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An afternoon with the archbishop of fun: In conversation with Howard Chaykin

"I'm not going to compete for the attention of an audience that is perfectly happy with a template"

Features by Chloe Maveal, Contributing writer

Published on Wed Aug 02 2023

Warning: This interview includes swearing and language some readers may find offensive.

There’s a saying in comics that goes a little something like this: if you want an opinion, go ask Howard Chaykin. Okay, it might not be something official yet – but after a conversation with the seminal mind behind American Flagg, Black Kiss, and The Divided States of Hysteria at his GalaxyCon Richmond table this year, it’s a sentiment that could stick pretty well, whether fans and readers like it or not when it’s all out on the table.

Over the course of a half-hour conversation, Howard Chaykin shared with Popverse his thoughts on conventions, rock star status in the comics industry, and the state of comics vs. the state of what we wish comics still were.

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Chloe Maveal: Chloe Maveal is the Editor-In-Chief of the guerilla website The Gutter Review, and is a freelance essayist who specializes in British comics, pop culture history, and the subversive qualities of “trashy” media. Their work has been featured all over the internet with bylines in 2000 AD, The Treasury of British Comics, Publishers Weekly, Polygon, Comics Beat, and many others.