Back in 2011, writer Ron Marz and artist Lee Moder released Shinku through Image Comics, a blood-soaked and extremely adult vampire comic. Sadly, Moder passed away two years ago, but before he did he mostly finished two additional issues of the series. Those, along with the rest of Shinku, will be collected in a new volume through a just-launched Zoop campaign curated by Marz.
“It honestly took me until now to get my head around what was appropriate to do with Lee’s work, both seen and unseen,” Marz told Comic Book Club over email. “Lee did not have a family, there was no one for this material to go to, just me and a couple of Lee’s other friends to sort through everything that was left behind, and figure out the best method of honoring him and getting the work into people’s hands. A stack of Lee’s original pages has been sitting in my office for more than year, calling to me to do something with it.”
Those pages will be seen in Shinku Complete, the new volume available to Zoop supporters. To find out more about the book, how it came together, and honoring Moder, read on.
Comic Book Club: I know it’s been a few years, but what was the original inspiration behind Shinku? It seems to get its DNA from a few different places at the same time.
Ron Marz: The short answer is the Twilight movies. Shinku was conceived when that was part of the cultural zeitgeist, and if that was your thing, great. But for me, sparkly, romantic vampires were not what I grew up with. I grew up with classic Universal horror, Hammer horror, Tomb of Dracula at Marvel, and Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend. So I wanted to get back to those vampires, ones who were the bad guys even if they were alluring in some way. I combined that sensibility with my ongoing fascination with samurai culture and visuals. Shinku is the result.
Not to jump right into it, but Lee Moder sadly passed away two years ago – why was now the right time to revisit this book?
It honestly took me until now to get my head around what was appropriate to do with Lee’s work, both seen and unseen. Lee did not have a family, there was no one for this material to go to, just me and a couple of Lee’s other friends to sort through everything that was left behind, and figure out the best method of honoring him and getting the work into people’s hands. A stack of Lee’s original pages has been sitting in my office for more than year, calling to me to do something with it.
Looking back, what was it like working with Lee on the book, originally?
Lee and I worked a number of projects together. We weren’t just collaborators, we were close friends. He was Uncle Lee to my kids when he visited. Anytime we worked together, it was a sheer pleasure. His storytelling and character acting were superlative, the draftsmanship is damn near perfect. Lee drew like nobody else, and nobody else really draws like Lee. He was a singular talent. Underappreciated, as far as I’m concerned.
He left nearly two full issues… What was the intention? A full new miniseries?
We had planned at least another five issues, and then perhaps more after that if everything aligned. Alas…
And what was involved in finishing up the issues so they’re ready for this new collection?
We’re getting Lee’s art colored and lettered, as originally intended, and gathering all of the other art pieces he left behind. I wrestled with the idea of having some other artists contribute pages to give us more of a sense of conclusion to the story, but I decided it was more appropriate to let this be Lee’s final word on the character. We’ll have some pin-ups by other artists, but the story content is all Lee.
What can people expect from the Zoop campaign?
The main attraction, of course, is the hardcover collection. It’s oversize, more like a European album, basically the same format as the Resolution OGN that we did with Zoop. That will include all the previous Shinku material, and everything else Lee had created, including the new story pages, a bunch of cover images, and some design material. The campaign will also include some of Lee’s original Shinku pencil pages, which are things of beauty. Lee’s pencils are really just pristine, every line perfect. It feels like the right thing to make these pages available, rather than having them sit in my flat file, so people who appreciate Lee’s work can get their hands on them. Plus we have a few other surprise rewards.
Do you think there will be more Shinku in the future? Or is that something you shared with just Lee?
I’m honestly not sure at this point. Part of me wants to continue it at some point with other artists contributing. There’s more story to tell. But part of me also feels like this was something Lee and I did together, so maybe it should just remain that, and be what it is. For now, I just want to get this collection in people’s hands, and then take a step back and figure out what, if anything, comes next.
The Shinku campaign is on Zoop today.
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