Interview: J.M. DeMatteis Unwraps JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK

 Justice League Dark is evolving, and one of its most conspicuous additions is the mysterious Nightmare Nurse. Currently the focus of a story arc in the monthly title, the nurse otherwise known as Asa the Healer is just one of a cast of characters writer J.M. DeMatteis is unwrapping for us in the coming months. We sat down with the writer to get a thoughtful preview of where the team is headed, as October’s Annual looks to upend the Justice League once again!

Justice_League_Dark_Vol_1_31_Textless

Cover art by Mikel Janin

Matt Santori: Thanks for taking time away from the House of Mystery, J.M! As one of the co-creators of Nightmare Nurse, is this a story you’ve wanted to tell since the character’s introduction?

J.M. DeMatteis: Not really.

When she first appeared, Nightmare Nurse was as much a mystery to me as to the readers.  All we knew was the broad strokes.  But as I’ve continued to use her, the character has slowly been revealing herself to me and the time felt right to peel back one layer of the onion and learn something about her past.

And that’s all this is: one layer. There’s still so much about Asa that we don’t know…and the mystery is part of the fun.

MSG: We’re definitely seeing divided allegiances among the Justice Leaguers, which is no surprise, but what is surprising is that I’m not sure who we’re supposed to be rooting for. Is Asa deliberately a foil to the traditionally straight-as-an-arrow Zatanna, and will we be seeing her good side in this dilemma as well?

JMD: Asa is a complex character with many different layers and levels.  She’s a demon, she’s a healer, she’s a manipulator, she’s a hero, she’s a slave to her passions and she can rise above them.  Part of her journey, I think, is seeing which aspect of her nature will dominate.

Cover art by Mikel Janin

Cover art by Mikel Janin

MSG: Swamp Thing, the newest member of the team, is definitely what you might call an unwilling participant. What drew you to his character and what role do you see him serving on the team as a whole?

JMD: I’ve always loved Swamp Thing. The original Wein-Wrightson run remains one of my all-time favorites and I almost wrote the series twice back in the 80’s. (I was offered the book but, for various reasons, had to turn it down both times.)

Having Swamp Thing in the Justice League Dark allows me to finally write the character after all these years and it’s been a genuine pleasure.  At the moment, as you note, he’s a reluctant member of the team, but his instincts always draw him toward the good, so — however he got there — he wants to help. I also think he’s more comfortable with Zatanna in charge:  Holland pretty much loathes John Constantine.  (Well, at the moment, almost everybody does!)

Having a classic character like Swamp Thing on the team also brings a sense of history, of continuity, to the book. He is, in many ways, the seed from which the dark side of the DCU sprouted.

Cover art by Mikel Janin

Cover art by Mikel Janin

MSG: One of the most curious mentions in issue #31 is the personification, and reactions, of the House of Mystery itself. Do you imagine him — or her — to be the team’s sixth member, so to speak, and how do you begin to write a place with so much power behind it?

JMD: As soon as I started writing the book I could feel the House as something alive.  Not necessarily alive in the way we understand it, but there’s definitely a consciousness there, with an agenda of its own. We’ll be exploring that more deeply in the Justice League Dark Annual which will be out in the fall, It’s a big story that ignites an even bigger story in the monthly.

MSG: How has the relationship with new ongoing artist Andres Guinaldo been working out, and what do you think he brings to the title that is uniquely his?

JMD: As heartbreaking as it was losing Mikel Janin — he’s one of the very best artists working in the business right now — it’s been great watching Andres step in and make the book his own.  He’s a fluid storyteller, he’s comfortable with both the human and supernatural aspects of the series (and it’s so important to balance both), and he draws an incredible Swamp Thing.  It’s a pleasure working with him and I look forward to watching his work evolve in the months ahead

MSG: To some degree, the Justice League Dark has been driven to their adventures purely by circumstance to date, and not really sought out their challenges in a more super hero-style context. Will we be seeing the team go after any particular dangers or missions in the future, and how does a more reactive mission define the team for you as a writer?

Justice_League_Dark_Vol_1_Futures_End-1_Cover-2_Teaser

Cover art by Juan Ferreya

JMD: I think it’s been a little of both. In Forever Evil: Blight, John made a very conscious decision to go after, and neutralize, Blight.  He put together the team, defined the mission, so he wasn’t just reacting to events.

We’ve got a massive story kicking off in the fall — spinning out of the aforementioned Annual — that combines both approaches, in that the team is thrust into a harrowing situation and then has to very consciously set out on a mission to…  Well, I’m not giving that away.

MSG: Any final thoughts or special teases for upcoming issues of Justice League Dark?

JMD: The summer issues focus on Deadman — another of my all-time favorite characters — and then we get the Futures End issue, which is a very dark and disturbing look into the team’s future (and features yet another of my all-time favorite supernatural characters, the Demon).

After that, we jump into the Annual story, which focuses on Zatanna’s relationship with the House of Mystery; and that, in turn, leads to a six month epic that will pretty much span all time and space and bring Frankenstein, Black Orchid and Andrew Bennett back to the team.

I’m especially looking forward to writing Bennett, since I…Vampire was the first series I ever created, in my first year or so in the business, It’s a nice homecoming.  Now if I can just find some way to work the Creature Commandos in!

J.M. DeMatties doesn’t just write Justice League Dark monthly for DC Comics, but can also be found at the helm of another Dark book — Trinity of Sin: Phantom Stranger — and another Justice League book — Justice League 3000. How about that?

 

Authors

Related posts

One Comment;

  1. toecutter said:

    This series is amazing since the start. One of the better of original new books to come out of the New 52.

Top