Christmas in August

Writer Gerry Duggan on ruining everyone's holiday, and artist Rick Remender on drawing Santa's ass

 

When it comes to Christmas specials, you don't get much more "special" than Image Comics miniseries "The Last Christmas." The bastard brainchild of Brian Posehn and Gerry Duggan, this five issue series imagines a bleak future where the world has more or less ended and zombies and mutant marauders wander the earth.

 

When some wander a little too far north and happen upon Santa's workshop and do in Mrs. Claus, St. Nick grows so despondent that he tries hanging himself on a string of Christmas lights. And throwing himself off his sleigh. And setting himself on fire. And good old-fashioned drinking himself to death.

 

But no dice—Santa's immortal. As long as even one child believes in him, he can't die. Faced with this heart-warming truth, Santa realizes what he must do: Get his shit together, clean himself up and go kill the last child who believes in him so he can commit suicide in peace.

 

A Charlie Brown Christmas it ain't. But it makes up for what it lacks in Bible passages and life lessons with zombies and vomit gags. Bringing the crazy-ass story to vivid visual life is the art team of Rick Remender and Hilary Barta, with Michelle Madsen on inks.

 

With Santa Claus coming to town this Wednesday for issue #3, we checked in with Duggan and Remender to see whether they expect to land on Santa's Naughty or Nice list this year.

 

 

Bam!Kapow!: You guys are halfway through The Last Christmas at this point; how's the reception been so far? Is the book doing as well as you'd like?

 

Gerry Duggan: Yeah, the book is doing great—we brought down hundreds of copies to San Diego last month for the comic con and blew through everything we had. Issue #2 has been completely sold out from Diamond since before San Diego.

 

It will be exciting to have the collection out—we've had a really great response from the comic shops, and this Christmas we'll also be in book stores and Amazon—all very exciting.

 

The only mail we've gotten has been very, very positive. The reviews have been really great too.  We couldn't be happier.

 

BK!: Can you tell us a little bit about the genesis of the story? Who first had the idea of "Hey, I wonder what Santa will do after the Apocalypse?" and how it ended up evolving into this series? We've all seen post-apocalyptic stories, and stories of zombies and mutants ruling the future, and stories of revenge fantasies, and stories of Santa Claus, but we've never seen a story that was all of those at once.

 

Duggan: I had a nutty idea to put a gun in Santa's hand, and Brian took it post-apocalyptic as I recall.  We envisioned it as a film not long after 9/11 but went to work on it as a comic book. We waited for Rick, Hil and Michelle to free up.  They've really done amazing work on the series.

 

The book really does have a lot of flavors, but I think it really works. We're all very proud of the wonderful mess we've made. In my mind it's another reflection of 9/11 in pop culture. Horror and metal music are on the upswing too—lots of great works pop up when things get grim and freedoms are curbed.

 

BK!: Can you tease anything about the rest of the series at this point? What can we look forward to?

 

Duggan: Some hopefully laugh out loud gags, definitely some stellar art, lots of zombies being sent to hell, some revenge and a fruit cake decapitating a marauder after being thrown from a moving sleigh…

 

BK!: How literally should we take the title? If you sell a gazillion issues, will this end up like the "Final Destination" franchise, where even though the word "Final" is right there in the title, it becomes an ongoing franchise? Could we see a "The Last Christmas 2: This Time We Really Mean It"?

 

Duggan: We would love to do another "season" of the book.  It would be a blast.

 

BK!: The last few winters, we've heard a lot of TV pundits like Bill O'Reilly talking about a cultural "War on Christmas." Now, on the one hand, you guys are using the word "Christmas" right there in the title, rather than, "X-Mas" or "Holiday Season" or whatever. But on the other hand, Santa's gone completely around the bend and was last seen on his way to kill the last kid who believed in him. So, in the War on Christmas, are you with Christmas, or against it?

 

Duggan: Hopefully O'Reilly will be caught up blabbing about the real, ongoing apocalypse by this Christmas, and not our zombie Armageddon. I've been peeking at the TV news (usually on mute) and shaking my head a lot these days.  I watched CNN and saw a panel had convened to debate whether the "end times" had begun.  Everyday on this planet the four horsemen are running amok somewhere. Africa can't tell if the apocalypse is coming or going.  Things are horrible in the mid-east.

 

I always laugh at people like O'Reilly when they lose their minds about something they find distasteful in our culture.  It's just not what the news media should be focusing on. If they're worried about our comic book or Britney Spears' doughy waistline they're not doing their job keeping our politicians honest.

 

BK!: And speaking of "Christmas" vs. "X-Mas," why didn't you go with the latter? Comics with "X’s” in the title have always sold better than comics with the word "Christ" in them.

 

Duggan: I just decided that any sequel will be titled: "X-Mas Men"…everybody knows that Gary the Snowman is the new Wolverine. I read it on a message board.

 

BK!: When I first heard about the series, I thought, "A Christmas comic? In summer? Why release this now, and not in the winter?" I thought maybe you guys were just looking to have the trade available during Christmas shopping season. Then I actually read the first few issues and realized maybe you were worried about ruining the holiday for everyone if they read this in November or December.

 

Duggan: We hope your holiday is ruined whenever you read it.  The reality was we wanted the trade for the holiday shopping season.  It will be a fun, action-packed and inexpensive gift to give to someone that might be a little tired of the holidays. Or anybody that loves westerns, or comedy, or zombies.  It's probably not for your mom, unless your mom is really cool.

 

BK!: The singing snowman narrating the first issue really called to mind the old Rankin/Bass Rudolph stop-motion specials. Did past Christmas stories inform your work on the book at all?

 

Duggan: A little more than one might think. In addition to Gary's exposition-y song about the end of the world that sets the table for the series, we have that good little boy that manages to save Christmas who has appeared in a few of those stop motion specials.

 

Of course, we added our own little twist with Santa's secret desire to send the kid to an early grave, but he did have a good reason: his belief in Santa was keeping him alive when he no longer wanted to be.

 

BK!: Do you have a favorite Christmas special?

 

Duggan: The Star Wars one is particularly horrible. It will really drive you to drink.  As for the ones that get replayed every year, I've always enjoyed the Charlie Brown Christmas Special.  They don't really make ones like that anymore. Nowadays you get things like "the Christmas Shoes" that make you want to hang yourself with Christmas lights.

 

BK!: Have you gotten any letters or emails from kids or sensitive parents yet?

 

Duggan: Not a one, though we did have one mother cover her son's eyes down in San Diego when she saw what we were peddling, but she turned and gave us a "Santa style" wink.  Hopefully that kid will learn all about the "Last Christmas" someday.

 

Lots of parents bought their young kids copies of the book at the Comic Con. We're also holding back our big PR push until the trade paperback is out for Christmas, so maybe we'll catch hell then.

 

I think the people that would be really upset to see Santa set a zombie on fire were kind of already pissed off at him for stealing Christ's thunder anyway.

 

BK!: So after working on this comic, do you expect to be on the Naughty or Nice list by the time this series wraps?

 

Duggan: I'm hoping for the Nice, but could live the Naughty.  If Santa's making the list, I'm all good. We've made that guy an action star.

 

BK!: Any other holidays you feel like ruining after this one?

 

Duggan: Valentines is dumb.  Maybe that's next.

 

BK!: Rick, as an artist approaching this story, was it difficult to decide on and nail down a look for the characters and setting, in terms of how cartoon-y and silly to make things versus how realistic and straight?

 

Rick Remender: Not really. I'm pretty dialed into guys like Will Elder and Wally Wood and the EC Mad magazine stuff so this was right up my alley. I'm happy to keep finding books that want this style as I find so much of the dead lined, photo traced art in today's comics off-putting.

 

Inker Hilary Barta is the last man alive who can do a real Wally Wood and he plays a huge role in the look of the final art. I'm very fortunate to get to work with him and colorist Michelle Madsen; both are unquestionably genius. We all tend to go for expression, mood and acting over realistic.

 

I live in reality and see it everyday. It's boring.

 

BK!: And have you gotten any page of the script that really shocked or surprised you? Like, did you have to re-read things like "Tight on Santa's naked ass as he's passed out on the snow"? Has there ever been a point where you were like, "Wait a minute, I'm drawing Santa Claus' bare ass…"

 

Remender: Ha— no, not really. People who know my work in books like Black Heart Billy and LCD know I can go much further into the realm of the unacceptable. It's a pretty fun place to go to draw pictures.

 

I've had more fun figuring out what Santa looks like bare-assed and puking than I have drawing most anything else. In fact, I think the guys only had Santa falling over drunk in that shot and I ended up pulling his pants down and having a fly pop out of my own sick impulses. So we're all in good company and have our minds in the same degenerate space.