Black Eyes and Big Lies Help Keep A Family Snow Blind

by Vince Brusio

It was only a couple of generations ago that people communicated solely through letters and telephones. There was no chance you would end up on TV unless you were on the news, or became a movie star. Now in this day and age when anyone with a social media account can tell their friends that they’re on TV because YouTube is streaming into the living room, it’s hard to imagine a life where every move and phrase doesn't go public. Intentionally, or unintentionally. So imagine how hard it is to lead a private life today. How do you keep the skeletons in the closet? As writer Ollie Masters tells us in this exclusive interview for BOOM! Studios' Snow Blind #1 (OCT151191) — featuring artwork by Tyler Jenkins — the first step for keeping skeletons in the closet is to make sure that no one knows the closet exists.

Snow Blind #1 (OCT151191) is in comic shops December 9.

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PREVIEWSworld: What primer can you give us to lay the foundation for Snow Blind #1? How will it appeal to fans of crime noir?

Ollie Masters: Snow Blind is about a teenager (Teddy) who discovers his parents are in the witness protection program. As he tries to find out why, he goes up against his secretive parents and a dangerous man intent on bringing their history violently into their present lives.

It's full of lies, violence and terrible secrets buried deep in people's past so it should appeal to crime noir fans.

PREVIEWSworld: What was the genesis for Snow Blind? How did the story emerge and evolve?

Ollie Masters: The initial idea came from me thinking about what life would be like if you were in witness protection. These days everyone's on Facebook or Twitter and putting up videos on YouTube. Even if you don't actively participate other people are tagging you and recording you. Essentially the vast majority of us now have public lives whether we want to or not. So how do you keep your new life a secret in such a public world? How do you keep the dangerous people you're hiding from clueless? How do you keep them from finding you?

This was the initial idea for the whole series but it eventually evolved beyond that. It became about the fallout after they find you. And it became about Teddy as he tries to figure out the truth now that he knows his parents have been lying to him his whole life.

PREVIEWSworld: What can you tell us about the characters in the story? Who’s got skeletons in the closet? Who’s a bundle of nerves? Who’s just aching to throw a punch?

Ollie Masters: Teddy is our main character. He's a smart, bookish kid, happier reading books and watching films than hanging out. When things kick off, he channels all those detective books he's read and becomes a kind of amateur PI. As the lies build up around him, and he becomes hardened to the world, he definitely starts feeling that ache to give someone a black eye.

His parents, Bill and Jen, they've got some big secrets in their past. They've not only got skeletons, they're refusing to even admit there's a closet.

PREVIEWSworld:  If you had to call to mind some noir stories that you held in high regard, what would they be, and why? Did any of these works have an impact on your own style?

Ollie Masters: I think I'm influenced by more modern noir stories (I guess what you'd call neo-noir) than the classics. Although saying that, I used to listen to these BBC Raymond Chandler radio plays on repeat when I was a kid so I guess that's always going to be buried deep in anything I do.

I love the Coen Brothers' noir work because they make these old tropes seem fresh and completely their own. Also, Johnson's Brick which was such a perfect reimagining of those classic noir stories.

In comics, though, 100 Bullets is one of my favorite books of all time and has influenced most of my work. Criminal as well, especially if we're talking about Noir — it pretty much set the standard for doing modern noir crime comics.

PREVIEWSworld: You’re at a comic con, and you have a minute to pitch Snow Blind to the crowd to get them excited about it. What adjectives would you throw out to the crowd to help describe the energy that they’ll see in this project?

Ollie Masters: Cold, violent, and mysterious!