RE-IMAGINING HOLMES. RADICALLY

[MattBrady]

<img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/holmes01_cover.jpg" width="175" height="271" align="right"><i>by Chris Arrant</i>

With the first issue released earlier this month, Omaha Perez' <B>Holmes</B> looks at one Sherlock Holmes through a new perspective. In this story, we see Holmes and friend Watson not only as detective and doctor, but as drug user and dealer. Imagine <I>Fear and Loathing Las Vegas</I> with Sherlock Holmes as Hunter S. Thompson and you're on your way.

Newsarama sat down with cartoonist Omaha Perez to talk about the story he's telling, and to find out what mysteries he's unraveling.

<B>Newsarama:</B> In creating this reimagination of Doyle's original stories, the character of Sherlock Holmes is quite a departure. Where did you originally get the idea to take Sherlock Holmes in this direction?

<B>Omaha Perez:</B> I originally had the idea back when I was in art school, over 12 years ago. I was reading Doyle's Holmes stories for the first time since I was a kid and I was really into Hunter S. Thompson's work so the idea just seemed so natural to me... Sherlock's only a junkie when he's not on a case? Yeah, right! It occurred to me that casting Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo from <I>Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas</I> as Holmes and Watson would be really funny!

<a href="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_10.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_10_t.jpg" width="165" height="250" border="0" align="left"></a><B>NRAMA:</B> Sherlock Holmes trusted friend and confidante Dr. Watson is also on board for this tale. How does the relationship work between Holmes and Watson?

<B>OP:</B> In <B>Holmes</B>, Watson is Sherlock's enabler and, obviously, his drug connection. Watson feeds Holmes's delusions by buying into them himself. Watson truly believes Holmes to be the great man he proclaims himself to be, nevermind that it's personally profitable for him to perpetuate the myth through his "true accounts" of Holmes's cases. In the comic you see this huge disparity between what Watson says happens and what really happens!

<B>NRAMA:</B> At the beginning of the story, we follow a group of graverobbers digging up the corpse of the world-reknown composer, Joseph Haydn. What are they going for, and who's behind this?

<B>OP:</B> This part of the storyline is absolutely true. Austrian composer Joseph Haydn was friends with several phrenologists who believed that by studying human skulls they could gauge which parts of the brain were responsible for specific intellectual aptitudes and traits. Days after Haydn died, two of his friends dug up his grave and stole his skull! Haydn died in 1809 and his skull wasn't returned to his body until 1954. You can't make this stuff up!

<a href="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_11.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_11_t.jpg" width="165" height="250" border="0" align="right"></a>For all those years, the Austrian royal family was trying to reunite the skull with the body. The skull going missing in London is the case that the madness of <B>Holmes</B> is set against.

<B>NRAMA:</B> The constant foil to Sherlock Holmes in the original stories is one Professor Moriarty. What plans do you have in store for this master criminal?

<B>OP:</B> I don't want to say too much, Holmes sees Moriarty everywhere in this story! "Moriarty" does appear, though whether he really exists or not I'll leave up to the reader to decide.

<B>NRAMA:</B> When classic stories are adapted, or "reimagined", there is bound to be some backlash. How has that been for you with Holmes?

<B>OP:</B> Well, as of this interview the first issue hasn't hit the stores yet so it's too soon to know for sure. I debuted copies at APE and people really liked the idea. I would say, "It's Sherlock Holmes modeled after Iggy Pop and Hunter S. Thompson", and most people smiled and pulled out their wallets! Everyone I've spoken to who's read it, gets it and thinks it's really funny.

<a href="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_12.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_12_t.jpg" width="165" height="250" border="0" align="right"></a>I've taken what I've been told is a bold step and sent it to various Sherlockian publications and groups to mixed results. On one end of the spectrum the editor of the Baker Street Journal really liked it and wrote a great review, on the other end... I posted about it on a Yahoo! Group called Welcome Holmes and, um, they were not pleased. They cooled down after a while but were they pretty hostile after my initial post. A lot of Holmes fans take it really seriously... it's bound to offend some. "California cartoonist tarred and feathered by an angry mob of Sherlockians"... I hope not!

<B>NRAMA:</B> Have you always had an affinity for the original Sherlock Holmes tales?

<b>OP:</b>: Yes! Believe it or not this is done out of love. This isn't a "grim and gritty re-imagining", it's a farce. I truly admire Doyle and I've read and re-read the Holmes stories for years. As my bio now says, "Despite evidence to the contrary, Omaha is actually a great fan of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle."

<a href="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_13.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.newsarama.com/Approbation/Holmes/Holmes01_13_t.jpg" width="165" height="250" border="0" align="left"></a>Will everyone like the idea? No, of course not. This is a comedy though, and it's a comic book! I would hope no one would get too worked up over it. And it is funny...

<B>NRAMA:</B> Why did you decide to tell this story as a miniseries as opposed to a self-contained graphic novel like your previous work, <B>Bodhisattva</B>?

<b>OP:</b>: I decided to serialize <B>Holmes</B> so I could get readers reactions while I'm still working on it. When it's all done it will be 96 pages... that is a lot of pages to draw off in the void. So far from all the great reactions I've received, I believe I'm on the right track. As the series continues it just gets more and more outrageous and funnier and funnier...

<I><B>Holmes #1 / Periphery #2</B> is a 48-page black & white comic book with color covers with a retail price of $3.50. (24 pages of HOLMES, 24 pages of PERIPHERY.) Diamond Code: APR05 3053. Additional information and preview pages at <a href="http://www.o-p-p.ws" target="_blank">www.o-p-p.ws</A>.

Omaha Perez and Mark Fearing will be signing copies at <a href="http://www.hideho.com" target="_blank">Hi De Ho Comics</A>, Santa Monica CA on June 22nd, 2005. </I>

[mdg1]

I liked it better when it was called Without A Clue (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096454/)

[Tom Daylight]

Originally posted by mdg1
I liked it better when it was called Without A Clue (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096454/)

Like this is the first time Holmes has been reimagined.

(note, for example, the silly hat and pipe didn't come from the original books but an early 20th century film... and appear to have been abandoned once again here)

[cactusmaac]

Yeah, Watson being the brains behind the duo isn't exactly a new idea.

[delawarejoel]

Originally posted by mdg1
I liked it better when it was called Without A Clue (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096454/)

Exactly what I was thinking....and I think the idea of Holmes as drug addict has been beaten to death -- 7 Percent Solution, anyone? Why is it that the best Holmes ever is the most faithful, meaning the PBS / BBC series of a few years back?

[BlueThunderArmy]

Innovation is in execution, though, and Omaha Perez may have a good idea or two if you actually read the book.

Mind you, I haven't, but I suspect neither have you.

[Jason Seaver]

Originally posted by delawarejoel
Exactly what I was thinking....and I think the idea of Holmes as drug addict has been beaten to death -- 7 Percent Solution, anyone? Why is it that the best Holmes ever is the most faithful, meaning the PBS / BBC series of a few years back?
Because Jeremy Brett simply ruled all, and that was a Granada production. Also, he had an excellent Watson in Edward Hardwicke, and the writers made Watson more of a peer than bumbling comic relief.

(Unless you're thinking of the more recent andaptation of Hound of the Baskervilles that ran on Masterpiece Theater, in which case, you need to watch the Granada productions)

[Peter David]

I haven't read the book yet, but I'm familiar with both "Without a Clue" and "The Seven Percent Solution" and the description here sounds like neither. In the former, if I'm recalling the movie correctly, Watson was the brains of the outfit and "Holmes" was basically an actor hired to incarnate the "fictional" Holmes (his name wasn't even really Sherlock Holmes.)

As for the latter, seems to me that the resemblance comes from them both having the same source material. There endeth the resemblance, since "Seven Percent" was about Watson enlisting the aid of Sigmund Freud to cure Holmes' drug habit, while here Watson is an "enabler" who's profiteering from it.

Personally, I plan to give it a look. I doubt that Conan Doyle would have been put off by it. Legend has it that when the play of "Sherlock Holmes" was being conceived, Conan Doyle was queried as to whether it would be acceptable to have the historically unromantic Holmes fall in love. ACD's response was "You can kill him off for all I care!" He always felt that Holmes was a lesser creation that distracted from his more important writings. Holmes would have remained forever at the bottom of the Reichenbach Falls if ACD's mother hadn't harassed him into reviving the detective after the continued public outcry.

PAD

[Augie De Blieck Jr.]

I was thinking more "Inspector Gadget," with Penny playing Watson to Gadget's Holmes.

I'm ashamed to have even thought of that, though.

-Augie

[Franklin Harris]

Originally posted by Peter David
(Doyle) always felt that Holmes was a lesser creation that distracted from his more important writings.

Like his study of the habits of fairies and sprites.

I've always loved Holmes, but his creator was a rather gullible nutter.

[AlexLothos]

I haven't seen the above movies, but the concept of this comic sounds pretty fun. I dunno what Periphery is, but $3.50 for a 48 page comic (er, two 24 page comics)- I'm game!

I tried to click the link for more info, but no go...

[samnoir]

I enjoyed the Seven Per Cent Solution. I'm willing to check this one out based on the premise and preview.

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[MaxPower]

Originally posted by Peter David
As for the latter, seems to me that the resemblance comes from them both having the same source material. There endeth the resemblance, since "Seven Percent" was about Watson enlisting the aid of Sigmund Freud to cure Holmes' drug habit, while here Watson is an "enabler" who's profiteering from it.


PAD

Hmm... While I am looking forward to this book, being a sucker for Holmes ( I even bought that 'Irregulars" graphic NOvel that came out a few months ago), I would like to add that the similarity carries a tiny bit further: The interview says that Holmes will " see moriarty everywhere", and whether he's even real or not, that echoes 7PS in that Holmes saw Moriarty's influence everywhere, and it turned out the evil mastermind wasn't real, instead he was just the professor who taught Holmes as a young man...

[Feish]

Originally posted by Franklin Harris
Like his study of the habits of fairies and sprites.

I've always loved Holmes, but his creator was a rather gullible nutter.

What are you saying? Dont tell me youre one of those awfull
Fairy and sprite denying trolls. Let me tell you this, some of my best friends are fairys and sprites. They deserve the same respect given to other fey denizens of the forest primeval.(And dont even get me started on gnomes and elves!)

[delawarejoel]

Originally posted by Jason Seaver
Because Jeremy Brett simply ruled all, and that was a Granada production. Also, he had an excellent Watson in Edward Hardwicke, and the writers made Watson more of a peer than bumbling comic relief.

(Unless you're thinking of the more recent andaptation of Hound of the Baskervilles that ran on Masterpiece Theater, in which case, you need to watch the Granada productions)

No, Jeremy Brett is GOD. :D

[lex luthor]

I preordered the book based on its original solict which sounded like a reimagining of Nicholas Myer's The Seven Percent Solution. I love Holmes and Seven% Solution and the fact it was $3.50 (near the price of 1 book) for a 48 page book just sealed the deal.

I wonder if he's ever reads the sequel The Canary Trainer and plans on adapting that at some point in the future (though if this is executed as good as I think its going to be Perez can milk his original concept for years without ever adapting Canary).

Also, for the poster who didn't know what Periphery was, its an anthology book. The other "half" of the flipbook.

[OmahaPerez]

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for all the posts and thank you Chris for the interview!

On the subject of Without A Clue, the mention of Watson being the "brains" behind the operation was Chris's. In fact, in my HOLMES Watson is almost as crazy as Holmes. The blind leading the blind.

I was well into the first issue of HOLMES when I heard about Without A Clue. I picked it up to make sure I wasn't too close to something that's been done. I needn't have worried. (I had the same concern when I heard about Billy Wilder's The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes - again, not even close.)

For those of you going to Comic-Con please look for me at Cold Cut's "Indy Island" and for those of you in the LA area please try to make it to the signing at Hi De Ho in Santa Monica tonight!

Best,

Omaha

[OmahaPerez]

I just noticed the weblink that's posted is incorrect! Please visit us at: www.o-p-p.ws .

Thanks!
Omaha

[Peter David]

Originally posted by MaxPower
Hmm... While I am looking forward to this book, being a sucker for Holmes ( I even bought that 'Irregulars" graphic NOvel that came out a few months ago), I would like to add that the similarity carries a tiny bit further: The interview says that Holmes will " see moriarty everywhere", and whether he's even real or not, that echoes 7PS in that Holmes saw Moriarty's influence everywhere, and it turned out the evil mastermind wasn't real, instead he was just the professor who taught Holmes as a young man...

Yes, but...again...reasonable resemblance due to the same source material. If in this version he's actually seeing visions of Moriarty wherever he goes, that's substantially different from the 7PS version where Holmes is seeing his "influence." Plus we don't know what Moriarty's true nature in this new work is, as opposed to his being a harmless math professor in 7PS.

PAD

[BClayMoore]

This looks light years away from Without a Clue or the 7 Percent Solution.

A similar plot point or variation on the relationship doesn't kill the potential for an original reimagination.

And this looks quite original to my eyes.

-BCM

[Neuromancer]

I think one thing to bear in mind when talking about Dr. Watson's intelligence is that it was only Nigel Bruce in Basil Rathbone's Sherlock Holmes' movies who made Dr. Watson into comic relief. In the Canon, the man was a trained doctor and surgeon, which is no small feat of education and intelligence, and even Holmes at certain times made much of Watson's innate smarts. The point Conan Doyle was trying to make was that Watson, unlike Holmes, simply wasn't trained in the arts of observation and logical deduction, though if he were, he'd've been a formidable intellect in his own right.

I'd definitely at least give this a glance on my LCS bookshelf. :) And most likely purchase it!

[Not From Around]

I'll probably just stick to Conan Doyle's Holmes, thanks. But Holmes has become a big enough mythic figure that he can survive a far-out reinterpretation just fine.

"Seven Percent Solution" was revisionist up to a point, but it didn't completely reimagine Holmes. He DID experiment with cocaine in the earlier stories, and showed signs of having less than a full deck at times. After his return from "death" he seemed much better (although eventually the stories ran out of steam). Nicholas Meyer picked up on this in his "7% Solution" novel. It was intended to show how Holmes kicked the habit and got back on track. The only part of the Holmes "canon" that was altered were the two stories where Holmes was "killed" and then returned. Meyer's conceit was that these were a polite fiction covering what really happened.

A less well-known story along the same lines was Michael Hardwicke's "Sherlock Holmes: My Life and Crimes." In this one Holmes and Moriarity faked their deaths so that they could serve as spies in Germany for the British government. After their mission was completed Moriarity was killed by one of his own gang and Holmes took his sabbatical. The whole story was told from the point of view of a retired Holmes. I kind of liked this one better than "7%."

You know, all this sounds an awful lot like the sort of thing that happens to certain long-lived comics characters.

[LIEFELDISGOD]

Originally posted by Augie De Blieck Jr.
I was thinking more "Inspector Gadget," with Penny playing Watson to Gadget's Holmes.

I'm ashamed to have even thought of that, though.

-Augie

Don't be, I was thinking EXACTLY the same thing. Mmmmm, who would be the Brains parallel, though.
;)

[Ted Naifeh]

I haven't seen this book yet, but I've heard much about it. Frankly, I don't think it's very fair to read the title of the article and then post that the book is a retelling of previous Holmes revisions. All revisions will have some similarities, simply because of their mutual link to the source material.

I think the point of this book IS to completely reimagine Holmes, to create a loving parody. The beauty of the concept is that it parodies both Sherlock Holmes AND Hunter Thompson, revealing them as warped reflections of each other. Suddenly, any of those old Sherlock Holmes mysteries can be read as a slightly mad debauch, while the classic Hunter Thompson misadventure becomes a sort of quest for answers. HA! WHADDAYATHINKATHAT!?!

[kalorama]

I find the dismissing of the book simply because it's not the first retelling of Holmes to be a bit puzzling (esp. since people are throwing in movie retellings). Vincent Locke and Guy Davis's Baker Street wasn't the first retelling of Holmes, but it was still great.

If reimagining Holmes was a bad idea in and of itself, people wouldn't keep doing it. But the idea only carries you so far. The real truth is in the execution, and this looks and sounds interesting.

[EmeraldGuy32]

This was really really good. I was really suprised by how much i enjoyed it

[OcCaM]

Actually, that Watson in drag was pretty funny stuff. Holmes is pretty clueless in this version.

Still, I've seen enough cheapening of my childhood heroes between MArvel/Dc these days that my heart's just not in this right now.

Maybe, when the collected trade is out I'll change my mind.

[Ted Naifeh]

Originally posted by OcCaM
Still, I've seen enough cheapening of my childhood heroes between MArvel/Dc these days that my heart's just not in this right now.

That I can relate to. I don't even want to think about what's been done with Batman over the years.

Not to change the subject or anything. HOLMES!

[jmarshall]

Seeing this makes me realize how much I'd like to see a really well done straight up comics version of Sherlock Holmes. Man that would be cool. This, I'm afraid, I can do without.

[Aaron Weisbrod]

Not to toot my own horn or anything, but this is my wife's favorite Sherlock Holmes story:

"While You Sleep, I Destroy Your World" (http://www.nightmareworld.com/Viewer/NW-07-Destroy-00.html)

Of course, she also thinks it's the best NIGHTMARE WORLD (http://www.NightmareWorld.com) to date... so she may be a little biased. :rolleyes:

Feel free to check it out and chide me accordingly... :p

Connectin' the dots,
Aaron Weisbrod

[MaxPower]

Originally posted by Peter David
Yes, but...again...reasonable resemblance due to the same source material. If in this version he's actually seeing visions of Moriarty wherever he goes, that's substantially different from the 7PS version where Holmes is seeing his "influence." Plus we don't know what Moriarty's true nature in this new work is, as opposed to his being a harmless math professor in 7PS.

PAD

Oh, yes, please don't get me wrong: I agree with you on that topic. I just tend to play devil's advocate a lot. :D But, like I said, this book looks great, and I have no doubts that any resemblances you, I, or anyone else throws out there are merely superficial.