Jedi Council Forums - My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!! (Bonus: Mac's interview with Colin Wilson!!!)

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Author	Topic: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!! (Bonus: Mac's interview with Colin Wilson!!!)
CooperTFN Title: TF.n EU Staff Emeritus Registered: Jul '99	Date Posted: 2/19 12:20am Subject: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!! (Bonus: Mac's interview with Colin Wilson!!!) - Date Edited: 2/19 4:32pm (3 edits total) Edited By: Rogue_Follower
	...is three exclamation points overdoing it? Nah. achem Ladies and gentlebeings - shortly after the announcement of new Dark Horse comic series Star Wars: Invasion at the New York Comic Con, I took it upon myself to drop writer Tom Taylor a line regarding a few of our most burning questions about the new series. He was gracious enough to indulge me, and I've brought his responses here, and here alone, for your reading pleasure. What comics does Mr. Taylor enjoy himself? Will Invasion be revisiting the death of Anakin Solo? Just how do the Yuuzhan Vong feel about puppies and nuns? Answers to all these and more can be found below... Tell me a little about where your professed love of comics comes from? What comics, if any, did you grow up reading? My love of comics comes from my childhood without a doubt. I grew up reading all of the DC superheroes and I have always been a massive Superman fan. I think John Williams, inadvertently, wrote the soundtrack to the early lives of a lot of people my age. I also read a bit of 2000 AD. However, it wasn’t until I was about 17 and returned to comics with Sandman, that my adult love began. What are some of your favorite books/creators? Well, Watchmen is really good and Dark Knight Returns… just kidding. It seems like they’re the only two books that non-comic book people can list when they’re asked this question. Of course Alan Moore and Frank Miller are good; they’re Alan Moore and Frank Miller! I won’t go too much into my favorite artists here, except to say that Colin Wilson is brilliant. Favorite writers: Garth Ennis Hitman and Preacher are two of my favorite books of all time. Garth Ennis forces you to care more about his characters than anyone else in the business; he can make you laugh, cry and… squirm. His Hellblazer run was also brilliant as was his “Trooper” story in Star Wars Tales #10. Warren Ellis Authority, Stormwatch, Planetary, Nextwave, Transmetropolitan, Aetheric Mechanics. The guy has more ideas before breakfast (which I assume is just a cigarette and some cynicism) than most of us have in our lifetimes. I buy almost everything he produces. Mark Millar Ultimates, Wolverine, Wanted - A one man movie-making machine. Pacing, scope and twists. Bendis Dialogue that Aaron Sorkin would be proud of. I have all of his early stuff. I’ve bought Ultimate Spider-Man since day one and I can’t get enough of Powers. There are so many more; Vaughan, Whedon, Grant Morrison (All-Star Superman was great), Gaiman, Willingham, Brubaker, Kirkman, Straczynski, Johns… I’ll stop now. No I won’t. I’m also really enjoying Umbrella Academy and Drew Goddard’s Buffy arc was one of the best runs I read last year. There’s also these Star Wars books you may not have heard of called Legacy, Dark Times and Knights of the Old Republic… It seems to be pretty rare for comics writers to have much of a face-to-face relationship with their artists; how do you think being able to meet with Colin Wilson regularly and in person is affecting the final product of Invasion? Colin and I would meet for two coffees each and a long chat about life, the universe and everything whether we were working together or not. Having said that, we are working together and working well. One of the pluses for us is that we both have fairly isolated working lives so stepping out of a study once a week (to step into another study) and actually talking to another human being about what we’re doing, really helps keep the excitement levels up for the series. I think one of the major advantages of working so closely is that there’s someone else there to make sure you don’t make mistakes. So Colin will say, “Hey Tom, you know how you want this character doing this and this character doing this… what if we did that over two panels? and I’ll say “Brilliant! Pour my coffee!” Or I can say, “Colin, the characters that say all of the dialogue in this panel… don’t seem to be in this panel.” And Colin will say. “Why don’t I draw those people in there then? Now, get back to responding to my emails for me, unpaid monkey-boy secretary.” What’s your take on the Yuuzhan Vong? Since their ultimate “redemption,” so to speak, is already common knowledge, do you think that will affect the way they’re portrayed in the series? I’m not sure how common that knowledge is for people who haven’t read the books or investigated the storyline. I will say that this is the start of the war, the Yuuzhan Vong have no redemptive qualities at all at this stage. At the moment, these are the sort of guys who would beat a nun with a puppy. One of the first reactions many fans had to the announcement of Invasion, after jubilation, was to speculate on what major events from the novels we’ll finally be able to “see” -- Anakin Solo’s death at Myrkr being a prime example. Is it reasonable to expect some already-established events to be revisited from the Galfridians’ POV, or are you more interested in blazing an entirely new trail through the war’s timeline? It’s a tricky one. At the end of the day it’s about finding a balance that works. Most people who pick up this series probably won’t have read the novels but you need to acknowledge what’s gone before for those who have. What’s important to remember, is that if you include all of the characters and experiences, you won’t have room to include a good story. We get 22 pages and that’s it. We have our core characters and a huge supporting cast. We can’t be everywhere. And Finn and Kaye are both heading places that I think the fans will like. Speaking of which, I want to assure all of the women out there that Kaye is a kick-ass character. I wouldn’t be surprised if she ends up being the toughest character in the series. Will we see Anakin’s death? Honestly, I don’t know yet, but I will certainly allude to a few things that only hard core fans will understand. Similarly - to what extent are you drawing on the older Expanded Universe as a whole? The Star Wars universe is HUGE. It just goes on and on and on. It’s very easy to create a new planet and say “They visit sdmlashdasjh dfkjasdfhkj hsdaf and have a wonderful time, although Jacen gets a cold” but you don’t want to cheat the fans. Rest assured, there will be locations and characters people know. Were you familiar with anything beyond the movies before starting Invasion? Of course. I’ve read a lot of the comics and the novels. I think I’ve spent whole weeks of my life staring at Wookieepedia pages, other online pages and Lucasfilm resources. I was a huge fan of the Clone Wars cartoon (that was some very stylish stuff) and I’m checking out the new series too. For those of us on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sydney Opera House, what can you tell us about your previous work? Well I’m a multi-award-winning playwright and musical writer, an ex-professional juggler, I’m writing for TV and film and blah, blah, blah… who cares about my other work? I’m writing Star Wars! What sort of things interest you most as a writer? Good dialogue with rhythm. Big moments. Heartfelt moments. Death to exposition. Social justice. Never forgetting to bring the funny. And always remembering to entertain. Is any of your Australian printed work, such as Colin Wilson’s adaptation of "The Example", available for purchase or reading online? Not yet but very soon. Flinch, which features two of my stories, is available for preorder over at Amazon and at the Gestalt Comics website (and apparently at Target’s website which I find strange) it will be out in May. “The Example” will be printed in my upcoming graphic novel Brief Cases and I’ll make sure I get some previews up there soon. I have a few other comics projects happening which I can’t speak of yet and I am madly looking for other comics work too, as I’ve never felt so comfortable or natural writing in any other medium. I hope everyone likes the series but, if you don’t like it, lie so you don’t hurt my feelings. And that's that! First I'd like to thank Mr. Taylor, who's likely chuckling to himself over being referred to as "Mr. Taylor", for taking the time to chat with me. I for one am getting more optimistic about this series all the time - anyone who cites both Nextwave and Aaron Sorkin is a winner in my book. One little matter I'd like to address, briefly so as not to take any of the spotlight away from my esteemed interviewee - what, exactly, drove me to arrange this? Aside from my old instincts as a TFN EU staffer? For those of you who don't know, remember, or care, my original claim to "fame" on the intertubes was a website I put together called the Unofficial New Jedi Order Homepage, which ran at unjoh.com (among other places) during the run of the original novel series, and is currently archived here at TFN. Well, in light of the imminent Invasion, I've decided to take the ol' girl out for another spin. It'll be independent of TFN once more, and will be quite different in form and function, but that's a story for another time, so stay tuned. Meanwhile, on with the discussion! -----signature----- Mike Cooper's Star Wars Blog http://blogs.starwars.com/coopertfn "Your tongues can't repel flavor of that magnitude!" "NAKED TWI'LEK WITH LIGHTSABER = MONEY" - Ris_jSarek "I bid you all Dark Greetings!"
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Jango_Fettish Registered: Aug '02	Date Posted: 2/19 7:20am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	Awesome, thanks Coop! Tom seems like a great guy, I can't wait to read this series.
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Robimus Registered: Jul '07	Date Posted: 2/19 7:30am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	We have our core characters and a huge supporting cast. A focus on the core characters would be my fondest wish. Great job on the interview Coop! -----signature----- I am forever seeking the damutek of Hooley Krekk Oh, woe! Oh, misery! Oh, unhappiness. Hooley Krekk where are you? . http://www.cccomiccon.com http://www.actionfigurenews.ca
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Son_Of_Skywalker15 Registered: Oct '06	Date Posted: 2/19 7:40am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	Great interview! Is it cool that I post it on EUCantina.net? -----signature----- Andrew L: EUCantina.net Founder/PR EUCast Co-Host SW Gaming Now Host HUGE SW Fan
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CernStormrunner Registered: Jul '00	Date Posted: 2/19 8:57am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	CooperTFN posted: I've decided to take the ol' girl out for another spin. Sweet. Does this mean more fan art? because I've been thinking about a lot of things... -----signature----- "Zathras is used to being beast of burden to other people's needs. Very sad life. Probably have very sad death, but at least there is symmetry."
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goraq Registered: May '08	Date Posted: 2/19 9:27am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	Is he going too have his own thread where he posts along with Ostander and soo on... ? -----signature----- ,,Power is tearing human minds apart and putting them back together in new shapes of your own choosing. ,,
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CooperTFN Title: TF.n EU Staff Emeritus Registered: Jul '99	Date Posted: 2/19 9:30am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	I guess anything's possible down the line, but he indicated to me that he's not really a message board person, so I wouldn't count on it. -----signature----- Mike Cooper's Star Wars Blog http://blogs.starwars.com/coopertfn "Your tongues can't repel flavor of that magnitude!" "NAKED TWI'LEK WITH LIGHTSABER = MONEY" - Ris_jSarek "I bid you all Dark Greetings!"
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LordNyax113 Registered: Oct '07	Date Posted: 2/19 9:39am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	I am genuinely excited for this series, especially after the interview. Thanks to both of you. -----signature----- "Fly your cameras in the air, and wave em' like you just don't care... I will never believe in anything again! I will never believe in anything again! Cause, change will come, oh, change!...will!...come!"
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DarthBroox Registered: May '03	Date Posted: 2/19 10:05am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	Thanks for sharing Coop. -----signature----- DarthBroox = The Broox
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Thrawn McEwok Title: TFN EU Staff Registered: May '00	Date Posted: 2/19 10:17am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	What Coop hasn't told you guys yet is that this is only one of a pair of interviews: I've done a companion-piece interview with Colin Wilson for the main TF.N site. You can now read THAT one here! - The Imperial Ewok -----signature----- A/T = OTP :===8[#]8===: Kyp/Jaina fans: stand up and be counted!
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CooperTFN Title: TF.n EU Staff Emeritus Registered: Jul '99	Date Posted: 2/19 10:35am Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	Sweet! Nice timing. -----signature----- Mike Cooper's Star Wars Blog http://blogs.starwars.com/coopertfn "Your tongues can't repel flavor of that magnitude!" "NAKED TWI'LEK WITH LIGHTSABER = MONEY" - Ris_jSarek "I bid you all Dark Greetings!"
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MercenaryAce Registered: Aug '05	Date Posted: 2/19 2:34pm Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	Nice. All of this has me very hopeful! though: Speaking of which, I want to assure all of the women out there that Kaye is a kick-ass character. I wouldn’t be surprised if she ends up being the toughest character in the series. ...you have to raise you eyebrows at that, in the "doth protest too much" kind of way. Anyway, I hope they focus on the characters an other events rather than tying them in too closely to the books, though Kotor showed it is certainly possible to blend the two together. -----signature----- "I am no man...I am a space station!" Another star wars ships, droids and troops site: http://armiesofstarwars.com/ It does have info found nowhere Move all sig, for great justice
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JediMasterNicolas Registered: Jun '05	Date Posted: 2/19 2:45pm Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!!
	I love this guy more and more every day. -----signature----- Where there's a Whill There's a Way
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Thrawn McEwok Title: TFN EU Staff Registered: May '00	Date Posted: 2/19 4:34pm Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!! (Bonus: Mac's interview with Colin Wilson - Date Edited: 2/19 4:38pm (3 edits total) Edited By: Thrawn McEwok
	Okay... after a little conferring with Coop and the Mods, I'm adding a copy of the Colin Wilson interview here as well! TheForce.Net: Star Wars: Invasion seems to have been very enthusiastically received by a lot of fans. How did you get involved with this new title, and did you expect the reaction that it’s getting? Colin Wilson: The reception so far has been terrific, and almost universally positive. When Tom and I first starting talking together about doing Invasion together, we knew that the fans would be looking at every little detail, trying to anticipate where we are going with the new series, what existing characters will make an appearance etc. But I certainly had no idea of the level of interest that we’ve so far seen. TFN: The new series takes place in a part of the Star Wars timeline where there’s a detailed story in the “New Jedi Order” novels, but relatively limited visual material. With that in mind, can you tell us how you approached the established characters and technology for this series, such as an older Luke Skywalker, the children of Han Solo and Princess Leia, and the new-generation X-wings? CW: You're telling me that Han Solo and Princess Leia had children?!! Seriously though... visual continuity is really important to me as a Star Wars artist, and I know that the fans demand it. While its great to be able to invent the occasional new alien, or some never-before-seen spacecraft, I can manage stuff like that because I’ve been such a huge fan of the whole SW “look” myself, ever since I saw the original film. I immediately went out and tracked down as many of those original “Art of Star Wars” books that I could afford at the time. Still got ‘em too. Existing characters are OK, there’s so much material available, but for Invasion I’ve got to portray much older versions of those same characters, and their children. There’s not a lot of existing visual material for this stuff.... book covers, some (beautifully painted) Japanese illustrations.... I’ve researched what I can and tried to synthesize my own take on these characters as they start to appear in Invasion. Let’s hope I can keep the fans happy..... TFN: Was there a difference between that part of the series, and the demands of developing the new heroes created for the comic, the Galfridian family, and their homeworld, Artorias? CW: Visually, our new characters present a whole different set of criteria. Tom and I talked this through in great detail, and Tom’s stage experience helped out a lot here and probably kept me from falling back on too many comic character cliches. Because its important not to.... these characters are going to be around for a while, and I’ve got to really know them well. We’ve found a local stage actor that we’ve been able to photograph too, and although he probably doesn’t directly resemble Finn Galfridian, I’ve been able to use the pictures to stretch my own drawing skills to visually create a new Star Wars character that I’m very happy with. TFN: The other major factor in this setting are the antagonists: the alien Yuuzhan Vong. Did you know much about them before you began work on this project, and how are you finding them as you work on the series? CW: Visually the Yuuzhan Vong present an artist with a whole different set of problems. It has already been established that the Vong, while resembling human form, are a terrifying, fearless species originating from outside of the galaxy... the technology they use is genetically engineered and purely organic. All good stuff for a comic artist, and my job is to visualize this, make it all look real, and yet still retain a sense of menace and unpredictability about everything Vong. No problem! TFN: A comic is a strongly visual means of storytelling: the pictures are about tone and narrative as well as just images. Have you found any specific insights or surprises in this new series - in particular, any differences of approach to your other Star Wars work? And, what is it like working with series writer Tom Taylor: is it a straight divide between script and visuals, or is it more complicated than that? CW: Working on Invasion, the new factor that makes this project really exciting for me is that I’ve been involved with the project from the very beginning. Initially it was Tom and I just knocking around ideas, but it was ideas that we cared about, things that we wanted to see in a Star Wars series. So from it’s inception, I’ve felt that I’ve had an input, and not just on the visuals. The characters and story have evolved over countless cups of coffee, and I think by collaborating this closely we’ve been able to establish a rapport that allows us to contribute suggestions on each others specialties.... I’ve been able to work on the plotting and dialogue, and Tom keeps me honest with my visuals. I’ve never had the opportunity to collaborate this closely with a co-author before, and I’m sure the benefits will be obvious to the readers of Invasion. TFN: You mentioned recently on your blog that you don’t “feel” much from most current superheroes, but your own work includes French-language Western series (including some writing), and some very iconic UK strips. Is there anything specific that draws you to a subject, and where does Star Wars fit in? CW: It’s always interesting to work with different genres, and I’ve been lucky enough to work on stories in several. But be it a Western, Crime, a War story, or Science Fiction, I’ve always thought my goal as the artist was to make the stories as real and as visually convincing as possible. And this was one of the central reasons why the original Star Wars film had such an impact on me, and I’m sure the same applies for most of the fans. George Lucas hired some very talented artists and special effects people on that one, everyone went to tremendous lengths to make every little detail as convincing as possible, and I’m sure that same attention to detail works on the actors as well. I try to approach drawing comic stories in the same way. Get the locations correct, all the visual detail convincing, and then I can bring out the required emotions and expressions in the characters. For some reason I doubt if I could manage this successfully in superhero comics.... because I’m not a believer. I’ve just never learned the language..... TFN: Lastly, a specific question to resolve something that I’ve been wondering about: is the blue-skinned girl in the preview material a Chiss? CW: Maybe. Or perhaps she’s something else... Find out in May! -----signature----- A/T = OTP :===8[#]8===: Kyp/Jaina fans: stand up and be counted!
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ThrawnRocks Registered: Apr '04	Date Posted: 2/19 5:19pm Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!! (Bonus: Mac's interview with Colin Wilson
	The more I hear from Tom, the more I like him. He seems to be a big Star Wars fan who already knew a lot about the EU coming in, which is great. -----signature----- My Icons: http://www.powow.com/thrawnrocks/icons.html Roan Fel's badassery knows no bounds. "The next Allston book should be all Syal and Myri, all the time." - Jello
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DancinBrud Registered: Feb '06	Date Posted: 2/19 6:43pm Subject: RE: My Interview with Star Wars: Invasion's Tom Taylor!!! (Bonus: Mac's interview with Colin Wilson
	Great interviews. Tom Taylor has excellent taste in comics. If there's anybody here who's interested in checking out comics beyond Star Wars, you can basically check out anything on his list and it's guaranteed to be excellent. I'm very excited to see what Taylor can do.
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