Duane Swierczynski Cons His Way Into New Series From Dynamite!

Though he got his start as a non-fiction writer and a novelist, Duane Swierczynski has had an incredible impact on comics over the last decade, writing Cable, Deadpool: Wade Wilson's War, and Judge Dredd, among many others. Now, with artist Keith Burns, he's set to debut a new crime thriller for Dynamite Entertainment with Ex-Con (JUL141056)!

PREVIEWSworld spoke with Swierczynski about this upcoming project, hitting stores in September.

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PREVIEWSworld: How would you describe Cody Pomeray, the titular character of Ex-Con?

Duane Swierczynski: Cody’s your classic grifter – there’s nothing he wouldn’t steal, including his name (which he picked up from a beat novel he once read). To me, the difference between a grifter and a bandit is their choice of tools: bandits use deadly weapons, while grifters use their brains.

Cody’s brain, however, works in a slightly different way. He interprets mental states as actual colors, so it’s easy for him to know who’s lying to him, as well as who wants to lay down with him (if you know what I mean). He calls it “Seeing the Lights,” and it’s serves him well over the years… until our first issue.

PREVIEWSworld: By the nature of the title itself, we know that Cody has already experienced his crime and punishment. Will the story be firmly set after his stint in prison, or will we get to experience flashbacks to his jail time and what shapes him into his current state?

Duane Swierszynski: The story opens with a brief glimpse of his freewheelin’ life before prison, but yeah – we pick up his tale five years later (in 1989), on the day he’s released. That said, we do have some brutal looks back at Cody’s prison days, because they absolutely set him on the doomed road he’s currently traveling.

PREVIEWSworld: The events of Ex-Con are set in the eighties. How does that era – its politics, materialism, societal fears and distractions, etc. – play into the story?

Duane Swierczynski: I think certain eras have their ideal crime stories – and Cody’s story just felt like it came screaming out of the 80s. It’s also nice to play in a world where you can’t rely on cell phones or the internet. And of course, there’s the music, the drugs, the drinking, the clothes… artist Keith Burns and I have been having a blast.

PREVIEWSworld: Should fans of your previous comics work anticipate similar themes to appear in Ex-Con? Any comparison titles from the Swierczynski library whose readers are ideally suited to enjoy this new project?

Duane Swierczynski: Ex-Con is probably my first balls-out crime story for comics, as opposed to other comics that have had a superhero or science-fiction element to them. Granted, Cody has an ability that could be considered a superpower, but he’s no hero, believe me.

Fans who’ve liked my darker novels – The Wheelman or The Blonde, for instance – will feel at home in Cody’s twisted little noir world.

PREVIEWSworld: Why don’t you give us something to salivate over – what’s something you can tease (without giving too much away, obviously) that’ll make people really sit up and take notice of Ex-Con?

Duane Swierczynski: I’m torn; do I mention the infamous wine-coolers-in-the-garage scene? Or the [CENSORED] sequence that I’m pretty sure made Keith Burns blush? Or the bearded horror/porn director who… ahh, I can’t give anything away. You’re just going to have to enjoy the 80s splendor along with poor Cody.

Click on the preview pages below and be sure to pre-order your copy of Ex-Con today at your local comic shop!