MichaelDoran
11-06-2002, 04:54 AM
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wildcats7.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wildcats7_t.jpg" width="150" height="231" border="0" alt="WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 7" align="right"></a>With the launch of its third series, Wildstorm’s Wildcats showed itself to be…something different. Written by Joe Casey, and part of the new mature-readers, Eye of the Storm line of books, the series reads as a hybrid between business thriller, action adventure, and science fiction. The gist – the Halo Corporation is going to change the world with batteries that last forever. But there’s more to it than just that – much more.
To start, virtually all the super-hero trappings of the original concept are gone. Only one character, Grifter, a.k.a Cole Cash even wears any fragment of a costume, his mask. Spartan, the former leader of the team, back when they were the WildC.A.T.S, has shed his costume, wearing instead the material that once contained his former teammate, Void, who has since…gone into the Void. Mr. Wax, an agent with the National Park Service (from Volume 2), is back, as a mole inside the agency, working for Halo, who at the same time has serious reservations about the role of corporations in society. The beautiful, mysterious, and deadly C.C. Rendozzo has debuted, apparently intent on destroying Halo. Oh yeah – and there’s a FBI agent in a big glass vial, waiting to be reformed, kinda like the Martians in the Bugs Bunny cartoons.
But aside from that, Wildcats 3.0 is pretty easy to follow.
Oh yeah, and it’s got art by Dustin Nguyen...hubba.
Newsarama caught up with Casey to talk about the series, what it stands for, and where it’s going.
Newsarama: First, let's talk about how the relaunch is going. Wildcats 3.0 has two issues on the stands now, it's about to release its third. Have you been happy with the reception the series has received so far?
Joe Casey: I actually haven’t seen too many reviews, but I guess a first issue sell-out, and that’s including a 50% overship, is a pretty good indication that things are going well. I’ve seen some good responses from quite a few retailers, too.
NRAMA: What's gratified you the most from the response you seen?
JC: It’s nice to think that we’re doing a book that might be slightly different from the majority of current superhero material and people are still enjoying it, with some readers even embracing its relative uniqueness. In today’s market, taking creative chances can be a gamble, but so far this one seems to be paying off.
NRAMA: Confounded or frustrated you there most?
JC: I think different readers look for different things in their comic books. I’m dealing with some specific subject matter as a backdrop, but this isn’t meant to be an economics textbook. It’s a sexy, action/suspense/dark comedy that takes place against a particular setting, a huge corporation. But, just like Wildcats Vol. 2 was, this series really all about the characters. I have to simplify certain concepts for all kinds of reasons, but I think the general gist of how corporations operate will get through to the layman reader. Believe me, it’s going to stray even further from reality in the coming months, but this is speculative fiction, not real life.
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_05_t.jpg" width="150" height="226" border="0" alt="WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 4, pg. 5" align="left"></a>NRAMA: This is a series about corporate politics, so let's talk corporate politics. Have you been pleased with the support the series has gotten from Wildstorm and DC?
JC: The initial Eye of the Storm books have undoubtedly been a learning experience for everyone involved. I think, pound for pound, this is a stronger line of books than you’re likely to find anywhere, from any publisher. I also think that, with 20/20 hindsight, a lot of things would’ve been done differently, from creative decisions to editorial decisions to marketing decisions. I’m still not sure if DC knows what it has in this imprint. To me, it’s a tremendous opportunity to do edgier, more relevant material. Even more eclectic material in the mainstream market. But, the fact is, I’m really only responsible for some of the creative decision-making, so that’s what I try to focus on.
Trade paperbacks are always important, and Wildstorm’s always been pretty good about getting them out there. In fact, we’re wrapping up the trade collections for Vol. 2 with the release of Battery Park in February. This one collects the final issues of that run, #20-28. A big, fat book that really set the stage for what I’m doing in Version 3.0, from the introduction of Agent Orange to the initial idea of manufacturing batteries.
NRAMA: How about sales, are you content with the sales figures you’ve seen so far?
JC: I don’t have those kinds of expectations anymore. I used to get wrapped up in how much something was selling, where it was on the sales chart, etc. I realized I’d better just concentrate on doing the best work I’m capable of, working with the best people, and hope that the retailers and the readers show up and support the material we provide. As long as it sells enough to keep going, I’m happy.
NRAMA: In online reviewer Randy Lander's review of issue #1, he writes, "at one point, the android formerly known as Spartan is discussing corporate marketing and accounting, and I have to think that a sizable segment of super-hero fandom is going to have little interest in that type of story." Do you think he's right?
JC: Well, like I said before, I’m simplifying a lot of the corporate stuff so the majority of readers can deal with it. This book is not meant to be a deep dissertation of economics and marketing. I’m sprinkling in some details to add to the verisimilitude of the piece, but I’m trying not to let it overwhelm the real purpose of the book, which is to follow the characters and the shit they get into. At the end of the day, that’s where my real interest lies… putting these guys through their paces.
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_19.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_19_t.jpg" width="150" height="223" border="0" alt="WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 4, pg. 19" align="right"></a>NRAMA: To put it bluntly, do you care?
JC: Obviously, I want as many readers as possible to enjoy the book. But, as with everything I do, I’m writing this series with a specific point of view. If I was writing a sci fi story set on another planet, and in providing the proper level of detail for the story, I had to go into the socio-political and environmental climate of the planet I was writing about, I might be alienating some segment of the readership that has no interest in other planets or their possible politics. But, that’s the chance you take. Besides, I’ve always looked at the Mature Readers label as an opportunity to do something different with superheroes. With Automatic Kafka, I went one way with it. And with Wildcats Version 3.0, I’m going a different way.
NRAMA: In our interview a few weeks before the release of issue #1, we briefly touched on the Enron scandal but not in real detail. Has the current corporate climate, or maybe more accurately, the public's view of corporate in light of Enron, Worldcom, Martha Stewart affected your approach to the series?
JC: I think those real-life situations just make the book more relevant. I’ve certainly got my cynical attitudes toward corporations, just as many people probably do, but that’s what makes writing this series exciting for me. Corporations themselves aren’t evil; no doubt the folks that run them can often act in a despicable manner. But, corporations are definitely a powerful construct in modern society. In many ways, they‘re set up to be more powerful than governments. But, I’m not sure that we’ve ever seen a corporation depicted as a true force of good before. It’s a challenge for me as a writer to stay strong with that “aspirational” element of the whole thing.
NRAMA: Will we see you address these situations directly or analogously in the series?
JC: In some ways, yes. But, those are publicly-traded companies. They have stockholders to answer to. It seems to me, that simple fact is usually the root of a lot of corporate corruption. The Halo Corporation is privately-owned, with gazillion-bazillions of fictional comic book dollars at its disposal. As far as I’m concerned, Jack Marlowe is an individual beyond corruption.
NRAMA: Of course, we could go into the irony that you're writing what appears to be an anti-corporation story, or at least an exploration of the role of the corporation, under the auspices of one of the world's largest corporations…
JC: Yeah, there is that. I obviously knew that irony existed when I decided to take the series in this direction. If anything, I hope it gives the book a bit more bite.
NRAMA: Let’s go into Marlowe's (Spartan’s) motives, as they particularly fuel the book to a large extent - as he tells his board members – he desires nothing less than the conquest of the free world - what's behind that? He really believes that strongly that his vision for the world is better than anything else?
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc35.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc35_t.jpg" width="150" alt="a page from WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 5" height="223" border="0" align="left"></a>JC: Marlowe understands what it takes to motivate his employees, and he knows what they expect to hear from their CEO. Frankly, that involves a lot of rhetoric. Part of this series shows how you can use the rules that exist to your advantage. I don’t know if I’d say Marlowe has a “vision”, but he definitely has an agenda. He’s been living on Earth for several thousand years, so he’s uniquely qualified to judge what’s worked and what hasn’t in the course of human history.
NRAMA: What is the "message" Marlowe is trying to get across? Usually, when someone shows up with a somewhat megalomaniacal viewpoint and motive, they're pushing a philosophy or religion or new thought pattern. What's Marlowe's?
JC: Again, it’s not about establishing some sort of “utopia”. Jack Marlowe is a problem solver. I’ve definitely heard that some readers are questioning Jack Marlowe’s motives. Some have even suggested that he’s heading down a corrupt path. Now that’s cynicism at work. But I would ask any longtime reader… when has the character of Spartan ever been anything but a straight-up superhero, pure of artificial heart? As far as I know, he’s never been depicted as having an evil bone in his android body. This guy is the Superman of the Wildstorm Universe, in terms of his virtue. No matter what challenges he may face, that’s not going to change.
NRAMA: Jack's suit - given how Dustin draws it, and Larry and Randy color it, I'm guessing it looks like the T-1000's liquid metal skin, right?
JC: Marlowe’s suit is made out of the same material that, former cast member; Void’s outer body was made of… whatever that was. Plus, it gives him a distinctive look. I treat it as a new type of superhero uniform.
NRAMA: Let’s get into the theme that you started on with Wax's speech in #2 - the corporation as the individual, albeit a more powerful individual. Personally speaking, was this something that has always held your interest, or was it something that came along as you were researching for the direction of the book?
JC: I’ve always had an interest in the corporate aspects of the modern world. I watched the rise and fall of Jean-Marie Messier with great interest. There’s no denying the effect these companies have on our lives. Of course, writing a comic book about it is a good excuse to do the kind of research I wouldn’t normally do on my own. That’s not to say that I don’t wing it sometimes, but this kind of fast fiction involves a lot of writing on the run.
NRAMA: For folks who didn't read it, can you give the Cliff's Notes version of the theories Wax expressed?
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/WC6cover2_t.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/WC6cover2_t.jpg" width="150" height="220" border="0" alt="WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 6" align="right"></a>JC: It’s simply the idea that corporations have evolved over time to become more powerful than governments, existing beyond their reach. As entities, corporations have more rights, more freedoms, than we as individuals do. Some people are apparently comfortable with that notion. Others, not so much.
NRAMA: Combining Wax’s speech, as well as your essay in the back of issue #1 - to be blunt, this series is "you," isn't it? This is how you personally feel, right? In that sense, how much of Wildcats is a personal exploration for you of the political and philosophical theories you mention?
JC: Like I said before, Wildcats Version 3.0 is speculative fiction, so there is that exploratory aspect of it. But I wouldn’t want to give readers the wrong impression. I want them to enjoy the book on a visceral level first. I want them to get caught up in the lives of the characters. The corporate theory at work is the window dressing. Now, as far as the books that are really “me”… well, if they even get published at all, they never seem to stay in print for very long. Maybe they shouldn’t be.
NRAMA: Basically, as Wax explained it, and you've presented, is the corporation of Halo a character in the book - Marlowe is its brain, Cole is, in a way, an immune system response, killing anything that threatens it?
JC: Like all of the giant, multinational conglomerates that exist in the world today, their influence is all-pervasive. That’s where Halo is headed… to be an integral part of the cultural landscape, ingrained in the public’s consciousness. Jack Marlowe is more the soul of the company… while Grifter is a pimple on its ass. A pimple that thinks it’s a tumor…
NRAMA: The feel of Halo as an "individual" organism, eating up other companies and, assumedly, coming into combat with other corporate rivals has the feel of countries going to war, as well as Godzilla fighting Rodan both will have enormous collateral damage. Is this basically your view of both the future and the world of the WSU, where sovereign governments have taken a backseat to corporations in terms of absolute power?
JC: I think those kinds of conflicts can be as interesting -- if not more so -- than the average superhero-supervillain slugfest. I’m not even writing those kinds of stories in Superman anymore, so I’m certainly not going to resort to them in Wildcats Version 3.0.
NRAMA: Analogy time - what is CC Rendozzo in relation to Halo? An opposing viewpoint? A rival corporation?
JC: C.C. Rendozzo actually has a lot in common with Jack Marlowe. They’re both intense, no-nonsense businesspeople. In addition, they both have skeletons in the closet that are eventually used against them.
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Rendozzo.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Rendozzo_t.jpg" align="left" width="165" height="272" border="0" alt="CC Rendozzo"></a>NRAMA: What event was that we saw in issue #2 where Rendozzo was facing off the FBI?
JC: That scene was a flashback to an FBI raid on the Rendozzo compound, which ties in to her reason for appearing in the book to begin with. Everything will become more clear in upcoming issues.
NRAMA: Moving back to Agent Wax a little more, with what he said in issue #2, why would Wax stick around and be a Halo employee, albeit, covert, while working at the NPS?
JC: In a certain sense, Wax is the conscience of the book. For better or worse, he’s been brought into Marlowe’s circle of confidence. If the Titanic’s headed for an iceberg, Wax is the kind of guy that would want to be right there on the main deck to see all the action first-hand. Remember, Wax had quit the NPS at the end of Vol. 2. What we didn’t see, that occurred between Vol. 2 and Version 3.0, was Jack Marlowe convincing Wax to go back to work at the NPS and act basically as a mole in that organization.
NRAMA: In the Wildstorm Universe sense, explain a little bit about the National Park Service - what's within their jurisdiction? Are they basically, the Department of the Interior, and handle all domestic super-stuff, or are they more covert?
JC: The National Park Service exists just as it does in the real world, a government agency responsible for national parks, monuments and historical sites. However, in the Wildstorm Universe, it also contains a top-secret, covert branch that investigates incidents involving superhuman criminal activity. The benevolence of the NPS provides the perfect cover for those kinds of investigations.
NRAMA: Why does Cole stick around with Halo?
JC: You can’t choose your family. It chooses you. There’s a history there between Grifter and Marlowe that he simply can’t deny. Their relationship -- that pushing and pulling of personalities -- is the heart of the book.
NRAMA: Your handling of Cole - it's almost as if, for him to continue with Halo, he's almost amoral, not caring about the consequence of his actions, or the larger picture. What is his motivation here?
JC: My whole approach with Grifter has been to subvert that clichéd, gun-toting, tough guy image in every way I can think of. I’ll take any chance I can get to mess with his head, as well as readers’ perceptions of what Grifter should be.
NRAMA: Everyone knows who he is, he often doesn't bother to hide his face, so why does Cole still wear the mask?
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Grifter.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Grifter_t.jpg" align="right" width="165" height="409" alt="Grifter - still with the mask..." border="0"></a>JC: Tradition, perversion and dysfunction. His mask is like his gang colors. Not to mention, you can hide a lot more than your face behind a mask…
NRAMA: Combining your Cole with Ed Brubaker’s version in Point Blank, there are certain parallels - you could argue that he's not the brightest bulb when it comes to picking things up on his own, explaining why Wax has to explain everything to him, and how he muddled through the investigation of Lynch's attack, but it's hard to see the Point Blank Cole not giving a crap about the company he's working for as the Wildcats Cole seems to. Am I missing some nuance of his character here?
JC: I think you might be. Grifter absolutely gives a shit. But, being as impulsive as he is, the things he cares about tend to be in opposition to the so-called bigger picture. Unlike Marlowe, Grifter’s got an ego the size of the Halo building. He’s kind of a hard luck character, but that’s part of his appeal.
NRAMA: Let’s move on to the structure of the book and its dynamic – as you alluded to before, this isn't a team book, it's not a solo book, obviously. Hell, so far, it's the "Marlowe and Cole Cash Show" and it's kind of hard, as a reader to snuggle up to either one. How do you see the book, overall?
JC: This is a book that operates very much like a primetime television drama, with an ensemble cast of characters. Every character, no matter how brief their appearance, is the star when he or she is on panel. I try to present them as though they all have full lives off-panel.
NRAMA: In this incarnation, what does "Wildcats" mean or stand for?
JC: There are two things at work with the series’ title. Because of its publishing history, Wildcats is just as much a brand name as anything discussed in the stories themselves. On a sillier, more conceptual level, I figure every character that shows up in this series has a certain wildness to them, some more obvious than others, but just wait...I might be reaching with that one…
NRAMA: Speaking of Dustin - 'fess up - how much of the either backgrounds or other stuff are you putting in there just so you can see Dustin draw them?
JC: I try to give all the artists I work with fun and interesting things to draw. At the same time, I like to give them things they’ve never drawn before. I wasn’t sure how Dustin would take to the atmospheres and environments I wanted to show in this series, but the kid has stepped up to the plate like a seasoned veteran, tackling every idea I give him with skill and enthusiasm. It’s not easy to do satire, the television commercials and news programs and whatnot… not a lot of artists can pull it off. Dustin’s a natural at it, though.
NRAMA: That said, you've given Dustin an awful lot of "talking heads" scenes – is he complaining yet?
JC: I actually think Dustin’s warmed up to the character stuff more than the action scenes. His characters really “act”, and the guy just gets better with every issue. I don’t think he wanted to do an old-school superhero comic book with lots of splash pages and shit flying out at you every other panel (at least, I hope not). As an artist, he’s much deeper than that. He’ll take one of my wacky ideas… like a Halo™ brand wall calendar in issue #6… and make it so real, I end up wanting one for my wall.
NRAMA: What about accessibility? While you can get into the series without knowing more than you explain in the back of issue #1 of the first two series, you're still telling a pretty complex story that, honestly, reads better in large chunks. How are you writing to both welcome readers and keep them in?
JC: Well, it is a Mature Readers title. I’m giving the readers enough credit to keep up with us. One of my favorite comic book creators of the ‘80s was Howard Chaykin. This was a guy who didn’t spoonfeed you a goddamn thing. You really had to read his comic books if you were going to get everything out of it. In Wildcats Version 3.0, I think all the information you need is there in the text and the art. As long as you’re paying attention, you’ll get everything.
NRAMA: Alright, teaser time – can you give a tease about what's coming up? I'm guessing a lot of gunfire with Rendozzo first, right?
JC: I’m all about putting these characters through the ringer, in a variety of ways. The end of the first story arc puts Grifter in a situation unlike any he’s ever experienced; one that drives a stake through the heart of his “action hero” persona. We also know from the first few issues that C.C. Rendozzo has a secret… one that, in a way, drives the entire first year of the book. Mister Wax, in particular, is going to start taking advantage of our Mature Readers label in a very unsuspecting way. A very adulterous way, actually. He’s not quite the clean cut guy everyone assumes he is.
There’s a slew of new characters introduced in the first year, as well. The Nuclear Family, the Beef Boys, FBI Agent Fagin Tyro, Ramón - C.C.’s resident boy genius, Donovan Rendozzo. Some of these characters began almost as window dressing, but they’ve taken a life of their own. The second story arc, issues #7-10, deals with Dolby’s transformation into something more than just an accountant. I just don’t think anyone will be able to predict where we’re taking these characters, but I hope that’s part of the fun.
On the corporate front, we’ll be seeing the Halo Corporation take giant leaps in their world influence. And the products with the Halo™ brand are going to impact the world in a much more significant way than anyone -- including Jack Marlowe -- could’ve ever imagined.
One thing I’m particularly excited about is that each story arc has its own specific graphic design. Issues #1-5 is an arc, and the covers reflect that you’re getting chapters in a larger story. <a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Marlowe.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Marlowe_t.jpg" align="left" width="165" height="327" alt="Jack Marlowe, the former Spartan, in his snazzy new suit" border="0"></a>Issue #6 is a standalone story, so its package design is completely unique for that issue, with a new Wildcats logo that you’ll never see again. Then, with the next four-issue story arc beginning in issue #7, there’ll be a whole new design for the book. New logo, new everything. It’s our way of trying to stay as graphically modern as we can, and that really comes down to Rian Hughes and Dustin Nguyen. These guys are doing fantastic work on these covers. I just give them the germ of an idea, and they go off and make it look better than I could’ve ever hoped. It feels like I’ve been working my entire career to get to the point where I can be involved in comic books that look this good.
NRAMA: In our first interview you mentioned several past Wildcats beginning to appear in the series as you went along, any plans you can tell us about?
JC: Did I say that? Hmmm… I don’t want to spoil anything, but I can tell you a certain sword-wielding, white-haired immortal warrior woman will show up again in Year Two.
NRAMA: Looking towards the future in light of Marlowe’s plans, are other corporations going to roll over as Halo comes barging in to take away what was once their sole territory? Will they respond in kind, ie, with their own versions of Cole Cash?
JC: Let me put it this way… not everyone is happy when someone pulls ahead of the pack, showing the rest of the world a better way of doing things. Visionaries are, more often than not, seen as a threat by the very establishment they’re leaving in the dust. So, responses will come from all corners.
NRAMA: Well then, how will/would Jack respond to challenges from other corporations?
JC: Good question. Jack Marlowe has learned to plan several moves ahead… so decisions that might not make perfect sense in the short-term will eventually work to his advantage in the long-term.
NRAMA: Finally - do Halo batteries last forever?
JC: Not only do they last forever… they’re going to change the world. Permanently.
To start, virtually all the super-hero trappings of the original concept are gone. Only one character, Grifter, a.k.a Cole Cash even wears any fragment of a costume, his mask. Spartan, the former leader of the team, back when they were the WildC.A.T.S, has shed his costume, wearing instead the material that once contained his former teammate, Void, who has since…gone into the Void. Mr. Wax, an agent with the National Park Service (from Volume 2), is back, as a mole inside the agency, working for Halo, who at the same time has serious reservations about the role of corporations in society. The beautiful, mysterious, and deadly C.C. Rendozzo has debuted, apparently intent on destroying Halo. Oh yeah – and there’s a FBI agent in a big glass vial, waiting to be reformed, kinda like the Martians in the Bugs Bunny cartoons.
But aside from that, Wildcats 3.0 is pretty easy to follow.
Oh yeah, and it’s got art by Dustin Nguyen...hubba.
Newsarama caught up with Casey to talk about the series, what it stands for, and where it’s going.
Newsarama: First, let's talk about how the relaunch is going. Wildcats 3.0 has two issues on the stands now, it's about to release its third. Have you been happy with the reception the series has received so far?
Joe Casey: I actually haven’t seen too many reviews, but I guess a first issue sell-out, and that’s including a 50% overship, is a pretty good indication that things are going well. I’ve seen some good responses from quite a few retailers, too.
NRAMA: What's gratified you the most from the response you seen?
JC: It’s nice to think that we’re doing a book that might be slightly different from the majority of current superhero material and people are still enjoying it, with some readers even embracing its relative uniqueness. In today’s market, taking creative chances can be a gamble, but so far this one seems to be paying off.
NRAMA: Confounded or frustrated you there most?
JC: I think different readers look for different things in their comic books. I’m dealing with some specific subject matter as a backdrop, but this isn’t meant to be an economics textbook. It’s a sexy, action/suspense/dark comedy that takes place against a particular setting, a huge corporation. But, just like Wildcats Vol. 2 was, this series really all about the characters. I have to simplify certain concepts for all kinds of reasons, but I think the general gist of how corporations operate will get through to the layman reader. Believe me, it’s going to stray even further from reality in the coming months, but this is speculative fiction, not real life.
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_05.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_05_t.jpg" width="150" height="226" border="0" alt="WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 4, pg. 5" align="left"></a>NRAMA: This is a series about corporate politics, so let's talk corporate politics. Have you been pleased with the support the series has gotten from Wildstorm and DC?
JC: The initial Eye of the Storm books have undoubtedly been a learning experience for everyone involved. I think, pound for pound, this is a stronger line of books than you’re likely to find anywhere, from any publisher. I also think that, with 20/20 hindsight, a lot of things would’ve been done differently, from creative decisions to editorial decisions to marketing decisions. I’m still not sure if DC knows what it has in this imprint. To me, it’s a tremendous opportunity to do edgier, more relevant material. Even more eclectic material in the mainstream market. But, the fact is, I’m really only responsible for some of the creative decision-making, so that’s what I try to focus on.
Trade paperbacks are always important, and Wildstorm’s always been pretty good about getting them out there. In fact, we’re wrapping up the trade collections for Vol. 2 with the release of Battery Park in February. This one collects the final issues of that run, #20-28. A big, fat book that really set the stage for what I’m doing in Version 3.0, from the introduction of Agent Orange to the initial idea of manufacturing batteries.
NRAMA: How about sales, are you content with the sales figures you’ve seen so far?
JC: I don’t have those kinds of expectations anymore. I used to get wrapped up in how much something was selling, where it was on the sales chart, etc. I realized I’d better just concentrate on doing the best work I’m capable of, working with the best people, and hope that the retailers and the readers show up and support the material we provide. As long as it sells enough to keep going, I’m happy.
NRAMA: In online reviewer Randy Lander's review of issue #1, he writes, "at one point, the android formerly known as Spartan is discussing corporate marketing and accounting, and I have to think that a sizable segment of super-hero fandom is going to have little interest in that type of story." Do you think he's right?
JC: Well, like I said before, I’m simplifying a lot of the corporate stuff so the majority of readers can deal with it. This book is not meant to be a deep dissertation of economics and marketing. I’m sprinkling in some details to add to the verisimilitude of the piece, but I’m trying not to let it overwhelm the real purpose of the book, which is to follow the characters and the shit they get into. At the end of the day, that’s where my real interest lies… putting these guys through their paces.
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_19.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc3no4_19_t.jpg" width="150" height="223" border="0" alt="WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 4, pg. 19" align="right"></a>NRAMA: To put it bluntly, do you care?
JC: Obviously, I want as many readers as possible to enjoy the book. But, as with everything I do, I’m writing this series with a specific point of view. If I was writing a sci fi story set on another planet, and in providing the proper level of detail for the story, I had to go into the socio-political and environmental climate of the planet I was writing about, I might be alienating some segment of the readership that has no interest in other planets or their possible politics. But, that’s the chance you take. Besides, I’ve always looked at the Mature Readers label as an opportunity to do something different with superheroes. With Automatic Kafka, I went one way with it. And with Wildcats Version 3.0, I’m going a different way.
NRAMA: In our interview a few weeks before the release of issue #1, we briefly touched on the Enron scandal but not in real detail. Has the current corporate climate, or maybe more accurately, the public's view of corporate in light of Enron, Worldcom, Martha Stewart affected your approach to the series?
JC: I think those real-life situations just make the book more relevant. I’ve certainly got my cynical attitudes toward corporations, just as many people probably do, but that’s what makes writing this series exciting for me. Corporations themselves aren’t evil; no doubt the folks that run them can often act in a despicable manner. But, corporations are definitely a powerful construct in modern society. In many ways, they‘re set up to be more powerful than governments. But, I’m not sure that we’ve ever seen a corporation depicted as a true force of good before. It’s a challenge for me as a writer to stay strong with that “aspirational” element of the whole thing.
NRAMA: Will we see you address these situations directly or analogously in the series?
JC: In some ways, yes. But, those are publicly-traded companies. They have stockholders to answer to. It seems to me, that simple fact is usually the root of a lot of corporate corruption. The Halo Corporation is privately-owned, with gazillion-bazillions of fictional comic book dollars at its disposal. As far as I’m concerned, Jack Marlowe is an individual beyond corruption.
NRAMA: Of course, we could go into the irony that you're writing what appears to be an anti-corporation story, or at least an exploration of the role of the corporation, under the auspices of one of the world's largest corporations…
JC: Yeah, there is that. I obviously knew that irony existed when I decided to take the series in this direction. If anything, I hope it gives the book a bit more bite.
NRAMA: Let’s go into Marlowe's (Spartan’s) motives, as they particularly fuel the book to a large extent - as he tells his board members – he desires nothing less than the conquest of the free world - what's behind that? He really believes that strongly that his vision for the world is better than anything else?
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc35.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Wc35_t.jpg" width="150" alt="a page from WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 5" height="223" border="0" align="left"></a>JC: Marlowe understands what it takes to motivate his employees, and he knows what they expect to hear from their CEO. Frankly, that involves a lot of rhetoric. Part of this series shows how you can use the rules that exist to your advantage. I don’t know if I’d say Marlowe has a “vision”, but he definitely has an agenda. He’s been living on Earth for several thousand years, so he’s uniquely qualified to judge what’s worked and what hasn’t in the course of human history.
NRAMA: What is the "message" Marlowe is trying to get across? Usually, when someone shows up with a somewhat megalomaniacal viewpoint and motive, they're pushing a philosophy or religion or new thought pattern. What's Marlowe's?
JC: Again, it’s not about establishing some sort of “utopia”. Jack Marlowe is a problem solver. I’ve definitely heard that some readers are questioning Jack Marlowe’s motives. Some have even suggested that he’s heading down a corrupt path. Now that’s cynicism at work. But I would ask any longtime reader… when has the character of Spartan ever been anything but a straight-up superhero, pure of artificial heart? As far as I know, he’s never been depicted as having an evil bone in his android body. This guy is the Superman of the Wildstorm Universe, in terms of his virtue. No matter what challenges he may face, that’s not going to change.
NRAMA: Jack's suit - given how Dustin draws it, and Larry and Randy color it, I'm guessing it looks like the T-1000's liquid metal skin, right?
JC: Marlowe’s suit is made out of the same material that, former cast member; Void’s outer body was made of… whatever that was. Plus, it gives him a distinctive look. I treat it as a new type of superhero uniform.
NRAMA: Let’s get into the theme that you started on with Wax's speech in #2 - the corporation as the individual, albeit a more powerful individual. Personally speaking, was this something that has always held your interest, or was it something that came along as you were researching for the direction of the book?
JC: I’ve always had an interest in the corporate aspects of the modern world. I watched the rise and fall of Jean-Marie Messier with great interest. There’s no denying the effect these companies have on our lives. Of course, writing a comic book about it is a good excuse to do the kind of research I wouldn’t normally do on my own. That’s not to say that I don’t wing it sometimes, but this kind of fast fiction involves a lot of writing on the run.
NRAMA: For folks who didn't read it, can you give the Cliff's Notes version of the theories Wax expressed?
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/WC6cover2_t.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/WC6cover2_t.jpg" width="150" height="220" border="0" alt="WILDVATS Version 3.0 no. 6" align="right"></a>JC: It’s simply the idea that corporations have evolved over time to become more powerful than governments, existing beyond their reach. As entities, corporations have more rights, more freedoms, than we as individuals do. Some people are apparently comfortable with that notion. Others, not so much.
NRAMA: Combining Wax’s speech, as well as your essay in the back of issue #1 - to be blunt, this series is "you," isn't it? This is how you personally feel, right? In that sense, how much of Wildcats is a personal exploration for you of the political and philosophical theories you mention?
JC: Like I said before, Wildcats Version 3.0 is speculative fiction, so there is that exploratory aspect of it. But I wouldn’t want to give readers the wrong impression. I want them to enjoy the book on a visceral level first. I want them to get caught up in the lives of the characters. The corporate theory at work is the window dressing. Now, as far as the books that are really “me”… well, if they even get published at all, they never seem to stay in print for very long. Maybe they shouldn’t be.
NRAMA: Basically, as Wax explained it, and you've presented, is the corporation of Halo a character in the book - Marlowe is its brain, Cole is, in a way, an immune system response, killing anything that threatens it?
JC: Like all of the giant, multinational conglomerates that exist in the world today, their influence is all-pervasive. That’s where Halo is headed… to be an integral part of the cultural landscape, ingrained in the public’s consciousness. Jack Marlowe is more the soul of the company… while Grifter is a pimple on its ass. A pimple that thinks it’s a tumor…
NRAMA: The feel of Halo as an "individual" organism, eating up other companies and, assumedly, coming into combat with other corporate rivals has the feel of countries going to war, as well as Godzilla fighting Rodan both will have enormous collateral damage. Is this basically your view of both the future and the world of the WSU, where sovereign governments have taken a backseat to corporations in terms of absolute power?
JC: I think those kinds of conflicts can be as interesting -- if not more so -- than the average superhero-supervillain slugfest. I’m not even writing those kinds of stories in Superman anymore, so I’m certainly not going to resort to them in Wildcats Version 3.0.
NRAMA: Analogy time - what is CC Rendozzo in relation to Halo? An opposing viewpoint? A rival corporation?
JC: C.C. Rendozzo actually has a lot in common with Jack Marlowe. They’re both intense, no-nonsense businesspeople. In addition, they both have skeletons in the closet that are eventually used against them.
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Rendozzo.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Rendozzo_t.jpg" align="left" width="165" height="272" border="0" alt="CC Rendozzo"></a>NRAMA: What event was that we saw in issue #2 where Rendozzo was facing off the FBI?
JC: That scene was a flashback to an FBI raid on the Rendozzo compound, which ties in to her reason for appearing in the book to begin with. Everything will become more clear in upcoming issues.
NRAMA: Moving back to Agent Wax a little more, with what he said in issue #2, why would Wax stick around and be a Halo employee, albeit, covert, while working at the NPS?
JC: In a certain sense, Wax is the conscience of the book. For better or worse, he’s been brought into Marlowe’s circle of confidence. If the Titanic’s headed for an iceberg, Wax is the kind of guy that would want to be right there on the main deck to see all the action first-hand. Remember, Wax had quit the NPS at the end of Vol. 2. What we didn’t see, that occurred between Vol. 2 and Version 3.0, was Jack Marlowe convincing Wax to go back to work at the NPS and act basically as a mole in that organization.
NRAMA: In the Wildstorm Universe sense, explain a little bit about the National Park Service - what's within their jurisdiction? Are they basically, the Department of the Interior, and handle all domestic super-stuff, or are they more covert?
JC: The National Park Service exists just as it does in the real world, a government agency responsible for national parks, monuments and historical sites. However, in the Wildstorm Universe, it also contains a top-secret, covert branch that investigates incidents involving superhuman criminal activity. The benevolence of the NPS provides the perfect cover for those kinds of investigations.
NRAMA: Why does Cole stick around with Halo?
JC: You can’t choose your family. It chooses you. There’s a history there between Grifter and Marlowe that he simply can’t deny. Their relationship -- that pushing and pulling of personalities -- is the heart of the book.
NRAMA: Your handling of Cole - it's almost as if, for him to continue with Halo, he's almost amoral, not caring about the consequence of his actions, or the larger picture. What is his motivation here?
JC: My whole approach with Grifter has been to subvert that clichéd, gun-toting, tough guy image in every way I can think of. I’ll take any chance I can get to mess with his head, as well as readers’ perceptions of what Grifter should be.
NRAMA: Everyone knows who he is, he often doesn't bother to hide his face, so why does Cole still wear the mask?
<a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Grifter.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Grifter_t.jpg" align="right" width="165" height="409" alt="Grifter - still with the mask..." border="0"></a>JC: Tradition, perversion and dysfunction. His mask is like his gang colors. Not to mention, you can hide a lot more than your face behind a mask…
NRAMA: Combining your Cole with Ed Brubaker’s version in Point Blank, there are certain parallels - you could argue that he's not the brightest bulb when it comes to picking things up on his own, explaining why Wax has to explain everything to him, and how he muddled through the investigation of Lynch's attack, but it's hard to see the Point Blank Cole not giving a crap about the company he's working for as the Wildcats Cole seems to. Am I missing some nuance of his character here?
JC: I think you might be. Grifter absolutely gives a shit. But, being as impulsive as he is, the things he cares about tend to be in opposition to the so-called bigger picture. Unlike Marlowe, Grifter’s got an ego the size of the Halo building. He’s kind of a hard luck character, but that’s part of his appeal.
NRAMA: Let’s move on to the structure of the book and its dynamic – as you alluded to before, this isn't a team book, it's not a solo book, obviously. Hell, so far, it's the "Marlowe and Cole Cash Show" and it's kind of hard, as a reader to snuggle up to either one. How do you see the book, overall?
JC: This is a book that operates very much like a primetime television drama, with an ensemble cast of characters. Every character, no matter how brief their appearance, is the star when he or she is on panel. I try to present them as though they all have full lives off-panel.
NRAMA: In this incarnation, what does "Wildcats" mean or stand for?
JC: There are two things at work with the series’ title. Because of its publishing history, Wildcats is just as much a brand name as anything discussed in the stories themselves. On a sillier, more conceptual level, I figure every character that shows up in this series has a certain wildness to them, some more obvious than others, but just wait...I might be reaching with that one…
NRAMA: Speaking of Dustin - 'fess up - how much of the either backgrounds or other stuff are you putting in there just so you can see Dustin draw them?
JC: I try to give all the artists I work with fun and interesting things to draw. At the same time, I like to give them things they’ve never drawn before. I wasn’t sure how Dustin would take to the atmospheres and environments I wanted to show in this series, but the kid has stepped up to the plate like a seasoned veteran, tackling every idea I give him with skill and enthusiasm. It’s not easy to do satire, the television commercials and news programs and whatnot… not a lot of artists can pull it off. Dustin’s a natural at it, though.
NRAMA: That said, you've given Dustin an awful lot of "talking heads" scenes – is he complaining yet?
JC: I actually think Dustin’s warmed up to the character stuff more than the action scenes. His characters really “act”, and the guy just gets better with every issue. I don’t think he wanted to do an old-school superhero comic book with lots of splash pages and shit flying out at you every other panel (at least, I hope not). As an artist, he’s much deeper than that. He’ll take one of my wacky ideas… like a Halo™ brand wall calendar in issue #6… and make it so real, I end up wanting one for my wall.
NRAMA: What about accessibility? While you can get into the series without knowing more than you explain in the back of issue #1 of the first two series, you're still telling a pretty complex story that, honestly, reads better in large chunks. How are you writing to both welcome readers and keep them in?
JC: Well, it is a Mature Readers title. I’m giving the readers enough credit to keep up with us. One of my favorite comic book creators of the ‘80s was Howard Chaykin. This was a guy who didn’t spoonfeed you a goddamn thing. You really had to read his comic books if you were going to get everything out of it. In Wildcats Version 3.0, I think all the information you need is there in the text and the art. As long as you’re paying attention, you’ll get everything.
NRAMA: Alright, teaser time – can you give a tease about what's coming up? I'm guessing a lot of gunfire with Rendozzo first, right?
JC: I’m all about putting these characters through the ringer, in a variety of ways. The end of the first story arc puts Grifter in a situation unlike any he’s ever experienced; one that drives a stake through the heart of his “action hero” persona. We also know from the first few issues that C.C. Rendozzo has a secret… one that, in a way, drives the entire first year of the book. Mister Wax, in particular, is going to start taking advantage of our Mature Readers label in a very unsuspecting way. A very adulterous way, actually. He’s not quite the clean cut guy everyone assumes he is.
There’s a slew of new characters introduced in the first year, as well. The Nuclear Family, the Beef Boys, FBI Agent Fagin Tyro, Ramón - C.C.’s resident boy genius, Donovan Rendozzo. Some of these characters began almost as window dressing, but they’ve taken a life of their own. The second story arc, issues #7-10, deals with Dolby’s transformation into something more than just an accountant. I just don’t think anyone will be able to predict where we’re taking these characters, but I hope that’s part of the fun.
On the corporate front, we’ll be seeing the Halo Corporation take giant leaps in their world influence. And the products with the Halo™ brand are going to impact the world in a much more significant way than anyone -- including Jack Marlowe -- could’ve ever imagined.
One thing I’m particularly excited about is that each story arc has its own specific graphic design. Issues #1-5 is an arc, and the covers reflect that you’re getting chapters in a larger story. <a href="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Marlowe.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://classic.newsarama.com/Wildstorm/Cats_Marlowe_t.jpg" align="left" width="165" height="327" alt="Jack Marlowe, the former Spartan, in his snazzy new suit" border="0"></a>Issue #6 is a standalone story, so its package design is completely unique for that issue, with a new Wildcats logo that you’ll never see again. Then, with the next four-issue story arc beginning in issue #7, there’ll be a whole new design for the book. New logo, new everything. It’s our way of trying to stay as graphically modern as we can, and that really comes down to Rian Hughes and Dustin Nguyen. These guys are doing fantastic work on these covers. I just give them the germ of an idea, and they go off and make it look better than I could’ve ever hoped. It feels like I’ve been working my entire career to get to the point where I can be involved in comic books that look this good.
NRAMA: In our first interview you mentioned several past Wildcats beginning to appear in the series as you went along, any plans you can tell us about?
JC: Did I say that? Hmmm… I don’t want to spoil anything, but I can tell you a certain sword-wielding, white-haired immortal warrior woman will show up again in Year Two.
NRAMA: Looking towards the future in light of Marlowe’s plans, are other corporations going to roll over as Halo comes barging in to take away what was once their sole territory? Will they respond in kind, ie, with their own versions of Cole Cash?
JC: Let me put it this way… not everyone is happy when someone pulls ahead of the pack, showing the rest of the world a better way of doing things. Visionaries are, more often than not, seen as a threat by the very establishment they’re leaving in the dust. So, responses will come from all corners.
NRAMA: Well then, how will/would Jack respond to challenges from other corporations?
JC: Good question. Jack Marlowe has learned to plan several moves ahead… so decisions that might not make perfect sense in the short-term will eventually work to his advantage in the long-term.
NRAMA: Finally - do Halo batteries last forever?
JC: Not only do they last forever… they’re going to change the world. Permanently.