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    Inside Astro City #15 with Kurt Busiek

    Jason InmanBy Updated:5 Mins Read

    Welcome to Inside Astro City, a column focusing on the Vertigo Comics series Astro City from Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson, and Alex Ross. Each month, we’ll take a look at the current issue of the series, and ask series writer Kurt Busiek questions about the book. Let’s jump into issue 15!

    This is a spoiler-filled column, so if you have not yet read the issue you might want to come back later. You can find the issue at your local comic book shop or you can download it from Comixology here. 

    Astro City 15 coverAstro City #15: In the wake of last issue’s devastation, Ellie has to find a way to save her longtime friends and discover the truth about her past in the process. Plus: Honor Guard and the villainy of Vivi Viktor!

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Astro City 151. We see Ellie exonerated of her robot crimes in this issue, but was there ever a draft or idea for this story where Ellie was actually guilty?
    Kurt Busiek: No, of course not! Ellie’s a sweetie!
    [Besides, we already have a villain who refurbishes junk and uses it villainously — that’s the Junkman’s gig.]
    the junkman
    There was, however, an earlier outline in which Ellie was a lot younger, and didn’t have anywhere near the same background. She was still very nice and protective of the robots in that, someone who started collecting them like a shelter for stray dogs, more or less, and it just grew from there. But when it came time to write the story, I couldn’t find those notes, and couldn’t remember all the details, including where the story went. So I started thinking about it from scratch, and for some reason Ellie got a lot older, and her unusual background became an important part of the story.
    Astro City 2
    2. Tell us of the origins of Vivian Vincentia Viktor, was she meant to be a pure opposite to Ellie, and were there any influences from an armor wearing Marvel villain with the title of doctor?

    KB: What, because of the name “Viktor”? And the college roommate thing?

    No, Vivi Viktor is a pretty classic mad scientist type, and her alliterative name was inspired by the granddaddy of comic-book mad scientists, Lex Luthor. I’m not 100% sure of where she came from, except that on the one hand, I needed something going on that would come out of Ellie’s past and be big and sprawling enough to involve the grand history of robot design in Astro City. And on the other, someone had written in asking why we didn’t have any A-list villain types in the book. I think we’ve had quite a few, over the years, but I figured why not cook up another one, to play against Ellie in this story.
    And now that we’ve got her, I hope we’ll be seeing more of her, in time…
    Astro City 3
    3. Fred, who got Ellie into trouble in the first place, leaves to go try his luck in Chicago. In your mind, does Fred make it in Chicago or does he fail again?

    KB: Fred’s weak. And Fred has a very strong tendency to blame others for problems he creates himself. So has he learned his lesson? It’s hard to say — he’s never quite had this bad a situation come from it before.

    So who knows? Ellie certainly hopes the best for him, but Ellie hopes the best for everyone. In the end, it’s really up to Fred, and I don’t know what he’ll do.
    Astro City 4
    4. What does the final page imply for Ellie and the future of Astro City’s honey needs?

    KB: I don’t think it’ll have much immediate effect on Astro City’s honey needs, because that lsat page is set in the Appalachians somewhere. But the people of the American Southeast, they’re in for a treat!

    Astro City 16

    5. Want to give us an easter egg from what we can expect from Starbright’s adventure in Astro City #16 next month?

    KB: I’m not sure this qualifies as an Easter Egg, but…next issue will be simultaneously my newest story and one of my oldest stories. The lettercolumn will explain just how that can be. But read the story first…you don’t want to blow any surprises — and page 24 of next issue is quite a surprise!

    Astro City #15

     

    And that’s it! I hope you enjoyed this special look inside Astro City #14! A special thank you to Kurt Busiek for taking the time out of his busy schedule to answer our questions. If you haven’t had a chance to read Astro City, I highly recommend running down to your local shop and picking it up.

    NEXT TIME

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    Astro City #16: A Vertigo ‘Defy Covers’ issue! Once upon a time, in a small, idyllic town, there was a teen super hero named Starbright. But ‘once’ was a long time ago. Find out what became of Starbright and his greatest foe – and what their entwined destinies hold for the future of Astro City.

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    Born in the land of Superman and now living in Los Angeles, Jason is a simple man who one day dreams of writing a scene where Superman punches the moon. He's worked for many companies including Walt Disney, 20th Century Fox, and Youtubers Rhett & Link. During his ever escaping free time, he produces content for his award winning Youtube channel while reading more comics than any one man should in a week.

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