You may want to consider a different
career. It is not for people that simply want to dabble in it or want to get
into it on a whim. It takes some serious sacrifice, balancing life, and most
times another career, with trying to do something that they truly love. They
are not getting rich at it by any means, and are into it for the love of the
medium. Since joining Twitter I have had the fortune of getting to know several
of these people who love comics, and are taking their careers into their own
hands. I get kind of a chance to see behind the curtain so to speak, and see
the hard work that goes into making the comics that arrive in your hot little
hands at the local comic shop.
Two such people are writer Brian
Apodaca and Artist Benny Jordan, the creative team behind the comic Zombie
Outlaw. You may recall that I reviewed issue number one on this blog back in
October of last week. Well the intrepid creative team is getting ready to
release issue number two of the series and came out with an Ashcan issue with a
preview of issue number two. The Ashcan picks up from the end of issue number
one with the kids from Irvine State University having just met the Zombie
Outlaw himself and coming out on the losing side. The art is still the cartoony
style of issue one, but the panels are more well organized and the flow is
better than the first issue. This shows a growth by Benny and his art style.
The back cover of the Ashcan also features are really nice looking alternate
cover of issue number two by Mark Alvarado. Here it is here.
I had the opportunity to aske Brian and Benny some questions about the delay between issues one and two, and also what they had been up to in the mean time. It turns out that there were some major life changes for both of them, and more on the way. They have also been busy on the convention scene trying to get word out about Zombie Outlaw. Here is the interview. Thanks to both of them for their time.
Hey guys,
Thanks for sending me the Ashcan and cards. I figured I would ask some questions.
Thanks for sending me the Ashcan and cards. I figured I would ask some questions.
Brian: Thanks
for taking the time to ask us some questions, Brett. I'm not
sure if Benny e-mailed you back, but I'll try best to give the answers
that I feel are valid.
Brian: In the
past year, Benny has gotten married and had a daughter. I have
worked a lot of hours, not as many as my fiance, but quite a bit, and traveled
to Cancun for a Wedding.
Also, I just mentioned my fiance, so - yes - I also got
engaged. I'm currently working on getting a block of rooms at a
Hampton Inn in Paso Robles. So if anyone knows anyone, give me a
holler! But yeah, we've both been quite busy. The main
thing, though, is we're doing this currently for the love of comics - and we
would, of course like that to evolve into getting paid for it - at which point
the issues will come flying at you FAST and FURIOUS!
Benny: I have done one other comic between issue 1 of Zombie Outlaw and this next issue. It was a comic for Scattered Comics Studios called Shadow Hunters. It was a completely different style for me. A bit more Anime as opposed to the cartoony style of Z.O. I am currently doing concepts for the next issue of that in between my work on Zombie Outlaw and adjusting to life with my new daughter.
Brian: If
issue #2 is a HUGE success, rocketing us to comics' superstardom, then issue #3
will come out shortly thereafter. If not, it will be another year
or two before issue #3 hits.
Hopefully, the first scenario will play out! :)
Benny: Regarding a more normal distribution schedule...well, as I said, I have a new child in my life now, so nothing is normal at the moment. Though I am going to try.
Geek Happenings: I saw that you guys did the Comikaze Expo last year. How was that experience? Any plans on doing more cons this year?
Brian: We
enjoyed immensely the Comikaze Expo in Los
Angeles Los
Angeles
We just did the LA Zinefest on February 19th, and that was a blast! We had a booth alongside Sean Stepanoff, who puts out GRISTLE magazine, among other books!
He's a very talented creator, whom we hope to see
at future venues. Check out his stuff on etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/GristlePublications
Finally, we'll be at the Wonder-Con in Anaheim
Anyone interested in attending should check out the
Comic-Con website, http://www.comic-con.org
Benny: Yes, Comikaze was great. We did a lot better than had anticipated. It was a lot of fun and we made some great contacts. We will be at Wondercon this year as it is being held in
Geek Happenings: I see that the cartoony art style is still in effect for issue number two. As I mentioned in the review of issue number one it is definitely a lot different feel than more serious zombie comics such as the walking dead. It is almost like an all ages zombie comic. Was this something that you guys had planned or did it just come out that way?
Brian: I
don't think we really heavily planned it as an all-ages book, and there are
definitely some things in there that most kids will not probably understand or
appreciate, either for generational reasons, or perhaps because the humor level
is not up the standards of some children. To call some of our
humor childish would be an insult to children! It's a mixed bag, really,
although I guess you could say the outlook or worldview is definitely
child-like. But there are certain totems and symbols or
iconography sprinkled throughout the first two issues that people under 30
might have trouble appreciating.
Benny: Yes
the artwork is still very cartoony. I'm really not sure how we came to have it
that way, so I suppose it just happened. And it works great with Brian's sense
of humor. This issue has some slight differences from the last. I view the
first issue of Zombie Outlaw as being out "pilot" issue. After many
great reviews and critiques I decided to make some changes in the way some of
the characters look. Not huge changes, but just enough that is flows better for
me as the artist and hopefully for the reader. I'm also concentrating on better backgrounds and
panel usage. The first issue was lacking in that department.
Geek Happenings: The cover for issue number two in the back of the
ashcan is definitely a different style and feel. Who did it? Is that going to
be an alternate cover, because on the cards it shows a cover by Benny.
Brian: Benny's cover will be the OFFICIAL cover to the 2nd issue. We have several amazing artists who've contributed alternate covers or pin-ups for issue #2. Not sure at this point if we will use any of them for ALTERNATE or VARIANT covers, but most of the pin-ups we've received from the many talented artists who've done THEIR takes on our characters WILL be in a pin-up section at the back of issue #2! Mark Alvarado, by the way, is the artist you're referring to at the back of the Ashcan/Preview for issue #2 which we premiered at Comikaze Expo a few months back. Mark's a great artist, and has some projects of his own in the works, but yeah - his stuff is great and we were really happy to get him to do HIS version of our characters. A very cool image!
Benny: Regarding the "alternate cover" on the back of the ashcan issue: I'm not quite shure if that will be used as a cover or not somewhere down the line. We decided to use a different piece for the cover of the ashcan so that when the second issue is actually released it will still feel "fresh". I put a lot of work into the second cover. we got some good responces for the first, but I, as the artist, feel it didn't have the impact that I really wanted. the second issue cover is something that I'm pretty proud of, and I hope others will be just as excited about it.
Here is Benny's cover for issue number two
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Well thanks again for the time fellas. Feel free to include anything you want to be promoted or any appearances.
Issue #1 of ZOMBIE OUTLAW is on sale at comixpress:
http://www.comixpress.com
Check out the main Zombie Outlaw website, as well as our
facebook page!
