So, since episode 6 (pain in my ASS!!) is finally up on the website, I can talk a bit about the thought process that went into shaping the Pilot Arc (one of my many phrases for it) of the series.
I guess the first question I should answer is why a drug? That one is pretty simple. It can't be killed. Dealing with a series where our good guys don't really care about putting bullets in asses if need be, it didn't really make any sense to just bring in a bad guy that theoretically had no chance of making it out of the first episode. In the end, we did put a face on the villainy by linking the drug to Shane, Deacon, Angel, and the street gang Tribe, but at least in the cases of Shane and Tribe, they really were there just to be shot to keep the kill quota up. :)
My real focus was to introduce our cast and put them in a situation that forced them to function as a team and I added in numerous examples of characters hopping in to assist others, which isn't to say that any one of them are deficient (more on that in a bit), but they really have been trained to work off one another.
It was also really important to me that Rox officially joining Haven felt earned. Too often in projects like this, you see characters just slot right into their new surroundings with no real growing pains or adjustments. That irritates the living shit out of me. Rox is a spoiled Hollywood brat turned back alley whore and drug addict. There was no way I was going to suddenly turn her around and go all noble inside 35 pages. It would've felt hollow and cheap. The way I approached it was initially she's wondering if Haven is worth her time, but over the course of the six episodes, it's really Rox proving herself to Haven, albeit not consciously. In these six episodes, she saves Bishop's life, helps Lokesh and Priest on a mission, basically brought the whole Euphoria case to Haven via the slut huts, and came up with the idea to blow up the dam in order to prevent the city's water from being contaminated. On top of that, she was drugged against her well, struggled with withdrawal pains (and I should've done more with this), and brutally raped and beaten while strung out on Euphoria. I put her through the paces because I wanted Rox to see that staying in Haven wasn't because she had no place else to go. It's because she has something to offer the team and Haven has something to offer her. As we'll learn during the run of the show, all of them are there for that same reason.
Another goal in this pilot arc was to basically hand the show off from Bishop to the Field Squad. When I aired the original pilot at MZP, Bishop's introduction in the beginning (that I left intact in the final version) got such an overwhelmingly positive response that I got worried. Worried that fans would demand more of The Preacher throughout the series. I indulged a bit in episode 3, but the Bishop/Deacon scene at the end of episode 6 was more about Bishop finally admitting that he needed to stop being The Preacher and get back to being Bishop Baines full time. I liken it to aging athletes, especially prize fighters. It's hard to admit that even though you're capable of still fighting, maybe it's time to move on. Bishop's trained a whole team to fight in his stead and moving forward, he needed to step aside and let them do it.
Deacon Baines became a bit of a problem after I introduced him. I'll be honest here. Deacon's not going to be the Lex Luthor of this show. If I wanted to do this show as Deacon's nefarious plot of the week, well, Creed wouldn't be airing right now. I've consistently stated that Creed is very much an experiment in storytelling. Conventional television these days tends to fall into the trap of introducing bad guys and dropping them fairly quickly. One of the "comic book" influences I drew for this show was the rogue gallery superheroes enjoy. If I put just a casual comic book fan on the spot and said "name ten Batman villains" there wouldn't even be any thought involved. Just fire them right off. I want that for this series, but since this is a "series" it's going to be inherently tougher to introduce villains and resist the temptation to dispose of them when their story is done. It's also tough to avoid the "grand master plan" methodology for developing my bad guys. Using Angel as an example, yes, at some point she became the leader of Tribe. However, she wasn't planning all along to steal Euphoria from under her father's nose. It was a matter of circumstance and opportunity that she came to ally with Brynn. Of course, there will be plots on a grander scale now that they're together (which I alluded to with Angel's final scene in episode 6), but I'm really fighting to avoid the "I'm going to take over the world! Mwahahahahaha" train with this show.
So these first six episodes really were an introduction not just to these characters, but how I want to structure this show. I admit that it's not going to be for everyone. The decision to go half hour was lambusted by more than a few people and I think I'm going to need at least a full season to get people to stop coming into the show with the preconception of "half hour is only half an episode." Bear in mind that this is also an adjustment for me as a writer. I hope to iron the style out quickly, but no guarantees.
I also need to address another subject. Anyone who is expecting me to waste a ton of pages delving into these characters' backstories is going to be sorely disappointed. In terms of storytelling, I'm very much a shark. Always moving forward. I will explain their pasts where I can, but don't expect their pasts to be a driving force in the narrative. I'm so sick of "an old enemy from such and such's past comes back for revenge" crap and I can firmly state you'll never get that on this show. For better or for worse, I'm trying my best to present something different. For those who stick with it through the shaky spells, I appreciate it and I hope that your patience is rewarded.
One more creative decision I want to talk about is the missionary system. First, I blatantly ripped this off from the underrated action flick, Eraser. Second, one thing that bugged me about super heroes over the years is how damn good they are at putting things together. I didn't want Haven conducting autopsies and shit like that. It was important that instead of being self contained, Haven outsourced for help when they needed it. Despite the scale of Project Haven itself, it felt more right to have them venture out into the city and be connected to the people they were protecting. I didn't want that disconnect that you often see with characters like Batman. That aloofness that can happen when you become an icon. I haven't really gotten into the legacy of The Preacher in Seraph, but rest assured the man is a legend in the city. Despite that, Bishop himself still remains such a man of the people. Haven wouldn't exist if Bishop weren't able to connect to people well enough to convince them to take up his fight. The man is up there in years, yet he can still keep a conversation with someone like Tanya and not be overwhelmed by that new generation he doesn't really understand. I wanted him to foster that connection with the Field Squad and make sure that they stay connected to the people. This is why when Asher is introduced in person in episode 4, they meet her out of costume. Same with Manny at the apartment. He knows Tanya by name. I really wanted to avoid the "costumed hero meets informant" feel because that would be diving a bit too far into the fantastical. It feels more rooted in reality to have these people aware of Haven's identities and be willing to help. Not to mention it proves that in a shithole like Seraph (and we're soon to learn how fucked up people in this city are), there are still decent people who believe in doing the right thing.
So these first episodes were about establishing all of that meandering rambling you just sat through. With all of it out of the way, I can focus on really getting into the meat of the story.
Thanks, as always, for reading and supporting the show.
- MJ
