We’re clearing out our notebooks and catching up – today, Baltimore.
Jonathan and Joshua Luna were signing for fans at the Image booth and
talking about their current limited series, The Sword.
At the end of the last issue of The Sword, the lead
character, Dara Brighton, was in serious trouble as she fought against
one of the three strangers who killed her family. "The next issue
[issue #12], we'll find out if she's successful in her quest for
revenge on Zakros," Joshua said. "You're going to find out who wins.
Obviously, this is the first one she fights, so chances are good."
The brothers said the three god-like siblings won't be an easy fight
for Dara as she continues on her quest. "They all have their own thing
going on, their own quirks. I think Zakros is the most animalistic,"
Joshua said. "It's definitely going to get more challenging with each
sibling, so it presents a different challenge, on a physical level and
also on an emotional and spiritual level. It's an escalation."
The series was originally billed by Image Comics as a mix of "Kill Bill, Highlander and Blade of the Immortal," so it's no surprise that fans have voiced an interest in seeing The Sword
adapted into a movie. We asked: Has there been interest from Hollywood?
"There has been interest, but we don't option until it's over. We just
wait it out," Joshua said.
"We don't make books to make movies or TV shows. After we're done with
it, that's great. But we want to be able to tell our own story first
and not have anything else affect that," Jonathan added.
The brothers, who found success with their original series Ultra and Girls,
were brought up during the Bendis vs. Kirkmam panel in Baltimore, which
was the talk of the con the next day. In fact, Robert Kirkman used the
Lunas as an example, saying the creators "make a fantastic living" by
only doing creator-owner work.
"It was jarring at first [to be used as an example]. It was flattering
to be considered as people who are making it solely on creator work,"
Joshua said. "It can be done, but it takes a lot of work, risk and
sacrifice. It's definitely not easy."
After Kirkman used the Lunas as an example, Brian Bendis countered that
the brothers may actually have other jobs to support themselves while
they do comics, even joking that they might sell themselves at the
airport to get by.
"Just for the record, we're not prostitutes," Jonathan added with a
laugh. "For the people that missed the conversation, Bendis was
wondering if we really, solely lived on what we made from comics and
said maybe we prostituted ourselves. We don't."
But Joshua pointed out that he did have a "day job" when he started out
in comics. "To jump in head first is a little risky," he said.
"You've got to have a balance between the two. The more time you spend
with the comics, the more quality the comic is going to have. But you
definitely shouldn't quit your day job at first, because you'll need
that foundation to make sure you can keep going with comics," Jonathan
added.
"Creator-owned work is like an investment. You put a lot of work into
it at the beginning, and it might not seem profitable right away. But
if you invest in yourself, you'll see some substantial profits or
income in time," Joshua said.
Since the subject had turned to profits in time, and because the
brothers DO talk to Hollywood after their comics are finished, we asked
if there's been any movement on Hollywood's interest in Ultra.
"We were trying with Ultra, with a director and a couple screenwriters, but it didn't go through. TV is tough," Jonathan said.
"We got spoiled with Ultra. It was our first book and then it became a
pilot. And we thought, 'Oh, this is easy!' But it's not. So we're a
little bit jaded with Hollywood," Jonathan said.
Joshua said comic books are more rewarding for them right now than
worrying about movies. After all, comics are like making a movie on
paper. "There's no executive notes, no interference. You have an idea
and it's on paper and it's published within a month," he said.
