MichaelDoran
11-10-2002, 01:13 PM
<font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2"><a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/DC/RRP/Losers.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/DC/RRP/Losers_t.jpg" width="175" height="247" border="0" alt="THE LOSERS by Jock - click to open larger version" align="right"></a>Co-written by Alex Segura Jr.
Combine some heist caper, conspiracy thriller, tough guy action adventure, political undertones and a dash of Vertigo and you'll probably come up with The Losers , a new Vertigo series from writer Andy Diggle and artist Jock.
The Losers tells the tale of a former Special Forces unit by the same name. Supposedly murdered after uncovering an illegal CIA operation, the Losers survived. Feeling betrayed and forgotten by the country they swore to protect, the Losers have returned to America to declare war on the CIA.
The concept of the series is all about action and suspense, Andy Diggle told Newsarama.
"The Losers is a slick, smart, widescreen action thriller with brains and a social conscience," Diggle said.
The genesis of the series began early this year while Diggle finished work on another series for Vertigo.
"We first started throwing ideas around in March 2002. I was just finishing off the Lady Constantine mini-series at the time, and wondering what to do next," Diggle said. "I felt like digging up an old forgotten DC crime character and revamping it with a twist, as Azzarello and Risso had done so enjoyably with Jonny Double .
"Then editor Will Dennis remembered an old World War II comic he'd read as a kid - The Losers . The characters had all died during the war, but I thought it was a fantastic title for a crime story. I've never even seen the original Robert Kanigher version. I just took the title and the concept of a unit of soldiers who are presumed dead, switched it to the present day, and ran with it."
With the title and theme set, Diggle moved toward refining the details of the series. "I cooked up a 'high concept' backstory to hang a series on," the writer explained. "During the recent war in Afghanistan, a US Special Forces unit nicknamed 'the Losers' stumbled across one of the CIA's dirty little secrets. To ensure their silence, the Agency had the Losers killed - or so they thought. Believed KIA ('Killed In Action') in a 'tragic helicopter crash', the Losers actually went underground and made their own way back to the States. Now, they reunite to declare war on the Agency which stabbed them in the back."
According to Diggle, initially planned as a mini-series, DC upped the page count upon reading the premise. That's when things got interesting.
"The initial pitch was just for a four-issue mini, but the 'Powers That Be' at Vertigo evidently thought it was a strong premise and asked me to turn it into an ongoing series," Diggle explained. "It was only then that I realized what deep water I was in. The more I researched the history and actions of the CIA, the more horrified I became. At the same time, we were watching George W. Bush stirring up a hornet's nest in the Middle East. He was talking about instigating 'regime change' in Iraq regardless of weapons inspections, and threatening unilateral action without the backing of the UN - making the threat of further terrorist attacks all the more likely. It was scary. So I suppose there's an extent to which my thinking on The Losers has been shaped by 9/11 - or more specifically, by the Bush administration's reaction to it."
Here's Diggle's character rundown for The Losers :
"The guy behind it all is FRANK CLAY, former commander of the "Losers" Special Forces unit. His handlers at the CIA tried to kill him, and he's the kind of guy who takes that sort of thing personally. He wants to punish the Agency for what he sees as their wrongdoing - although there's an extent to which that's just an excuse for good old fashioned payback."
"COUGAR is the sniper, a real dark horse. He witnessed something during the backstory that affected him deeply, and he has rarely, if ever, spoken since. He has ghosts he needs to lay to rest.
"POOCH is the transportation guy, an expert pilot and driver. He's a very laid-back guy, slow to anger, who always tries to see the wider picture. He's also a devoted family man, or used to be.
"JENSEN is the systems guy, a hacker who joined the unit during operations against high-tech drug traffickers in South America. For him it's all about the thrill of the hunt - he's not the kind of guy who plans ahead. He's the youngest and least jaded of the Losers. Perhaps even a little naive.
"ROQUE is the demolitions expert - a terse, practical, bloody-minded sort of guy. He's a bulldog - once he gets his teeth into something, he never lets go. Metaphorically speaking, that is.
"Finally, they are joined by AISHA, a beautiful Afghan warrior who grew up fighting the Russian invaders and became a CIA 'asset'. She's a real tough cookie, not someone you'd want to mess with. She has her own motives for joining the Losers, and hidden agendas which aren't
immediately clear."
In these sensitive post-9/11 days, making one of the agencies in charge of United States homeland security your villains - even in a fictional setting - could be something of a risk, something Diggle is only too aware of. "I guess it is controversial, but that's what Vertigo is supposed to be about - taking risks, asking questions, challenging assumptions," he said. "I think it demonstrates their 'mature readers' label isn't just lip-service. It feels like they've put a lot of faith in me - which is actually pretty daunting for a new writer like me, to be honest. The issues raised by the series aren't simply black-and-white. There's a degree of moral ambiguity to the story, and I'm trying to
show both sides of the argument. I just hope it doesn't have a negative knock-on effect for members of my family whose work has brought them into contact with the CIA. If I disappear under mysterious circumstances, start asking questions!"
Still, the story and its characters reflect the American Dream and America's ideals, albeit it somewhat differently, Diggle explained.
"Personally, I love America and American pop culture, and my experience of the American people has been extremely positive. Hopefully that comes through in the book. The Losers are patriots, fighting corruption at the highest levels of the establishment. They feel the America Dream has been hijacked by a bunch of cynical, self-serving liars, and they're stealing it back. Striking a blow for the ordinary America citizen. If someone thinks that's 'anti-American', they're missing the point completely."
All political debates aside, the writer is sure to point out the book was created primarily to entertain.
"The Losers is first and foremost a piece of entertainment - a tough-guy heist caper with conspiracy thriller undertones. The political stuff remains very much in the background," Diggle said. "It's there if you want to dig for it, but if you just want a straight thriller, that's cool too. Nobody likes being lectured, and who the hell am I to lecture anyone about this stuff anyway? Bring on the exploding helicopters!"
When trying to bring up works with similar themes and styles, a few movies come to mind for Diggle. But one thing is constant: Action and entertainment before politics.
"The Losers is much closer to movies like The Usual Suspects, Heat, Payback, Way Of The Gun, Ronin and Ocean's 11 than some kind of political treatise. It's a caper movie. The Losers become a heist crew - it just so happens they're ripping off illegal CIA operations rather than a bank or casino."
Diggle is joined on the creative team by National Comic Award winner for Best Newcomer in 2001, Jock, who handles the art chores. Both are entering the new series with a mix of trepidation and excitement.
"Jock's a very talented Brit who's been working for 2000AD for two or three years now as one of the mainstay artists on Judge Dredd ," Diggle said. "He and I created the futuristic crime caper Lenny Zero for the Judge Dredd Megazine . We're good friends, and have a great working relationship - we tend to collaborate very closely, swapping ideas and reworking scripts and layouts together as we go along. The prospect of creating an ongoing Vertigo series together - especially such a controversial one - is as exciting as it is daunting."
<a href=http://classic.newsarama.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=000039>CLICK HERE</a> to return to the main menu to read about more of DC’s upcoming projects.
Got something to say about this? <a href=http://classic.newsarama.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=agree>CLICK HERE</a> to register and join one of comics' most active online communities. Registration is fast and easy. </font>
Combine some heist caper, conspiracy thriller, tough guy action adventure, political undertones and a dash of Vertigo and you'll probably come up with The Losers , a new Vertigo series from writer Andy Diggle and artist Jock.
The Losers tells the tale of a former Special Forces unit by the same name. Supposedly murdered after uncovering an illegal CIA operation, the Losers survived. Feeling betrayed and forgotten by the country they swore to protect, the Losers have returned to America to declare war on the CIA.
The concept of the series is all about action and suspense, Andy Diggle told Newsarama.
"The Losers is a slick, smart, widescreen action thriller with brains and a social conscience," Diggle said.
The genesis of the series began early this year while Diggle finished work on another series for Vertigo.
"We first started throwing ideas around in March 2002. I was just finishing off the Lady Constantine mini-series at the time, and wondering what to do next," Diggle said. "I felt like digging up an old forgotten DC crime character and revamping it with a twist, as Azzarello and Risso had done so enjoyably with Jonny Double .
"Then editor Will Dennis remembered an old World War II comic he'd read as a kid - The Losers . The characters had all died during the war, but I thought it was a fantastic title for a crime story. I've never even seen the original Robert Kanigher version. I just took the title and the concept of a unit of soldiers who are presumed dead, switched it to the present day, and ran with it."
With the title and theme set, Diggle moved toward refining the details of the series. "I cooked up a 'high concept' backstory to hang a series on," the writer explained. "During the recent war in Afghanistan, a US Special Forces unit nicknamed 'the Losers' stumbled across one of the CIA's dirty little secrets. To ensure their silence, the Agency had the Losers killed - or so they thought. Believed KIA ('Killed In Action') in a 'tragic helicopter crash', the Losers actually went underground and made their own way back to the States. Now, they reunite to declare war on the Agency which stabbed them in the back."
According to Diggle, initially planned as a mini-series, DC upped the page count upon reading the premise. That's when things got interesting.
"The initial pitch was just for a four-issue mini, but the 'Powers That Be' at Vertigo evidently thought it was a strong premise and asked me to turn it into an ongoing series," Diggle explained. "It was only then that I realized what deep water I was in. The more I researched the history and actions of the CIA, the more horrified I became. At the same time, we were watching George W. Bush stirring up a hornet's nest in the Middle East. He was talking about instigating 'regime change' in Iraq regardless of weapons inspections, and threatening unilateral action without the backing of the UN - making the threat of further terrorist attacks all the more likely. It was scary. So I suppose there's an extent to which my thinking on The Losers has been shaped by 9/11 - or more specifically, by the Bush administration's reaction to it."
Here's Diggle's character rundown for The Losers :
"The guy behind it all is FRANK CLAY, former commander of the "Losers" Special Forces unit. His handlers at the CIA tried to kill him, and he's the kind of guy who takes that sort of thing personally. He wants to punish the Agency for what he sees as their wrongdoing - although there's an extent to which that's just an excuse for good old fashioned payback."
"COUGAR is the sniper, a real dark horse. He witnessed something during the backstory that affected him deeply, and he has rarely, if ever, spoken since. He has ghosts he needs to lay to rest.
"POOCH is the transportation guy, an expert pilot and driver. He's a very laid-back guy, slow to anger, who always tries to see the wider picture. He's also a devoted family man, or used to be.
"JENSEN is the systems guy, a hacker who joined the unit during operations against high-tech drug traffickers in South America. For him it's all about the thrill of the hunt - he's not the kind of guy who plans ahead. He's the youngest and least jaded of the Losers. Perhaps even a little naive.
"ROQUE is the demolitions expert - a terse, practical, bloody-minded sort of guy. He's a bulldog - once he gets his teeth into something, he never lets go. Metaphorically speaking, that is.
"Finally, they are joined by AISHA, a beautiful Afghan warrior who grew up fighting the Russian invaders and became a CIA 'asset'. She's a real tough cookie, not someone you'd want to mess with. She has her own motives for joining the Losers, and hidden agendas which aren't
immediately clear."
In these sensitive post-9/11 days, making one of the agencies in charge of United States homeland security your villains - even in a fictional setting - could be something of a risk, something Diggle is only too aware of. "I guess it is controversial, but that's what Vertigo is supposed to be about - taking risks, asking questions, challenging assumptions," he said. "I think it demonstrates their 'mature readers' label isn't just lip-service. It feels like they've put a lot of faith in me - which is actually pretty daunting for a new writer like me, to be honest. The issues raised by the series aren't simply black-and-white. There's a degree of moral ambiguity to the story, and I'm trying to
show both sides of the argument. I just hope it doesn't have a negative knock-on effect for members of my family whose work has brought them into contact with the CIA. If I disappear under mysterious circumstances, start asking questions!"
Still, the story and its characters reflect the American Dream and America's ideals, albeit it somewhat differently, Diggle explained.
"Personally, I love America and American pop culture, and my experience of the American people has been extremely positive. Hopefully that comes through in the book. The Losers are patriots, fighting corruption at the highest levels of the establishment. They feel the America Dream has been hijacked by a bunch of cynical, self-serving liars, and they're stealing it back. Striking a blow for the ordinary America citizen. If someone thinks that's 'anti-American', they're missing the point completely."
All political debates aside, the writer is sure to point out the book was created primarily to entertain.
"The Losers is first and foremost a piece of entertainment - a tough-guy heist caper with conspiracy thriller undertones. The political stuff remains very much in the background," Diggle said. "It's there if you want to dig for it, but if you just want a straight thriller, that's cool too. Nobody likes being lectured, and who the hell am I to lecture anyone about this stuff anyway? Bring on the exploding helicopters!"
When trying to bring up works with similar themes and styles, a few movies come to mind for Diggle. But one thing is constant: Action and entertainment before politics.
"The Losers is much closer to movies like The Usual Suspects, Heat, Payback, Way Of The Gun, Ronin and Ocean's 11 than some kind of political treatise. It's a caper movie. The Losers become a heist crew - it just so happens they're ripping off illegal CIA operations rather than a bank or casino."
Diggle is joined on the creative team by National Comic Award winner for Best Newcomer in 2001, Jock, who handles the art chores. Both are entering the new series with a mix of trepidation and excitement.
"Jock's a very talented Brit who's been working for 2000AD for two or three years now as one of the mainstay artists on Judge Dredd ," Diggle said. "He and I created the futuristic crime caper Lenny Zero for the Judge Dredd Megazine . We're good friends, and have a great working relationship - we tend to collaborate very closely, swapping ideas and reworking scripts and layouts together as we go along. The prospect of creating an ongoing Vertigo series together - especially such a controversial one - is as exciting as it is daunting."
<a href=http://classic.newsarama.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=000039>CLICK HERE</a> to return to the main menu to read about more of DC’s upcoming projects.
Got something to say about this? <a href=http://classic.newsarama.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=agree>CLICK HERE</a> to register and join one of comics' most active online communities. Registration is fast and easy. </font>