The final chapter in the life of Luther Strode, a boy turned into a superhuman killing machine in the hopes of becoming a superhero, is almost upon us. Following the events of “The Strange Talent of Luther Strode” and “Legend Of Luther Strode”, Justin Jordan, Tradd Moore and Felipe Sobreiro will be taking readers on a globe-trotting tour of murder and mayhem in “The Legacy Of Luther Strode” when the first issue arrives on April 1. We caught up with Justin Jordan to talk a little bit about fans can expect when the double sized first issue of “The Legacy Of Strode” drops, so check it out down below!
We’re also proud to present some character designs from the upcoming series by Tradd Moore, three inked pages from the first issue and “The Bridge”, a short comic linking “Legacy Of Luther Strode” with the ending of “Legend Of Luther Strode”. They can all be found down below. Just keep scrolling, you cannot miss them.
“Legend Of Luther Strode” ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, to say the least. What can you tell us how the characters have changed since we saw them last and where’ll we find them in the new series?
As it happens, the cliffhangery part is answered in a sequence we called The Bridge, so you do get to see how Luther and Petra got from being surrounded by police to…..not being surrounded by police.
And indeed, your readers can read it here!
But beyond that, Luther and Petra have had a few years to be a couple and prepare for their next mission, which is to stop Cain and the Murder Cult. So they’re a little older, a little wiser, and a whole more badass.
And Petra has very little hair. So there’s that.
In “Strange Talent Of Luther Strode”, you made a point to let the reader into Luther’s mind through narration to allow us to get a feel of his mindset as his life went to hell. However, in “Legend”, Luther was much more closed off to the reader and you even said in one of the issues’ backmatter that you thought of Petra as the protagonist of that series. With that in mind, would you say Luther in “Legacy” is still more of the closed off loner or will we see that loveable nerd he once was shine through?
In Legend, Luther was by design very much a force of nature, and we kept him at arm’s length. Petra is the relatable character there, and that was very much her story. And what she was trying to do was rescue Luther. Partly from the cult, but mostly from himself.
And she succeeded. So the Luther in Legacy is very much a different man than he was in Legend. He’s not the guy he was in Strange Talent, but you can see more of that guy in him. He has an actual personality rather than being just a blonde ragebeast.
Which is nice. It’s fun to write to Luther and Petra together, and it’s fun that Luther is a human being again. It’s great getting back to that.
Speaking of Petra, she is easily one of my favourite parts of the series. Would it be fair to say her role in this series is as big as the previous series?
I’d say so. She’s got as much page time as Luther, thus far, and she’s really proactive in driving the plot. She’s spent the last few years becoming a lot more badass, because she needs to keep up with Luther. As long as she’s with Luther and the Cult exists, she’s in danger, and Petra doesn’t want anyone protecting her, so she took on herself to get to a point where she can hold her own.
Luther Strode as a whole is a series noted for ultraviolence, but the escalation in the violence between “Strange Talent” and “Legend” blew me away. Are you guys looking to step up the violence even more in Legacy?
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Oh yes. But it’s a different sort of violence, I think. Basically, the last book was largely Luther or Jack doing their things to regular people, which is kind of a curbstomp battle. In Legacy, most of the action is cult members versus Luther, so the action is BIGGER.
And worldwide. They go to Russia, Hong Kong, the Middle East, so there’s a bigger scope. While there’s still lots of blood and mayhem, there’s a lot of crazy action this time. We’ve challenged ourselves to go as big as the rules of the universe we have established for ourselves. Which is neverwracking.
With violence in mind, one of the highlights of “Legend Of Strode” to me was the Where’s Waldo Of Murder splash page. Is it possible we’ll see something that will top even that?
Yup. On pages two and three. A thousand men die. I am totally not kidding.
One of the things I love most about this series is how you play up the tragedy of the superhero story. In “Strange Talent”, ostensibly an origin story for Luther, you play around with the notions of abuse and familial death that seem almost inherent to a superhero story. Then in “Legend”, we see Luther tortured by this and operating as a loner and a rather violent vigilante. Is this a theme we’ll see continue into “Legacy Of Luther Strode”.
They will. Unsurprisingly, seeing as this is the last one, we’re bringing it all to a conclusion, including Luther’s arc. Basically, Luther wanted to be a superhero and got to be one, but it cost him almost everything, his friends, his family, very nearly his humanity.
If he could, Luther would have rather have never opened the Hercules Method. But he did. He lost everything he lost. He hurt the people he hurt. That happened. So now, he’s trying to find out what comes after that.
And basically, what he’s trying to do is stop more people like him from existing. He’s trying to redeem the cult, if he can, and kill them if he must. He knows he can’t change the past but he believes he can make a better future.
And yeah, as a whole, it’s very much my thinking about a certain kind of superhero.
Tradd Moore has evolved a lot as an artist from series to series (I would even from issue to issue in “Strange Talent”) What’s it like as writer watching that evolution? Has it changed the way you write for Tradd? Has it taken the story to places you weren’t expecting?
It’s awesome. Tradd is an amazing talent, and it’s great to watch him grow. And he started off being pretty damn amazing.
Now, I wouldn’t say that fact changed the way we work, but it has grown and evolved over the years.
Legacy is totally a cowritten book. Tradd and I worked out the plot together, and the scripts themselves have gone back and forth so the story is a product of us working together.
Finally, you’ve hinted at Cain’s involvement in the grander story of Luther Strode since “Strange Talent”. Without spoiling anything, obviously, is it safe to assume he’ll be playing a more active role in “Legacy”? Is it finally time for the knock down brawl between Cain and Luther I’ve been dreaming of?
Oh yes. He’s the looming presence over the first two thirds of the book, but the last two issues you get to see Cain in action. And hopefully it’s just as awesome as everyone has been hoping. We’ve got to top Luther versus the Librarian and Luther versus Jack, which is going to be tough.
Now, check out “Legacy Of Luther Strode: The Bridge”, the 8 page story by Justin Jordan and Tradd Moore that acts as both an epilogue to “Legend Of Luther Strode” and an introduction to “Legacy Of Luther Strode”. Wait, so it’s almost like a…. bridge… between the stories? I see what you did there.
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And now, last but not least, we proudly present three inked pages from “Legacy Of Luther Strode” #1 by Tradd Moore.
“Legacy Of Luther Strode” by Justin Jordan, Tradd Moore and Felipe Sobreiro will debut on April 1 will a extra-sized first issue. If this hasn’t sold you on it, I don’t know what will. If this has sold you on it, the collections of “Strange Talent Of Luther Strode” and “Legend Of Luther Strode” are available in print and digitally through Image comic. “Stange Talent” comes first, just fyi.
