Marz took a few moments from his jam-packed writing schedule to tell readers a little bit more about the mysterious and enigmatic characters we'll be meeting in these comics. And by the sound of things, if you're a Star Wars fan, these comics are not to be missed!
Shawna Ervin-Gore: Both Jango Fett and Zam Wesell are characters whom Star Wars fans have never met before ... so how did you go about beginning to craft the back stories of characters like this?
Ron Marz: Obviously you start with whatever material's available -- the character bios and backstories, details on some of the video game projects in place, a snippet of new information from Lucasfilm. You cull through all that and then come up with your picture of how these characters act. Once you've got that down, you start piecing together the story; character first, then story, because story comes out of your characters. In this case, the assignment had a set time frame -- five years after Episode I -- and very few strictures other than making the stories stand alone as well as work together as a larger combined tale. I think the only real story direction I got was "do a kick-butt bounty hunter story." So hopefully that's what we did.
SE-G: With Jango and Zam, you knew from the start that they are both, as you say, "kick-butt" bounty hunters. What characteristics that are common with bounty hunters did you work into their stories? And did you intentionally avoid any elements that seemed a bit too typical or cliché to make them more interesting to you and to readers?
RM: The first third of the Jango book is dedicated to establishing both Jango and Zam as ruthless killers. I wanted it to be very clear that these are fairly amoral characters. But, they're also the "heroes" of these books, so it's an interesting dichotomy. They're not good guys, but they're not completely bad guys. Jango's very at ease snuffing a crime lord, but then he goes home and hugs his son. I defnitely drew a line between Jango with his helmet on and Jango with his helmet off. When the helmet's on, look out. It's all business. I think Zam is more at ease with that dichotomy, almost playful about it.
SE-G: Did anything about either of these characters surprise you -- either something that you learned from Lucasfilm, or in any of the details you worked out for them?
RM: Yeah, like I'm gonna tell YOU. Actually there's a bit of an interesting twist to Zam, something we don't even elude to in the Jango book, that I think will surprise some people. But I'm not spilling the beans until people actually see the book.
SE-G: Female Star Wars characters like Zam are typically extra-revered by Star Wars fans ... did you feel any added pressure to take her above and beyond the sort of "she's beautiful ... and DEADLY!" kind of characterization that so many heroines/villainesses are written with in pop culture? What makes Zam different? And when you write a female character, do you ever bounce your ideas for them off of women you know?
RM: I go with my instincts for female characters just like I do for male characters. I try to treat either sex as individuals. However, I've noticed that whenever I write female characters I tend to make them a little smarter and a little more mature than males because in general that's how I find women. In this case, Jango's absolutely the best bounty hunter around, so I made him a little more uncomfortable or awkward around Zam when the sexual tension between the two characters comes up. The main pressure I felt was to be sure I made the characters different enough that Jango and Zam didn't seem like imitations of each other, or worse yet, versions of a genetic bounty hunter.
SE-G: The Star Wars story you're best known for writing is the Star Wars Tales showdown between Darths Vader and Darth Maul ... how would you compare writing a pair of stories involving new characters to writing a story involving more established characters? What elements are you typically most concerned with preserving, and what do you look for in terms of "room to work" with those existing characters?
RM: Working on characters who have appeared in the movies is actually easier, because you already have a road map of their characteristics, their speech patterns, everything about them. You're not fumbling to figure out how Vader might act in a situation, you KNOW. With Zam and Jango, I havn't seen them in the films yet. I haven't seen how they move, how they speak, so it's a little more daunting to make sure you're getting things right. I just try to make sure the character is consistent within the book, and hope that if I'm too far off the mark someone at Dark Horse or Lucasfilm will rein me in. Thankfully I haven't strayed too far afield.
SE-G: Are you intimidated at all when it comes to taking the reins on a Star Wars story? And do you have preferences for writing your own creations over those that someone else has created?
RM: These things are too much fun to be intimidated! Sure you feel pressure to be true to the material and to make sure the fans get their money's worth -- in other words, to tell a good story -- but a writer feels that kind of pressure no matter what the story is. Or at least SHOULD. Whether you're writing your own creations or someone else's, the goal is still telling a good story and being true to the characters. In that respect, it might even be easier to write previously-established characters because their motivations and characteristics are in place. It's definitely liberating to create from whole cloth, but there's also no "right" answer to fall back on. Again, you know how Vader is going to respond. If you're dealing with a brand-new character, the onus falls completely on you to figure it out.
SE-G: What do you think your particular strengths are as a writer? When you talk to fans, do you hear anything specific from them that they tend to enjoy about your work?
RM: I'm probably the last one who should be answering this question. I only know what I TRY to do every time I sit down to write. I want the characters to be believeable in both actions and dialogue, and I try to plot the story to be as visual as possible. This is a visual medium, we're telling stories with pictures, so I try to take as much advantage of that as possible. In both of the Vader stories I've written he has a real entrance, a splash when he comes on stage. The same goes when Jango and Zam are introduced, or when the big action pieces take place. I want the readers to go, "aw, cool" when they turn the page.
SE-G: You've been working with CrossGen now for almost two years, I think ... how is that going? What titles are you writing there, and how has the creative atmosphere affected your writing, if it has?
RM: It's been terrific. I think working in a studio environment has improved my writing, and certainly the finished product. Being in the same space with your artists makes the whole thing truly a collaborative team effort. You can take advantage of everyone's strenghts in ways you can't when the creative personnel are scattered around the country or even the world.
There's never any doubt that the whole team is on the same page, so to
speak. I'm writing three monthlies for CrossGen --- Scion, Sojourn and The Path -- and I couldn't be happier with them. I'm getting to write the kind of adventure stories I grew up on, and Star Wars was one of the things that had a huge influence on me back then.
Don't miss Ron Marz' two-fisted, super-sized Star Wars one-shots Star Wars: Jango Fett and Star Wars: Zam Wesell, on sale at your favorite comic-book store in March!