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If Fred Van Lente hasn't popped up on your radar, he will soon. He has worked his way through Platinum Comics, his own self published Action Philosophers series, a bunch of Marvel Adventure titles and Wolverine: First Class. He is currently writing Marvel Zombies 3, Comic Book Comics and co-writing the ongoing Incredible Hercules with Greg Pak. He is also writing the upcoming Marvel FCBD book featuring Wolverine.
Coville:
Hercules has been in the Marvel Universe for a long time, written by a variety of writers (ie Bob Layton, Roger Stern, etc..). Are there certain stories or takes of the character that formed how Hercules would be in his current series?
FVL:
Plot-wise, definitely. The destruction of Olympus in the ARES mini is one of the major inciting incidents of the series, as well as the formation of the Olympus Group Corporation in Frank Tieri and Mark Texiera's 2005 HERC mini. The Olympus Group just made its reappearance in #123 with Hera as its new CEO and will play a central role from here on out.
Character-wise, we've tried to make our Herc as close to the character of myth as possible -- which is not all that different then traditional bon vivant demi-god of Marvel Comics past, that is. It's just a matter of degree.
Coville:
With Amadus Cho as a main character of the book, do you find yourself writing "A Boy and his X" type stories but substituting a Greek God for a robot?
FVL:
As you will see very shortly, Amadeus Cho is arguably the main character of INCREDIBLE HERCULES. I will say no more at this time...
Coville:
So who does all the mythology research for Hercules stories regarding his past?
FVL:
Greg and I share the burden in this as with all things iHERC-realted. For me, working with those old stories is one of the most rewarding aspects of the series, and I'm pretty sure Greg would agree.
Coville:
One thing I find interesting is all the mini mythology stories and how it fits with the character. In other appearances Hercules would tell these stories but it would be presented in an eye-rolling, "here we go again" way by the people around him. In Incredible Hercules it's done in a cool way. What do you think is the difference?
FVL:
The difference is we treat Hercules like a person, not one-dimensional comic relief. Don't get me wrong, I am a big advocate of one-dimensional comic relief. But it only works in team books, or in brief guest appearances where said comic relief has just a cameo. When a character is expected to shoulder a whole series, though, he has to have more facets than that. So the flashbacks are there not just as boasts of great deeds, but as insight into his personality and emotions.
In other words, in INCREDIBLE HERCULES, Herc is three-dimensional comic relief. ;)
Coville:
Once upon a time Hercules fought using a powerful mace, perhaps to make him more Thor like. Do you have any interest in bringing back his Mace?
FVL:
Herc has no fixed address and no pockets, so I don't know where he'd put the mace when he's not using it!
Coville:
Lately you've had Namora as a supporting character in the book. Another Agents of Atlas series is starting up soon. Will she be in both titles regularly?
FVL:
See INCREDIBLE HERCULES #125.
Coville:
Hercules main rogues gallery is a few family members. Once you cycle through them are you looking to use new villains you've created or other Marvel villains?
FVL:
It's going to take quite a while to cycle through said Olympian villains. You haven't even met all of them yet.
And some of them, like Ares, have new teammates that could be making a dark appearance in our title...
And Amadeus Cho needs an arch-nemesis, don't you think? That foe may be a brand-new character or a Marvel mainstay.
And, come to think of it, some villains from INCREDIBLE HERCULES may be making a comeback. A big comeback. Such as a certain Japanese God of Evil that has an army of alien slave deities at his beck and call and an infinite amount of hate for Olympians last I checked...
Coville:
With Hercules being one of the most powerful characters in the Marvel Universe, is it tempting to do numerous 'Clash of the Titans' fights with him against Juggernaut, Thing, Hulk, Thor, The Wrecking Crew, The Blob, etc.? Is that something that you want to do?
FVL:
Not really. I get jazzed about having Herc face down creatures from myth, just like in ye olden times, but with a more modern spin, like Ares in the original arc and the Amazons in the current one. There is a lot more of that, with the aforementioned rogues' gallery, in the near future.
Coville:
Marvel Zombies 1 and 2 were written by Robert Kirkman. Did it at all feel weird to write Zombies 3 because of the series being so identified with a different writer?
FVL:
Fortunately (from a writer's perspective), I had never read any of the Marvel Zombies comics before I was approached for the job, so I was able to come up with my own unique take on it, just on a purely conceptual level, before I read MZ1 & MZ2 (which I did a day or two after I got the job). So my approach to the material was so radically different from Robert's at the get-go, it didn't feel that weird, no.
Coville:
If you've done any reading regarding Zombies you've probably heard the "Zombies shouldn't run" debate. What about, you know, jumping and doing athletics. Should an undead Spider-Man or Captain America Zombie do everything versions of the characters can?
FVL:
I find so many things illogical about zombies, I'm not even sure the running would make it into the Top 5...
I have kind of my own explanation for how the Marvel Zombie virus works in terms of pseudo-science that you'll be seeing soon enough. It should answer at least some of your questions... at least to my own personal degree of satisfaction.
Coville:
With Marvel Zombies 3, you've used Machine Man as your main character. Why did you choose him over other characters?
FVL:
a.) He's awesome.
b.) He's a robot, and so he can't be infected.
c.) He has a hot robot ex-girlfriend.
d.) He drinks as much beer as I do.
e.) With his "Swiss Army Knife" powers, I can spend hours upon hours inventing new and spectacularly gory ways to eviscerate zombies AND GET PAID FOR IT!!!
and
f.) He is awesome
Coville:
Machine Man has always been a cool, but weird character. He's a pure robot, but with a human-ish personality (and a sudden need to drink beer) which doesn't really make sense. Is that something you eventually want to "fix" or will you just go with it?
FVL:
No, I think he's fine the way he is. Kirby conceived him as a "Living Robot," the most human-esque robot there could be. The beer thing makes perfect sense to me. Who doesn't like beer? Communists, that's who.
And Aaron Stack is no Communist.
Coville:
But Communist do drink Vodka, or at least old Russian Communists do. Does Machine Man also drink Vodka or is he strictly a Beer snob?
FVL:
Total beer snob. Not that he's against a Milwuakee's Best or Schlitz on occasion, if that's what the host is offering. "Snob" is really such a harsh word. He's a connoisseur who respects beer culture around the world and is constantly exploring new avenues of hops appreciation.
Hey, look, he's basically a computer, so he's not going to be your average drunk. He's an exceedingly organized drunk.
Coville:
You've done a lot of reading on the various philosophies and even did a 9 issue series called Action Philosophers! Is that something you use when writing characters elsewhere, figuring out what philosophical views a character might have that guide what decision they make?
FVL:
Joseph Campbell's thoughts on the Hero's Journey would seem perfectly applicable to a series like INCREDIBLE HERCULES, don't you think? Expect them turning up in more literal fashion this summer.
Coville:
I hear you are writing a Wolverine FCBD book that goes into his origin. Can you tell us more about this? Is this going to be a movie version origin as it coincides with the release of the movie or more of a condensing of the various Marvel origin stories?
FVL:
No, it's a brand new story, telling an "untold tale" of Wolverine, right when he started out with Department H in Canada, and it's his first mission for James MacDonald Hudson.
So yes, once again I am indulging in my Alpha Flight fetish. ;)
Coville:
I'm guessing you'd love a crack at writing an Alpha Flight ongoing. What is it about the team that appeals to you? Also, have you ever been to Canada?
FVL:
Yeah, I spent a weekend in Quebec City. Beautiful place, great food, nice French people. What a shock!
You know, I really don't know where the Alpha Flight love comes from. As a kid I was enamored by #1's and new projects and concepts. In the '80s I loved "Strikeforce Morituri", "DP7", stuff like that. I'd lump in "Alpha Flight," the most thoroughly dysfunctional superhero team ever conceived, and the national Canadian team that, along with those other strange concepts. John Byrne's art didn't hurt either.
Coville:
In Comic Book Comics you are telling the history of comic books via comic form. I'm sure you've discovered the joy of conflicting stories regarding the history. How do you choose which version of the story to tell?
FVL:
The one that most strongly illustrates the larger historical point I'm trying to get across.
For example, there appears to be scant or non-existent credible evidence that the legendarily sleazy publisher Victor Fox ever actually worked as an accountant for DC Comics, at which position he supposedly got the idea to run off and hire Will Eisner to produce the transparent "Wonderman" knock off of Superman once he saw Action Comics' sales figures. But many Golden Age creators appear convinced he did (Joe Simon, Eisner, etc.) so as an urban legend the tale has become inexorably encoded in American comics' DNA. So, couched of course in the classic journalistic dodge of "others say that...", I felt justified in including it in CBC #1 as a way to demonstrate just how quickly people were trying to rip off Superman and just how spectacularly underhanded the early publishers were. I'm not saying it's truth, I'm saying that other people believe it to be true.
As fact, the Victor Fox story is pretty dodgy.
As history, it's perfect.
Coville:
You also had to be quite choosy in what history you tell. In Issue #2 you left out the entire 1948 attack against comics and the industry winning fight against it. How do you pick what to take out and leave in?
FVL:
Well, they won the battle but lost the war: again, that is the larger, more important historical point. We look at the entire 1942-1954 series of anti-comics attacks in CBC #3. It's difficult to tell the story of comic books completely linearly, as so many things started and ended in overlapping time periods. But we'll get to most of it by the end of the series, of that I'm pretty confident.
Coville:
I noticed you told the story of the creation of Superman and Wonder Woman, but left out Batman. What was the reason for this?
FVL:
It wasn't particularly interesting or enlightening, in and of itself, as a story I felt, other than, "Kane and Finger tried to think of an unique and commercial way to copy Superman." I don't mean that as an attack; it's just the truth. I love Batman, and have nothing but admiration for his creators, and guys like Jerry Robinson. But if I include Batman, why not Flash or Green Lantern or Hawkman or Hourman? You just have to draw the line at some point with the super heroes in doing a pan-comics history, otherwise the Long-Underwear Men can completely take over.
We will discuss the creation of the Fantastic Four, for example, in CBC #4, but really only because it raises interesting questions of creator rights and the creation process, as Lee and Kirby have such radically different views of how it happened.
But we won't, I don't think, really get into the creation of Spider-Man (which, not coincidentally, is an even bigger mess, because then you get Joe Simon and Steve Ditko in there too, as you probably know). That doesn't mean we'll ignore Spider-Man's existence, but he is just another very successful iteration of the super hero genre, which more rightful belongs in history of that genre, which is not what Comic Book Comics is -- it's the history of the comics medium, which is much bigger than super heroes.
However, Bat-fans will be happy to hear we address his creation in CBC #3 as part of the discussion of Pop Art, as without it, obviously, we'd have no POW! ZAP! WHAM! Adam West TV show. ;)
Coville:
I'm sure you've heard about all the news regarding Platinum Studios this past year. You worked for them doing a number of series, what was your experience like?
FVL:
Platinum put a lot of confidence in me much earlier in my career, in 2000, 2001, 2002. That's when I wrote most of my stuff for them, several years before I started "Action Philosophers" or working for Marvel, even though the comics themselves weren't published until recently. They hired me to do a lot of stuff, and I worked on a number of different genres for them, and they gave me professional credits and confidence I wouldn't have otherwise had, and for that I'm very grateful.
You can visit Fred Van Lente's website at http://fredvanlente.com/
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