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Writer's Commentary: Shawn Aldridge Talks Hack/Slash Vs. Vampirella #1

Published Wed, 11 Oct 2017 16:30:17 -0500

Dynamite has sent us a writer's commentary by Shawn Aldridge on Hack/Slash vs. Vampirella #1. Cover by Jenny Frison and interiors by Rapha Lobosco.

The Vegas strip heats up as Cassie Hack and her companion Vlad are on the trail of a deadly slasher and meet the lovely yet lethal Vampirella. The team-up event you've been waiting for is a high stakes game of chance when they have to take on The Queen of Hearts!

Page 1:
First issue, first page — so why not get to the heart of the matter? (Pun intended.) We immediately get a sense of what our protagonists will have to deal with in the story.

Page 2:
Here we get the intro of Cassie and Vlad and establish the setting. Vegas is a fun place to set a story, especially when visuals are involved.

Pages 3-7:
Setting up Cassie and Vlad as characters or, at least, my take on them. I wanted to give readers a feel for the relationship between the two. I see them as being a lot like siblings in how they converse with each other. Big brother/kid sister. You want readers to care about the characters, so it's never bad to humanize the characters by showing they care for each other. I also wanted to set the tone for the book. After showing ripped-open chests, let the reader know there will be some humor with the horror, while adding another layer to the opening scene. Page 7 goes back to that idea of humanizing characters.

Pages 8, 9:
Here I wanted to look at Cassie on her own — show how she sees the world and give the reader an idea of how she ticks. She's a bit socially awkward, or perhaps has an odd way to interact with people. I've always thought people who deal with constant extraordinary situations would probably find the mundane a bit hard to handle. Like stabbing would be the easier than talking.

Page 10:
I like that Cassie's instinct is to punch first, figure it out after.

Page 11:
Rapha does a nice job of using heavy shadows to establish the tension of something being hidden.

Page 12:
Hello, Vampirella. Don't worry, the classic costume shows up later.

Page 13:
Again, Cassie = punch first.

Pages 14, 15:
The gang's all together. Here I set up a bit where there's a tension and playfulness to Vampirella and Vlad's interactions. It creates a nice dynamic between all three. That tension will be play a role throughout the story. I thought it would be fun here to play up how Vampirella's origin is, um, complicated. Also Cassie making it clear she has no patience for magic-y things was a bit of fun.

Pages 16, 17:
Back to the killing! The villain! Here's our first look at the Blood Red Queen of Hearts. She felt like a natural choice for the story. She's a recurring Vampirella villain, while her M.O. plays into the slasher aspects of Hack/Slash. We get a small taste of her motivation. Also, blood and guts.

Page 18:
Here we get the brief origin/motivation of the Blood Queen. I also play up the difference of how Vampirella approaches a problem vs how Cassie does. Cassie is very, "Let's kill," while Vampirella's a much more subdued, patient approach. My take on Vampirella is someone who's seen it all and knows that slow and steady isn't a bad idea.

Page 19:
Fun's all over when the cops show up. Well, when hotel security shows up. Again, Vampirella's approach is to bounce, Cassie's is to punch.

Page 20:
Not all fight banter works.

Page 21:
Not every day you see someone with a heart in their hand. Laying groundwork for Blood Queen's ability. Again, Cassie's having none of it. Knock knock. Who's there?

Page 22:
A demon!

You gotta leave them wanting more.

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