Brian Michael Bendis: “All Questions Will Be Answered”

Phenomena Book 1, The Golden City of Eyes, introduced readers to a young boy named Boldon, a mysterious girl named Matilde, a warrior named Spike, and the dazzling, magic-infused Earth they call home.

Now, with Phenomena Book 2, Matilde’s Quest, writer Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man) and artist André Lima Araujo (A Righteous Thirst for Vengeance) bring back our trio of heroes for a thrilling new adventure in Valentia Verona (formerly London, England).

Cultured Vultures recently caught up with Brian and André over Zoom – and when Zoom crashed, via email – to chat about their creative process on Phenomena: Matilde’s Quest, the currency of stories, what’s in store in Book 3, and more.

Note: This interview has been edited for clarity.

 

As I understand it, Phenomena started out as an equal collaboration between writer and artist in a way that’s unique to comics. André’s drawings and worldbuilding inspired Brian’s scripts, and from there, the story and characters took shape. Is that still the case for Book 2, Matilde’s Quest?

Bendis: For a lot of creators equal collaboration between writer and artist is one of the best parts of comics. A lot of our collective favorite comics have been made that way. We certainly looked to those creators, our heroes, and their artistic journey as part of the influence behind everything that we did to make this book here.

The biggest difference in this second novel is that we had, through the long journey of creating the first novel, really figured each other out on a bunch of levels – what works and how to best inspire each other. I see all of those lessons learned reflected in Matilde’s Quest. Every time André sent in new pages, I would have to catch my breath because I couldn’t believe he was somehow out doing the work he did in that outstanding first volume

Also, we spent a great deal of the first volume world-building around our three heroes. All of that world-building was set up for André to create an entirely new environment in a brand-new city called Valencia Verona for Matilde’s Quest. In this book, everyone we meet, everything we see, everything we experience is brand new.

Araujo: It was, indeed, a sort of inverted process from what is usual. But we discussed what kind of book we wanted to do previously, and after that, I started drawing copious amounts of characters and other conceptual art with creatures and places. Brian picked and chose from that pool as he was writing and we went from there.

To an extent, we kept the process [for Book 2], but because the world was set by the second book, we kinda knew what we were doing in relation to each other. So we’d work leaving each other space to create and invent and we kept the ping pong going. Drawings would inspire more scripts which would inspire more drawings and so on.

Like Brian said, we established the partnership on equal levels, which is really the only way to go with creator-owned stories.

You started work on the Phenomena trilogy while both under contract at DC, yet Abrams ComicsArts ultimately published Books 1 and 2 (and eventually 3) – what made Abrams the right home for Phenomena? And why there versus, say, Image or BOOM Studios?

Bendis: Experience! Being published is such an honor. I have an overall publishing deal and imprint at Dark Horse Comics. It is our very very happy home. Most of my books are found there. It is one of the great partnerships of my life.

André and I, during the pandemic, were observing the ever-changing world of publishing and wanted to experience what was going on in the ever-evolving world of graphic novel publishing. What’s going on now is completely different than what was going on even 10 years ago. I often go into Barnes & Noble and see Miles Morales sitting there with this great wall of YA graphic novels that did not exist in my childhood.

And we wanted to be part of that movement. So our literary agent, Jeanine, was able to introduce us to Charles Kochman at Abrams. He understood our very specific vision for these lush black-and-white books and he made us part of his very impressive lineup of graphic novels and sequential storytellers. We are very used to the machine of mainstream superhero comics so being part of this new machine of the Abrams comics arts audience is very exciting.

Araujo: As we were working on it, we had the increasing feeling that the book could benefit from being presented as a complete volume. And when the opportunity presented itself we went for it. We actually had a few publishers interested in the book, but our editor Charles’ enthusiasm and absolute support for our vision made Abrams the obvious choice. I couldn’t be happier with the package they put together, both Book 1 and 2 look utterly beautiful.

A recurring theme in Phenomena: The Golden City of Eyes and Matilde’s Quest is the idea of “true stories.” What makes Matilde’s Quest (and the wider Phenomena trilogy) a true story for you both?

Bendis: Great question. To me, Phenomena is more about what story means. In the world of Phenomena, story is a sort of currency. Story is your value. The truer the story the more valuable that is. The power of story. The power of legend and how it can inform a society. Every volume takes the idea of story and gives it a different value.

Story can connect people and bring people together in profound, life-changing ways. It’s happened to me. It can also be twisted and pull people apart. It is a big theme behind this grand adventure.

As far as what makes it a true story for me – beyond both kid leads being based on our kids at the age they were when we started this – boy, I know this sounds corny, but for me, it is watching André conjure such a pure, true expression of storytelling and craft.

Araujo: The storytelling theme is my favorite across the book. The way it’s presented is a perfect representation of the value of stories in our society. We can see today how narratives shape perception and vice versa, sometimes creating an entirely fake world that doesn’t match reality or facts.

I’m very pleased with how we were able to represent it in our book, with stories being valued as currency throughout the entire series. But also how, if you manipulate it, the story can have an increased value. So we used a character distorting the story of what happened in Book 1 to present the theme right in the beginning of Matilde’s Quest and present a fake recap of things, which infuriates our main cast.

Without getting into spoilers, another major theme in Matilde’s Quest is humanity’s inherent tendency towards conflict. What does that mean to you both in light of the current climate?

Bendis: Sadly, as I am old enough to have observed, the current climate feels like a climate we have seen again and again. In Phenomena, the entire world has been changed. A major event of global proportions has completely changed the world and our young heroes are stunned to find that some people still want to fight. So, our young heroes are facing this head on and our young Matilde is going to push back and try to find another way.

Araujo: Like Brian said, it’s a sadly familiar political and social climate that we leave now, with intolerance as the tip of the spear. Despite a more cartoonish tone, the book doesn’t shy away from that and from our tendency to confrontation and violence.

The way our characters tackle it, however, is the thing that can make a difference in the end, and break the cycle and present solutions that remind us that things are not as inevitable as they sometimes seem.

Finally, Matilde’s Quest ends with a very clear set-up for Phenomena Book 3 – can you offer any hints of what’s in store? I’m guessing it includes characters, creatures, and places André’s been sitting on for years?

Bendis: Well said. I have the true fortune and privilege to tell you that Phenomena Book 3 has been drawn and written. So what I’m about to tell you isn’t a vague hope, but an actual fact. Next year, after discovering everything about Matilde and her world our trio are going to another entire part of the Phenomena.

They’re going to take a very long journey and end up where Boldon started. We’re going to meet his family. It happens to be the place the Phenomena started. All questions will be answered. Many lessons will be learned and I will tell you Book 3 introduces an incredible amount of new characters… including Spike’s Guild of Heroes.

And next year I get to tell you how André topped himself once again.

Araujo: It’s the bow that wraps the entire trilogy, provides all the answers, and brings everything together. We’ll visit new places and have a lot of characters butting heads in a very old school, Dragon Ball kind of way.

Phenomena: Matilde’s Quest is available from April 23rd, 2024. An advance copy was provided for the purposes of this feature.