Ragman Returns: Ray Fawkes and Inaki Miranda Interview

This article was originally published in the Den of Geek Special Edition Magazine. Click here to view the full issue!

DC’s Rebirth initiative has done wonders for their line of books, but one area that’s remained curiously unexplored is the supernatural. That will change in October when Ray Fawkes (Constantine) and Inaki Miranda (Catwoman) launch Ragman. The series will introduce Rory Regan to current DC continuity. We spoke with Fawkes and Miranda about the tone of the book and how much fun it is to draw a guy covered in semi-sentient rags.

Den of Geek: What drew you guys to Ragman?

Ray Fawkes: I’m kind of nuts about a lot of the DC supernatural characters. After Gotham by Midnight ended, and it came time for me to pitch things to DC, Ragman was one of the first characters I put forward. There’s a lot about him that I find really interesting. To me, the core of Ragman is that he’s one of the few heroes that comes from the same humble roots as the people he tends to defend. Emotionally speaking, I like building on that. Ultimately, the people he’s concerned about are the people down on the street. They’re the people he lives with, the people he’s always been around. To me, I find that really appealing and very unusual for a superhero.

Inaki Miranda: To me, it’s Ray’s premise and script. It’s my first exposure to the character, and I just loved it. What I got is a sense of superheroes, but at the same time [an M. Night] Shyamalan movie [like] The Sixth Sense or Unbreakable, moments where you can feel the grip of the character. That, combined with the action scenes, [made it] perfect for me to have fun. And then it’s playing with Gotham, my favorite city of all time.

DOG: Tell me about the feel of the book.

RF: It’s a horror story, because what we want to get into is the vulnerability of people who are in despair. Rory himself is suffering from PTSD from his service in the military, and his attempt to do what he thought was the right thing. We’re seeing it through Rory’s eyes, from the inside, where there’s suffering and there’s pain, and he has been given the power to see the creatures in the DC Universe who take advantage of that suffering. Some of them are supernatural. He’s going to deal with them.

This is not a lighthearted romp, but it is a superhero story, definitely.

IM: I approach it the same way. It’s very eclectic visually for me. There’s the superhero [story], but there’s also the horror atmosphere. It really has everything.

DOG: Ragman’s powers provide a lot of opportunities for inventive visuals. How wild are you getting with how you’re presenting the story?

IM: As much as possible. I feel really free with this book. This is an origin story, so we get to see throughout the miniseries an evolution of Ragman’s power. I think it’s issue four where you can see how moldable the rags are. I’m making him behave a little bit like a dark Spider-Man with the rags, jumping throughout the city. There’s no real limit to him.

DOG: What’s the craziest thing that we’re going to see from the first arc? What’s your favorite thing so far that you’ve worked on here?

IM: The double-page spread when you first see Ragman.

RF: Yeah. For me, I really enjoyed the different shapes Ragman takes. I think some of them are going to surprise the readers. Once Rory really hooks his mind into what he can do with the Cloak of Rags, Inaki did a good job of going nuts with what can happen. This is a character unlike anyone else in the DC Universe, and we’re really highlighting that. We’re celebrating it. I’m excited to see readers react to how far we go with it.

Ragman #1 will be in comic shops and online on Wednesday, Oct. 11.