This interview is of smkinoshita , whose comic is Super Temps!
(interview conducted by NickGuy!)

1. tell me about yourself, for the readers.why should anyone care about this interview? what makes you interesting?

Because I really AM Skull Girl. HA-HA! My secret is revealed!

OK, in all seriousness… I'm male, half Japanese, one quarter Scottish and one quarter Irish, but look white. I hail from London, Ontario, Canada, and am in a serious relationship. My day job is with a small full-service marketing firm where I act as a logistics coordinator – I do a lot of work with information and I make sure it goes to the right people on time. That's the little bit about myself, but it's not too interesting yet.

The interesting bits? Starting with myself, I'm composed of conflicting aspects. I'm overly serious but I love absurd humour so I write a funny comic. My inner child shares a room with my inner stuffy ol' grandpa. I'm a prude and a freak. Basically, every aspect of myself should be at war with every other aspect of myself, yet instead they've come to some sort of agreement.

Also, it turns out my girlfriend has a tonne in common with a long-standing character of mine in another comic (which isn't published online for the most part). How's that for odd?

2. One of the things that impresses me the most about you is that you, like me, dont seem very content with the landscapes of comics the way they are now. You have repeated threads about how to fix the current state of comics. If I may ask, what are some of the biggest problems that you see in comics (all formats) today?

The biggest problem in ALL comics? Mainstream AND Web? Other than lack of competence? After some careful thought, I'm going to say it's when mass marketing makes creative decisions.

The results I see are:
A - Trying not to offend anyone, which results in boring, predictable stories
B - Trying to shock everyone, which results in boring, predictable stories that make you want to take a long shower
C - The most incidious: mimicing what the popular kids are doing without any understanding of what makes what they're doing great. This results in boring, predictable stories that are told wrong, providing you've seen the original. If you HAVEN'T seen the original, in which case you think it's wonderful until you see it repeated about fifty times. The incidious part is this works because somewhere out there, there's someone who missed the original and will think the rip-off is a piece of art.

(When someone has the same idea by pure conincidence, you can tell usually by the fact that the person has that unique understanding of the idea which you don't find in a copy-cat.)

This isn't just the problem with comics TODAY, it's been a problem with comics since they got established.

Mainstream comics do this to make money, and uninspirted web comics do it to get attention.


3. What do you feel is the quickest way to fixing those problems?

Honestly, there isn't one. This is human nature; crap only works because people buy into it. If people stopped buying crap, crap would stop being produced.

One thing I can suggest would help a lot would be if people would know when to let go and be willing to do so. There's a reason why we have death; the immortals stagnate. Even the very best series need to end, and preferrably before they hit that point where the life, energy and love is gone but they press on because there's still demand for it. This happens before the point of “Jumping the Shark”; if you look at a series as a person, by the time they're jumping sharks they're already a zombie.

Cowboy Bebop knew how to die well; the series ended when it was still very good and while it was sad to see it go, it'll be remembered well by all its fans. Before you ask, yes I know how Super Temps will eventually end. I also know how it could be continued later if I ever wanted to; knowing the end doesn't means oblivion and there's nothing wrong with leaving the ending open enough for a sequel. (Just keep in mind – the sequel is rarely ever as good)

4. Where do you feel you fit in in the current landscape of webcomics?

Let's see – the current webcomic landscape from what I've seen consists of Japan, furries, random humour, porn, sprites, video games, fetishes, and/or fanfiction. (Slotting retelling an existing series with your ‘own’ characters as fanfiction.)

Super Temps has some Japanese influence, although Molly is half Japanese due to a joke I want to eventually work in. Jenny could very loosely be categorized as a ‘furry’, although she lacks a tail and her stripes are painted on. She's certainly not what I consider the traditional catgirl – instead of being an adorable idiot or a stylish bad girl, she's a shallow, self-centered wanna-be.

So I see Super Temps being related to typical webcomics as much as I feel related to a monkey; there are a few common elements but otherwise little connection.

5.I am of the opinion that comics need to say something, otherwise they are just a very visceral experience. That being said, what is your intent? What are you trying to say with your comic?

First and foremost, mass entertainment is silly. A lot of the humour in Super Temps comes from my thinking up somehow “sensible” explanations for the many weaknesses that so typically pop up in popular stories.

Another thing I'm saying is we're all human; “Super Temps” is unique in that it lacks any traditional evil characters, although there are certainly antagonistic ones.

It also points out the difference between perception and reality, visible in the characters and the world itself.

Finally, it illustrates that there's not a huge difference between comic books, professional wrestling, and soap operas.

6. Your comic, Super Temps, Is a very lighthearted parody of the superhero genre and has been going for a while now. You have won 2 drunk duck awards for it (congratulations on that, by the way!) What are you most proud of about Super Temps? What are you least proud of?

Thank you! I didn't think I stood a chance when I saw my competition, especially when up against Brock's “Super Fogeys”, with which “Super Temps” shares a humanity factor. I'm most proud of the characters.

Super Temps originally had a small central cast of (in order of appearence) Skull Girl, Skiv, High Voltage, Mr. Evil, Hydromancer and a completely different version of Jackie. Iron Pants, Jenny, Armageddon, Kim, and Devil Girl where all meant to be one-shots. I'm very pleased with how each character has developed and contributes to the overall story.

The thing I'm least proud of? Easy. My backgrounds SUCK.

7. As we all know, notoriety can definately change a person. Has winning an award for your comic changed the way you approach it? I mean, has it altered your intent any?

None whatsoever. It started as a labour of love and continues to be one.


8. Are there very many print comics you read? what is your pull list?

I used to read The Maxx before it ended, and I really liked the one-shot “Mojo Mayham”. I recently bought a copy of “Opey the Warhead” which just enjoyed its first print run. (Excellent purchase). But I don't have a pull list. I actually had to look that term up, if that's any indication.

9. Who are some of your favorite comic creators, both print and the web?

For the longest time, my two favourite web comics were "Bruno the Bandit“ and ”Sinfest“, by Ian McDonald and Tatsuya Ishida respecitvely. They both were my web comic role models in terms of clean linework, professional polish, and punctuality. (I have the first Bruno the Bandit book and used to have a Sinfest shirt before it wore out) I don't count ”Homestar Runner" as a web comic; it's a separate beast entirely (obviously I like it enough to mention it anyway).

A top favourite: the awesome Dr. McNinja by Chris Hastings, (inks by Kent Archer, and colours formerly by Carly Monardo; she's too busy with work on the Venture Bros, so Dr. McNinja has a paying spot open for a good colourist HEADS UP HERE'S THE LINK

And when I came to the Duck, these people stand out most:

Brock of the Super Fogeys is a professional influence; he made me realize how good it feels to have the creator respond to you. He's also a top-notch writer and an outstanding artist.

Obviously, Zack "Opey the Warhead" made a good enough impression that I bought his book, but I also like Dwight L. MacPherson of The Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allen Poo and not just because he looks like Jack Black on a hypnodisc.

Three more shout outs! Mina_Lunga of Gnoph has artistic flair I'll never touch, Allen of Due East has tingling community-sense super powers that I wish I could channel, and Skoolmunkee (no link you all should know her) for all her work on the Duck to make things groovy with exploding tea-pots.

If I don't stop now, I'm just gonna go through my DD fav list.


10. Is there ever a chance that you would do a serious superhero comic story? and if so, what would it be about?

You mean tights, capes and cowls?

Not on your nelly.

If you mean just “super-powered characters in a modern setting” then I do have a project on the backburner called “Alison's Education”. The final product will be fairly surreal with a lot of faerie tale influence, and deal with matters of faith, public knowledge vs. reality, racism, perspective and what it means to grow up. If I ever get enough time to hammer the sucker out. I'm currently trying to figure out the impact would be if the protagonist is half imaginary.


11. I want to thank you for taking the time to answer my annoying ass questions! and finally, to wrap this up and for the readers…what can we expect in the future for Super Temps?

Psychadelchick will be returning to Toronto shortly as previously hinted, and she's not coming to make friends. Also, with winter approaching the Super Temps timeline, Skull Girl and Jenny the Katt will need new costumes. (Iron Pants has a unique method of dealing with cold temperatures).

Also, I do plan to make more use of the Super Temps employment agency.

Thank you for taking the time to interview me! It's been a pleasure!

I think I was one of the judges who voted for Super Temps at last year's DD Awards; I really don't recall anymore, I was on panel for so many.
But what I really admire about smkinoshita is his knowledge of the field and his instincts for what makes a story work.
I really have to agree with his answer on that second question!!! I've done some unusual things with my series, and let me tell you, I have pissed off a couple of my readers. But like a group of tourists passing a train wreck, they keep coming back.
I'd say you kids need to read up and see what makes Super Temps tick. XD

I also really liked his answer to number 2….especially the part about mimicking other stuff without understanding what makes it great. Thats what happened in the late 80s with everyone copying Miller and Moore and not really understanding what they were saying.