Interview: Duane Swierczynski Talks THE BLACK HOOD
Black Hood is a character that has been around for some time. In the Red Circle comics, a version first appeared back in 1940. There have been different versions over the years and now it's time to meet the newest and latest incarnation. THE BLACK HOOD is launching from the new Dark Circle imprint from Archie Comics on February 25. The book will be written by Duane Swierczynski with art by Michael Gaydos, Kelly Fitzpatrick, and Rachel Deering.
We took the opportunity to talk to Duane to find out more about this new version of the Black Hood, what we can expect, and is there any connection to the previous versions.
COMIC VINE: Your Black Hood is a different character, correct?
DUANE SWIERCZYNSKI: Correct. Completely different guy—a good cop by the name of Greg Hettinger. He’s single, hard-working, and for approximately 1.5 pages, handsome.
CV: Is there any connection to the previous versions?
DS: There’s a serious connection, but saying more would be a wee bit of a spoiler.
CV: Once Greg Hettinger becomes the Black Hood, will he have any connection to his previous life as a police officer? Will he stay in touch with friends or family?
DS: Oh, he’ll still be a cop — and that’s what fascinates me about the character. Here’s a man who feels he must push past his limitations as a police officer and take the law into his own hands. Greg makes a lot of mistakes in the first issue (and beyond), but I think what redeems him is his belief that he can still do some good in his city.
CV: What made you decide on Philadelphia as a setting?
DS: It’s my hometown, and it’s where my imagination goes to play. Plus, it’s an underused setting in the comics world. A few years ago I had the Punisher roll through town and kill a lot of people and blow up my favorite bar — but aside from that, my comics work has been limited fictional cities (Arcadia, Mega-City One). I wanted to show people the city I know, beyond what the tourism folks would like you to see.
Plus, there are a few true-life Philly cop stories that inspired this incarnation of the Black Hood, so it seemed like a good idea to set it here. I’m so glad my editors, Alex Segura and Paul Kaminski, were on board with this vision. (Actually, they’re *more* than on board — they’ve commissioned guest essays on Philly crime by some of the best novelists around.)
CV: You’re known for a lot of your work writing superhero comics. Will The Black Hood have more of a feel of your Charlie Hardie novels?
DS: The Hardie novels are actually close to superhero comics — Charlie himself is an ordinary dude with one (unspoken) “super power.” No matter how much you pound on him, he literally can’t die. Those books were just me playing around the conventions of over-the-top action movies.
So no, THE BLACK HOOD is meant to be as realistic as possible. There are no powers, unless you count being high on painkillers as a “power.” It’s actually in a similar vein as my next novel (Canary, which is about a college girl who’s forced to become a confidential informant for a Philly drug squad). If Alex hadn’t called when he did, I might have actually used the central idea in THE BLACK HOOD as my next novel.
CV: What else can you tell us about the world Black Hood is in? Are there other heroes in other parts? Will we eventually see any crossovers?
DS: His world is ours — though maybe a little more hopeless and rougher around the edges. There are no other masked heroes running around town… at least not yet. While I wouldn’t rule out a crossover, it’s not even on my mind right now.
CV: What’s it like working with Michael Gaydos?
DS: Gaydos is brilliant — I’ve been a fan since picking up ALIAS 15 years ago. If comic scripts are screenplays, then he’s the genius director/cinematographer who brings it all to gritty, hyper-realistic life. Wait until you see this first issue.
THE BLACK HOOD #1 is on sale February 25. Let your comic shop know you need a copy. Here's some more covers and some pages from the first issue.
BLACK HOOD #1
NEW ONGOING SERIES from the brand new DARK CIRCLE imprint! “The Bullet’s Kiss – Part 1 of 5” When Philadelphia police officer Greg Hettinger stepped into the middle of a gunfight, hot lead shredded his face—and he pulled the trigger, blind. Now Greg is waking up in a world where he’s a killer, hopelessly scarred and hooked on painkillers. What does a man do when he can no longer face the world, yet still wants to do good? He puts on a hood…
Script: Duane Swierczynski
Art: Michael Gaydos, Kelly Fitzpatrick, Rachel Deering
Cover: Michael Gaydos
Variant Covers: David Mack, Francesco Francavilla, Howard Chaykin, David Williams
On Sale Date: 2/25
32-page, full color comic
$3.99 U.S.
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