Like many comic book aficionados. Conskipper has eagerly awaited the first new EC Comics (from Oni Press) ever since the initial announcement chilled our bones in February.
Conskipper will be celebrating the launch of the new EC line (which currently consists of Epitaphs From the Abyss and Cruel Universe) with a series of interviews with some of the writers who are helping to unearth the long thought dead brand of horror, mystery, and mad science.
We were thrilled that we got the chance to begin our EC Unearthed interview series with author and script writer Ben Winters about his first story in Cruel Universe and what the EC Comics legacy means to him.
What can you tell us about your story in EC Comics Cruel Universe?
Ben Winters: It fits into the larger project of reimagining and relaunching the EC ethos: boundary-pushing, often darkly funny genre stories, sometimes but not always included a twist or sting at the end to make the reader gasp or reconsider all that came before. So my piece in the first issue, PRICELESS, is about a dude who makes his living having experiences which he then sells—via mind-transfer technology—to a rich old man who is too sick to have experiences of his own. It’s a short piece, with some big violence in it, that hopefully resonates beyond the last panel.
How did you become involved in the project?
Winters: I had the good fortune of meeting Hunter Gorinson, Oni’s publisher, in my “day job” as a TV writer/producer, trying to set up a project that ultimately fell through, like most things do in the magical, maddening world of Hollywood. But Hunter and I got to know each other, and he knew I shared his love of the kind of over-the-top, button-pushing stories that EC was known for. So basically Hunter called me, and I screamed “yes” even before I answered the phone. True story.
What was it like writing a comic book story as opposed to a novel or television script?
Winters: Well, writing comics does bear some similarity to TV writing, in that you’re creating not a finished product but a blueprint for other people to work their own magic on. But — and please don’t tell anyone in Hollywood — I sort of like it better. There is an exhilarating sense of freedom in knowing that this script will be turned over not to a line producer, who will tell you how much of it can’t be afforded, but to some lunatic genius with an ink pen and a set of paints who will email back and go “can you push it further?”
You are well known for your work in crime and sci-fi, so how did you approach a horror story?
Winters: Pardon me for getting a little New Agey on you, but…it’s all one, baby. Not that I don’t believe in genre—I do, and I love genre stories—but what makes any good genre story is the character at the center, the hopeful person whose hope is either rewarded or crushed; the lovelorn person who learns to love himself, or doesn’t; the greedy bastard who gets his. Genre elements (spaceship crashes, serial killers, bank robberies) are mechanisms for the delivery of change in the human heart. (Or reptilian creature heart, or circuit-board heart — you know what I’m saying).
Memories of working on cult-favorite Legion?
Winters: What made that show so fun to write on was the same thing that made it fun to watch: Noah Hawley, the creator, wasn’t really interested in the character of Legion, per se, he was interested in the riddle of consciousness that was inherent in the existence of a person who contained other persons. So the headiness of the plotting was an extension of the headiness of the idea-world, which just made for good, weird TV. (Bonus fact: the room on Season 3 included not only myself but another novelist, Charlie Yu, who later won the National Book Award for Interior Chinatown).
What are your thoughts on the rebirth and legacy of EC Comics?
Winters: I have two thoughts. Thought one is that, of all the things being rebooted and reborn out of a paucity of artistic courage and lack of new ideas, EC Comics is a franchise that deserves to be reborn, because it died too soon and because the world needs it now more than ever. Thought two is, holy moly I get to be part of it, and I am absolutely grateful and full of joy.
Cruel Universe #1 will be available at comic shops everywhere on August 7. Stay tuned for more interviews in our EC Unearthed series.
Also, if you happen to be in the Los Angeles area this week, you can celebrate the release of Epitaphs from the Abyss #1 (out on July 24, the first comic to be printed under the EC banner in almost 70 years) at Revenge Of (Comics and Pinball) and Oni Press’ EC Comics Launch Party.
Get ready for a night of frightful festivities including: vengeful vegan eats from Vegan Hooligans, gothic designs from Velvet Apparition and Disperse Home Media, and even tattoos from spooky specialist Johnny Vampotna.
EC Comics writers J. Holtham (Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale) Ben H. Winters (The Last Policeman, CBS’s Tracker), and Corinna Bechko (Avatar: Adapt or Die, Green Lantern: Earth One) will attend the special event and will be doing signings throughout the night!
The event is free to enter with a simple RSVP, and will take place on Tuesday, July 23 from 9PM – 11PM at Revenge Of Comics and Pinball in Los Angeles, California (located on 3420 Eagle Rock BVLD, Glassel Park).
