Comics Bulletin logo
Search
  • Big Two

    Recent

    • New VOD Release 'Chris Claremont's X-Men' is the DVD Bonus You Wanted

      Jason Sacks
      February 19, 2018
      Classic Comics, Marvel Comics, News, Reviews
    • Ralph & Sue Dibny: A Love Story

      Jason Sacks
      February 14, 2018
      Columns, DC Comics
    • 4.0

      Review: DOOM PATROL #10 - Full of $#!%

      Jason Sacks
      January 26, 2018
      Big Two, DC Comics, Reviews
      4.0
    • 5.0

      Review: Justice League #34 Starts A Fantastic New Era

      Jason Sacks
      December 8, 2017
      Big Two, Big Two Reviews, DC Comics, Reviews
      5.0
    • 4.5

      Review: Batman Annual #2 Sets A New Highmark in Tom King’s Run

      Jason Sacks
      November 30, 2017
      Big Two, Big Two Reviews, DC Comics, Reviews
      4.5
    • Review: Doomsday Clock #1

      Jason Sacks
      November 22, 2017
      Big Two, DC Comics
    • 5.0

      Micro Review: Mister Miracle #4

      Jason Sacks
      November 10, 2017
      Big Two Reviews, DC Comics, Reviews
      5.0
    • 3.5

      Micro Review: Dark Nights: Metal #3

      Jason Sacks
      October 23, 2017
      Big Two, Big Two Reviews, DC Comics, Reviews
      3.5
    • Learning From Two Mister Miracles

      Jason Sacks
      September 12, 2017
      Big Two, DC Comics, Reviews
    • DC Comics
    • Big Two Reviews
    • Marvel Comics
  • Indie

    Recent

    • Exclusive Advance Preview: Bloodshot Salvation #9

      Jason Sacks
      April 3, 2018
      Indie, News, Previews, Valiant
    • WHERE WE LIVE BENEFIT ANTHOLOGY CONTRIBUTORS ANNOUNCED

      Jason Sacks
      March 27, 2018
      Image, News, Press Release
    • 5.0

      You Need to Read USAGI YOJIMBO: THE HIDDEN #1 (Review)

      Jason Sacks
      March 22, 2018
      Dark Horse, Indie, Reviews
      5.0
    • 4.5

      Review: Oblivion Song #1

      Jason Sacks
      March 7, 2018
      Image, Reviews, Reviews
      4.5
    • 3.0

      Review: ICE CREAM MAN #2

      Jason Sacks
      February 27, 2018
      Image, Reviews
      3.0
    • 4.0

      Review: PUNKS NOT DEAD #1

      Jason Sacks
      February 27, 2018
      IDW, Indie, Reviews
      4.0
    • 4.5

      Review: POSTAL: MARK #1 provides just desserts

      Jason Sacks
      February 26, 2018
      Image, Indie, Reviews, Top Cow
      4.5
    • 5.0

      Review: Bingo Love (OGN)

      Jason Sacks
      February 21, 2018
      Image, Reviews
      5.0
    • Valiant's New Corporate Strategy: Comics and Doughnuts!

      Jason Sacks
      February 5, 2018
      News, Previews, Valiant
    • Action Lab Entertainment
    • Archie Comics
    • Boom! Studios
    • Dark Horse
    • IDW
    • Image
    • Oni Press
    • Reviews
  • Manga

    Recent

    • When Japanese Influences Meet Western Art Schools: a roundtable

      Jason Sacks
      May 19, 2017
      Manga
    • Review: 'ZOMBIES ASSEMBLE' #1

      Jason Sacks
      May 12, 2017
      Indie, Manga, Reviews
    • tokyo-ghoul-featured-image

      Seeing Yourself in the Negative: Tokyo Ghoul & I

      Jason Sacks
      November 30, 2016
      Manga
    • Glitterbomb & Helter Skelter: Studying Image From Without & Within

      Jason Sacks
      September 7, 2016
      Image, Indie, Manga, Reviews
    • Saying Goodbye to Childhood in Goodnight Punpun

      Jason Sacks
      August 22, 2016
      Manga, Reviews
    • Keeping It Ghastly: Magical Girl Apocalypse Vol 1

      Jason Sacks
      July 15, 2016
      Keeping It Ghastly, Keeping It Ghastly, Manga
    • Review: "7th Garden"

      Jason Sacks
      June 21, 2016
      Reviews
    • Keeping It Ghastly: Anomal

      Jason Sacks
      June 17, 2016
      Keeping It Ghastly, Keeping It Ghastly, Manga
    • Review: "Black Clover" - A Bit like Rooting for the Underdog

      Jason Sacks
      June 14, 2016
      Reviews
    • Reviews
  • Small Press

    Recent

    • Review: 'Dust Elves: Mistaken Identity' Revives Bittersweet Memories of Childhood

      Jason Sacks
      October 30, 2017
      Indie, Reviews, Small Press
    • ICYMI -- Small Press Comics Criticism and Whatnot for 9/18/17 to 9/24/17

      Jason Sacks
      September 25, 2017
      ICYMI, Small Press
    • ICYMI -- Small Press Comics Criticism and Whatnot for 9/4/17 to 9/10/17

      Jason Sacks
      September 11, 2017
      ICYMI, Small Press
    • ICYMI -- Small Press Comics Criticism and Whatnot for 8/28/17 to 9/3/17

      Jason Sacks
      September 4, 2017
      ICYMI, Small Press
    • ICYMI -- Small Press Comics Criticism and Whatnot for 8/14/17 to 8/20/17

      Jason Sacks
      August 21, 2017
      ICYMI, Small Press
    • ICYMI -- Small Press Comics Criticism and Whatnot for 8/7/17 to 8/13/17

      Jason Sacks
      August 14, 2017
      ICYMI, Small Press
    • ICYMI -- Small Press Comics Criticism and Whatnot for 7/31/17 to 8/6/17

      Jason Sacks
      August 7, 2017
      ICYMI, Small Press
    • Tiny Pages Made of Ashes 8/4/17: HEAVENLY BLUES

      Jason Sacks
      August 4, 2017
      Small Press, Tiny Pages Made of Ashes
    • ICYMI -- Small Press Comics Criticism and Whatnot for 7/24/17 to 7/30/17

      Jason Sacks
      July 31, 2017
      ICYMI, Small Press
    • ICYMI
    • Reviews
    • Tiny Pages Made of Ashes
  • Columns
    Random
    • A Firestorm For Guy Gardner: Warrior?

      Jason Sacks
      March 1, 2004
      Busted Knuckles
    Recent
    • Comic Books Inspire Online Casino Games

      CB Staff
      March 1, 2018
    • The Best Manga Games Ever

      CB Staff
      February 18, 2018
    • Ralph & Sue Dibny: A Love Story

      Daniel Gehen
      February 14, 2018
    • Comics Bulletin Podcast
    • Comics in Color
    • The Full Run
    • Jumping On
    • Jumping On
    • Leading Question
    • The Long-Form
    • Reboot Comic Book Club
    • Slouches Towards Comics
    • Top 10
    • What Looks Good
  • Interviews
    Random
    • Classic Interview: Tom Orzechowski Part II - The Changing Comics World, the Joy of Collected Editions, Font and Cons

      Jason Sacks
      June 5, 2015
      Interviews
    Recent
    • Alex Alice: Creativity in the Stars

      Jason Sacks
      October 4, 2017
    • Tillie Walden: Direct Honesty

      Jason Sacks
      October 2, 2017
    • Interview: Chynna Clugston Flores Fills Us in on Her “Inbetween Days”

      Mark Stack
      July 31, 2017
    • Audio Interview
    • Video Interview
  • Classic Comics
    Random
    • When Something Awful Is Beautiful: The Golden Age #1

      Jason Sacks
      July 24, 2015
      Classic Comics Cavalcade, Columns
    Recent
    • New VOD Release ‘Chris Claremont’s X-Men’ is the DVD Bonus You Wanted

      Jason Sacks
      February 19, 2018
    • ‘Will Eisner: Champion of the Graphic Novel’ is a Great Tribute to the Master Cartoonist

      Jason Sacks
      May 23, 2017
    • “The Long, Strange Trip of Deathlok the Demolisher”

      Paul Brian McCoy
      May 22, 2017
    • Classic Comics Cavalcade
    • Classic Interviews
  • News
    Random
    • Kickstarter Spotlight: Widow’s Web

      Jason Sacks
      March 26, 2015
      Kickstarter Spotlight, News
    Recent
    • Exclusive Advance Preview: Bloodshot Salvation #9

      Jason Sacks
      April 3, 2018
    • WHERE WE LIVE BENEFIT ANTHOLOGY CONTRIBUTORS ANNOUNCED

      Daniel Gehen
      March 27, 2018
    • EXCLUSIVE ADVANCE PREVIEW: X-O Manowar #13

      Jason Sacks
      March 2, 2018
    • New VOD Release ‘Chris Claremont’s X-Men’ is the DVD Bonus You Wanted

      Jason Sacks
      February 19, 2018
    • Valiant’s New Corporate Strategy: Comics and Doughnuts!

      Daniel Gehen
      February 5, 2018
    • Exclusive Advance Preview: ‘Armstrong and the Vault of Spirits’ #1

      Jason Sacks
      December 26, 2017
  • Books
    Random
    • Pénélope Bagieu is California Dreamin'

      Jason Sacks
      July 18, 2017
      Books
    Recent
    • ‘The Smell of Starving Boys’ is a Brilliant, Haunting Western

      Jason Sacks
      November 29, 2017
    • ‘The Mercenary: Cult of the Sacred Fire’ is an Awesomely Fun Jolt of Otherworldly Adventure

      Jason Sacks
      November 28, 2017
    • Review: ‘Mangasia’ is a Fascinating Journey Through Asian Comic Art

      Jason Sacks
      November 27, 2017
    • Review: ‘Cartoon County’ is a Breezy, Fun Burst of Comics Nostalgia

      Jason Sacks
      November 13, 2017
    • Review: ‘Renegade: Martin Luther: the Graphic Biography’

      Jason Sacks
      October 27, 2017
    • Pénélope Bagieu is California Dreamin’

      Jason Sacks
      July 18, 2017
What's New
  • Action Comics #1000 and the Return of Superman’s underpants
  • In the battle of comic brands, where do online slots fare?
  • Exclusive Advance Preview: Bloodshot Salvation #9
  • WHERE WE LIVE BENEFIT ANTHOLOGY CONTRIBUTORS ANNOUNCED
  • You Need to Read USAGI YOJIMBO: THE HIDDEN #1 (Review)
  • Review: Oblivion Song #1
  • RSS Feed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Contact Us
  • Write for us!
  • Visit Video Game Break!
Home
Interviews

Interview: How the Stars Aligned for “Hit’s” Bryce Carlson

Jason Sacks
April 27, 2015
Interviews

One of my favorite new comics of last year was Hit, a crime noir by Bryce Carlson and Vanesa R. Del Rey that explores the dark side of Los Angeles in the 1950s. The comic has a well-earned and rough-hewn feel for the era that makes it intense fun. Issue two of Hit: 1957 drops this Wednesday, so it seemed a great time to share the conversation I had with Bryce at this year’s Emerald City Comic Con; our conversation is below.


Jason Sacks for Comics Bulletin: Thanks for joining me, Bryce. 

Bryce Carlson: Good to be here.

CB: It seems like Hit’s a hit. 

Carlson: I like to think so. But the Hit puns online are one of my favorite things in the world.

CB: How did you come to be writing a noir comic for BOOM!? 

Carlson: It all started in 2008 when I started working at BOOM!. My background and my story was that I was in school, graduated, went to school studying film, particularly screenwriting. I had always loved all forms of writing. I was originally a creative writing major, but dropped out of the program because it was not a good program. I wasn’t going to wait two years before I actually took the writing classes. I changed to something where I could start writing immediately.

I moved out to LA once the recession hit just because I wanted to get into something creative. I was doing sort of tile and stonework down in Orange County and doing writing stuff on the side. Work dried up and I was like, “Hey, that’s a good time just to move up and make something happen,” which was crazy because no one was hiring. I actually was just going through old emails and realized I applied to over two hundred jobs in that time and didn’t get anything. So I was just waiting tables up there. I was a courier. I was a paid background person on Deal or No Deal, which is my claim to fame.

But then I found an opportunity with BOOM! through a friend I went to college with. She was sending out a weekly email for just job opportunities in LA. She was at a production company. So I saw this one that said, “Hey, temporary job, BOOM! Studios, comic book publisher. Guaranteed work. Flat rate. Just coming and helping with some shipping and receiving stuff.” So I called in and got hired over the phone, which was like a breath of fresh air after not even getting replies to emails from other places. Just sort of showed up. Where BOOM! was in 2008 was a completely different world than where it’s now.

The old office, I think there was maybe ten people in there. But when I walked in, the first person I met, I didn’t know at the time was Matt Gagnon, who was sitting there on a card table with his personal laptop working away. And I asked him if he was Johnny. And he was just like, “No.” And that was all we said to each other for a few hours. But at the time, BOOM! was publishing Warhammer 40k. And they had a new number one that had a scratch off beta code for the new online game –like one in ten had the correct code.

So Warhammer fans all over the planet were ordering like ten, twenty-five, fifty copies of this book, selling it online, stuff with the codes. So BOOM! needed a lot of help because there was no infrastructure at the time. I just came in and packed the hell out of boxes and enveloped comics. I just sort of seized the opportunity. I’m a hard worker by nature so I just always figure out the best, most efficient way to do stuff. And they noticed. The next thing I knew, Ross had offered me to be his executive assistant. I was just like, “Yes.” I don’t even think I asked the details about pay or anything. I was just like, “Yes, I don’t care. You offered me a job.”

I hadn’t really been into comics for a good ten years. What was really cool about that was I was a working at a publisher, so I got to read their line, and every day, someone who just slap down a new trade paperback on my desk of something that I hadn’t read yet. I just got the crash course back into a medium I loved. For me, when I was growing up younger, it was all superhero comics: Spider-Man, X-Men, Batman, Superman.

And what was great is that what I had gotten to was this place of, “Oh, yeah. That’s what it was.” But then seeing all of these other examples of what you can do with it as a medium and understanding it more as an art form. Reading The Invisibles was eye opening. I was like, “Holy, crap, you can do this in comics. This is awesome. This is a storytelling art form, not just capes and tights and stuff.”

CB: Obviously Hit’s pretty far away from the capes and tights. 

Carlson: Absolutely. To Ross’s credit, he was always very cool about what I wanted to do. He always wanted to empower me in whatever direction I was passionate about. I had no intention of pitching anything. One day we were talking about zombie stories and just different takes on the genre. I told him about this little short story I had written that was about the zombie virus being passed through cigarettes.

He was like, “That’s a really cool thing. You should go pitch that to Mark Waid for Zombie Tales.” I was like, Oh, okay.” He was like, “No, do it right now.” And he like stood me up and was like, “Mark, you need to hear this” and made me pitch him cold. I was like, “Okay, I guess I have to pitch Mark Waid a zombie story right now.” And he was just like, “Oh, that’s really cool. But we have a story just like it in like two issues.” But he was like, “Feel free, anytime you have something.” So that’s how I got my first short story in Zombie Tales with Mark just through the door being opened.

And then later in 2009, I hit up Ross. I was like, “Hey, man. I have an idea for a story I’m really passionate about. Give me your take on it. No pressure.” And I pitched him Hit. And he was just like, “Yes. I want to do that book. That’s great.” And we developed it for a super long time. I’m glad we did because it kind of synced up with the perfect timing of when it was released in 2013. There was no better time before that for that book to come out through BOOM!.

For me, crime genre stuff is what got me really interested in consuming entertainment. James Elroy’s Clandestine was the first book I ever bought for leisure reading. And from there, I was just hooked. Most of the stuff I was really looking at when I was studying film and all of that. For this, it all came just from hearing stories from old cops about how things were and what went down behind the scenes and getting inspired by some of that. And then doing tons of research.

I was researching that first series for years because when you attack something that is in a specific time period and you’re trying to really be in that world, you want it to be as authentic as possible. That’s kind of frightening. I’m not an old person with tons of experience. The genre is huge and been done to death. There’re people out would be looking probably for anything to sort of pick out. So I really wanted to put in the extra effort and do my homework and get it right. And have fun at the same time.

CB: But that’s comfortable, too, right? It’s like playing the blues or something where you have a certain cadence that you know the story is going to take. And that way the beats kind of work themselves out naturally. 

Carlson: Right. It was a super cool experience to work with Vanesa. She’s a phenomenal artist. It’s the first published work she ever did. It’s truly an honor to be a part of her journey on that, too. We both are super grateful and thank each other constantly for just working. I don’t know; the stars aligned and it was just great.

CB: Not to slight you, but I heard so much buzz about her work on the series right away. It kind of helped her break out in a way.

Carlson: Totally. And I will tell you what; it’s not every day an artist puts out their first comic book and then eighteen months later has a book announced with Grant Morrison. It’s pretty rare to see that trajectory so fast for someone. She’s super deserving because she always wanted to do comics, but was doing animation work. This was her chance to sort of focus on comics. Now she’s got more than she knows what to do with, which is a great place to be.

CB: So how many mini-series are there going to be on this? Are you going to keep skipping ahead every two years for a while? 

Carlson:  You know, it’s so funny. Everyone keeps asking. I have ideas for stuff to keep going. It kind of depends on how sales do and make sure that we continue to have an audience. I structure each arc as if it’s the last one I’m ever going to get to write. So I get in everything that I want. Obviously I do have ideas for the future. I think if we did continue, I do like doing two arcs in each decade because it does give you a chance to cover a lot of ground and have some progression. Seeing how LA changes, seeing how the LA Police Department changes, seeing how these characters change.

CB: As you can see, I just pulled up the ’57 book because I liked seeing how she had changed in just that little bit of time. Stuff happened behind the scenes in between the arcs, too. The world just didn’t stop.

 

Carlson: Right. It was really cool to get the second opportunity because I got to focus so much more on the characters. I had already built the world, set up the characters. There was character stuff that I liked in the first arc, but this is much more focused on Slater and Bonny and Sticky and all the characters and what they’re going through. I’m getting to explore stuff that I didn’t in the first series and expand on it.

CB: Do you keep track of the body counts? Do you know how many people you’ve killed so far? 

Carlson: I did in the first series. For the pen and ink edition, I remember I was doing some commentary. I went back and I counted everyone who died on panel and every time a cigarette got lit. It’s a lot. I don’t remember the exact number, but it’s solid double digits.

CB: Any other series in the pipelines? 

Carlson: Not right now. I kind of only ever have time to do one thing on the side. For me, that is good because I can stay focused on it and not sort of get pulled in too many directions. I can give it all of my creative energy. For this, I’m just totally focused on this arc and seeing it through to the end. I have ideas for other stuff, but I’m not in a rush because I wouldn’t have time to do anything,

[APPIP:Error]Error: Invalid Request (file_get_contents) — Please check your Access Key ID and Secret Access Key for errors.
Error: (CURL) AWS.InvalidAssociate — Your AKIAIX2OXLAYS4QGEHQQ is not registered as an Amazon Associate. Please register as an associate at https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/assoc_credentials/home.

Share this:

  • Email
  • Print
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Twitter
  • Google
  • Tumblr
  • Pinterest
  • Pocket

Related

BOOM! StudiosBryce CarlsonHitMark WaidMatt GagnonNoirVanesa R. Del Rey

Share On:
Tweet
Team-Up Review: ‘Rage of Ultron’ Lets Readers Rage With the Machine
Singles Going Steady 4/28/2015: After and After and After

About The Author

<a href="http://comicsbulletin.com/byline/jason-sacks/" rel="tag">Jason Sacks</a>
Jason Sacks
Publisher Emeritus
Google+

Jason Sacks has been obsessed with pop culture for longer than he'd like to remember. Jason has been writing for Comics Bulletin for nearly a decade, producing over a million words of content about comics, films and other media. He has also been published in a number of publications, including the late, lamented Amazing Heroes, The Flash Companion and The American Comic Book Chronicles: the 1970s and 1980s. Find him on Facebook and Twitter. Jason is the Publisher Emeritus of Comics Bulletin.

Related Posts

  • 5.0

    Review: ABBOTT #1 Reminds Us That History Repeats

    Daniel Gehen
    February 2, 2018
  • 4.0

    Review: Rocko’s Modern Life #2

    Daniel Gehen
    January 10, 2018

Latest Interviews

  • Alex Alice: Creativity in the Stars

    Jason Sacks
    October 4, 2017
  • Tillie Walden: Direct Honesty

    Jason Sacks
    October 2, 2017
  • Interview: Chynna Clugston Flores Fills Us in on Her “Inbetween Days”

    Mark Stack
    July 31, 2017
  • Interview: Jason Copland and Michael May, Creators of “Kill All Monsters”

    Nick Hanover
    July 14, 2017
  • Interview: Ryan Cady talks MAGDALENA and WARFRAME

    Daniel Gehen
    June 20, 2017
  • Hope Larson On The Knife’s Edge

    Jason Sacks
    May 25, 2017
  • Donny Cates Sinks His Teeth Into ‘Redneck’

    Jason Sacks
    April 17, 2017
  • Interview: Nicole Goux and Dave Baker Commit to “Murders”

    Mark Stack
    March 27, 2017
  • Interview: Ulises Fariñas Considers the Direct Market “a Broken Relationship”

    Nick Hanover
    March 25, 2017
  • Dan Murray of Skybound: Games Build Community

    Jason Sacks
    March 23, 2017
RSSTwitterFacebookgoogleplus

RSS Posts from our friends at Crossroads Alpha

All content on this site (c) 2015 The Respective Copyright Holders
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.