Post by Talon Karrde on Apr 9, 2007 17:33:42 GMT -5
The following was featured at newsrama.com:
In the “DC Nation” column appearing in all of DC’s titles released this week, readers of Birds of Prey got some surprising news seemingly out of nowhere. Long-time (since issue #56) and fan-favorite writer Gail Simone was exiting the series, to be replaced by newly exclusive DC writer Sean McKeever.
Newsarama had a chance to briefly ask Simone for her thoughts on leaving the title – the why’s and wherefore’s – and what she has coming up before she passes the baton…
Newsarama: So Gail, the last time we spoke about Birds of Prey, heck anytime we spoke about Birds of Prey, you seemed ridiculously happy about the book, and had plans a'plenty about the future. Now that's changed. What happened?
Gail Simone: Yeah, this is hard stuff. I am deliriously happy with both Nicola Scott's interiors and Stephane Roux's covers. I think we actually have one of the snappiest and most brilliant art teams going, in fact, and it really reinvigorated my love for the book. We had some long term plans, including a cool story where Babs realizes that far, far too many people know Oracle exists, a plotline we've been building to for a long time. And the new characters have been a blast. Misfit is adored and loathed in approximately equal numbers, which I love, and Manhunter and Barda have just been a joy to write.
So it's a great time for the book, and I do dearly love it. I've for years had pro friends tell me not to get too attached to the company-owned characters, but I find no other way of writing works for me at all. I still miss Deadpool and his cast, and I find that on every book I write, even briefly.
But the truth of this matter is, I was simply offered a project I couldn't turn down. A dream book with a dream art team, and a real chance to reshape comics’ history. DC's always been great to me, but this is just...insane. It's unbelievably exciting.
And I want to pour everything I've got into it. I had to let something go, and for reasons that I think will make more sense as things are revealed, it meant letting go of some beloved bird friends of mine.
It's hard, really hard. These crazy dames have really gotten in my head, and rarely left my brain for even an hour in the last few years. But the plus is, I got to tell the huge story I wanted to tell, the “Rise of The Canary”, over nearly fifty issues. That's a rare and thrilling deal.
NRAMA: How sudden was this departure for you? Is it something where you're going to be able to tie up all your threads? Some of your threads? A thread?
GS: It was short notice, but completely an honor and a delight. It wasn't something pushed at me. On my recent visit to New York, Dan [Didio] asked me into his office and made the proposal, and my eyes just bugged out of my skull. I couldn't turn it down. It's something that almost feels like destiny, as goofy as that sounds, like something I've been working towards my entire career as a writer.
But yeah, we're actually at a perfect point for me to leave, and they're letting me leave the book when and in the manner of my choosing. Dan's always been a huge supporter of my work on Birds of Prey, and he knows how important this is to me.
Finally, man alive are we going out with a bang. This is absolutely the most fun I've ever had on an arc on the book. Not just because it guest stars the Secret Six. Not just because I got to write Hawkgirl. Not because we brought back one of the great JLI characters. Not because I got to write Helena throwing a meatball at Catman's head, but because the art team of Nicola Scott and Doug Hazlewood has delivered something exquisite on every page.
It's just fun. So many threads come to such a satisfying conclusion that again, it almost feels like destiny, and it's because DC gave us the space to do it right. It's a slobberknocker.
NRAMA: All in all, looking back on your run on Birds of Prey, what will you be most proud of when you put the last period on that last sentence?
GS: Great question. I actually have a couple. First, I believe that we rebuilt Canary organically to be someone who could, for example, lead the big guns of the Justice League believably. I don't think we'll see goofy-ass hostage stories featuring her again.
Second, I'm extremely proud of the fact that this book often had an almost exclusively female cast, and yet, no two characters are the same. They all had distinctive voices and characters, from Misfit to Huntress to Barda to Oracle and on and on. It put the lie to the idea that male readers wouldn't read a book with a female cast, and it stayed one of DC's steadiest selling and most critically acclaimed books. It's drawn the attention of the national media many, many times, without a single a-list star in it, and almost no big stunt events. I think, if you look at how many supposedly girl-friendly superhero books have come and gone while Birds of Prey keeps going, it's pretty impressive.
I also am delighted by how the book has been such a tremendous gateway drug for non-comics readers. I can't tell you how many hundreds of times I've heard that Birds of Prey is the only book a reader's wife or girlfriend reads every month, or that it brought someone into comics who hadn't been interested before. That's really been the great joy for me.
I don't take credit for any of that- Chuck Dixon and Jordan Gorfinkle created the template and the set-up and wrote so many great stories, and we've had artists like Ed Benes, Paulo, Joe Bennett, and Nicola Scott working their hearts out to make it all look spectacular. But it was nice to be part of that. A successful book that doesn't have Batman or Wolverine in it is rare enough, but one that also has almost all females in the cast, that's really very cool.
NRAMA: What do you think your run on the book has done for the characters that both starred in the series as well as those who moved through it?
GS: Birds of Prey got a reputation for scraping the barnacles off of a lot of characters, which I find very flattering. Again, the artists should get the bulk of the credit for that. Nicola's Barda is amazing mainly because of the way she draws her.
One amusing thing is, we managed to do fifty issues without a single serious romantic plot of any seriousness. I'm actually pretty tickled about that, as that seems to be the first thing writers think of when writing women - "Who is she in love with?" The Birds can stand on their own in that regard.
I maintain that for a book written by a woman and drawn by a woman, this latest arc has more crazy testosterone fun than almost anything else on the stands, so there!
NRAMA: Sean McKeever’s been announced as your replacement. Your thoughts on handing things off to him?
GS: Well, he's a bit of a creep, for one thing.
Ah, the truth is, I've been a fan of Sean's for a long time, and it's the main reason I'm not inconsolable. This is the guy who wrote some of the best female characterization ever over at Marvel, and that's just a fact. With all due respect, there are a lot of writers whom I know would be a bad fit for the book. Sean's one of the handful where I actually breathe a huge sigh of relief, and can't wait to see what he comes up with.
Plus, he's got Nicola, so you know it's going to continue to look kickass. I honestly feel she's the next big thing. She draws facial expressions at the level of Kevin Maguire, and her action work is unbelievable.
It's a great team. I honestly feel tremendous relief that this is who is taking over.
NRAMA: One of the final times we can do this then - so where are you looking to take things as you head towards your finale on the series?
GS: Well, issue #104 is probably the biggest response to a single issue we've ever done, and it actually gets a bit crazier. And the climax of this story is going to put monster smiles on the faces of every Birds of Prey reader, I believe. It's the Six vs. the Birds. It's Tora Olafsdotter returning. It's Hawkgirl, and a still-to-be-revealed final member of the Six, and finally, it's Oracle having a friendly chat with Spy Smasher that's going to be quite memorable.
The thing is, I never wanted to be the last writer of Birds of Prey. The hope is that what we did will live on and grow and change, just as it did when we took over from the previous writers. I'm happy to think of the Birds of Prey characters appearing in other books, maybe a little more confident, a little more dangerous, a little more fun. This end came a bit sooner than I expected, but I'm certain it won't be the last time I write the characters. And they are in great hands.
I have to thank the writers who created the book and added to it before I came aboard, and the artists who brought it all to life, and DC for understanding that it's an important book in what it does, and the retailers and critics who spread the word so regularly.
But mainly I have to thank the readers who have been so ridiculously supportive and generous. I completely lack the words to express this, somehow, as maudlin as that sounds. I hope you'll all stay with the characters as Sean takes the reigns, and I hope you'll at least try the new thing I'm working on, because DAMN IT IS AWESOME.
Thanks everyone.
In the “DC Nation” column appearing in all of DC’s titles released this week, readers of Birds of Prey got some surprising news seemingly out of nowhere. Long-time (since issue #56) and fan-favorite writer Gail Simone was exiting the series, to be replaced by newly exclusive DC writer Sean McKeever.
Newsarama had a chance to briefly ask Simone for her thoughts on leaving the title – the why’s and wherefore’s – and what she has coming up before she passes the baton…
Newsarama: So Gail, the last time we spoke about Birds of Prey, heck anytime we spoke about Birds of Prey, you seemed ridiculously happy about the book, and had plans a'plenty about the future. Now that's changed. What happened?
Gail Simone: Yeah, this is hard stuff. I am deliriously happy with both Nicola Scott's interiors and Stephane Roux's covers. I think we actually have one of the snappiest and most brilliant art teams going, in fact, and it really reinvigorated my love for the book. We had some long term plans, including a cool story where Babs realizes that far, far too many people know Oracle exists, a plotline we've been building to for a long time. And the new characters have been a blast. Misfit is adored and loathed in approximately equal numbers, which I love, and Manhunter and Barda have just been a joy to write.
So it's a great time for the book, and I do dearly love it. I've for years had pro friends tell me not to get too attached to the company-owned characters, but I find no other way of writing works for me at all. I still miss Deadpool and his cast, and I find that on every book I write, even briefly.
But the truth of this matter is, I was simply offered a project I couldn't turn down. A dream book with a dream art team, and a real chance to reshape comics’ history. DC's always been great to me, but this is just...insane. It's unbelievably exciting.
And I want to pour everything I've got into it. I had to let something go, and for reasons that I think will make more sense as things are revealed, it meant letting go of some beloved bird friends of mine.
It's hard, really hard. These crazy dames have really gotten in my head, and rarely left my brain for even an hour in the last few years. But the plus is, I got to tell the huge story I wanted to tell, the “Rise of The Canary”, over nearly fifty issues. That's a rare and thrilling deal.
NRAMA: How sudden was this departure for you? Is it something where you're going to be able to tie up all your threads? Some of your threads? A thread?
GS: It was short notice, but completely an honor and a delight. It wasn't something pushed at me. On my recent visit to New York, Dan [Didio] asked me into his office and made the proposal, and my eyes just bugged out of my skull. I couldn't turn it down. It's something that almost feels like destiny, as goofy as that sounds, like something I've been working towards my entire career as a writer.
But yeah, we're actually at a perfect point for me to leave, and they're letting me leave the book when and in the manner of my choosing. Dan's always been a huge supporter of my work on Birds of Prey, and he knows how important this is to me.
Finally, man alive are we going out with a bang. This is absolutely the most fun I've ever had on an arc on the book. Not just because it guest stars the Secret Six. Not just because I got to write Hawkgirl. Not because we brought back one of the great JLI characters. Not because I got to write Helena throwing a meatball at Catman's head, but because the art team of Nicola Scott and Doug Hazlewood has delivered something exquisite on every page.
It's just fun. So many threads come to such a satisfying conclusion that again, it almost feels like destiny, and it's because DC gave us the space to do it right. It's a slobberknocker.
NRAMA: All in all, looking back on your run on Birds of Prey, what will you be most proud of when you put the last period on that last sentence?
GS: Great question. I actually have a couple. First, I believe that we rebuilt Canary organically to be someone who could, for example, lead the big guns of the Justice League believably. I don't think we'll see goofy-ass hostage stories featuring her again.
Second, I'm extremely proud of the fact that this book often had an almost exclusively female cast, and yet, no two characters are the same. They all had distinctive voices and characters, from Misfit to Huntress to Barda to Oracle and on and on. It put the lie to the idea that male readers wouldn't read a book with a female cast, and it stayed one of DC's steadiest selling and most critically acclaimed books. It's drawn the attention of the national media many, many times, without a single a-list star in it, and almost no big stunt events. I think, if you look at how many supposedly girl-friendly superhero books have come and gone while Birds of Prey keeps going, it's pretty impressive.
I also am delighted by how the book has been such a tremendous gateway drug for non-comics readers. I can't tell you how many hundreds of times I've heard that Birds of Prey is the only book a reader's wife or girlfriend reads every month, or that it brought someone into comics who hadn't been interested before. That's really been the great joy for me.
I don't take credit for any of that- Chuck Dixon and Jordan Gorfinkle created the template and the set-up and wrote so many great stories, and we've had artists like Ed Benes, Paulo, Joe Bennett, and Nicola Scott working their hearts out to make it all look spectacular. But it was nice to be part of that. A successful book that doesn't have Batman or Wolverine in it is rare enough, but one that also has almost all females in the cast, that's really very cool.
NRAMA: What do you think your run on the book has done for the characters that both starred in the series as well as those who moved through it?
GS: Birds of Prey got a reputation for scraping the barnacles off of a lot of characters, which I find very flattering. Again, the artists should get the bulk of the credit for that. Nicola's Barda is amazing mainly because of the way she draws her.
One amusing thing is, we managed to do fifty issues without a single serious romantic plot of any seriousness. I'm actually pretty tickled about that, as that seems to be the first thing writers think of when writing women - "Who is she in love with?" The Birds can stand on their own in that regard.
I maintain that for a book written by a woman and drawn by a woman, this latest arc has more crazy testosterone fun than almost anything else on the stands, so there!
NRAMA: Sean McKeever’s been announced as your replacement. Your thoughts on handing things off to him?
GS: Well, he's a bit of a creep, for one thing.
Ah, the truth is, I've been a fan of Sean's for a long time, and it's the main reason I'm not inconsolable. This is the guy who wrote some of the best female characterization ever over at Marvel, and that's just a fact. With all due respect, there are a lot of writers whom I know would be a bad fit for the book. Sean's one of the handful where I actually breathe a huge sigh of relief, and can't wait to see what he comes up with.
Plus, he's got Nicola, so you know it's going to continue to look kickass. I honestly feel she's the next big thing. She draws facial expressions at the level of Kevin Maguire, and her action work is unbelievable.
It's a great team. I honestly feel tremendous relief that this is who is taking over.
NRAMA: One of the final times we can do this then - so where are you looking to take things as you head towards your finale on the series?
GS: Well, issue #104 is probably the biggest response to a single issue we've ever done, and it actually gets a bit crazier. And the climax of this story is going to put monster smiles on the faces of every Birds of Prey reader, I believe. It's the Six vs. the Birds. It's Tora Olafsdotter returning. It's Hawkgirl, and a still-to-be-revealed final member of the Six, and finally, it's Oracle having a friendly chat with Spy Smasher that's going to be quite memorable.
The thing is, I never wanted to be the last writer of Birds of Prey. The hope is that what we did will live on and grow and change, just as it did when we took over from the previous writers. I'm happy to think of the Birds of Prey characters appearing in other books, maybe a little more confident, a little more dangerous, a little more fun. This end came a bit sooner than I expected, but I'm certain it won't be the last time I write the characters. And they are in great hands.
I have to thank the writers who created the book and added to it before I came aboard, and the artists who brought it all to life, and DC for understanding that it's an important book in what it does, and the retailers and critics who spread the word so regularly.
But mainly I have to thank the readers who have been so ridiculously supportive and generous. I completely lack the words to express this, somehow, as maudlin as that sounds. I hope you'll all stay with the characters as Sean takes the reigns, and I hope you'll at least try the new thing I'm working on, because DAMN IT IS AWESOME.
Thanks everyone.