The extremely talented artist Dustin Nguyen talks to GEN about his art on the current DETECTIVE COMICS storyline, “Heart of Hush”! He spills about working with writer Paul Dini, inker Derek Fridolfs, and colorist John Kalisz; talks about drawing the famous (and infamous) Bat-characters; shares some jokes and details about the storyline; and discusses the long-awaited return of the star villain—Hush!

Dustin Nguyen is hands-down one of my favorite comic book artists; his work alongside the fabulous Paul Dini right now on one of DC Comic’s biggest titles, DETECTIVE, is stellar. Dini and Nguyen make a brilliant team. The story is on fire with Dini holding the pen, and it features one of my favorite villains in Batman’s world: Hush, aka Tommy Elliot. BATMAN: HUSH (a Jeph Loeb/Jim Lee combo) changed the way I looked at comics—I sat there and read the two-volume story cover-to-cover having to remind myself to breathe!

So I’m more than a little excited about the current DETECTIVE storyline, “Heart of Hush.” With the craziness of “Batman RIP” (and while “Heart of Hush” is technically labeled a “RIP” tie-in, don’t let that fool you) going on right now, DETECTIVE is more than a breath of fresh air—it’s knocking the wind right out of me! One thing’s for sure: You don’t know Hush!

This interview was conducted prior to September’s issue, DETECTIVE COMICS #848.

WITA: First off, let’s talk about what kind of experience you having drawing Gotham, Batman, and the other characters in his world. In 2004 you drew the art for the storyline “As the Crow Flies” (BATMAN #626-30) with Judd Winick, you recently worked on a SUPERMAN/BATMAN story arc called “Torment” with Alan Burnett, and now you’ve been on DETECTIVE COMICS with Paul Dini since #840, is that right? What is it like drawing such an iconic character like Batman, and has your style grown ever since you worked on those BATMAN issues?

Dustin Nguyen: I’ve said [this] before somewhere probably, but it’s an amazing feeling. I’m not here drawing just any Batman title, I get to be part of the longest running title to the myth of Batman. In a way, it’s a documentation of not just Batman’s adventures, but my work as well. It makes you not want to screw up. My style has definitely changed over the years; drawing Batman has almost made me change my style. For the better of course!

WITA: Paul Dini has been writing fantastic stuff with this new DETECTIVE story, “Heart of Hush.” I absolutely love it so far. When you read the script for each issue, how do you approach drawing the panels to make it work well with the storyline and to accentuate the twists, turns, and surprises? Do you and Paul kind of do your own thing, or do you collaborate and tweak things—how does it work?

Dustin: It’s a bit of everything. Paul writes a very tight script so there is never a question as to what his intent is; this makes my job a whole lot easier. Paul might catch something I’ve done at times, then play into it, and in the end, I believe we have something wonderful that’s a bit of both of us. On the cover to issue 847, with Bruce and Tommy at camp “Hi-Hill”—that is actually a camp my wife went to in middle school here in Long Beach. Paul liked the idea, so it worked well into his overall plans of Batman and Hush’s younger adventures shared. That issue was one of my favorites and truly developed young Tommy.

WITA: How have you reacted to “Heart of Hush” as a fan and also an artist?

Dustin: That’s a good question. As a fan, I am extremely biased as to how Batman should look, who he fights, where, and how. Hush, I never gave myself a chance to like at first. I think when they introduced him a few years back, I had the “come on … there are no good villains created for Batman after 2000!” mentality. Again—fan in me.

Then Dini writes it … eight pages into the script and I’m thinking, “Okay, lets give’m a chance. Hell, I have to draw the guy, might as well.” End of the first script, I’m a fan and telling everyone I know how Hush is going to kick so much ass. “Heart of Hush” will be THE Hush story to read if you want to get in the mind of the character. The amazing Jim and Jeph gave him life, but I feel Dini and I will give him history.

WITA: In the most recent issue, DETECTIVE #847, you got the chance to draw a bunch of characters. We saw Nightwing, Robin, Hush, Selina Kyle, Zatanna, Jonathan Crane and him as the Scarecrow, etc. How much fun was that? You add a fun and unique flair to each character; I especially love your design of Scarecrow. Your depictions of all the characters are great. What kind of creative process do you go through when having to approach drawing all of these characters?

Dustin: I think my feelings towards the characters themselves dictate the direction I take—the look of the character more than anything. I sometimes try to add a belt here, a goggle there, but in the end, those things aren’t as important to me [as] attitude and personality in a villain or hero. In that, I try to figure out what their fighting style is, their clothing style might be, posture, gesture, facial expressions—it all comes down to what kind of person they are I suppose.

WITA: Your covers have been fantastic, by the way. For each issue, how do you come up with the designs? What influences you when you sit down to draw them?

Dustin: It’s a huge collaboration from everyone. Paul gives the rough idea and the plot behind it, I spend a day driving, watching movies, and eating lots of fast food coming up with something I think will catch the attention of people walking by the newsstands. I do about 1-3 roughs and shoot them to Paul, my editor Mike Marts, our cover editor Mark Chiarello, as well as the big guy Dan Didio. We vote, Dan will 99% of the time reject my idea, threaten to fire me from DC, make me get back in portfolio review line again … and we start over. Hah, kidding, normally, they’ll pick one and I just elaborate on that. They’ve been extremely open to all my ideas, which is shocking the hell out of me. The Mad Hatter “tea party” was one where I shot one cover rough, almost just a doodle, and it got approved. When I was done, I said, “Man … they’ll never let this run … not as a Batman cover.” But amazingly, they loved it and it went to print.

WITA: I’m a huge fan of Hush as a character, and Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee’s work on BATMAN: HUSH (one of my favorite Batman stories) blew me away. Do you, the inker (Derek Fridolfs), and the colorist (John Kalisz) work well together? The art looks fantastic, I would imagine you three have a good thing going on. You guys have created something really unique: something different from the other Batman art out there right now.

Dustin: Derek and I work pretty close, he’s my long time pal and we chat on the phone a lot on how we want the characters and panels to come about. Every time a script comes in, Derek and I will be on the phone, ” OH $#!!, did you read it yet?! ” (That’s how we were when this last script came in.) And we do sort of a game plan on the issue. John, I don’t work with as closely, mostly due to the fact that he was a WAY crazier deadline than the rest of us (and ours is mad crazy already), so I rarely want to bother the man. [Laughs] Amazingly with his deadline, though, he’s been putting out some of the coolest colors.

WITA: John’s colors are indeed very cool! The art is really wonderful to look at, with the three of you at the helm artistically. And speaking of BATMAN: HUSH … You know, one of the things I’ve noticed (and absolutely loved) was how you and John Kalisz approach the flashbacks with Tommy and Bruce. To me, it’s so reminiscent of BATMAN: HUSH’S flashbacks—especially with the colors. I think it makes an amazing homage. Is that just me, or is that something you, Paul, and John have in mind: to incorporate the spirit of the Jeph Loeb/Jim Lee story and art while making it fresh and your own?

Dustin: Paul mentioned in the scripts early on that he wanted the sort of same color scheme in the flashbacks reminiscent to Jim and Jeph’s run. Originally, I wanted to do all the flashbacks in wash tones and watercolor by myself. Slowly, due to time constraints, though, I was only able to do it on just opening or setting panels. It’s very fun though, John does an amazing job bringing in the mood on the flashback.

WITA: Aha! [Laughs] Yeah, the result, visually, is stunning and really brings that sense of the Loeb/Lee story to the page—but in a really original way. It turned out great! So how do you like drawing Hush? He must be so much fun to draw, he’s such a crazy character.

Dustin: I like drawing him very much. Also, not sure if you’re familiar with my work on Wildcats: I’m sort of the “non-costume” artist. [Laughs] Hush has the coolest trench coat.

WITA: Hush totally rocks my socks. That trenchcoat … man! Who is your favorite character to draw in the Batman world, and who would you love to draw but haven’t got the chance to yet or haven’t drawn much of?

Dustin: Besides Batman, it’d have to be either Mr. Freeze or Poison Ivy. I mentioned to Paul [that] I’d love to have a Freeze story, but [I was] not sure where he (Mr. Freeze, not Paul) [was] in the DCU right now, so it might be difficult. Paul found a way to work him into the Hush storyline for me, though (thanks, dude!), so that was very cool of him (Paul, not Mr. Freeze).

WITA: Whoa, I can’t wait to see Freeze! Paul definitely puts the ice-ing on the cake, doesn’t he? As a comics artist, who has had an impact you: both now and when you were still finding your niche?

Dustin: There have been tons and I take a bit from every artist for every aspect of the trade. It would take forever to name them all and why. The ones I do admire are the ones that have stuck around in comics and stood out. Mignola and Seinkewicz both come to mind first.

WITA: Did you see The Dark Knight? What did you think? It was fabulous on IMAX …

Dustin: Yeah, that movie was pretty awesome.

WITA: I took a look at your DeviantART page. That’s so funny about your son and him picking the Spiderman toothbrush over the Batman one. And by the way, I love that Mr. Freeze action figure. Batman: TAS was a great series, I have such fond childhood memories of it. I grew up in the nineties.

Dustin: [Laughs] Yeah, raising a kid makes part of me relive my own childhood. Maybe I can do it right this time!

WITA: I know you do interviews a lot. What’s something you always wish someone would ask you, or something you’d like to talk about that you never get to?

Dustin: I think one comic related question might be, “Who would win in a fight between Batman, Wolverine, Punisher, and Superman?”

And my answer would be, “I really don’t care.”

WITA: [Laughs] Well, I think we both know who we’d be rooting for at that match. Go Supes! [Laughs] Just kidding! I’m totally sidetracking here, but [I wrote] an article for GEN about the issue of comic books now being taught in classrooms as literature, and it would be great to hear what a comic book artist thinks about the subject.

Dustin: That’d be really cool to get some comics in the classroom, being they are the appropriate ones. Like any medium out there, whether it be movies, games, music—there are just things you don’t want in the classroom. But when you do have the right material, it makes a world of difference.

WITA: Thanks so much, Dustin, for taking the time to answer my questions!

Dustin: Thank you again, Stephanie!

The new issue of DETECTIVE, issue #849, releases this Wednesday. Meanwhile, you can check out more of Dustin’s artwork on his DeviantART page.

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