KANE MAVERICK - YESTERDAYS PULP ADVENTURER, TODAY

To quote Helen Keller, 'The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart'. And do you know what else she said? No. She didn't say, 'I really-really-really want a zigga-zig-ar'. She said something else quoted by my mate Jordan, when he was telling me about his adventurous comic book.





1) What are your own origins, Jordan? Plus what path did you take in life prior to getting to where you are today?   I was born and raised in Maryland, and I currently live in Baltimore. I've been writing comics for about two years now, but before that I went to school for journalism, and worked for a lot of political TV shows in and around the Washington D.C. area. I've always had an interest in comics, but I really got sucked in around my sophomore year of college and I've been hooked ever since!

2) What inspired you to create the ‘Kane Maverick’ comic book?   I've always had a love for Pulp characters like Doc Savage and The Spirit, as well as some of the more modern ones like Indiana Jones and Buckaroo Banzai. As a kid I watched all the Hanna Barbera cartoons like Birdman, Space Ghost, and Johnny Quest, which were all Pulp influenced as well. So Kane Maverick is basically my love letter to those characters and those kind of far out adventures. Also its an inversion of a lot of the tropes associated with pulps such as the impossibly chiseled, square jawed heroes, the mad scientist, and the helpless damsels. 

3) In your own words how would you describe this tale?   Kane Maverick is about an inter-dimensional adventurer, who along with his arch nemesis, get trapped in our world and have to try and find their way home. The only problem is Kane comes from a non-linear world that's filled with non-stop action, so he's never had to do things like eat, or sleep. So without all the giant robots and high octane chases of his own world, he's forced to make everyday life an adventure, much to the chagrin of his new found friend and roommate, Ana Tom. It's fun and wacky in an old school 60's/70's Fantastic Four kind of way, with a good amount of action and heart thrown in as well.

4) What song would you say best represents this project and why?   If I could cheat and pick two I would say "Beautiful World" by Devo and "Intergalactic" by The Beastie Boys. "Beautiful World" because I think it kind of speaks to how Kane see's our world as someone coming here for the first time. Everything is fascinating to him, and he really is amazed by all the little things we take for granted. But there's also the flip side, where at the end of the song it goes "It's a beautiful world / for you / but not for me!". Which speaks to the other side of things that Kane see's. A lot of social problems he's never encountered, and problems he can't just punch or blast away. Meanwhile "Intergalactic" is just fun and silly and crazy which is also a big part of the book.

While I'm cheating, let's just throw in "Heroes" by David Bowie too.

5) If you could get a celebrity – either living or dead – to promote your wares, who would you choose, and why would you want to choose this particular person?   To promote Kane Maverick? Hands down Orson Welles! Have you heard the outtakes of the Frozen Pea's commercial he did? That man could sell anything, I could listen to him talk all day. Also if he could direct the movie, that would be great too.

6) What have you learnt about yourself through this endeavour?   I would say I learned a lot about my writing process, and what works best for me. This was the third time I used this process where I break down a story over several stages from coming up with the idea, putting it through a number of steps, and using those steps to break down what happens on each page. Then I do a very crude stick figure comic to see where things will be in an actual comic, and finally I add all the dialogue. Overall coming out of this project, I feel more confident in my writing going forward.

7) During your time in this field, what is the one thing that has kept you in good stead?   I would say obviously friends and family who have given me tremendous support. Aside from them, I'd also have to say just my love for comics and storytelling and how no matter how crazy or difficult things get, I'd still rather do this than just about anything else. I'm generally a very positive person, so it takes a good amount to get me down.

8) If ‘KM’ had a motto, what would it be?   There's a quote by Helen Keller that says "Life is either an adventure or it is nothing". I think this pretty much sums up Kane Maverick the character and the series. Either you're out there living life and pursuing what intrigues and excites you or your not -- and to me that's not really living.

And on that note, dear reader, all I have left to say is please check out Kane Maverick by clicking on Jordan's facebook, twitter, and tumblr pages. Go on. Click-click. And open up your life to a world of adventure.