The Great Curve

In May, TightLip Entertainment will unleash the Freedom 3, a trio of patriotic super heroes, on an unsuspecting Osama bin Laden and the world at large. Artist Jim Taylor spoke with us about his past work, the upcoming Freedom 3 and what it's like to draw the most notorious villain in the world.

JK: For those who aren't familiar with your work, can you give us some information on how you got started in the business? How long have you been drawing comics?

Jim Taylor: I was the usual "fan" trying to attend conventions and shove my art under any number of noses--other artists, editors, anyone that would look at my stuff. Heck, I'd bother the janitor if he'd bother to peruse through my pages. I pestered and prodded for critiques, suggestions, information, anything I could find to better my work. It was hard at first; you think you're doing so great, I mean, your family and friends make you feel like the next DaVinci, and then you get slapped with the reality of "You ain't ready yet, kid." But it was when I started to get "You're not there yet, but you've got potential" that made me devote myself more to studying and practicing. It wasn't until I got online, though, that my work really started to flow. I found a huge resource, both in reference material as well as other artists like myself (and even some professionals), that I could now really pick some brains for feedback. As to how long I've been drawing comics, geesh, since I was 12? How long have I been doing it "well"? Not quite so long. I've been working for various publishers now for the last 15 years. I'm almost ready to be an overnight success.

JK: Besides Freedom 3, what other comics have you worked on?

Jim: My first work was for a small publisher, One Shot Press--some horror work. It was interesting, and it soon led me to becoming involved with Steve Woron's Illustration Studio. A great learning experience. Steve was really supportive of new talent and helped me develop my work quite a lot. I then went on to Trinity Comics, and became involved with their book "The Wraith." I've also done work for Across the Pond Studios.

I've done other non-comics work, logos and such, but overall, that was my main comic book work.

JK: What have been the high points and low points in your career thus far?

Jim: The low points are probably when I don't have a book to work on. Or at least a cover! Other then that, I'd have to say it's mostly been high points! I've met some really great folks in the comics community; yeah, there are some "bad apples," but that comes with any job, right? I think one of my biggest high points was the day I received an email from Joe Rubenstein, saying he liked my work a lot. Yeah, that was wild. We've kept in contact, and it's like being able to tap into the backstory of comics, especially from the days when I was just a fan enjoying my "funny books" in the backyard.

JK: How did you get involved with Freedom 3 and TightLip Entertainment?

Jim: I met Rick at his MMC (Mighty Mini Con) convention in upstate New York. I was a guest artist, showing off my art from other publishers and just waiting to meet and greet the fans that would wander through. Rick came up and seemed to like the work I had done. A few months later, he contacted me through his MMC website (which I had joined), and asked if I would be interested in this new venture he was concocting. We spoke about it for awhile, and suddenly I was on board at TightLip and given a super hero-style book. Which is my strong suit. I've done other genre's, but I really love the whole mystique of the super hero vibe!

JK: What can you tell us about the book itself, in terms of plot, tone, etc.?

Jim: Ahhhhhhhh, now you're asking me to give away secrets I'm not really privy to tell! All I can say is, if you are a fan of comics, especially of comics before all the doom and gloom, and self doubt and drudgery, then I think you're going to enjoy what we have to offer at TLE, especially in F3. It's comics the way I remember them. Fun, adventurous, and yet not condescending to the reader. We treat the reader with respect to their intelligence and appreciation for them picking up our work.

JK: No doubt the subject matter -- hunting bin Laden -- will be somewhat controversial in some circles. How politically charged is the book? What kinds of expectations do you have about how readers might react?

Jim: I think it won't be as controversial as, oh, say, Danish cartoons! But yeah, there may be a nose or two bent out of joint that we're tackling this. But why not? Why shouldn't we be chasing down today's evil? As the cover suggests, the '40s had their "bad boy," Hitler, and comics were quick to jump on a plethora of "get Hitler"-based stories. Why not now? Why does it seem that most of comicdom is avoiding this subject like it's the plague? I'm not saying it's the same world today as it was 60 years ago, but we deal with the fantastical world of comics, where anything should be possible and open to exploration. Why not? As to politics. I try to avoid that. I don't think you're going to look at this work and say "Well, there's a blue state/red state propaganda book." That's not what it's about. It's adventure, not agenda, that we're trying to showcase here.

JK: What's it like drawing Osama bin Laden? Is it creepy at all? And did it feel good to draw him getting punched in the face?

Jim: I'll tell you what, and I hope no one gets upset about this, especially after what I said above about not being political--he's an ugly son of a gun, that's for sure. I did a big online search for different pictures of bin Laden for reference, and trust me, there's a lot out there. Now I just have to worry that because I did do a search, that the FBI isn't watching my computer for terrorist ties. It's just research, guys! Honest! As to him getting a face full of fist? Yeah, I have to admit, that did feel pretty good inside. He's been the core of a lot of suffering for a lot of people, and so to "get back" at him, even in this fictional context, felt justified.

JK: What do you use for reference materials, both for bin Laden and the cover homage to Captain America?

Jim: All I can say is, thank you Al Gore for the internet. Or whoever really did invent it. The computer is like the world's best library of images. I Googled up some reference of bin Laden and then did the same for the original Captain America cover. Then it was just a matter of sitting down at the art board and studying them both.

JK: I heard that when you aren't drawing comics, you're a stand-up comedian. How did you get involved in stand-up?

Jim: It was a dare thing. I was at a comedy club one night, and my friends dared me to get up and do my "thing"--jokes, impressions. I took the dare, and 12 years later, I'm still out there when I can, making folks laugh. It's a great feeling. It's a bit different from comics, as the response is immediate; you hear the laughs right away (or hope you hear them). With comics, you have to wait until the book's out, and you're maybe at a convention, and someone walks up and says, "I liked your book," for the same sort of satisfaction.

JK: Tell us a really funny joke -- something from your "A" list of material.

Jim: My stand-up is pretty racy adult material. I'm not sure it's suitable for the general public in an open interview like this. Let's just say it's Dice Clay meets George Carlin, with some Rich Little for the voices...