Ian Parker, co-creator/co-plotter of Cage Hero #4, talks with writer Corinna Bechko about Aliens/Vampirella #6, both on sale now from Dynamite Entertainment and Dark Horse Comics.
IAN PARKER: Was it tough to kill off the character Lars?
CORINNA BECHKO: Oh, of course! It’s always hard for me to kill characters. But if it’s hard for me to kill them then my hope is that the death will be impactful. Lars was one of the most sympathetic characters I’ve ever written. I felt like someone should represent the fact that humanity isn’t completely horrible. Even if they had to die for it
IP: You seem to have chosen a rough death for Tucker. Was this on purpose or just luck of the draw?
CB: He rather deserved it, and I think he brought it on himself through his poor decisions and lack of ability to take a broader perspective on the unfolding events. One of the nice things about scripting horror is occasionally there are consequences for people acting as horrible bigots. Sadly, that’s not always the case in the world in general.
IP: I found it interesting that you had the other vampire (not Vampirella) that seemed very rough around the edges at first, and then towards the end was willing to be the so-called sacrificial lamb. Was it a challenge to have a character of that nature go from one such extreme emotion to the other?
CB: I tried to build the switch in from the start, by making her seem pragmatic, then coloring in the details of her personality when we learn her backstory. Given those things, I think from her point of view her sacrifice was something more on the order of a meaningful suicide. She’s helping out a fellow vampire (even if a very different type of vampire), but more importantly, she sees that there is literally no place for her in the modern world. Her time is long past, everyone she ever loved is gone, and stupid prey animals are in charge of everything now. The only thing left for her is Mars, and the chance to enact a tiny bit of revenge on the Xenomorphs by denying the Queen a final kill.
IP: It seems that Vampirella continues to lose everyone she gets close to. Granted, she is a vampire and essentially immortal, but how do you continue to keep that character motivated to protect the world from aliens without the constant fear of loss?
CB: Luckily, since this is a mini and not the ongoing, I just don’t really worry about it. Whenever I set out to write a story about an iconic character, I try to hold one principle in mind: why tell the story if it isn’t about one of the most important events ever to happen in this character’s life? When writing horror, that usually means a body count and a bit of psychological damage.
IAN PARKER: Was it tough to kill off the character Lars?
CORINNA BECHKO: Oh, of course! It’s always hard for me to kill characters. But if it’s hard for me to kill them then my hope is that the death will be impactful. Lars was one of the most sympathetic characters I’ve ever written. I felt like someone should represent the fact that humanity isn’t completely horrible. Even if they had to die for it
IP: You seem to have chosen a rough death for Tucker. Was this on purpose or just luck of the draw?
CB: He rather deserved it, and I think he brought it on himself through his poor decisions and lack of ability to take a broader perspective on the unfolding events. One of the nice things about scripting horror is occasionally there are consequences for people acting as horrible bigots. Sadly, that’s not always the case in the world in general.
IP: I found it interesting that you had the other vampire (not Vampirella) that seemed very rough around the edges at first, and then towards the end was willing to be the so-called sacrificial lamb. Was it a challenge to have a character of that nature go from one such extreme emotion to the other?
CB: I tried to build the switch in from the start, by making her seem pragmatic, then coloring in the details of her personality when we learn her backstory. Given those things, I think from her point of view her sacrifice was something more on the order of a meaningful suicide. She’s helping out a fellow vampire (even if a very different type of vampire), but more importantly, she sees that there is literally no place for her in the modern world. Her time is long past, everyone she ever loved is gone, and stupid prey animals are in charge of everything now. The only thing left for her is Mars, and the chance to enact a tiny bit of revenge on the Xenomorphs by denying the Queen a final kill.
IP: It seems that Vampirella continues to lose everyone she gets close to. Granted, she is a vampire and essentially immortal, but how do you continue to keep that character motivated to protect the world from aliens without the constant fear of loss?
CB: Luckily, since this is a mini and not the ongoing, I just don’t really worry about it. Whenever I set out to write a story about an iconic character, I try to hold one principle in mind: why tell the story if it isn’t about one of the most important events ever to happen in this character’s life? When writing horror, that usually means a body count and a bit of psychological damage.