HELSING
INTERVIEW WITH CREATOR/WRITER GARY REED
An Interview with Creator Gary Reed on the new title Helsing
which is another addition to the ever growing Caliber Core line where certain Caliber
titles fit together into a cohesive universe. The series focuses on the legacy left by
Abraham Van Helsing, the professor who sought the destruction of Count Dracula in the
famous novel by Bram Stoker.
Cal: First off, why Helsing? Why not keep the
original name of Van Helsing?
GR: Well, in this storyline in which the events of the Dracula novel
really happened, I figured that the burden of the Van Helsing name would be a lot to live
up to. And seeing as how they are now settled in the United States, I thought that
somewhere along the line, the family would Americanize their name which is the case in
this series. And that’s what happened in the series.
Cal: So this is about a family that continues to
hunt down vampires?
GR: In simple terms, I guess it is but the structure of the storyline is
much more complex than that. Abraham Van Helsing, the character portrayed in Stoker’s
novel, was of course the one that helped to wipe Dracula’s existence off the planet.
But there was a reason for it, not just because of the evil that Dracula represented. In
the comic series, Dracula had taken the life of Van Helsing’s oldest daughter and so
the Professor acted mainly out of revenge. And, Dracula was not the only vampire...they to
took revenge on Van Helsing and feud began. Some of those matters will be covered in the
back up stories of the series.
Cal: The back up stories will concentrate on Van
Helsing, the original one?
GR: They can. Basically, the lead story is about Samantha Helsing, the
most current representative of the family so to speak. The back up stories will
concentrate on other members of the family through out the ages and how they were involved
in this crusade. Some were willing participants, some refused to be involved, and some
acted solely out of duty and family responsibility. Just like in the real world, everyone
has different motivations. Of course, some were very successful and others, well, they
weren’t. It’ll cover some of the events that have happened since the first Van
Helsing to the current day. Different people will be involved such as one of the Van
Helsings that suspects the mad monk of Russia, Rasputin is one of the night creatures.
Most of the material on the original Van Helsing will be covered in a series of diary
pages that have been uncovered and they’ll be presented in that form. It’s a way
of adding a lot more depth and insight into the series.
Cal: Tell us more about the current one, Samantha.
GR: Actually, she is not really a descendant of Van Helsing, she married
into the family. But she doesn’t really remember it. Her past has been pretty much
wiped out and she essentially remembers very little of her past. This is crucial in
understanding her motivations as they are not really hers, but what she is told by her
father in law, Professor Van Helsing (the fourth one). Her marriage is but a dream as she
really doesn’t remember her husband or her wedding although she is plagued each night
by a teasing and tantalizing memory. But there’s something wrong and that’s part
of what she is trying to figure out.
Cal: So she carries out the crusade against the
vampires without really knowing why?
GR: Yes. But there’s a lot more to it than that. I know that at
first glance, it seems to be a traditional tale of the good guys hunting down the evil
vampires, but there’s a lot more going on than that. First off, as I said before, the
motivations are different for everyone involved. Secondly, just because someone is a
hunter of the night creatures, a name I prefer over vampires, doesn’t mean that
they’re necessarily the good guys. Consequently, just because someone is a night
creature, doesn’t mean that they’re pure evil many are beings who retain quite a
bit of their humanity and in a sense are victims, just trying to survive and maintain
their existence. That is something I think most of us would try to do.
Cal: This series is part of the Caliber Core
universe. How does it tie in?
GR: Like most of the Core titles, I don’t know at this point. We
just try to have an established guideline for all these series so that they can tie in. It
doesn’t mean necessarily that there will be crossovers or guest appearance, just that
if we want to, it can fit in and remain in the proper continuity. The plan was to allow
things to happen, not force them. But Helsing ties in early on as Samantha is seeking out
information about a group called the Tophet, which is supposedly the secret organization
of the night creatures. The Tophet was an important part of the first issue of Raven
Chronicles and in fact, two members of Raven Chronicles appear in the first issue of
Helsing as they are also investigating information on the Tophet and visit Professor Van
Helsing.
Cal: Tell us about the art team on the series.
GR: We were originally approached by the team of Chris Wozniak and John
Lowe who wanted to work together. This series was being formulated at the time so it was
good timing. However, Chris had to bow out early on because of other commitments so John
took on the work load himself. Having worked on X-Men, he understood about deadlines and
such and hit every deadline. He’s doing the lead story. The back ups, which start in
issue two, will feature different artists. Guy Davis will be doing some and we’ll
bring in other artists. This will allow us to show different elements of the whole Van
Helsing saga and hopefully, maintain a good schedule which is an important criteria on all
of the Caliber Core books.
Cal: Anything special you want to say about
Helsing?
GR: I hope that readers will recognize that there’s a lot more going
on then their first impression lets on. I suspect that many will be surprised by the
direction it goes in. I think in the recent past, the stuff that I’ve written usually
avoids the standard directions. It’s like when I watch a film, I enjoy the ones most
that take me somewhere that I didn’t expect and that’s what I hope to do here.
It’ll be a twisting and turning ride.
