Boxers or Briefs is a feature where we get to interview people and ask them really important questions about pants. We also get to ask less important questions about their current projects and their experience in the industry. The Panteon recently had a chance interview Robert Kirkman & Jay Faerber. Robert Kirkman is the writer of Image’s Invincible, The Walking Dead, Astounding Wolf-Man and a little book from Marvel called Marvel Zombies, which starts its second series in October. Jay Faerber is the writer of Image’s Noble Causes and “Hot Pants” favorite Dynamo 5. We rounded the two of them up and asked them some questions we thought they’d both have some thoughts on. Submit a request here if you think we should interview you, or make suggestions in the comments if you’ve got someone you think we should interview.

1. Both of you have done a fair amount of work for DC or Marvel in addition to creating your own superhero universes - what are some of the benefits and drawbacks of creating in those long-established universes versus working in your own? And vice versa?

FAERBER: The biggest benefit is being able to do whatever we want. I think both Robert’s creator-owned work and my own has really benefited from the fact that we’re free to take our characters in pretty drastic directions. Plus, we can make permanent changes to characters, and there’s pretty much no such thing as “permanent” at Marvel or DC.

The drawback to creator-owned work, as I see it, is that we don’t have the huge Marvel and DC sandbox to play in. Sure, we can create our own universes, which is definitely fun and rewarding. But there is something appealing about having the entire tapestry of the Marvel or DC universe at your disposal when you’re writing a book at one of those companies. Of course, it can get frustrating when you find out that another creator already has plans for that old character you were going to dust off. So I think the creator-owned route still outweighs the Marvel/DC route.

KIRKMAN: It all comes down to freedom, I created these characters and I can do whatever I want with them. I think that makes for stories that are more fun to read. Aunt May will never truly die. You could kill her in Spider-Man but the readers will ALWAYS know it’s a temporary thing and that kinda sucks. While killing Invincible would seem like a cop out in the book, and readers would always expect him to come back… I could EASILY kill any side character and never bring them back… so the danger for any character in these stories is very real, which makes for more drama.

The only drawback I can think of to doing creator-owned work is that small (and shrinking) percentage of readers and retailers that won’t buy or don’t order anything past Marvel and DC. I think as time goes on we’ll see more of a shift in that department.

2. What was your favorite project that you worked on for DC or Marvel?

FAERBER: I look back fondly on my very first Marvel gig — What If? #114, which was the last issue of that run of the book, and introduced a second generation of Marvel heroes that I think were pretty fun. That particular gig was also memorable because it was my first time working with then-editor Frank Pittarese, who’s since become a close friend of mine. The book was drawn by Gregg Schigiel, a fantastic artist.

KIRKMAN: Man, I really have enjoyed most of them. Marvel Team-Up with Kolins, Medina, Walker and Kuhn was great fun… it really felt like I was writing the Marvel Universe for a couple years. It was great fun. Marvel Zombies with Sean Phillips has been great fun and working with him is a huge thrill. But I gotta give the top spot to The Irredeemable Ant-Man… that was probably the most fun I had at Marvel so far (I’m hoping something will top it soon). Working with Phil Hester and Ande Parks and then my twin brother Cory Walker on his two fill-in issues was great fun and the character was a blast to write… I hope to return to him before too long.

3. You’ve both had good success at Image… what is it about that publisher that really worked for you?

FAERBER: I’ve been working at Image so long that those guys are basically like family. I’ve seen a complete regime change (I broke in when Jim Valentino was in charge, and Anthony Bozzi was the marketing director), but that feeling of family has only gotten stronger over time. I like the fact that there’s complete creative freedom, coupled with the visibility that comes with being in the top 3 publishers. That feeling of family also extends to the other Image creators, as well. We’re not best pals or anything, but I consider other longtime Image guys like Robert and B. Clay Moore to be friends of mine. Compatriots, really — guys who have a vested interest in Image, rather than just a vested interest in their own books, you know?

KIRKMAN: Yeah, I like you too, Jay. I’ve been there, I think, a little under a year less than Jay… but it’s the same for me. Image is a fun community to be a part of. Also, there’s the little matter of them being the best deal in town… hands down, for creator-owned books. There’s no company out there who can compete with what Image offers. Erik Larsen and Eric Stephenson are doing a great job these days, and Jim Valentino was running a tight ship before them. Image is fantastic for me, since I came from self-publishing and am a bit of a control freak when it comes to my books… so Image does all the things I didn’t like doing as a publisher, y’know, the publishing duties, but at the same time I have complete freedom and control over every aspect of the books from setting print runs to doing multiple printings to picking the ads that appear in my books. It’s awesome. Image is great.

4. When did you decide you wanted to work in comics?

FAERBER: I can’t remember ever wanting to do anything else. Originally, I wanted to draw comics, but I learned pretty quickly that I’m a much better writer than I am an artist. I made a serious effort to break in in my mid-20s, and succeeded after about 2 years of trying.

KIRKMAN: I too have always kinda wanted to work in the comics field. I worked in a comic shop for two years right out of high school, I always wanted to draw comics as a kid but I never really had the patience to learn to draw well. I even wanted to be a sculptor for a year or so, I was preparing a submission to McFarlane Toys when I started my publishing company back in 1999. I gave up on it right after starting on comics, though. I just wanted to do something creative, really… writing, drawing, sculpting… whatever. Writing seemed to be what I was best at–so it stuck.

5. Who are your biggest influences, in terms of superheroes and supervillains? Any particular characters or creators that inspired your new creations?

FAERBER: I was inspired by the Wolfman/Perez New Teen Titans and by Fabian Nicieza’s work on New Warriors, plus I learned a lot from Mark Waid’s Flash and Captain America. His second Captain America #2 (the one where Cap loses his shield) is one of the best single issues I’ve ever read. There’s just something about it — the way it starts right in the middle of the action, and it sets up every single thing you need to know about Cap and his shield … it’s just the perfect comic. Whenever I need inspiration for a super-hero comic, I can pick that issue up and be inspired.

As for Dynamo 5 itself, I was inspired both by classic super-teams like the Titans and the New Warriors, and also by cartoons like The Bionic Six and Battle of the Planets.

KIRKMAN: Peter David’s Incredible Hulk and X-Factor and David Micheline’s Amazing Spider-Man and Gruenwald’s Captain America were the main books I followed writing-wise. I was a comic reader who started in ‘89, so I was all about the Image guys and quickly moved over to Image with them. I was a huge fan of Savage Dragon, Spawn, Youngblood, ShadowHawk, Cyberforce and WildC.A.T.S. when they all started. That was great stuff. Pitt, Newmen, Freak Force, Stormwatch… I even really dug Bloodstrike. I still maintain ’90s books are no better or worse than ’80s, ’70s or ’60s books, it’s just that there were more adults reading comics in the ’90s and so there were more mature eyes looking them over and commenting on them. Later on in high school, I got into some DC stuff, Waid’s Flash run, Morrison on JLA and I found Watchmen and Dark Knight and all that stuff. Then I started reading Marvel Comics again sometime around Heroes Return (yeah–I guess Heroes Reborn did get me back into Marvel Comics).

Invincible is inspired by every single superhero comic I’ve ever read… and what I consider to be the best long-running superhero book ever… Savage Dragon.

6. When you’re writing, do you have a particular age range you think of in terms of featuring sex or violence?

FAERBER: Not in those terms. I mean, let’s face it — the vast majority of people reading the comics I write are in their 20s and 30s. I tend to avoid actual nudity and excessive swearing, but that’s about it.

KIRKMAN: Pretty much the same here. Invincible’s age appropriateness ranges from ages 8 to 16 on an issue by issue basis, which I’ll admit is really kinda weird but I really like the shock value of doing something suddenly more darker and mature than what has appeared in the issues prior. No nudity and no heavy swearing is pretty much my only restrictions too–just to make things okay for retailers. Moving to a mature book does limit your audience a bit–and who wants that?

7. If you could be any comic book character, who would you be and why?

FAERBER: I don’t know … what am I, 13 years old?

Okay, okay … I’d be Scatterbrain from Dynamo 5, because despite what he thinks, reading minds could be a damned cool power.

KIRKMAN: Comic Book Characters lives suck… completely. Loved ones dying, always fighting big bad guys… I’d be terrified… so I think I’ll pass. I like my life just the way it is. Choosing between saving the world and changing a diaper is a very easy decision for me.

8. You’ve both worked with some great artists. Can you tell us how you found the artists for Dynamo 5 and Invincible respectively?

FAERBER: I had seen Mahmud A. Asrar’s art online a number of times over the years, and honestly, I always figured he must be a flake. After all, why else would someone so talented not already have a steady gig? So I never approached him, figuring he’s one of those guys that takes 3 weeks to draw a pin-up, or something. But when I was looking for an artist for Dynamo 5, Ryan Ottley mentioned Mahmud, and Ryan’s opinion carries a lot of weight with me, so I dropped Mahmud a line, he agreed to come on board, and we got along great from the start. I couldn’t have been more wrong about his work ethic, either. The guy’s a … wait for it … dynamo.

KIRKMAN: Groan! I too found Ryan online. When Cory Walker was still working on Invincible I asked Ryan to draw a book I was putting together called “PRESIDENT: USA” that was about The President being a highly trained assassin. Ryan, understandably, balked at the idea and turned me down–but it was a good idea… damn it! Anyway, Jay was looking for a new artist at the time for Noble Causes, and Ryan even did test pages for Noble Causes, but ultimately Jay went with Fran Bueno… an artist Eric Stephenson had found and shown Jay and I. So when Cory decided to leave Invincible I went to Ryan again and lucky for me–this time he said yes. The first three pages of Invincible issue 8 were actually done as test pages… but I was pretty sure Ryan would get the gig. Now Ryan is the artist I’ve done the most comics with… I hope to keep that record intact for years and years.

9. You’ve both created memorable super-teams in your books… can you tell us what you think the key is in terms of creating a memorable superhero team?

FAERBER: There’s something intangible about it, I think. It’s a combination of finding the write kinds of personalities, the right kinds powers, even the right kinds of costumes. With Dynamo 5, I knew from the start that I wanted the characters to have matching (to a degree) uniforms, as a nod to the old classics like Fantastic Four and the original X-Men. I even insisted on domino masks, simply because you can’t get more classically super-hero than a domino mask.

KIRKMAN: Jay’s probably got a better handle on it than I do. All my super-teams have just been side characters to I’m definitely no expert. You get a bunch of guys that look cool and do cool things and put them together–you got a super team.

10. How do you feel about finite endings in general and in your own work?

FAERBER: I really admire stories with finite endings — and the writers who write them, just because I have such a tough time pulling them off. Comics tend to be so serialized that it’s pretty easy to skirt around a true ending, and just throw in a cliffhanger or cut to an ominous interlude or something. So on the occasions when I’ve had to put an honest-to-god ending on something, it’s never something I take lightly, and it always involves a lot of work.

KIRKMAN: I plan on doing Invincible, The Walking Dead and The Astounding Wolf-Man until I run out of ideas. As a fan I prefer continuing stories as long as they stay interesting. I like movie sequels, and comics that run for hundreds of issues or more. I think it’s a cool discipline to be able to say “this story is exactly 68 issues–then I’m done” but I’m always thinking of new stuff for the characters to do while I’m writing. Frankly, I’m not all that great at writing endings, I guess. My favorite ending I’ve written so far is the one to Marvel Zombies… and that’s just a damn cliffhanger teasing that the book may continue.

11. Can you ever see someone else writing one of your characters/books… and if so, who and what character/book?

FAERBER: I’ve considered taking a break from Noble Causes from time to time, and passing the writing chores over to Brian Joines, a fantastic writer who’s got some books in the pipeline at Image. But I’m such a control freak that I don’t think that would amount to much of a “break” for me, since I’d still want to oversee everything, and my worst fear is that I’d turn into the kind of editor I hate — the kind who dictates stories to the writer.

KIRKMAN: I’m doing this right now with Brit and writer Bruce Brown. I’ve overseeing things pretty closely but I’m not dictating stories… I’m pretty much given Bruce free reign on the title. So far it’s been great fun, he’s written up through issue 5 and issue 1 will be in stores probably by the time this goes online. (Editor’s Note: It’s in stores tomorrow, and it’s very good… see tomorrow’s Wednesday Number Ones for a review) If Brit is a success I hope to start doing it more and more. I have a lot of ideas and there’s only so much time in the day. It’s a blast to see books with characters you created–that are totally cool and fun to read–that you didn’t write. I highly recommend it.

12. In addition to superheroes, each of you has branched out into other genres, from crime stories like Dodge’s Bullets to horror (or human drama with a horror backdrop) Walking Dead… do you have a particular genre you haven’t worked in that you’d like to?

FAERBER: Absolutely. I’d really like to do something in the espionage genre, and maybe a police procedural. And I’ve had this idea called THE GUNS OF CAMELOT, which is the legend of King Arthur transferred to a Western setting, for a long time now.

KIRKMAN: I want to do a romance comic… and I will one day. I think that’d be great fun… it’s just a matter of finding an artist who likes drawing people in normal clothes doing pretty much nothing but talking and walking and sitting and stuff. Not an easy task. I’d love to do a Science Fiction book eventually too.

13. If Dynamo 5 battled the Guardians of the Globe, who would win?

FAERBER: The fans!

Ha ha. But seriously, the Guardians of the Globe would probably win, because they’ve got more experience.

KIRKMAN: Despite what Jay says, The Guardians would totally… oh, wait… never mind.

14. What do you think is your best strength as a writer? And what do you think your co-interviewee does so well that you’d like to steal his talent with some kind of a Vulcan mind-meld/Sylar brain-eating type thing?

FAERBER: Geez … my best strength? I dunno … I’m a fast typist!

I think Robert is really good at juggling numerous subplots for long periods of time. His books always feel like a lot’s happening, and yet they never feel like he’s treading water or he’s wandering around aimlessly, either. I think he’s influenced by some of the same books I am. The kinds of books you rarely see anymore, where writers would stay on a title for 30 or 40 issues, and they’d have the freedom for long payoffs.

KIRKMAN: I’d steal Jay’s typing ability! I think Jay writes better female characters than I do. He’s always got these great women in his books that are very interesting and dynamic personality-wise. I do my best at representing real women in my books but I definitely think Jay does a better job. Liz, Gia, Zephyr and all the women in Noble Causes are great. The chicks in Dynamo 5 are shaping up nicely, too.

As for my strengths… I think I’m just awesome all around… especially with writing the ladies.

15. What are your favorite kind of pants?

FAERBER: Gap Khakis!

KIRKMAN: Pajamas!