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Thursday, September 2, 2010
From the Street to the Direct Market: STREET ANGEL
Jim Rugg talks to CWN about STREET ANGEL and other projects
 By now, you may have seen some hype regarding STREET ANGEL, Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca’s superhero comic published by Slave Labor. The online comics community (and, specifically, the comics blogosphere) has embraced the book for showing that superhero comics aren’t dead yet, and can be used to good effect outside of the mainstream comics publishers. By both embracing and poking fun at the tropes of the genre, STREET ANGEL has found popularity in both the mainstream and independent comics scenes. Rugg, the co-creator, co-writer, and artist of the series talks with Comic World News’ Ed Cunard on the themes of the comic, other upcoming works, and the comics scene in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
ED CUNARD (CWN): What got you started reading comics in the first place, and what kept you interested in the medium to this day?
JIM RUGG: I wanted to draw comics the first time I bought one. Not sure what took so long, but I didn’t start buying comics until I was eleven or twelve. The desire to draw them kept me interested in them. My tastes change frequently and drastically in terms of what comics I like, currently I’ve been reading and looking at a lot of old newspaper comics. The diverse history of comics has kept me interested as a reader. I’ve been reading comics for 15 years and haven’t really touched on anything outside of North America yet, so I don’t expect to grow tired of the medium anytime soon.
CWN: For those who haven’t checked out STREET ANGEL, how would you describe it?
RUGG: I’d describe Street Angel as an action/comedy superhero comic about a young homeless girl who skateboards and kicks ass.
CWN: How did you hook up with STREET ANGEL co-writer Brian Maruca?
RUGG: We’ve worked in adjacent cubes for the last five years.
CWN: You’ve said that, originally, STREET ANGEL started off as more of a parody of bad superhero books. What are some of the problems you see with superhero comics today?
RUGG: I think the coloring of most Marvel and Image books is insurmountable, as is the atrociously disgusting computer lettering that most of those books use. Decompressed storytelling techniques combined with derivative, amateur “writers” results in comics that are far less interesting than watching paint dry. It seems like a vast majority of comic book creators rely on Hollywood for inspiration and direction, and if there’s a more creatively empty place on Earth than Hollywood, I’m unaware of it.
 CWN: When reading STREET ANGEL the first time, something occurred to me – something I’d been meaning to ask – are the ninja gang somehow conceptual descendents of the gang in DARK KNIGHT RETURNS?
RUGG: Maybe. I went through a period when Frank Miller was my favorite cartoonist so that could be an influence. I think a bigger influence was the over simplified presentation of gangs in comics, movies, TV shows, and even the news in the ‘80s. When gangs became a hot media topic in the early ‘80s, they were presented like cartoons, like they were everywhere and mobilizing to violently take over the country and utterly ruthless. For like five years, every action movie featured gangs as villains. We put those gangs in Street Angel because we found them funny (them referring to the media created gangs), Frank Miller was pretty critical of the media at that time so perhaps he drew from a similar inspiration. That’s a very perceptive and interesting observation on your part, Ed. I never really considered it before but it makes sense.
CWN: I know the reaction to STREET ANGEL from the comics internet has been not only positive, but intense. Why do you think STREET ANGEL “clicks” with people?
RUGG: I don’t know. I don’t think there are too many books like it. It’s a book that stands in opposition to the books I hate. Perhaps a lot of readers hate many of the things I hate in mainstream comics too, and they either can’t articulate what they don’t like or Marvel/Image/DC ignores them. Some readers remain because they love the language or medium of comics and Street Angel may appeal to those folks. I can’t say for sure. My goal with the book is make a comic I enjoy, I don’t think we’ve done an issue yet that I’m satisfied with, but each issue has had a few elements that I thought worked well. I guess I’m not alone in what I want to see in a comic, and the people who have responded to it share some similarities in taste with me.
Part of its appeal may come from the contraction of the industry. I think by and large there are fewer books that skew the mainstream now than there were ten to twenty years ago. With the ‘80s black and white boom and the rise of alternative publishers like First and Eclipse there were books like TMNT, The Tick, Flaming Carrot, even things like Miracleman, American Flagg, that were intelligent, thoughtful alternatives to the mainstream but were still genre work. There isn’t a lot of material available like that today. And I think the standalone aspect of the book makes it rather unique at the moment. Almost everything out there now is written for the collection. Despite the rise in book trade sales, comics are still sold in the “pamphlet” format but practically no books are created to maximize this format. So that may appeal to some readers.
I think Jesse is a likeable protagonist as well. For a superhero book, I think she offers an enjoyable alternative to a Peter Parker or Bruce Wayne.
CWN: What’s coming up in the next issues of STREET ANGEL that fans can look forward to?
RUGG: There’s not a lot to look forward to in issue four. Street Angel scrounges around Wilkesborough looking for food. I don’t think anyone’s going to like issue four much.
 CWN: So far, every issue of STREET ANGEL has had a few things in common: the “Jesse vs. the Giant Squid” battle in the opening page, the homage back covers, the ninja tips in the back. When did you conceive of these extras, and why do you include them?
RUGG: All these things were conceived of when we were prepping the covers for Slave Labor. There are 2 reasons for these extras. First, the comic’s three bucks each. We’re trying to provide as much entertainment value as we can for that steep price. Second, I like the comic book format, the twenty-four flimsy pages. These extras are meant to capture the enjoyment of the format I remember from my childhood - fun, little adventure stories filled with wonderful, little details, even ads were interesting in comic books when I was a kid.
CWN: Another recurring element in STREET ANGEL is the shade of pink that is always present on the cover. Is there a specific artistic or marketing rationale behind the decision to use that shade of pink?
RUGG: The pink is our way of telling girls our book is for them. I’d much rather attract fangirls than fanboys.
CWN: Returning again to the back cover homages… on your web site, you have some other homages that you’ve done. What’s the secret to capturing another artist’s style? Who is the most difficult artist to emulate for you?
RUGG: No secret. I just immerse myself in the artist’s work and try to see patterns, shortcuts and things that make their work recognizable as theirs. I had some difficulty with Clowes because he doesn’t seem to rely on shortcuts. I didn’t find any major repetition in poses or color...I find I appreciate these artists more after I emulate them.
 CWN: You also have a story in the next AdHouse “Project” series of books, PROJECT: SUPERIOR. Like the first Project anthology, PROJECT: TELSTAR, PROJECT: SUPERIOR focuses on one element – superheroes. Is it too early yet to talk about your contribution to the anthology? If not, what is your story going to focus on?
RUGG: First, let me just say this book is going to be spectacular. The list of contributors is unbelievable. I think Pitzer may have sold his soul to the devil to put together this line up. A chunk of the book is going to be full color, including our story and the rest will be two-color like Telstar.
The story we have in Superior stars our character, Afrodisiac. We created him for Street Angel #5: Hero Time. But in Street Angel, Afrodisiac is an old man. We have some info about him from when he was in his prime, but the story is set in the present. When we were working on story ideas for Superior, we decided to use AD and to set the story in the ‘70s when he was on top of his game. We have a couple other major Afrodisiac stories in mind, but who knows when/if we’ll ever do them. In the meantime, readers will get two major glimpses of Afrodisiac in Street Angel #5 and Project: Superior.
CWN: Before signing your work with your own name, you had been going by the alias “Dick Troutman.” Why did you start your career with an assumed name, and what made you decide to drop it?
RUGG: Just a stupid idea on my part. I dropped it when Slave Labor picked up Street Angel and I knew my work was going to be distributed more widely.
CWN: Do you still sell any of your old work under the Troutman pseudonym?
RUGG: Not really. Most of the work is pretty raw.
CWN: After STREET ANGEL runs its course, what other genres or ideas would you like to pursue in comics?
RUGG: I’m interested in exploring the formal qualities of comics as a language. I’m constantly thinking of what comics can do that film can not, or that prose can not. After Street Angel, I expect to spend some time in my sketchbooks just exploring and trying to develop a better understanding of the language of comics. I’ve also developed an interest in comic strip history, so I plan to study that some. And I want to just draw. Since I started Street Angel, I haven’t done much drawing from life or just for sketching and practice. I’d like to take some time and just draw.
CWN: I missed you at the Pittsburgh Comicon, but I saw you at MoCCA and hope to catch up with you again at SPX in a week or so. What are the benefits and drawbacks of the convention circuit?
RUGG: I like talking shop with other cartoonists and looking at their original art. I’ve started collecting original art (which is a great hobby for someone like me who has no money). Small press shows like MoCCA and SPX are great for finding mini-comics and unusual books that you’ll never see anywhere else. I can’t think of too many drawbacks. I like to talk to readers and shows are a good place to do that. Hearing feedback at shows is a way for me to try to figure out what is working with the book versus what I think is working.
CWN: Do you have a favorite comics show?
RUGG: Not really. I like SPACE in Columbus, OH. It’s a small press no frills show. It’s all about the comics and the atmosphere is laid back compared to MoCCA or even SPX. But all of my experiences at MoCCA and SPX have been great, so I don’t really have a favorite.
CWN: You live in Pittsburgh, a city close to my heart. What is the comics scene like there? Are any local artists producing good comics? How are the retailers?
RUGG: The comics scene is fairly healthy. I meet with Jasen Lex and Ed Piskor each week. We meet at a local comics shop and then go and look at each other’s sketchbooks and stuff. Tom Scioli’s from Pittsburgh too, and a cartoonist named Pat Lewis who is nominated for an Ignatz this year for one of his mini-comics. Jasen Lex is working on a new color series from Antarctic Press that’s due out early next year and Ed Piskor just finished a full issue of American Splendor for Harvey Pekar. I like both of their work.
Retailers have been very supportive. Copacetic Comics, Phantom of the Attic (Oakland and Monroeville), Eide’s Entertainment, and Duncan’s Comics have all been good to us and run very good stores for the most part.
CWN: Looking at the industry itself, what advice would you give to people trying to break in as you have?
RUGG: Make mini comics. Don’t wait for someone to publish your work. Contribute to anthologies - it’s never hard to find those. Figure out what sort of cartoonist you want to be, and work towards that.
CWN: Evidently, there’s this whole big world outside comics that my wife keeps telling me about. When you aren’t doing comics, what do you do for work or fun?
RUGG: I’m a graphic designer in a small marketing department within a manufacturing company. That takes 45 hours of my time each week. Lately all of my extra time has gone to creating comics. When I’m not doing comics or working I like to read, watch movies, be outside. I also have a cat and I like to hang out with him when I can.
You can find Street Angel at better comics shops everywhere. Jim Rugg will be at the Small Press Expo October 1st, 2nd and 3rd.
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April 22, 2008:
February 4, 2008:
November 20, 2006:
A Comic-Con without the Captain
