Talking All Things Grover And ‘Sesame Street’ With Writer Joey Esposito

For anyone who grew up on PBS, Sesame Street was a fixture of your day. Some things have changed (new episodes of Sesame Street now debut first on Max), but the furry monsters on Sesame Street are as lovable as ever and they’re getting their own comic book series courtesy of Oni Press. Writer Joey Esposito and artist Austin Baechle are responsible for the first issue, Grover Lends A Hand, and I got to ask Esposito all about it:

Rachel Bellwoar: How big a role did Sesame Street play in your childhood growing up?

Joey Esposito: One of my earliest memories is playing with an Ernie doll so much that his little tuft of hair started coming detached, so yeah, Sesame Street was a huge part of my childhood. I can still recall the feeling of our old living room carpet as I sat in front of the TV to watch it, you know? It’s an incredible connective thread that weaves through multiple generations, and I think it’s so rad that no matter which decade you grew up in, we all have these collective memories of hanging with our best friends on Sesame Street. I think with the comic book series, all the creators involved have a similar connection to these characters and we all worked really hard to make sure that love and appreciation shined through for a new generation of readers!

Bellwoar: Each of the issues in this series revolves around a different monster. Did you have any say over which monster your issue would be about?

Esposito: Absolutely, I pitched a few different ideas for various characters, and a Grover story for issue #1 just seemed like a natural fit — he’s the original Sesame Street superstar, after all! So Sesame Street #1 is all about Grover doing what he does best: trying to help his friends!

Bellwoar: What do you think sets Grover apart from his neighbors and what’s it been like trying to capture his voice?

Esposito: Grover is the most well-meaning Muppet you’ll ever have the pleasure of meeting. He’s a people (or monster)-pleaser for sure, and I think it’s important to see someone with nothing but the best of intentions, even if it sometimes doesn’t pan out the way he hopes. Capturing Grover’s voice — and all of the cast’s voices, for that matter — wasn’t that hard, if I’m being honest. These characters are so ingrained in me, and all of us, that it was kind of like conjuring up the voice of an old pal. Plus, it helps having an incredible artist like Austin Baechle bringing our story to life — Grover’s dialogue and actions would be nothing without the expressive cartooning that Austin brings to our issue!

Bellwoar: I love how this issue opens with Grover looking at his reflection, a la the “Monster in the Mirror” music video. Was that a deliberate Easter egg?

Esposito: Absolutely!! It’s one of my favorites from when I was a kid, I am so delighted that you picked up on the reference. We tried to include fun nods to things like that throughout; things that Sesame Street die-hards will connect with but don’t distract from the stories we’re telling, especially for the younger readers we made this for!

Bellwoar: Sesame Street is such a busy neighborhood. How did you decide which friends Grover would run into and did you always want to include some friends that might not be as widely known, like Sherlock Hemlock?

Esposito: I really just wanted to make sure I got to include my all-time faves — Big Bird, the Count, Cookie Monster, to name just a few. But there have been so many incredible Sesame Street cast members over the years, inevitably some fade into the background as new characters emerge, which makes the classics all the more delightful when they pop up again! That was the case with Sherlock Hemlock for sure, because I always loved him. And you’ll see another old favorite of mine pop up in issue #4 that I wrote with art by Sean Dove, a truly magical Muppet…

Bellwoar: When Grover isn’t helping his friends as himself he sometimes does so as Super Grover. Were you tempted at all to have him dawn his cape in this issue?

Esposito: Of course! Everybody loves Super Grover! Nevertheless, I resisted this impulse and decided instead to have Grover help out his pals as just regular-true-blue Grover.

Bellwoar: Grover starts his day by throwing some music on. Do you enjoy listening to music when you first wake up, too?

Esposito: Naturally! There’s always music on in our house, whether it’s through headphones as I’m working or on the record player as I’m cooking or doing chores. It may not be reflected in the final comic and I can’t totally explain why it worked out this way, but both of my issues of Sesame Street were written entirely to Nine Inch Nails.

Bellwoar: If you could visit any place on Sesame Street, where would you go?

Esposito: It’s gotta be Hoopers! They’ve got everything! I’m a big fan of eating local delicacies wherever I go, so I’d even be into trying the sardine sundae.

Bellwoar: Thanks for agreeing to this interview, Joey!

With colors by Alessandro Santoro and letters by Shawn Lee, Sesame Street #1 goes on sale August 28th from Oni Press.