CREATOR SPOTLIGHT: Writer of CHANGE and ZERO Ales Kot
Browsing through the racks at your local comic book shop can be a daunting task, even to those that feverishly scurry there every “New Comic Books Day” each Wednesday. Should you go with the safe and easy choice of a Marvel and/or DC title? Should you try something new via Image Comics or Vertigo? Dare I say sniff out the local Zine section? I say (cash permitting) try ‘em all. This strategy has lead me to an up-and-coming writer who seems to have presence in every nook and cranny of the comic shop lately. And I am all the better because of this discovery. I am of course talking about Czech comic book writer Ales Kot.
Now I’m not here to flesh out his whole life back story, detail where he grew up, or even how he got his break in “the biz” (although I’m sure it’s interesting). Nah, instead I’m going to approach this as a fellow nerd who just wants something fresh and new on comic book stands. And let me tell you, Kot delivers.
My first experience joining the Kot-club (I made that up) was with an Image Comics title called ZERO that came out about six months ago (currently issue #6 is on stands). The unique thing about this book is that each issue is illustrated by a new artist. Fun stuff. And I’ll be honest, the imagery is what drug me in with issue #1 and the prospect of artist Tradd Moore (LUTHER STRODE!!) contributing to issue #2 was all I needed to stay for awhile. Adventuring through issues #1-5 was a blast thanks to Kot’s words and storytelling prowess. Part 'Spy Thriller’, part 'Action Adventure’, and part 'awesome’ was just the medicine I was looking for. Kot presented me with equal parts action, mystery, and suspense creating one of the most uniquely entertaining books I’ve read in awhile. Basically, what I’m saying is that I “google’d” the guys name after issue #1 to see what else my greedy nerd belly could gobble up next. While there isn’t a lot to chew on just yet, what’s there is damn tasty.
My friend Leef (who happens to own Mission: Comics & Art in San Francisco), let me borrow some of Kot’s first efforts including WILD CHILDREN and CHANGE both through Image Comics, who are getting quite the lovely reputation for dishing out a lot of quality creator-owned stories. WILD CHILDREN is a short, but psychedelically sweet story that is a pretty great introduction to Kot and his (likely drug-induced) antics. It’s trippy, brings up some interesting topics worth arguing, and is the perfect appetizer leading into another of his books called CHANGE.
To me, CHANGE is Kot’s sweet spot. It’s as if the reader is granted access into his multi-layered and endearingly poetic mind for a little while. While at times it comes off as a bit confusing (in a good way), it always has that “hook” I thirst for in a book. While reading, I could not help thinking about the novel GET SHORTY by Elmore Leonard (a bad ass!) and there were definitely a number of times I thought about the works of science-fiction master Phillip K. Dick. These are all good comparisons and once an alligator showed up wearing a tux, I just melted into my couch and finished the book with a goofy ass grin on my face the whole time. This book was my kind of weird.
After my mind was done absorbing ZERO, WILD CHILDREN, and CHANGE I ventured into Kot’s Marvel and DC territory. I just sniffed at his work on DC’s SUICIDE SQUAD and really liked what I saw, and his recent takes on SECRET AVENGERS and IRON PATRIOT have been fun (yet often reserved) reads so far. Kot definitely shines as a poet first in his creator-owned efforts, and I will look forward to seeing how far off the leash the big boyz at Marvel and DC will let Kot go. Because at the end of the day, we all know an unleashed Ales Kot is a very good thing. Keep it up my man…keep it up.
Words by Jason Furie
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image: From Image Comic’s CHANGE; Art by Morgan Jeske and Sloane Leong