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What Do You REALLY Know About Comics? 2.3, with Deidre

By | January 20th, 2014
Posted in Columns | 9 Comments

Hello All,

First off, Happy 2014! It’s been a while since I’ve posted one of these interviews and I’d quickly just like to explain why. I’ve been very lucky to have had my comic career blossom and unfortunately these interviews have had to take a back seat, which was never my intention. So, I’ve decided that 2014 will be the year that “What Do You Really Know About Comics?” makes a roaring return. The great people at Multiversity Comicshave been kind enough to give it a home, so please check back here for monthly (if not sooner) installments. I sincerely thank everyone that’s supported me, my book “SCAM” and ComixTribe over the last two years. It’s been an amazing time and I truly appreciated everyone that’s helped make it happen.

Now, for those of you who are unfamiliar with “What do you REALLY know about Comics?”, let me get you caught up real quick. I find people completely new to comics and ask them to give them a try. We discuss other forms of entertainment and I recommend books based on their tastes. Once they’ve read them, I do a follow up interview to see what they thought and if any previous thoughts they had about comics has changed. Sometimes we make new fans, sometimes we don’t. But hopefully the person leaves with a slightly different appreciation for what comics really are.

Enough of me blabbing, on with the show. Today’s guest is Deidre. Deidre is 32 and works as a manager at a retail clothing store. So let’s find out what Deidre REALLY knows about comics.

Joe Mulvey: Okay, thanks for doing this, it’s going to be fun. I promise.

Deidre: I’m sure. I’m trusting you. How bad can it be?

Joe Mulvey: You’d be surprised.

Deidre: Don’t make me cry.

Joe Mulvey: I can’t make any promises.

Deidre: Okay. Then I’ll make sure I’m careful.

Joe Mulvey: Make it a challenge, that’s right. Okay, so let’s just get right into it. Tell me, what do comic books mean to you?

Deidre: What do they mean to me? They don’t mean anything.

Joe Mulvey: Well, what do you think of them? What pops in your head when I say, “Comic Book?”

Deidre: I guess Superman. Superman, right? Heroic people. Batman, Spider-Man, the Flash. Is that okay for the answer?

Joe Mulvey: There’s no right or wrong answer. This is all your opinion.

Deidre: Okay, so then, yeah. Superman or stuff like that. Muscley guys in costumes flying or saving the world.

Joe Mulvey: Always guys?

Deidre: Huh?

Joe Mulvey: I mean, do you always think guys? Never women? Not Wonder Woman or any female characters?

Deidre: I know who Wonder Woman is but I didn’t think of her with this.

Joe Mulvey: Okay. So it’s fair to assume you don’t currently read comics, but did you ever read them?

Deidre: No, not really. I was going to say, like in the paper. The newspaper. But I don’t ever read papers anymore.

Joe Mulvey: Strictly a digital gal, now?

Deidre: Yeah, plus I never read the paper much back when I would, anyway. I’d flip through it if I was bored at work or somewhere. Then I’d look at the comics. I guess now I’ll see a comic up on Facebook or somewhere online and just read the joke or whatever.

Joe Mulvey: You mean like a single panel or an image?

Deidre: Like whatever joke someone posts or whatever with a pic.

Joe Mulvey: I mean like an actual comic book, so not even what you read in the paper. Those are strips more than books. But I don’t want to confuse you with terminology so we’ll just say you don’t read comics at all.

Deidre: Then, no. I’ve never read a comic.

Joe Mulvey: Are you a big reader?

Deidre: I used to be but not so much anymore.

Joe Mulvey: What did you like to read when you did?

Deidre: All kinds of stuff. I loved the Harry Potter books. I would also read a lot of conspiracy things years ago. Religious stuff too, like faith fiction-y stuff. I was also… I’m not sure if it fits but I guess it counts as reading and this sounds weird I know, don’t laugh —

Continued below

Joe Mulvey: I almost always laugh. Can’t help it.

Deidre: Well, don’t. I used to have a boyfriend who always had Maxim and Stuff and all those Playboy kinda magazines. And I became a big reader of all the dumb shit they used to put in those. Weird articles about sex stuff or diets, locations or even recipes. Some of the recipes were actually good.

Joe Mulvey: I’m not laughing but I’m definitely interested.

Deidre: There was interesting stuff in those magazines!

Joe Mulvey: Sure, wet tee shirt dry rub rib recipes or jerk chicken.

Deidre: I’m serious, I think I still have a nacho recipe that was amazing. Seriously, like the best ever.

Joe Mulvey: Fully LOADED crotch nachos?

Deidre: Okay, let’s move on than. I just remember always looking forward to reading that stuff. I know it’s garbage, so make fun, but I will find that recipe and show you. It’s good.

Joe Mulvey: No, I don’t doubt it. So for this interview I’m just trying to get a gauge for what kind of stuff you’re into. Your entertainment interests. Right now I have religious conspiracy books with or without sexual metaphor recipes.

Deidere: I like a lot of other stuff too.

Joe Mulvey: Like what? Do you go to the movies a lot?

Deidere: Once a month, maybe. I’ll watch stuff on Netflix or online. I have cable also.

Joe Mulvey: What was the last movie you saw?

Deidere: Gravity.

JoeMulvey: Like it?

Deidre: I’m not sure. I mean, it was good but I don’t know if I’d ever want to watch it again.

Joe Mulvey: Well what do you love or hate? Tell me a few of your favorite movies.

Deidre: My all time favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz, ever since I was a kid. Love it. Bridesmaids is a new favorite. I actually bought the Blu-ray which is a pretty big thing for me. I only own maybe ten DVD’s at most.

Joe Mulvey: Okay so Wizard of Oz and Bridesmaids, assuming Maxim never made a Risque Recipe DVD, what else is in the collection?

Deidre: Okay, but let me list them before you say anything.

Joe Mulvey: I will shut my trap.

Deidre: Dumb and Dumber, it’s a classic. Tropic Thunder, but that was given to me. The Goonies. GhostBusters. Never Ending Story. Oh wait, I just saw House in the Woods or… Cabin in the Woods the other night and that was really great. Watched that a few times on Netflix, that might be getting added to my shelf soon. Let me think.

Joe Mulvey: As of right now I’m fairly confident you might be the hardest person I’ve EVER had to try and suggest some comics for. What about TV? What TV shows are you into?

Deidre: Revenge is my favorite show right now. Scandal, too. I used to watch Supernatural but kind of got bored with that. I like DIY-shows or House Hunters. I watch those a lot. Almost every morning. My boyfriend likes Sleepy Hollow and Person of Interest so I watch those. They’re okay.

Joe Mulvey: That helps a bit.

Deidre: I give almost anything a chance.

Joe Mulvey: I can definitely see that.

Deidre: I just don’t like Jackass-type stuff or gross horror-type movies.

Joe Mulvey: Let me hear the rest of your DVD’s.

Deidre: Okay, Goonies, BridesMaids, Something about Mary, Never Ending Story, Wizard of Oz, The first Harry Potter, The Sorcerer’s Stone, Tropic Thunder, The Great Muppet Caper. I’m drawing a blank now but there are definitely a few more. OH! Scream. The first Scream.

Joe Mulvey: Okay, so you do like some horror.

Deidre: Yeah, some. Just not overly gross stuff.

Joe Mulvey: I definitely have my work cut out for me this time. But I WILL find you some good comics to read. I SWEAR.

Deidre: Okay. Get to it.

Joe Mulvey: So what happens next is I’ll give you some books to read, some in print and some digitally, because you strike me like a digital-on-the-go type of gal. So read the books, and when you’re all done and ready to talk, shoot me an email and we’ll do a follow up to see what you thought.

Deidre: Okay.

Deidre was DEFINITELY one of the harder people I’d ever had to recommend books to. Since she didn’t seem to relate women characters to comics, I definitely wanted to show her some good examples there. So I gave her “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” from Marvel, “Lazarus” #1 from Image Comics, “Pretty Deadly” #1 from Image Comics, “The Wake” from Vertigo, “Sex Criminals” #1 from Image. “Morning Glories” Vol. 1 from Image Comics, “Wonder Woman” Vol. 1 from DC Comics and “Chew” Vol. 1 from Image Comics. “Chew,” “Wizard of Oz” and “Morning Glories” were in print, the rest were digital, available on Comixology.

Continued below

It’s been 5 days since we last talked with Deidre. Let’s see what she thinks about comics now.

Joe Mulvey: I think this is one of the fastest turn around times I’ve ever had with doing these interviews, so at this point it could go either way. You either loved comics or you hated them and just didn’t want to read anymore. Which one is it?

Deidre: Love it! Love them. Love me some comics!

Joe Mulvey: Awesome! That’s beyond amazing to hear. So what was it? What did it for you?

Deidre: I just enjoyed them. Great stories that I could read to pass the time on the train. They’ve become my train hobby. Makes my commute go a whole lot quicker.

Joe Mulvey: Did you prefer the digital or the print more?

Deidre: Hm. Well if I’m home I’d like the print. It was nice to lay in bed and read. But when I’m traveling or I’m at work, then reading on my phone was the better way to go. It’s actually made me want to get a tablet now. I was on the fence but after reading on the tablet it was way better and made me think I should start saving for one. Plus, when I read on my phone I can buy the next one as soon as I’m done.

Joe Mulvey: One-click shopping at your fingertips.

Deidre: Yeah, it’s great. But I kind of screwed up. After I read “Morning Glories” I went to buy the next book or issue or whatever. And I was totally confused, because you had given me Volume One. So it was a volume. Then I wasn’t sure how it worked on Comixology. So I ended up buying, like, an issue, a few issues but then figured out I could keep buying it in volumes. So I wasted some money but I eventually got the hang of it.

Joe Mulvey: Glad you got that figured out. It can be confusing initially. So, what was that the first book you read?

Deidre: “Wonder Woman.” I wanted to read “Wizard of Oz” but I didn’t want to carry it with me to work. So I started with “Wonder Woman” on my phone. I knew her, sorta. So I started there. It was fun. She was super tough and way more aggressive and violent than I remembered from, like, the cartoons or whatever. But I guess that’s just keeping up with the times.

Joe Mulvey: She wasn’t what you expected.

Deidre: No. Definitely not. She throws a sword and chops off this minotaur’s arm. She’s, like, head-butting monsters. All crazy stuff. Way more bloody or violent than I would have thought.

Joe Mulvey: She is bad ass. I wouldn’t mess with her.

Deidre: Hell no!

Joe Mulvey: Okay, so “Wonder Woman” was first and you seem to have a luke warm reaction to her, so what was the one that finally hooked you?

Deidre: I read that and it went pretty quick. My ride to work is about forty minutes. So I went to “the Wake” next and I liked it, story-wise it felt like an underwater Aliens. And that made me buy the next issue. It became so addicting because as soon as you finish the last page they just spring the next issue button on ya. So I kept clicking and I REALLY liked that. But that one was even better when I saw it on my boyfriends tablet.

Joe Mulvey: Just about every comic is better on a bigger more readable surface.

Deidre: Well that was it, exactly. The drawing from “Wonder Woman” was fine because it was brighter or just different, I don’t know exactly how to describe it. Maybe less detail or less going on in each picture. The way the guy who draws “the Wake” draws it, having to look at all the little detail on my phone felt… overwhelming.

Joe Mulvey: But it says something about the strength of the story that made you stick with it even though you had that feeling.

Deidre: Oh, yeah. It got me. Then I read those through and when I went to bed that night I read “the Wonderful Wizard of OZ!” LOVED THAT! Oh my God. So good. Then I read “Morning Glories.” My boyfriend was shocked when he came home and saw me in bed with a comic.

Continued below

Joe Mulvey: There are worse things he could’ve caught you in bed with.

Deidre: HA! True. I guess.

Joe Mulvey: Okay, so you read “Morning Glories.”

Deidre: Right, I read that. The volume one, then that was it. Went to bed and the next day. Uh, like in the morning sitting around —

Joe Mulvey: On the toilet. It’s okay you can say it.

Deidre: HA! No. Well, yes, I did read there but just having my coffee, checking my phone I went to the Comixology app and started with “Sex Criminals.” Which was fantastic. Soooooo funny.

Joe Mulvey: I just want to interrupt you for a quick second. Do you see already between “The Wake” and “Morning Glories” and “Sex Criminals” how diverse comics are? Not all super heros or Superman like you originally thought. You didn’t think that’s what comics were before this, right?

Deidre: Oh, No. Not at all.

Joe Mulvey: Out of all these interviews I’ve done, the biggest misconception is that comics are just Superman, Batman, Avengers, etc. And they aren’t. I mean, I know you’ve just started getting into comics but the amount of AMAZING work out there is insane and people never know about them because they think comics are all one thing. Just one genre. I compare it to watching TV. You wouldn’t turn on a TV, see SpongeBob on it and say “Oh. It’s a cartoon. Everything is a cartoon and TV’s are for kids.” You’d change the channel and find other programming that suits you. Comics are no different.

Deidre: Yeah, right. And I’m sure that’s why you do these interviews. I mean, if you hadn’t asked me to do this, I wouldn’t be reading this stuff or spending way more money than I should on the app. You should get a cut of what I buy.

Joe Mulvey: I SHOULD, DAMN IT! Nah, I just do it to let people see what comics really are. But enough of my crap, get back to you reading comics and “Sex Criminals.”

Deidre: Yeah, “Sex Criminals” was great, soo funny. Like, I want to see Tina Fay or somebody doing this as a movie. It’s so funny and weird. It was the one I told my boyfriend to read and he actually did. He was stuck on the sex positions page for like twenty minutes.

Joe Mulvey: Did you get him into the books?

Deidre: Not as much. He’s on the phone a lot for work, so when he can put it down he doesn’t want to be on it. He’ll play games on his tablet. Maybe he’d read on there. I mean I put the app on it. But then I’m the one taking it from him to use so I can read comics on it. He’ll have to buy me one so he can start reading on his. HA! That’s the plan.

Joe Mulvey: How long have you guys been together?

Deidre: Almost two and a half years.

Joe Mulvey: Tell him you either want a ring or a tablet. That fucking tablet will be there NEXT DAY!

Deidre: Ha! I should. I really should. He’d definitely buy me a tablet then.

Joe Mulvey: Absolutely. Okay, so any other reviews? Likes or dislikes?

Deidre: Nope. Comics make my commute so much better. I’m a fan.

Joe Mulvey: Cool! Well, I just want to say thank you very much for doing this. I really appreciate it and I’m glad it worked out well and we could make another fan of comics.

Deidre: Yeah, this was really great. I do have one thing though that I wanted to say, one little complaint.

Joe Mulvey: Sure, go ahead.

Deidre: The “Pretty Deadly” book, not ever putting in the character that’s on the cover, on that first page, in the book. What’s up with that? It kind of makes you have to buy the second issue. Pretty dirty trick if you ask me.

Joe Mulvey: They should’ve named the book Pretty Dirty.

Deidre: I just remember reading it and being like “WTF? Where’s the woman from the cover?”

Joe Mulvey: Well, they talk about her character a lot and show you some images of her, if I remember right.

Deidre: Yeah, but we don’t see her, or meet her. Highly annoyed, especially since I guess there’s no second issue yet.

Continued below

Joe Mulvey: But if that second issue was there, would you have bought it?

Deidre: Yeah, I just felt like it was a trick to get you to have to buy it. I felt tricked.

Joe Mulvey: Okay well this is on the record now. So when we publish this interview, it’ll be on MultiversityComics.com and I’ll make sure to send a tweet the writers way.

Deidre: NO! Don’t do that. Do a lot of people read these interviews?

Joe Mulvey: Millions. Sometimes billions. These interviews break the internet. Top searches are Justin Bieber, Jennifer Anniston’s Breasts and these interviews.

Deidre: Stop it! Do a lot of people read these? Be serious.

Joe Mulvey: Hopefully.

Deidre: Then don’t write that. Don’t say it. I was just joking.

Joe Mulvey: It’s on the record. I have journalistic integrity. You hate the writer and feel tricked by her. Got it.

Deidre: NO! I like her and her book.

Joe Mulvey: I didn’t think you could be so vicious. It’s probably all those crazy comics you read.

We’ll stop there, but there you have it folks, another new fan of comics. THEY DO EXIST! We just gotta try and get more great books into more peoples hands… or phones it would seem.

That’s it for this week. As always I want to highly recommend all the great books that were selected for Deidre, so please check them out digitally or at your local retailer.

As always, PLEASE let me hear your feedback. Feel free to give me YOUR suggestions on reading material. I love comics but I don’t read everything. My suggestions come from my reading. So if you’ve got an idea, I want to hear it.

I really want to thank the great people at Multiversity Comics for hosting this. And I want to thank you guys for checking my interviews out and helping to spread the word about the wonderful world of comics.

I also want to thank all of you who’ve supported my book “SCAM” from ComixTribe. Right now we have a KickStarter going for the “SCAM” Ultimate Collection. Collecting the trade and the never before seen “SCAMthology” — 100+ pages featuring 15 new stories from characters throughout the “SCAM” universe, featuring both up and coming and establish creators such as Jason Ciaramella, Joe Esima, Amy Chu, Nick Pitarra, Ben McCool, Charles Paul Wilson, Paul Allor, Josh Flannagan, Tyler James, Alex Cormack, Jon Lees, myself and many more. If you’re interested in Super Powered Con-men then this is definitely the book for you! Please go check The “SCAM” ULTIMATE COLLECTION here.


//TAGS | What Do You Really Know About Comics?

Joe Mulvey

Joe Mulvey is the writer/artist of SCAM #1 from ComixTribe, as well as all around good dude.

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