Comic book writer Brian Azzarello and artist Jill Thompson

“They’re going to want to know if we’re ever going to work together,” growls Brian Azzarello to Jill Thompson. “Tell them the answer is no.” It’s a legitimate query. The Chicagoans have been married for 10 years and are both well-known in the comics field for complementary skills: Azzarello for his sharp writing, and Thompson primarily for her bright illustration. Azzarello recently added the post-Civil War Western Loveless to his impressive repertoire, which includes acclaimed runs on Batman and Superman, not to mention his celebrated noir crime drama, 100 Bullets. Thompson will soon start on a new graphic-novel series after working on characters for Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series. She’s also written and illustrated her own popular Scary Godmother series since 1997. The two recently took a much-needed break to talk to The A.V. Club.
The A.V. Club: Brian, you constantly put out new books. What are you working on now?
Brian Azzarello: 100 Bullets, Loveless, and a Joker miniseries—Batman from the Joker’s perspective. I just did that Lex Luthor book [Lex Luthor: Man Of Steel], so this is going to be the bookend to it. Same artist, Lee Bermejo.
Jill Thompson: He doesn’t ever stop working.
BA: It’s a job! You gotta work, all the time.
JT: I’m starting up a new series for HarperCollins that I’m writing and illustrating called Magic Trixie. She’s a little witch. She can’t do magic really well; she’s not the most experienced monster in the group. It’s about her little rivalries. It’s kind of like if the Little Rascals were monsters.
AVC: That’s what you’re best at: crossing and re-crossing the line between silly and scary. What do you find inspiring?
JT: Oh, everything… Nancy Drew stories. One of the weird themes in my work is that there’s either a beautiful illustration of something to eat, or a recipe. One of the things I remember growing up is that there would be a detailed description of what Nancy Drew ate before she went out to go find the amazingly easy breadcrumb trail to the person who did whatever they did.