Paul Pope – BATTLING BOY  book launch – Revival Bar Oct. 15^th

Paul Pope has a new graphic novel out…only seven years after starting to work on it. What a book it is though, with Pope’s usual energetic style hyper-charging a fantastic story that is actually written for kids!

Battling Boy is a tough nut to describe, but take a look at this excerpt from the comics’s publisher, First Second:

“Monsters roam through Arcopolis, swallowing children into the horrors of their shadowy underworld. Only one man is a match for them – the genius vigilante Haggard West.

Unfortunately, Haggard West is dead.

Arcopolis is desperate, but when its salvation comes in the form of a twelve-year-old demigod, nobody is more surprised than Battling Boy himself.”

Factor in some magic t-shirts that imbue the wearer with super powers, and you’re beginning to understand just how wild – and perfect for pre-teen readers – this graphic novel really is.

The evening got underway with a few words being said by Peter Birkemoe, the owner of Beguiling Comics and long-time supporter of Mr. Pope’s work. Once Paul Pope had taken to the stage, dressed like the indie comic book rock star that he is in the mandatory long coat and ‘hipster’ scarf, he introduced us to the influences that had played a role in creating Battling Boy. (Apologies to Mr. Pope for the teasing, I do consider him “the indie Neil Gaiman.”)

It was very interesting listening to him talk about studying with Moebius during the French creator’s latter years, and about the organic ink work that he now enjoys bringing to his artwork. Mr. Pope did admit that he’d returned to creating thumbnails (before inking) again, having abandoned using them under Moebius’s tutelage. Pope felt this was necessary for plotting out the dialogue-heavy pages in Battling Boy, as the book needed to keep a fast pace in order to remain engaging to its target audience, kid readers.

The most reflective period of the evening came when Mr. Pope spoke on how comics influenced his childhood, and how he in turn wants to influence this latest generation of early-teen readers. Repeatedly citing his young nephew as having inspired Battling Boy, he capped the evening with a fun joke on how his nephew doesn’t even like comics anymore now that seven years have passed and he’s eighteen.

Pope’s connection to Toronto runs deep. Having moved around a lot over the years, it was Toronto where he cut his teeth. Breaking into the comic book industry in the nineties, Pope had specifically requested that the book launch tour for Battling Boy include Toronto. The 100+ line that quickly formed when it came time for the book signing spoke of a returned admiration.

During the Q&A that followed the presentation there was an interesting question about the clothes and fashion designs that permeate Mr. Pope’s comics. His answer was rather intriguing, as apparently Paul doesn’t really focus on design or fashion. Instead, he thinks about the challenge – and joy – of “giving the appearance,” or “the visual weight,” of wool vs. chain mail, with only a few brush strokes of ink. As Mr. Pope began to segue (back) into a discussion of illustrating using “old-school” inking techniques, he used his work on Batman: Year 100 as an example of how he approaches the clothing and fashion of his characters:

“Batman in the eighties,” Paul Pope said, quoting from one of his favourite creators (whose name was lost to the noise of the bar), “was really a grey nude guy with a few lines to indicate his briefs. Take a look at Batman’s feet, and you’ll notice that they have no definition, no toes. Instead they look like ‘L’s.”

Talking about his own creative process, Mr. Pope likes to think about how this would look like in real life – that the boots would have thick treads, which would probably be covered in mud and other grit. It is from this appreciation for the ‘visceral illusion’ of illustration that Paul Pope then creates his characters’ clothes and fashions.

Paul Pope is a true delight to meet. His travels have introduced him to the comic book styles of Europe, along with the anime/manga-style artwork of Japan. His work has ranged from the cult-fav 100% to DC Comics’ Wednesday Comics series, with off-shoots into the world of corporate graphic design to help pay all those mounting bills. It is this wealth of experience and appreciation that Mr. Pope has brought to his latest comic, crafting a new childhood classic that will be read for decades to come.