Geek Syndicate Issue 7 | Page 66

Geek Syndicate
Even in the first issue, the first fourteen pages are actually slightly different to the last six or so pages, because it changed in the interim period between pitching it and getting it started. I discovered human beings actually have cheekbones, and you know when they talk? Their chins move! They don’t just have the same shaped face no matter what’s going on with their mouths and things! I used to have a very angular style I think, and it’s softened into actually looking like human beings now which is quite nice. Oh and I tried to do hands better as well! GS: It’s been described as you’re directing, It Came. Which is pretty much you doing all of this. This is a big solo project for you. Why do all of it? DB: Why? Do you know what? Because I can! Originally I was going to Kickstart this. I like the idea of doing everything yourself, it’s nice. I’ll be honest, I still like getting a script off other people to draw, it’s nice not to have to think about that bit so much with the actual writing, but I wanted to do something that was just me so if it’s good or bad, the onus is on me. Which is slightly worrying. GS: A bit more pressure doing it that way! DB: Just a bit, yeah! The thing is, I’d sit down and do an issue of it and once the ball gets rolling, and the momentum starts up on an issue, I’m kinda fine. But there’s that bit when you’re sitting there thinking “I’ve got to think up twenty two pages of funny! Am I funny? Is this funny?”. There’s that second guessing stuff with jokes. GS: Yeah I could see that from issue
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DB: That was the point. Originally it was going to be called It Came; A Very British B-Movie, but then I didn’t want to stick that on it because it should be obvious that it is really from just reading it for two seconds. I saw someone putting “its name is so suggestive. It’s subtly suggestive” and it’s not really because originally it was going to be called It Came; From Space, Not in a Sock! or It Came; From Space (Not Like That You Dirty Bugger!), it was that get your mind out of the gutter sort of thing. I was very aware that They Came didn’t sound very good, and I thought “I don’t really want to draw loads of robots; it’s going to take ages!”. So I decided to shave it down a bit. It’s also because It Came from another world and that sort of thing so it kinda works and I’ve seen another load of films called It Came from Dunstable, or whatever, so I thought I’d just call it It Came. The name took a while and then so did designing the characters. I wanted them to be right, although I had one of the worst reviews I’ve ever had recently from someone at IGN but it’s actually my favourite review I’ve had for it! I tried to address some of the stuff she’d said because I thought, well you know, maybe she’s right on a couple of these points. It would have been nice

to hear something slightly positive, but you know. It’s the thing with writing comedy as well. Comedy is subjective. GS: It’s comedy for its time as well. There’s lots of stuff when you see certain things that are said in the dialogue, and its dialogue that you wouldn’t really get away with now, but its dialogue that fits for that era DB: A few people have said this. They’ve said that it’s a satire. It’s not a satire because I’m not trying to say “Oh look at the stupid people in the 50s, they were so backwards with their ideals and stuff”, I mean they were, I’m not going to quibble about that at all, but it’s more he’s just a man in the 50s, that’s just what they were. It’s a self aware kind of book. The only kind of humour I can do is my sort of humour. I have a very self aware sense of humour; I know when I’ve gone over the line basically. There is a

Image © Titan Comics, 2013

one. There’s some very British humour in there