Now Dixon is hard at work on yet another cross-over starring the Man of Steel -- a heady, action-packed second miniseries depicting a raging battle between Superman and the acid-blooded Aliens of big-screen fame. Superman/Aliens 2 features incredible artwork by the pencils-and-inks team of Jon Bogdonave and Kevin Nowlan, and the project marks a return to the Superman/Aliens feud for Nowlan, who inked for writer and layout artist Dan Jurgens on the original Superman/Aliens miniseries in 1996.
Dark Horse reporter Ivana Fanboy caught up with Dixon as he was in the middle of a moving mess, unpacking from his spanking-new move to Florida. Keep reading to find out why Dixon's making the Sunshine State his home, and exactly what sort of thrills you can expect from the deadliest cross-over of the year -- Superman/Aliens 2: Godwar.
Ivana Fanboy: Tell me, Chuck, how does your Superman/Aliens story relate to the first Superman/Aliens miniseries by Dan Jurgens? Would a fan need to read Dan's story to enjoy yours?
Chuck Dixon: Not at all. I didn't want to do a sequel to Dan's story because it's one of my favorite comics, and I didn't feel like I should be doing a sequel to his work, so it's a total departure. But I would definitely recommend reading that, just because it's so good.
IF: What about in terms of how Superman responds or reacts to the Aliens? In your story, does Superman understand the immediate and mortal threat that the Aliens present?
CD: Only in that Superman -- like Ripley in the movies -- knows what they're up against from the start. Once he sees the first evidence of the Aliens, he knows "Oh, gee...we're really in trouble." So he remembers dealing with them and what that was like, but the events of the story don't relate to Dan's original story.
IF: Since Dark Horse is not the publisher of Superman, can you please give us a quick history of the worlds where this story takes place? It may be familiar to regular Superman readers and the fans we share with DC, but some of our Aliens fans may not be as familiar with Apokolips and New Genesis.
CD: Sure. Apokolips and New Genesis are two worlds that were created by Jack Kirby. Basically Apokolips is Hell, and New Genesis is where all of the good New Gods live, and Apokolips and New Genesis are continuously opposed to one another -- diametrically opposed.
IF: Do you know when Superman became a part of the New Genesis world?
CD: I believe this happened when Kirby first arrived at DC, and it was part of an old Jimmy Olsen comic that had Superman visiting Supertown, which is part of New Genesis.
I paint this as a place where Superman really feels at home, because everybody flies and everybody has powers, and he's literally just one of the guys. It's a comfortable place for him to be, which is one of the reasons an Alien invasion there is such a terrible thing. And Darkseid, the main villain in this story besides the Aliens, is also a Kirby creation.
IF: Is there a particular reason Superman is visiting New Genesis for this story? Was he summoned by someone?
CD: Not really. It's more like he's just dropping in on some friends for a visit. There are some really interesting character bits, though, where Superman engages in some heart-to-heart talks with his fellow New Gods about his need for a dual identity on Earth. And then it all hits the fan (laughs).
IF: Before we get into that, what is the political structure of New Genesis? Is any one person in control?
CD: It's a utopia -- everybody is super-powered, nobody's ever sick. You know, they're gods. The High Father basically runs the place, though. He's a benevolent leader, and Orion is basically their Joint Chief of Staff (laughs) when they need to go to war. And there's a mysterious character called Metron who travels between the different worlds recording events.
IF: So how many different Superman series have you written?
CD: This would be it -- besides Superman/Tarzan. So I've written Superman in crossovers but I've never been a regular Superman writer.
IF: That's interesting. How would you characterize your Superman compared to how other people have written him lately?
CD: I don't know how different it is, because a lot of that stuff isn't articulated in the comics. To me, he's the kind of guy who wants to belong. He's an orphan and he's aware that he's a one-of-a-kind guy, and that's part of the motivation for him visiting New Genesis -- these are people he's comfortable around.
IF: In the original book, Chris Claremont wrote a great introduction that spoke to Superman's continuous moral struggles to protect life without taking life. Is this something that continues to be a problem for him in your new miniseries?
CD: Well, you can't really quanitify the Aliens as much of a life form -- it's more like an infestation of bugs. There's really no other way of dealing with them. But because he is so moral, he does he best to deal with them non-lethally, but that just doesn't work. The moral decision is to stop them. You know, the moral decision was to destroy the Third Reich, not coddle it. So Superman ultimately bends his personal rules for a greater morality.
IF: From what I've read from the first script, it seems like a majority of the action is set to take place on New Genesis. Is this true for the whole series?
CD: Yes -- the whole story takes place on New Genesis and on Apokolips.
IF: It's interesting that this time around, the Aliens aren't affecting a human population, but a population of very super-powered beings. How does this affect the action in the series?
CD: It's probably the most action-packed thing I've ever written.
IF: So how much of a threat do the Aliens really pose to these super-powered beings?
CD: The problem comes from the Aliens' numbers more than their individual powers. It's really up to Superman to make the other New Gods realize that the Aliens are a real, honest-to-gosh threat to their existence, and the numbers of them are incredible. Darkseid does his best to create as many of these creatures as he can. They are obviously not going to bring down New Genesis on their own, but Darkseid uses them as part of a grander scheme that is played out toward the end of the miniseries. But the danger level is high.
My favorite scenes are the subterranean sequences with Big Barta and Forager -- Jon and Kevin just knocked themselves out on these pages. They are just claustrophobic and terrifying.
IF: Speaking of Jon and Kevin, how closely do you work with artists when you write a miniseries?
CD: I spoke to Jon a couple of times. He knows Superman, and he sure knows Kirby. So I basically laid out what I wanted, which was a bigger-than-big kind of action, and he really delivered. I'm really happy with the art on this book.
IF: So is that pretty typical of how you deal with artists, then?
CD: Yeah, but it depends. Some you want to work more closely with than others, but Jon knows this stuff better than I do, probably. Mostly I just gave him an introductory phone call to make sure we were on the same page, then I asked him to work his magic.
Rightfully so, the artists are the superstars in this business, because tell the stories. I'm just there to aid and abet (laughs).
IF:...and to give some direction...
CD: But not too much. They spend the most time with the story itself. They're the ones who have to visually drive it.
IF: So, how would you characterize your writing style, then?
CD: Character driven is always important, but I really think a comic-book writer should be as invisible as possible. The stories are really visually driven, and the reader should never be reminded that somebody wrote those words. I try to keep me out of it as much as possible and keep the balloons to a minimum and the captions to a minimum -- just what it takes to move the story along and keep everything feeling natural. It's really important to strike that balance between words and pictures, because that, to me, is pure comics. You just want to keep the reader moving from panel to panel to let the story be told.
IF: How did you get into comics, Chuck?
CD: I just never wanted to do anything else, as long as I can remember. Ever since I was a kid, this is what I wanted to do. I've been at it about 16 years full time.
IF: And other than the projects you've done for us, what's your most regular gig? I know you're in the process of moving to Florida, and today in the comics industry, that usually means one thing (laughs)...
CD: (laughs) Yes, today my most regular gig is that I'm working for Cross Gen, writing a few titles for them. So I'm now writing Sigil, Crux, and The Way of the Rat, and recently I was doing Nightwing, Robin, and Birds of Prey for DC.
But I'm really psyched to be here. The energy is great, and I have titles with other companies coming out through the end of the year, so I feel like I've got things pretty good right now (laughs).
Don't miss your chance to read one of the hottest action romps to hit the comics scene this year, when Superman/Aliens 2: Godwar hits your comic-book shop on May 1. This four-issue miniseries will keep you screaming all summer long!