Sean O'Reilly (EIC/Creator/Writer for Arcana Studio)

Sean O'Reilly is the EIC/Owner of Arcana Studios who puts out a great line of books including Kade, Ant, Ezra and more. Although he can draw and color he mainly handles the scriptwriting and basic development of Arcana Studios itself. Kade is to be collected in TPB form including issues #1-5 and subtitled "Pursuit" to be brought out at a whopping 140 full color pages at $9.95 U.S. With this exciting news I thought it would be nice to chat with Sean and get a little info for us folks here at The Comic Avalanche.

 

Mr. A: First off I just want to thank you for taking the time to answer some questions with us here and I myself am a big fan of all things Arcana.
 

1. Kade TPB is due to hit stands shortly and collects Kade issues #1-5. For those who haven't been lucky enough to grab issues of Kade yet can you give us a rundown?

SO: Kade is a sword-and-sorcery story of the gothic warrior who doesn’t feel, but always hurts. It is Kade’s destiny to unveil the darkness that has gripped the souls of the immoral, a darkness released by the Black Sun. Every couple hundred of years a unique solar eclipse occurs and a Black Sun is born where demons escape and possess those of anemic spirits. It is also only under this short period of time, also called the Eye of God, that the most powerful demons can be destroyed and sent back to their realm. In Kade, Apollyon is the demon that needs to be destroyed before it’s too late.

2. Arcana sure has grown and is beginning to garner the attention it deserves and publishes one of my personal favorites "Ant". As I understand it though Kade is in essence your baby when it comes to the different titles you put out. Was it your first story or did you just fall in love with the character or what transpired?

 

SO: Kade has been a story kicking in my head for years and I definitely love the character and the struggles he faces. One reviewer called Kade a combination of like Kurt Cobain and Conan. It’s a pretty damn fine comparison. Cobain has inner demons and ended his life and, because of his inability to interact with his environment, Kade struggles with reality just as much as anyone. Of course he still wields his sword and is a relentless fighter because of his inabilities.

 

3. The art in Kade is spectacular and has been throughout. Who has handled the chores on the art side and how did you hookup with them?

SO: Great question. Originally it was Eduardo Garcia, whose style was very unique and combined with Palacios’ colors turned out good. But it wasn’t until the third issue that I saw Allan Otero’s work and knew that he was the right man for the job. He is an incredible talent and has kept up a furious pace to make sure that the tpb is done in time. Kade is a special project for me and I have a hard time giving it to someone. Allan shares the same passion and integrity for Kade that I do…he’s been great to work with on Kade’s first chronology.

4. Will the art be the same as they found from the first issues and what cover will be used for the TPB itself?

SO: Yes. Allan is redoing all of Eduardo’s work and the entire first issue is completely redone. It goes much farther back into Kade’s past showing the events that led to who he has become, and what he needs to do. Overall we’ve taken everything we’ve learned in the last year and put it back into the story to give everything we can to our readers.

 

5. Are there any perks/extras to buying the trade for those who already have Kade issues #1-5 in their longboxes?

SO:  Along with two never before seen issues (issue 1 and 2) there will also be full dossiers of each of the characters as well as a cover gallery and some first concept sketches of Kade. But one of the coolest things we are offering for the Kade Trade is a never before published cover by Humberto Ramos. He is an amazing artist and I wouldn’t want anyone else doing the art. He is fantastic!

6. What's next for Kade and will you keep up and handle the writing chores yourself?

SO: Next arc will see Kade in the year 2005 as he continues to battle demons and the darkness from the Black Sun. I will be doing the writing and we are also doing a screenplay for this book concurrently with the comics. It’s going to be a huge undertaking but we’ve done the first draft, have a director, choreographer and are going to give this a hell of a shot.

7. Were you always a comic fan and do you still collect?

SO: I have always been into comics. I love the altruism of good vs. evil, as I believe it’s a struggle we all go through on a daily basis. So many people in this world are hero’s, and comics have heroes do such extraordinary tasks it’s so much fun to read. As for collecting I buy this or that but the only thing I’m really collecting everyone of are Arcana books. Sounds vain, doesn’t it? Well in four years my plan is to give away 1/5 of my entire collection which will consist of one of every book we’ve ever done. I think it’s a great promotion and something to really strive for.

 

8. Who are your biggest influences from a writing standpoint?

SO: From comics I enjoy Mark Miller, Frank Miller and Mike Mignola. Outside of comics I would say Robert Rodriguez, Richard Kelly, Kevin Grevioux and David Goyer …these are just a few of the visionaries who breathe live into stories. They really are remarkable and I try to learn from what they have done.

9. Given the chance to write any character from any publisher who would it be and who would handle the art chores. |No you cant say Kade :)|

SO: I’ve been asked this a couple times before and I always cop out and say nothing, but not this time. Hmm…If I could write on any character…I think I’d want to write on Batman or Wolverine. Like Kade, I like the lone wolf character as writing for large groups can be kind of tricky at first. I would want it based in a simple but realistic story that off shoots from super villains taking over the world. Batman going after a serial killer or something to that effect. I think it would be great to see Batman use more of his detective skills in a setting that would be dark and twisted. As for an artist (I know it’s a dream) but it would be fantastic to have Jim Lee since he’s my favorite artist of all time and from what I’ve heard an incredible person as well.

10. What's next for Arcana as a whole and is there anything else you would like to let us in on?

SO: I’m really looking forward to the next Kade series as well as our line of trade paperbacks coming out. KADE: Pursuit Trade Paperback (DEC04 2381) and ANT: Days Like These Trade Paperback (SEP04 2385) are our first two, followed by 100 Girls and Ezra available for order in February’s Previews shipping in April and finally Starkweather’s culminating fifth issue will be available in the trade paperback coming this summer. Please be sure to keep an eye out for them and ask your local retailer!

 

 

Mr. A: To end yet another great interview here at The Comic Avalanche is there anything you want to say to aspiring writers/creators to keep them chugging along?

SO: A cool saying I heard from a friend of mine that will hopefully provoke some thoughts... All of us have two wolves inside us…battling ... struggling for control. One is evil filled with anger, sorrow, self-pity and false pride. The other is good and is filled with peace, love, hope, compassion and faith. The one that wins this fight…is the one we feed.

Si vales, gaudeo!

 

 

Thanks, Mr. Avalanche