BY ROB WILLIAMSHenry Flint is something of a British treasure yet, somehow, the American market seems to have completely ignored this talented artist and his kinetic, eccentric style. A 2000AD favourite for many years now, Henry was even voted second in the ‘Best Artist’ category at last year’s National Comics Awards in Bristol, UK, coming behind Bryan Hitch and beating out small-time operators like Jim Lee and Frank Quitely in the process. So you know he can’t be bad. The next thing Mr Flint will have on the market is a 10 part series in 2000AD called Low Life, written by myself. It’s the story of an undercover ‘Wally Squad’ Judge operating in the worst part of Dredd’s Mega City 1, and it should appeal to lovers of crime fiction and noire. Trust me, you have to see some of Henry’s work on this to believe it. Aside from a recent Star Wars Tale for Dark Horse and last year’s Judge Dredd: Aliens mini-series, most American readers will be unaware of his work. So we thought we’d introduce you to the man who, by rights, should be the next big Brit talent to head across the pond.
THE PULSE: First off, would you like to tell American readers about 2000AD, why it's "the galaxy's greatest comic" and the type of people who've written and drawn for it in the past?
HENRY FLINT: 2000AD was born during the British Punk explosion of 1977. It reflected the anger, violence and street fashions going on in UK at that time. The comic set up anti-heroes in impossible "get-out-of-that!" scenarios and each story had enough blood, guns and grizzly deaths to keep any ten-year-old kid happy. I think I'm right in saying that just about every major comic writer and artist from the UK who now works in the states first worked in the comic. It's an institution.
THE PULSE: And what about you? How did you get pulled into the comic industry?
FLINT: To be honest I have no idea. I worked for quite a few comics before 2000AD including Heavy Metal, Tundra comics and Marvel UK. I have a vague memory of leaving college and sending off samples. I remember it was hard work at the time, I had no style and my early work was shockingly bad but I had a burning ambition to see my work in print. Drawing comics is what I always wanted to do from an early age.
THE PULSE: What stories have you worked on for 2000AD?
FLINT: Previous credits include... A.B.C. Warriors, Deadlock, Rogue Trooper, Nemesis the Warlock, Shakara and The V.C's, Judge Dredd vs Aliens, among others.
THE PULSE: The Dredd universe is enormously rich. What's so attractive about it, that it can sustain so many off-shoot stories like Low Life?
FLINT: Judge Dredd seems to be able to cross many types of story from thrillers to comedy, but a lot of the credit has to go to John Wagner (Dredd creator and still writing the character two decades later) who has a bottomless pit of imagination. Dredd has enjoyed a steady growth of popularity in the comic since he first appeared and the scripts sometimes reflected media news stories. In 1984 under Margaret Thatcher's government, for example, 3000 police in full riot gear clashed with miners during the Miners' Strike, an event which had a marked effect on the country. Almost overnight Judge Dredd's character changed from hero, to fascist-cop-anti-hero and the kids seemed to love him even more.
THE PULSE: What was it about Low Life that attracted you, and how do you think series one turned out in retrospect?
FLINT: Crime fiction is a new direction for me and it's one I'm going to pursue for the next couple of years at least. Low Life has opened my eyes to what I think storytelling on an emotional level should be about and I can't think of a more emotional journey than experiencing a serious crime. The first series has turned out better than expected, it started like a new job like any other but after the first few episodes I started finding myself lost in this new world. I hope it shows in the twists and turns.
THE PULSE: Did you do anything different with your art on Low Life? I mean, it makes the majority of your other work look quite shiny and clean by comparison.
FLINT: I had to get dirty for this story, get really grim and gritty. Courtney Love was the first women who came to mind when I designed the new character, undercover Judge Aimee Nixon, mainly because of her strength, but I also had to rough her up a bit, give her a broken nose. I needed to make her look as if she worked the worst crime ridden streets in the world (the streets of Mega-City-One). The end result isn't very pretty, but I'm not going to draw a bimbo blonde babe just for the sake of reader eye candy - the whole essence of the story would be lost. What distinguishes Low Life from my other work is that to me it feels more real.
THE PULSE: Who are your favourite all-time 2000AD creators? 
FLINT: I grew up with the artists. They were like gods to me. It's very difficult to name a few. Let me see, Kevin O'Neill, Brendan McCarthy, Mike McMahon, Brian Bolland, Cam Kennedy... I've inked some of his work recently - wow, you never know how good someone is until you've inked their work!
THE PULSE: What work have you done for the American market?
FLINT: Very little, one Silver Surfer story about ten years ago and that's about it. It's difficult because I'm constantly being confused with my American namesake Flint Henry. We are different people and not related - at least I don't think we are.
THE PULSE: Have you actively tried to generate work for yourself in the American market in the past? And is this something you'd like to do in the future?
FLINT: No. I've made little effort and as a result I've got nowhere, which is hardly surprising. I'd like to work on an American project but ideally want to write, pencil and ink, but I'm not sure many companies would tolerate that.
THE PULSE: A 2000AD story is usually five pages a week and lasts around nine weeks. That's 45 pages for a full story, so most complete 2000AD stories are only the equivalent of two American market issues. That's quite small, so everything has to be very tight and condensed and it leaves little room for visual flourishes like splash pages etc. What do you think this does to the storytelling and would you approach a US format book differently?
FLINT: The difference is amazing. I think it would be difficult to downsize your reading, but I know when I started reading U.S. comics I found the longer format a welcome change, as there's a lot more space for a story to develop. It's all swings and roundabouts though. The good thing about 2000ad is that although you get a six page episode a week, there are also five other six page episodes in the same comic.
THE PULSE: There seems to be a kind of hierarchy for British comic creators - you work for 2000AD and then, if you're good enough or lucky enough, you go and work for the Americans. Do you think this is true? And, if so, why does that occur? Is it purely a case of higher page rates or is it more than that?
FLINT: No, I'm sure it's higher page rates. I can only speak for myself but I try to earn a living the best I can, it's a job like any other and if you're earning the same page rate as you did ten years before and suddenly find yourself with a family then, yes, I'll have some of those U.S. dollars, thank you! Half the problem is that there are too many good creators and only one or two decent publications in the UK, there is no change or second step. Our only choice is to look abroad.
THE PULSE: What's your average working day like, as a pro artist?
FLINT: I've recently had a baby, which has changed everything. I'm now working part-time, baby sitting in the mornings while my wife goes out to work, this means I get five hours in the afternoon to fit in a day's work. I thought I'd have to halve my workload but I'm speeding up and I'm now finding myself working twice as fast, so my workload has stayed the same. I find it quite easy now to work with all the crying going on in the next room, I think with artwork you can switch off and let the hand take over but I've tried writing a few scripts and find the concentration needed near impossible. I don't know how scriptwriters with children do it.
THE PULSE: Break down for us how you go about drawing a page. Obviously, you read the script, decide to ignore what the writer has incompetently described in order to save the finished product from his foppish idiocy, and then what happens?
FLINT: Ah, this is the tricky one to answer because it's different every time. On first reading the script, I just have to work it out afresh each time. If there was a formula the story would soon become boring for both me and the reader. And, yes, I have been known from time to time to ignore what the writer has described, usually when it's raining outside and I want to have a bit of fun, but never at the expense of the story, I hope.
THE PULSE: Do British writers and artists secretly all hate super-hero comics?
FLINT: If you want the truth, we love super-hero comics but we won't admit to it, mainly because it's deep rooted in American culture and we're just outside looking in. It's always a good idea to have pride in your own country's comics, but we have so few comics to be proud of that it's only natural for a little envy to creep in.
THE PULSE: Why do comic creators drink so much? Especially at conventions? And can the Brits drink more than the Yanks?
FLINT: UK comic creators drink too much because of the state of the industry, especially at conventions because once or twice a year is the only time we get to talk to anybody outside our own homes. Can the Brits drink more than the Yanks? Of course we can!
THE PULSE: You've written some fun one-page 'Alien Invasion' stories for 2000AD. Any plans to steal the bread from the mouths of struggling writers and write your own strips from now on?
FLINT: I am first and foremost a comic artist. I can get too obsessive about writing; every single word has to be just right. The 'Alien Invasion' stories were great fun, but one of the one-pagers took me a month to write. That's no way for me to earn a living, so I don't think writers have anything to worry about.
THE PULSE: What comics are you reading at the moment and whose work are you particularly enjoying?
FLINT: I'm reading a Manga graphic novel by Hitosi Iwaaki called 'Parasyte' which is really twisted. I've also recently discovered Dave Cooper and am trying to get my hands on as much of his stuff as possible.
THE PULSE: Finally, what have you got coming up next and what's the Flint master plan for the future? Where would you like to be in five years time?
FLINT: I'm drawing a new series of 'A.B.C. Warriors' written by Pat Mills, and another series of 'Low Life' for 2000AD, written by your good self and a splendid job it is too. It's all going pretty well at the moment and my enthusiasm for the job is as strong as ever. In five years' time I'd like to be more hands on with the development of stories and characters but we'll see. At the moment I'm doing the job I love so I'm more than happy.
Low Life begins in
2000AD Prog 1386, on sale 21 April 2004
Rob Williams is the writer of
Cla$$war for
Com.X, which is returning in March with issue #4,
Low Life for 2000AD, Family for the
Judge Dredd Megazine and other bits and bobs.
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