The creators of Bloody Pulp, another contestant in this month’s Zuda contest, have been kind enough to answer some questions about their comic for the next installment of my Zuda interview series. Here’s what they had to say about the why they chose 1930’s Kansas city for the setting of their comic, what the premise of Bloody Pup is and you should vote for them in this month’s Zuda contest.

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself and your comic Bloody Pulp. How did the project come about?

JM: My name is Jeff McComsey I live in Lancaster, Pennsylvania with my girlfriend Samantha. I‘ve got an ongoing creator owned series called “American Terror: Confession of a Human Smart Bomb” published by the fine folks at Alterna Comics, as well as a series I’m working on with Jorge called “9 Months”. Jorge and I have worked together before and I really wanted to take a stab at a Zuda submission, so I enlisted the help of the gnarliest writer I know. Bloody Pulp is the result of that.

JV: Hey. I’m Jorge. I’m the writer/creator/co-creator of a couple of titles. I published an original graphic novel, Gunplay, last year with artist Dominic Vivona and Platinum Studios. Not too long ago, I started a pair of indie press labels, KID KONG ENTERTAINMENT and TWO FISTED PRESS. Kid Kong is a family friendly label. I publish a book call Kaeru-Boy there with artist/co-founder, Darrin Stephens. While Two Fisted Press is a place for grittier, more mature stories. Two Fisted is where I publish another title, 9 Months, with Jeff providing the art. Two Fisted Press is also the unofficial base of operations for our Zuda entry, Bloody Pulp.

JM: Originally I had pitched Jorge a rough premise specifically for Zuda about a hired mob torpedo that has had a change of heart and decides to start saving his victims. We chatted about a couple of other ideas and parted ways(we were at the NYCC). Fast forward a week or two later Jorge sends me an eight page script that, blew me away. I’ve worked with Jorge before and know what he’s capable of as a writer and this Bloody Pulp script just far exceeded what I had hoped for.

JV: Bloody Pulp is the story of John “Pulp” Polpowski, the kind of guy you only see if you owe the wrong people a lot of money. He’s a 1930’s leg breaker who carries a dangerous secret; he’s been quietly relocating some of the people he’s been paid to kill. He’s been moving them to an undisclosed farm house in the middle of nowhere. A place where they can get a fresh start. A place where the sins of the past dissolve in the present. This is the house that Pulp built and the rules are simple: No one leaves… EVER. But there’s nothing simple about the arrival of Eustace Parks, a Negro band leader who has drawn the attention of the Kansas City syndicate– the wrong kind of attention. When Eustace arrives, his presence causes lines to be drawn, passions to ignite and horrible acts to be carried out, leading to an epic standoff that will measure just how far Pulp is willing to go to bring order to his house.

JM: I love a good period piece story. Always have always will. Kansas City, as I understand it, during the Prohibition era had the reputation of being a very “mob” town. I love the idea that even the cops couldn’t help you and, in many cases, were simply an extension of the crime syndicates. Kansas City is a place that hasn’t been the focus of a lot of other crime stories like say, Chicago or New York City. This allows Jorge and I a kind of freedom to morph the city to our specific story/plot needs. There are also several plot points that call for some of the unique elements that both the time period and locale provide.

JV: Shhhhhhhh!

JV: I don’t know if Pulp is all that different from other characters I’ve written. I tend to be drawn to stories surrounding dangerous leads. The kind of character who is capable of committing what I call “terrible acts of heroism”. When faced with choosing the lesser of two evils, many of us get stuck and do nothing. But the main characters in my stories never allow doubt to hinder action. They’ll do whatever is necessary to make the lesser of those evils a reality, even if it’s only a hair less than the other option. More often than not, that leads to intensely violent moments in storytelling.

JM: I think folks should vote for Bloody Pulp because, first off, I can say with no ego that it’s some of my finest work and I am immensely proud of this submission. Jorge and I have worked together in the past and found the partnership a great fit. We’ve already worked out those initial writer/artist issues that inevitably pop up. This story has flowed naturally from the beginning and if we manage to pull off the win I can assure you that if you like what you read on Zuda there is plenty more where that came from.

JV: The places we’re taking this story… get a helmet.

You can read more about Bloody Pulp on their blog at http://twofistedpress.com/ and Zuda.com