Comics Interview — Issue #075

Conway recounts the creation of the Punisher in Amazing Spider-Man #129 (1973), explaining the character's black-and-white moral worldview as inspired by Don Pendleton's Executioner novels. He describes designing the skull costume with John Romita and Ross Andru, and reflects on how subsequent writers like Mike Baron and Steve Grant handled the character well, though he would have preferred the Punisher remain more of a loner with no support team. He also discusses the War Journal device as a way to avoid thought balloons.

Brussels-based comics critic and writer Smolderen provides an in-depth look at the French/Belgian comics industry, centering on Herge's Tintin as the foundational influence spanning four generations. He discusses the European album market (800 new hardcover titles per year at its peak), the "clear line" art style, the intellectual respectability of comics in European culture, and the emerging collector's market for original art. He also outlines his "stereo-realism" theory of how great comics engage multiple cognitive centers simultaneously.

Chaykin speaks at length about his disillusionment with the mainstream comics audience and his transition toward screenwriting in Hollywood. He discusses Black Kiss as a deliberate creative and commercial experiment, his upcoming Twilight series (DC), a Batman story with Michael Golden, and the Nick Fury/Wolverine graphic novel. He is sharply critical of the comics industry's creative conservatism, the immaturity of its audience, and the lack of acknowledgment for genuinely adult work.

Giraud discusses the upcoming Marvel reprint of Lt. Blueberry under the "Moebius" name and the irony of publishing his western work under his SF pseudonym. He reflects on his training under Belgian artist Jije, the appeal of the American West to European artists, his dual creative identities as "Gir" (western realism) and "Moebius" (SF fantasy), and the technical challenges of switching between the two styles. He lists Peckinpah, Monte Hellman, and Sergio Leone as key visual influences on Blueberry.

Stout continues his account of work in film and illustration, covering his departure from Conan the Destroyer to produce The Dinosaurs book (250,000-copy first printing), his aborted Godzilla 3-D film project, his production design on Masters of the Universe, and a new Disneyland Europe concept assignment. He and Dan O'Bannon plan to become wealthy film directors so they can return to comics on their own terms.

Erickson, editor-in-chief of Gladstone Publishing, discusses Gladstone's operations at a pivotal moment: Disney has reclaimed its comics license and will publish its own line, though Gladstone may continue with hardbound classic reprints. He explains the challenges of re-scripting foreign Disney comics (primarily poor-quality English scripts from Danish producer Gutenberghus), the creative diversity between writers Don Rosa and William Van Horn, and the difficulty of writing good Mickey Mouse stories versus Donald Duck stories.

Features a formal joint statement by Terry Austin, John Byrne, Howard Chaykin, Jay Muth, Trina Robbins, Craig Russell, Alex Toth, and Charles Vess, threatening legal action against Innovation Comics publisher David Campiti for falsely advertising them as contributors to his line; a letter disputes DAK's comics rating-system questionnaire; a third laments the cancellation of the JLA/Avengers crossover project.