INTERVIEW: Don’t get caught alone in ‘The Whispering Dark’
The tagline for Dark Horse’s new comic book, The Whispering Dark, offers a promise of things to come: “Be careful, lest the light in you be darkness.”
That darkness is experienced by the reader through the eyes of Hannah Vance, the protagonist of the new series from the minds of writer Christofer Emgård and artist Tomás Aira. Written in the same vein as H.P. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness (and perhaps inspired by Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now), the new comic book delves into a supernatural thriller involving Hannah, an Army pilot, who believes she can survive anything in life. That resolve is tested when she’s shot down behind enemy lines and must deal with something/someone otherworldly.
Emgård, of Star Wars Battlefront II, wrote the four-part series, while Aira, of Night of the Living Dead: Aftermath, created the art. Mauro Mantella provided the lettering.
Recently, Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Emgård about the series. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
What can fans expect from The Whispering Dark?
I’m hoping they’ll find a haunting and harrowing tale about what war can do to people. It’s also an exploration into the nature of reality, the monsters that lurk just beyond it, and what might happen when madness creeps in and we no longer can trust our conscience to guide us.
How would you describe the character of Hannah Vance?
Hannah is earnest, well-meaning and eager to prove herself. She’s an excellent helicopter pilot, but has no experience of infantry combat, and the prospect of it both scares and excites her. Her faith is her bastion against the crawling darkness that surrounds her, but will it be enough?
Did you two always agree on the direction of the comic book?
Tomás has proven amazing to work with in that he’s intuitively grasped my intent behind [the] story. Where he did things differently from the script it only made the scenes stronger. So yes, I’d say we’ve been in agreement all the way.
How long do you anticipate the series continuing, and how far in advance do you work?
The Whispering Dark is a limited series, so this story will end with the fourth issue. I’m working on some other ideas based on the same mythology, but whether they’ll be tightly or loosely connected with The Whispering Dark remains to be seen. I can’t tell you yet when any of them might be published, but hopefully not too far into the future.
Growing up, did you enjoy reading supernatural horror stories?
I did! And plenty of them, too. I’ve always been a voracious reader, and I was only 9 when I discovered Stephen King. I wouldn’t recommend Pet Sematary or The Shining to any kid that age, but they affected me deeply. And I’ve been enamored with the genre ever since. I’m not so much for vampires and zombies, but serve me up some tentacles with a side of creeping insanity, and I’ll devour it in a flash and ask for seconds.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
The Whispering Dark #1 by Christofer Emgård and Tomás Aira is now available from Dark Horse. Click here for more information.
