Randy Queen returns to full-on comic work with his newest series Starfall!
What's it about? We'll let Randy give a rundown in his own words:
"Space Pirates crash land on an uncharted Jungle Planet, and unknowingly unleash degenerative nanobot technology that turns the local dinosaur and cannibal populace into raging zombies!
"The story's protagonist is Sierra Starfall, a female Flash Gordon/Tarzan type character who's hotwired with Dragon DNA and over 100 years old—despite not looking a day over 25. Sierra is legendary and considered by many to be the galaxy's greatest warrior. She is commander of a fiercely loyal rogue's gallery of alien mercs, who have survived and vanquished many perils. This time they won't."
First off, this concept sounds freakin' awesome. How did you come up with it?
Thank you Kevin, we're hoping for that reaction. I wanted to draw a female Tarzan/Flash Gordon type character—something of the flavor of "King Kong" crashing into "Star Wars." So Starfall dovetails my love for jungle adventure, space fantasy and horror films. Bad Ass Space Pirates vs. Zombie Dinosaurs on a lost planet? Are you kidding? Sign me up, I'll take two!
Hey, I'm totally on board with this ship! Especially since it's been a while since you've done full comic work. What got the creative juices going for you to finally come out with a new series?
After much gestation, [Sarah Oates and I] were fortunate to have Matt Hawkins ask if we had anything on tap that may be of interest. We kept in touch in '06, and in March of '07 Sarah and I were ready to show this property. They got it right away and really sparked to it, so we didn't show Starfall anywhere else. I got my start drawing comics at Top Cow because Marc Silvestri believed I could. We're grateful for the opportunity to build something with them and it's a solid fit all around. If fans respond to her, Starfall has the potential to become a breakout character the way Darkchylde, Witchblade and the Darkness did. This is a return to the style and tone that fans and retailers have said they've wanted to see me get back to, so here it finally is. As far as what inspires me, I appreciate seeing terrific work from other talents, and the beautiful color work Sarah Oates is creating on this inspires me. That's when it comes to life. She's the cinematographer.
Are you personally a fan of pirates and zombies?
I'm a fan of pretty much all genre conventions, but what interests me is presenting them in a way so that it's fresh. A pirate or zombie story by itself can be terrific, but we've seen it. We've even seen pirate zombies in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" films. But Space Pirates crash landing into what is basically a planet-sized Skull Island? A fog-enshrouded lost world teeming with vicious beasts and savage amazons who are already cannibals to begin with? Then take it one step further into insanity when these nanobots start eating away at them. Well, now that's something interesting. Haven't seen that yet. I can't reinvent the Space Fantasy or the Jungle Adventure, but I can offer a unique fusion of those genres with my own perspective and ideas so that it becomes it's own animal.
Speaking of animals, Sierra is hotwired with Dragon DNA, what does that mean exactly? What kind of crazy abilities does she have?
White Dragons are a big part of the culture of Sierra's homeworld, so you'll see a lot of their motifs incorporated into her design. The abdominal plates on her armor for example. Dragon's are ageless so there's another angle because she's over 100, and you can learn a lot of combat styles in 100 years. Her vision is well beyond what someone without this capacity would have. Also, her dragons have a certain enzyme that shorts out the nanobots, so it makes her immune to their degenerative drivers. I'm giving entirely too much away here, but suffice to say it's part of her heritage and will be important. Is she the last one standing because she's the main character or is the reason part of her history, you know? This has all been well considered over years of development.
What can you tell us about her band of alien compadres? Can you name and describe some of them for us?
I want to roll those guys out a little later down the line. But I will say that one is an albino alien werewolf who's 14 and has a crush on Sierra. One of them betrayed the group and sabotaged the mission. So, it's a bit of Ten Little Indians. But they are all extremely cool and you could really build a series around each one. They had to be that strong; they are not background, or simply dino fodder. The hat trick is to invest you in them before they take their fall—no pun intended.
Has working on a full comic again made you want to do some more work?
If you mean more work in comics, I love the medium and am most content with a story to tell and meeting and hearing from happy fans that got something positive from it. If someone can kick back with a story we've crafted for them, and it brings them joy and they remember it for years down the line—that’s what you hope for. I was fortunate to have that experience on Darkchylde. And while it doesn't make much financial sense for the artist, I'd rather see something that's a year of love than monthly mediocrity. I'd rather have one fantastic album every few years, than a serviceable, but uninspired one every month. There are guys who do terrific monthlies and my hats off to them. Often it's either passion or product. Best is when it's both.
You mentioned Darkchylde. What are the chances of us seeing some more of Ariel Chylde again in the future?
Very Good.
Brief, but exciting answer. Okay, here’s a last one for you. Sierra already sounds like a pretty kick-ass character. But now, here’s the big question: who would win in a throwdown, Sierra or Ariel?
That's a question I don't immediately know the answer to. Starfall is resourceful in the same way Batman could out maneuver Superman even though [Supes] is basically godlike. But Ariel could turn into something out of control that could put Sierra's resourcefulness to the ultimate test. If Starfall is successful, maybe we could do a crossover down the line and really explore the possibilities of your question.
[Laughs] Well, let’s all hope for that in the future. Any last words?
In closing: Starfall—badass new character coming soon! Space Pirates vs. Zombie Dinosaurs! The Last Mission of the Galaxy's Greatest Warrior! Jessica Biel, have your people call us!
