Comics Interview — Issue #035

Vogel and Propst discuss the origins and development of Southern Knights, which Vogel co-created in 1981 and self-published through The Guild before DAK took over as publisher with issue #8. They explain the conception of each team member — Electrode, Dragon, Connie, and Kristin — and their plan to move to a monthly schedule. A large portion covers the newly conceived one-shot Aristocratic Xtra-Terrestrial Time-Travelling Thieves, which sprang from one of Propst's unused sketches of an alien and a woman, with DAK suggesting it be developed as a standalone publication rather than a Southern Knights crossover.

O'Neil reflects on over 20 years in comics, describing how royalties, creator ownership, and the direct market have transformed the industry beyond what he could have imagined. He speaks candidly about the personal fallout from the sudden fame brought by his Green Lantern/Green Arrow run with Neal Adams, including a deteriorating marriage and a period of diminished work quality, and credits his recovery and subsequent sobriety as his greatest personal success. Now editing Batman, Detective, Firestorm, and Warlord at DC, he discusses his views on deadlines, fan criticism, and the craft of writing the Tony Stark alcoholism arc in Iron Man from personal experience.

Metz traces his background from academic publishing and indexing to co-founding Catalan Communications in 1983 to publish adult European comics in the U.S. He details the 1985 U.S. Customs seizure of Squeak the Mouse at Kennedy Airport on obscenity grounds, the subsequent federal trial, and Catalan's victory under the Miller test — arguing that fighting the case was essential to protect all future imports. He notes that American prudishness keeps U.S. sales of titles like Manara's Click! at under 10% of their French equivalents.

The married co-owners of Westfield Comics (subscription service) and Capital City Comics (retail) discuss how they built Westfield to 3,500 active subscribers by emphasizing discount pricing and personalized service. Bruce argues that the comic shop of the future must serve serious enthusiast-collectors rather than a generic young market, and recommends titles like Nexus, Swamp Thing, and Cerebus as examples of what the medium can achieve.

Huey, President of Jubilee Enterprises, explains how she transitioned from twelve years in computer work to organizing one-day comics conventions across twenty-two East Coast cities, running roughly forty-eight shows per year. She describes her formula for successful shows — activities, good artist guests willing to sign and sketch, and cooperative dealers — and warns that the convention market risks oversaturation.

DAK's editorial continues his series on the publishing process, this issue focusing on how format decisions (pulp, magazine, book, color vs. black and white) are dictated by content, cost, distribution, and target readership.

A letter from reader Amy Sddks offers a lengthy contrarian critique of Frank Miller's celebrated status, arguing that "godlike" heroes and increasingly pretentious prestige comics miss the point, and recommending interviews with Howard Cruse, Karl Kessel, Larry Marder, and various Golden and Silver Age veterans.