I'd like to offer some entirely uncritical commentary on ELFQUEST: BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS #1. It profoundly gladdens my heart that you are able to expand on the number of EQ titles (soon we'll also have EQ: WAVEDANCERS)! It was a long time hope and dream of mine to see the BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS stories adapted to comic form, and together with the fact that you have passed the husbandry of the EQ universe along to other writers/artists (who will most likely keep the "EQ feel" potent and afire forever and ever), and the fact that you are introducing sea elves next month in WAVEDANCERS, it seems that literally all my EQ related dreams, all the hopes I've nurtured and the visions I've held for EQ since the dark mid-eighties, are actually coming true!
Naturally, I enjoyed BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS #1 very much. Janine Johnston's art has a melancholic touch which sublimely emphasizes the atmosphere of the story, and completely meshes with the words. "...as night became milky day..." - such marvelous winterscapes! And what contrast with the fire on following pages! Now, this book is what I call a paint job!
Still, I was a little confused by some of the last pages. I haven't read the prose version of the story (yet), which may be the reason that certain scenes left a bit of clarity to be desired. "We settled upon form over no form... One over many." What does this mean? That they formed themselves into elves, or perhaps into the coneheads? Or that they at some point all formed all of themselves into one form?! I would love to be enlightened!
I see that you're doing Mercedes Lackey's "The Phantom of the Berry Patch" next issue. This one I have read, and I can't wait to see the comic adaptation! I will, however, spend a small part of the waiting time telling you that I have just - finally! - gotten hold of the A WOLFRIDER'S REFLECTIONS CD (and I see that some of the tracks are written by Mercedes Lackey)! Although it musically isn't much of a revelation, and the instrumentation is very simple (Hey, I'm used to listening to Mike Oldfield!), I absolutely love the voice and every line of the lyrics, all of which are an amazing 100% true to the spirit of ELFQUEST. Does this spell heaven for an EQ fan or doesn't it? I treasure this disc.
Oh, and if one can suggest specific BLOOD of TEN CHIEFS prose stories for adapting, my request is that you do (from Volume One of the anthologies) Diana L. Paxson's "The Spirit Quest" next. This one has got to be the most intense one I've ever read.
Tue Sorenson
<<street address removed from archive>>
"The Spirit Quest" is currently in the lineup of stories to be adapted, though it'll take us a few issues to gel there. Andy Mangels, our TEN CHIEFS wrangler, is working on a series of adaptations, with a sort of seasonal theme, that will take us through the first dozen or so issues. After that, he's come up with some very intriguing original stories that we're noodling around here at Warp Central, that will tie the TEN CHIEFS series to the rest of the ELFQUEST universe in a way that goes beyond the obvious and simple historical connection. (And by the way, the WaveDancers won't resemble the Sea Elves of the role-playing game. They're all new!)
I'm speechless...
Absolutely speechless. You've outdone yourselves. I love it. Whoever had the idea to adapt BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS into comic form has my undying gratitude. I really hope Janine Johnston does more work with this; she's got a great art style. I really wasn't quite sure what to expect when I grabbed this off the stand with a shout of glee, but you've knocked me off my feet. Keep up the good work, all.
Maureen Mangan
<<street address removed from archive>>
The happy news is that Janine has agreed to continue to do her spectacular style of cover for us for the foreseeable future. The sad news is that she's decided to forego the bimonthly deadlines of doing the interiors as well, for a time, anyway. The other happy news is that she has also agreed to a major role, under Wendy's direction, in a startling new ELFQUEST project that we've been simmering for about six months. It's called BLOODSONGS, it's a book (not a comic book), and it explores the erotic elements of ELFQUEST - that we've only hinted at so far - in a way we guarantee you've never seen before.
Some quick thoughts on the first issue of your
latest ELFQUEST expansion series, BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS.
By and large, I don't really have a lot to say. Over the last fifteen years, ELFQUEST has consistently been a richly satisfying place to spend a quiet 15 minutes here and there, in all of its myriad forms... and I've been here for all of them. The original black and white magazines, the limited series SIEGE AT BLUE MOUNTAIN and KINGS OF THE BROKEN WHEEL, and the currently running NEW BLOOD and HIDDEN YEARS series... to say nothing of the all-prose trade paperbacks that originated the BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS concept and began to show us what the lives of Cutter's ancestors were like. Having come to expect a good time from anything ELFQUEST, I consequently went into this book anticipating the same thing.
Nor was I disappointed. This first issue is just the kind of thing I've been conditioned to expect from ELFQUEST: a riveting and heartwarming tale of self-discovery. Timmorn's quest to find his own place in the world, to come to terms with his dual nature, was an excellent place to start this series. My only regret was that we weren't made privy to all of Timmorn's thoughts and struggles with the subject, that we weren't able to see how Timmorn came to the choice he ultimately made. Such characterizational insights are like candy to me - I can't get enough of them. Without them, the ending to the story often seems rushed.
Kudos should also go to artist Janine Johnston, whose name I don't recall having seen before now. Is this her first published work in comics? And, while Janine did an unmistakably lovely job in this issue, I feel compelled to ask, where's Wendy at these days? I don't see her artwork on current ELFQUEST books nearly as often as I'd like to!
At any rate, count me in for every issue of BOTC as I am for all the other ELFQUEST projects.
David Peattie
<<street address removed from archive>>
Janine has done one other piece of comics work (that I know of, anyway), which was the STAR WARS: DARK EMPIRE mini-series for Dark Horse Comics. As for where's Wendy, I sincerely hope you've found your very own copy of HIDDEN YEARS #9-and-a-half. It's a special issue (as you may have guessed by all the flag-waving we've done over it) and it contains pyrotechnic story and pencil art by Wendy, with down and dirty inks by John Byrne. While she and I have both cut back on our pure comics work in order to shepherd other EQ-related projects, we're by no means out of the picture!
I am writing largely to complain about the artistry
in BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS and to some degree HIDDEN YEARS.
First I would like to say that the story lines are still
captivating and I loved the story in TEN CHIEFS. However,
it has always been the artistry of ELFQUEST that I loved the
most. I understand that Wendy Pini is busy and life does
go on. Nevertheless, must the new artists take such
artistic license? The elves in BOTC looked like Vulcans,
more human than elf. I can deal with the issues of HIDDEN
YEARS because the illustrations are a little closer to home.
Like I said, I understand that life goes on, but as a fan of
almost fifteen years I don't want to lose ELFQUEST. I guess
I am trying to say that I miss Wendy Pini. Will all BLOOD
OF TEN CHIEFS tales be so artistically divergent from
mainstream ELFQUEST? I hope not. If you have a formula
that works, why mess with it?
L'Orien Smith
<<street address removed from archive>>
Oh, that's just us, I guess. Gotta mess with something. ("So I rewired it!") It's all just variations on "what if." What if there were a world inhabited by elves? What if some of them lived in the ocean? What if some of them went off on a new guest to the rainforest? What if other people wrote and drew ELFQUEST? Storytelling is a continuous What-if-Quest.
At last, after so many years of reading ELFQUEST,
I am spurred to write. It was the new comic series, BLOOD
OF TEN CHIEFS, that finally got me pecking away at the
word processor.
First of all, I want to say that everything you guys have done so far is excellent. I applaud your bravery in letting other artists and writers have a go at ELFQUEST. While many have complained that it just isn't the same, or that the stories aren't as good, or whatever, I think we should all just sit back and see what this thing grows into. (Remember the Ugly Duckling?) (That isn't to say there is anything ugly about any of this new stuff; just that, more than likely, it will blossom into something even more beautiful.) Anyway, enough of that. All of you new, and potential new, EQ creators - keep more coming!
Now, I shall get onto the thing that prompted me to begin this discourse. I was of course familiar with the BOTC stories from the anthologies, but when I saw that ad for the comic adaptation I was delighted. I received, from my beloved, several back issues I had missed, and as I was working in a very small town in the Yukon at the time, I had to wait with bated breath until I got back to "civilization" before I could get my hands on this wonderful new bit of EQ. Today, a whole week after arriving back, I finally got me to a comic store. WOW! That artwork is amazing. This, methinks, is a perfect example of what new artists can do for ELFQUEST. (Of course, I am still fiercely loyal to you folks' vision. But then, the new blood has become part of that vision, hasn't it?)
Niko Silvester
<<street address removed from archive>>
Ayooah! I've just read BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS #1 and
it was amazing! Where did you find this artist and where
have you been hiding her? Wow! And the shading is back!
The beautiful painting that was last seen in HIDDEN YEARS
#5. It was a great story, although I'm still confused about
some things. I guess I'll start reading the novels now!
Well, these new artists have certainly proved everyone wrong! But I'm sure there are still some disbelievers. Maybe I can clear some things up with an example. After Walt Disney died in 1966 I'm sure everyone must have thought, "OK, it's over." But the studio kept on animating and now look! The most beautiful animation has come from it. I think these new artists are very lucky to be drawing these characters, and hope they continue to do so! I hope to see more artwork by Janine Johnston, because it is beautiful. All these new artists, new titles! "The world has changed... again."
Kristin Hogan
<<street address removed from archive>>
Actually, it's more like Janine found us. There we were, minding our business at the Warp booth in San Diego, and here appeared this person (who looks like she draws, very elfin), with a portfolio of paintings that caused yr. humble editor to say, "This is fantastic work would you like to do something for us please?"
Wow. I am totally blown away by BLOOD OF TEN
CHIEFS #1. Unbelievable. Why didn't you have Janine
Johnston doing things before this? The art is amazing!
Unbelievably beautiful - gorgeous - perfect! You've got to
have her doing more issues. And posters and tons of stuff.
I'm still trying to get over how beautiful it is... the images
in the fire... the gently washed landscapes... myriad
colors I never noticed in such mundane things as skin...
a dream sequence that isn't cheesy... gentle blending
juxtaposed with raw and jagged wildness. The two powers
within Timmorn are expressed exquisitely in the world
around him, yet they fit, they work together. Every page
shimmers with its own life, with images waiting to be
discovered, with magic. The only gripe I've got is with
Timmain's figure - she looks like a man (no hips, and not
much in the way of breasts, either). Otherwise it's
absolutely perfect.
Okay, enough with the adjectives. I'll let you deal with the rest of your praise. I'm just pissed that my friendly neighborhood comics store didn't get BOTC in until now (end of August). Please have Janine do more issues. I can't wait until you come out with comic adaptations of the Willowgreen and Windwhisper stories. And most of all, I can't wait to bug you in person when you come to Toronto...
Maral Agnerian
<<street address removed from archive>>
Why do I suddenly hear Carry Simon breaking into a ketchup-pouring rendition of "Anticipation..."?
Och, by the way, could ye please tell Janine
Johnston that her artwork in BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS is SO
breathtaking, that I am tryin' ta decide... are they
watercolor, pencil, ink an' colored chalk in whole? I have
taken a watercoloring class last semester, an' this artwork
of Johnston is so different from what I had learned. Not
even the second an' third semester students in watercolor
have seen the likes before... Janine ought to give herself
a pat on the shoulder for doing it so wondrous! F'r Wendy,
I hope she doesn't feel replaced by those new artists;
beside, I'd take her over other artists 'cause in her way,
she gives life to the elves, an' gives us paths to the world
an' the ability to feel an' go along with the elves.
Beside, I'm glad that ye all decided to go ahead with more titles o' ELFQUEST like BLOOD OF TEN CHIEFS an' coming WAVEDANCERS. It gives us more looks upon the world of two moons, an' the elves. Thanks again!
Julie Dalbom
<<street address removed from archive>>
Janine's pages were pretty much done in watercolor, but we agree that she wields the brush with no small bit o' magic. (It's rather like Wendy's skill with magic markers. Most people use the things to do yard sale signs; she makes them sit up and do tricks. Much of the first five issues of HIDDEN YEARS was done with them. Practice, practice, practice.)
See you all in 60! - RP