Quality Time with Erik Larsen

Lowdown - Special Feature

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Posted by Erik Larsen on Sep 9, 2009

Tags: erik larsen, image, image united, savage dragon

Erik Larsen is joining BF from 3-4pm Eastern (12-1pm Pacific) today to answer your questions in the second edition of our live, hour-long Q&A session, Quality Time!

Want to know what's coming up in Savage Dragon or Image United? Do you have some thoughts on Image Comics you'd like to share? It's all possible!

Post all of your most burning questions in our comments box below, and stay tuned as Erik answers them live...

Note: You have to be signed in with your BF member account to be able to post your questions and interact with Erik. If you’re not yet a registered member of the BF community, sign up here to participate.

Comments

Frederik Hautain Sep 9, 2009 at 2:46pm

Hey everyone! Welcome to the second edition of our weekly Quality Time live Q&A! Erik will join us in about 15 minutes, so get your questions ready!
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:00pm

Hoo-boy
Frederik Hautain Sep 9, 2009 at 3:01pm

Welcome, Erik!
Fire away, everybody...
Sam Moyerman Sep 9, 2009 at 3:01pm

Erik - You're one of the only original Image guys who has always continued on with doing comics. What has kept you working on Savage Dragon and not leaving the medium to explore other options?
Steve Kanaras Sep 9, 2009 at 3:04pm

welcome Erik! Do you think the print periodical format has a viable future, or is it doomed to be replaced by longer formats and digital products?
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:05pm

Sam--I got into comics because I wanted to do comics--not use it as a stepping stone to do something else. I'm where I want to be--doing what I want to be doing.
TimP Sep 9, 2009 at 3:05pm

Erik! Savage Dragon's had some really over-the-top villains... which one is your favorite?
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:09pm

TimP-- I don't really have a favorite. Mother Mayhem is high on the list--just because she's so visually disturbing--but there are a lot of characters that I like more because they've been fleshed out more--she's not very fleshed out--oh, and she's currently dead.
Andy Oliver Sep 9, 2009 at 3:10pm

Welcome Erik! I first came across your work on DOOM PATROL back in the '80s and was really taken by the energy of your depiction of the DP. What was it like breaking into the industry back then and, in terms of the established characters, how did it feel gradually getting to play with bigger and bigger toys?
ripsterling Sep 9, 2009 at 3:10pm

Hi Erik! Your brushwork is very loose, what type of brushes do you use? I can't seem to find the right brush for me.
Sam Moyerman Sep 9, 2009 at 3:10pm

You've been doing your own work now for so long, has there ever been an itch to get back on a Marvel or DC book? Any character(s) you missed along the way to Savage Dragon you would've liked to work on?
GrannySpray Sep 9, 2009 at 3:12pm

Surprised that no one has asked about the news of the day... Erik, you've always been a very opinionated person on anything and everything comics. What's your take on Warner Bros making a power play at DC ?
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:12pm

Andy Oliver --it was a gas. I really got to go through most of my favorites and get that out of my system. The only book that I didn't get to run with was the Hulk--I wanted to do that--had some good ideas for it--but whatever--I'm happier where I am.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:15pm

ripsterling--I use a Winsor & Newton, series 7, No. 2 brush--and not nearly the control I'd like.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:17pm

Sam Moyerman-- I scratched that itch a couple years back and found it unsatisfying. It's like going from being able to ride a bike all over town to being able to ride a bike anywhere you'd like in your bathroom.
ripsterling Sep 9, 2009 at 3:18pm

You had a brief run on Aquaman. Although there where some good ideas and kewl scenes in there it wasn't wel received. Apparently not everyone liked the combo: soap opera-comedy-silver age heroics.
Were there any editorial constraints? Did you handpick the artist, Eric Battle?
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:20pm

GrannySpray--Like the Marvel/Disney deal--it's too soon to know. I don't know what Paul was doing before, really--so I don't know what might happen now that he's out. I know that freelancers have had their issues over the years but I was under the impression that Dan Didio was calling more of the shots these days anyway.
TimP Sep 9, 2009 at 3:20pm

Thanks for answering my Q! Now, you're known as a very fast creator: how long does it take you to write/draw/ink an issue of Savage Dragon? Like, what's the fastest you've ever produced an issue?
TimP Sep 9, 2009 at 3:21pm

And, after all these years: how quickly do ideas come to you? Are you making changes to where the book is going from month to month or do you have an overall long-term plan laid out?
Sam Moyerman Sep 9, 2009 at 3:22pm

What's it been like working with all the original Image guys (minus Jim Lee) on Image United? Todd McFarlane said he was normally one of the last people to get the pages for his parts, are you getting them blank or already started? And which would you prefer (starting or ending the page)?
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:23pm

ripsterling-- I was given the choice of one of two guys on Aquaman--the other artist was the weaker of the two, I thought. I had a fun time on the book. My goal was to create more toys for the book--to add something new instead of just using Black Manta over and over.
Andy Oliver Sep 9, 2009 at 3:23pm

As a creator with some long-time links to Spider-Man what are your feelings about the end of the Peter/MJ marriage?
GrannySpray Sep 9, 2009 at 3:23pm

Does stuff like this happening make you feel relieved that Image is flying solo, despite all of the financial difficulties it might sometimes bring along?
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:26pm

TimP--roughly two weeks is the fastest I can do a full issue, writing, pencilling, inking-- that seldom happens. Ideas have never been a problem. I just let it unfold--one idea generates a few others. You just play it out--Dragon loses a foot before a big date--NOW what happens? And what comes after that? One thing leads to another and 17 years later I'm still keeping it going.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:30pm

Sam Moyerman--it's been a lot of fun. I both start and end most pages. I'm laying out all but the first issue--and even that had a cover and page laid out by me--but I generally don't finish drawing Dragon on the pages until everybody else is done. When pages come in I wrap it all up.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:35pm

Andy Oliver--honestly--I think it needed to be done--I just think it should have been done in a more honest way. Magic and the supernatural really shouldn't play a big role in Spider-Man comics--but the Peter/MJ marriage was a boat anchor. It was going nowhere and could go nowhere without ruining the book. But I think a divorce would have been better--make it clean and quick and refer to each other as "my ex" and leave it as that. If you knew they had been married--good for you--if not--she's an ex-girlfriend.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:36pm

GrannySpray--I'm glad Image doesn't have some parent company and I'm sure as hell glad that I'm the final word on Savage Dragon. I'd hate to have somebody else telling me what my character would or would not do.
Andy Oliver Sep 9, 2009 at 3:40pm

Thanks Erik. I'd concur that if it had to happen something more rooted in reality would, indeed, have been the right way to go. And, staying on the topic of Spider-Man, you got to tackle most of the Big Name baddies in your runs on AMAZING and "adjectiveless". Which of that rather impressive Rogues Gallery would be your favorite both to write and also to draw?
TimP Sep 9, 2009 at 3:41pm

On an overall Image front, I'm a big fan of Chew, Viking, Walking Dead and everything the Luna Bros. do. What's the Image book no one's talking about yet that you're most excited about?
ripsterling Sep 9, 2009 at 3:42pm

Will Captain Victory be reprinted as a hardcover? I remember it coming out a couple years ago and it sold out. There were some pretty whacky Kirby ideas in that book.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:43pm

Andy Oliver--I had a blast with Dr. Octopus--which was surprise because prior to drawing him, he was not a big favorite. The suit helped transform him from a fat guy in tights to a real menace for me. That and the Rhino. I love drawing the Rhino.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:45pm

TimP --I think Jack Staff is just amazing but it gets little buzz--and Gødland is a gas but it seems to get little press. There are plenty of books that I love but those are two that I think don't get the attention that they deserve.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:47pm

ripsterling--Captain Victory was never collected. There are all kinds of missing pages and other problems with that book. Silver Star was collected. It's a damned awesome book. I dunno if Captain Victory can ever be sorted out.
Andy Oliver Sep 9, 2009 at 3:48pm

Jack Staff is a real gem. Admittedly, as a Brit, there's a lot more resonance for me in getting all the pop culture references but everyone I've recommended that title to has loved Paul Grist's quirky style!
ripsterling Sep 9, 2009 at 3:49pm

Damn, that's a real shame. Thnx for clearing that up : )
ripsterling Sep 9, 2009 at 3:56pm

I consider you and Steve Rude as "direct descendants' of the Kirby art school. Any thoughts on the bankruptcy of Rude Dude Productions?
TimP Sep 9, 2009 at 3:56pm

I thought you were going to bring up Cowboy Ninja Viking. I'm really excited about that one.
Andy Oliver Sep 9, 2009 at 3:58pm

Final quickie - Loved your DEFENDERS alongside Kurt Busiek and was really sorry to see it disappear so quickly - is that a book/concept you'd like to return to at any point in the future? And thanks for your time this evening (over here anyway!).
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 3:58pm

Andy Oliver --Jack Staff is great--and you're right--it IS quite British-- an American creator would never name a Captain America type Sgt. States, for example, because people in the United Stated don't call the United States "the States" they call it "America" -- but in Jack Staff--it works for some reason.
ripsterling Sep 9, 2009 at 3:59pm

Western Dragon any chance of seeing that in the book? That be cool for a pin-up.
Thanks for answering
Cheers
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 4:00pm

ripsterling--it's a shame. I love Rude's stuff--but the market isn't very receptive to new publishers at this point--especially late ones--they've been burned too many times. I wish he'd have gone through Image.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 4:00pm

TimP--Haven't read it--so I can't comment on it.
Andy Oliver Sep 9, 2009 at 4:01pm

Plus lots of lovely references in JACK STAFF from everything from classic Brit sitcom Dad's Army to old-time British weekly comics character. That book's a blast! ;)
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 4:02pm

Andy Oliver--it was a fun book to work on--but at this point--I really hope to work nowhere else but Image. Sometimes you really can't go home again.
Andy Oliver Sep 9, 2009 at 4:02pm

Thanks for your time Erik!
Frederik Hautain Sep 9, 2009 at 4:02pm

Ok, everyone... that's a wrap! Thanks to everyone who participated, and thank you Erik, for taking the time to join us. We'll see you here next week, same time, same place, but a different creator!
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 4:04pm

ripsterling "Western Dragon?" I don't think so. I can't draw horses to save my life.
Erik Larsen Sep 9, 2009 at 4:05pm

Thanks, folks!

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