I'm very seriously working towards a re-release of my Captain Stone book with some new material at some point. It was the closest I came - up until then - to doing something that equated to how I truly wanted to make comics, and it was a love-letter to the books I adored in the late 80's. Frank Miller and Bill Sienkiewicz’s ‘Electra Assassin’ comes to mind, and the bombastic painted art of Simon Bisley, particularly his ‘Mr Monster’ short for ‘Blast’ #1, which inspired the ‘Tyranny of the Ant Woman’ 90’s pastiche!
‘Cap Stone: Captain Stone is Missing…’ was also special because I co-created it with my wife, Christina. We spend days trawling real histories and creating alternate timelines, that work with the world narrative of the time the story was set. In our story people aged as we do. Everything was lined up with the ticking clock we are all inextricably connected to. Nobody was spared the ravages of age.
But it’s also a story about culture, epic falls from grace in the public’s eye. Our protagonist is very flawed as a man, whilst still being a true hero. And it’s a story about borders - extremely prescient given current news. There are human bombs, and aliens attempting to escape tyranny.
It was also special because Bill Sienkiewicz contributed a little, giving me a cover and even inking a couple of images in the interior. That meant the world to me at the time!
The book had a very low print run, sadly. We timed it poorly, rushing it out for an Xmas release. As a result it went largely under the radar. You can still track down the wonderful hardback Titan published, though it’s getting harder and harder to find. But to this day, it remains a big, bold swing for the stars. It’s a slow burn, and a mystery, saturated in social commentary, and I’m incredibly proud of it.
Dude, I think I remember a Captain Stone freebie you handed me at Flying Colors back in your East Bay days! 💥
I have a copy of the hardback. Hope to get it signed one day 👍