Amazonian Goddess Gloriana Demeter, also know as Glory, appeared in 91 IMAGE comic books; appearing for the first time in Rob Liefeld's YOUNGBLOOD. She later went on to star in her very own, self-titled series. So what happened to the busty platinum blonde?
IMAGE Comics recently solicited the relaunch of GLORY which will feature writer Joe Keatinge and the art of Ross Campbell. This all-new GLORY is incredibly different from the Glory we knew before. With the help of Campbell, Joe Keatinge's GLORY will not only look very different from the original version, but she will be very different as well. We recently caught up with Joe Keatinge to find out about his adaptation of GLORY and to hear about his all-new creator owned book titled HELL YEAH.
Comic Vine: What is it like to relaunch GLORY with Ross Campbell? What is the creative process like between the two of you? How much input does Campbell have on the development of the story? Do you bounce ideas off one another?
Joe Keatinge: Ross is very much the ideal collaborator. There's always a risk with work-for-hire that you'll be paired with someone you don't exactly gel with and despite not knowing Ross before coming together for Glory, we've come very much in sync and have become friends. While I do develop the story more or less on my own, I bring Ross into the process when it's more or less formed and see what feedback he has. I don't like the idea of just turning over a script to an artist and expecting them to like it. I want it to be something they're having fun drawing. While the core story may have been the same, how I would have gone about it would have been different if I was collaborating with a different artist.
== TEASER ==
CV: The character looks very different than her previous appearances. Does this fact at all reflect the overall tone of the story?
JK: Yeah, absolutely. The approach to Glory and the story were crafted simultaneously. In my initial pitch I specifically stated I wanted her to look like a warrior - like a weapon, moreso than a classic superheroine. And the story is very much about what happens when that weapon is fired, so to speak. Her destiny was annihilation and once that happens, well, where do you go from there? I want people to look at her and think she's the biggest bad ass in comics. I wanted her to look like she could take on Supreme and not break a sweat.
CV: If you can sum up Glory in three words what would they be?
JK: She'll break you.
CV: We know that Glory is half-Amazon and half-Demon warrior princess but the average reader might not. What else can you tell us about the character? Will this relaunch take into account a lot of her character history?
JK: Glory was born Glorianna Demeter by her warrior queen mother and her demon king father, ending the war their ancestor started eons before they existed. She was trained from birth to eventually lead a united form of both sides or destroy either one if they ever got out of line. After hundreds of years of training she eventually left her people for Earth to see new ways of living, but her father eventually betrayed the truce, causing Glory to clash with him. The original comics concentrated on their conflict, ours start when it's over. Glory fought the war. It ended. Now she's a bit lost, unsure of where to go next and unhappy with the result of everything she has ever been trained for.
CV: What is it about Glory that drew you to her character?
JK: There was an opportunity to take a superhero genre-based character and do something on a very different scale and approach than most superhero comics. She's royalty, she's a doomsday device. Once I was in, it was hard to stop. I initially developed a plan that would take us through issue #50, now I'm envisioning taking it up to #100, assuming sales and editorial allow it. I'm really in love with all the characters here, especially Glory and one we introduce in our first issue who will be a major player in the entire run, however long it is.
CV: You have a lot of projects you're preparing, including a creator owned book being published through IMAGE titled HELL YEAH. Can you tell us a little bit about that?
JK: Hell Yeah is the ongoing superhero series I've developed ever since I realized human beings actually made comics. Its taken many forms over the years over a variety of names, including a one-act play I wrote and directed in college, up until its current form. It's about society twenty years after the first superheroes appear and what a group like Youngblood's effect would be on culture - from the very basics to how we live to pop culture overall. What form does music take in a world like this? How do you measure up in a world where someone can run across the planet? The first arc is about a guy named Ben Day, who discovers every other version of him throughout reality has been murdered and his long-time girlfriend from another dimension has come to our world to save him.
CV: Where did you get your inspiration for the story?
JK: All sorts of places. It started by having an intense love and passion for comics, specifically the early Image books, but the inspirations come from all over the place, whether it's music, movies or life experiences. The fashion world was big on how our heroes would look. I advised Andre early on to not look at other superhero comics, but rather crack open an issue of Vogue France. They already look like they have superpowers! I probably gained more direct influence from people like Andy Warhol than I did, say, Clark Kent.
CV: You have a long history with IMAGE, having previously worked in their Marketing department. How much of that influenced your decision to publish HELL YEAH through IMAGE?
JK: It helped in that I've now have a great relationship and a huge amount of trust in their Publisher, Eric Stephenson, and partners including Erik Larsen, Jim Valentino and Robert Kirkman. However, HELL YEAH was first inspired when I read Image Comics in their inception in 1992. Specific comics like Spawn #10, Youngblood #6, Savage Dragon #21 and Casual Heroes #1 (to name a few) were massive influences on me to want to create my own ongoing superhero series through Image. It took a number of iterations from then through high school and college and was eventually shelved. I never felt it had a chance of becoming a real thing until I met series artist Andre Szymanowicz. Without him I probably would have never tried to do Hell Yeah, but when I saw his work I knew I found the best possible collaborator for the series. He had a lot of the same influences as I did, including Image. Sometimes a book is just destined to be at a publisher. Hell Yeah is an Image book by both design and destiny.
The first issue of GLORY will be written by Joe Keatinge and will feature the art of Ross Campbell. Glory's creator, Rob Liefeld, will be contributing to the title with a variant cover for the book. GLORY #1 is set for release on February 15th, 2012. The first issue of HELL YEAH, also written by Keatinge, will hit store shelves on March 7th, 2012. Check out the five-page preview of the first issue of GLORY below and be sure to let us know whether you are looking forward to either of these two comic books.
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