EXCLUSIVE! Marc Andreyko Talks BATWOMAN


After dodging a barrage of fanboys and fangirls at Comic-Con International I was able to sit down with Marc Andreyko, famous for his work on Manhunter, Torso, and now the current writer of Batwoman.

UTF: Okay, first off, what’s it like writing Batwoman?  I know a lot of comic writers usually want to tackle either Batman or one of his associates so, what’s it like to write this particular character?

Marc Andreyko: Well, she’s such a great character, I mean, she was so fully realized before I got the job, that I was a fan of the character before I wrote her.  Getting to write her was a privilege.  You’re getting to play in Gotham City without having the direct spotlight of being Batman. It’s the best of both worlds.

UTF: Awesome.  I’m a little behind myself on Batwoman, just maybe a couple issues, but what I did notice is that your whole thing is to bring a lot more supernatural stories to Batwoman.  Do you feel like it’s easier to tell those types of stories for her?

Marc Andreyko: [Actually] my first arc was a crime arc about an art thief.  I wanted to get away from the supernatural for my first arc because that was what the DNA of the book was before, as sort of a palette cleanser.  We’ll be exploring more of the dark horror aspects of Gotham City, both the supernatural and natural, because some of the human horrors are worse than the supernatural horrors.

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UTF: Okay, so it’s like an alternative type of Batman story? Even though it’s still in the same city, it’s a whole other area? Because Batman and his team usually deal with a certain type of villain.

Marc Andreyko: Yes, certainly a different corner. With all the different books in the Batman universe, each one has its own identity, and this arc is going to be exploring the darker corners.

UTF: Another element of Batwoman I see that separates her from the rest is her building relationships.  Now, last time I checked, she was dating Detective Maggie Sawyer, right?

Marc Andreyko: Yeah, they’re engaged.

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UTF: Oh, wow!  That tells you how far behind I am.  So, Maggie Sawyer is going through some kind of custody battle with her daughter, right?  How is that affecting Kate?

Marc Andreyko: Read the new [issues] and you’ll find out.

UTF: How do you feel Batwoman has evolved as a character since her initial creation?

Marc Andreyko: Well, she’s become better at being a superhero, because the more experience you have the better.  She’s getting more comfortable in her own skin, but she still has a lot of stuff from her past life to deal with which is why I have her now seeing a psychiatrist and dealing with a sort of a PTSD situation that she has.

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UTF: Alright, final question: the big thing with DC right now is Future’s End. A lot people are keeping hush hush about it, but a lot of rumors are going around.  Now with what’s coming, what do you think will be the future for Batwoman?

Marc Andreyko: Well, you saw the cover. It looks like she has fangs and wings, so…

UTF: Care to elaborate on it?

Marc Andreyko: No…

UTF: (Laughing) So there’s no Kirk Langstrom vampire bat story going on that we should know about?

Marc Andreyko: (Chuckling) You’ll have to wait until September.

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I want to take the time to thank Marc Andreyko for chatting with me. Now I just have to catch up on the missed issues of Batwoman so I can be prepared for Future’s End!

So what do you think of Andreyko’s run on Batwoman?

Let us hear your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below!