Posted in: Comics | Tagged: chris roberson, Comics, david liss, Dynamite Entertainment, moriarty

Getting To The Heart Of Moriarty – David Liss Talks About The New Series

Sherlock Holmes has been one of the most popular and utilized literary characters in history. Along with the world's greatest detective comes his cast of characters of Watson, Lestrade, Mrs. Hudson and of course… Moriarty. Well, Dynamite Entertainment is putting the evil genius front in center this week in Sherlock Holmes: Moriarty Lives #1 written by David Liss. Chris Roberson had a chance to chat with Liss about his titular character and the new series.

CHRIS ROBERSON: I've always been fascinated by the character of Moriarty, and one reason is the fact that he is so compelling a villain even though he's barely glimpsed in the original Arthur Conan Doyle stories. Watson doesn't even meet him in person, and everything we know about him comes second hand. Was it a challenge or opportunity to work with a character that's so well know, but with so little source material to work with?

DAVID LISS: I'd say it was less challenging and more an interesting creative problem. We know very little about Moriarty based on the story – mostly that he is extremely methodical and precise in his thinking and, most importantly, a genuine match for Holmes. As you say, so much has been built up about him in film, television, comics, and post-Doyle Holmes novels and short stories, so the real trick, I thought, was to ignore everything I thought I knew about Moriarty and go back to the source. Rather than that being difficult, it's more of a blank check. I was free to envision Moriarty as I saw fit based on what Doyle writes in "The Final Problem."

CR: Moriarty is described as the most dangerous man in London, but I'm curious. Will the SECOND most dangerous man in London be making an appearance in your series, or is he already back in London playing cards?

DL: No other characters from Doyle's universe show up in the story. I genuinely wanted to write a Moriarty story, not add to the Holmes mythos. I honestly feel that bringing in anyone from the Sherlock Holmes universe would drag down my original vision of the series, which was to highlight Moriarty as someone other than a foil for Holmes.

CR: This first issue almost has the feel of a classic Universal monster movie, not in terms of the plot but the tone and texture of it. Was that intentional, or is it a happy accident resulting from the setting?

DL: I think it's more the latter, though probably some of the former. I wanted to establish a sense of menace. This is a classic ploy, of course. A character escapes death only to find himself washed ashore (literally) in a menacing place. It seemed important to establish from the outset that Moriarty is not in control and he's dealing with a foe who is a genuinely dangerous and powerful.

CR: Moriarty has shown up everywhere from movies to comics to TV shows over the years (even making a memorable appearance in the holodeck of the USS Enterprise D!). Do you have a favorite appearance of the character outside the original Doyle canon?

DL: You mentioned it in your question. I loved Moriarty in the Star Trek: TNG appearances, especially the second one, "Ship in a Bottle," which presented both villains and holograms in a particularly sympathetic light.

CR: You've done a considerable number of period pieces before, but as I recall most of those were Depression-era and later, weren't they? Have you done a Victorian piece before, and if not, were there any particular challenges to capturing the feel of the time?

DL: My only previous period work in comics was depression era, yes, but most of my novels are set between the mid 17th and early 19th centuries, so I'm very comfortable writing in various time periods. I haven't set anything in the late 19th century before, but I've become very comfortable inhabiting various historical milieus, and I had a lot of fun working on this story and dealing with its time and place.

CR: And finally, what else are you working on that readers might be interested to hear about?

DL: The last few issues of The Spider will be coming out in the months ahead, and I'm writing a miniseries called Jinnrise out from IDW right now. Early next year my first creator owned comic, Angelica Tomorrow, will launch. Next year I'll be publishing a novel called The Day of Atonement, set in 18th century Lisbon, and a novella in a share world collection called Century. Then, early 2015 will see the publication of Randoms, a young adult space opera.

Sherlock Holmes: Moriarty Lives #1 is available in comics shops now.

Chris Roberson is a science fiction author and comic book writer that is currently doing The Shadow and Codename: Action for Dynamite Entertainment.

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