For the visitors to Wilsonville, the largest theme park in the world, the day begins with a smile. But, by the end, they start to wonder: will they escape with their lives? Undercover Delta Force operator, Master Sergeant Jonathan “Jad” Bell has been deployed to act as Wilsonville’s lead undercover security officer. The threat begins with the announcement of a hidden dirty bomb, but quickly becomes something far, far worse.

Trained since the age of 18 to save innocent victims from impossible hostage situations, Jad scrambles to assess the threat and protect the visitors. He will come face to face with a villain whose training matches his in every way—and presents a danger Jad may not be able to stop.

Art by Matthew Southworth

Greg was named as a Pacific Northwest College of Art Graphic Literature Award finalist today, alongside Graham Annable, Aidan Koch, Sarah Oleksyk, and Joe Sacco. Greg was honored for his work on Stumptown, the series from Oni Press with art by Matthew Southworth that focuses on Dex Parios, a private investigator who runs Portland’s Stumptown Investigations.

A ceremony will be held April 23. For more on the Oregon Book Awards, see the write-up on Oregon Live.

This was one of the easiest things I’ve been asked to do in the entirety of 2011, frankly.

You can read it here. Better, you can get the books and read them, because they truly are wonderful.

Cheers!

Greg

Caught this piece on NPR this morning, Renee Montagne interviewing John Orloff regarding the movie Anonymous. And aside from the very many reasons to stick a thumb in the eye of the Shakespeare Didn’t Write Shakespeare debate, one thing was savagely clear to me. It’s apparent at the end of the piece, if you read or listen to it – Orloff doesn’t stick to his guns. He’s claiming de Vere wrote the plays, but at the end of the interview, he claims authorship isn’t the issue – it is, he says, “What we’re really doing is having a question about art and politics and the process of creativity. And that’s what the movie is about. It’s not about who wrote these plays; it’s about how does art survive and exist in our society.”

I haven’t seen the film, I have to declare that right off, here. Thus I write with willful ignorance on the matter, and the limb upon which I stand creaks and bends and may well break. But it seems to me that you can’t have it both ways, here. You can’t proffer something claiming to be historical revision and then back away from it at the same time. And if you’re going to put forth the argument, at least, for God’s sake, have the courage of your convictions.

Which are apparently absent, here.

The response to the following really set me off. “Historical and literary inaccuracies abound in Anonymous — ­Christopher Marlowe, who is a character in the film, was dead by the time it takes place, and the screenplay suggests that Oxford wrote A Midsummer Night’s Dream when he was a green youth. But Orloff points out that Shakespeare himself collapsed time in his history plays.

“Real life doesn’t unfold in three acts,” he says, “but a movie has to.”

So his basic argument for the inaccuracies are that the guy who didn’t write plays did the same thing?

There are two things that really stick in my craw about this whole thing. The first is the basic premise that Shakespeare didn’t write the plays; an argument – in this context – that is entirely contingent on the conceit that only a nobleman could have developed the literary chops to create such enduring works of art. I find this, at its root, a classist argument, a reductive argument, and an inherently snobbish one, to boot (and was hardly surprised to discover that Antonin Scalia is another supporter of the argument – he practically makes my point right there; that Mark Twain would believe the same I find much harder to swallow, but, as Randy Newman once sang, “Pluto’s not a planet anymore, either.”) I find it petty. This is the same kind of argument that extends today, in variation, to declare that genre fiction isn’t “real” literature, or that, God forbid, someone who never attended college cannot possibly write a work of merit.

Wonder what Orloff would think about someone coming along fifty years after his death and claiming he couldn’t have possibly written any of his works, because he didn’t have the right parents, or go to the right school, or because he never even visited the forest of Tyto. (If that’s too oblique, I’ll explain – Orloff wrote the screen adaptation for the second Legends of the Guardians motion picture.)

That’s one.

The second is I find the whole thing incredibly crass. Because I don’t believe that Orloff believes what he’s selling. Rather, I suspect this is jumping on the conspiracy bandwagon. After all, books and films purporting secret histories have been doing pretty well of late.

Haven’t seen it, like I said. Could be a brilliant film. But that damn, “real life doesn’t unfold in three acts,” defense of deliberate misinformation in a story that’s purporting to reveal a real truth?

You can’t have it both ways. Either argue your facts within the fiction or admit that it’s fiction and be done with it. But the whiff of scandal over this smacks of a whore’s perfume.

I love Shakespeare’s works, his plays particularly. And one can argue that, even if he didn’t write them, the works remain and retain their beauty and power. The text is the text, after all.

But to a writer, it’s more than that. It’s what they leave behind.

It’s a legacy.

Hold fast.

Greg

Getting in under the wire, but, yes, I will be at the NYCC this weekend, on Saturday and Sunday. Schedule is as follows:

SATURDAY:

SIGNING – From 12:00pm until 12:45pm - Oni Press

SIGNING – From 4:00pm until 4:45pm - Oni Press

SUNDAY:

SIGNING – From 1:00pm until 2:00pm - Marvel Comics

SIGNING – From 2:00 until 2:45 - Oni Press

I will happily sign any of my work, and – as ever – there’s no charge, and no limit on items. I ask only that you exercise common sense and courtesy if you have a large stack of my works for me to sign and there are others also waiting.

In addition, I will have a limited number of Lady Sabre t-shirts for sale, both the Unisex and Women’s cuts, primarily Large and X-Large sizes. These are for sale for $20/each. If you’d like one, I ask you bring cash; I am unable to process credit card purchases at this time in person.

There is the outside chance that I will be at the Spider-Man panel on Friday evening, as well, though this is schedule dependent.

Hope to see you – yes, you, I’m looking at you right now – there!

Hold fast!

Greg

As stated, am attending Geek Girl Con this Saturday and Sunday (8th and 9th of October, if you’re in some sort of time loop). Schedule is as follows:

Saturday the 8th -

Panel - Very Special Dudes – EMP JBL Theatre – 12pm to 1pm.

Signing – University Book Store Booth (308-309) – 1:00 to 1:30. I’ll be late for this, fair warning.

Sunday the 9th -

Signing – Media Table (307) – 11:00am to 1:00pm with Jennifer Van Meter.

It is unclear to me at this time if I’ll have a table or be free-floating. If I’m at a table, you can reasonably expect to find me there, or at least know that I’ll be back shortly. If not, I’ll be at the afore-mentioned locations at the afore-mentioned times. I’ll have some books to sell, and some Lady S swag, and of course, I will always happily sign any work of mine that you care to bring. I do not charge for signatures, and never have, and I impose no limits on how many books I will sign. I ask only that you use common sense – if there’s a line and you have every issue of 52, it might be best if you let me sign them in batches, y’know?

As to the NYCC, I’ll be there on Saturday and Sunday next week most definitely, and possibly on Friday, as well. Will post that schedule as soon as I have it.

Hold fast!

Greg

Art by Marco Checchetto

February 2011

Art by Marco Checchetto

The face to face you’ve all been waiting for as ex-Hydra and AIM agents work together to bring down the Punisher. Frank is up against a soldier who is more like him than either of them realize.

The Punisher #7

Art by Michael Lark

January 2011

Art by Michael Lark and Stefano Gaudiano

One long ago night, as the Punisher battled Daredevil, one cop’s life was forever changed.

The Punisher #6

Art by Bryan Hitch

December 2011

Art by Matthew Clark and Matthew Southworth

THE BIGGEST SHOT OF ALL IS DOWN! A fallen Frank Castle…alive but dead inside. Secrets of the Exchange revealed…and it’s connected tosome of the Marvel Universe’s darkest secrets!

The Punisher #5

Art by Marco Checchetto

November 2011

Art by Marco Checchetto

RUCKA AND CHECCHETTO CONTINUE THEIR STUNNING RUN. Frank Castle. Bloody. Hurt. Fallen. Getting there first is everything.

The Punisher #4

Art by Bryan Hitch

October 2011

Art by Marco Checchetto
Cover by Bryan Hitch

MORE PAIN. MORE GAIN.

Last month, the Punisher fell. Hard. Now Frank Castle is a man brutally and violently broken and barely grasping onto life. And for Frank Castle… it means he’s more dangerous than ever.

The Punisher #3

Art by Bryan Hitch

September 2011

Art by Marco Checchetto
Cover by Bryan Hitch

Even 10,000 feet above New York, no one escapes the Punisher. As Frank trails the criminal underbelly of the city, he encounters the deadly, mob created villain: THE VULTURE for a brutal battle against death and gravity. Meanwhile as NYPD detectives get closer to understanding Frank Castle’s new relationship, one of New York’s finest is struggling keep his own Punisher association untraceable.

The Punisher #2

Art by Marco Checchetto

Art by Marco Checchetto
Cover by Bryan Hitch

Hunting for the villains behind the Wedding Day massacre, The Punisher will leave no body unturned! With Detectives Bolt and Clemons on his tail, the massacre’s only survivor will seek the Punisher’s aid…which might be the worst of all possible choices.

The Punisher #1

Cover by Bryan Hitch

August 2011

Art by Marco Checchetto
Cover by Bryan Hitch

TIME TO GET BACK TO WORK. For Frank Castle death comes easy…life is where things gets complicated. Fully loaded with the Eisner winning writer Greg Rucka (Batwoman, Queen and Country, WOLVERINE) and neo-superstar artist Marco Checchetto (Amazing Spider-Man, Daredevil), the BIGGEST GUN of all returns with blood on his hands and vengeance in his eyes. As New York City’s body counts continue to rise, the city’s streets are teeming with more methodical criminals than ever and a police force doing it’s best to keep its head above water. The Punisher has returned to serve his own brand of justice with everything’s he’s got… but can he survive the darkness stored in his own arsenal? Plus bonus pages exploring some of the new personalities in Frank’s life…and how closely intertwined living is with dying.

This week, War Rocket Ajax is proud to welcome the Eisner Award-winning writer Greg Rucka to the show! Following last week’s release of The Punisher #1, he talks to us about what makes Frank Castle work, his awesome runs on Detective Comics and Wonder Woman, his new webcomic and why he hates the Joker — and you can listen to it right here at ComicsAlliance!

Give the interview a listen at ComicsAlliance!

MTV Geek’s Charles Webb goes through the first issue page-by-page with Greg as part of their Creator’s Commentary series:

I really wanted to control what we see of Frank, what we know of him, and in doing that try to force the reader’s perspective and view of him through the eyes of those around him, the Good Guys and the Bad. Frank has been expertly explored by so many writers in recent years–Garth Ennis probably the foremost amongst them, but Jason Aaron, Rick Remender, Matt Fraction, all of them–that it seemed to me following him closely, getting into his head, that had been done, and done quite well.

There’s an odd paradox in this, too, because I really feel that Frank is one of the most isolated, lonely people in the entirety of the Marvel Universe. By separating him like this, by keeping him silent, I wanted to emphasize that isolation.

Laura Hudson at Comics Alliance has an in-depth discussion on Frank Castle and asceticism:

I think there’s a danger in humanizing Frank too much. He’s not crazy — I don’t even want to write him as crazy. He’s not inhuman, and I don’t want to write him as inhuman. But he is alien, and he needs to be alien to your experience, to my experience. This is a guy who has been through an obscene crime, just a horrible, hateful, devastatingly damaging trauma. And his response to that trauma is likewise dangerous and devastating.

And Royal Nonesuch of The Outhousers talks at length with Greg not just about Punisher, but Comic Con, Tr!ckster, novel writing, Lady Sabre, Stumptown, Queen & Country, the whole nine yards:

Frank really shouldn’t work. As a character, he really should not work. He’s inherently a revenge story, and revenge stories pretty much all end the same way. They end with the guy seeking revenge, getting it, and then dying because there’s an imposed morality there and a variety of expectations. The fact that Frank can continue, and has continued, I think, makes him really remarkable and fascinating and worthy of more examination.

I Am An Avenger #2

Word from San Diego is that Greg and artist Michael Lark’s “Post Mortem,” from I Am An Avenger #2 has won the Eisner Award for Best Short Story!

When nominated in April, Greg shared the script for the story in a blog post describing the collaborative process of comics:

In the spirit of attempting to put some utility to this blog, I’m posting the following – the complete script to the story “Post Mortem,” which appeared in I Am an Avenger, Issue #2. It’s in PDF, and I provide it mostly as a curiosity, so one can see – first of all – how I script, and – far more importantly – that in the realm of comics, I am one but cog in a much larger machine. The machine, in this instance, included not only myself and Michael Lark, but crucially Stefano Gaudiano, Matt Hollingsworth, Travis Lanham, Alejandro Arbona, and Steve Wacker, and those are just the credited names.

That’s what you can’t see in reading a script, and what is so often overlooked in reading a comic book. That is, to me, the magic of the medium; the alchemy that allows the creation of a story, of a piece of art, that can genuinely become more than the sum of its parts.

The script for “Post Mortem” is still available for download.