Quantum & Woody’s James Asmus: The Series “Really Delivers” in Today’s Issue

Last month, James Asmus did what seemed like the impossible: He relaunched Quantum & Woody, Valiant’s beloved series from Christopher Priest and M.D. Bright, and he did so to acclaim and high sales, with very few people objecting to the fact that Priest and Bright weren’t there.That’s partly because the book was beautifully done and cleverly written, and arguably at least in part because all of the complaining and cautions about the series had already been expressed in the three-month lead-up between when the first issue was solicited and when it was released.Today, the second issue hits and it will see what our heroes do once they actually have powers.And, yes, it sets us on the path to find the goat.Asmus joined ComicBook.com for a conversation about the first issue, the future of the series and why some things take time to develop.ComicBook.com: Was it a bit crazy doing Comic Con last month in support of a book that is only a month old?James Asmus: Certainly in a sense. It is interesting because I would really love to never spoil anything as a writer. I want the stories to unfold the way I imagined them. So with just one issue I can talk about what happened in the one issue, I can vaguely allude to where we’re going and then I can talk about other stuff or the previous incarnation of Quantum & Woody. It’s a tightrope act.ComicBook.com: This book came in with a mountain of expectations and baggage–Asmus: [Laughs] Yes.ComicBook.com: It feels like they offset that a little bit with things like the webcomic. They did a good job of setting you up for success.Asmus: They really did. I’ve continually been impressed by everything Valiant is doing in their approach to everything, not the least of which was–I think the webcomics were a brilliant way to give people just a little taste of…well, obviously it’s not really the book but it sort of gives you a sense of the spirit of it and hopefully we were able to at least deliver a kind of free sample that gives people a little bit more context.It’s certainly a book more fans have heard about than have read or have any real familiarity with, so I think it was nice to get something out there that helps define it at least a little bit further in people’s minds.