One of the cool things you get to do when you work (volunteer) for a pop culture/comic review website is interview creators during events such as C2E2. Having been a fan of Tim Seeley since Hack/Slash and Revival (not to mention the Army of Darkness comic!) and being a fellow Wisconsinite, I was beyond stoked when Valiant Entertainment asked us if we’d like to sit down with him and chat about his work on the new run of Bloodshot.
PB: So, we’re here at C2E2 to discuss your work on the new Bloodshot comic run. Now, did you have anything to do with the movie as well?
TS: Nothing to do with the movie. I mean, the comic that we’re doing is meant to be accessible to the people coming out of the theater. It’s not based on the movie or anything, but the vibe and the sort of approach is definitely part of the comic we’re doing.
PB: What would you like readers to know, heading into Bloodshot 0?
TS: The idea is just to give you a really exciting, epic comic book with tons of action, tons of heart. Something that introduces you to how great comics can be, how great Valiant Comics can be, something that doesn’t demand a lot of you beforehand. Something that’s just really accessible and is really always about the heart of this character—really, always hit that every time.
PB: So (with the movie) you’ve got new readers coming in, who aren’t really familiar with the character. Do they need to be well-versed in the Bloodshot character?
TS: Not at all. Nope. If you come out of the movie, or see the trailer and think, “That guy’s cool,” good enough. That’s it. If you think he’s cool, that’s neat, or you like Vin Diesel.
PB: Watch the trailer, and you’re all set.
TS: You’re good to go. Yeah.
PB: And it’s going to be an ongoing series?
TS: Yeah, it’s an ongoing series. It started in September…
Now, one thing to know about interviewing Tim Seeley, at least at a con: Tim is one of the hardest-working and most efficient individuals I’ve ever met. In the 15 or so minutes I spent with him, he performed his interview with me, completed one commission sketch and started another, signed 13 books and managed five purchase transactions with fans (while interacting directly with each of them). And did a quick portfolio review for a nascent artist. AT THE SAME TIME.
PB: Now, you’re still working on Money Shot for Vault Comics, right?
TS: Yeah! As a matter of fact, we were just upgraded to an ongoing series…
At this point, Seeley paused to interact with fans, performing several of the aforementioned tasks.
PB: I’ve got to figure that having functional ADD is kind of a pre-requisite to doing this kind of work?
TS: Oh yeah. Yeah, for sure. You know, I only have so much time, so I kind of have to double everything up, otherwise, I won’t get everything done.
PB: (Observing Seeley’s commission work) Now, do you still do a lot of art, or are you mostly into writing at this point?
TS: The only time I draw anytime lately is when I’m commissioned. I’m trying to do more, I’m teaching at a college, doing some art classes and that’s kind of re-inspired me to draw, but I kind of got wrapped up into writing stuff, and apparently that’s what I do now.
Seeley once again paused to discuss his art and table wares with con-goers, chatting about the rarity of larger companies contracting with writers who draw their own work (“They don’t like surrendering that kind of control”), which segued into a subject close to my own heart: the on-again, off-again screen adaptation of Revival.
PB: Now, is there any chance of Revival being revived as a (television) series?
TS: We’re working on the movie. It’s taken us…well…I had some Hollywood deals that were not pleasant, so we decided to do Revival ourselves, which then introduced us to why it takes so long to make a movie.
PB: Gotcha.
TS: But we’re still working on it all the time. I met with the director last night, we’re always doing it, it’s just a game of inches. You move forward, then you have to, you know, to get this one thing, you have to move this other thing forward, but to move this other thing forward you have to put the other thing—it’s just, you know…To get an actor, you need a script, but to get a script, you need to get an actor. It’s ridiculous.
PB: And you need a schedule to get either one of them.
TS: Exactly. So, a game of inches. But we’ve learned a lot, and I think we’re…we’ll be the guys who if it works, we’ll be the ones who did it ourselves, so that’ll either be a great thing, or the worst thing ever.
PB: So, will you be shooting it in Wausau (Seeley is from Wausau, WI, where Revival is set)?
TS: Yeah, we film the exteriors in Wausau, and we do the sets, the interiors here in Chicago (where Seeley lives now) and the surrounding areas.
Having then segued into stories of misbegotten youth spent among the streets and campgrounds of Antigo and Elcho, a glance at Seeley’s Valiant representative set me back, albeit briefly, to task.
PB: So any final words, anything you want Bloodshot readers to know heading into the film and your handling of the series?
TS: Sometimes in comics, surprisingly, there’s not a lot of good, over-the-top action comics, and we’re trying to do that, with heart. And I think we’ve succeeded so far. It’s our job to make you care about this guy, and then put him through some crazy shit. And that’s what we do.
Seeley’s approach to Bloodshot is fast-developing and hard-hitting. Rather than the industry-standard 5- or 6-issue story arcs, his run on Bloodshot has and will continue to feature 3-book arcs meant to be high on action as well as heart. This week’s release of issue 7 features a new-starting story that Seeley and Valiant report would be a good starting point for new readers as well as a satisfying continuation for long-term fans. Those interested can read Paul’s review of issue 4 here.
So, be sure to catch the Bloodshot film this weekend (let’s get that bad-boy off to a good opening, shall we?), and then give the book a view or three. You can track it down via the usual suspects, including Amazon.com, comiXology, valiantentertainment.com or your trusty Local Comic Store.
Original Content by Andy Patch
Contributing Editor, thePullbox.com
