Prior to co-writing DC Comics’ Grayson with Tim Seeley, author Tom King was a CIA operative. Now King is firmly entrenched in the comic book world, and he’s drawing on his anti-terrorism experience for DC’s new reboot of The Omega Men.
The Omega Men debuted in 1981 as a band of interstellar rebels who took on the empire-like Citadel in the Vega star system. It’s been a long time since the Omega Men headlined their own comic, but King brought them back in a shocking short story last month in which the Omega Men appeared to murder White Lantern Kyle Rayner, one of DC’s most popular cosmic characters.
More alarmingly, Kyle was seemingly executed in a way favored by religious fanatics in the real world. Whoever the Omega Men were before, they clearly aren’t the same in this new incarnation.
Ahead of The Omega Men # 1 this month, King took the time to speak to CraveOnline about his take on the characters and whether we’ve really seen the last of Kyle Rayner.
CraveOnline: I’ve been reading comics a long time, so when I see something like that happen to Kyle Rayner, I immediately think “fake-out.” Why did you choose to open with that scene? Technically, we never actually see Kyle die in the preview story. Will we see a body soon?
Tom King: The legacy of Kyle Rayner is not over.
That moment, that death wasn’t a one-off thing to get us some cheap thrills; instead, it will stand as the central launching point of the book. The Citadel has a contact with the Green Lanterns: maintain peace in your system, and the Lanterns will stay out. When the Omega Men publicly killed Kyle they broke this contract, and suddenly this great empire, which has done some horrible things, is in danger of having the cops come in and see the bodies buried in the basement. The Citadel will do anything and everything to catch the men who killed Kyle, because if they don’t their empire could crumble. The only people in the series more desperate than the Citadel are the Omega Men themselves.
The Omega Men really came off as dangerous religious fanatics in that short. Do you think readers will be able to get behind them if this isn’t some elaborate con that they’re playing?
I don’t know if I want readers to get behind them.
My goal in the series is two fold. First, to write a kick ass, brutal space opera that forces the audience to turn the page. Second, to have the audience understand these characters, understand why they do what they do. After that, the audience should decide for themselves if they want to get behind the Omega Men or not.
That fundamental ambiguity—who are the good guys, who are the bad guys—is fundamental to the series. By allowing the audience to judge rather than judging myself, hopefully I can create the tension that leads right back to that first goal.
Tell us about the team members that you’ve chosen for this series.
As we begin, the team has five core members:
Primus. Primus is the leader of the Omega Men, but as you’ll see, he has his doubts in their missions and methods. He’s lived his life as a man of peace, and now, for the first time he’s embracing war. That contradictions will either make him stronger or tear him apart.
Tigorr. Tigorr is vicious and committed to the cause in a way Primus may never be. He’s also shockingly smart and knows the enemy on a level the other Omega Men cannot. How he came to this knowledge is one of the central mysteries of the story.
Broot: Is gentle and kind. He’s also the team member most eager to tear the heart out of the Citadel. He’s not a gentle giant. He’s a gentle fanatic.
Doc: Doc is a robot who provides medical care for the Omega Men. He’s the Alfred of the team, the one who takes care of the family, who keeps the family together. Or at least that’s what it seems like he’s doing.
Scrapps: A new character, Scrapps is both the least and most committed member of the team. She cares less about the cause than the others, but more about the thrill of the violence. Her commitment to this violence without the deep ties to religion and liberty the others have will have a profound impact on the story as a whole.
Now that you’ve brought back Primus in a big way, will Kalista also be making a return appearance?
Am I allowed to spoil something that’s already out in previews? They never tell you the rules! Sigh. Many characters from the old series will appear again, but they will not always be what they were. Is that vague enough? Why don’t they tell you the rules!
(Also, read issue 3 to find out! Shhhh, you didn’t hear it from me.),
CraveOnline: What can you tell us about your twelve issue storyline?
Tom King: I have a lot of stories to tell with these characters and this world, and if they let me, I will tell them. But for now, I view the first twelve issues of this series as a complete story with a beginning, middle and—most oddly for comics—an end. Every panel, every line of dialogue is planned out to serve that basic twelve issue arc.
The reasoning behind this is that I want the stakes in these issues to be high, and if you don’t have an endpoint, and if it’s all just climatic moments looking to join other climatic moments onto infinity, the stakes can get lost in the muddle of it all. Of course everyone will be fine. They have to write a next issue. So instead, I’m going to place the end of the world in issue twelve and write to be worthy of that end. People will die in this series and people will change. It’s just like real life, but with a few more guns and Tigorrs.
