One of my favorite interviews to date has been with this gentleman, Mr. J.M. DeMatteis, and it was conducted back in 2004. This man has written so many of my favorite comics (Spider-Man, Captain America, Defenders, Justice League, the list goes on), and his work on Ghost Rider turned out some of the absolute best work the character has ever seen.
1) First question, short and simple: before signing on as the regular writer, you wrote several Ghost Rider fill-in issues. What about the series attracted you to writing it?
I've always enjoyed the more supernatural corners of the Marvel universe: characters like Ghost Rider, Man-Thing, Son of Satan, Devil-Slayer, my own character, the Gargoyle, and one of my all-time favorites, Doctor Strange. They're not limited to the more direct, slam-bang approach of mainstream superhero comics. They lend themselves to mood and mystery and the exploration of rich and wonderful themes. Darkness/light, sin/redemption, good/evil. I'm a sucker for duality, for the struggles of the soul, and these characters have that. In spades.
2) Roger Stern, who had previously been hyped as the big name new writer on the series, left several dangling plotlines with his abrupt departure. How much of what you did afterward come from his prior plotting and how much was original?
As I recall (and remember, we're talking twenty years ago!), Roger had created the world that Johnny Blaze was inhabiting, the carnival and the various supporting players. We built on that. But the stories were pretty much our own. I had the pleasure of working with penciller Bob Budiansky on the majority of those stories and we co-plotted all of them. Bob was an excellent artist with a terrific understanding of story. Our biggest problem was that our plots had TOO much story in them. We'd talk on the phone and the ideas would just fly.
3) The origin of Zarathos seemed, at the time, to come completely out of left field as the Ghost Rider demon had been left ambiguous in identity for so many years. What was the creative process for this newly revealed history/origin?
Again, it's been a long time...but I suspect we were just looking to deepen the character and his world. To add some new dimensions to the demonic half of the Ghost Rider persona. I have memories of us bouncing names around, searching for the right one, then coming up with Zarathos. And I don't remember which one of us thought that particular name up. (Could've been a combination of several names we were considering.) The character took on a life of its own and I think he really added a spark to the series...as did our main villain, Centurious, a character I really liked.
4) In the final issue of Ghost Rider, a letter from you about the series was published on the last page, chronicling how you felt about the character and the series' end. How much notice did you have concerning the title's cancellation?
We must have had sufficient time...because, as I recall, we were able to put together a final issue that wrapped the series up pretty nicely. That doesn't happen very often.
5) Let's pretend that Ghost Rider had not been cancelled with # 81…what would you have done with the series had it continued through # 100?
I have no idea! But the character had so much untapped potential, and Budiansky and I worked so well together, I'm sure we could've kept going through #100...and then some.
6) Howard Mackie, who created the second incarnation of the Ghost Rider, has cited that your work on the previous volume was a major inspiration to his series. Did you read any of the second GR series, and if so, what were your thoughts?
To be honest—and this has nothing to do with the quality of the book—I didn't really follow that series...although I remember how hugely popular it was. I think it was interesting, and smart, to come up with a new host for the Ghost Rider...but at the same time, I missed Johnny Blaze. When you write these characters, you tend to get pretty invested in them.
7) Back in the late 90's, your Man-Thing series was one of the debut titles of Marvel's Strange Tales imprint, a line of comics that quickly withered on the vine and disappeared into obscurity after less than a year. Being a huge fan of the Strange Tales books (and Marvel's horror characters in general), what can you say happened to hinder the imprint's success?
The Strange Tales line went through several convulsions along the way. First it was planned as a Mature Readers line, ala Vertigo. But once we were underway, Marvel got a new publisher who didn't think that was an intelligent way to go with Marvel Universe characters—and I understood his point. So we did some minor revisions on the first issue and plowed on. Didn't really make any difference, as the book didn't depend on graphic sex, language or violence. What was mature about Man-Thing was our approach, the concepts and ideas we were exploring. I was lucky enough to be paired with one of my all-time favorite collaborators, the brilliant Liam Sharp, and I think Man-Thing is one of the high-points of my years at Marvel. It's a series, however short-lived, that I'm really proud of.
Unfortunately, the Strange Tales line never really got any serious support. We were cancelled by issue #7, then resurrected and paired up with Werewolf By Night in another title called, if I remember correctly, Strange Tales! Before that book even came out, they let us know it was being cancelled, so we planned a finale to the series. Unfortunately, they cancelled it again ...leaving two completed issues in the drawer that have still not seen the light of day. A big mess. I think the same series, had it come out of Marvel today, would have done much better.
After the book was cancelled, I was approached by Ralph Macchio who, with the very best intentions, asked me to bring Man-Thing back into the mainstream Marvel Universe in a Spider-Man annual. (His thought was, someone was gonna do it, why not the guy who'd been writing the character?) At that time there was still talk that those final issues would come out in some format so I agreed. Big mistake. Liam could only do half the story, so we got someone else to pencil the rest. And I ended up writing a story that made reference to these two other stories that had never, and would never, see print...and ended up changing some of the elements I really loved about our take on the character. It was pretty much a disaster and a story I consider a real stinker. Nobody's fault but my own.
8) Stepping away from the past, the big news is that you're collaborating with GR co-creator Mike Ploog on a new title for Crossgen comics. Care to tell us a little bit about Abadazad?
Abadazad is a dream project that I've been developing for years. A chance to follow in the footsteps of L. Frank Baum. C.S. Lewis and all the wonderful authors whose works have nurtured me, and my children, for so many years. It's a smart, literate contemporary fantasy that, I think, will appeal to both children and their parents. Children are the forgotten audience in comics these days...and it really infuriates me. Abadazad is our attempt to reach out to that audience and try to bring them back into the fold. If we're successful, I hope others will follow.
Mike Ploog has been an absolute dream to work with. The guy is astonishingly talented. He is bringing this world to visual life with passion and brilliance. I'm honored that this is the project that's brought him back to comics after so many years. It's a collaboration that I hope continues for a long time to come.
The first issue came out last week and the response has been amazing. Great reviews, the first issue is selling very well...and Crossgen—a company that really understands the need for this kind of material—has done, and will continue to do, everything in their power to promote it and get it into the hands of actual living breathing children. (A revolutionary idea in the current comic book climate!) If it sounds like I'm wildly excited...it's because I am . Every once in a while a project comes along—a Moonshadow, a Brooklyn Dreams, an Abadazad—that allows me to stretch myself as a writer and sail off into some uncharted creative waters. I'm in love with this series. It's already one of the major highlights of a more-than twenty year career in this business
9) Are there any other upcoming projects on your plate that you'd like to tip us off about?
I've got an exciting movie project in development with Dean Devlin, producer of "Stargate," "Independence Day" and "The Patriot." It's a supernatural thriller and...well, that's all I can really say about it right now. I've also been having a great time writing episodes of the Cartoon Network Justice League show...and I've got another comics project in the works that...well, I can't talk about that yet, either. But it's for a publisher I'm not currently working with and I think it will delight some fans of another book I've written. And how's THAT for a purposely vague answer?
10) Mr. DeMatteis, thank you so much for your time. Is there anything you'd like to add before the interview ends?
Thanks for the trip down Memory Lane!
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