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EXCLUSIVE: Top Cow President Matt Hawkins Talks 'Samaritan' And Comics

Comic Books

EXCLUSIVE: Top Cow President Matt Hawkins Talks ‘Samaritan’ And Comics

Top Cow Productions will be releasing Samaritan #1 this May and we have an exclusive interview with its writer – and Top Cow President – Matt Hawkins. This series is part of the same universe of The Tithe and Eden’s Fall and should have fans of both clamoring for its stories. Below, Matt talks Samaritan, the comic creation process and more!

AiPT!: What’s your favorite thing about writing comics?

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EXCLUSIVE: Top Cow President Matt Hawkins Talks 'Samaritan' And Comics

Matt Hawkins: I really enjoy doing the research. I love to read and I challenge myself with things that I have difficulty comprehending. I love reading science journals and frequently take classes online to learn about new things that didn’t exist when i was in college like epigenetics and biomimetics.

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AiPT!: How has the fallout from Eden’s Fall affected the three titles?

Hawkins: Well spoiler alert, stop reading this if you haven’t read Eden’s Fall yet, but at the end of that Jimmy dies in Eden and several other characters spin out from it. Dwayne has been neutered at the FBI. Samantha has gone into exile. David Loren continues to do his thing and is probably the least effected and the Postal crew is worried that the extra attention from that event shines too much light on the town. The new arc of Samaritan hits in May and is sort of a continuation of the Eden’s Fall story but you don’t actually have to read anything previous to jump into it.

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AiPT!: Was this always planned as a “shared” universe of titles?

Hawkins: No it wasn’t planned – it happened organically. I threw David Loren into The Tithe V2 because it made sense and was fun. It was intended as a throwaway thing but as we kept writing that arc, Bryan Hill and I kept talking about it and we decided to do it. I hate massive crossovers, so we opted to do just a three-issue mini-series. It’s more of a Postal/Tithe crossover with Think Tank sprinkled in, but they all inhabit the same world and we’ll have continuity affect various things. With the Edenverse, as we’re calling it, people die (a lot) and they don’t come back.

AiPT!: What was your first job or worst job before getting into the comic book business?

Hawkins: I was a cook at McDonald’s. I also had to clean the bathrooms, the floors and sweep the parking lots. I also painted houses to pay my way through college so I’m very happy to write comic books for a living.

AiPT!: Will we ever see cast members from one series permanently/regularly joining the cast of another?

Hawkins: Regularly, yes. I wouldn’t say permanently. Mirra Sway from Think Tank is in the new Samaritan arc. She teams up with Dwayne to help track down Samaritan before the government can kill her. We’re just having fun with it. Whatever makes sense and happens organically is what we’ll do.

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AiPT!: Do the current events happening now –particularly with regard to Russia/U.S. spy games –affect what you’ll be writing for David Loren (the lead character of Think Tank)?

Hawkins: I am very influenced by real-world events. I won’t say that it’s ripped from the headlines, but I read a lot and am aware of world events. I watch a lot of news from other countries, read The Economist and read a lot of nonfiction. In Think Tank I always have one geopolitical story, one tech story and one character relationship story and they all interrelate and resolve together, That’s my little formula for that book!

AiPT!: Is there a part of the comic-creating process you love the best? And a part you don’t like?

Hawkins: I enjoy the plotting. I really like talking about these stories with Marc Silvestri, Bryan Hill and my wife Jenni Cheung. My least favorite part is the dialogue. That’s the hardest part for me and I do multiple drafts to try and get it right.

AiPT!: Dwayne Campbell’s faith/resolve has to have been shaken after everything he’s seen — is it possible we’ll see a dynamic shift in how he views his job/place in the world?

Hawkins: This is a HUGE part of the Samaritan arc, that’s very cool that you picked that up and asked this question!

AiPT!: What’s your favorite method of procrastination?

Hawkins: Surfing the internet and social media. I always justify both in my head as being work-related and waste way too much time doing it.

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