Recently, the Spawn-verse over at Image Comics grew even grander with Bloodletter. The brain-child of writers Joseph Illidge and Tim Seeley, artist Christian Rosado and colorist D.C. Alonso, Bloodletter centers around Tasha Thornwall, a former CIA operative turned magical mercenary hunting down her greatest rival: Spawn. Toss in a conspiracy involving angels, and even some vampire action to boot, and Bloodletter is prime Spawn storytelling.
But across its five-issue run, Bloodletter was more than just a solid entry to an already-robust universe. It explored not only themes of vengeance and obsession, but ideas of friendship, second chances, and even channeling hurt into more productive objectives. It was a big, brash story, and one that wore both its extreme tendencies and sentimental side as badges of honor. In short, Bloodletter is everything you want and so much more from all things Spawn.
With the fifth issue out as of just two weeks ago, we decided to delve even deeper into the story by linking up with Illidge recently via email. There, we discussed a number of topics, including the book’s critical/commercial response, things he might’ve changed about the series, the relationship between Bloodletter and Casper the angel, and the character’s possible future.
No word yet on a release date for the Bloodletter TPB, so stay tuned for more.
From issue #1. Courtesy of Image Comics.
AIPT: How was the reception for Bloodletter across each issue? Do you think readers got what you were attempting to do?
Joseph Illidge: The reception to Bloodletter was overwhelmingly positive, from the Spawn fans to the readers who found their way into The Spawnverse through our series! Back at the start, Tim threw out the term “insane determination” to describe Tasha’s relentlessness. We made her mission urgent and compelling, and the readers came along for the revenge ride.
I think we kept the readers guessing after every issue, and as writers, that’s gratifying. In the same way, the movie Goodfellas is narrated by a guy you think could get killed at any moment in the story, even though logic tells you otherwise; readers were on the edge of their seats for Tasha Thornwall’s battle with Spawn. Not because they knew logically she couldn’t win, but because emotionally, Tasha made them believe she had a chance in hell of killing Spawn.
AIPT: How do you feel now that the arc’s done – did the final story meet the initial vision?
JI: In the most basic terms, yes, the final story met the initial vision Tim and I had for Bloodletter. The deeper truth is that the story organically evolved and congealed as we were creating it, and the visual beauty of Christian Rosado’s art and D.C. Alonso’s coloring took our initial vision to the next level.
It was very easy to decide we’d have Tasha go to Hell. Literally! That’s in part because we knew Christian could take her and the readers there in a way that would blow their minds.
From issue #2. Courtesy of Image Comics.
AIPT: If you could change one thing about the story/arc, what would it be and why?
JI: I’m going to go on a limb and say we wouldn’t change a damn thing. I know that sounds crazy because, as creative people, perfection is the white whale we’ll never catch, but we’re proud of the five-act arc that was Tasha’s quest, showdown, and emotional reckoning. Tim and I stuck the landing in terms of the central theme, which is how far are you willing to go to fill the hole of trauma?
It’s a clear circle, from Tasha’s first internal narrative caption in Bloodletter #1 to her last one in Bloodletter #5, and we’re grateful to all the readers who stuck with us for the bloody journey.
AIPT: One of the things that struck me was how the book took key elements (like its depictions of Hell) and added new spins and energies. Do you think that this story had a kind of revitalizing effect for Spawn as a whole?
JI: Thanks! Listen, when you get the opportunity to work within such a rich tapestry as Todd McFarlane’s Spawn Universe, you want to add something to the mix and enrich the landscape further in unexpected ways. We’d love to see other writers expand on the new aspects we’ve brought to the mythology!
Bloodletter succeeded in showing old and new readers some of the secret history of Spawn and his cast through Tasha’s transformation from CIA operative to mystic mercenary, so that definitely gave the mythos a shot in the arm!
From issue #3. Courtesy of Image Comics.
AIPT: The Casper-Bloodletter dynamic is obviously huge across this story. Why was that relationship so important, and was it the “true” core over Spawn-Bloodletter?
JI: Casper’s really the dramatic sleeper agent of the Bloodletter series. It was Tim’s idea to bring in “the woman in the chair” for Tasha, and I was on board immediately as it scratched the Birds of Prey itch from my days working on those characters. We needed someone who would put a different kind of humanity in Tasha’s immediate orbit, which is ironic since Casper is a refugee angel from Heaven.
Casper’s turn in the final issue speaks to what happens when you’re the collateral damage of someone else’s actions, just as Tasha is the collateral damage from Spawn’s days as Al Simmons.
Angels have their limits, too.
AIPT: And speaking of Spawn, I thought having the big battle go down in issue #4 was smart. Why opt for that approach over, say, a massive blow-out in issue #5?
JI: Glad you liked that structural twist!
Listen, we know that pain is always more educational than pleasure, so the tragedy of Tasha’s journey was also going to be the consequences of confronting her bogeyman.
To your point about her relationship with Casper, Tasha needed to atone by saving her only friend after failing to destroy her deadliest enemy.
From issue #4. Courtesy of Image Comics.
AIPT: I think you also do a lot here to make us reconsider Spawn and his origins and why he does what he does. What was it like to play around with Spawn, and do you feel as if he played a bigger role here than just a target for Bloodletter?
JI: Spawn is one of the coolest tragic superheroes of the last 40 years, and I say that as someone who has an editorial history with Batman, so getting to spend time with Spawn and work on him was a thrill. Full stop.
He definitely played a bigger role than simply being a target for Tasha Thornwall. Spawn was revealed as the cracked mirror reflection of Tasha, and a warning of her possible future if she can’t get past the trauma he introduced into her life.
Which is damned unfair, ain’t it? But so is life, and definitely life in Todd McFarlane’s Spawn Universe.
AIPT: What’s the future for Bloodletter? Can we expect new stories/a series down the line?
JI: Well, we heard a rumor that Bloodletter makes a cameo appearance in another Spawn Universe series this week. ;)
Past that, the future of Bloodletter is up to The Toddfather and all the fans who want to see the next stage in what Tim and I have envisioned as ‘Tasha’s Big Story!’ Write to Todd McFarlane Productions until they’re buried in letters and emails demanding more Tasha and Casper!
From issue #5. Courtesy of Image Comics.
AIPT: Given the grand scheme of all things Spawn, what does Bloodletter truly add to this universe now that we’ve had the first arc?
JI: Bloodletter is the seed that Al Simmons planted 10 years ago and watered with blood, now grown into a fully formed and formidable agent of change in the world.
She adds the promise of a different kind of blood-soaked saga, full of angels, demons, and ambitious humans who all have Tasha Thornwall in their crosshairs.
AIPT: Is there anything else we should know about Spawn, Bloodletter, comics, etc.?
JI: Spawn cannot be killed. Bloodletter will never give up. Comics are forever. Don’t let the world defeat you.
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