Well, because it makes sense. It humanizes these animals in a sense to the point where again, you step back and you go, what the hell am I reading? And then it was just true. Which I'm okay with. That statement I make ton of times when I'm reading really good books. Like, I shouldn't be reading these things. I shouldn't be liking these things. But for some reason, I don't know why, but there's something gravitating me towards this. And that's one of those things. And seeing those moments. And again, like I said, walking or walking around in underwear. Why is an animal wearing underwear? Like this whole thing. Why are they wearing clothes? And all this stuff just makes you go, yeah, it's like. It just.
[00:29:07] Speaker B: But it's funny because it's also like a. It's a. It's a. You just start questioning like, everything.
Everything about it because you're kind of like, what's the. I mean, they. Because the world's so similar to ours on purpose. Because we need to have that connection.
And even like the current events are like the. If you look like the calendars are off by like three days to ours, if you really do the math.
And that's on purpose. But the. Because it has to be like some sort of weird. You know, it's like an alternate. It's an alternate place. But a lot of the world event stuff, like in the second volume, we get into like, globalizations happening. A lot of like, commerce is moving to China and like factory work is being like, done offshore now. And so it's overseas. I mean, and so it's like a. And you know, it's a sign of the times, right? A sign of the times that I grew up through specifically some. A kid I was born in 80. So like, it's very much like 90s were like me coming up. I was very much like Lewis in volume two of like being like, you know, a teenager in the 90s. And so the.
The.
All that stuff that we can sort of put in there to ground it and also be, you Know, it's weird, but I'm like, definitely working through all that stuff.
[00:30:25] Speaker A: Do you. Was it important to tell a little bit? Like, so we're not going to tell exactly what the backstory is, but I know in the second volume of Red of Spring, you do learn more about Samantha. You learn more about how she became who she was and so on. And so for why she's kind of doing what she's doing at this moment in time and. And how she was that important. Like, is that like, important? And also I say what I do applaud is that there's not like a beneath the trees origins. Like, you mean, like, you know, I'm glad there wasn't like a five issue miniseries where you just have to stand on.
[00:30:55] Speaker B: It was really like a. It was something that. That whole line of how she came to own the shop was what I thought about in the first book. Again, like, most of that stuff came out of me just thinking about how we even got there, you know what I mean? And then I did the ashcan in between volume one and two. And that was sort of like a lead up to, like, which the ashcan, if anybody knows, is set in 1962.
And it's like the first time she's ever murdered anybody. And she's like, backpacking fresh out of college, she's backpacking across Germany.
And it is the. I was like, oh, this happens like right before we're gonna do flashbacks in volume two. I already kind of knew that.
And then we pick it right up, like after she gets back from that trip in the flashbacks. And so the. And then how she kind of. She's like scratched this itch for the first time. And then how does she like you know, get, you know, develop that further? How does she evolve that?
And again, just more reminders of how she's just evil.
[00:32:06] Speaker A: Yes. Yes.
[00:32:07] Speaker B: So that's kind of what that was.
And it felt necessary. It felt necessary. And especially in regards to where what happened, like how she got the shop and then what happens with the shop right in volume two. And so that felt super important.
[00:32:23] Speaker A: Like I said though, you did the Ash game, but in the same sense, like, if it was like five issues of something and you're expanding on it so much more, I feel like it would have lost some of it. Again, that to me is like the horror vibe of things of all. It's like we got to tell the person all of the. Every single detail down to the minus detail about why this person is the way they are. And you got to like touched on it and how she stayed and how she got the shop and all that stuff, but not actually like, like I don't. We didn't need to know her. We didn't see. Need to see her going to the bathroom.
[00:32:53] Speaker B: Exactly. Yeah, not necessarily in that regard. So. And then the other thing too is like, I still think, I mean who knows if there's going to be explorations of stuff through the time jump because that was kind of another interesting element to it as well. But it wouldn't be like in my mind it would be really interesting to just have like these combined, like not things that are like maybe informed stuff that we have seen already, but could just be other explorations of stuff like I don't even know. You know what I mean?
It, if anything, like if inspiration ever hit to take something in a, in an interesting direction sideways from that, I would be totally down for it and it. And that's cool. But like you said, like I don't, I also don't feel like we just need to like dwell in this and this very specific like you know, how we saw this thing. Like this is exactly. We're gonna do like a six issue mini about how we got there and it's. I mean sometimes that's great but in regards to this, it just felt, it felt sort of unnecessary, I guess. And unless I guess there was gonna be a revelation of something that really shifted a paradigm that we already kind of established or whatever. But I guess, yeah, I just never say never.
[00:34:06] Speaker A: Well, I mean I just talked to Griffin Sheridan about a horror of Godzilla and oh, it's first of all, you did a cover for that which is.
[00:34:13] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah. And I've read the first issue. I got to see the first issue. So good.
[00:34:18] Speaker A: I was like, dude, I am like, I feel for these people in this comic book. Like I just like, to me like it's just. Oh, interesting. Jones is phenomenal. So. But yeah, so I was talking to Griffin because I was saying like the four issues. We were both saying like the four issues is like perfect size. Like there is possibility like obviously idw. And the Godzilla team could say, oh, we're going to tell another four issues between this horror of Godzilla and the Godzilla Tim Seeley Godzilla series that they're writing. Like there could be a possibility of something in between there. But to me it was like do this justice, say how Godzilla came. Do all this stuff, but don't go overboard and don't be like this would be a 30 issue series that leads up to the second.
The Godzilla Kaisei era starts with Tim Seeley's Godzilla. Is. That was, like. I said that length, and I said the same thing on here. It's like, possibility. You could tell 30 years, 40, 50 years of Samantha's life, but through snippets in series, I'd like that a bit more like, little flashbacks here and there. And it was, what, Issue three, where you kind of, like, really dove into her backstory. So it wasn't even like it's from the beginning. It's not like we're like, we're starting off with the backstory of.
[00:35:22] Speaker B: No, yeah, yeah. Because that wasn't the main story. Yeah, yeah. It was definitely, like, it informed it. It was a big part of her, but it felt like very, very much something to two. It's interesting because I kind of took a cue from the first run, too, because volume or, Sorry, issue three, I think, is the one where you get into Melody the Cat and, like, this whole side story of kind of her. Her own grief. And it felt like a departure issue. I don't know if I'm gonna continue that trend or not. But, like, there's something about it, though, that felt very right.
And to be able to sort of take that little, like, left turn. It's sort of like you set the table in issue one and then issue two. You're like. You're getting into it. You're like, well, this is what that we're getting. Like, this is the exploration of what we kind of had expected. And then you can kind of take a little segue with the next one. It feels like.
[00:36:12] Speaker A: Yeah. And it wasn't the whole. It wasn't like, an issue, like, where I. I'm actually rewatching the Walking Dead again. I like Lightning for Punishment, I guess. And I love the comic series is one of my. Like, one of my things that got me into independent comics was Kirkman's comic book series. But I was like, I've watched a lot of the new, new stuff. And so I was like, you know what? Let's just start off at the beginning and watch the. The main series do maybe the Fear of the Walking Dead, whatever, and so on and so forth. And I realized that some of the episodes that piqued my interest a lot, but also some of the episodes that really kind of made me sad were the ones where, like, they had so many characters to focus on again that they had to do, like, an entire episode of, like, how Morgan got to be. How Morgan was like, he had to go see the cheese maker and do all, you know, like, it was like an episode where you didn't see any of the characters that you were really hoping to see, except for one, because you wanted to see his backstory. And so, like, there was definitely episodes where they're like, okay, we've got 27 characters that people care about now. We can't have them all on the screen at the same time. They started splitting them up into locations so that you can shoot one place. And, you know, it wasn't like that in this. It wasn't like, we got to the issue, third issue, and you're waiting monthly and you're like, ah, I got. I don't see how the story moves forward in this issue. I get to only see what happened in the past and maybe a little snip at the beginning of the end. This felt like you got the story moving forward, plus you got a little bit of backstory and the reason why it's moving forward in this story. So for sure.
[00:37:30] Speaker B: I mean, it was all. And yeah, it was all driven by Monica and it was all like her kind of researching like, who the hell is Samantha? And you know what? And then. But we see that we get to see the truth and whatever.
[00:37:40] Speaker A: Which, again, I still am rooting for Samantha after reading these issues. I'm still actively saying, let's go, Samantha. And so it's kind of. It's a weird thing. And I think that's what I think a lot of people.
We did Beneath the Trees first volume for a book club, and a lot of people really, really, really liked it. And I think they liked it in multiple ways. Again, it's the artwork mixed with the story that they liked a lot. And it was the second volume, I think, where it was like, no, this is just an extremely well written story that has artwork like this. Into my opinion, like, it's not. It doesn't.
Like, you could still tell the story the way you're telling it, in my opinion, without was just straight ahead doing humans doing these things. I think the first issue, a lot of people were like, this is amazing, but it really does it justice because it's the animals that are doing these things. And I think the second volume were the ones where, like, it justified your ability to write stories that were really well written because, again, the structure was done well and all that stuff. That's where I was like. I feel like now people, if you read volume one, volume two, people are going to get it a lot more. And I think leading into future stuff, I think it's just. It's well written and I think that was. And it's probably getting chance to do it again too. I'm guessing is part of it too. Is. Is. Is. You already had six issues written, so now you get the chance to do more. So you've learned from things you've done. Maybe some things you didn't like in the first issue that maybe you don't say out loud, but like some things they were like, I wish I could have done this differently. Now you can try to try to fix in the second volume. Is that. Did you have anything like that or not specifically? You don't say specifically.
[00:39:13] Speaker B: It's interesting because, like, it. It honestly was sort of a. A lot of. It still feels like I'm just kind of learning as I go. But it is. It's a constant fight for real estate to tell the story because it's. Because of the limited page format and we've got the issues coming out when they come out and it's, you know, and we're sort of. You're just trying to hit that target. It's always kind of. It's always a moving target and you're just trying to make. Make all that stuff come together and get the most satisfying version of the story out and the time that we got and the page amount that we got. And so like, I've noticed that like strategies develop and then you're. You're just getting better at. You're just getting better at like realizing like, what's important, what's not.
When you do need to spend that time that real estate page wise and panel wise to build the atmosphere or, or like what was successful, what wasn't.
And then, you know, or. Or to be more honest, like, I was. I'm still super like pleased with how that first run turned out, especially in regards to like, how I was kind of learning on my feet with all that stuff sort of.
I mean, I've definitely done like a bunch of small comic stuff that was just my own that really helped me like learn.
But in terms of telling like a longer form story and all that stuff, like it. I had a lot of happy accidents, to be honest. That was just kind of like, oh, good. That was like, well received. Okay, cool.
And. And a lot of like, not like Hail Marys, but like, I was definitely putting stuff out, being like, I don't know how well they're gonna think about this. Like, you know, and then having them be like, have it be well received and be like, well, I'll be goddamned. Like, cool.
[00:40:57] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:40:59] Speaker B: Yeah. Well, I feel a lot more lucky than anything, but. But the.
Or weirdly like it was just sort of reassured that like, even though I feel sort of kind of crazy with all this stuff that I do, or like, like for instance, like with Melody and her like the life doll of her husband that she made and sleeps with and like, that's how she grieves. And to me I was like, they're gonna check. Nobody's gonna be into this one. Like, you know, and then.
Or when she goes into the cave, like issue five, just basically all of issue, like. I remember writing issue five, the first round being like, I guess it's in the second person. I don't know where this came from. And so like. And I just kind of went with it because it felt right. But I also was just convinced that it was just going to be like, people are checking out at this point. Like I can't imagine people would be into this and. But they were. And so it was just a.
That was like, those are like, like a happy accident necessarily, but just like a real pleasant surprise, I guess to find that like my intuition aligned with what folks would like to read and so that, you know, I've taken that and sort of run with it a lot more.
[00:42:06] Speaker A: I'd rather have someone who have a like life sized doll in their house than what, like what Tate Brombel and Jacob Phillips did with like keeping zombies in their house, like as family and everything.
[00:42:18] Speaker B: That's so good though.
[00:42:19] Speaker A: It's so good. But I'm just saying, like, if I walked into someone's house and there's like dead bodies being there and then like someone who had a doll, I'd be like, that person just can't get over the loss of their person. Like, I understand that but like, if it starts to smell in the house, that's where I draw the line on. Like, it's not very good, but.
But yeah, I mean, so the success of the first one, I mean I. You obviously don't have to tell me insider information, but like you basically now have the faith. The faith is behind you. And with IDW and them being like, keep telling stories as long as they're selling kind of thing, because I feel like that's where we're at that spot now. I feel like probably they obviously needed a justification of a Volume two after the success of Volume one, but like now I feel like it's like one of those things that like, as long as you have stories to tell, let's keep going down this road because I Think it's. We have a fandom on this.
[00:43:05] Speaker B: Oh, yeah. I mean, it's. They've been. Listen, they were like true believers from the beginning, before it even came out, man. Dude, it was weird how like, sure of themselves. They. All their communications were to me, because I did not have that confidence. And they were just like, it's you, dude. This is going to be so great. And I'm like, okay, if you say so. Like, literally, like. And. And you know, like, Ryan Balcomb, who is director of sales, he was like, doing all the direct sales and just like telling people, like, trust me, like, order on this one. You're gonna want this one.
And he just. Like, everybody there just believed in this book so much. All the editor, like, everything. I would turn stuff in to be like, oh, my God, this is great. And I was like, okay, thanks. You know, I feel like I felt they were just hyping me up, which was cool. I like that.
But the. But so it's been. I mean, they just been in my corner since day one with that stuff and continue to be.
And it's wonderful. I'm not gonna lie. Like, I know it's really. I'm in a really, really lucky spot with all of that, and it's been wonderful. But yeah, it just kind of. That really, honestly, kind of. I just didn't believe it for the longest time.
[00:44:17] Speaker A: Well, now you got volume one out. Volume two is coming on trade right before San Diego Comic Con there. And then your Halloween special gets announced, which I want to hear your reception of the quote they put in the PR release here. Or the A Cuddly shocking story which took the comic book industry by storm and have sold over 400,000 comics and collectible collections in a franchise. What does that seem like to you? What is that? Is that, like, pinch me moment? Is that like, oh, my gosh, you guys are all crazy and shouldn't be buying 400,000 copies of something or like, what is that?
[00:44:51] Speaker B: Yeah, I do. I mean, it just blows me away. I don't.
It's like every. Like the first time I think. I think something had come up number wise was like, it was at the end of the first. It was like by the time that trade had just was about to come out and they had sold like 150,000. And that was the first time I'd heard that at all. And I was just like, this is nuts. Like, it's. I didn't expect that at all.
And like I mentioned it was like, I kind of thought maybe some folks would Maybe you know, pick like I thought the trade was going to find an audience and I thought everything up until then was going to be like, you know, people would slowly grow awareness about this thing.
So the, the way that it caught just felt like so special and strange and, and, and very much felt like a, it was just like a lightning in a bottle moment. It's honestly kind of what it felt like. But I've, it's interesting because like movie wise I've never had anything near this like, you know what I mean? Like in terms of it's. It's so hard doing movies in general and every once in a while you get a thing where you're like oh, this is like electric right now I'm on something that's like this is the thing, you know what I mean?
And I kind of had a bit of a moment with that when I worked on. I'd done like a couple features and then I'd worked on an anthology called Southbound that I wrote and directed. I co wrote a segment and directed it and it felt like that was one of the first things that.
I mean I've had other stuff that's been well received but that was like the most like largest group of folks that were like oh cool, like this is fun, like what else you got?
And I was so tapped out at that point just financially that I couldn't like keep running that game.
And so I had to kind of piece out. And so it's, and it's funny because like even when I did that short with W. Maxwell Prince for haha, that was well received. And so because he has like an awesome fan base and I just remember being like oh comics like and everything up until then had been like self published.
You know, I put out free for all myself just like just to, just to have people look at it.
And it was like, you know, people. Some people had seen it, a lot of people hadn't. And it was just. And I was like that's part of the course. I mean it's. Nobody really knows me. It'll be the thing that I can, you know, I hope to get it in a print one day. And then it was like as soon as Beneath the Trees happened, that became reality. But the, but up until then it was just sort of like nobody knew me. You know what I mean?
And then even with, even with haha, people were like that's pretty good. Like who's this guy?
And so the.
But, but it was like it was, you know, it got around that haha, and then the and then when Beneath the Trees one came out, it was just like, it sold out in like a couple days. And I just was like, what do you mean?
[00:47:47] Speaker A: Like, I get it, but I mean,
[00:47:49] Speaker B: like, it's not like all of it was like, new to me. Like, the whole thing was new to me.
And then it just felt. Felt like it was just this charmed. Like it just had this charmed run that like these subsequent printings kept selling and it was just, you know, and, And. And at the same time, like, I'm still like, working my day job still, like, you know, at that point I could. I didn't have time to storyboard anymore. I was doing a lot of storyboarding and. But I was still like, yeah, just working my day job and, and making ends meet and. And it was just.
But at the same time had this like, amazing, blessed, like, thing happening that I really like. Again, the whole thing was like a pinch me moment for like a year and a half.
[00:48:37] Speaker A: Comics don't sell like that anyway. More like individual things. Like, like I just. Just hearing like what Pornstack and that team had gone through with. With the absolute Green Arrow and like millions and millions of copies sold or whatever it was. And you know, we only seen like 8 million copies of a comic book sold since like X Men Jim Lee's.
[00:48:54] Speaker B: Well, like, I'm so curious to hear like, your. The conversation you just had today because I'm like, I mean, even from Comics Pro in February, retailers were like, it's looking good. And I was like, awesome. Great. Love to hear this. And it's just been like a lot of all this stuff has been good stuff that I hear.
And so. And then seeing porn sec and Green Arrow was just like. It was just like. I mean, I listened to a couple of interviews with them during the big push and he was just caused. He like, he felt like he was like, just trying to catch his breath. Like with all this stuff happening and how. Well, it was just like it pre sold. It pre sold before it even came out. Like, it sold out.
[00:49:35] Speaker A: Yeah, it was. It was gone.
[00:49:36] Speaker B: It was like insane. And yes, and it's so unprecedented and awesome and great, but like, it is such a wild time.
[00:49:44] Speaker A: It's trades are selling, single issues are selling.
My buddy just said that the Dungeon Crawler Carl graphic novel that came out recently, last year, He's a small story, sold 100 volume ones of Something's Killing the Children. That was his number one trade paperback selling for a single trade. He sold 40 copies of this Dungeon Crawler Crawler Trade.
And that's only been out for a couple of months. It's not even crazy. So he's like, the comic book industry to him is so great. He's in a new shop. It's double the size.
Amazing. He's excited, but absolute has a lot to do with that and the fact that people are coming to comics now that, like, they don't.
[00:50:21] Speaker B: It's part of the ecosystem. It's all part of the ecosystem. You're part of the ecosystem. The readers, critics, retailers. Like, it's all part, like, even, like, the Whatnot crew and like, and. And covers. Like, it's all part of it.
And it's like that speech that. It wasn't like, you know, a measured speech or whatever, but just that, you know, a panel with Scott Snyder talking to Heroes Con.
And it was. He was just talking about, like, you know, this is all part of this. It's all part of the thing. Like, it's all connected.
[00:50:50] Speaker A: And nowadays it's like, yes, there are people who are DC specific or Marvel specific or not specific, but they just do mostly that. But most of you creators out there are doing things in all kinds of different publishers and avenues and things like that. So one comic, like, absolute. All the absolute stuff raises all ships. And I think that because, like, if you can succeed over here at doing the absolute porn sacks, other comics will do well over. Like, it's just one of those things that, like, it's raising the entire level here of comic books.
[00:51:18] Speaker B: And also, I mean, like, I can't thank DC enough too, because it's like, they. I mean, they literally put Samantha in the dcko, and it was just like a. And again, that's like another awesome thing that they've done that there was so many people that hadn't. I mean, like, we're talking about the success of the book, and it has been super successful, but there's still a ton of people have never heard of it. And. But after that DCKO announcement, a lot of people were like, what the hell is this? And most of them had, like, a friend that were like, oh, you don't know, beneath the trees, like, here's the thing, and whatever.
And so it's just so, like, things like that are so amazing and beneficial, and you have this great crossover that, like, it's. You know, it really does. It's a general broadening, I think, of the horizons for everybody in terms of, like, comics that are. There's so much. So many awesome things that are coming out now within the big two. But then Also just outside of it, and then you have all these creators that are bouncing in between it all, and I think that really helps pollinate all that stuff.
[00:52:22] Speaker A: Crossover. I was talking about crossovers, actually. Kind of funny about this. You're gonna be writing Archie in hell. And it's like, one of those things that, like, we've decided in the comic book store recently that Riverdale is the nexus of the entire comic book universes. Like, I feel like Riverdale is one of those ones where they can turn over here and it's Gotham, but they turn over here. It's New York City with Spider man and Godzilla. Like, they can do every crossover, and I would be absolutely okay with it because I feel like they can just write them in and you just forget about the fact that there's no real reason why this should happen and then just deal with it. Like, I could love to see the characters from Riverdale in Woodbrook are the opposite. Like, I could just see that happening because it doesn't make any sense. So therefore, it makes sense in the same sense. I don't understand it, but somehow it'd be like, they're this close to catching some man. Like, something could happen, and it would be so amazing. Or an alternate universe where, like, Archie's, like, helping. And I would read that too, but, like, that, to me, is, like, that thing. But I feel like I work in the brewing industry by day, and it's like we're collaborative all the time. Hey, I need a bag of hops. I need this. You know, I need to buy, you know, the toppers for the four packs or whatever. And I just. I live in that. Where it's like, I'll get you next time, or we'll trade or we'll do beers together. And so seeing that now even more in the comic book industry, obviously, you guys, I see it with you collaborating with another creator to make a book, but, like, seeing, like, the dcko stuff or Marvel and DC making comics together again with. With Batman and. Sorry, with Superman and Spider Man. Like, those are the kind of things where I'm like, I want to see more of that. And you see it all the time nowadays with the crossover, like I said, Archie with things. Or the TMNT meets the Stranger Things Kids or whatever it may be. And I'm loving that stuff. And so, yeah, seeing that cover, and you get to do a cover with Joker on it, too. It's not like you got some sort of, like, B character from the Marvel.
[00:54:04] Speaker B: Well, it's funny because they were like, they Were just like, let us know if you got any ideas. I mean, it'd be really cool to see. Like, I forget what the other couple were. But then they said, or like, if you want to do Samantha and Joker. I was like, hold the phone. Like, can I do Samantha and Joker? Because I'm gonna do that.
And so I just. Like. I was like, no problem. Here's a couple things. They're like, awesome. Love this one. Do that. And I thought. And there was. But it was just so, like, like, it. They. They brought it up to me almost exactly a year ago at San Diego. And they're like, would you be into that? And I was like, yes, I think I would. And then.
And then to see it. And they confirmed and everything. And then to see it and Jim Lee's presentation. Because I wasn't even. I wasn't at that panel, but I was at New York and we were like. I was. I think I was literally going up to the.
Was that the.
Yeah, I was like, literally going in for the awards. And the Harveys. Harveys were sitting down. And then I got a bunch of texts being like, is this real?
Like, it was like screen. It was like people. Somebody had taken a. You know, whatever. Their photos of Jim Lee's presentation with the. With that big slide really reveal. And then they were just like, is this. Is this happening? Is this like, is this a joke or is this real? I was like, it's real. I didn't realize who did that.
[00:55:24] Speaker A: Who took that image that was on my desk at home. How did someone get that? No. Yes. It's really happened.
[00:55:29] Speaker B: Well, I didn't even see it. I didn't even see. It was the first time I saw it, like, how they were gonna draw Samantha, like all that stuff.
And so it was actually a different artist than the interiors for it. But it was just like, all new to me. And it finally hit me, like, how important that was.
And it was just so, like, really, really grateful for.
[00:55:51] Speaker A: Was such a cool thing. But in the same sense. So you get. Now you're like, you're justified, people. You're justified in your success now. Don't even think you're not there because you did it successfully. Of Eisner nominations. You got multiple vol. Volumes now. 400,000 copies of collected editions and all that stuff sold. You got Joker and Samantha on the COVID of a DC book.
We also now have creators wanting to write the characters from your thing. Like, good creator. Like, nothing. They're bad creator. But like, like all star team of creators wanting to Help you with this, with this Halloween special.
Quickly. How did this come about? Like, how did this, like, was it, did you approach these people? Was it something that DC or idw, I mean, came up with? Or how did this happen?
[00:56:33] Speaker B: It was honestly, the main impetus was like, we want to do another ashcan the same way we did in between 1 and 2. We're gonna do it between 2 and 3.
And then IDW is like, we were kind of thinking, because it's gonna time out for Halloween, we would do like an anthology horror story thing.
And then that way it'd be fun to just let other people like join in the world.
And then I could do a wraparound.
And I was like, yes, this sounds awesome. And I was just excited to just invite other folks to it and see who wanted to join in and was just blown away by the folks that said yes. So it was just a really all around fun surprise, I guess, to see who all wanted to join in and then also just being super psyched for it.
[00:57:26] Speaker A: So you've got James Tiny in the fourth. You've got Tony Fleece and Dave Walker and Watcher and Matt Emmons, Tyler Boss and Jay Grayson.
Jared Cullum's doing stuff like it's, it's, it's a team of heavy hitters doing this, which is phenomenal. I'm so pumped about that because again, I do believe in now. And I talked to a couple people and they were like, surprised that, somewhat surprised. Surprised that I said this. But it's like there are people who follow creators too. Like just full on, like they'll read anything that creator does. So, like, I do, yes. All I'm the same way. And I'm like, I was surprised. I forget who it was. Was like, oh, really? They'll do that? I'm like, yes. And maybe it's the imposter syndrome to the point where they didn't think that people were doing that to them.
But like I.
Seeing Tyler and Tony and James Tynan like come over to do this stuff, I'm like, of course I'm going to read this. Even if it wasn't this, if those people are on this comic book, I'm going to read this thing. Like it's, it's, it's the same. Even if I didn't know who you were. Tyler Crook doing Archie and hell, I'm like, I'm gonna read this book. And so like that kind of thought I was like, that's really cool to see. And you're gonna get those people who maybe have read Summons killing the children, but haven't read Beneath the Trees. Like, you're gonna get those, like, crossovers, which is really kind of cool in that sense, too. And Tony's Texas Chainsaw Massacre cover is phenomenal. I love the ones. Like. It's a lot of the. Some of them nowadays, those horror variants are like. I had to, like, figure out what movie it was from.
And so, like, now I'm like, oh, crap, I can't believe that. You know, I honestly didn't know what this one was from originally, what movie this is from.
[00:58:58] Speaker B: I knew that. I knew that from the beginning, mainly because it. I mean, I. I knew that movie before, but the. We had a list of, like, the serial killer films that Tony was going to pull from, and that was.
That was on the list. I was like, oh, do this for them.
And now, like, a lot of people were like, I don't know what that is.
But Serial Moment. Serial mom was like a. I mean, I was a big John Waters fan from long ago and still am, and it was. Serial mom was definitely one of the. Like, there's scenes from that that have always still. Like, they're still in my head and come back to me often.
But. But it was. Yeah, I feel like that was probably more for me more than anything. I mean, Tony put it on the list,
[00:59:40] Speaker A: but it is.
[00:59:40] Speaker B: But that's like a bit of a. Like, that's definitely getting more into it. It. And it's not like John Waters is like a horror guy necessarily, but it's the. It's a serial killer. And it's. It fits.
[00:59:50] Speaker A: It fits. And actually what's funny was I reached it out and it actually has a quote from our review on my review on it on the COVID And so Tony actually was nice enough. He did a little thing on the front. There's a space over here for you, Patrick.
[01:00:03] Speaker B: Right here.
[01:00:03] Speaker A: Oh, yes. There you go. But no, I put one on there. Yes, exactly.
[01:00:07] Speaker B: I need to monitor on that.
[01:00:09] Speaker A: It's funny because I actually bought this issue when I was on vacation. I was at a memorial in Florida, and my buddy had texted me, who owns the comic book shop, was like, hey, did you know that they pulled your quote for the front of this? I'm like, no, save me a couple copies. Because I'm like, I'll buy multiple copies. He saved me no copy.
There was a miscommunication. But luckily, when I was at the store in Florida, they had the black and white and the color, and so I bought both of them when I was down there. And I was like, I was just gonna buy them for extras. And now I'm like, that's the only covers that I've since found more. So I have a couple more copies. But, like, it was kind of funny. I'm like, this is so amazing. And so. Yeah, so Tony was able to do that on there for it. But, like, having these creators do these covers, like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre one is, like, I said, so much fun. It's like, it's such an iconic cover, and I, like, it fits so well on this Halloween special. But you also got Francisco Francavilla doing a cover on there.
[01:01:01] Speaker B: Just saw that. Yeah.
[01:01:02] Speaker A: Yeah, I just saw that when you just announced the other day.
[01:01:05] Speaker B: Like, it's like, how many books of his have I read? And then, like. And then to see this and, like, had been. What blew me away was, like, when we did DC Horror and he did the Batman story and the DC Horror issue that we're both on, and. And that was, like, a huge thing for me, just because we're both in this issue together all of a sudden. And I was just like, yes. Like, this is. And. And I guess that's kind of what I mean in regards to, like, just how, like, wildly, like. Right. I guess this, you know, working in comics is felt for me versus, like, other stuff I've done where it's just like, all of a sudden I'm just on this path and I'm really getting traction with it. I'm like, this is. I feel very much where I'm supposed to be.
And this is so cool.
[01:01:52] Speaker A: I think it's funny, too, because I think Samantha and the way this story works is that all the different styles of people drawing Samantha, like, different variant covers you've gotten over the years. And especially this Halloween one with Francisco's one and Tony's one and Peaches, there are all these covers that Samantha looks right on all of them. It's weird how there's certain styles that people draw A specific character, like, that doesn't fit. Right.
Okay, I get it. And the artwork's good, but I'm like, that doesn't do the character justice. All of these. I'm like, if any of these artists took over the interiors of your books, they'd be like, cool. Sounds good to me.
It's that good.
But that's pretty cool. It's coming out.
[01:02:28] Speaker B: I mean, dude, I can't believe. Yeah, I can't believe we got a Peach Momoko cover, dude.
[01:02:32] Speaker A: Like, I've, like, there's people who buy
[01:02:35] Speaker B: this comic book blowing my mind.
[01:02:37] Speaker A: Yes. Specifically for that cover. And I failed to mention there's a Jay Gonzo cover as well.
[01:02:42] Speaker B: Yes. And then cover is awesome.
[01:02:45] Speaker A: Is that a.
The masks one? Is that it A take on.
[01:02:50] Speaker B: Oh, that was a. That was me. That was another one that. It was a. So I did two and. And I have no idea what's up with that cover. Is it out? Has it been like, is it in part.
[01:03:01] Speaker A: It's solicited as the 1 in 25 virgin cover, but.
[01:03:04] Speaker B: Gotcha.
I just haven't even seen it like revealed or anything. So I was like, it's. It was in. It's in the press release as like a thumbnail in the.
And the opener graphic. And I had no idea if it was also. It wasn't in the carousel or anything. And so I was like, whatever, it's out there. It'll show up at some point.
[01:03:26] Speaker A: It's. It says it's according to League of Comic geeks, it's the 1 in 2025 version variant. And then there's a 1 in 50 Peach Momoko Virgin variant of Peaches cover as well. So it's 1 in 50, which is awesome. But yeah, that's like. It's just such a cool thing. Halloween, October 7th, it comes out. It's like perfect timing on that thing. And I'm a big. Yeah, I. I mentioned this to people before about anthologies based around Christmas and Halloween and things like that. Like those to me are so much fun because this is a semantic. This is stories that you could potentially read yearly instead of just being like, like right around this time, you could pull out your anthology for like horror or like your anthology for Christmas time. There's a Christmas type thing and, and read those again. Like you do Halloween movies or, or horror or, sorry, Christmas movies. It's like you get these short stories that you can like, go back to again and, you know, not have read a whole story of something, which is pretty cool in that sense. But yeah, I'm excited for that. And then you got Archie and how quickly. Well, we want to. I want to finish up here, but quickly. What can people expect with Archie now? Like, what's. What's the going to be?
[01:04:25] Speaker B: It is a. I'm trying to like, there's. So it's going to be wild. I'm trying to think of, like, how much I could talk about that's boiling it.
It's. I mean, it's, you know, trying to think of what's been revealed so far.
It's very much in line with these three Archie books that are coming out. So Archie, and then there's Sabrina.
It's Ben H. Winters and Karina Becko, and then myself doing Archie in Hell. And it's of the same tone as these books in terms of the characters, but it's. It's very much like Archie going through a horrific sort of cosmic, horrific trauma that he had Journey. Traumatic journey that he has to sort of go through. Like he has to leave the Riverdale and friends that he knows behind, and he's gonna get damned as his only way to sort of save himself. And the story's gonna stretch from 1690 up to the present and. And it's a. It's going to be a wild ride.
[01:05:36] Speaker A: It sounds like fun. And again, to me, you couldn't pick.
There's like a handful of people I could pick doing really, really cool horror stories. Artwork. And Tyler's 100, like I said, top
[01:05:48] Speaker B: of my list, man. Yeah, that guy's like, rock and roll.
[01:05:50] Speaker A: It's creepy and just like, you feel it and like, I don't know. This is. Something about his artwork on that stuff is amazing. I have the.
The thing over here. It's like a shelf of Harrow County.
It looks like a drawer. You pull it out. It's a. It's the omnibus of it. It's just like, yes, it is. I'm never gonna read the oddness of it, but the whole thing was like, badass packaging. Such a collection.
[01:06:14] Speaker B: Yeah, it is such an awesome collection, dude.
And that work is like, top tier. It's so good. And it was wild to hear him speak about it too. Just in. Even in interviews he's done before of just like, how.
I mean, it was like, it was. It was a. That was a hard lift and he knocks it out of the park. And it's so good. And it's wild to me to get these pages back and I'm just like, yes, like, there it is.
[01:06:40] Speaker A: Like, it's happening.
[01:06:42] Speaker B: And even the, like, the covers he's doing for it. Incredible. Like, it's just all. I cannot wait for this thing to.
To sort of start coming out more. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I can finally at least talk about, like, issue one and.
[01:06:54] Speaker A: Well, there's nothing out there for it, right? It's just basically been announced.
Archie has been announced. And I believe the solicitation for archie, it's like September 2nd it comes out. So, like, that one's already out there. But, like, the other ones, I think they're still like, piecing it out and maybe it is. By the time this episode airs, maybe there is more information about it out, but I'm not sure. But, like, I definitely knew the covers out for. Or at least one of the covers is out for it, or at least the filler cover is up for it. And it's, it's, it's creepy and it's, it's Tyler, you know, at his best, for sure.
But yeah, right up. Spring volume two. I think it's July 21st is what I think I looked up, which is where it hits stores everywhere.
[01:07:31] Speaker B: Tuesday. It's like Tuesday of Tuesday.
[01:07:33] Speaker A: San Diego, right?
[01:07:34] Speaker B: Comic Con. Yeah.
[01:07:36] Speaker A: And so. And you can get the best thing about these trades and the difference between. I'm a big single issue collector, but the best thing about trades is that if you don't have. I was just in North Conway, New Hampshire, and it was an hour and a half. What's the closest comic book store away? And Conway is like, they've got like outlet stores. So you're talking like Gap stores. And like, this is not like this weird like in Hole in the Wall Town. Like, this is like a place where shopping happens in this area. And I was so surprised. My buddy and I were like, we need to open a comic book store in Conway. Don't have millions of people go there to visit every year. Millions. It's in the White Mountains in New Hampshire. It's like a tourist trap. And there's no comic book store. But the benefit would be is that you could go to your local bookstore and say, I want this book. Because trade paperbacks are available at bookstores as well. So tell your local bookstore as well, if you can't have a comic bookstore nearby to tell them that you want this trade because you can get it at your local comic book store. There are ones like there's a special direct market of Beneath the Trees Volume one that's only available at comic book stores and things like that. So there are certain things that are only available at comic book stores. But as always, bookshop.org or other ways to get it as well. Check your local comic book stores if they have an online store. But yeah, buy those because they're phenomenal. And then get ready for the Halloween special and Archie and hell and all the other stuff that you're doing.
It's phenomenal. Eisner nominated writer here, Patrick Horbath. Both right. Because technically you're nomination for the thing.
So there you go. Eisner losing. Is that. What do you say that Eisner.
[01:09:06] Speaker B: Yeah, Eisner losing. And Eisner nominated currently.
We'll see.
[01:09:10] Speaker A: Yes. Yeah, exactly. Well, I think. What was it? I think Kyle Starks wrote that like six times. Eisner losing, our creator or something like. That's what he says on his.
[01:09:17] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Harvey, Harvey, Harvey. Award winner.
[01:09:20] Speaker A: Yeah, there you go, see? Well, he said. What did Kyle Stark say? He goes, I don't want to win one because then I have to change the way I say things.
You go from six time nominated to Eisner winning. Like there's no more. There's no more act until you win multiple Eisner's. Right. So you can't.
It's just Eisner winning or six times nominated. Which one sounds better? I don't know. It sounds almost better to say six times nominated than it does Eisner winning, to be honest with you. But yeah. So thank you so much, Patrick, for coming on here chatting.
[01:09:46] Speaker B: Thank you. Man.
[01:09:47] Speaker A: Samantha, all things Woodbrook and Beneath the Trees in Archie and all that stuff. I'm so pumped for you and your success and I want more. So I am one of the people who will say, never stop writing and drawing this comic book until you're ready to do that. Don't.
I'm ready for more of it. It doesn't matter. Give me more.
[01:10:04] Speaker B: I appreciate that.
[01:10:05] Speaker A: I want Samantha Goes to Space.
[01:10:08] Speaker B: That's obviously going to be the fourth volume.
[01:10:11] Speaker A: It's got to go there. It's got to happen. We've seen it. I mean, Fast and the Furious went to space. We can.
Samantha can go to space now. But yeah, the funny thing is it actually would work if you did do something like that, some random one shot to have the variant cover be like Jason. Like Jason going to space. Jason. It was a Jason X. Jason X. Yeah. It would obviously have to be like that cover would have to be one of the variants. Variant covers, because it makes sense. But.
But I appreciate it. I do appreciate we'll get you come back on sometime in the future. But yeah, until then, much success to you and all and keep up the hard work and keep going. Okay.
[01:10:41] Speaker B: Oh, thank you so much.
