DF Interview: Kelly Thompson launches a book of mystery and fantasy in ‘Black Cloak’



By Byron Brewer

Blade Runner style mixes with Saga-esque drama in a delectable fantasy/sci-fi blend as two Black Cloaks try to solve the murder of a beloved prince in Kiros, the last city in the known world, before his murder tips the city into war.

Eisner Award-winning writer Kelly Thompson heads to Image Comics for the first time with Black Cloak, an all-new series with artist Meredith McClaren! I sat down with the scribe to inquire about the coming book.


Byron Brewer: Kelly, this is quite the mash-up you have here: detective story, fantasy creatures, the supernatural and neo-noir science fiction! Why all of this at once, and tell us how your coming comic Black Cloak utilizes this genre swirl to its strength as a series.



Kelly Thompson: I think, quite honestly, it’s all those things at once because those are all my favorite things. And I like the idea of the complications that come for a homicide detective in a futuristic fantasy world. It’s not a conceit we see often and I think there are a lot of interesting angles to it.



Byron: How does it feel to team up again with artist Meredith McClaren? Talk a little about your collaborations.



Kelly Thompson: I think Meredith is a genius. A lot of other people get that, but I feel she’s really underrated in our field – she’s got this sharp clean style that’s somehow also soft and inviting and she’s an absolute master of color. Most people who have worked with me know that I am a huge pain when it comes to colors – I have very specific things I like and a lot of things I loathe – but I think Meredith truly has a gift with colors. I don’t know if it’s intuitive or studied but it never stops delighting me. She’s also just a really efficient and smart storyteller and a terrific person.



Byron: I have always gasped at your ability as a comic creator in building interesting worlds, some that were characters unto themselves, seemingly. What type of world can readers expect in Black Cloak? Describe the canvas readers will be walking onto in January as built by Meredith and yourself.



Kelly Thompson: Thank you so much. Black Cloak is my favorite kind of world-building, but also the toughest kind. Definitely not the kind of thing you even want to attempt unless you have a strong collaborator like Meredith helping you do it. Black Cloak is essentially a futuristic fantasy world where all of the creatures came together to vanquish a great evil. And they did, they won – but that all feels very far behind them as they all try to live together in relative peace in the last city in the world. Without a common enemy it’s not going so great. Kiros is a walled city that – in theory – is self-sustaining, which means it needs a huge variety of types of neighborhoods, communities, resources. But this isn’t your usual Western-inspired Fantasy city – though we have some of that – we’ve got a heavy dose of more neo-noir Blade Runner stuff that talks more directly to the detective vibes we also have going on.



Byron: Introduce us to your two main protagonists and the challenge(s) that will face them. What are “black cloaks”?



Kelly Thompson: Black Cloaks are essentially the detectives of this world – largely feared and not understood by the citizens of Kiros they’re easily identified by black hooded cloaks that they wear. Our two leads Black Cloak Phaedra Essex and Theron II of Pax (Essex and Pax for short!) – Essex is a royal Elf that was mysteriously exiled whereas Pax is a Fairy with a young family to support. They have a great rapport and a lot of trust and love for one another, but the events of this story are going to work very hard to tear them apart.



Byron: Can you clue us in a little to the character of the Prince of Kiros? I realize there is a mystery afoot, but without spoilers how does this particular murder engulf Essex and Pax and how might it lead to war if Kiros is the last city in the known world?



Kelly Thompson: So the body that’s discovered in the opening pages – or one of them at least – is a very famous and (mostly) beloved prince called Freyal – who it turns out Essex had a serious past with, prior to her exile. As Essex and Pax try to solve the case, it becomes clear that maybe Freyal knew something important…something dangerous that got him killed.



Byron: Give readers if you will a summary, an extended pitch perhaps, to what we will be seeing in Black Cloak as a series.



Kelly Thompson: At its heart Black Cloak is a procedural. We start with a murder mystery and we don’t stop until we unravel that mystery. And how that murder ties to the politics and literal future of Kiros is a big deal. There’s also just the fact that as our Black Cloaks search for answers it’s easy to see that there’s a huge world here just filled with stories. So I hope once we wrap up the opening arc, we’ll pivot to telling more stories from this world. That’s the hope!



Byron: It is known this book involves a different way of doing comics, although I am concentrating this interview mostly on the eventual printed Image ongoing. But in brief, can you explain about this method utilizing Substack?



Kelly Thompson: Sure. In Black Cloak’s case it mostly just means that through a Substack grant I was able to fund this book – and for Substack readers (at both free and paid tiers) they’ve not only been able to read pages early, but they’ve seen lots of character designs and behind the scenes processes. It’s been really fun. For people that pick the book up from their local comic shop in January, I think the experience will feel like any other great comic book reading experience – for the people on the Substack, they got to kind of peak behind the curtain of this book.



Byron: Kelly, what other projects do you have coming about which you can tell readers?



Kelly Thompson: I am still working on Captain Marvel for Marvel Comics – we’re currently at the beginning of one of our biggest arcs ever – with Carol recruiting some X-Men to fight some Brood in space – and I’m currently preparing for a really fun oversized landmark issue 50 too. I’m also still doing It’s Jeff for Marvel Unlimited although I did hear official word recently that Marvel IS releasing a print edition – I believe in Spring 2023 – so keep your eyes peeled for that! Easily the most exciting thing I’m working on that isn’t Black Cloak is my creator-owned book The Cull with artist/co-creator Mattia De Iulis. We don’t have our print release date yet, but we’re partnered with Image for 2023 and I’d guess that will be late spring maybe?



Dynamic Forces would like to thank Kelly Thompson for taking time out of her busy schedule to answer our questions. Black Cloak #1 from Image Comics is slated to be on sale on January 11th, 2023!



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