Unpublished Interview with Geoff
Johns from
2003
By Avi Green
This was an interview I'd managed to
do in 2003 with the popular
writer of the Flash, JSA, Teen Titans, Hawkman, and a couple of other
books, Geoff Johns, that I'd once worked on in 2003, but sadly was
never able to publish then. But now, here it is for everybody's
pleasure
to check out, right on my site here.
Avi Green: To begin, when you first
began your career in entertainment,
did you first work in movies, as an assistant to director Richard
Donner, who directed Superman 1 & 2?
Geoff Johns: Thankfully, yes I did.
AG: How and what was it like working
for Mr. Donner? Was it fun? What
was your exact job when working for him?
GJ: I was with him every day for four years and it was fantastic. The
amount of knowledge and facts and philosophy about life and work he
gave me I'll never be able to repay. He's one of my best friends and it
was one of the greatest experiences of my entire life. I assisted him
on anything he needed help with -- from accompanying him to creative
meetings, to making sure he had his script notes and script in hand
every second of the shoot, to reminding him it was the Monday Night
Football premiere.
AG: Do you still work in movies today?
GJ: My main job is in comic books, but I am doing writing for film and
tv.
AG: Were you a comics fan and
collector when growing up?
GJ: Absolutely. My brother and I both were. We were mostly DC fanatics,
the Flash and Green Lantern were our two favorites. We used to gamble
with comic books. I lost a great first appearance of Guy Gardner to
him. He still has it. The bastard.
AG: What was the first comic book you
read?
GJ: The first one I read was The
Flash #193 from the 60's. It was in my
grandmother's attic. The first comic I remember buying was Batman and
the Outsiders #13 in 1984. About twenty years ago. That was when
it
began to become routine. I didn't know who the hell anyone was in
Batman and the Outsiders
except for Metamorpho because my grandmother
had Metamorpho #1 in the
attic too -- but I loved it. I also remember
reading JLA #240 on a camping
trip or something. I didn't really get
into comics until I was 10 or 11.
AG: What was the first Flash issue you
read?
GJ: See above.
AG: Did you ever have any letters
published in any of the titles you
read and corresponded to the publishers about? I think I remember
reading on your website’s board that you did indeed have at least one
letter printed in the Flash’s second volume in the mid-1990’s, and I
think it’s always cool to have a letter published. Are there any others?
GJ: I had a letter in Doom Patrol
somewhere in like 1980something. And
I had a letter or two in Flash
about ten years ago. Maybe even one in
Superboy. I can't remember.
That was before the internet, when you
actually had to take real time to write to a book. I wonder if they
still get letters? I miss the letter columns. The internet just isn't
the same.
AG: You know, I’ve sometimes wondered,
is it possible for any of the
goofy story ideas used in the Silver Age to work even today? Speaking
of which, that cover that Brian Bolland drew for issue 175 with the
Weather Wizard sure came close to resembling some of the lunacy
depicted back then! Wow, that was amazing!
GJ: Yeah. Brian did a great job with the Flash. Obviously, I'm a fan of
the Silver Age but not because of plain old nostalgia. This was the
classic DC Universe forming. The very foundation that kept the DCU
alive. And I'm constantly of the mind that keeping these classic
characters -- like the Rogues -- alive and well for the next generation
is my job. Everyone already knows who Captain Cold is -- the trick is
to make them care. I think almost anything can still work today. Even
the Sea Devils.
AG: How did you get into working in
comics?
GJ: Long story short. I met some guys from DC on a film set, I pitched
them an idea called Stars and STRIPE.
I got lucky, I worked hard, and I
got lucky again.
AG: What was the first comic book you
wrote?
GJ: Stars and STRIPE #1.
Though Star Spangled Comics #1
and Stars and
STRIPE #0 came out first. I wrote a Superboy story for practice
months
before that. I don't think it was very good. The Scavenger was in it.
That's all I remember.
AG: Is co-writing a book, as you’ve
done with David S. Goyer on JSA,
and James Robinson on Hawkman,
fun? How do co-writing teams work on
coming up with ideas on what the story can be like, what characters can
be used, the dialogue, stuff like that?
GJ: Yes, because working with good creative people is fun. In reality,
a lot of my stories are bounced off the editors and artists I
work with. This is a creative process that involves everyone -- and
everyone has a say. Co-writing a book is fun, because I've done it with
people I like and respect.
AG: I’ve noticed that a lot of today’s
writers, including you, don’t
seem to use thought balloons. They really seem to have become very
minimal in use since the mid-1990’s, with narration by the lead
characters taking their place instead. Why is this? Can you help answer
my puzzlement as to why thought balloons, if not narrative boxes by the
writer/editor, aren’t used much today, if at all? Couldn’t they help,
say, in letting the readers know what’s on the supporting characters
minds?
GJ: I still use thought balloons -- they're just laid out as captions
and in my mind work just as well. The
Flash has them, Teen Titans #7
is
full of them, we've had various members of the JSA narrate individual
issues. Why they've all but disappeared, I'm not sure, but again in my
mind we still have them -- they've just evolved.
AG: If DC gave you the assignment of
writing a book for Jessie Quick,
would you want to write a series or a miniseries for her?
GJ: I'd do a Captain Cold mini-series before a Jesse Quick one. But
Jesse would be fun.
AG: Do you think that Impulse will
someday, if not today, get to star
in his own solo book again?
GJ: KID FLASH #1? Maybe someday. That'd be cool. I do like having a
somewhat free reign on that character in Teen Titans though. It's so
funny because Mike (McKone) and I started on Teen Titans with a pretty
set list of who our favorite characters are -- but after only a few
issues everyone's been bubbling up to the top, Bart quicker than
perhaps anyone else.
AG: This reminds me, do you have
creative control over just about all
the characters in connection with the Flash's world just now? With both
Bart and Jesse included, it certainly does seem that way.
GJ: Pretty much, but of course, everything is always run through the
editors -- from Peter Tomasi on JSA with Jay and Jesse to Eddie with
Bart and Joey with the Flash. It's all about working as a team.
AG: Will we be seeing any more of
Julie Jackam’s orphaned son, Josh, in
the future?
GJ: Perhaps. No set plans to make him a major character -- but his dad,
Weather Wizard, is still out there so who knows.
AG: Are Iris West Allen and Fred Chyre
going to become romantically
attached to each other, with the latter possibly becoming Iris’ second
love in life after Barry? (In other words, is there a life and a love
for her after Barry’s death?)
GJ: Signs point to "not likely".
AG: Do you think that Wally needs an
authentic father figure in his
life, which could probably be his father-in-law, John Park, Linda's dad?
GJ: I think Jay is a pretty good one. Linda's dad -- Wally is a
bit uncomfortable around him (as we've seen in #174). Jay, to me,
is a great father figure for not only Wally -- but most of the honest,
hard-working heroes today.
AG: Of all the crooks who’ve menaced
the Flash to date, who are your
favorites?
GJ: Besides Cold -- Zoom, Grodd and Mirror Master. Really, though, he's
got the best Rogues Gallery this side of Batman's.
AG: Is the reason that until now,
you’ve largely avoided time travel
stories, save for one such adventure in the DC 1st issue you wrote
where Wally West, Jay Garrick and Superman got pitted against Abra
Kadabra, because Mark Waid wrote quite a few time travel stories during
his tenure on the title, and you feel that it’s wise to give the theme
a rest for awhile?
GJ: Actually, yeah. If you look at what Scott and I did -- we never
took the Flash out of Keystone from #170 to #192 -- in #193 he went to
Gorilla City. We wanted to really focus on Keystone and its residents
for awhile. As for a time travel story -- I'm sure Howard Porter and I
will get to one. There is an idea floating around.
AG: Is the current de-facto dark angle
being used in the Flash only
temporary? Do you agree that a bright angle is what works best for the
series as a whole?
GJ: Both of your questions just made my point. LOL. Keep reading.
AG: With the Spectre having erased the
world’s collective knowledge of
who the Scarlet Speedster is, are things going to stay that way, or is
that only temporary too?
GJ: Do you really think I'm going to answer that? LOL. Okay, I will.
Maybe.
AG: Having seen how dangerous the new
Reverse-Flash is, I later thought
to myself that, if the Flash can be nicknamed the Monarch of Motion,
then can this Reverse-Flash be called the Satan of Speed, given how
facing him is almost akin to facing the devil, since he can suspend
himself in time, and his weaknesses, if any, are those flashback
windows in time containing scenes of things that occurred in the past.
Do you think that’s a fitting description of him?
GJ: Perhaps, though I don't think I can call him Satan in a DCU book.
Reverse-Flash will not be gone for that long.
AG: As impressed as I was with him, if
Hunter Zolomon returns, I hope
he’ll amount to more than just cruelty, and that, like his
Silver/Bronze Age counterpart, Eobard Thawne, he’ll prove to be an
expert inventor, which I’m sure is possible, seeing how he at least
tried to tool the Cosmic Treadmill to his favor. Will he, and, can he
prove to be psychologically challenging too?
GJ: He’s a criminal psychologist -- that's more deadly than an inventor.
AG: Do you think that Wally should
have even a part-time job, whether
people know he’s the Flash or not?
GJ: I think that's up to Wally. In my eyes, now that Wally has a chance
to have a dual life -- he's going to take advantage of it. He likes his
job, so I'm guessing he'll keep it.
AG: Now, for the JSA, who are your
favorite characters within that team?
GJ: Everyone. There's not a single character I dislike. My favorite at
the moment is Doctor Mid-Nite. I'm very happy with his role in Black
Reign and his upcoming role afterwards. I'm also really enjoying Jay's
role in Black Reign as well.
AG: And, in the Avengers, who are your
favorite characters among them?
GJ: Captain American and the Falcon are in the far lead. Hawkeye a
somewhat distant third.
AG: And then, who are your favorite
characters in the Teen Titans?
GJ: Like JSA, all of them.
AG: Who are your favorite comics
writers, both old and new?
GJ: Gardner Fox, John Broome, James Robinson, Alan Moore, John
Ostrander, Mark Waid and Grant Morrison.
AG: Do you ever feel that fans may
have typecast you as a comics
writer, when you’ve also worked in film writing?
GJ: It doesn't bother me at all. I love comics and I hope to working
with comics for a long time to come.
AG: And lastly, will there be any
trade paperbacks coming out soon of
any of your recent work at DC?
GJ: The Flash: Crossfire is
coming out next year, as well as another
Hawkman and JSA trade I believe. There may be more in the works. I'm
not sure.
Thanks, Avi!
Geoff
Flash:
Crossfire is currently available
at Barnes and Noble, plus Teen
Titans: A Kid's Game. The
Flash: Blitz TPB made its debut
in August 2004. And Hawkman:
Endless Flight, that's been
published in TPB in 2003.
I hope everyone's enjoyed this interview I conducted. It sure gave me
some ideas on how to do an interview, and with this experience, I'll
hopefully be able to conduct more in the future.
Copyright 2003 Avi Green. All rights
reserved.