On the legend of Robin Hood

AWW:    When did you first encounter Robin Hood and what do you think is the appeal of the legend?

BH:    Somewhat.  The Adventures of Robin Hood [the 1938 film starring Errol Flynn]. The wonderful notion of benevolent outlaws who struggle using guerilla raids against tyranny. I guess they were Terrorists, really. But everything is relative. And the idea that Robin was originally one of them- (aristocracy) is all to the good.

RT:    I was a pretty advanced reader as a child - by the end of first grade I was reading on a sixth grade level. I vividly remember reading a collection of Robin Hood stories. As for the appeal - I guess it's the "little man versus the system." At his core Robin Hood appeals to us for the same basic reasons as, say, George Bailey, in Ir's a Wonderful Life. He's one of us - albeit with extraordinary prowess.

AWW:    What Robin Hood tales of the past influenced you the most? Were any of the artists (such as Howard Pyle and N.C. Wyeth) an inspiration?

BH:    Pyle and Wyeth both have influenced my art style to a degree. Ivanhoe (movie and the Classics Illustrated comic) and Richard Greene's TV show [also called The Adventures of Robin Hood, first broadcast in 1955] also crawled into my awareness early on.

RT:    I'd have to say the Errol Flynn movie. I loved it as a kid. Pyle and Wyeth? Huge in general with me...With everyone if they're being honest!

AWW:    Who is Robin Hood to you?

BH:    Who is Robin Hood to you? Now he's a pathetic drunk who better get his act together.

RT:    I'll stick by what I said earlier - he's Sparatacus. Zorro. Batman. The man who says "no" to corruption and oppression. He's the man we all aspire to be...

AWW:    Demons features an older Robin Hood which -- aside from the film Robin and Marian and some "children of Robin Hood" stories - is something that's rarely done. What's the appeal of an aging hero?

BH:    From a character standpoint you might have a lot more sympathy for a has-been who may find redemption. From an art standpoint the slightly haggard face is much more interesting to draw than the fresh faced kid. More wrinkles-angles-expression. That's why an earlier book I did for DC called Viking Glory had less appeal visually for me. I wanted to draw Kubert's Viking Prince who looked to be about 30 and instead had to draw him around age 21 for the story. Cross-referencing Mike Gold here, since he edited that book in 1990 and Demons of Sherwood now. He provided a lot of help with the plot direction on this book. Great editor!

RT:    Personally what we're doing here represents a couple of concepts that fascinate me. Firstly, there's revisiting legends and attempting to "ground" them in reality - even with supernatural beings (I'm a fan of M. Night Shymalan - he does this brilliantly). I like to look for situations that might give rise to the legends we know today. King Arthur is an example of my obsession with this sort of thing. The Mary Stewart novels about Arthur and Merlin - The Crystal Cave and so on - affected me greatly as a kid. My first film as a director, Kids of the Round Table absolutely reflects that aspect of my interests. If you look at my work in totality I think you'll find this sort of deconstruction - or at least re-interpretation - present a great deal.

RT:   Secondly, I'm interested in the way we tend to romanticize our own pasts - create our own legends. What really gets me excited about that is the opportunity to force characters to confront their own "rose-tinted" memories. You know that girl or guy from high school? The one you remember as being the "one?" I bet she really wasn't. But in any event it would be fun to put the two of you together and find out.

AWW:    Working on this project, which characters developed the most? Did anything surprise you?

BH:    Oddly - besides Robin- Little John is getting a lot of play. Older and very patient with his still immature boss but as we come to learn John also has a vicious streak of superstition. Not good since Sherwood may be haunted.

RT:    Marian. Hands down. She's gotten richer the more we've gone along. She's really surprising me because she's emerging as the clear-eyed "narrator" of the group. The person who really understands Robin and the others and what really happened in their youth.