by Mike Favila, Senior Editor

The Boys are one of my favorite stories in the last 20 years. Hyperkinetic violence, mixed with damaged characters and intensely shocking situations (poor dolphin), isn’t always my cup of tea. But Garth Ennis (Preacher) and Darick Robinson (Happy) created such a fully realized distopia that I immediately got sucked in.

Though there were a number of amazing artists on The Boys, my favorite artist from the run is Russ Braun.  His comical style is both direct and, at times, unnerving in subject content.  The juxtaposition of both are a hallmark of the series, and a big reason for the book’s success.

ComicsOnline: How do you feel about The Boys show on Amazon? What do you think they got the most right?

Russ Braun: I love the Amazon show! It’s an almost totally different beast from the comics, less of a slow burn and a lot more in your face, but I really think they’ve captured the spirit of it. The performances all around are amazing, particularly Antony Starr as Homelander and Karen Fukuhara as The Female (still hard for me to say Kimiko), and Erin Moriarty seems to have come right off the comic page as Starlight. To see scenes and characters you’ve drawn brought so vividly to life is amazing. And doing it for a broader audience, in a way that stays true to the comic is remarkable. Seriously, hats off to Eric Kripke and his team.

I do wish they had done the Jack from Jupiter scene, and early on I had wished Butcher was a bit more… Butcher; ten steps ahead of everyone at all times, but that’s how characters have to grow in different media, you have to be able to identify with them and see their growth, and by the last episode of the second season I just smiled and said, “That’s Butcher.” Karl Urban is phenomenal. And Jack Quaid, an American Hughie, how’s that going to work? Jack’s Hughie is the center and heart of the show and it’s absolutely perfect. So yeah, I’m just a fan, I have no connection to the production, but I love the show. Still hoping I’ll at least get a Russ Braun Easter egg…

CO: After so many years away from the universe, how did Dear Becky get started?

RB: With the popularity of the show, I guess Dynamite contacted Garth and Darick about the possibility of more Boys comics. I heard about it late, just that it was in the works, and the next thing I knew it was announced and I was announced as the artist. So we hit the ground running and it was a blast to be drawing these characters again. It was just like going back in time; characters that are like family to me, great stories and scripts, super tight deadlines to meet and no safety net! Covid-19 derailed the start after I’d finished the first issue and then by the time we’d started up again I was somehow even further behind, but we managed to get it all out on schedule! We got to tell a story that added some nuance and motivation to the history of The Boys, and take us into the future of Hughie and Annie without changing or cheapening the original run. It was a tightrope for sure, but I’m proud of it and hope longtime fans will get something valuable out of it beyond simple nostalgia.

CO: I read on your bio that you worked at Disney animation for a number of years. What prompted the change from your early comic career?

RB: I’d started working in comics while I was in college at the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. I gave it a good crack, got some work under my belt that I was proud of, but never fully found my footing or felt I was %100 “there”. I was working on a big graphic novel project that ended up being cancelled when the imprint I was working for folded, about 150 pages into a 300 page book. Kind of took that as a sign that it was time for a change. I’d done an internship with Disney Feature Animation Florida right out of college and they would call around every year or so to see if I wanted to come work for them so when they called that year I just said, “you know what? Yeah.”

I went down there to work on Mulan in the clean up animation department (with a promise of a spot in a new story department in Florida following that, which never materialized). I ended up staying for about seven years, working on Tarzan, The Emperor’s New Groove, Lilo & Stitch and Brother Bear before the Florida Studio closed in 2004. I picked up a level of discipline, and confidence of line that I brought with me back to New York and to a second crack at comics that’s still going. Better the second time around.

CO: What upcoming projects can you tell us about?

RB: I’ve got some things lined up, not sure what I’m allowed to talk about! Helping out on some Ahoy Comics projects; those guys are the best – Tom Peyer and I go back a long ways and he’s one of the guys that understands how fun and funny comics can be. Then Garth and I are due to revisit another set of characters, and that’ll be my big project for the year. Can’t say more right now!

CO: Do you have any appearances planned this year? Obviously, with COVID still an issue, this might not be plausible until later this year.

RB: I really miss the face to face appearances; I’d only recently started doing a lot of cons, traveling a bit for them, and had such a great time. But with COVID I’m being extra cautious, not just for myself but for the people I know and love. The idea of bringing something into my house and running the risk of actually killing someone I care about, my girlfriend, my parents, my friends or someone I don’t even know on the street? Not worth the risk. Just going to the Post office here in NYC still feels like a life or death prospect. I’m happy to mask up and social distance for your benefit until this is under control, and I believe now it soon will be. I was hoping to see my friends in Albany, go to East Coast ComicCon which is always a favorite, do Terrificon, NYCC and Baltimore at least, but we’ll have to wait and see. See you in 2022…?

CO: What is the best way for your fans to contact you?

RB: It’s pretty easy to track me down – I ain’t hidin’! I’ve been updating my website (russ-braun.com) with new art for sale recently, but I’m also on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. On FB I’ve been doing my “Image of the Day” every day for the last seven years and that’s created a nice little community. Try to do something fun and maybe even inspirational, have something positive and creative for folks to interact with and think about. Stop by and have a look!

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