Shooting The Breeze With ‘Second Coming’ Artist Richard Pace

Richard Pace was one part of the creative team behind last year’s critically acclaimed sereis, Second Coming from AHOY Comics (Hmm, there something of a theme that runs across these first three interviews we’ve posted since Friday, isn’t there?), and was kind enough to take the tie. out from chart raising commissions and raising his new pup, to answer the same ten questions I’ve been shooting out to comic book creators in an attempt to stave of boredom or worse as we enter another week of uncertainties, worries and isolation. It’s another fun interview where he mentions being busy with the aforementioned comic. Wait, does that mean work is already underway on the promised second series? Nice!
What are we waiting for then? Read on and enjoy. I guarantee you’ll be smiling from ear to ear by the end. Even if Pace claims he doesn’t ‘do humour’. Yeah, right. You ain’t foolin’ anyone.

Olly MacNamee: Now, for many creators a life of isolation is nothing new, but these are, I think we can all agree, unprecedented times. As such, have you noticed any changes yet to your regular daily routines, for better or for worse?
Richard Pace: I got a new puppy at the start of this, so that’s had more impact so far.  I’ve secretly been a part of the hazmat suit fetish community for a long time, so when I wear it outside to get groceries, people think I’m just being overly cautious and would never guess how exciting the experience is.
Wait. . . will people read this?
OM: Like so many others, have you pledged to take up any new hobbies or interests during this downtime? I imagine after one week that resolution—like New Year’s Eve resolutions—may have ebbed for some? So, do you ebb or flow? And that’s not euphemism!
RP: I started a fundraiser for a number of local food banks by offering up lower cost commissions.  I’d hoped to maybe get 20, but it took off and hit 100 in three days.  So, between that, my puppy, Second Coming, and cleaning my hazmat suit inside and out, I have no time for other hobbies. 

OM: This could very well go on for a few months, listening to the experts rather than the politicians. We’re all going to soon be clambering the walls, if we’re not distracted. What comic book gems will you have the time to go back, dig out and re-read and suggest to our readers to go order from their local comic book store to help support their business?
RP: I think I’ll be trying to go through my infinite pile of books I still haven’t read yet, but I do frequently take a break and grab a classic trade paperback like SAGA, or Skullkickers.  It’s hard to turn pages in the full hazmat suit, so I dabbed some silicone caulking on the tip on one finger.
OM: Any newer titles out there you’ve discovered or been recommended and enjoyed reading?
RP: I loved Little Bird last year.  I rarely get out to shops, so I generally only find out about stuff after it’s been out for a while.  I’ve always keep my eye out for books with characters in classic deep diving suits or space suits.  They’re pretty rare, though. 

OM: And, what will be playing on your turntable over the coming weeks? What albums could you not live without?
RP: I’m a classic rock sort of guy.  One go-to album is Paul Simon’s Graceland – it’s first track, ‘The Boy in the Bubble’, is a favourite
OM: Any box sets you’ll be going back to rewatching? Or any new films and TV you may now have the time to invest in?
RP: Breaking Bad.  articularly the later seasons. Alien, Gravity and Ad Astra are going to get a rewatch, too.
OM: I must admit, getting back to comics, it’s been really pleasing to read, see and hear the comic book communities coming together at a time like this. What have been some of the positive stories coming out of the comic book industry that have caught your eye over the past week or so?
RP: The people rushing to help others is always heartwarming.  Specifically, the number of people who chipped in on the foodbank project was astounding.  I was able to give thousands to over six different groups.
Personally, a certain editor (who I don’t want to out here, but his name rhymes with ‘Pom Teyer’) sent me his personal hazmat suit repair kit. It’s got the red tape, which doesn’t match the Lemon-Yellow material on mine, but I can make it work.

OM: It would have been the start of another busy comic con season on both sides of the pond, but alas no more. Will you miss these chances to socialise and meet up with fellow colleagues and friends?
RP: I do. This was looking to be my busiest con schedule in forever.  Seeing old friends and making new ones is the best part of these events. 
When I realized C2E2 might be the last con of the year, I cried so hard I fogged up the face plate in my hazmat suit.
OM: What hopes do you harbour for the comic book industry once these stormy clouds have passed?
RP: Survival would be good.  So many people are exclaiming the end being neigh is unsettling.  That said, what Nietzsche wrote applies, “What doesn’t kill you probably couldn’t because of the thickness of your suit and quality of your air filtration.”  Words to live by.

OM: Finally, and to leave a smile on our readers’ faces, have you heard any good/bad jokes recently?
RP: I don’t do humour.
Second Coming TPB is out now from AHOY Comics, and as always we recommend you do go ask your comic book store to save you a copy or even pay up front to help them out in any little way you can. I’m sure Amazon will survive without your purchase, but will your local store?