Greetings cretins,
We launched All-True Outlaw two days ago and I welcomed you all to the festivities. Now it’s time to dig a little more into the making of “Horror on Hogger Hill”.
The call for submissions to Alterna Comics’ horror themed anthology came just as I was conceiving this story. The launching point was pretty simple, a Western/Horror mash-up with a The Last House on the Left vibe – What if some bad dudes got caught up in something more fucked up than their crime-ridden lives?
A prime goal on All-True Outlaw is to try to adhere to limited page counts so I knew I needed to find an artist who could convey a lot of information in a truncated space. Claudio Muñoz’ portfolio swiftly convinced me he was the guy for the job. Below are some of the character concepts he sent me in our initial back-and-forth. His approach to the characters was dynamic yet unifying.
I loved how eclectic designs of the gang converged into a single atmosphere; it really looked like something out of a spaghetti western. The script for HOHH is a pretty tight and eventful affair and Claudio nailed it at every turn, quickly introducing all the characters and properly framing the scene. Most of all, he succeeded in executing the claustrophobic aura of the piece – these seedy guys in a tight space with danger at their backs. It’s one of the most satisfying script-to-page journeys I’ve had in my career. Look out for a future All-True team-up with this guy and myself down the trail.
Letterer Nikki Powers is one of the best I’ve worked with, period. She makes the right choices in a fickle-as-hell art form. It’s part of the reason I hired her for the comics project I hold very close to my heart, which you’ll see here in a of couple months.
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Westward!
~ Jamil