Chuck Dixon Chats With Loren Di Iorio

By Loren Di Iorio

Chuck Dixon needs no introduction for long-time comics fans. His work on The Punisher, Nightwing, and countless other titles has made him a fan-favourite.

Given Dixon's prominent place in the Bat-universe, the task of interviewing Chuck for Silver Bullet Comics fell to our resident Bat-expert, Loren Di Iorio.

Loren Di Iorio: When we see DCU products like Dix San Chinese Food or Dixon's Choice Cola, do those in-jokes come about from your suggestions, or are they the work of the letterer?

Chuck Dixon: What a great question! I don't have a large enough ego to suggest that stuff. That's the editors and pencilers having fun at my expense.

LTD: Other subtleties that pop up from time to time include the names of sports teams in the Gotham Gazette, or the Bludhaven Bulletin - teams like the Gotham Monarchs or the Bludhaven Brawlers. How much of a sports fan are you? Would you be interested in creating a story based on a major sporting event, like the World Series or the Super Bowl, where Nightwing might have to prevent, let's say, Kite-Man from screwing up the game?

CD: I'm not a big sports fan. I never watch them on TV. I will go to the ballpark when the opportunity rises. But I'm interested in the world of sports and devotion it inspires in fans. I read books about sports to garner ideas for stories and learn about its history. And I casually follow events in current sports. You have to stay aware of everything around you to write contemporary stuff.

LTD: Your work with the Gotham City Police Department in recent years has really set the tone for other writers, including Greg Rucka, to use and expand that set of characters in Gotham. It's been a while since we've seen you work exclusively with the GCPD. How keen would you be on creating another mini-series or one-shot devoted to them?

CD: I'd be very anxious to do that. I actually had one proposed before NML. It featured my police sniper character very prominently. But he's dead now. That would be the only thing that would stop me from doing another GCPD; the department has changed so much under the other creators. I'd risk stepping on a lot of continuity toes. I didn't have to worry about that on GORDON'S LAW or GCPD because the continuity was mostly mine.

LTD: The Dixonverse message board has become an ideal forum for you to get in touch with the fans of your stories. Now that the site has been up for over a year, how much of an influence have the online fans been to the comics you write?

CD: I love the give and take. I even love the criticism (when it's reasoned and intelligent). I don't allow too much of what appears there to shape stories. But I do take suggestions for characters. And sometimes I put posters to work writing histories of characters to convince me to include them. And they've been an enormous help. Quite honestly, I figured I'd post on the board for about six months and then get bored. But that hasn't happened. It's a feisty bunch who show up there and they keep me very interested.

LTD: What do your children think of the comics you help to produce? Do you keep them in mind during the creative process, when you write certain scenes?

CD: A year ago my eldest son was asked at school what his daddy did for a living. He told the teacher, "My daddy plays on the computer." But both of my boys understand that I work with some of their favorite characters. My oldest is now spending the summer going through all the Batman comics I've written. My youngest can't read yet but studied my recent Flash Annual for about an hour.

LTD: Nightwing continues to be rather busy lately. Last year, he helped Batman out in No Man's Land, and right now, his crossover with Babs and Dinah in Birds of Prey is at an end. Clancy, John Law, and the rest of the gang in and around the 'Haven have been out of the loop again. How soon will we be seeing these supporting characters?

CD: Immediately. We're back to what stands in for a status quo in Bludhaven. Dick becomes more immersed in the cop culture of the 'haven. Some startling and (literally) shocking events for Clancy and a major subplot featuring Amygdala as we finally find out what he does for a living. There's a few new recurring characters coming in #50 and several cast members are going to grisly ends.

LTD: Will we ever find out how Cheshire and the Ravens return to the present-day DCU?

CD: Next year will be a three part arc showing how the Ravens return and what they've been up to. I'll also explain how Cheshire could be back already when their rescue doesn't occur 'til next year. It's a time travel thing. Think BACK TO THE FUTURE.

LTD: If Denny asked you to come up with another disaster for Gotham to endure, what would it involve?

CD: I have a disaster so horrible, so impactful, so damned awful that when I proposed it to Denny six years ago he asked me to please wait until his retirement to propose it to DC. He's retiring in September so look for it late next year. (If the Powers That Be at DC like the idea.) I don't want to give away any details. But the blanket title would be GOTHAM: APOKOLIPS.

LTD: Several people I've spoken to have said that as far as Bat-Elseworlds projects go, everything's already been done; that writers are basically taking the same format each issue, where Batman's origin is retold through Homer Simpson's life, for example. Common Bat-villains show up with a slightly different look, but they're still pretty much the same as their mainstream DCU counterparts. Have you got any Elseworlds stories you'd still like to tell? Might we see you and Quique Alcatena team up for another Leatherwing story?

CD: Quique and I have a Leatherwing story proposed. But it's been shelved for a long time. I also have a Teen Titans western that's a follow-up to Justice Riders. That's fast tracked so it may actually see the light of day sometime soon. I have another western featuring Jay Garrick, Barry Allen and Wally West that I'd love to do. I love the Elseworlds format but I agree that some approaches have either been formulaic or silly. But there's been some classics. Under A Yellow Sun was very good.

LTD: You've stated elsewhere that Tim Drake will stay in Brentwood Academy through to the start of 2001. Beyond that, how long term are your plans to keep him there? How much of a role will the Spoiler play in Tim's life, and will Ariana Dzerchenko return?

CD: He's there through 2001 as well. I've just begun exploring the whole private school thing and it makes a change from the usual high school hero stories. No plans for Ariana but I have an inkling of an idea for that.

LTD: Back in Batman #555, Batman stated that as a successor to the Mantle, "Jean Paul Valley didn't work out, and Dick Grayson wasn't quite right, either." He said that when the time came, he'd prefer it if Tim Drake would become the Dark Knight. Do you believe that Tim still wants to be the heir apparent? Would Batman still make the same choice, if he found out that Robin (at one point) killed Lady Shiva?

CD: Tim doesn't see himself as Batman. That doesn't mean that this couldn't change. It's just too intimidating. But for right now he sees his future differently.

LTD: Dick's become quite the popular guy amongst DCU women, not to mention all of the women in the real world who adore him. Lately, he's gotten close with Babs, Clancy, and Helena Bertinelli, among others. Will any or all of these women coincidentally show up on his doorstep, somewhat similar to Babs' recent surprises in Birds of Prey #19?

CD: He's definitely heading for more "girl trouble". It's an accident waiting to happen.

LTD: In Detective Comics #726, shortly before your departure from the title, you provided us with one of the best modern-day tales of the Joker, with help from a personal favourite of mine, Brian Stelfreeze. How did your approach to the Joker/Batman tete-a-tete in this issue differ from the way you wrote them in The Joker: Devil's Advocate? Did you try to write the Joker in the same way, or do you find that he tends to write himself?

CD: The Joker is a character who just takes over. The challenge is to make him menacing and sick AND funny. I take my cue from Scott Peterson who said, "the Joker re-invents himself every morning." That forces me to keep his motivations and his schtick different from appearance to appearance. The tone of his jokes even change.

LTD: Your previous work with the Punisher was in a crossover with Batman a few years ago. How excited were you to be able to get the chance to write not only Frank Castle in an ongoing title, but other vigilantes alongside him, like Black Widow and Daredevil?

CD: I rarely just jump on a project offered me. I usually hold back and tell the editor to give me 48 hours to make sure I have enough ideas in my head to make something work before answering. I said an emphatic "Yes!" to Joe Quesada before he was even finished asking the question. If Frank Castle's there I want to be there. Especially in the light of Garth Ennis taking the character back to the strengths of the Punisher. And to pick and choose through hundreds of available characters to form a team - well, what comics geek could resist? Having Ed Baretto and Klaus Janson on the art just made it pure heaven.

LTD: Ted Kord recently retired from his role as the Blue Beetle, and in Birds of Prey #19, Tim was certainly excited to meet him. Based on Ted's professorial career, would it be altogether unlikely for him to show up as a guest speaker, during one of Tim's classes at Brentwood?

CD: Ted may have retired from being the Blue Beetle but I have a feeling that won't last. In Birds of Prey #25 we see him and Oracle in action and he has to face a monumental decision of what to do with the rest of his life. Ted would be a perfect lecturer at Brentwood.

LTD: You're on a desert island. Forget about the three comics you couldn't live without - your team lost a Survivor match, and you're forced to vote one of your own team members off the island. From the following list, who would you pick to leave, and why: Tim Drake, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson, or Alfred Pennyworth?

CD: Tim's so good for morale. Alfred could probably make rats taste like lobster neuberg. Babs is the Professor and Mary Ann rolled into one. Dick can survive anything against all odds. I guess I'd vote myself off.

LTD: Since the beginning of the Nightwing monthly, Bludhaven was said to be a city worse than Gotham. With Blockbuster's fading health and empire, and now that the No Man's Land exodus is over, is the 'Haven still considered to be the meaner city of the two?

CD: And about to get MEANER as the dregs of the DC underworld rush in to fill the void left by Blockbuster. It's the lack of police presence (and the fact that they co-operate with the hoods!) that makes the difference between Bludhaven and Gotham.

LTD: Readers who don't collect Nightwing, and some who do, have said that as a character, Nightwing is just a Batman clone, that he hasn't truly been his own man outside of Batman's shadow since his previous venture with the Titans. How would you be able to convince the skeptics that this is not the case?

CD: They're crazy! Nightwing is Batman without the brooding. He's a far more physical character. he's still evolving and growing as a character. And sales-wise he holds his own against all of the Batbooks.

LTD: You've already written the Planet DC Flash annual this year, but if you were given the opportunity to write a story about one of the heroes of DCU's fictional countries, which one would you choose? Could you see a hero coming out of Qurac, or would we see the return of Dava Sbrosc, from Krasna-Volny, the young redhead who temporarily caught Robin's eye between Robin #50-51?

CD: We'll be seeing the Krasnys and Dava in the next year. But I'd probably pick Dhabar, home of the Rahfi and the Arghulian. I've just started delving into that country's mythology and would love to explore it further.

LTD: Nightwing hasn't really had a character-defining failure, since he's had his own title. Outside of the upcoming throwback in the Robin: Year One tale, will Dick endure a painful event that will affect him in the coming years?

CD: Hm. I can say that he will have a major setback. But I can't go into detail.

LTD: Have there been any particular monthly issues you've written where you wished that you weren't limited by the creative restrictions you're supposed to abide by, according to the Comics Code?

CD: I'm comfortable within the confines of the code. I think it forces writers to be more creative and less blunt. Though Conan is a LOT more fun without the code. I wrote two Conan stories for an Italian publisher where all restrictions were off. That was a total blast.

LTD: Arguably the most character development Bane has seen has come out of the Vengeance of Bane one-shots. Previously, his uneasy alliance with Ra's al Ghul threw him even higher on Batman's most dangerous villains list. Bane seems content to rule over Santa Prisca for the moment. But how long will it be before we see another Vengeance of Bane story? He and Batman have a lot of unfinished business, including, as Ra's learned, the discovery of just who Bane's parents really are.

CD: Bane's saga is a long one. I have major MAJOR plans for him over the coming years. Some of this will be setup next year. And he's in Birds of Prey #26 as the villain and unwittingly sets events in motion that will impact on Dinah and Babs in a BIG way. It leads to a HUNT FOR ORACLE level story crossing into my other books.

LTD: When the announcement of Denny O'Neil's retirement from the Bat-Group Editor position came down a while back, what was your immediate reaction?

CD: I'm sad to see him go. He's been a mentor and pal and a source of endless fascination for me. But I'm really happy for him as well. He takes the burdens of editorship way too hard. He's not a natural born SOB and that's what an editor has to be sometimes. I saw him last week in the offices and he already looks better than I've ever seen him just because retirement is imminent. But Bob Schreck and Matt Idelson will guide the Batbooks with a sure hand. You can't believe the nightmare scenarios I thought of for Denny's replacements. Luckily for freelancers and readers alike two strong talents were chosen.

LTD: In Birds of Prey #11, it seemed very apparent to me that Babs attempted to kill Joe Gardner, the Guy Gardner clone. In Birds of Prey #9, she used a particle beam from an orbiting satellite, which was capable of obliterating a large industrial warehouse, and even though Dinah gave the all-clear signal, there were clearly some people still in the vicinity of the building. Since it was never stated that Babs was aware of Joe's mortality or tolerance levels, and since Babs shows remorse over not taking Joe out of the picture, has Babs abandoned her morals and become an attempted murderer, or was this just a story where some important details had to be left out?

CD: She's less morally conflicted than other characters. She's very "means to an end" oriented. She sees that sometimes you have to kill to save lives. She's not comfortable with that but accepts it. She would do anything to avoid using deadly force but, when push comes to shove, she'll drop the hammer. Though she prays she'll never have to. That pragmatic aspect of Babs' character, contrasted with Dinah's more idealistic approach, is at the heart of this book.

LTD: Detective Comics #725 was an outstanding first step at renewing the friendly relationship between Dick and Bruce, and it's another of my favourite issues in recent years. At one point, Bruce even says that Dick's better than he is, implying that Batman is Bruce's true identity, with the foppish playboy as the mask. In the Cave, when he's around Alfred and the others, another identity emerges - that being the comfortable median between the playboy and the vigilante. Do you believe there's room for that third, true identity, one that only his closest friends, including Jim Gordon, will ever see?

CD: Sure. Batman and Bruce are both masquerades to a certain extent. He can't act toward his allies the same way as toward his enemies. Batman purposely projects a larger-than-life, demonic image of himself to the underworld. But he knows Alfred and company know him as a man and he's more comfortable around them. Comfortable enough to take them for granted from time to time.

LTD: Finally, in the past, you've resurrected some previously underused DCU villains. If you had the chance to bring back another one, who would it be? Kite-Man? Kites can be very dangerous objects, y'know...

CD: The terror of....Kite-Man! If I can make Calendar Man work, I can make something of this guy. And kites are dangerous. They can land on powerlines or poke your eye out or...