STEPHEN THOMPSON ON JOINING THE HONG KONG CAVALIERS

[Tom 2TUM Toner]

By Remy Minnick, Comixfan Staff Writer

Stephen Thompson made his mainstream debut drawing one of entertainments largest properties, Star Wars. Now, he is reviving Buckaroo Banzai, alongside the creator and the director of the original motion picture, with a new comic book mini-series from Moonstone.

Comixfan: Some people may not be familiar with your previous work. So, bringing everyone up to speed, how did you get into drawing comic books and what work have you done before this?

Stephen Thompson: Well, I started off working for a small company called Atomic Diner in Dublin, Ireland where I’m from. I did a couple of segments in an anthology called Naked Lunch. Then I scraped the money together to go to the San-Diego Comic Con. I showed around an Ultimates sample and got hired by Dark Horse.

Comixfan: You've done a lot of work in the Star Wars universe for Dark Horse Comics. What has the experience been like working within Lucasfilm's #1 property? What has been the highlight of your work there so far?

Thompson: Well I actually only did one job for Dark Horse. I penciled one of the three stories in Star Wars: Republic 50. So that would be the highlight. Working on a Star Wars book is complex as in addition to the regular problems of, say, a superhero book you have to deal with likenesses of actors plus some fairly complicated vehicles and environments. Good training for drawing jetcars and lectroids though.

Comixfan: Now you’re venturing into another movie property, with Buckaroo Banzai. Have you always been a fan of the Hong Kong Cavaliers? What do you think it is about the characters that have kept them as fan favorites, even after 20 years?

Thompson: I’d never even heard of Buckaroo Banzai before I got the job. I don’t think the film got a theatrical release on my side of the Atlantic.

Once I was hired I Googled the title and found some of the fan-sites, which was a weird experience. Because of the nature of the internet I was presented with a lot of the minutiae of the Buckaroo Banzai world like the watermelon and words like lectroid and overthruster without any context. On the other hand I think this is one of the reasons the story and characters have endured. There’s a richness to the world and a sense that there have been stories before the point you entered it and will be more after you leave it.

Comixfan: How did your work on Buckaroo Banzai come about?

Thompson: Blind luck, really. Anytime I heard about a comic book company I liked the sound of I would check out their website, see if they accept submissions and then send them some samples. Moonstone was one of the many companies I sent samples to and one of the few who offered me work. The timing was good as they were just starting Buckaroo so off we went.

Comixfan: With the new series, you are not using the likenesses of the characters from the film but instead are using the likeness of the "real" Buckaroo Banzai and the Hong Kong Cavaliers. Have you had much say in the look of the characters in the new series? Is it difficult to keep the characters recognizable to what most fans envision them to look like yet still make them reflect their "true" likeness?

Thompson: Yeah that’s probably the trickiest part of this job. It gives you two ways to fail. You can have then looking too much like their movie counterparts or not be recognizable enough. Basically I’ve tried to make them more extreme versions of the movie actors. I’d take Tommy’s jaw, Buckaroo’s cheekbones and Lizardo’s forehead and push them a little. I don’t think it works in comics when you’re too realistic; it’s better to take it a step further.


Comixfan: Looking forward, has there been any panel that you've done so far that you can't wait for fans to see?

Thompson: Well, at the end of issue one there’s a shot of Lizardo’s inner self that worked well.

Comixfan: What has the experience been like working with Mac Rauch and W.D. Richter?

Thompson: Well I haven’t had any contact with Mac Rauch but Rick has been very hands on. I was surprised about how much input Rick gave considering he’s a busy Hollywood guy. Early in the process I’d send in a bunch of designs and then Rick would give me his spin on them and I’d change them accordingly. Even this far into the project he looks over every page to keep us on track.

Comixfan: You've done a lot of work in sci-fi, what do you feel it is about your drawing style that makes it well suited in that genre?

Thompson: Well, my stuff is fairly detailed which is suited to drawing technical devices and environments. Plus I tend to draw my figures less exaggerated than a superhero artist, which helps keeps them believable in unrealistic situations and places.

Comixfan: With such a large cast, do you have a favorite member of the Hong Kong Cavaliers?

Thompson: Perfect Tommy, Definitely. With the cheekbones and the cleft chin, he’s the closest thing to a traditional looking comic-book hero in the series. Plus he’s kind of slick and goofy at the same time, Rick described him as a lovable fool, so you can pull off some fun poses and expressions with him.

Comixfan: With aliens and hi tech gear, what has been the hardest thing to draw in the new book?

Thompson: Well the jet-car isn’t the easiest thing in the world to draw, especially as it’s got a couple of new functions in this series that add to its complexity.

Comixfan: Do you have any other projects coming up?

Thompson: Well next up I’ll be drawing a graphic novel called The Wrath for CinemaGraphix. It’s a horror story about a vengeful spirit. This will be my third comic connected to film after Star Wars and Buckaroo Banzai as CinemaGraphix produce their comics with an eye towards adapting them to film.

[BadMotives]

Great art... doubt I will pick this up though. I'd be more interested in Buckaroo Banzi as a TV series. Just on of those things...

[ArcLight]

As cool as a TV series or another movie would be, the only way they could really capture the world of BB and do is justice is comics or more books. And of course, if the comics don't sell, whatever chance there is for a series or movies gets that much more remote.