As we wait for your reactions to this first issue of WAVEDANCERS, herewith an introduction to the world and its creators, Julie Ditrich, Bruce Love and Jozef Szekeres, denizens of that mythical "Land Down Under." Welcome to their corner of the World of Two Moons...
Somebody once said that the real difference
between an actor and a movie star is that you want to
make love with the latter. This distinction also rings
true in comics with Wendy and Richard Pini's ELFQUEST
characters. They are truly "stars" in every sense of the
word, and whether or not we are willing to confess that
we fantasize about bedding Cutter or Leetah or Skywise,
we do have to admit that they occupy an important
part of our consciousness once we have journeyed
with them on their personal or collective quest.
So what is it about the ELFQUEST characters that makes them so real? Why do we need to remind ourselves that the Wolfriders and the others are fantasy characters committed to the colored pages of a comic book, and do not exist in the world as we know it?
Perhaps it is because the elves appeal to our emotional senses in a way that other comic characters, including those from the superhero genre, rarely do. We feel with them, we grieve with them, we hold our breath with them, we love and we laugh with them. In many other comic titles we marvel at the visual design elements in the artwork and the dynamic pace of the action, but rarely do we truly identify with the characters. It is rather like watching a movie and commenting on the elaborate nature of the set design, the marvelous special effects, and the lushness of the cinematography. But these technically and artistically perfect parts by themselves do not necessarily make a good movie, and the sheer brilliance of a comic artist cannot always compensate for underdeveloped bland characters that leave us feeling cold and empty.
ELFQUEST is different in that it evokes a feeling response, acknowledges our emotional life, and doesn't apologize for it. Firstly, it symbolizes a perfect blending of feminine and masculine forces where the characters are not pushed into any gender-specific roles. Both males and females are warriors, nurturers and healers, leaders or followers depending on their skills, their heritage, and their maturity. Secondly, elves bear no sense of shame about their bodies, or for what or who they are. They accept their sensuality and sexuality as part of their being, delighting in the physical and spiritual pleasures that this brings; but they can just as quickly call upon their aggressive, survival instincts to defend themselves and their loved ones. Thirdly, they gently and patiently foster their innate talents into mastery without condemnation for free expression. They represent those qualities that we ourselves desire in ourselves or in a mate, only they do so without the trippings and strippings of conservative attitudes that thrive on the "shoulds" of being normal.
On a therapeutic level elves possess the very qualities that therapists strive to instill in their clients - to live in the present (the "now" of wolf thought), to learn from their mistakes, and to be unafraid to question their own thoughts and attitudes about matters that generate debate. Elves are visionaries, not content to let unjust, uncomfortable and unhappy circumstances rule their lives. They act rather than react. They are, pure and simply, risk takers. They acknowledge their fear and limitations, yet strive to walk through them and face unknown future for the sake of possible evolution.
The elves are by no means perfect. They are limited both by conditioning and by personality traits (or flaws, depending on your point of view), and that is where conflict arises - when they behave more like humans than like elves. They too experience lust for power, the desire to manipulate nature for personal gain, the egotism of the individual who thinks more of conquering than of responsibility. But the difference is that they do not shut themselves down to introspection and exploration of their psyches.
The villains, of course, are the exception. Their villainy stems not only from their actions, but also from their inability to reflect on the consequences of these actions. Evil itself cannot be concentrated; we need to understand and explore the concept of duality to understand some of the characters (Two-Edge being a tragic example of this). We need to consider villains' experience relative to the mitigating circumstances of the past that do not excuse behavior, but help us understand the forces that shaped these characters into who they are today. Perception is in the eye of the beholder; what is good for one may be evil to another.
With WAVEDANCERS We hope to continue along this path and present to you, the reader, another challenging dimension of the elfin universe. The WaveDancers are a colony we hope that you will get to know and love. They are different from their counterparts in that their life-style is relatively simple and relaxed, though they live within the same boundaries and rules governing the World of Two Moons that Wendy and Richard imposed on their tribes. But there are many ingredients that make the WaveDancers unique. They have been leaderless and without direction for generations. Also, in their environment, the ocean world of the Vastdeep Water, duality is only too plain. The world is both clear and beautiful, yet murky with hazards, safe yet treacherous, comforting yet forbidding.
We have seen in ELFQUEST that without purpose there is no growth. Can the WaveDancers thrive in isolation, simply exist without change? Or will they encounter forces that demand personal and community evolution? The beginnings of answers lie in this issue.
As creators of all the WaveDancers we have a kinship with these characters that we hope you will soon have too, but we have the added advantage of foreseeing their future and the consequences of their chosen paths. Each of us identifies with certain characters; that will undoubtedly change in time as their stories unfold. At the moment, Julie loves Kirith for her all-encompassing femaleness, her beautiful nature, and her affinity with water mammals, and with Hyfus (call her shallow if you like) for his ruggedness. Bruce has a close affiliation to the brothers Barmek and Jormak, two sides of the same coin, and to Korilia, the drama queen, who is fundamentally good at heart with a rather sad history that the reader will eventually discover. Jozef identifies with a character yet to be met - Irralli - for her sweetness, charm, and design, and with Tilaweed for her grace and beauty, the epitome of every quality one would imagine in a traditional mermaid - but in elfin form. Jozef's male favorites are Paffa and Maron (though he cringes at the thought of drawing Maron's hair).
At the moment, the spirit of the WaveDancers resides in three waterbabies in Sydney, Australia just as the spirit of the Wolfriders lies in its home Holt of Poughkeepsie, New York, USA, and within the hearts and minds of ELFQUEST fans. We hope to instill in the WaveDancers qualities that will make them "stars" in their own right, both within their world and within yours.
Write! And we'll see you back here in 60! - RP