WWE: Then. Now. Forever - Guillory & Thibodeaux Talk The New Day

The power of positivity is easy to understand but takes years and years to master. It's helpful [...]

By Matthew Aguilar

The power of positivity is easy to understand but takes years and years to master. It's helpful then that kids can learn how to harness that power early on thanks to the efforts of The New Day in the newest WWE comic from BOOM Studios.

The New Day is just one part of the WWE: Then. Now. Forever one-shot, a 48-page collection that includes "Breaking of the Shield", which recounts the split of Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins. It also features three other stories which includes The New Day, Sasha Banks, and a Tugboat short story.

ComicBook.com's Jim Viscardi was able to chat with New Day writer Ross Thibodeaux and artist Rob Guillory to talk about the magnificent trio, and just how quickly they said yes after learning about the project.

"Well, the whole thing started out as just a cover for BOOM's one-page comics for SDCC that centered around a New Day promo where they used a time machine" said Guillory. "The BOOM guys knew I'm a lifelong WWE fan, so when they approached me, I marked out pretty hard. Immediately after wrapping that, I saw there was potential for a cool, silly story and started knocking around ideas with Ross. I honestly didn't expect WWE to go for it, but here we are!"

As for Thibodeaux, he couldn't say yes fast enough. "Any faster and my response would have broken the sound barrier! When this project was presented to me it was pretty much a no-brainer. Especially after my fantastic experience with Boom Studios and working with Rob on Power Rangers Annual #1. To say nothing of the fact that I'm also a lifelong WWE fan. I mean, how could I NOT do this?!"

The WWE is truly a unique product that combines athletic performances with scripted storylines and content, and that makes it prime material for a comic book. The New Day are prime examples of all these elements, including the more outlandish ones, which Guillory immensely enjoyed.

"Yeah, wrestling is absolutely a live-action comic. And personally, I absolutely love the more ridiculous aspects of wrestling. I especially like the idea that these WWE characters are walking around in their daily lives, doing their laundry, paying their bills, all in-character. Tapping into that felt like a no-brainer, especially when the characters are as clearly defined as these are. In the case of The New Day, we loved the idea of Xavier, Big E and Kofi running their own camp, complete with Unicorn merit badges. And given the more magical, Unicorn-centric aspect of New Day, that opened the possibilities for how insane the story could be."

"I think the nature of who The New Day are lends itself perfectly to a medium such as comic books. Heck, maybe even an animated series "said Thibodeaux. "Huh. Now I want to see a New Day animated series. Each member of The New Day has a very specific role on the team and an individual personality that resonates with a broad range of wrestling fans. Kind of like how everyone has their favorite Ninja Turtle or member of The Avengers. It's because each person's particular favorite character speaks to a part of they are. That's just one of the reasons why I'm such a huge fan of who these guys. That and their affection for unicorns."

The duo described the most daunting aspect of bringing the fan favorites to life. "Honoring the characters and depicting them in a way that fans and hopefully the superstars themselves would enjoy," Guillory said. "In the case of New Day fans, they tend to have a sense of humor. So hopefully, they'll get a kick out of this story. FINGERS CROSSED." Thibodeaux hopes they got it right, saying: "Fingers AND toes crossed! Yeah, it's all about honor to the characters while also presenting to the fans a story that lines up with their perception. Oh, and add in crossed eyes for luck as well."

The New Day are certainly entertaining on their own, but there is one part of the story that both creators are especially looking forward to. "There's an encounter with a dinosaur" said Guillory. "Have I mentioned that WWE sanctioned this?" Thibodeaux echoed his sentiments, saying: "Yep! To quote John Hammond from Jurassic Park, "We have a T-Rex." Ha! I'm particularly proud of a gag in part 2. Here's a hint: Francesca 2 and an 80's pop culture reference."

WWE is full of haters who reject the power of positivity, like Bray Wyatt, Medusa, and Kane, but Guillory has a specific villain in mind if this turns into an ongoing series. "I'd love to make Eric Bischoff the villain. Or Ted Turner, if this was a Sideways Earth where we wouldn't be sued into oblivion."

Thibodeaux went a different route, which is a bit more meta in execution. "Themselves. Wait, here me out. Eric Bischoff in disguise as Ted Turner tricks The New Day into starring in a Real World-esque reality show as it would be "ratings gold". It isn't long before the eclectic personalities clash. Hijinks and pranks ensue."

The New Day succeeds because of how they work together, but if you could only invite one of them over to dinner, everyone would have a different choice. "Xavier" said Guillory. "Just because he strikes me as the biggest geek of the three." Thibodeaux couldn't narrow his choice down, so he copped out and picked all three, but props for calling out the Booty O's. "All three. I see The New Day as a whole. Can't have one without the other. The New Day is like a bowl of Booty O's. Individually (cereal, milk, marshmallows) each part is cool. Put all three together? Well, need I say more?"

To get a closer look at Guillory and Thibodeaux's take on The New Day, make sure to check out our preview in the gallery.

WWE: Then. Now. Forever is set to hit stores on November 9. The ongoing WWE series will launch in January.

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