Jason Martin has created a lot of fun and wacky characters over the years from his Pulp Girls line. His latest addition is Swiss Army Woman a lady with a swiss army knife that replaces her leg. Jason says “It’s Cherry Darling meets Kim Possible, chock full of iconic Swiss style!” I look at it and think it’s just fun. Jason was nice enough to stop by First Comics News and let our readers know all about Swiss Army Woman.
First Comics News: Who is Swiss Army Woman?
Jason Martin: Swiss Army Woman is an Olympic skier turned living weapon who proudly fights for her country, and just like their famous Swiss Army technology, she has any weapon conveniently within… leg’s reach!
Think Cherry Darling from Planet Terror (you know, the girl with the machine gun leg), but cuter and a lot more Swiss!
1st: She was an Olympic skier?
Jason: Sure! That makes for an interesting backstory and suits the story well.
1st: She wasn’t a member of the Swiss Military?
Jason: No, not at all. She was an Olympic skier. Until that fateful day…
1st: Why did the Swiss Military pick her instead of a soldier who lost their leg?
Jason: Because it makes for an interesting origin story! And ya know. Their secret base is IN a mountain. She crashed ON a mountain. It all comes together nicely.
1st: Doesn’t the Swiss Army leg attachment cause her to lean to the right from the weight, and how does she maintain balance?
Jason: Swiss Army technology is better than that! It’s perfectly counterbalanced. If anything, its an improvement to her overall dexterity! But also, there’s a little flange that comes down like afoot. You know, like you’d see on a Transformer?
1st: With no memories, how does the Swiss government reprogram her?
Jason: Wait, did I say she had no memories? I’m not sure that’s a thing. But anyway, she’s definitely there by her own free will. She likes being a part of the programs. She’s quite proud. No programming necessary!
1st: Who are the Chocolate Barons?
Jason: Geez. You’ll find out in the comics. But there may be one named Baron Von Chocolade!
1st: Isn’t the whole point of Switzerland Evil Bankers, why are they a threat to Swiss Army Woman?
Jason: I mean, the whole point? Maybe. Maybe it’s clocks or chocolate. Switzerland is renowned for more than just banks. Lots of cool stuff! But yeah, they’re not a threat to her directly. She serves the country’s interests. So if something threatens Switzerland, its a threat to her by extension. And she’s going to do something about it.
1st: What is this I am hearing about Giant Alien Clocks, that’s just coo-coo?
Jason: I see what you did there. But yeah, we’re talking epic Cuckoo. Heretofore unseen scale Cuckoo. Like if they made a movie adaptation of this villain, they’d have to render it as like a purple cloud or something… cuz it’s just too mind-blowing! Yes, that’s a Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer reference!
1st: How do you use Switzerland as a backdrop?Jason: Liberally. Look, it’s iconic. But this is a comic book, and I’ve never been there. I’ve done my Wikipedia-ing though. But seriously, the idea is that the setting will be very evocative and interesting. Similar to Gotham in The Batman Animated series. It makes for a great character in the story.
1st: Switzerland is a neutral country, what types of threats is Swiss Army Woman going to be facing?
Jason: Right, they’re renowned throughout history for their neutrality, but in our story, we reveal that they do in fact have a technologically advanced secret military. So this is a heightened cartoon-like reality… think G.I. Joe (A Real American Hero), and the Swiss Army and our Ms. Swiss are the Joes, and then there’s this rogues gallery of villains they face off against, all using Swiss different iconography. The aforementioned, evil bankers, chocolate barons, and giant alien Cuckoo clocks. Etc etc.
1st: How did you choose Marco Maccagni for this project?
Jason: I’ve worked with Marco on several books. He’s both an amazing storyteller, and has a fantastically expressive style that’s just perfectly suited to this concept and character! Really bringing to life the animated over the top action that this story calls for. I’m very excited to be working with him on this!!
1st: He is Italian, how does he feel about the Swiss?
Jason: Well, I could be wrong. You’d have to ask him… but I heard he was actually born in the Swiss countryside. And that for whatever reason (perhaps to keep him from harm), his parents placed the infant Marco in a small basket and floated him to safety downriver… and that, of course, brought him to his new home in Italy. Where he was raised on a steady diet of fumetti and cartones, dreaming to one day draw comics about his homeland and possibly reconnect with his birth parents!
Marco?
1st: Is this issue one and done or the launch of a new series from Action Labs?
Jason: For now this is one issue, and it’s not attached to any publisher. That’s the nice thing about Kickstarter, you can offer books directly to the fans. We’d certainly love to do more though. But Swiss Army Woman is also part of a larger collection of concepts I’m doing called Pulp Girls (it’s the second Pulp Girls release), so there will be more to come from Pulp Girls, and potentially more SAW too. And then in the future, they’ll make their way to comic shops and other channels. But right now Kickstarter is the only way to get the book. And to get unique versions of it as well.
1st: What is the minimum pledge for a digital copy?
Jason: $5 gets you the full book in digital/PDF format.
1st: What is the minimum pledge for a physical copy?
Jason: $15 is the cost for the main cover. And then we have several other options for any folks looking to get different collectible versions or more.
1st: Who is doing the covers on the physical copies?
Jason: We’ve got a truly great lineup of artists to showcase the character! Marco, our interior artist, does the main cover. And then we have 5 other variant covers from different artists:
• Catman
• Josh Howard (T Bird and Throttle, Dead@17)
• Bill McKay (Zombie Tramp, Night of the 80s Undead)
• Edward Pun
• and Boo Rudetoons
1st: What do you have to pledge to become an executive producer on the comics, and what are the duties and responsibilities?
Jason: Are you interested? Because we have a reward tier for that. Just check out the Kickstarter for details.
1st: Can you become a character in the comics?
Jason: One lucky fan can, yes. Again, check out the Kickstarter
1st: Does it have to be you, or can it be an original character making a cameo appearance?
Jason: Its meant to be your likeness, we did that with my last Kickstarter, PRINCE-S STARthief… but I might like the idea of an OC qualifying too!
1st: Can retailers order an exclusive variant cover?
Jason: Yes! We just added that option. So if any retailer out there wants to partner up and offer an exclusive version of the book they can!
1st: What rewards do you have planned for the stretch goals?
Jason: We have stretch goals planned, and we just revealed the first one. Every physical backer will get a free die-cut sticker of the great Edward Pun cover art with their orders if we reach the first stretch goal. And we’ll share more as we go.
1st: What is the Kickstarter address?
Jason: Kickstarter.com
Please take a closer look at the book, and all the cool Kickstarter exclusive rewards we’re offering!
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