 
 An Interview with Dan Jurgens, by David "DragynWulf" Wiltfong
ComicBoards Exclusive!
Q: I believe your first published work was on DC's WARLORD. Was it as a writer or an artist?
Right. My first work in comics was on DC's WARLORD title which I started drawing in 1982.
Q: What was your first work as both writer and artist?
A: My first work as writer and artist was on DC's SUN DEVILS. SUN DEVILS was initially the concept of Roy Thomas and Gerry Conway and I jumped on as
artist. Gerry was writer and editor for the first six or seven issues and I
started writing it with issue #8 under Gerry's editorial eye. After discussing plots with me for so long and seeing my dialogue notes, he was comfortable with me taking a shot at writing the book and I'll always be indebted to him as a result.
Q: What inspired you to become both a writer and artist? Has that inspiration changed over the years?
A: As much as anything it's my sheer love of comics that inspired me. From a very young age I was always captivated by the medium and I hope to create that same feeling for others.
Q: When writing a comic, how far ahead do you like to script out your work?
A: I like to have the next year to two years blocked out in general terms and
would like to get final script done about three months before publication.
That's optimum and it doesn't always work that way.
Q: What do you try to accomplish with each issue you write?
A: A story that excites, intrigues and prompts the reader to buy the next issue.
Q: When writing a story, do you try to write the story as much within
continuity or do you "throw continuity out the window" and write for a story?
A: That depends entirely on the story and character in question. With someone like THOR it's quite proper to stay within the bounds of continuity. When I
was doing SUPERMAN we were creating something of a new continuity thanks to
the work of John Byrne.
Q: What do you consider to be a "normal day" for you?
A: I work fairly normal hours, usually starting at about 8:30 and going to about 5:30. When necessary, I'll punch the clock some more at night and on
weekends.
Q: When writing stories, do you try to write something that would please the fans more or do you take the story in a direction that you feel is better
for the title?
A: Again, that depends on the circumstances. Ideally, and this is usually what happens, those goals coincide.
Q: After reading one of your own stories, have you ever thought that you should have done it a different way?
A: Oh, yeah, it happens all the time. Sometimes it's just a single line or character bit I wish I would have done differently. Other times it's an
entire sequence or scene. And, yes, there are times when I've done entire
issues I'd like to re-do. One of the hazards is that an idea that might
sound good today won't necessarily look good in retrospect.
Q: During your work on SUPERMAN, you killed the character off for a short time. What made you decide to do this?
A: The writers, artists and editors of the Superman books were gathered around the table and we all thought it would make for a rollicking good story and
something we could build on. Little did we know.
Q: The story of Superman being killed made it to headlines throughout the world and even to TIME magazine. As a comic writer, how does that make you feel?
A: For awhile it was magic. Anytime you push comics onto the front page it's fun but I think we rode a wave that was never seen before that time and will
never be seen again. It was something none of us expected and was really great fun.
Q: You took one of DC's oldest characters and changed him by giving him new powers. What made you decide to do this?
A: Again, we were looking for a way to shake things up a bit. With SUPERMAN there's the very practical problem of having what is essentially a weekly
comic book. You burn through 52 issues of ideas in a year. Because of that,
you have to go to greater lengths to try some things and that was one
example.
I don't think it was a mistake to do so. Unfortunately, the execution wasn't
what it should have been, and we just didn't pull it off as well as we should
have.
Q: Where did the idea of splitting Superman into a Red/Blue character come from?
A: Two places, really. One, the old Superman Red/Superman Blue story and the fact that it was something colorist Glenn Whitmore always suggested. With
that in mind, we decided to go for it.
Q: What brought you to working on a major company crossover like ZERO HOUR?
A: I thought it would be fun! I had some ideas of a way to clean up a couple of glitches and threw it out and a few folks at DC decided to go for it. The
next thing I knew, we were trying to generate a weekly crossover book. It was one helluva lotta work, probably the most intense project I was ever involved in.
Q: You were part of a team that took one of DC's major heroes and turned him into a villain. What made you decide to use Hal Jordan as the main villain
in ZERO HOUR
A: By then, Hal had already gone through his cathartic events in his own title. He had the power to pull something like Zero Hour off and that made him a
logical candidate. I also thought he'd be a likely guy to try to plug
multiple universes into existence.
Q: Odin........ what made you decide to kill a major character that has been around as long as he has?
A: It felt like the right time. A big part of Thor is the eternal father/son conflict, but you can only write that so many times before the readers tire
of it. Having Thor assume the throne of Asgard seems a logical progression
and offers myriad story possibilities.
Q: Now that Thor has replaced Odin as Lord of Asgard, what special plans do you have instore for Thor that you can tell the fans?
A: To a certain extent, it's what I tell artists who are drawing the book. Think of Thor now as King Conan with a hammer and the power to do whatever he
wants. That single sentence is changing the way we view the book.
Q: You decided to make Thor more like the Mythical Norse god of Thunder by redesigning his costume and changing his hair color. What brought this
change upon?
A: The above answer is part of it, but I also wanted to tap into Norse mythology a little more. The Thor that emerges in our stories will actually be a
little more consistent with classic mythology.
Q: You have worked with "heavy hitters" like Thor, Hulk, Shazam, and
Superman. Care to give your ideas on who would win in a battle royal between them?
A: Right now, with the Odin power...it's gotta be Thor.
Q: You retold Superman's origin in the SUPERMAN/FANTASTIC FOUR one-shot issue. How did you come up with the idea for this story?
A: It was a story I always wanted to do and, since Galactus was suddenly available to us, it seemed incredibly logical. If Superman was part of the
Marvel U, Galactus would have eaten Krytpon. In my mind, that's the way things went down!
Q: When working on a company crossover, how does an idea like the
SUPERMAN/FANTASTIC FOUR one-shot get pitched to an editor?
A: It was something Mike Carlin and I once discussed years ago. The idea hung in the air until we finally got a chance to do it.
Q: When dealing with a tabloid sized issue, is there any specific changes that a writer or artist has to make because of the size difference or is it the same?
A: From an artistic standpoint, the page is more square so that has an impact. Nothing terribly significant though.
Q: The SUPERMAN/FANTASTIC FOUR issue was your first tabloid sized issue, what were your thoughts about it after you were able to see the project finished
and in front of you?
A: I was very happy with it and it's still one of my favorite projects.
Q: Did you enjoy working on that style of comic?
A: Very much. I still have fond memories of the first SUPERMAN/SPIDER-MAN tabloid crossover. It was such a ground shaking event that it compelled me to do a tabloid sized book as well, if at all possible. I'd still like to do
a SUPERMAN/THOR book in that format.
Q: After working on DC VS MARVEL and SUPERMAN/FANTASTIC FOUR, are there any other crossovers you would like to work on in the future?
A: As I said, SUPERMAN/THOR.
Q: When dealing with company crossovers, you usually have to answer to two editors, one from each company. How did this affect your work with the
crossovers you have done?
A: I've always had good luck. It can mean an extra level of interference but it can also mean a little more support and enthusiasm and that helps.
Q: Having already worked on a MARVEL/DC crossover more than once, how do you see the upcoming AVENGERS/JLA limited series doing?
A: I'm sure it will do very well.
Q: Your work on both TOMB RAIDER and CAPTAIN AMERICA have ended. Any plans on replacing those projects with something else?
A: Yeah, but it's a little too early to announce. Sorry!
Q: Working on a title like TOMB RAIDER is much different than on a
"super-hero" type of comic. Where you comfortable with the way you handles
the character?
A: Yes, though I might have structured the series a little different. We might have been too caught up in the "treasure hunt" idea which can be repetitive.
Q: Out of all the work you have done, what is the one your the most proud of?
A: Certainly the SUPERMAN work, well over 100 issues, the THOR work, now past 50, drawing GREEN ARROW, my short time on Spidey...it's too hard to nail one
down.
Q: Who is your favorite Marvel hero and villain?
A: Spider-Man and Doctor Doom.
Q: Your favorite DC hero and villain?
A: Batman and the Joker.
Q: You had quite an extensive run on SUPERMAN. If given the chance would you stay on a title that long again?
A: That rarely happened then and it's even more rare now. I doubt it's even a possibility in the industry today.
Q: TEEN TITANS didn't last as long as you'd hoped. Looking back, is there anything you would have done differently with the title?
A: When we started I wanted to build the series around Nightwing and Donna Troy with a cast of new, young kids. We didn't get to do so and the series never
caught on, in part because it didn't have that connection to the past. I think we needed that to succeed.
Q: Which of the two Spider-men did you enjoy working on the most, Ben Rielly or Peter Parker?
A: I still feel as though I never got to do the true Spider-Man and would like to do so one day.
Q: You have worked on just about all of the major characters from both Marvel and DC. Are there any that you would like to work with next?
A: Yeah, I'd still like to do a killer GREEN LANTERN project one day. BATMAN too.
Q: Getting back to THOR, you resently increased the character's power. Greater power can be overwhelming at times, will this change the character from the
Thor that fans have known?
A: Yes it will, and that's half the fun!
Q: The comics industry seems to have more male readers than female readers. When you made Thor Lord of Asgard and replaced him with Thor Girl, did you
do this with hopes of attracting female readers?
A: Nothing so deep. I thought it would be FUN.
Q: THOR has quite a few supporting characters, which one do you like the most out of them?
A: I know some fans have complained, but I like Jake Olson. And I absolutely love Volstagg. I could turn the book into THE MIGHT APPETITE OF VOLSTAGG THE
WARRIOR and have a great time.
Q: Who's idea was it to change the logo from "THOR" to "THOR Lord of
Asgard"?
A: Give editor Tom Brevoort a pat on the back for that one!
Q: You recently showed that Thor's old foes like Hela, who generally gave him problems in the past, are now no match for Thor after gaining the Odinpower.
Can we expect some new powerful villains for Thor to fight?
A: Yes, including one who'll end up being quite a surprise.
Q: You resently worked on the JUST IMAGINE STAN LEE CREATING THE JLA SECRET ORIGINS and got to draw a diferent version of Superman. Did it have the same
feel or was it something new?
A: No, it felt like something new. It didn't have that "ring" of Superman at all.
Thanks Dan for taking the time out of your schedule to do this lengthy interview.
Not a problem at all!
Place to discuss the interview:
Thor Message Board
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