Interview: Garth Ennis Talks The Boys- Highland Laddie

Not too long ago we posted the preview images to Garth Ennis' upcoming mini series HIGHLAND LADDIE which will focus on The Boys character Hughie and tell his origin story. The mini series will be written by Ennis with art from John McCrea and will hit store shelves this August. I know a lot of you were excited about the thought of a mini series by Ennis that would focus on Hughie's character, so we thought it would be cool to catch up with the writer of The Boys to ask him a few questions. Check out the interview with Ennis below as well as some awesome exclusive preview art courtesy of Dynamite Entertainment. 
  
Comic Vine: Where did you draw your inspiration for Hughie's story?
Garth Ennis: There are nods to some very old British comic characters and titles, as well as the early teenage fiction I read as a kid. Hughie and his childhood friends fancied themselves as a band of junior detectives, kind of Hardy Boys/Three Investigators gone badly awry. Some of the more mundane aspects of the story even reflect my own childhood experiences, as well as those of friends.

CV: Why did you decide to tell Hughie's tale in a 6 part mini opposed to publishing it as a part of The Boys series?
GE: Due to some upcoming developments, Hughie's going to be out of the monthly for a while. A miniseries seemed the obvious way to give people their Hughie fix in the meantime, while also telling the story of his homecoming and origin.
 

CV: Do you have plans on telling the story of other Boys characters? If so, will you be working with John on those as well?
GE: The Butcher miniseries will see print about a year after Hughie's. And Hughie's story also contains the origin of another Boys character.

CV: As a series, The Boys definitely pushed the envelope as far as content is concerned. Then, you released Herogasm, pushing the envelope even further. Will this 6-part mini be similar (stylistically) to The Boys, or closer to what we saw in Herogasm?
GE: It's a much quieter story than Herogasm, although there are some odd little moments scattered throughout it. One thing it does share with last year's mini is the mid-series twist; you think you're reading one thing, then issue four turns it all upsidedown.

CV: Is this a story you wanted to tell from the very beginning, or a story you realized you wanted to tell when you got further into writing The Boys?
GE: I always knew I was going to tell Hughie's story eventually, and the broad strokes of the story were there from the beginning. The details filled themselves in as the monthly progressed.

CV: What is it like working with John? Do you collaborate on ideas?
GE: John and I have been working together for twenty years, so we're practically telepathic at this point. It's pretty seamless, really; he knows what I'm looking for and I give him enough stuff to keep him entertained.
 
Will you be picking up this series this August? What do you think of the interior panels below?