NEWS!
03-22-2005, 08:10 AM
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Oeming
03-23-2005, 06:33 AM
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Man, I just cant get it to open... Can you post it here?
BY JENNIFER M. CONTINO
Beta Ray Bill is winging his way through the limited series Stormbreakers: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill. The story is past the halfway point and co-writer Dan Berman is enjoying all the "science fictiony goodness" of this series. He told us how he went from being a lifelong comics fan to working with Michael Avon Oeming, Andrea Di Vito, and Laura Villari on this Marvel miniseries.
THE PULSE: How did you become interested in writing comics?
DAN BERMAN: I've been reading comics since I was a little kid. Comics were magical. I was amazed at how the pictures told as much story as the words. It was beyond magic, it was a whole new reality. I never really thought of the possibility of actually writing comics. They seemed so esoteric, as if they were formed by the forces of nature and sprung into existence whole and immutable.
As I grew up I found I had a love for writing and telling stories. I began to see stories unfold in my mind's eye and I searched for a way to tell them. I wrote short stories and poetry in high school and college, I was searching for the right medium. When I was living in Hong Kong and starved for comics (My sister would email some to me every couple of months or so, and eventually I found one tiny store in a(n) (HK style) mall that sold American comics and I realized that the perfect medium had been right in front of me the whole time!
THE PULSE: How did you come to work with Mike Avon Oeming?
BERMAN: Mike and I met several years ago when he was a guest at the Portland comic book show. We found we had several interests in common. Eventually, he read some of my writing. With so many interests in common it seemed a natural fit for us to team up. Once we started passing ideas back and forth, we found we worked very well together and that we complemented each other's writing styles.
THE PULSE: Prior to your collaboration with Mike, what kind of stories had you published - in or outside the realm of comics?
BERMAN: While in High School and College I won several awards for creative writing and had some short stories and poetry published in school publications. I also did English copy-writing while working as a graphic designer for an advertising company in Hong Kong.
THE PULSE: What do you like the best about working with Mike?
BERMAN: Mike is full of great ideas and is a very willing and generous collaborator. We don't censor each other, when we brainstorm or if either of us has a flash of inspiration. Mike and I work really well together. Our different strengths and sensibilities complement each other and our similar interests blend well. The short answer; Mike and I are a great team.
THE PULSE: What are some of the problems you face co-writing something instead of being the sole writer on a series or special?
BERMAN: For most people, writing is a very solitary thing. It's just you and your writing, and really that's the only way to get things done, just sit and do it. When you're collaborating it adds a new dimension, a social dimension. This becomes most critical when brainstorming and when plotting. If you don't communicate, each collaborator can work against the other, but when it clicks... it can be magical.
THE PULSE: How did you get to know the character of Beta Ray Bill?
BERMAN: I remember seeing Beta Ray Bill when I was a kid. I didn't get it until I was older, when I read the collected Simonson Thor run.
THE PULSE: In your mind what were some of the greatest untapped story potential for this particular character?
BERMAN: Simonson created a character that was truly alien. He is so different from Thor, who is a god trying to get in touch with what it means to be human. BRB is alien, he is a warrior, protector and a champion and in some respect he is a tool for his race. His greatest untapped potential lies in using his alienness to explore his humanity, or his potential for humanity.
THE PULSE: What are your goals for this limited series?
BERMAN: I want fans of Beta Ray Bill to be happy with the story we tell, and I hope that they see our love for the character. I also hope to gain some new fans for Beta Ray Bill, a long overlooked character.
THE PULSE: How are you hoping this might change some of the way people perceive this character?
BERMAN: I hope people will be able to look past his alienness (his orange horse headedness) and see his humanity, fragility and dedication. In BRB we can see what it means to be human and fragile because he is so different. It's really the duality of a character, this is a theme from the early Thor comics. Thor was an inhumanly strong character, but he had a (chewy) human center. Overtly this took the form of Donald Blake, who was frail and all too human. This duality was at the core of the character, was he a human blessed with the power of a god? Or a god cursed with the frailty of a human?
THE PULSE: What did you find the most stimulating about working on this project?
BERMAN: We've had the chance to reinvent a character, to add to his cannon. Marvel has really let us go all out, and do whatever we could conceive. Oh, and working with Andrea DiVito, he's been brilliant! Between Mike and Andrea, they are the Alpha and the Omega!
THE PULSE: What is Stormbreakers: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill?
BERMAN: As the sole survivor of all that was Asgard, Beta Ray Bill faces the destruction of his people's adopted home world. This is the second world they have lost! Without as much warning this time, will any of the Korbinites survive? In a fury over the destruction of the Korbinite world Beta Ray Bill faces unimaginable odds. In fact Bill faces either his greatest triumph or complete and utter defeat. Oh and where this ends ... it's shocking!!
THE PULSE: Who are some of the supporting cast in this tale?
BERMAN: Let's see, some characters we've met already:
Stardust: A new herald of Galactus.
Rogotta: The high priest of the Korbinite people. He wants to restore power to the priestly class and is jealous of BRB's popularity.
The General: He is the latest in leaders of the Korbinites. While he is not a dictator, he is the leader of the military which makes most of the governmental decisions.
Alpha Ray: A prototype created before Beta Ray Bill. Alpha is fully an automaton, unlike Bill it has no soul.
The Sheo-’re: The priestly scientists of the past age. They created Beta Ray Bill.
The Korbinites: This is the name of Bill's race of people.
Ven: A bright Korbinite student who makes a discovery that changes his life forever.
SKUTTLEBUTT: Beta Ray Bill's sentient spaceship and long time companion.
THE PULSE: Why should people NOT wait for the trade to read this series?
BERMAN: Why wait when you can have all that horse faced science fictiony goodness right away!?
THE PULSE: What other projects are you working on?
BERMAN: Mike Oeming and I co-wrote a dark moody horror story called Blood River which will be published by Image, I believe, in summer 2005. We have several other creator owned projects which are still in development including a classic Kung-Fu tale in the tradition of a Bruce Lee movie, a modern day Samurai/Yakuza epic and a giant sci-fi/fantasy hero's story set in a fantastical realm of far future technology and magic. We're also working on the sequel to SIX. Mike and I also co-wrote a feature film action script that is still in development.
I also have several other creator owned comic projects, which I am writing on my own, that are in production. I'm working with three artists on various projects Ron Werner, Joelle Jones and (a Frenchman I know only as) Guile. They are each working on projects I have written one is about a larger than life superhero who lives a rock star lifestyle, who allows himself to get caught up in his own hype and has difficulty coming to terms with the fact that he can't save everyone. Another is a modern day kung-fu team book with lots of action, fighting and eastern style magic. Finally a one-shot project featuring a mixture of superheroes and mystical/magic etc ....
Yano! You rock!
M!
Yes. Yes I do.
Y!
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Back on the subject, this was a great interview - I'm really interested in Blood River - can't wait til it comes out.
Make sure to click on the link that Dan put up, though - there are comments and questions in there that Dan answers that are pretty interesting.
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