@’s by Writer Matt Kindt!!!
Hey there comics and cats and kittens, your old friend Rob Patey aka Optimous Douche here with a special pre-peek at the world of ETHER from Dark Horse comics’ new commitment to solo series goodness. The book hits the stands on November 16th, but I had a few minutes to do the email back and forth with creator Matt Kindt about this strange trip to a new magical world.
OPTIMOUS DOUCHE (OD): What compelled you to explore a world of man living in two worlds (ours and the magical world of Ether). Personal crisis? Spiritual transcendence? Bad trip?
MATT KINDT (MK): Ha ha! My head is already so far in the clouds, I don’t need any artificial help.
First, I’ve loved Sherlock Holmes and his ideas about applying rational thought and observation to real life. There’s something very reassuring about looking at the world that way. I identify with that kind of outlook which is why I’ve always been put off by stories with magic and supernatural elements in my genre reading and creating. I can’t reconcile those two ideas. Which is really what gave me the idea – why should I reconcile those ideas? Why not have a character that tries to make sense of and explain everything he sees after I’ve thrown him into a supernatural fantasy world full of faeries, talking purple apes, and sentient rope bridges? That friction between our protagonist and his world is what really drives the series.
But in a real world way, I think Boone (our “hero” in the story) is also struggling with balance in his life which are elements we all deal with either consciously or not. I identify with Boone’s obsession. Making comics is what really consumes me, you know? I remember reading a biography of Jackson Pollack years ago and being struck by his work ethic and drive. It was amazing. He cared about art so much. But there was something really selfish about it. He cared about his work to the detriment of everyone else in his life. I think a lot of creators think like that...that to be great at something, you have to be so driven that it consumes you. And maybe that’s true – but I think that’s a conscious decision that is made. I’m just trying to be good at what I do...and not be a jerk to everyone around me...trying to find that balance.
OD: Boone Dias, your traveler between the two worlds, believes magic is bullshit and seeks to dispel the wonders around him. Why this skeptical lens?
MK: I don’t think he’s skeptical at all. I think he’s just a person that is obsessed with answers. He’s not skeptical of a giant talking purple ape...you can’t deny what’s right in front of you – what he wants, is to understand “how” and “why” there’s a big talking purple ape. What makes him tick? What makes the world work? It’s science and he’s just applying it like any scientist would do to when confronted with something confusing...something that seemingly doesn’t make sense. So in a way I’m treating this series like a “what if this happened for real?” kind of situation. If a portal opened up into an Ether dimension...who would be the first ones through? Who would we send? Scientists and explorers is who...and why? To get answers! So that’s what Boone is doing...trying to get us some answers!
OD: Why ETHER as the title, since that's often used to describe a knockout drug, nothing tangible, or how stupid people of yore used to describe the sky?
MK: Yep – all of those reasons. It’s a loaded word – and there are a lot of references and names and words in the series that are purposefully chosen and have their own kind of “magic.” I’m tapping into real myths and real beliefs that exist in our world – and trying to make sense of all of them as well. The Ether is really a place built by humanity itself. Every world or concept or character in the Ether was brought into existence by humanity’s imagination. This is where it all exists. I love the idea of being able to visit a place like that. And ultimately I think Boone is on a fool’s errand – trying to explain the unexplainable. Language and ideas are magic – the way we put words together and exchange ideas and dreams and thoughts with each other – and paint pictures in each other’s heads with words...? Letters and words and writing are basically spells that create something from nothing inside each of us.
OD: Magic is often chided as an "easy out" in literature, is that where Boone's disdain stems from as he tries to examine this world and the murder we see happen in issue one?
MK: Yeah – and that’s the problem I generally have with the use of magic in genre fiction. It has to play by some kind of rules or it’s way too easy to cheat a story and the reader. It’s problematic in the same way that time travel can be a problem in fiction. But ultimately, magic or no, it’s the characters and human moments that ground any story and make it work or not work – which is what Ether is really about. The magic and the mystery and the murder and the science...it’s the candy-coating that makes a story fun to read and then lets you get sucker-punched by some heartbreaking character moments.
OD: Thanks, Matt. ETHER hits comic shops today, so be sure to go out and grab your copy! You can also pick up this comic at TFAW by clicking this link!
Rob works for IBM when he puts down comic books. IBM.com if you want to see his other world.
Proofs, co-edits & common sense provided by Sleazy G
