Johnny Zito and Tony Trov aren’t afraid to show their love for their girl-meets-zombie web comic, The Black Cherry Bombshells. That passion recently earned their co-written work a Harvey Award nomination and an upcoming spot on Zuda Comics’ exclusive print list. I talked with the force that’s been taking Zuda by storm about their success and inspiration, the experience of working with a digital publisher, and the future of BCB. Plus, the team’s illustrative member, Sacha Borisich, jumps in for the second part of the interview tomorrow.
Girls Entertainment Network: How did you end up working as comics writers, and what about the industry captured you?
Johnny Zito: Comic books and cartoons have always been a part of our lives. In fact, we met in a comic shop and became friends a little later.
Tony Trov: We grew up together but started writing in college. Student films became internet skits, and then we were writing web comics.
Zito: For me, the epic, mind-bending stories are the attraction. My collections of super hero and 90s Vertigo comics are so large it devalues my home’s resale value.
Trov: Whereas my priceless Calvin and Hobbes hardbacks have driven up property taxes in the whole neighborhood.
GEN: Catch us up to speed with The Black Cherry Bombshells. What’s the story concept, and how far along is the comic? Is it an ongoing work, or do you have a definite finish line in sight?
Trov: Ultra-violent girl gangs fight for survival in a world where every man has been mutated into a zombie. The Black Cherry Bombshells are a popular gang of bootleggers in this post-apocalyptic Las Vegas. The gang’s rise to fame and fortune puts them in opposition to the baddest boss in town: the woman they call The King.
Zito: The King is this cross-dressing, kung fu warrior who looks like Elvis. She has beef with Regina, the Bombshells’ leader. The King sends a spy, Megan, undercover to kill Regina. Instead Megan defects and becomes a Bombshell. The rest of the series centers on Megan’s many betrayals, mistakes, and regrets.
Trov: At the end of season two, audiences (and the Bombshells) find out that Regina’s been keeping secrets, too. There are tons of twists and turns, zombies feasting on human flesh, and kick-ass chicks doing kick-ass things.
Zito: It’s an on going web comic. Season two just wrapped up at 120 pages. The story has a definite beginning, middle, and end. Our upcoming third season will tie up many of the mysteries from the series, including Regina’s origin, Megan’s destiny, and the fate of the Black Cherry Bombshells.
Trov: There’s always room for sequels.
Zito: Of course. A proverb from Saint Spielberg, I believe.
GEN: There’s flaming zombie heads soaring across panels, but the comic also deals with a more serious matter: All the men are dead, and women are, as you put it early on, an “endangered species.” What inspired you to write a comic like this?
Zito: We’re trying to take action hero stereotypes and recast them as women. It’s power fantasy, hopefully, in the same vein as Action Comics #1, Die Hard and Vice City. Unfortunately, women tend to be cast as victims in these stories—unless they’re avenging the death of their fathers, in which case they’re doomed to misery and disgrace and unhappiness.
Trov: We tried a bunch of set-ups for this experiment, but male figures kept creeping in and ruining the atmosphere. So, we figured the best way to get rid of half the world’s population was a good ol’ fashion zombie apocalypse. It becomes this fantastic backdrop for dramatic life-and-death stuff. Our gangster epic grew out of that.
GEN: In the latter pages, you’ve begun to incorporate flashbacks. What made you decide to use the device, and how far back do you intend to go? Will we learn what caused the man-zombie catastrophe?
Trov: We used the flashbacks in season two to find out a little more about Megan, our main character. You get to find out what her life had been like since the zombie apocalypse and why she did all the things she did in season one. She had to make a lot of compromises and sacrifices, and that weighs on the soul.
Zito: The flashbacks go as far back as the day of the zombie apocalypse and end there. We won’t be doing any flashbacks in season three. There will be explanations for the zombies—why only the men were affected and who or what was behind the whole thing.
GEN: Why did you choose a digital platform like Zuda Comics to debut BCB? Do you feel that Zuda offers you certain unique advantages as a creator that you can’t often find with regular print publishers? Does the territory come with any disadvantages that are challenging to overcome?
Zito: Web comics are very experimental right now. The internet is research and development for all of tomorrow’s comics, movies, and television shows.
Trov: Web comic to comic book to Saturday morning cartoon. That’s the new model, and Zuda Comics offers a great spring board and support structure to that end.
Zito: Plus, come on, DC Comics and chocolate milkshakes are what life is made of.
GEN: Johnny, you’re an illustrator as well, correct? Why did you choose the writing path with BCB, instead of doing both or doing the art?
Zito: I love teamwork. That being said, I am available for commissions.
GEN: BCB is nominated for a 2009 Harvey Award for Best Online Comics Work. Congratulations! What’s been going through your head lately in regards to that?
Trov: It’s very flattering, and we’re looking forward to the ceremony and the Baltimore Comic-Con. I’m trying to decide on some form of silly facial hair for the event.
Zito: There are a few Zuda titles nominated in a few categories. So this will be a bit of a club house meeting, too.
Trov: Yeah, I guess the best part is it’s an excuse to see everyone and get some crab legs and fried pickles.
GEN: For fans of traditional print comics, are there any plans to release The Black Cherry Bombshells in hard copy form?
Trov: Yup! Zuda is putting out two or three graphic novels a year. Look for BCB to go analog by 2011.
Zito: Zuda just dropped Bayou in the Spring and High Moon is coming out this fall. So check them out in book stores, comic shops, and Amazon.com.
GEN: Are you nurturing ideas for other any future comics, or is your focus solely on BCB for the time being?
Trov: Non-comics related, we’re producing a 2010 pin-up calendar based on serial killers. It’s called “Charlie’s Rippers.” Look for it around Halloween.
Zito: We’ll be able to talk more about comics in October. Everyone can find me and Tony on twitter (twitter.com/johnnyzito and twitter.com/tonytrov) yakking about whatever we’re working on.
Trov: In the meantime, check out 120 pages of free girl-on-zombie action at BlackCherryBombshells.com, and look out for season three coming soon.
Stay tuned for Part Two of our Black Cherry Bombshells interview—with Sacha Borisich!
