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MARK WAID and GAIL SIMONE TALK SUPERMAN:
BIRTHRIGHT
by Gail Simone (The Pulse)
Interview With Mark Waid about SUPERMAN: BIRTHRIGHT
by Journalistic Impersonator Gail Simone
One of the great/horrifying things about being friends with
Mark Waid is you get to read all of his scripts in advance.
Normally, this means getting pleasurable preview peeks at
books like FANTASTIC FOUR, RUSE, or EMPIRE. Unfortunately,
it can also mean having to slog through X-O MANOWAR. Still,
knowing Mark at all means you know that this guy was born
to write Superman, and the upcoming event comic, SUPERMAN:
BIRTHRIGHT sets out to prove just that.
Me, I'm not so easily sold on the guy from Krypton. While
I understand Superman's importance and influence on the industry,
it takes something very special to get me to read a story
where he's the lead character. I didn't expect to like BIRTHRIGHT
as much as I do, but the team of Waid and artist Leinil Yu
have given us a sexy and complex new vision of the big blue
guy, and a solidly entertaining story with unexpected turns
and knockout art. Below is my stumbling and inept attempt
to get at exactly why I liked this story so much with series
writer Mark Waid.
SIMONE: Let's start with a toughie. Give
me the high concept pitch that will make Superman skeptics
try this book. What is it that you're offering readers?
WAID: The original assignment from DC,
the original request, was to give readers "Ultimate
Superman." Soon after, the powers that be at DC asked
us not to refer to it that way in respect and deference to
the great creators doing the ongoing monthly series, but
that didn't alter the mission--to redefine Superman for the
21st century and do a series that anyone on Earth can pick
up from scratch and get in on the Superman story.
SIMONE: So, how long have you waited to
tell this story? I'm guessing it's a ridiculous wait considering
it's the book you've obviously most wanted to do.
WAID: Since January 26, 1979. That was
the day I saw SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE--twice--and the day I fell
in love with the character and his world.
SIMONE: I'm just envisioning Superman in
disco pants, pardon me while I expunge that image. But enough
about fashion, in what form can we expect this story? Is
it mini, maxi, what?
WAID: It's a 12-issue maxi-series. The
first two issues are thirty pages of story each (for no additional
charge!), with ten 22-page issues to follow.
SIMONE: Is it fair then to say that this
is THE Mark Waid Superman story?
WAID: It may well be. It's certainly everything,
absolutely everything, that I love about this character all
rolled into one series. And it's artist Leinil Yu's and my
vision on who the Superman of the 21st Century is. No Supergirl,
no Super-Dog, no Bottled City--just a man trying to do what's
right in the world.
SIMONE: That's an interesting point, because
many readers seem to be alienated by how infallible Kal El
seems at times, but your story takes place right from his
beginnings, correct? What is it that makes this different
from previous retellings of his origin?
WAID: Well, his lack of infallibility,
for one. The cross Superman seems to have to bear among fans
and readers is that he's perceived as "too perfect," as
a character we "can't relate to." Forgetting for
a moment that we're not supposed to identify with Superman,
we're supposed to identify with CLARK--in BIRTHRIGHT, Superman
is, I think, perhaps more "human" than he's ever
been, because this is his search to define his identity.
Like most of us, he's searching for some direction. He has
skills and beliefs and wants desperately to find some fulfilling
way to apply them.
But in his case, it's hard given that for the first 25 years
of his life, he's had to keep his powers secret for fear
of being branded a freak and fear of having the whole Kent
family hauled in by the U.S. Government for questioning.
SIMONE: Follow up question, Mr. Fleisher,
how do you avoid the Clark-is-dull trap?
WAID: That's about the easiest job I have.
Clark is our touchstone. He's the one who gets chewed out
by the boss, whose dry cleaning gets lost, who longs to connect
and be accepted. I think that makes him interesting, particularly
in light of the fact that he's a TOTAL FABRICATION.
I mean that BIRTHRIGHT is about Kal-El establishing and
defining TWO identities for himself: the role of Superman
and the persona of what I call "Metropolis Clark," which
isn't like the Smallville Clark at ALL.
SIMONE: Some of the key story elements
in the first issue take place in Africa--that's new to the
myth, isn't it?
WAID: Yes, and it's an important backdrop.
First off, it helps establish Kal-El as a citizen of the
world.
Secondly, his adventure there--his last important experience
before adopting the Superman identity--lays some important
groundwork about why he would choose to operate the way Superman
operates.
Thirdly, it helps establish Clark as a journalist and not
just a typist for the Planet.
SIMONE: Right, and I must say it's my favorite
part--it makes the story feel very fresh, and made me see
Kal El in a different light, rather than the very America-centric
Superman of previous eras. That brings us to the Planet,
and the supporting cast--are these all faces we'll recognize?
WAID: Yeah, but catching them early in
the myth gives us some fun leeway to establish their characters
and their relationship. Jimmy, for instance--a teenage intern
for the Planet--absolutely worships not Superman, not even
Clark, but Lois Lane. All he wants in the world is to grow
up to be that good a reporter and he's hilarious in his adulation.
Not to the point of putting on a dress, but...
SIMONE: So no Turtle Boy?
WAID: Perry shows a new side and new potential
in that Clark is in a "can't/must" situation--
SIMONE: You're ignoring me.
WAID: --must have a job at the place on
Earth where news breaks the fastest, but can't be exposed
by my peers as a disguise for Superman. And Perry is SHARP.
And he's not necessarily going to automatically trust this "Superman." In
fact, you could say that about a great number of the people
in Metropolis. A man who has x-ray vision, super-hearing,
and answers to no one has got to EARN people's trust.
SIMONE: That was my complaint in previous
re-imaginings of the character...that the writers often skipped
the bits where Metropolis and the Planet employees are very
skeptical, and too comfortable with both Clark AND Superman.
I'm going to follow that with two geeky fangirl questions:
First, how similar is this story to the much-discussed revamp
of the character that was proposed by you, Grant Morrison,
Mark Millar and Tom Peyer a few years back?
WAID: Actually, it's not at all like the
previous Superman proposal. Times have changed, the need
for a Superman has changed in our society, and my own personal
visions of what a super-hero is have changed pretty radically.
SIMONE: And for those who must know, how
does this fit strictly into current continuity?
WAID: It fits however you want it to fit.
Some elements are a nod to what's been established, yes,
but no one's going to want to read this if they think they
know just how the story's going to turn out, so everyone's
in for some surprises. We don't go out of our way to contradict
continuity, but for instance, learning for the first time
about the friendship Clark and Lex Luthor had as boys--and
why Luthor has since erased all records of his days in Smallville--makes
for quite the revelation.
Leinil and I want to reinforce that despite what may or
may not be going on in the other DCU books, there's still
a strong "Anything can happen" sense to this series.
SIMONE: Excellent. Speaking of Leinil,
I'm going to ask you to tell the story about Leinil Yu that
you told me previously, because I have to say, the art on
this book is INSANE. Superman is QUITE the hottie, here.
I know you've always wanted to work with this artist, but
can you tell me about your working relationship, and how
he's interpreting the story?
WAID: I first saw Leinil Yu's work back
during his second or third issue of WOLVERINE years ago and
fell in love with it instantly. The day I saw his work, literally
that day, I called him from the Marvel offices and told him
I would work with him anytime, anywhere, and asked him to
make room in his schedule for something we could do together.
Finally
We chose him not only because he's talented and because
his work is energetic, but because it was important to present
a Superman no one's ever quite seen before. And he's doing
great. My non-comics friends think Clark looks genuinely
hot, too, actually.
SIMONE: Yeah, but wait'll they see the
guy in the red underwear, I say.
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