Progress Update: "Who Saw The Deep"

With one issue fully scripted and a second on the verge of being completed, and new concept art rolling in, I thought I might as well take the time to update you on my latest project. It's called "Who Saw The Deep" and it's a 13-issue graphic novel. Think a modern-day city, perhaps only a few years in the future. A cleaned-up corporate sheen everywhere you look. For anyone who's interested in cyberpunk, this is where it begins. We're setting the stage here and now. At the threshold of the world's very first megacorporations.

Okay, so it's not exactly the most relevant topic in light of today's increased government intervention. Or maybe it is. Indulge me. Picture a laissez-faire America run out of control, if you can.

The idea for the story is mostly derived from the one I ran with for Business of Screenwriting. We had to pitch an existing script idea over the course of the semester, so I quickly threw together a very early, rough version of "Who Saw The Deep," which in and of itself was heavily derived from that "Fiends of Nashville" comic Josh and I were developing at the time. Basically, I just felt like doing a film noir ("Fiends" was a western). Mostly for practice. I was using the same character, the same premise, just putting it in a noir context. (I didn't really have any long-term plans for it.)

Well, after Business of Screenwriting was over, I just shelved what was "Who Saw The Deep," with tentative plans to revisit the material sometime in the distant future, perhaps as a novel. Once summer started, I began working on "Fiends" in earnest. Which has currently been put on hold.

Pretty much for the last year and a half, Jake Hollander, this guy I sat next to in my first animation class, had been bugging me to collaborate on a comic. We did a couple of brainstorming sessions here and there, but nothing really stuck. Then, when Josh told me he couldn't make a solid commitment to "Fiends," I turned around and started talking to Jake again. I remember paging through that old "Who Saw The Deep" .pdf while on aim, and I was like, hey, I have about 70 pgs of workable dialogue here that could serve as a foundation for a noir/cyberpunk comic (we're both really into that blend). I was about halfway through writing "Land of Confusion" at the time. He got really excited about the prospect, so I said, let me finish this vampire thing and I'll start revisiting "Who Saw The Deep."

Overcome by a fit of laziness, I felt tempted to basically re-use the "Who Saw The Deep" script for the comic, word-for-word, breaking it into issues where appropriate. Then I started realizing how similar the material was to "Fiends." I mean pretty much same protagonist, exact same relationships explored. And I realized I didn't want to do that all over again. Also it wouldn't be fair to both Josh and I in the event that we would one day get back to work on "Fiends." So I went and overhauled the characters and story completely.

What emerged was the outline for a 13-issue story arc about robot consciousnesses, supercomputers, memory-altering drugs, a conspiracy, the mob, and a nostalgic hard-boiled detective. Basically an attempt to break free of the "Fiends" mold while remaining as close as possible to the original "Who Saw The Deep." Also, bringing in a lot more ideas that Jake and I had been throwing around. And ideas that had been broached in my Business of Screenwriting class, responding to the original idea.

I have to say, I think it's pretty good. And if you know me, you know that's saying something.

Anyway. The first issue is completely scripted, like I said, broken down into a page-by-page, panel-by-panel layout. All that remains is the art. The second issue is also nearly complete. I'm very pleased with how it's turning out so far, and perhaps a little surprised by the relative ease at which it's coming along.

Below is some original concept art by Jake. The first is a drawing of a female character who was cut early on, and exemplifies the Sin City-esque style Jake and I were thinking of running with originally. The next four are all images of our protagonist, Gene Foster, from his earliest to most recent incarnation. (The third one, with the squinty eyes, is actually mine. Jake and I both decided he looked too mean. More like a pissed-off Asian with a Bruce Campbell chin. I decided to throw it up here just for kicks.)





Not sure when you're going to see a finished product. All I can say is, with the winter break right around the corner, Jake and I will have plenty of time to get cracking on the art.