This past week, DC launched a new solo series for STARFIRE. The first issue is a blast and we think you should check it out. This fan favorite Teen Titans character is being written by Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti and they took the time to talk to us, over the phone, about their new series and about a few things from the first issue.
COMIC VINE: What's STARFIRE about?
AMANDA CONNER: STARFIRE is all about a girl who is moving to a new place, that new place being planet Earth, and trying to blend in and meet new people and not come off as a completely person, out of this world alien, which she is.
JIMMY PALMIOTTI: And she has super-powers and if she kisses you, she'll learn your language.
AC: It's that girl trying to be normal. That's the easy version, the light version.
CV: What are some of the things Kori will have to struggle with as someone was transplanted on Earth?
AC: I think that the main struggle with her is that she's new and we're not used to her yet. She's a new character for us. Even though we've known the character for years now, it's something different for us to tackle. We're still getting a feel for her character.
JP: I guess the biggest struggle is trying to ignore everyone's expectations of what they think the book should be.
AC: [laughs]
JP: Because everyone is VERY vocal how they want this Starfire book to read: "this isn't what I want." "I want more of this," but this person wants "more of that." If you look on the Internet, your brain just explodes. We kinda tried to do our own thing. Our own thing is an amalgam of what most people want and I'd say if you don't like what you see in the first issue, by issue three, you might. It's gonna be about all things with this character. We're gonna explore who she is, why she's here, what she's doing here, what she fears, all that stuff. It takes a little time, but with the first issue, we explain who she is and make the book approachable to everyone.
CV: Is it tough to write a character who is ignorant to Earth culture and commonly used phrases?
AC: It's a little tough.
JP: We're like that. We've lived on this planet for 40 years and don't understand things. So it's kinda easy that way.
AC: It's actually kind of fun. It's a little bit of a challenge but it's a fun challenge. I'm enjoying it. How bout you?
JP: You don't want her to not know everything because she's been around a little bit. We're picking and choosing what she doesn't know and making it work with Kori.
AC: We have to acknowledge that she's incredibly smart but a bit naive in the ways of living on Earth.
JP: It's a very fine balancing act because we don't want people to think "they're just writing this character like she doesn't know anything" because that's not true. It's sort of like if we took Einstein and threw him on another planet. As brilliant as he is he's going to be like "what the hell does that mean and what's going on?" We're trying to think of it like that.
CV: One of my favorite thing in the first issue are Kori's thought bubbles where we see images of what other people are saying and how she understands it, which is pretty literal. Where did that idea come from?
AC: Where did we think of that? I guess we thought about how does someone with no idea what local vernacular or slang is and how would they picture that in their head. We thought doing little cartoon emojis would be a great way to express that.
JP: We wanted own it a little bit, so there's a few little quirky things we do in the book. Time will tell if people like them or hate them.
CV: The last page has Kori shouting "X'Hal." Are we seeing the return of that character or is that just something Tamaraneans shout during a storm?
AC: I think it's just us saying "whoa!" That's pretty much what she's saying as the door flies off the trailer and hearing all this crazy weather happening that you're not used to.
CV: Is this book going to have some other guest stars or is it going to be more Starfire focused and driven?
JP: Umm... Yes! By the end of issue 3, we're going to have a guest in the book that plays a supporting character role but at the same time, yes, it's also about her day-to-day live and how crazy and bizarre it's going to get, being orange and living in Key West. And Key West has a boatload of crazy, nutjobs down there and tourists and all that kind of stuff. The supporting characters are important for defining her, but it's going to be one of those books where you don't know what's going to happen next and that's always a fun thing to do.
CV: You've both been working with the character for a little while and what have you come to love about her?
AC: I love that she gets to be new to everything, like a little kid. I think that's what makes her character so fun. It's like having a kid and showing them the world.
JP: I like the effect that she's so powerful but has to blend in. She's very compassionate and has empathy. She's emotionally driven and that's a fun character to write, when someone has their emotions right there all of the time.
CV: What's the deal with the titles at the beginning of certain pages like "show me your jewels" and "from tears to beers?"
JP: [laughs] I like that you just said "show me your jewels." That's funny right there. Justin Gray and I used to do it in JONAH HEX, once in a while. We like to do it because it's a good scene change. To have something like "show us your jewels" and then eventually, you learn what that title means. We thought it was a cool way to chapter the story. The book is only 20 pages and having that in it gives it a sense of movement in the story.
Thanks to Jimmy and Amanda for talking to us and make sure to check out STARFIRE #1 now on sale. Need more of a reason to read it? Check out what we though of the book here! Check out the rest of the preview below!
