AMBIDEXTROUS #237: THE UNUSUAL SUSPECTS

[MattBrady]

#237- The Unusual Suspects

by Brandon Thomas

Editor supreme Joe Illidge has this crazy thing he keeps saying over and over again---“We want to make Miranda Mercury a household name.”

That’s a bit insane, right? No, not the actual sentiment of that statement, because who wouldn’t aspire to something that grandiose at this stage of the game, but the source is what’s really surprising in this case. Before this past spring, Joe had absolutely no idea that Miranda Mercury even existed and now, he’s an unwavering source of encouragement and guidance that is just another contributing factor to my best experience in comics thus far. Hell, he’s the one that got it signed at Archaia in the first place, after he was brought into the company as group editor. Once he got a look at the initial pitch he went completely out of his way to ensure that publisher Mark Smylie was the person brave enough to take a chance on it. Now, Joe Ill is like the perfect head coach for Team Miranda, pushing us whenever necessary and ensuring that we have everything to get the job done, but on the flip, trusting us enough to head out there and make some big plays. Anything he’s ever suggested or brought to the table has been to the book’s benefit and simply put, I can place my baby in his hands and know that she’ll come back without being dropped on the floor and kicked around.

He’s incredibly intelligent, knowledgeable, and respectful. When we get blinded or otherwise lost in the material, he pulls us back and gets us back on track. It’s easy to be devoured by enthusiasm here. So connected to the material that we can’t see the obvious. Joe never loses sight of the big picture. Not just the creation of the work, but the delivery and promotion of the work, the overall perception of the work. When the series was originally announced in an ASP press release, he came up with the tagline “Time Runs Out,” which was so perfect for so many reasons, and I’d have never thought of it.

But that’s him up in the booth, keeping watch over everything and making sure the game plan is properly implemented. He’s indispensable to the project and just one of many reasons why we were fortunate to get picked up by Archaia. The raw, somewhat untested players Joe Ill is lording over are as follows:

Lee Ferguson (artist/creator/running back)
Lee and I have been doing this comics thing for years now with varying degrees of success. We’ve both been fortunate enough to receive endorsements from creators we greatly respect and admire, and have done work for the Big Two largely because of it. We both followed that incredibly exciting period with one that saw us contracting a potent virus that kept any and all company reps away from our respective aspirations. Then, completely out of nowhere, we hooked up with a couple of old contacts at DC and our first works there were published about six weeks apart. Strange thing this reality is, and I suppose it’s only fitting that our careers (such as they are) have been following a very similar path.

I’d initially known of his work strictly as a fan and a lurker on the Event Comics boards, and watching Miranda develop from character design to promotional piece to star of her own book through his artistic hands has been something special to witness. His Miranda work is obviously the finest of his career and just like everyone involved with this, he’s only getting better. Lee jokes that our second issue (296) is going to make the first look silly by comparison and based on what’s come in thus far, clearly he’s right. We’re developing this thing now where I’ll script him something and he’ll send it back exactly as I imagined it, only better. It’s become my job to give him a few things in every script that initially make him want my hands broken but between you and me---I think he likes figuring out how he’s going to draw 42 panels on a page, or a giant spider made of black glass. Or maybe it just looks that way when these amazing pages come back.

Initially, the plan was for him to complete all of the art chores for this book. Think some of that has to do with a slight disconnect between the pencils he turns in and the finished art that eventually sees print. For reasons unknown, Lee Ferguson is blessed with a style that’s difficult for others to properly capture and showcase. Somewhere in the process, his beautiful line work becomes obscured and I’m sure that was the last thing he wanted for this book, so when we started pitching this ages ago, everything was all Lee. That plan changed when we realized it’d take him a couple of months to finish every issue.

How fortunate then were we to enlist these next two talented gentlemen, who help make Ferguson look like the superstar I’ve known he was for years…

Marc Deering (inker/wide receiver)
Lee’s personal pick to ink his work, and given the above considerations…that’s an incredibly ringing endorsement. I decided a long time ago that in regards to the art, Lee was absolute lord and master, so when he said Marc Deering should be the one to ink his work, then Marc Deering became the guy without discussion. How he manages to preserve the intent of the pencils without diminishing them is amazing to me, and he continues to learn from and adjust to Lee’s style on every page. The closer we got to the end of the first issue, the better his work became, and you could see them starting to merge together. Lee would leave an element specifically for Marc to provide a personal flourish, knowing exactly what he would do with it. There’s even a scene at the end where Marc spent three of four passes attempting to replicate the famous “Kirby dots” effect for a character’s grand entrance.

He’s as committed as any of us, and holds the distinction of being the first person to have the Miranda cover blown up to poster size and placed on his wall. Hell, even I haven’t done that and I call myself her creator. But he’s doing the work of his young career and is very close to being the only man Ferguson trusts to ink his stuff. Our next issue is when this combination really starts to pay off, creating the proper balance any decent offense needs to function and paving the way for our secret weapon…

Felix Serrano (color artist/return specialist)
Felix is our version of Devin Hester, an electrifying presence that re-energizes every facet of the game. This is yet another reason why we were fortunate to sign with Archaia, because without the mighty rolodex of Joe Ill, we wouldn’t have the services of
Mr. Serrano. Recruiting a decent colorist was always something that scared Lee and I half to death, so when Joe sent us Felix’s samples (all of them Marvel-related) we breathed a collective sigh of relief. Still, while what we glimpsed was impressive, it was impossible to know how his style would translate to Lee’s pencils and the wonderful world of Miranda Mercury. As I mentioned before, the artistic stylings of Lee Ferguson are like that of an enigma---difficult to decipher and even harder to properly complement.
Something just happens when his artwork leaves his hands and secretly I was expecting a similar situation here. Then we all got the first piece, which is the cover you should see attached.

To say that everybody was blown away is an understatement. This was literally everything we had envisioned, plus stuff we’d never even bothered to ask for. The colors were vibrant, striking---all without burying the beautiful lines Lee originally laid down. Neither one of us had seen his work look quite like this and it was incredibly gratifying on many levels. Because if Miranda Mercury is me unleashed with no safeguards and credible restrictions, this was confirmation that so too was this the age of Lee Ferguson, where his art would be displayed with the same passion and attention he puts into it. Felix Serrano just gave day one of a clinic in how to color Lee’s pencils, coming perilously close to his own personal mantra---“like Steranko Nick Fury…in the year 2050.” And honestly…this is NOTHING. Felix is improving by the scene, in most cases by the page---as happy as we were with this image, it hardly compares to the chase sequence that follows, or the code-breaking sequence that follows that, or the eventual arrival of Rebel Ronin.

When you put pages into this man’s hands, good things just happen. You’ll understand. Soon.

Matty Ryan (letters/production/kicker)
Without this man, it’s all just pretty pictures. To people that don’t know any better, Matty has the simplest gig, but I’m assuming that most of this audience doesn’t fall into that faction. Mr. Ryan has bailed us out of, and really, been put into more deadline disasters than anyone else on squad and all of us are in his debt. This is usually how it works---something will need to go to Diamond, or be included in a press kit, or be prepped for an online preview, and the last thing that needs doing are the letters. And they need to be done yesterday. Cue a whirlwind process that has Matty banging out the letters, Joe and I going over them and asking for any corrections, then Matty inserting those corrections, all within a day or so. Every time we look up, he’s saving the entire thing, and as the man who is requiring him to put all those balloons on the pages in the first place…there’s a
certain level of guilt I often feel when the schedule backs him into a tight corner.

Ryan used to work in Marvel’s trade department and that’s a really big reason why I’m so excited to have him onboard. Because on top of the lettering, and the production experience, and that brilliantly designed logo---there is a man who specializes in designing graphic novels. And as beautiful as Miranda Mercury’s comic will be, expect her hardcover (crossing fingers) to look significantly better. Lee and I have been compiling material for over two years now and we’ll be asking Matty to pack behind the scenes and development material into it ‘til it bursts. We want to convey the illusion that we’ve glimpsed a little bit of the future, and Matty Ryan is instrumental in putting that vibe onto paper in an attractive and digestible format. I know he’s already got big ideas for it, and I’m making it one of my personal goals that he’s not staring down the barrel while he’s making them happen.

So there we go…take all of these incredibly talented people, throw myself into the equation and you have the Miranda Mercury creative team. Pleased to meet you, you’ll be hearing much more from us soon.

The Cool-

Jean Grae- Jeanius
The secret Jean Grae album, produced entirely by 9th Wonder, allegedly during whirlwind studio sessions that totaled only five days. To me, this was like the Holy Grail of 9th produced merchandise, something destined to only be passed from hard drive to hard drive, never officially released. Rumor has it a premature leak killed any chance of this album being experienced by the masses, which is ironic considering how I got my hands on it. You should’ve seen me that morning, downloading it off some dude’s site like the Feds were gonna swoop in any second and rip it from my grasp, a Kool-Aid grin spread across my face. Nothing else needed to happen that day for me to have considered it a complete success. Looking back, well worth the effort to possess my favorite bit of work from Jean along with another set of high-quality beats by Mr. 9th Wondra. Hopefully the next collaboration will prove a little easier to come by…

L.E.G.A.C.Y.- Absolute Mayhem
Officially, this is another one that doesn’t really exist---the album Project Mayhem was part of a Hall of Justus three pack that also included albums from The Away Team and 9th Wonder. In my ever-infinite wisdom, I decided that as fantastic as the original Mayhem was, it needed a few more tracks to fill it out. This happens quite a bit, I’ll put a CD on the computer, re-sequence it, add a few tracks and create a slightly personalized version of an album. This one includes stuff from the Triple Play EP, Legsclusives, Dream Merchant V.1, and NC State of Mind on top of the very excellent work 9th and Khrysis had already put down. Legs is a bit like Canibus in the sense that he only has one gear (spitting with unmatched intensity), but he does manage to slow things down on a few tracks, giving him some space for more introspection and storytelling. Lot of MCs belong to the Justus League, but L.E.G.A.C.Y. always stands out amongst good company…this album (even before I messed with it) proves why. Oh yes, and I named it Absolute because I am a completely incurable nerd.

I Am Legend (with extra special guest The Dark Knight)
Will Smith can do no wrong. Apparently, many of you agree with me as this past weekend the last movie star on Earth smashed a box-office record held by the mighty Lord of the Rings trilogy. No huge surprise---combine an incredibly appealing lead actor with an incredibly compelling premise and some incredibly strong imagery? Sounds like a hit to me too, and a well-deserved one at that. Smith’s presence and ability to mix humor, terror, and pathos carry this one to completion. There are several intensely powerful scenes that’ll get stuck in your head long after you leave the theater. Great movie to see that was only amplified by the IMAX treatment, especially the scenes of a deserted, desolate New York. I’d recommend you go see this immediately, but you probably already have.

And since I saw this on the IMAX at Navy Pier, the fantastic Dark Knight preview was also attached. Everyone has commented on this in the last couple weeks, so most of you probably know exactly what occurs and when but the moment when the Joker is unveiled is more than a little unsettling, which is exactly the right track for the filmmakers to be on. The shadow of Jack Nicholson will loom large (and rightfully so) over Ledger’s interpretation, but look forward to that changing come July. He’s unrecognizable and it’s obvious that he’s fallen about as completely into a character as humanly possible. The way he walks is slightly off, like his body is held up by lines of string, part man, part insane puppet, and how in the hell can you not love the last section of the trailer---which is an obvious wink to a classic scene from the first movie. Nerds are already crying foul over the lack of chemical scarring but really…a man falling into a vat of crap and having his skin bleached is pretty silly…probably even more so than a man in a giant bat-suit. Relax and go watch the trailer again. As the man clearly says…why so serious?

Should have the next column ready for Monday, just in time for holiday break. The article will endeavor to answer every major question about Miranda Mercury that you’ll ever have. For those that already believe, Archaia has posted an ordering coupon on their site for delivery to the retailer of your choice. Get your ticket to adventure before they’re all gone at (please link to www.archaiasp.com)

Until next time, good people…

B

Last time…

[PatrickWedge]

Great to see a behind the scenes look at every person involved in the process, not just one or two people. Everyone seems to have great passion for the book so I can't wait for this to come out.

[Fresco]

Very nice look at the creative process...
Best of luck, and much success on MIRANDA MERCURY y'all!

[Pharmdown]

This looks cool, I'm gonna pick it up.

[Grievous]

Great to see hip hop get some love

[LeeFerguson]

Hah! I knew it was only a matter of time before you worked the football analogy into a column, B...

And I wonder how often Joe Ill throws down his headset and curses us in the course of a given issue..?

[Marius665]

yo, that DARK KNIGHT trailer was crazy as all Hell

this is going to be a sweet movie, I'm to excited to see the Joker kick some ass

I also heard that Anthony Michael Hall was going to be in it, I'm hoping for HUSH

[GeorgeG]

Originally Posted by Marius665

I also heard that Anthony Michael Hall was going to be in it, I'm hoping for HUSH

More likely The Riddler.

[Xero]

Glack to see Joe Illidge is back in the business after the Batman purge. Big shoutout to Shawn Martinbrough (congrats on the book) and Milo Stone!

[Ambidextrous]

Originally Posted by Xero

Glack to see Joe Illidge is back in the business after the Batman purge. Big shoutout to Shawn Martinbrough (congrats on the book) and Milo Stone!

Yeah, Joe Ill is the person responsible for bringing Miranda to Archaia and he's been an incredible asset every step of the way. Know he's taking the success of this book very seriously (and personally) and he's proven this on several occasions throughout the process. We're extremely lucky to be working with him.

Thank you all for the kind words and don't forget your Miranda coupons!

Oh yeah, that Dark Knight trailer is ridiculously hot! Ledger is gonna be every bit as amazing as people are claiming, I suspect...

B

[NoPrize]

Its a goodthing my LCS knows me well enough to order a titles like Mercury. I would hate to have to go Mel gibson on him. Great forum read as well.