@’s by ALICE IN WONDERLAND & THE WAKING
Writer Raven Gregory!!!
DEAN: Raven, your Wonderland stories have been a big success for Zenescope. Is the current ALICE IN WONDERLAND series a story you were hoping to tell from the get go, or something you were prompted and approached to do given the success of the other Wonderland titles?RAVEN GREGORY (RG): We always knew we wanted to tell the Alice story, but with the success of the other series in the trilogy we didn't want it to feel forced. From time to time the subject of Alice would come up in conversation and we even touched upon it briefly in the TALES FROM WONDERLAND series, but nothing ever seemed to fit just right like we wanted until this year. We finally came up with an idea, a story that really takes the trilogy to a whole other level as well as standing strong as its own original tale.
DEAN: Both ALICE and THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS have seen their fair share of interpretations, and although they were two self-contained and fairly short books, they really seem to serve as this limitless spring of creativity for writers and artists. What is it about these characters or this world that you think has been connecting with creative types ever since their inception?
RG: I think at its core the WONDERLAND story has always had some very adult themes. The idea of wanting to escape from this world to another. The idea of feeling lost and trying to find your way in a place where nothing makes sense. To me, Alice, the character herself, is eternal because she embodies so much of us as children and adults that it's easy to see why so many creators have felt this intimate connection with her story.
DEAN: Being a prequel, ALICE IN WONDERLAND makes for a pretty easy jumping on point for new readers. But what kind of revelations or continuity treats do you have in store for longtime fans of your WONDERLAND work? RG: This was one of the biggest reasons why it took so long to come up with this story. It wasn't enough to tell Alice's story. It had to be something that would really add to this massive mythology Joe Brusha, Ralph Tedesco, and myself have developed over these past five years. By the time long time readers get to the end of this story they are going to see the original trilogy in a whole different light. And while I don't want to give away too much I will say that one of the biggest reveals of this series will be why the Jabberwocky wasn't present in RETURN TO WONDERLAND, and the reasons behind that are very dark reasons indeed.
DEAN: One character in the second issue uses the description "insanity given freedom and form." I think this is a perfect description of your work with Alice, fitting of both the characters and storytelling, and of the pencils from Robert Gill as well. Any hints at what sort of "insanity" us readers will be treated to in upcoming issues?
RG: Tons. Robert has really taken the wonderland universe and made it his own while staying true to what we've established. Working with him and those almost LSD-inspired layouts has really freed us both to think beyond the standard ways a comic is made. Every issue we keep coming up with more and more craziness to top the previous issue, and because it's Wonderland it works perfectly. I personally can't wait for people to see what we have in store for issue six. It is definitely a page turner. :)
DEAN: I mentioned how ALICE IN WONDERLAND is a great starting point for new readers, but you have THE WAKING: DREAMS END coming out soon as well, which is the second volume in the series. Will new readers be able to get the gist of things if they jump in with this new story? RG: Within the first three pages new readers will have a full understanding of the WAKING universe. The basic rules are the same. If you kill someone they come back from the dead and kill you. Bottom line. End of story. But with this new story someone has figured out how to break those rules, and that's bad news for everyone involved.
DEAN: How's Vanessa after the events of THE WAKING? Will DREAMS END focus on wrapping up her story, or are things only going to get more complicated and scary for her?
RG: Vanessa is damaged beyond belief and for good reason. She's in a very dark place trying to cope with the guilt of what she did at the end of Volume 1 and that's been eating away at her all this time. She's struggling to find some kind of means of redemption in all this. That's what brings her to Chicago, where she begins her search for this individual who has managed to outsmart the Waking. So this is all her story. But beyond all of that, keep in mind that she is living with the constant knowledge that eventually Madison will come for her and there really is nothing she can do to stop it.
DEAN: I loved how the first WAKING story was part zombie/horror movie, part prime time cop drama. How would you describe THE WAKING: DREAMS END, and what can readers expect from this new installment?RG: If the first series was CSI meets DAWN OF THE DEAD, this one adds a nice heaping of SEVEN to it. The first series didn't really look too deeply into the killers themselves. This one does. Also, one of my favorite elements of the first series was the comedy. It was dark, but there was always this tongue in cheek aspect to it that I really dug, whereas this story is much more serious in tone. If I had to describe the series in one word I'd call it "haunting". From beginning, middle and end.
DEAN: Sounds awesome, Raven! Can’t wait for it to hit the stands. Check out ALICE IN WONDERLAND at your local shop now, and make sure they’re ordering plenty of THE WAKING: DREAMS END for its April release while you’re there!
Proofs, co-edits & common sense provided by Sleazy G
