A Spiritual Sequel To ET And Super 8 – Talking Olympia With Curt Pires

Comics is a labor of love for many. No one is getting into this industry to make money. They do it for the love of storytelling. In the case of Olympia from Image Comics, it has a personal touch. Writer Curt Pires penned this book with is father, Tony, while Tony was undergoing treatment for cancer. I had a chance to speak with Curt about the project and its influences.

Elon is a latchkey kid who spends his days alone reading comic books-until his favorite superhero, Olympian, comes crashing off the page and into reality! But as he nurses his wounded and delirious hero back to health, he discovers Olympian isn’t the only thing that came through… something evil followed him.

James Ferguson: I understand Olympia is a pretty personal comic to you, having written it with your father, Tony. How does it feel to get this comic out into the world now?
Curt Pires: It’s bittersweet. I wish we’d gotten it out faster so he could hold it in his hands. Sometimes on my darker days I feel guilty I couldn’t speed up our progress, but that’s out of my hands. I’m happy to be able to share my love for my father and keep him alive through this book.

JF: When faced with something as terrifying as cancer, how did you and your father channel that into the theme of hope seen in Olympia?
CP: My dad getting sick brought us closer together… and it made me a better, less selfish person in a lot of ways. I spent so much time with him in his last six months. I was really blessed, we got to do a lot. It was a gift in a way.

JF: How did the design for this world and these characters come about?
CP: That’s pretty much all Alex [Diotto]. I gave him notes and reference and creative direction, but he is to credit for the book’s look. Him and Dee [Cunniffe]. Micah [Myers]’s lettering is a huge part of the world, too.

JF: Olympia is described as a love letter ’60s psychedelic cosmic comics and ’80s Spielberg and Shane Black movies. What are some of the influences that stand out?
CP: ET of course. Super 8 by [JJ] Abrams, too. I think Super 8 was Abrams doing a spiritual sequel to ET, and Olympia is me doing my spiritual sequel to both ET and Super 8. I made the third movie in that trilogy in my mind. It’s not really inspired by a specific Shane Black movie but more the way he blends humor and serious plotlines. The Nice Guys, maybe? And comic wise, the biggest influences were probably Captain Victory, Eternals, and Kirby’s Fourth World stuff.
Comicon would like to thank Curt Pires for taking the time to speak with us. Olympia #1 is set for release on November 20th, 2019.