This spring, it’s time to return to the Outerverse… and things are about to get rockier than normal for Lady Baltimore and her team of adventurers.
This week, the debut issue of Lady Baltimore: The Daughters of Medusa from Dark Horse Comics hit newsstands, following Sofia Baltimore and company’s investigation of a purported gorgon plaguing spies and soldiers in Paris, leaving many turned to stone. From the creative team of Christopher Golden, Mike Mignola, Bridgit Connell, and Michelle Madsen, the question Lady Baltimore must ask herself is whether she will be able to contend with new danger from the world of the occult, or will she succumb to the gaze of the gorgon?
I spoke with Mr. Golden recently about the idea behind Lady Baltimore: The Daughters of Medusa, working with the creative team again after a hiatus, the quiet and bombastic aspects of The Daughters of Medusa, and what makes a Medusa tale narratively compelling.
The combination of the talents of Christopher Golden, Mike Mignola, Bridgit Connell, and the rest of the creative team always make for engrossing romps, but, after reading issue #1 of The Daughters of Medusa, it’s at a whole new level. They know the assignment and they hit the mark. Every. Time.
Lady Baltimore: The Daughters of Medusa #1 cover
FreakSugar: Why was this a perfect time to return to Lady Baltimore?
Christopher Golden: Any time is the perfect time. Our fantastic artist, Bridgit Connell, had taken time off when her baby was born. We made it clear to her from the moment she shared the happy news of her pregnancy that we were going to park the series until she was ready to get back to work. So, the perfect time was whenever Bridgit returned to the drawing board. We’re thrilled to be back, and we have some great things coming up, starting with this new two-issue story!
FS: What can you tell us about the conceit of The Daughters of Medusa?
CG: It starts as a murder mystery along the River Seine in Paris, which leads to the discovery of a secret cabal of gorgons in the city, and a lot of intrigue involving Nazis and murder…and gorgons. It’s got its quiet moments, but it’s also full of action scenes that were so much damn fun! I’m not going to give away anything regarding the gorgons themselves or where the story takes them.
FS: The character and concept of Medusa has been imagined and reimagined over the years. What is your take on the gorgon?
CG: As with any bit of myth and folklore I’ve delved into in my career, I’ve found bits and pieces that I really like and then spun it out into a kind of new mythology–in this case, in the Outerverse. It’s one of my favorite things in the world, to take the characters and ideas and history we’ve built into this universe and imagine ways to thread the core concepts of ancient myth or legends into it in a way that really works with the adventure and horror and tone of the world.
FS: You’re working with Mike Mignola and Bridgit Connell again. What has been your favorite part working with them from one project to the next?
CG: With Mike, I’ve said a thousand times that working with him inspires a creative freedom that didn’t come naturally to me. I’m so prone to kind of defending myself in my own stories by explaining WHY something makes sense, instead of just relying on the beauty of the story. So often, Mike’s stories make sense, and he understands why, but he doesn’t have to tell the reader why. There’s such magic in that.
Working with Bridgit is phenomenal because she turns every page of every script over in her head a hundred times looking for the best way, the most evocative way, to illustrate it. She cares deeply about the characters and asks questions that make the stories better. You’ll be seeing her come on to co-write in a future volume. Like Peter Bergting, with whom I’ve worked more than any other artist, Bridgit is ready to do her own comics, to write for herself. But we’re very happy that both of them are choosing to keep working with us on these comics.
FS: In the press release, Bridgit Connell said the script was one of her favorite monster stories she’s ever read. What makes a good Medusa or gorgon story to you?
CG: Medusa stories are often rooted in ideas about female appearance and the male gaze. This one has its own horror-action-adventure take in the midst of the Outerverse’s version of WW2, but layered into that is also some commentary about self-image that I think build on gorgon mythology. There’s a lot happening beneath the surface of this story. I can’t wait for it to come out.
FS: After working with the character over the years, how does Lady Baltimore still surprise you?
CG: She’s little, but fierce. Not only does she not hesitate to throw herself into a fight with enemies who seem much more formidable, but she’s likely to find a way to win, because she has to. The overarching fight against evil in the Outerverse, the mythology we created for it in Baltimore, Lady Baltimore, Joe Golem, and the spinoff Tales of the Outerverse, is something we put a lot of thought into. Baltimore didn’t choose his fight against evil. Joe Golem didn’t choose it. But Sofia–Lady Baltimore–she absolutely chose this fight, and she’s in it for keeps. She’s got more to live for, and more to fight for.
Lady Baltimore: The Daughters of Medusa #1 is out now from Dark Horse Comics.
From the official issue description:
As the supernatural battle for control of Europe and the world wages on, Sofia and her team journey to Paris to investigate a possible gorgon that is turning spies and soldiers to stone.
Mike Mignola, Christopher Golden, Bridgit Connell, and Michelle Madsen continue their horror adventure series in this new two-part story.
• The first in a new two-part story in Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden’s Outerverse.