Arts and Warcraft Interview

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You might think a graphic novel series would be a logical spin-off for World of Warcraft, what with the game's unique art style and wealth of lore. And out of nearly 11 million players, surely one or two might be into comic books... But in fact it was only last November, three years after WOW's release, that the first graphic novel hit the shelves. WildStorm is now working on volume 2, with plenty of plans in the pipeline for the release of new expansion Wrath of the Lich King.

In this interview, WildStorm general manager and editor Hank Kanalz discusses what's next for the series. Plus penciller Jon Buran talks about what it's like to draw WOW for a living, and reveals an in-joke serious fans should look out for.

Eurogamer: How did the project first come about, and how did you get involved?

Jon Buran: I met Hank [Kanalz] at last year's New York Comic Con and showed him some of my work. A few months later he asked me if I wanted to work on a project, but didn't tell me what it was. I said of course; I was trying to get as much work as I could.

When they told me it was World of Warcraft I almost fell over. I was a huge, huge fan of WOW, and of Blizzard in general - I've played everything they've ever put out. So it was a huge thrill for me.

Hank Kanalz: When I first met Jon, he showed me some sample pages he'd done for Hulk. I was flipping through his portfolio and he had left in a dwarf he'd drawn, I think by accident. He was just doodling but it was really well done. When I called him up I was remembering the dwarf picture, thinking, 'If this guy can draw the Hulk like he does and dwarves like he does, obviously he can draw orcs...'

Jon Buran: Just shave the Hulk and you've got an orc, right? [Laughs]

Hank Kanalz: I didn't know he was a hardcore player till I called him. Then his enthusiasm for WOW and for the project really came out.

Eurogamer: So you were already hardcore, Jon?

Jon Buran: I played the game for a long time. Then I realised I wanted to get into comics, so I probably needed to quit playing and get some work done, get samples made. So I stopped. Sure enough, when I got they job they were like, 'Hey, we're going to get you an account, we need to get you playing.' And I was like, 'Nooooo!'

But it works out. Sometimes when you're drawing for ten, 12 hours a day, you need a break. I'll jump on and play for a little bit and it's like a refresher. It reminds me that the world is so vast, the aesthetic and so beautiful, and that's why I'm having a good time drawing.

Eurogamer: With such a huge fanbase for the game, there must be a lot of pressure...

Jon Buran: There's pressure every single day you pick up a pencil, with every line you put down. When I do an armour set I try to make sure it's exactly like it should be in the game, because if it's not, I know that as a gamer I'd be like, 'That's not the Warbringer armour set! That horn shouldn't point that way!'

It's really nerve-wracking; even more so because I'm a big fan, I think, and I want to see everything perfectly laid out. It's very stressful in that regard. But it's also rewarding when you put a page down and it looks like it's supposed to.

Eurogamer: With such a massive world and wealth of lore open to you, how do you pick what to focus on within the comics?

Hank Kanalz: The writers, Walter and Louise Simonson, put together an issue-by-issue outline. Actually they just turned in outlines to take us through issue 25. We review that with Blizzard, and they might say, 'We really love this direction, we like this other aspect over here, we'd like to introduce a new character there...' It's a very collaborative process.

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