CSBG Archive
Neat Jason Lutes Interview About Berlin
- by Brian Cronin
- in General
- 4 Comments
Oooh, nifty! I just noticed this nice little interview that Van Jensen did with Jason Lutes here about Lutes’ awesome Berlin series, which Lutes is currently preparing for the final book (each book consists of eight individual issues, so we still have eight issues of Berlin to look forward to!). I can’t believe it has been a decade since the first issue was released!!
It is such a great (and relatively rare, ongoing series-wise) comic book historical fiction, that I found Lutes’ comments on his historical accuracy particularly interesting:
How much effort do you put into getting all the historical references accurate?
A German historian might take issue. As someone who doesn’t read German or speak German, it’s a challenge. With historical events, my notebooks always have a timeline, so if an event affects the story I can reflect that. But the book’s coming out in Germany, and my German publisher has been really good about checking that stuff. And luckily so far it’s been place names wrong, and once I did a train station that was totally wrong. My publisher sent someone out to take photos, and then I redrew the train station from the photos for the German edition. So I try to be accurate.
That being said, there’s a point I have to allow my imagination to take over. That’s where it’s going to live. After filtering through that data, I see my job as using my imagination to make that stuff come alive.
Anyhow, check out the interview (there are some pages of the work there so you can see what it looks like), and check out the series, too! It’s peachy keen! The second book is just coming out now, it’s called Berlin: City of Smoke (the first book was called Berlin: City of Stones).
4 Comments
DanLarkin
August 20, 2008 at 8:39 am
I’m looking forward to the new collection. I absolutely loved “City of Stones”, but the slow pace of the single issues has been killing me. It doesn’t read as well in serial installments.
The Dane
August 20, 2008 at 10:24 am
I ordered City of Smoke yesterday! Can’t wait to pour over it. Lutes is really one of the best producers of contemporary comics but his gradual rate of release kills me. My wife, having liked Jar of Fools, is interested in Berlin but I keep telling her to wait six or seven years until the trilogy is complete. Lutes is even more gradual than Shanower ^_^
It’s so much easier to come to a series after its reached its conclusion than it is to wait. And wait. And wait. Bone did that to me and it was excruciating.
Keith
August 20, 2008 at 5:38 pm
I commented on the boards about this, but I’ll repeat it here. I absolutely cannot wait to get this trade. I hope to order it in the near future. The first trade was a great collection of stories.
This is a great take on Germany and the period between the two world wars. Most mentions of this period is the rise of hitler and the nazis. I like Lutes approach to ignore this and talk about other issues of the time.
Deco
August 20, 2008 at 9:40 pm
Bar none probably THE best comic book currently being published (and that’s from a guy who spends ~$100 A WEEK on this stuff). Full on embodies the term “graphic novel.” I’m just stunned every time I read a new issue.
But yeah, thats not nearly often enough. I might get the collections just to have it in it’s true form (but the singles are pretty cool, in their unique size & format.