Grant Morrison Writes ... (Part 4)Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 It�s
... more important to�have a guy like So�one�of the most popular rumors ... around is that the twelfth member is�Buddy Baker. Are you really interested in writing Animal Man again after�so many years and all the changes the character�s gone through since you�handled him? Ah, I�m interested in it just to take him back. And I�d like to do�this as Animal Man after the issue that I finished with. Because I think�once it crossed over into Vertigo, it became a completely different type�[of] comic, and I don�t think it bore much relation to the super-hero stuff that I�d been doing. And I kind of felt it lost something. As much as the comic was well-written, I think it was wrong to take that�character out of his costume and turn him into something like Swamp�Thing for animals. But I kind of want�I want to see him back in the�costume, but standing for animal rights. It�s always more important to�have a guy like that in a super-hero universe than it is to have him in�a Vertigo universe where, you know [laughs], everyone stands for animal�rights or somebody�s rights. Very good point. And I think he works better as a costumed character. He�s a lot more�credible. And also, "Animal Man" is another good name. It�s a great concept. You�know, other companies don�t have �em, and it�s at the nature level. The�thing I like about those core characters, particularly in the Justice�League, are that each one is representative of something simple�and�particularly the older ones, obviously, like Superman and Batman. So�even someone like Animal Man, he represents something. He�s kind of the�animal kingdom�s representative in humanity. And so he�s destined to�model as a super-hero. I think he�s got to meet with other super-heroes. That�s interesting. But I won't tell you who the twelfth member is. [Both laugh.] Well, I�m not even going to ask. [Laugh.] I don�t want to�ruin the fun of guessing for a couple of months. As long as Previews doesn�t tell us, I�ll be perfectly happy. I hope not. Many people have said that there are two versions of all the DC�characters who�ve "gone over" to Vertigo, that there are two Swamp�Things, two Constantines, two Animal Mans� What do you think about�that? Do you think there�s a Vertigo Animal Man and a DC Universe Animal�Man? Well, I think that�s obviously happened now. I mean, I don�t think�it was a good idea to let it happen, but it has happened, and we�ll just�have to deal with it. And I think characters like Swamp Thing (who still�kind of crosses over) are complete ones�and also, Constantine should be�in the DC Universe. In fact, when Alan Moore created John Constantine,�it was that character�without being changed. He still wore the�trenchcoat, he still was running in a different crowd, but he also met�super-heroes. And I like that stuff. I think it�s there. I�d rather ...�be forced to write [that] those Vertigo characters are in the DC�Universe. A lot of people have sort of forgotten how firmly Neil Gaiman�entrenched Sandman in the DCU. Oh, again, yeah! I mean, they�ve forgotten that he met the Justice�League. And Neil also included words to that effect in a lot of it, and�even in "The Wake," with, you know, the Martian Manhunter and Batman and�Clark Kent. Well, let me ask you this� And if I can convince Neil, I�m hoping to get the Sandman in Justice League. Oh, really? Yeah. Now that would be interesting. Yeah? Yeah, I�ve got so many people [who] think that�s great, but�we�ll still have to clear it all with Neil, so it�s still, ah�it�s�still a dream. That would do a lot to tear down the wall that�s been unofficially�erected. Yeah, well, I think it should be done, �cause I think� And, also,�just to kind of reply to Neil�s Justice League in Sandman, I�d do a�Sandman in Justice League. So if you were to handle Animal Man again, would you attempt to�reconcile all the Vertigo stories with what you would want Buddy to be�now? No. Or at least give a nod to those [stories]? No, no. I�d start as if my last issue was the last time we saw�Animal Man. Or wherever�even the last issue that he had the costume and�everything. I�m permitted to do anything ... . That would be very interesting to see. But personally, because I wrote Animal Man in the way that it was�written�the way that I came out and said, "This guy can change. Whoever�writes him will change him"�that�s almost got about it a failsafe that�I can come back and everyone knows in the back of their mind again that�I don�t mind going back if it�ll come down their way. I still think in Animal Man you managed to create the perfect "out"�to explain continuity. Yeah. Actually, I�m rather impressed with that. Well, I�d like to see more people use it, and not just Alan Moore.�[I]t�s an idea just to say every book in the DC Universe is like a�committee. The people who run those universes don�t know what�s�happening [everywhere], but they do have partial responsibility. How did you feel about John Ostrander following up on your continued�existence in the DCU by tossing you into the mix in Suicide Squad? I was thoroughly amused by it. [Laugh.] [Laugh.] I was as well. Yeah, I�m waiting for them to bring back the Dark Writer as well. [Laugh.] I thought it would have been quite a surprise, though, to�have you running about through the DCU, sort of amok [Morrison�chuckles], the real person trapped in a fictional universe. Yeah, well, it�s almost happened to our universe. I�m in there, and�I�m running amok. [Laugh.] |
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