Ever felt like there was too much corporate interference in your superhero comics? That the role models you once looked up to weren’t helping out the little guy anymore? Or do you just miss those halcyon days of playing Final Fight at your local arcade place and watching a bootleg copy of Fist Of The North Star when you got home, yet wish they were more balanced with a more matriarchal, sensitive side?
Worry not! Comic creators Aubrey Sitterson and Tyrell Cannon, along with collaborators Fico Ossio and Taylor Esposito have come to your aid with “BEEF BROS”, the comic that ties all of these ideas together and filters them through a positive, friendly, humans-helping-humans filter. It’s the kind of comic that feels distinctly auteur, with Aubrey, Tyrell, and the gang showing a fiercely burning passion for the work they’re creating.
The gang launched the Kickstarter last week to a huge reception, and have already cracked their funding goals within five days. I pitched a couple of questions to Aubrey and Tyrell about the comic, the processes making it, and some of the inspiration behind it, for which they’ve generously taken time out of their busy schedule to answer. Make sure to back the Kickstarter to support these good folks and ensure you get your own copy of the upcoming aspirational leftist superhero comic-book hit.
Congratulations on the Kickstarter launch, guys! Let’s start off in a way that honors the ideals our Herculean Himbos hold close to their hearts, by stripping away the nonsense and cutting right to the chase: Where did the idea for “BEEF BROS” come from? And why is now the best time to tell their story?
Tyrell Cannon: BEEF BROS seemed to grow organically from Aubrey and my mutual interests. Although, I think the original germ was Aubrey’s, as I recall getting an email from him with all caps “BEEF BROS,” which had me intrigued. We both have a love of beat-em-up side-scrolling video games like Streets of Rage and Final Fight, as well as Arnold Swarzenegger movies, so that gives you an idea of BEEF BROS’ DNA. I think now is the perfect time for positive, community-focused, and earnest superheroes, as a foil to the cynicism and antagonistic attitudes we are all confronted with on social media and in politics these days.
Aubrey Sitterson: Tyrell and I both love superheroes and action movies and wrestling and beat-em-ups, but something that I’ve grown increasingly aware of is that the politics of those things, the assumptions that sit at their core, are profoundly ugly. Superheroes are violent police officers, action stars are agents of imperialism, wrestling is exploitive from top-to-bottom, and beat-em-ups are practically Dirty Harry the Video Game. I did a thought experiment: What would these things I love look like if we stripped away everything that I liked them in spite of? And what popped out were Huey and Ajax Beef!
One of my favorite points that you’ve noted about the story is the idea of ‘nice leftism’ and channeling themes like charity and love through “two yoked up paragons of manhood”. Why do you feel these are important ideas to convey in the current climate of superhero comics?
TC: I think Aubrey states it perfectly in the Kickstarter video when he says that most superheroes have become supercops (and not the good Jackie Chan kind). Superheroes who actually live in their community and answer to that community are sorely missed.
AS: “Toxic masculinity” and its effects on the world gets talked about extensively, which I think is incredibly important. However, I often worry that we’re missing the other side of the coin. At a time when we, as a culture, are reassessing the traits and characteristics traditionally associated with masculinity, I think it’s vitally important that we figure out what positive, kind, generous masculinity looks like. And if you ask me, the answer is BEEF BROS!
“BEEF BROS”, both in its visual iconography and themes, channels a lot of the visceral energy of video games like Double Dragon and Streets of Rage. Did you guys play a lot of those games growing up? What kind of influence did they have on the storytelling, both narratively and visual?
Continued belowTC: ABSOLUTELY. I was obsessed with games like that. Visually, I tried to incorporate the ‘no holds barred’ style of clothes you see in games like that, as well as graffiti influenced visual flairs accenting each punch or kick. In those games, simply walking around looked cool and I wanted the BROS to have that energy. Narratively, what attracts me to games like that is the constant push forward and rising action/stakes that the characters face. We incorporate that intensity into the storytelling of BEEF BROS as well.
AS: My personal favorite was Final Fight, probably because the main character was the mustachioed mayor who also used to be a professional wrestler. Aubrey-bait right there. When we were talking out the plot for BEEF BROS #1, something Tyrell said that set off fireworks in my brain was the idea of “constant escalation.” It’s something that all the best beat-em-ups, action movies, and wrestling matches all do, only giving you an opportunity to catch your breath once it’s all done. We structured this first issue of BEEF BROS in the exact same way.
Tyrell, I first experienced your work in your self-published comic “ERIS”, which also features lots of absolutely jacked human beings (or otherwise) that you seem to excel in bringing to life. How did it feel getting to take that visual concept to its extreme here? What was it like collaborating with Aubrey on coming up with these kinds of characters?
TC: Thanks so much for checking out ERIS! Strangely enough, my interest in drawing absolutely jacked human beings comes from my love of renaissance art, Michelangelo in particular. I did a lot of figure drawing in art school and I’ve never gotten bored with exploring ways to make the human figure express motion and emotion. But BEEF BROS goes to a new extreme. Aubrey gave me the push to go completely OFF THE CHAIN with my art on this. It has to feel excessive and huge, so I looked a lot more to 90’s comics, graffiti, abstract art, and bodybuilding for inspiration. Collaborating with Aubrey is tons of fun because he has a very high energy level and is very encouraging in taking risks and pushing things to the next level.
Aubrey, this feels very much in the vein of stories you’ve told in the past with comics like “No One Left To Fight”. Did writing this comic feel like a natural continuation of those stories?
AS: I like writing big, explosive, beautiful action; lobbing softballs at my co-creators for them to just utterly smash to smithereens. So, there’s definitely some shared elements with a fight comic like No One Left to Fight. With every project I do, however, I try and stake out a unique rhythm and tone of voice. While NOLTF has its share of explosive battles, it’s also very much about emotional drama and soap opera. By contrast, BEEF BROS is nonstop, high octane action put in the service of anarcho-communist allegory; it’s a parable. But one that utterly rips!
In the same way that “NOLTF” was inspired by manga like “Dragon Ball”, “BEEF BROS” seems to be inspired by classic manga like “JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure” and “Fist Of The North Star”. How much impact did those stories have on this comic? Were there other big touchstones you guys drew on from this era of comics?
TC: Fist of the North Star is a big one for me. That comic never turns down the volume and I wanted that with BEEF BROS. For me, I also looked a lot to Baki and Crying Freeman for manga, and American comics like Youngblood, Prophet, and PITT.
AS: I love when people pick up the Jojo’s influence, as it’s one of my absolute favorites. Even beyond all the buff, fashionable dudes, there’s a lot of structural similarities to Jojo’s, as well as the “If you fully commit, people will go along with it,” mindset. I also took a lot of inspiration from Luke Cage and Iron Fist, not so much a specific run, but my idea of what those characters should be, as neighborhood heroes. I’m also a big Jim Lee fan, so I made sure to leave enough room for readers to luxuriate in all those muscles!
I noticed Fico Ossio, the “NOLTF” artist, is back on colors for “BEEF BROS”, and that one of your other regular collaborators, Taylor Esposito, is back for letters. What was it like working with them here and what fresh innovations can we expect for them to bring to the comic?
TC: This was my first time being colored by Fico and OH BOY. If you ever want to see your line art get 80,000 volts, get Fico on there!
AS: Fico’s colors are a revelation. I said it when NOLTF came out, and we’re already starting to see it happen: people are remembering that dark colors aren’t the only way to impart mood and emotion, and more and more books are coming out with hot pinks and electric blues and neon green. Fico’s palette on BEEF BROS might be more stripped-down than on NOLTF, but he’s deviling in the detail and seamlessly adding elements that will once again change the game for comic book coloring. And what can I say about Taylor!? There’s a reason he letters everything I work on! Not only do we have a shared aesthetic and philosophy when it comes to lettering, but he knows me well enough now that I can just say “TAYLOR MAGIC” in the script and he’ll deliver exactly what I didn’t know I wanted. Synergy, daddy!
Tyrell, you’ve run successful Kickstarters before, what can we expect to see from the launch? Can we expect holographic or foil covers or any other kinds of 1980-1990s excitement down the line? Or are you guys keeping this a strictly no-nonsense affair?
TC: That stuff is fun and all, but I care most about making an incredible comic that you want to read and reread for years to come. Once people have fallen in love with the BEEF BROS, we can start thinking about branded fanny packs.
AS: Brother, I’m already thinking about BEEF BROS fanny packs. But I keep reining it in! The most important thing to us is getting the BEEF BROS comic out into the world, finding a way to do this thing the right way, both in terms of story and content, but also making sure everyone working on the book is fairly compensated. While I’d love to see all kinds of BEEF BROS merch (weight belts! kettlebells! shaker cups!), I’d much rather that money go to get the team paid better, and then put anything else toward our next issue!
The sample you guys have provided is a perfect look at what makes these characters tick and the kind of themes we can expect but what I want to know is: will our beautiful new friend Nugget re-appear in the main comic? And will he get his promised pancakes?
TC: OH YES… There will be pancakes.
AS: Not only will Nugget get pancakes, but you’ll also get some backstory on the guy! Yet another reason to go back BEEF BROS toot sweet!
What do you guys want readers to take away from reading “BEEF BROS”?
AS: Anything good people have ever accomplished has come from working together. Our natural state is cooperation, not competition, and if you make that your foundation, everything else falls into place.
TC: Be yourself, 100%. Care for those around you. Stand up for what’s right. Eat pancakes.
