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Post by HoM on May 5, 2009 16:13:12 GMT -5
The answers to all your questions.
Tell us what you thought.
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Susan Hillwig
Staff 
I'm not crazy, my mother had me tested.
Posts: 1,612
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Post by Susan Hillwig on May 21, 2009 20:18:12 GMT -5
I am SO sorry I waited so long to read this! This issue has turned into one of my favorite stories on the site. Seriously. You took a simple "two men in a room" scene and filled it with so much character and depth, yet still managed to answer a lot of questions (and clarify some previous plot points), that I really wonder how the heck you did it! Dick's first-person narrative was very distinctive from what we're used to seeing with the Question, and that was one of the major plusses of this story. It was almost like you wrote out all the Question dialogue and had someone else write out Dick's repsonses and monologues. And the end...TQ gets a happy ending for a change! No weirdness, just friends reunited. Five stars, well earned.  |
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Post by Merai on May 31, 2009 16:12:26 GMT -5
I'm going to have to echo Susan; in fact, I might go so far as to say that this is the best thing I've seen of yours on the entire DC2, Charlie. When I edited it, I sat down to make a start- and ended up devouring the entire thing. A really fantastic conversation which gives us tremendous insight into both men, driven by Dick's monologue yet spotlighting Victor.
As I had to say with the last issue, I deeply regret that this title has a limited readership, because it's a real gem. The staging of the issue as a conversation rather than displaying the events themselves is an unusual one which should, by all rights, have violated the longstanding convention that showing is better than telling, but dammit if the telling wasn't so good that it worked better than showing ever could have.
And yes, I have to further echo Susan; like her, I was expecting a moody, morose ending. And like her, I was delighted to see you- as you always do- subverting my expectations and giving a more charming yet entirely appropriate finale. Well done, very well done indeed- 5 stars with no hesitation at all.
A world also has to be said about that cover; I love the confidence evident even in a single drawing of the Question's pose as he fixes on his glove, the sense of purpose from a man with no face. An excellent topper to an excellent story!
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Post by HoM on Jun 17, 2009 18:49:26 GMT -5
I am SO sorry I waited so long to read this! I'm so pleased you took the time to leave some feedback. Greatly appreciated when it comes to my Question work. Always worried it's going to fail monumentally  This issue has turned into one of my favorite stories on the site. Seriously. You took a simple "two men in a room" scene and filled it with so much character and depth, yet still managed to answer a lot of questions (and clarify some previous plot points), that I really wonder how the heck you did it! It was something that had to be done, and I was fretting with how to get that across-- I spoke to Kevin about the thinking behind getting it done, about how I wanted to not be in Charles' head (it always feels weird when I say "Charles" and not "Vic", but his real name is important, I think, and not at all like I'm Mary Sue-ing), because sometimes I get too caught up in there. Instead, flip things around, have an unreliable narrator tell us a story (Charles) and have another detective do the questioning instead (Dick). I was tempted to move around with the time-line a bit, have Bruce be the "interviewer", but I didn't want to shunt the book into the past, not with the awesomeness that Don has been doing over in Justice League. Instead of riffing on Warren Ellis or Grant Morrison this time around (Yes, I know some of you accuse me of it!) I turned to another inspiration in my work, James Robinson, and played around with word-use a lot, and I think it turned out well. Dick's first-person narrative was very distinctive from what we're used to seeing with the Question, and that was one of the major plusses of this story. It was almost like you wrote out all the Question dialogue and had someone else write out Dick's repsonses and monologues. And the end...TQ gets a happy ending for a change! No weirdness, just friends reunited. I was so worried that people would call foul on the fact that Dick was the "main character" of this issue, another reason I was worried about the lack of feedback, but Kevin said it worked-- and what do you know, I trust him. The happy ending, I think, had to be done, and I thought I couldn't just have another road trip arc, another government conspiracy. He's a Justice Leaguer, and they look after their own. Five stars, well earned. Thank you so much, Susan  |
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Post by HoM on Jun 17, 2009 18:56:17 GMT -5
I'm going to have to echo Susan; in fact, I might go so far as to say that this is the best thing I've seen of yours on the entire DC2, Charlie. When I edited it, I sat down to make a start- and ended up devouring the entire thing. A really fantastic conversation which gives us tremendous insight into both men, driven by Dick's monologue yet spotlighting Victor. High praise indeed, Kevin, and muchly appreciated. The Question holds a special place in my heart, and I'll always come back to him in one way or another, if I have my way. This was a story that had to be told, and I was terrified about the how to tell it, because I could do another mini-series, the amount of stuff I wanted to tell, but I thought the reader deserved something better, and here's hoping you all got what you wanted. As I had to say with the last issue, I deeply regret that this title has a limited readership, because it's a real gem. The staging of the issue as a conversation rather than displaying the events themselves is an unusual one which should, by all rights, have violated the longstanding convention that showing is better than telling, but dammit if the telling wasn't so good that it worked better than showing ever could have. Yes, another thing I was worried about when this issue came together in my head. But I thought the style and setting suited the need for massive exposition, and I was so pleased I was able to tie up... three series worth of mysteries in less pages than there were issues of all of them put together. I'm just trying now not to fall into bad-habits and plot another series... though there is a collaboration with Roy Flinchum that we discussed on end for many a night that will soon see the light of day, I hope. And yes, I have to further echo Susan; like her, I was expecting a moody, morose ending. And like her, I was delighted to see you- as you always do- subverting my expectations and giving a more charming yet entirely appropriate finale. Well done, very well done indeed- 5 stars with no hesitation at all. Yeah, I knew that I need to do that. I couldn't leave that thread hanging-- and really, The Question is now open to anyone. There are really no real, heavy, story threads that would bog down future readers-- barring the fact that Hub City is bad ju-ju, so my work there is done! Just as I did with Doctor Occult, I took a character, broke them, couldn't work with them for a while, and now I've finally put them back together again! Was that a tease for my final issue of Doctor Occult? You betcha! A world also has to be said about that cover; I love the confidence evident even in a single drawing of the Question's pose as he fixes on his glove, the sense of purpose from a man with no face. An excellent topper to an excellent story! It was a great find, and I'm thankful for the artist letting me use it. Thanks for your time, both of you, I really appreciate it. |
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Post by David on Jul 3, 2009 23:10:54 GMT -5
This was one of those issues where everything just clicked. Beautiful cover. A fun, trippy story. Great characterization (in Dick and Vic/Charlie). And something we don't get veru often from this title... a long-awaited happy ending!
This has been a series I have found difficult getting into, as I think Charlie has done a lot of experimentation in this title, and with the character, but this issue was accessible (maybe it was the Justice League connection?) and felt like not just a coda, but a new beginning for this character. Probably my favorite Question ever.
And the ending couldn't help put a smile on your face. Got some goosebumps at Dick's speech.
Five stars all around!
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Post by HoM on Jul 4, 2009 8:47:18 GMT -5
This was one of those issues where everything just clicked. Beautiful cover. A fun, trippy story. Great characterization (in Dick and Vic/Charlie). And something we don't get veru often from this title... a long-awaited happy ending! Yeah, some people must think I hate The Question, with the amount of torment and hell I put him through, but I thought it was time to clear the decks, making him viable for other writers again, and generally get him in a place that isn't so involved (I've said this all before, apologies for repeating!) and I know that sometime soon I'll be revisiting the character (I started #5, and I think, by then, I might return to the Quarterly schedule, depending on how long the inspiration lasts), because I just can't keep away! This has been a series I have found difficult getting into, as I think Charlie has done a lot of experimentation in this title, and with the character, but this issue was accessible (maybe it was the Justice League connection?) and felt like not just a coda, but a new beginning for this character. Probably my favorite Question ever. That was one of the ideas! It was crazy, trying to balance this continuity heavy issue without getting too... heavy, as it were; and that was another reason I had Dick be the POV character. I'm glad you enjoyed it And the ending couldn't help put a smile on your face. Got some goosebumps at Dick's speech. Yeah, finally, a finale that's exactly that! Thanks for taking the time Dave, I really appreciate it when it comes to this book.  |
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