GVN Talking Comics Interview: Writer Chris Condon For Oni Press ‘The Goddamn Tragedy, #1’

Chris Condon has made a name for himself writing in numerous genres. Whether it be classic comic narratives like in Green Arrow or Ultimate Wolverine, or Horror like his work for EC Comics. Not to mention telling tales in the western scope like his award winning “That Texas Blood.” It is that genre that Condon along with illustrator Shawn Kuruneru explores in his one-shot for Oni Press, “The Goddamn Tragedy, #1.” A 48-page spectacular novella coming on May 28th.

Recently we visited with the talented writer again (having spoken to him previously for his work on “EC’s Epitaph from the Abyss”) to discuss if he has more EC goodness coming and his new book for Oni Press. So, let’s welcome back writer Chris Condon to GVN’s Talking Comics.

Return to EC Comics

GVN: Thank you for paying us another visit, Chris. When we last chatted, in July of 2024, we discussed your contributions on EC’s Epitaph from the Abyss. You mentioned the excitement of helping bring the legacy of EC back to long-time fans and new ones. As excitement among the media and fans reaches a fever pitch with EC’s return, do you expect to create more stories in that realm?

CHRIS: Of course, thank you for having me back! I love EC stories, so yes, I hope so. I know that I have at least one more story that will be published within the EC realm of books, so stay tuned for that. I think it’s a good one.

News from the Fallout

GVN: In the meantime, you have continued to flex your creative muscles on other projects. Including a new sci-fi series for Image Comics along with artist Jeffrey Alan Love, in “News from the Fallout.” How long has this series been in the works, and what inspired this idea?

CHRIS: “News from the Fallout” has been kicking around for a long time. I first came up with the idea around 2011 or 2012, and there are certainly still pieces of that idea present in the current iteration of News. For example, there’s mention of ‘The New Tribe.’ Well, the New Tribe was an idea that I had written as a short story around that time, focusing on a community that was creating a new society beneath our own. The fully fleshed News came a few months following that short story, and that was originally called ‘Old Joe’s.’ It was sort of a riff on Stephen King’s The Mist, with a group of strangers stuck inside of a diner during an apocalyptic event. I liked the idea of people being forced together, to deal with an insane situation – put those people together and see how they react, like a chemical experiment.

Originally, the story was set in New Hampshire and centered around a university professor, a top-secret government facility, and country-folk who didn’t quite jibe with the city-folk. Ultimately, that idea became News from the Fallout, and I transported the idea over to Nevada. A few things remained as the years went on, of course, for example it was always going to be set in the early 60s before the Kennedy assassination, but a lot of it changed and grew as the years went on. I am very excited to finally be releasing this book. I think it’s one-of-a-kind and I’m so excited to be collaborating with Jeffrey Alan Love, Hassan Otmane-Elhaou, and Michael Tivey on it.

The Goddamn Tragedy #1

GVN: But as they say on TV…That’s NOT ALL! You are also working with Oni Press and talented artist Shawn Kuruneru on a return to your western roots in “THE GODDAMN TRAGEDY #1, a vicious and vengeful account of one of the Old West’s darkest episodes from its last and only survivor!” As a creator who has excelled in the Old West genre, how did this story come to be, and what aspects of Shawn’s work contribute to its success?

CHRIS: Well, I had a good title. The Goddamn Tragedy. The story kind of went around the title, sort of like a prompt. What kind of tragedy is this? Well, I started thinking about one of the great tragedies in American history, specifically in quote-unquote ‘frontier’ history: the doomed Donner Party. So, if I’m doing a Donner Party story, how do I do it? The idea of making it about a hubristic father who is looking to advance his and his family’s fortunes ahead of others by taking an ill-advised shortcut arose. I thought that was a pretty good route to take, so we took it.

Shawn Kuruneru is a great artist. He has a great visual style and knows how to utilize color and shape in interesting ways. I had come to know Shawn’s work through his Western illustrations on Instagram and then subsequently after reading his self-published Western stories Cave Grave and Poor Moon (which are due to be rereleased to a wider audience through Oni Press). I knew that Shawn would be a good fit for the story, and sure enough, he was. His watercolor approach helped to bring an unstated otherworldly sadness to the story, that I think served the story well.

Working with Oni Press

GVN: As I mentioned, you are working with the good folks at Oni Press for this 48-page one-shot masterpiece. Did you approach Oni with this pitch, or did they approach you? I imagine finding publishers who want to work with you is not as big a challenge as it might have been early in your career.

CHRIS: Yeah, Oni and I had been working together for a while at this point. I had done Night People and a few EC stories, so they knew me and my work. I believe that Hunter Gorinson, the president and publisher, and I had spoken about doing a few one-shot ideas. So this was intended to be the first of those.

Variant Covers

GVN: As it seems to be the norm for great projects, you have a number of talented artists providing variant covers for “THE GODDAMN TRAGEDY #1.” Is this solely a decision made by Oni Press, or do you have any influence on that aspect? They all look fantastic.

CHRIS: Oni has a great roster of artists to choose from. I certainly had suggestions, for example, I wanted my pal Jacob Phillips to do a cover for the book. But it was mostly an Oni decision – one that I’m incredibly happy with. Jenna Cha, especially, is doing some fantastic work these days. If people have not been reading The Sickness, which is Jenna’s book with Lonnie Nadler, I think they ought to check it out.

“Playing with His Own Toys”

GVN: Thank you again, Chris. It’s always a pleasure chatting with you. Before I let you go, I’d love for you to share any other projects you have going on. It seems like you always keep busy, which is great news for fans like me.

CHRIS: Right now, I just want to make sure that people grab a copy of “The Goddamn Tragedy” and that they pre-order “News from the Fallout.” The success or failure of News from the Fallout and The Goddamn Tragedy will really be an indicator to me to see how well my indie stuff does in the aftermath of doing Big Two books like Green Arrow and Ultimate Wolverine. Those are cool books to write, of course, but at the end of the day, they’re someone else’s toys I’m playing with. I’m excited to be playing in my very own sandbox on News and Tragedy, with my very own toys. I hope I can continue to do it far into the future.

Oni Press “That Goddamn Tragedy, #1,” by Chris Condon, Shawn Kuruneru and Shawn Lee arrives at comic stores on May 28th, where all great comics are sold.