Kate Leth, writer of Vampirella #2, talks with writer Nancy Collins about Army of Darkness: Furious Road #2, both on sale now from Dynamite!
KATE LETH: I’m a big fan of the original Army of Darkness film - do you have any other horror/camp classics you love?
NANCY COLLINS: Horror film and dark humor have been a part of my life for a long as I can remember. I have adored the Dr. Phibes films, starring Vincent Price, since they were released in the early 1970s. Theater of Blood, also starring Price and featuring Diana Rigg, is also a huge favorite of mine. I also like the Gremlins movies, especially the second one.
KL: On that note, as this book looks peppered with ghoulies and ghosties of all sorts - what are your favorite classic monsters, and why?
NC: It’s a three-way tie between vampires, werewolves and the Frankenstein’s Monster. Bear in mind, Christopher Lee was my Dracula. He was both scary and sexy. None of that namby-pamby sparkling sh*t. Nope, my sexual awakening re vampires was good and dirty, thank you. The werewolf fascinated me because he was able to cast aside his human skin and give in to his animal nature—plus I was a sucker for make-up effects as a kid. There was also a tragically romantic side to the werewolf, because he was an unwilling monster, fighting to keep his humanity. Oliver Reed’s lycanthrope in Curse of the Werewolf is a perfect example. And Karloff’s Monster is absolutely heart-breaking. How could any geeky, misunderstood kid not identify with it on some level?
KL: You’ve done Vampirella and Ash now - what are some other characters you’d love a crack at writing?
NC: Well, I’d love to try my hand at Dracula. The old Tomb of Dracula published by Marvel and written by Marv Wolfman in the 1970s was a huge influence on me. I’d also like to take a crack at the James Bond universe—maybe a Pussy Galore & her Flying Circus miniseries?
KL: Do you find horror as much fun as I do? I love the freedom to get a little gruesome sometimes.
NC: I love horror. You can get as crazy as you want with it. And it gets pretty crazy in Army of Darkness. My artist, Kewber Baal, has really been knocking it out of the park when it comes to the gruesome visuals.
KL: When it comes to zombies, I’m a 28 Days Later fan for sure. What’s your favorite version/conception of the idea?
NC: I prefer the zombies from Return of the Living Dead from 1985, which are the original brain-eating zombies, although I have a fondness for the mall-walking dead in the original Dawn of the Dead.
KL: Here’s one I always like asking other writers: What’s your favorite sound effect?
NC: Splork!
KATE LETH: I’m a big fan of the original Army of Darkness film - do you have any other horror/camp classics you love?
NANCY COLLINS: Horror film and dark humor have been a part of my life for a long as I can remember. I have adored the Dr. Phibes films, starring Vincent Price, since they were released in the early 1970s. Theater of Blood, also starring Price and featuring Diana Rigg, is also a huge favorite of mine. I also like the Gremlins movies, especially the second one.
KL: On that note, as this book looks peppered with ghoulies and ghosties of all sorts - what are your favorite classic monsters, and why?
NC: It’s a three-way tie between vampires, werewolves and the Frankenstein’s Monster. Bear in mind, Christopher Lee was my Dracula. He was both scary and sexy. None of that namby-pamby sparkling sh*t. Nope, my sexual awakening re vampires was good and dirty, thank you. The werewolf fascinated me because he was able to cast aside his human skin and give in to his animal nature—plus I was a sucker for make-up effects as a kid. There was also a tragically romantic side to the werewolf, because he was an unwilling monster, fighting to keep his humanity. Oliver Reed’s lycanthrope in Curse of the Werewolf is a perfect example. And Karloff’s Monster is absolutely heart-breaking. How could any geeky, misunderstood kid not identify with it on some level?
KL: You’ve done Vampirella and Ash now - what are some other characters you’d love a crack at writing?
NC: Well, I’d love to try my hand at Dracula. The old Tomb of Dracula published by Marvel and written by Marv Wolfman in the 1970s was a huge influence on me. I’d also like to take a crack at the James Bond universe—maybe a Pussy Galore & her Flying Circus miniseries?
KL: Do you find horror as much fun as I do? I love the freedom to get a little gruesome sometimes.
NC: I love horror. You can get as crazy as you want with it. And it gets pretty crazy in Army of Darkness. My artist, Kewber Baal, has really been knocking it out of the park when it comes to the gruesome visuals.
KL: When it comes to zombies, I’m a 28 Days Later fan for sure. What’s your favorite version/conception of the idea?
NC: I prefer the zombies from Return of the Living Dead from 1985, which are the original brain-eating zombies, although I have a fondness for the mall-walking dead in the original Dawn of the Dead.
KL: Here’s one I always like asking other writers: What’s your favorite sound effect?
NC: Splork!