Eisner Judges Interview: Behind the ScenesBY Steve Ahlquist, with able assists from Chris ReillyFor those who need to keep score, the Eisner judges this year were comics writer Chris Reilly, pop culture blogger Whitney Matheson (USA Today), fantasy author Jeff VanderMeer, retailer James Sime (Isotope, San Francisco), and librarian Robin Brenner (
noflyingnotights.com). Given that Chris Reilly (more used to standing before judges than being one) and I are good friends and frequent collaborators, I found myself in a unique position to run some questions by four of the five Eisner judges shortly after their return from San Diego this April. All but Robin Brenner were able to reply.
One of this year’s big winners was cartoonistBob Burden with four nominations.His version of Gumby with artist Rick Gearyis up for three Eisners (including Best Writer),while his Flaming Carrot Comicsis up for Best Humor Publication..
THE PULSE: I want to start before the beginning, and ask you all a simple question: With all the people living on this planet, how did you get to be Eisner Judges?CHRIS REILLY: I wish I had a smart-ass answer to that, but the other judges had a real humbling effect on me. I would like to think that I was chosen for my knowledge of sequential art and ability to separate the work from the creators. I was chosen for my ability to> bag some people I really like, and give high scores to others that if I were on a boat, and they were drowning, I would have finished my umbrella drink before I considered tossing them a life preserver.WHITNEY MATHESON: It was luck! Jackie Estrada approached me at the Small Press Expo, where I was participating in a panel, and asked me if I’d be interested. Of course I said yes -- who wouldn’t want to embrace this once-in-a-lifetime experience?JAMES SIME: I’d like to think it was my fine taste in suits and shoes, but I think it’s more likely that I was asked to participate as an Eisner judge because I own a swanky-cool comic book store in San Francisco that has been pretty popular with folks in the industry.I came into the comic industry with a mission to redefine the perception of what comics retail was and what it could be, to create the kind of sexy funnybook shop that I thought would appeal to people who wanted to check out these new “graphic novels” they’ve been reading about in The New Yorker and Entertainment Weekly, and to help shine the spotlight on good comics and graphic novels throughout the entire American comics industry. That’s what Isotope is all about, and I’m blessed because people seem to really like what my staff and I are doing.THE PULSE: What was your reaction when you were offered a position on the Eisner Committee?CHRIS REILLY: Thrilled, honored, intimidated and really worried that I couldn’t afford the flight and hotel. The terror faded when I spoke with Jackie Estrada, and she told me that Comic-Con International took care of all the financial junk. They treated us like the kings of Persia (just pick one, I don’t remember their names).JEFF VANDERMEER: I e-mailed Jackie back about five seconds after she e-mailed me and said yes. I didn’t require the offer to cross from my optical nerves into my synapses before I said yes.WHITNEY MATHESON: I was thrilled. I knew it would be an opportunity to meet cool people, read a ton of comics and have some really interesting discussions, and I was definitely up for it. And I kind of enjoyed seeing the jealous looks on my friends’ faces after I told them...JAMES SIME: Absolutely excited! The Eisners are comics’ highest honor, chosen with great care, and bestowed upon a very few each year. You simply can’t talk about the awards without recognizing that they celebrate everything great and wonderful that the comics industry has to offer. It was truly an honor to get to be a part of the process.THE PULSE: I want to put you on the spot. Can you give me your impressions of the other Eisner judges? Start with Robin Brenner, she’s not here to defend herself.CHRIS REILLY: Robin was great, because she was our window to manga. She opened my eyes to material that would have never been on the ballot if it wasn’t for her. Cool girl, class act.JEFF VANDERMEER: Insane leader of a criminal gang of tiger taunters. Specialized in being a manga expert and in her off-hours is the superhero Ninja Sword Hands Woman.WHITNEY MATHESON: Before we arrived in San Diego I knew Robin would be fun to be around -- she’s extremely knowledgeable and passionate about comics, and I probably should’ve taken a tape recorder to get all of her manga wisdom on record. And not to state the obvious or anything, but she’s also female -- it was great having another woman in the room!JAMES SIME: Robin’s the coolest!I knew from the moment I sat down at that big table that Robin and I were going to get along. Right away the two of us were talking comics and she was a blast to have as a fellow judge. She’s super smart, incredibly funny, and talks all that young librarian lingo that we nerd boys like.As an aside, I read some significant amount of manga. But I’ll tell you, knowing what an expert Robin is on the subject had me a little intimidated! I mean, I sell comics for a living, and I wasn’t thrilled about her making me look bad! Instead I was thrilled when she started mentioning her favorite manga books and most of them were the ones I liked too!THE PULSE: Chris Reilly?JEFF VANDERMEER: Demented lead singer for the band Trout Lures. Specialized in being an agent provocateur and in his off-hours is the superhero Inyerface Man.WHITNEY MATHESON: I think Chris made me laugh more times than all of the other judges combined ... well, aside from one rather scary incident Sunday night, which he can explain on his own. Chris has an insider’s view of the comics’ industry, and he’s completely unafraid to give you his thoughts on the people, the work and the circumstances behind it all -- in hilarious, blunt detail.JAMES SIME: (laugh)! I can’t even think of Chris’ name without laughing! This guy is a true personality juggernaut and I quite honestly think Chris Reilly deserves his own television show. If there’s anyone with more hilarious, scandalous comic industry stories than Chris out there, I certainly haven’t met them. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s one of the most well-read comics people ever, with a keen nose for the good stuff. If he lived on the West Coast we’d be hanging out all the time.Also I love it that he thought I was pulling his leg all weekend long about how great Project X: Cup Noodle was... that is, until he read it. Hilarious!THE PULSE: Whitney Matheson?CHRIS REILLY: Amazing. She was so open to apple dunking, teeth bared, into the trough of unknown material. She was amazing.JEFF VANDERMEER: Innocent-looking but mad, mad leader of a pack of pop culture mavens. Specialized in intricate ways to order beer and in her off-hours is the superhero Multi-Eye Television Woman.JAMES SIME: Oh yeah, I definitely dig the Whitney!As a general rule, I love people who are filled with all sorts of crazy pop culture facts, and when you consider that filling her brain with crazy pop culture facts is Whitney’s *job* you know we got along just great! When we weren’t talking about our mutual appreciation of the funnybooks, we talked about kitschy-cool celebrities of yesteryear, wild concerts we’d been to, edible foodstuffs made with both meat and goat cheese, sexy retro-future houses of the '50s, Andy Warhol’s massive candy collection, and the Christmas cards she gets from Billy Idol. She goes to eleven on my cool meter, for sure!... although she *did* tell me that she has better taste in Jeffrey Brown comics than I do, so she’s obviously nuts.THE PULSE: James Sime?CHRIS REILLY: Lord, is there enough great stuff to say about the lost Post Brother. He was just amazing, and his encyclopedic knowledge of comics probably saved us having to stay an extra day. His look is also fantastic; he looks like a terrifying lounge lizard from the early '80s.JEFF VANDERMEER: Zoot-suit-wearin’, sailor swearin’ leader of a band of crazy toilet seat stealers. Specialized in Asian noodle information and in his off-hours is the superhero Party Gecko.WHITNEY MATHESON: James’ contagious enthusiasm helped keep me on my toes all weekend -- not only does the guy look sharp, he possesses an enviable knowledge of comics and seemingly boundless energy when it comes to reading, dissecting and discussing the genre.THE PULSE: Jeff VanderMeer?CHRIS REILLY: Jeff was an anchor. Jeff questioned everything and that was terrific. He opened the doors to a lot of debate.JEFF VANDERMEER: Beer-swillin’ slob and leader of the Must Go to Sleep Early club. Specialized in odd tirades and in his off-hours is the superhero Captain Squid.WHITNEY MATHESON: Jeff is a fantastic guy who came into the judging process with an open mind and several favorites I hadn’t read before. He introduced me to some cool stuff, and he’s a super-nice guy to boot. I wish he’d come to San Diego in July!JAMES SIME: I know I’m going to sound corny here, but I have to admit, I really respect and admire the man.It’s in my nature to like to size new people up from word one and see how things play out, and right from the jump I had this idea that Jeff was going to impress the hell out of me. And he didn’t disappoint, when it came to blowing my mind with new books I’d never seen before Jeff rocked my world time and time again. Plus, he also loves The Kinks, and you don’t get much better taste than that.
One of the "dark horse" candidates wasBrian Chippendale’s Ninja.It was a great year for diversity...
After spending a long weekend with him, I just can’t help but admire the man’s love for the art form, his open heart, and his unwavering strength of character. I’m seriously sad to hear he won’t be hanging out with the rest of us judges at the San Diego Comic Con.Jeff, if you’re reading this, come to San Diego!THE PULSE: Okay, the process of selecting these awards, grueling or a walk in the park?CHRIS REILLY: Steve, it was brutal. There were so many good books in 2006, that we felt like a cruddy pile of crumb bums eliminating some. Ian Boothby’s Futurama work not getting nominated, really bummed me out.JEFF VANDERMEER: Somewhere in between. The company was so good and the whole process of being *forced* to read comics so delicious, the fatigue factor didn’t really matter.WHITNEY MATHESON: Are you kidding? It’s no walk in the park, though I’m not going to complain about spending a weekend talking about comics. We had about 70 pages of nominees, so it was a pretty busy process. It wasn’t until the last day that I think we started having basic, non-comic-book-y conversations, like, "Where did you go to college? Do you watch Lost?"JAMES SIME: Good lord was it grueling!When you agree to become an Eisner judge you’re taking on a heavy responsibility, and if you’re anything like we five were, you take that pretty damn seriously. There wasn’t a judge among us that didn’t want to make sure we read every single book that was in that room. And you better believe we did it too.On Saturday we pretty much rocked around the clock, turning in at 5 AM and returning for the next day at 8 AM... on the same day! I think I caught six hours of sleep total during the entire four-day weekend. Good times!THE PULSE: What hotel did you stay in?CHRIS REILLY: An opulent one.JEFF VANDERMEER: The seven star Hidden Manner Suites. We never got hungry because the walls were made of white chocolate.WHITNEY MATHESON: It was a much nicer one than the hotel I stay in for Comic-Con, I’ll tell you that!THE PULSE: Any major disagreements when it came to deciding on books?CHRIS REILLY: I thought this would be the really interesting response, but no, the jury only wanted to nominate quality, so a lot of fan favorites did not make this year’s list. Hell, look at all the Bob Burden, Onion Head Monster and Ninja on the ballot. We certainly didn’t go for the soft sells.JEFF VANDERMEER: Only a couple, but not really major--just minor. It was more a matter of degree of like or dislike.WHITNEY MATHESON: Honestly, I don’t think we had any claws-out fights ... if anything, it was tough narrowing all of the good material down to a short list of nominees. The thing that probably surprised me most was how often the five of us were in agreement.THE PULSE: Any major disappointments when it came to books that didn’t make the list?CHRIS REILLY: Sloth. I wish Sloth had made the final cut.JEFF VANDERMEER: I wished Dungeon could have made it on, but otherwise, no.WHITNEY MATHESON: Not particularly -- I think the judges did a pretty excellent job!JAMES SIME: I’m really happy with the nominations as they are, and I think we did a great job of reflecting where the comic industry is both in comic stores and outside the direct market. We celebrated good books from a massive variety of publishers, introduced a manga category, acknowledged online news-sites for their journalistic value, picked one of the coolest creators in the history of comics for the Hall of Fame, and even nominated Stan Lee for new work. What’s not to be happy about?But since I have the opportunity to give out a little bit more love here, I’ll do so. Goon Noir is one of my absolute favorites. Everybody should be reading Welcome to Tranquility. Gabriel Ba’s work on Casanova is brilliant. Rick Veitch’s Can’t Get No is awesome even if you think it isn’t. The Boys is super fun. Brian K Vaughan is a nice guy and he writes some damn good comics. Phonogram is one of the best books Image is publishing. Casey and Adlard’s Rock Bottom is gorgeous. Richard Corben seriously had one hell of a year. Morry Hollowell’s coloring made Civil War sing. And Jeff’s right, Louis Trondheim’s Dungeon kicks ass.THE PULSE: What happened with Lost Girls?CHRIS REILLY: Well, I’m speaking for myself here, and Moore is probably my favorite living writer, but Lost Girls -- I viewed Lost Girls as really nice packaging. Sort of like putting a prom dress on Arnold Ziffel and smearing lipstick all over his face. I love Top Shelf and consider Chris (Staros) a friend (when he reads this he may have the opposite to say in regard to me) and I’m glad it made them a lot of money, but, in my opinion, it would have been really sad if it had been nominated for best graphic novel given what it was up against. I can think of at least three Top Shelf books that were much more deserving that didn’t make the final cut. Hell, the book got two nominations, and that’s more than I’ve ever received. Even if the first two acts had been brilliant, the third was just really weak and coming apart at the seams. Alan’s amazing, but when he’s off, he’s that iceberg waiting in the dark for the Titanic … but aren’t we all? Everyone’s book just can’t be their best work, but I know this is the one that’s going to be the most controversial, to have been left of the list.JEFF VANDERMEER: I liked Lost Girls, but a tepid third act in the book made it difficult to vote for it above and beyond some of the other choices.WHITNEY MATHESON: Several people have asked me “What happened with (insert your favorite title here)?” All I can say is that it was a really tough year -- there was a lot of good material, and we struggled with the final list. But hey, that’s kind of a good problem to have ... right?JAMES SIME: What do you mean? It’s in there for Best Painter/Multimedia Artist, Best Publication Design, and Best Lettering! Are you trying to imply we forgot something?THE PULSE: Chris, as a comic’s creator, did you feel any conflicts of interest when deciding on certain books?CHRIS REILLY: Before the judging I had that concern, but once it started, I believe my catch phrase was “They’re a really nice person, but I have to give them a 2.” The heartbreaker was when two books tied and we had to vote again on those books; it felt creepy deciding which book got to be the Shemp.THE PULSE: And James, as a comics retailer, did you feel any conflicts of interest when deciding on certain books?JAMES SIME: It was a huge year for great comics, so getting the Eisner nod this year was tough! And yeah, it was hard for me personally at times to have to cut so many of my friends and so many creators who I admire so much out of the running because of it. But that’s the way the cookie crumbles, I suppose. There’re only so many nominations to go around and that’s that, y’know?If they’re good friends they’ll understand, and if they’re crappy friends... well, I don’t need crappy friends so I’m glad we cut their books!
At the end of this year's Eisner judging, late on a Sunday night the groupretired to a downtown San Diego English pub. From left to right:Whitney Matheson, Robin Brenner, Jackie Estrada, Jeff VanderMeer, Chris Reilly (pre-seizure!), and James Sime. .
THE PULSE: Tell me about San Diego emergency rooms.JAMES SIME: Wow, this is a tough one to answer...On the final night, just after we finished our judging and eating our dinner Chris suddenly went into a seizure and began convulsing violently. I was nearest, so as I was grabbing him to keep him from crashing into the floor I yelled “call 911” and did my best to keep him from hurting himself as he thrashed about. Fortunately the paramedics came fast and whisked him off to the emergency room quickly, and in the end everything turned out okay... but there was a few minutes there that quite literally made my blood go cold.At one point during these incredibly violent convulsions Chris let out this long, rattling sigh and just stopped moving completely. And it was at that moment I was pretty sure my new best friend had just died in my hands. It was pretty intense.Thank God everything turned out okay.CHRIS REILLY: Well, the last night of judging ended at an upscale Irish pub, and towards the end I had a gran mal seizure. I lost about 10 minutes and it wasn’t until I called James, who caught me when I fell, that I got the ugly details. The Eisner crew was so great that they sat in the ER, watching Steven Seagal movies for five hours, and James, naturally, had the proclivity to show me photos he took of the waiting room and the restroom toilet. I don’t think that I can over emphasize what great character these beautiful people displayed. Coming from me that’s a huge statement, because I tend to trash everyone I meet. There is always something about someone that will rub me the wrong way. I will be the first to admit that I was probably the most annoying, obnoxious jerk in the room.JEFF VANDERMEER: Let me use a haiku format (roughly):
Pea-green worn '70s chairsSteven Seagal torturing gangster on tube.Chris comes out five hours later.
WHITNEY MATHESON: Sunday night was a really intense and emotional experience for everyone, and words can’t express how happy I am that Chris is OK. I think the one positive thing that came out of it was that the five of us are even closer than we were before -- I, for one, am very eager to see the rest of them again, and I’m sure we’ll be keeping in touch even after the Eisners are awarded.THE PULSE: What’s San Diego like when there’s no comic convention going on?CHRIS REILLY: Wow! It’s like having your whole life suck, and then chugging some valium and Gatorade and getting a vitamin B-12 shot (in all fairness the hospital juiced me with Adavan) but it’s like being in Candy Land. The weather is gorgeous and the people are so friendly. My last day there, hanging out with Batton Lash, was just so laid back. I want to move there and listen to that Chinese fella play James Bond themes on the piano in the hotel lobby every day. For such an opinionated, outspoken creep, it amazes me that I can’t find anything bad to say about San Diego.JEFF VANDERMEER: It’s wonderful-great weather and really laid back, with great restaurants and parks. At least, that’s what I hear. My wife looked around. I spent my time locked in a room with four other lunatics.WHITNEY MATHESON: We really didn’t leave our hotel very often -- only for meals – but even when we did, it felt kind of strange. The judging may have been the first time I’ve seen downtown San Diego in daylight before, since I’m usually working in the convention center all day! And I must say, it was quite lovely.JAMES SIME: It’s a lovely city, but you know we didn’t get much hang out time, right? We were in that room from the dawn ‘til way past the dusk doing our Eisner judging job every day and every night. I tell you, I damn well tried to buy my fellow judges a round of cocktails, but we took that job pretty seriously and wanted to make sure we read everything so we could take it into consideration, so we never got around to it. I guess that I will have to wait to buy that round until I see my fellow judges at San Diego Comic Con!And oh yes... my hotel room was beautiful!THE PULSE: At the Eisner Awards ceremony this year at the San Diego Con, will you be wearing a rented tux or a bulletproof vest?CHRIS REILLY: I’ll probably go armed. As for garb, you’d have to be a total toilet to not show up in a black suit and tie for something named for Will Eisner. That would be a disrespectful ten on the Richter scale of poor taste. If you show up in shorts and sandals, don’t be surprised if you’re testifying against me in court the next day for breaking your nose. I am not a hard-on, but from experience, I know my nose breaks easily, so I presume everyone else’s does as well.JEFF VANDERMEER: I will not be there, unfortunately, as I’m teaching a workshop two weeks before and three trips in SD in a year would be ridiculous. I hear that James Sime is investing in a metal zoot suit, however, and Chris Reilly will be traveling incognito, with a cape.WHITNEY MATHESON: I’ll take my chances without a vest ... though, if need be, my reporter’s notebook can always double as a shield.JAMES SIME: I love me my suits! I’ll be rocking a Siegel’s Custom suit and ostrich shoes from Giorgio Brutini.
