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FocusIntervisteIl Batman che verrà. Intervista a Chip Zdarsky

Il Batman che verrà. Intervista a Chip Zdarsky

Chip Zdarsky has made a name for himself for the irreverent style of his stories. Over the years, he has also proved capable of managing the dramatic register by curating, as a screenwriter, books with Spider-Man and Daredevil – not to mention the comics he makes on Substack.

His handling of Daredevil, in particular, garnered widespread acclaim and so DC Comics called him to write the stories of their flagship character, Batman. After a few running-in stories, Zdarsky signed Batman: The Knight – a tale of Bruce Wayne’s early years, drawn by Carmine Di Giandomenico – and in June he launched a new run of Batman, which features two stories, the main one drawn by Jorge Jiménez and a secondary one, starring Catwoman, drawn by Belén Ortega.

We interviewed Zdarsky to share his present and future ideas for Batman.

zdarsky batman interview

What was the first idea or image that came to mind when they offered you the title?

Whenever a company offers me a title, my first thought is, “do I have a story to tell?” I didn’t say yes right away. I needed to go off and really think about where the title has been and where it could go. The relative aging-up of the characters has given me a chance to explore a more mature Bruce Wayne, which has been interesting, especially since I’ve been dealing with the opposite in The Knight.

In your first issue, you show a flashback that references Robin’s Death. You are also writing “Batman: The Knight” which deals with Batman’s past and has a Year One vibe. Are you a long-time reader of Batman? Are you delving into Batman’s history for your stories or do you prefer writing as a blank slate?

I’m a long-time reader! And I think the beauty of the monthly comics is that you can, and have to, play with what came before. You of course want to make it friendly to new readers, but there’s fun to be had for those new readers to discover previous stories as a result of the current book.

You wrote big characters like Daredevil, X-Men, Fantastic Four and Spider-Man, but Batman is the flagship title for DC. Does this put you in a state of mind where you think about BIG and blockbuster-y ideas for the stories or “big characters” doesn’t necessarily means “up the ante”?

I just write the stories I think will be interesting to read. We’ve obviously gone big and intense out of the gate, but that’s purely from a desire to hit the ground running and play to Jorge’s amazing action strengths.

I’m always aware, in the back of my head, that this is DC’s flagship title, but I can’t let that drive the types of stories I want to tell

zdarsky batman interview

Spider-Man and Batman are the most famous brands in comic book. Amazing Spider-Man has just restarted and, it seems to me, it’s written and drawn for hardcore fans while I have the sense that Batman is trying to reach a more broad audience. Do you feel this difference?

I disagree about Amazing Spider-Man! I think the new run is incredibly accessible. It’s fun, funny, dramatic, with some beautiful action pieces. I think Nick’s run on the title was more geared toward hardcore fans as he really played with the history of that book and delivered some amazing moments for long-time readers.

And do you write with this type of reader (meaning, not so aware of Batman’s continuity) in mind?

I’m writing a book that’s hopefully rewarding to long-time readers and accessible to new readers. Only time will tell if I’m successful!

How did the idea about giving Catwoman a mini-side story to your Batman run come about?

It was just a natural extension of the story. I knew we had the backup pages to play with, and I wanted to deal with the fallout of Penguin’s death. I love Catwoman, so having her be that entryway to the story made sense to me. And getting to work with Belén on art was a dream!

zdarsky batman interview

James Tynion, who previously helmed Batman, decided to focus just on his creator-owned books. You’re doing a lot a work, in different venues: Public Domain, which you also draw, Newburn, Stillwater, Daredevil… Every creator is different, of course, but, in your case, is it just a matter of putting out as many stories that you want to tell as possible or a savvy career move?

I can honestly say I’ve never picked books based on the idea of a “career move.” My problem is that I have limited bandwidth so I have to really love the project to take it on. I’ve had to turn down a couple of dream gigs recently, which hurt, but also it didn’t hurt too badly since everything I’m on is a “dream book,” you know?

The previous runs (Tom King and then Tynion) weren’t able to reach their natural ending for one reason or another. How much ahead are you planning?

Well, I’ve got a year that’s approved and ideas for year two underway. I have a long-term goal in mind but I also know I may not get there, depending on so many factors! I don’t want to be Babe Ruth pointing at the stands and then hitting the ball to center field.

It’s been an incredibly fun gig so far, so I’m happy to be on the title for as long as they want me on it!

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