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--- Exclusive Interview With Botp Comic Artist, Wilson Tortosa (http://www.gatchamania.net/threadid.php?threadid=1940)
Posted by Rory on 11-06-2008 at 23:58:
Exclusive Interview With Botp Comic Artist, Wilson Tortosa
[Wilson Tortosa Interview © June 12, 2008 By Rory V. Pascual. PLEASE DO NOT DISTRIBUTE OUTSIDE OF GATCHAMANIA.NET WITHOUT MY WRITTEN PERMISSION.]
In my line of work as a journalist, I've met a lot of people in a wide variety of professions, including comic book artists. Most of the comic book artists I've met were pretty quiet, almost sedate people whom you could barely hear speak. I was actually expecting "Battle of the Planets" penciller Wilson Tortosa to be the same.
So, when Aya and I finally ambushed him at Mangaholix last May 31, he was a whole lot different from the other artists whom I had met before. How best to describe our elusive Condorman? To say he's nice is putting it in the mildest of terms. He is quite a charmer, always smiling, very articulate, and very patient enough not only to draw sketches for his two diehard fans, but also to answer questions regarding BoTP and the comic industry in general. Also, being an avid cosplayer himself, Wilson is always running around with his digital camera, taking pictures of his fellow cosplayers and offering words of praise and encouragement to them. Needless to say, Wilson is one heck of a guy, and it was really great knowing him! 
I've convinced Wilson to answer a few questions that I have regarding the "Battle of the Planets" comic book. FINALLY, he has found a breather in his busy schedule (he's doing the "Wolverine" manga for Marvel) to answer them. Want to know what it was like making the comic book for Wilson Tortosa, then READ ON!!
Please tell us how the project of making "Battle of the Planets" as a comic book came about. Whose idea was it?
I believe it all started back when Wizard had an article about the 80's and Alex Ross did a full-page spread painting of Gatchaman. It turns out he's a big fan of Battle of the Planets, and with writer Munier Sharrief they pretty much were the brains behind the comic book version of BotP.
How did you get to become the artist for the comic book? Would you also call yourself a fan of "Battle of the Planets"/"Gatchaman"?
Originally, they already had an artist in mind, but his style looked different. So Top Cow approached Glasshouse Graphics and my agent David Campiti. Then (fellow Filipino) Edwin David and I did a few samples, and I guess we got lucky. Edwin is a BIG Gatchaman fan; he's got big action figures to prove it. I, on the other hand, grew up watching shows like G-Force, Mazinger Z, Voltes V, Astroboy, Voltron and Starblazers, so I guess I'm a fan of Gatchaman and everything old school.
Compared to the other comic book projects that you've done, just how challenging was it for you to do "Battle of the Planets"?
First off, I was working with THE Alex Ross, so I can't say enough how conscious I was trying to keep deadlines and make the book look good as best I could. Style-wise, it wasn't as difficult probably because being an old school nut, I'm rather familiar with the visual style.
What was it like working with cover artist Alex Ross and writer Munier Sharriff?
Although we never really met in person, Alex is probably one of the best people you'd ever work with. For instance, he actually did the corrections himself rather than wait for me to redraw and send them over. Munier, on the other hand, always had this exact vision in his mind on how he'd like the scene to be drawn. He'd include references of everything from movies to anime to Disney. That really made my work much easier.
Please describe to us the unique challenges of putting each of the five members of G-Force into comic book print. Who were the EASIEST to draw and the MOST DIFFICULT? Please explain why. How about drawing the other characters?
Bringing them to life on the comic page was, to put it simply, difficult. For one thing, I had to make them look like their animated versions but with more varied angles and facial expressions. Tatsunuko's character sheets had plenty of facial studies but not many facial angles. Imagine drawing a worm's eye view of Jinpei's face! 
I also tried to keep my own style sort of visible. I tend to draw pouty lips and admittedly I get carried away a lot. 
I also tend to exaggerate their gestures and body language to make them more animated on the page.
The EASIEST one to draw would probably be Ryu. He doesn't pull extreme expressions much, and his hair basically draws itself.
The HARDEST would undoubtedly be Joe 
. There's just something with the angles in his eyes and the shape of his nose and face, if I don't get it right, it somehow doesn't look like him anymore. It's also hard to nail his expressions, the way he smirks, the way he looks at someone, even the way he leans on the wall.
Jun 
has a special place in my heart. Bless her soul, she just makes drawing the book very enjoyable. 
On a side note, I had the most fun drawing Berg Katse/Zoltar 
. Basically he's all sharp curves and angles, from the edges of his lips to the tip of his pointy ears.
If I were to ask your opinion about the project, what would you say where the STRONG and WEAK points of the comic book? Please explain.
Now that's a hard one. I think the characters contributed both the strongest and the weakest points of the book. Strong points being that the characters are such icons that they have a huge and dedicated fanbase.
The weak point being that they're such icons it was difficult to portray them in a new way and yet appeal to both old and new fans -- from Gatchaman to BotP to G-Force. Looking back, it was a difficult balancing act for Munier and I.
The comic book was obviously left hanging. What was supposed to happen after that hanging ending?
A whole lot more. G-Force would be up against Spectra's new but very familiar operatives, but Zoltar would be up against new and familiar enemies of his own.
Could you clear up one question that is in the minds of fans who have read the comics -- Did Jason really join Spectra? When we spoke at the Mangaholix Con, you mentioned that there was supposed to be a second series and that Alex Ross actually made illustrations for new characters. Was one of these illustrations that of Jason as a member of Spectra?
I'm not sure if I'm supposed to spoil anything (even now), but just to be clear- Jason would NEVER join Spectra. (I think he'd rather swallow his feather shurikens.) If you looked very carefully at Zoltar's companion, you'll see that it's NOT him. The new characters, at least those that came from Alex Ross, are more related to G-Force than they are to Spectra.
Is there a possibility that the second "Battle of the Planets" comic book series will come out in the near future? Would you still be interested in doing the project? Do you think that Munier would also be continuing on as writer despite the drubbing that he got from the fans?
I'm afraid that I'm not certain there'd be another series, but if plans do come up, I definitely would love to. I can't speak for Munier, but I know he loves the characters. I think given the chance, he'd jump right back in.
Is there a particular "Battle of the Planets" storyline that you would like to do and would you be inclined to collaborate with a Filipino writer (like yours truly!) on this?
Oh man, anything with Prin and Jason, please. I'm that shallow LOL I also can't write to save my own hide so I definitely can use your help in the future. 
Posted by lborgia88 on 12-06-2008 at 01:52:
Thanks for posting this, Rory. It's good to hear that Jason didn't join Spectra!
Posted by Condorfan on 12-06-2008 at 02:26:
Thanks for posting that interview, Rory. I really hated that Top Cow didn't finish the story and left readers hanging. At one time, they were going to publish a two part story called "Endgame" to finish but they never did. Curse them! 
__________________
Old age is a high price to pay for maturity.
Posted by tatsunokofan on 12-06-2008 at 03:07:
Hi all!
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Making the ending that much more annoying is that it didn't need to be that way. Sharriff knew that the comic was ending a couple months before he wrote that last issue, yet he put in the cliffhanger anyway. Many fans, who in general didn't care for his writing, took it as a final one-fingered salute from Sharriff.
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Actually, it was solicited as being called "Coup de Gras." Yes, I realize that it's supposed be spelled "Coup de Grace." You know it, I know it, but apparently Munier and the editors at Top Cow didn't know it.
Anyway, that book was cancelled (Along with the final black and white paperback-sized reprint of the published comics) due to the low number of orders placed for it. All I can guess is that a number of people who were tired of Sharriff's writing decided to speak with their wallets.
Regardless, it's great to see an interview with Mr. Tortosa. His artwork was always a bright spot to the comic, and if this interview is any indication, he seems like a genuinely nice guy! Thank you for sharing it!
James
Posted by Firebird on 12-06-2008 at 04:26:
Rory,
thank you for posting the interview!
__________________
Like the Phoenix I rise from the fire. Beware all who try to tame me, you may get burned 
Posted by Springie on 12-06-2008 at 09:25:
Thanks for posting the interview! He does seem like a great guy! 
__________________
Posted by Rory on 12-06-2008 at 21:45:
Dear James,
I'll just put my two cents worth on this, so I hope you won't get offended.
I was rather late in actually getting into the comic books, so I was not around to see what happened during the time they were released. But from what Wilson had hinted to me, Sharriff got more than his share of criticisms from the fans. Okay, I must admit that on a writing standpoint, his script is not perfect (I've seen grammar and typo errors in the comic book. But this oversight could also be blamed on the editor.) I must also admit that his way of depicting the characters' personalities were off or over exaggerated. I DO NOT have anything to complain about the plot though, because it was too tightly woven together that I could understand the frustration of a few that it was left hanging.
HOWEVER, if you look at it from the standpoint of a writer, there is nothing more difficult than doing stories that are based on a popular, well-loved title. Wilson said as much. In a way, the BoTP comic books could be said to be OFFICIALLY sanctioned "fanfics". So what happens is a writer would tend to depict a character the way he or she perceived them. And this is what Sharriff did. The problem is his perception of the characters differed from the way the irate majority pictured them. It's a scenario that happens in fan fiction circles. A writer attempts a unique, fresh approach; he or she gets criticized or even flamed for what they did. Writer's pride naturally gets in the way. Honestly speaking, would a writer want a reader to tell him or her how he or she should write? He wouldn't be a writer then; he would just be a stenographer. So what is a writer to do when faced with this kind of scenario? They either fade into oblivion or argue/fight back, which Sharriff lamentably did.
I will not presume to judge Sharriff's motives for doing the hanging ending. However, while as you said there were many fans whom you said "did not care about his writing", I've also seen that there are also fans who would've cared to find out how it would've ended and how it would've progressed if the comic book had been allowed to continue. I must admit to being one of them, especially after Wilson told me about the "second series" and the new characters that they were going to introduce. Sadly, for those who DID care about the comic books, we would never know.
In any case, if the reader reaction is to be the gauge for any comic books in the future, Tatsunoko Pro would be better off doing a comic book/manga version of the three original series AS IS, rather than let it be "improved", "tampered" with in any way. I could already imagine what the audience's reaction would be to Director Jun's "re-imagining" in the Gatchaman CGI movie.
Again, I am sorry if I have caused offense in any way.
Sincerely,
Rory
Posted by Rory on 12-06-2008 at 21:48:
To LB, Condorfan, Firebird and Springie,
You are very welcome. I'm glad you loved the interview. I really wish you lived in the Philippines so that you would have the opportunity to meet Wilson personally. You would've loved him. Just yesterday, we shared text messages and I inadvertently distracted him from his work to watch Gatchaman, which was airing at 11 am.
I'll actually be seeing Wilson at Toycon tomorrow. I'll pass on to him your regards.
Sincerely,
Rory
Posted by tatsunokofan on 13-06-2008 at 00:03:
Hi all!
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I don't know how much was said about it here (Or even if this site existed back then). It was on the Yahoo! Groups Battle of the Planets message board that I saw most of the fan reactions. They're still in the archive, if you've signed up there and want to take the time to look.
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I don't know that he got "more than his share." He was on the list, and some of the comments he made there certainly warranted replies. It was a case where he'd have been better off if he'd just learned to shut up.
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Honestly, from what I've read of most comics these days, none of them have a true editor.They have someone with that job title that makes sure things get from Point A to Point B, but not a person who actually edits the material to make certain it's as strong as it could be. That's comics in general, not just the BotP one. Where's Julius Schwartz when you need him...
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That frustration was felt by a lot of fans. The worst part about it is that is didn't have to be that way. As I said, Sharriff had plenty of advance warning that the comic was coming to an end (If I remember correctly, he was writing issue 8 or 9 when word came down that the book was going to end with issue 12). There was no need for him to throw in a cliffhanger, but he did it anyway, despite knowing that there were no plans for a book that would resolve the cliffhanger at that time (The plans to publish "Coup de Gras" didn't come up until later). In my view, that showed great disrespect for the readers of the comic.
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His portrayal of the characters was an area that caused a lot of consternation among fans, myself included. A lot of this stemmed from that fact that this book was a "Battle of the Planets" comic, and that's not what Sharriff was writing. He was writing it as though it was a "Gatchaman" comic with BotP names. Despite the similarities between the two, the BotP characters are not interchangable with their "Gatchaman" counterparts. Simply put, if you're going to sell it as a BotP comic, it should be a BOTP comic, not "Gatchaman Lite."
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From what I've heard, that second series was the long-term goal from the beginning of the book -- to replace the original G-Force with a new G-Force that would have new Alex Ross-designed uniforms that Sandy Frank could use to avoid having to pay the licensing fee to Tatsunoko for the originals. While it could have been interesting if handled properly, the entire motivation behind it was monetary.
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Actually, if Tatsunoko handled things with the care they've put into their new "Yatterman" remake, they could probably do quite well with a "Gatchaman" remake. Yes, there would be some fans who would hate it. That's unavoidable, I'm afraid. But there are plenty of others who would enjoy it, assuming they capture the spirit of the original like they've done with "Yatterman." That's why I'm very interested in seeing the remake Tatsunoko and Madhouse are doing of "Casshan" when it debuts this Fall, since it could give us a chance to see how they'd handle a remake of a drama instead of a comedy.
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There are those who are sure that Kevin Munroe's leaving of the project spells certain doom, but most people are taking a more reasonable wait-and-see attitude. Since we're operating in a nearly complete vacuum of information at this point, it's impossible to predict what she'll bring to the project. Personally, until I see and hear some details, I'm going to give her the benefit of a doubt and hope she can pull it off.
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No worries there. It's all a matter of opinion, and yours is as valid as mine.
James
Posted by gatchgirl on 14-06-2008 at 17:47:
Thanks for sharing the interview with us Rory.... It's great to hear that Jason wasn't a traitor... or of the such. Even though I know that he would only pretend to join with Spectra!
__________________
" No gratitude needs to be voiced, your mind speaks to us!"
Racer by day, Feather Thrower all the time!
Posted by Tengu on 14-06-2008 at 21:02:
I thought Jason only joined Spectra for the opportunity of an army of Jason clones.
(and the Jesse versions...)
__________________
"If you think I am a Condor, you may keep that opinion;
Though I am no Condor, my Skylines rusty enough."
Posted by Rory on 15-06-2008 at 04:37:
To Gatchgirl, Tengu and everyone who has been reading this thread,
Thank you that you have enjoyed reading this interview.
Aya and I have spent quite a long time speaking with Wilson (aka Condorman) at Toycon yesterday. I wish I could say I was happy about the things I learned about the BoTP comic books, because now I'm pretty sure that I personally got short-ended about the hanging ending, and NOT by Munier Sharrieff as soooo many fans have presumed it to be.
I don't know how much I could divulge without getting Wilson in trouble. But here's the added information he told me. THIS IS FACT, AND NOT BASED ON PURELY FAN CONJECTURE.
1) The blame for how the story was written DOES NOT fall exclusively on Sharrieff's lap. Although he was credited as the writer, he was in constant collaboration with Alex Ross who was IN CHARGE of the project.
2) As Wilson put it, the MAIN problem that the entire creative team had with the comic books is that they were dealing with a largely MIXED fandom. Some loved "Gatchaman" more than "Battle of the Planets" or vice versa. Some loved the OVA. Some loved "G-Force" more than "Battle of the Planets". That is why they tried to put in elements of these various incarnations into the comic book. Sadly, the result of this is that the reactions to it are MIXED as well. BUT, one must question if people on both sides -- namely the comic book team AND the fans -- also DID NOT OVERREACT to this.
3) As to the claim that Sharrieff knew in advance that the comic book was going to end but still put up a cliffhanger...Wilson also knew about it and, yes, he also did ask why. However, the move was not to give the "one-finger salute" to the fans. It seems that both Sharrieff and Ross tried the cliffhanger approach to see if it would generate a rise in sales. This is common practice even in the television industry. Sadly, it did not work.
4) As for Jason, Wilson confirmed it. The guy whom Zoltar was speaking to in the LAST few pages of Issue 12 was definitely NOT Jason. He is a totally different character who dates back from before G-Force was created and who, like Zoltar, has a grudge with Anderson. Sadly, I could not reveal his name.
5) So what did happen to Jason? Apparently, Jason got separated from the team when they rescued Anderson and the President. The Second Series would have begun with Jason's reunion with G-Force and, as Tatsunokofan had mentioned, the introduction of a new team, which would assist G-Force in defeating Zoltar's warrior clones. Wilson absolutely DID NOT mention any plans that they've had of spinning off this new team into a separate comic book.
Wilson still told me A LOT about what was supposed to happen in the Second Series, but I will honor his wishes not to divulge anything. But I have to admit to feeling very disappointed about what has happened during the making of the comic books. While it seems a lot of people are quick to blame Sharrieff, sorry, but I can't help but wonder if overzealous and overly critical fans should not also share the blame in what happened.
My apologies again for my opinions. I guess you could say I've been in the entertainment business long enough to see just how fans could not only help in making a project successful, but also lead to its utter ruin. Sometimes, it really does make you wonder just how much power should fans actually have in influencing how a TV show, novel or comic book should run.
Now, I go to do a bunch of deadlines, so I won't be seeing you folks for a couple of weeks. Again, thanks for reading the interview and sorry for my strong opinions about this matter.
Sincerely,
Rory
Posted by Springie on 16-06-2008 at 11:26:
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ACK! No more uber-secret information! *Springie covers her eyes* I want to remain blissfully ignorant that I don't know anything!
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Posted by Tengu on 16-06-2008 at 16:03:
So he is NOT Jason...
Is he anyone we know??
__________________
"If you think I am a Condor, you may keep that opinion;
Though I am no Condor, my Skylines rusty enough."
Posted by Condorfan on 16-06-2008 at 17:30:
Again, thanks to Rory for sharing his information from Wilson and the great interview.
I know I am in the minority, but I actually liked the comic book series. I liked the fact that they seemed more like the characters on Gatchaman. I also liked the subplot of the rivalry between Mark and Jason over Princess. That was something I would have like to seen in any of the Gatchaman incarnations. I suppose they should have just named the series "Gatchaman" and perhaps more people would have enjoyed it. From Rory's comments, it seems that Top Cow was trying to please everyone and ended up pleasing no one. Don't get me wrong, I think fan input is important especially if the persons involved in a project don't know the history of the characters, story, etc. However, I also believe that someone should follow his/her own vision and make the best project they can. I remember reading a quote from Gene Roddenberry who said "If I listened to the fans, Star Trek would be sh**."
I hope I have not offended anyone with this opinion, it's just my 
__________________
Old age is a high price to pay for maturity.
Posted by SJ_SwanJun on 16-06-2008 at 19:57:
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Oh yeah ... yeah ... yeah
There were certainly more than a few instances on "the list" where the man needed to defend himself - remember the scathing accusation of plagarism by a certain member of the Coven because -- oh heaven forbid -- noone else on the whole planet could possibly associate black with evil and white with purity ...
In my book the man was more than justified in fighting back as bitterly as he did.
I am not his biggest fan by any stretch of the imagination, I am far less a fan of the Yahoo List and their seemingly deliberately condescending/holier than thou attack on the poor man.
I was on the list for that whole mess. Honestly, that poor man couldn't have stepped in to the wrong playground. Bad decision on his part ... no writer should ever set foot into a fan forum board and expect them to play nice ....
But off that.
Rory, thanks for sharing. I might not have been a huge fan of his rendering of my beloved Swan, but he did okay everywhere else ....!
I love to see he's a level-headed, honest and humble guy - and Prin & Jase? He's a Swan/Condor shipper?
:giggle:
SJ
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Sighhh
Why do men snore when lying on their backs?
Because their balls fall over their butt holes and they vapour lock.
Posted by tatsunokofan on 16-06-2008 at 20:06:
Hi all!
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That's interesting, since very little is ever said regarding the involvement Ross had with the project. Aside from the cover art, he seemed to divorce himself from the comic very quickly, at least in public.
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Condorfan said exactly what I was thinking in regards to this. Did fans overreact to this? Probably, but not entirely without reason to do so.
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It's nice to know that at least one member of the creative staff questioned this very questionable decision.
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So, they were hoping that there would be a massive fan outcry that would demand the continuation of the series? Well, they got a fan outcry, but one more of rage and disgust that the issue advertised as the grand finale was anything but. Perhaps things would have been different if this was a TV show, where the viewers don't have to pay money to watch it. A comic is different in that people have to spend their hard-earned money every month to read it. If they don't like what they're getting, they're not going to spend that money.
Quite frankly, that was exactly what a lot of comic buyers did, and the sales numbers on the comic prove it. In case you care, here's exactly how the 12-issue run of the comic breaks down. We have its placement on a list of the top 300 comics published in a given month, the issue number, and the total number of issues sent to comic stores.:
July, 2002
3. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #1 - 139,678 total
Standard Version with variant covers - 109,797
Holofoil cover - 26,186
Dynamic Forces variant cover - 3,695
August, 2002
15. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #2 - 71,982
September, 2002
19 . BATTLE O/T PLANETS #3 - 60,743
October, 2002
26. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #4 - 50,617
November, 2002
31. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #5 - 43,435
December, 2002
39. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #6 - 38,208
February, 2003
51. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #7 - 29,748
March, 2003
68. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #8 - 28,333
May, 2003
78. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #9 - 26,902
84. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #10 - 24,841
July, 2003
91. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #11 - 24,805
August, 2003
106. BATTLE O/T PLANETS #12 - 21,142
You might notice something significant about those total numbers. With each and every issue, the total number drops. Now, I'd certainly forgive the significant drop from the first to the second issue, since the first issue had all the variants and the hoopla surrounding it, but for the next 6 issues after that to lose between 5,000 and 10,000 in sales with each progressive issue shows me that they just weren't giving people what they wanted. And most of that had to be coming from the average comic reader dropping the title, since the fans, for all their complaints, were still buying each issue as they came out.
With sales dropping as they were, it makes me wonder why they would ever have thought that including a cliffhanger in the last issue would generate enough of a response to "force" Top Cow into publishing a sequel. Well, they did eventually get that opportunity, but the lack of significant preorders for it demonstrated just how few people were willing to pay money to see it. Fool me once, and all that.
Regardless, all this didn't stop Wilson's artwork from being an enjoyable part of every issue.
James
Posted by lborgia88 on 16-06-2008 at 21:21:
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I hope you meet your deadlines, Rory. After about 1979, I forgot all about BOTP until late in 2006, and then I became a Gatchaman fan. Other than some images posted here and maybe a couple other places, I've never seen Top Cow's BOTP comics, but I sure have read about them! Thanks for sharing with us the new information you got from your interview with Wilson Tortosa.
Posted by Ebonyswanne on 16-06-2008 at 23:26:
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George Lucas hasn't put his stamp totally on that yet??? Yipppeeee....
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I have to admit, I'm with SJ about the Swans changes. Tatsumoko got her right the first time round why change her to much.
Wilson is a very good artist, I have seen bits of the comics but they didn't entice me to buy them from what I saw.
I love my Gatchaman...and BOTP but I don't see the need to constantly combine them in publications like comics. (Fanfic, well since the author isn't getting paid for it...and usually they do it as a cross over anyway.) The two series had two separate universes and character traits.
Thanks for the interview Rory.
ITA Enough of the baiting... we simple can't take any more secrets....
__________________
Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up- Pablo Picasso.
Posted by Blackbird on 18-06-2008 at 03:06:
Thank you for the wonderful interview, Rory.
I thought you approached some very controversial issues (the comic) very nicely when interviewing Tortosa.
And please, thank him for helping to clarify some issues surrounding the comic.
I liked that he can laugh at himself about his trademark pouty lips. He did give the characters in the BotP comic quite a few puffers at times, but the art was never really at issue for me. I enjoyed it, as above all, I could still visually recognize them as characters I know. And really, some of the art was jaw dropping amazing.
Thank you again. 
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