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Welcome back kiddies! This time we welcome into the dungeon one of my favorite artists and soon to be yours, Gabe Rodriguez. So sit there and pretend to enjoy it as much as I did, as he tells us all about his work, his pet monster, and a little turtle who sells lemonade.

Alright let’s start out with a short answer section and get the usual out of the way.

Name:
Gabriel Rodríguez

Age:
35 (but looking WAY younger…..)

Married/Single/Dating/Other:
So happily married…

Pets:
No pets, YET (planning some surprise for my older kid next Christmas…)

Highest Education Level:
Architect, with Master Degree from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.

High School Mascot:
My CDs…

First Job:
I painted a replica of the cover of Rush album Hemispheres for a friend from the school, that was my very first paid job…

Favorite place to hangout with friends:
As soon as I have a minute to hangout with anybody… ANY place….

Staying with short answers, let’s talk about what you do:

Comic(s) you created Before 1999:
Just one: a 24 page issue of a self written comic named Urban Myths, just done to test myself, to know if I was able to write and draw a complete comic issue.

November 21, 2005:
Diablo (a chilean super hero, just one issue that was published but never distributed), about 25 illustrations for a fantasy card game named Myths and Legends, and with IDW, as a real professional since 2002: 26 issues of CSI comics (5 mini-series plus a 48 page special), and the adaptations of George Romero’s Land Of The Dead, and Clive Barker’s The Great And Secret Show.

November 22, 2005 – December 21, 2012:
Still with IDW, the adaptation of Robert Zemeckis’ Beowulf, covers for Transformers, Astroboy and Angel, and since late 2007, and probably until 2011 at least, Locke & Key with Joe Hill…

Alright all that stuff aside, let’s get to the meat of the interview:

What do you do when not making comics?
If possible, sleep… also, taking care of my kids, from time to time going out with my wife, and once or twice a year, going to a concert or something like that…

Favorite sports teams to watch?
The Chilean Fútbol Team (soccer for you guys), getting ready for the South African World Championship next year!!

You take a trip to the North Pole and get stranded for one year. What do you do to pass the time?
Hunt polar bears with my bare hands….

When you were 15 what were you for Halloween?
We didn’t celebrate Halloween in Chile until about 10 years ago (y’know, globalization…)…. so I was 25.

Favorite comic character when you were 15 and now?
Then: Batman.
Now: The Locke family.

If you had to dance to one song for the rest of the day what would it be?
“Persiana Americana”, by Soda Stereo (rock band from Argentina).

Back to comic stuff for now.

Knowing that Iceman is the greatest hero of all time, why do you think he is so underused?
His manager knows that getting overexposed kills your credibility in comics…(ask Wolverine…).

Alright you’re making a comic about a turtle who sells lemonade to rich fish, what would his name be and sell me on a quick pitch? Go!
The comic would be named Squeezed, and would be about this little turtle who would raise their fellow juice sellers against the fish mobster syndicate that controls the juice market, but everything get’s complicated when he fell in love with the Catfish Boss’ daughter…. A cross between the Godfather, Animal Farm and Meet the Feebles…

We all know you are a master with the pencil, so where did it all begin, and how can I be more like you when I decide to grow up?
You need to start before growing up. My first memory about myself drawing, should be from when I was 4… didn’t stop since then.

Where is the real money at in comic creating?
There’s NO real money, that’ why it’s still such a lovely business to dedicate your life to…

When you’re making comics, what’s going on around you? Music, what kind? Silence? TV on?
Mainly music, from progressive rock to electronic and movie soundtracks, and occasionally some TV and my older son asking things…

10 years from now. Where do you see yourself?
Just as now, sharing with my family, doing what I love and enjoying every second of the day….

If I sent my ninja to your house to steal Locke & Key sketches how would you stop him?
I would let my pet monster come out from under the bed to eat him….

Alright we can finish up with a quick word association game. I will say a word, you give me a quick one sentence response.

Joe Hill?
The Heart of a Kid combined with the Mind of a Genius.

Zombies?
Shopping mall.

Horror Comics?
Sometimes uncompromised creativity, sometimes popcorn show.

Bananas?
Apples.

Godfather 1 and 2?
Perfect and “no-perfect-but-better.”

DC Comics?
Mythology.

Nachos?
Burritos.

Decapitated Dan?
Not yet.

Gabriel Rodriguez?
Yes!

Awesome! Thanks so much Gabe!

If you want to learn more about Gabe and how awesome his work is go to http://www2.gr.cl/

Decapitated Dan
decapitateddan@comicattack.net