Then there's All-New Hawkeye with artist Ramon Perez. It picks up with Clint Barton and Katie Bishop continuing their partnership, both using bows, arrows, and the name Hawkeye to take on evil, but of course with their personal lives in quirky interactions taking center stage.
We talked to Lemire about his new projects, so hear what he had to say, then let us know your thoughts in the comments. IGN Comics: Descender is such an interesting title. What is it referring to? Jeff Lemire: Technically it's s term used in typography, but it has a different meaning in the context of our book. Though I'll have to let it be it's own clue. To explain how it relates to the book would spoil too much of the mythology and mystery that Dustin and I are building.
IGN: There are 9 worlds in the story. Can we expect to visit all of them relatively soon?
Lemire: We will see all of them for sure, but not all right away. We want to take our time with Descender and let the story unfold at it's own pace. But we have carefully planned each world and worked to give each it's own look and feel. And each of the the 9 core worlds will play a role in the series.
IGN: What was the process of building those 9 worlds with artist Dustin Nguyen?
Lemire: Dustin and I have a pretty effortless collaboration. I did a lot of the initial work in terms of world building and planning. I spent last summer building a big "bible" of the galaxy Descender will inhabit, keeping in mind that Dustin wanted to draw a lot of different types of environments. And as we get to each new world in the story Dustin will take the "bible" I wrote up for each world and visualize things, and I'm sure put his own spin. I left lots of room for Dustin to design and build the worlds visually as he goes, because that is definitely one of his many strengths.
IGN: Tim-21 is a robot boy, and he is powered by a form of artificial intelligence, right? Normally when we get AI in sc-fi, it’s Terminator or Brainac or Ultron -- what made you want to make it this little innocent boy?
Lemire: I wanted to capture the sense of awe and mystery and vastness that I feel when I read or see really good sci-fi. And when you are a kid, everything has that quality. Everything is bigger than you and just beyond your full understanding. So using a young protagonist, even an "artificial" one gives the reader this point of view into this world.
I also wanted the robots to be very human in Descender. Tim-21 instantly humanizes the machines of this world and makes them relatable.
IGN: Bandit is just about the cutest robot I’ve ever seen. What was the inspiration for that?
Lemire: That was all Dustin!
I wanted a little robot dog as Tim's companion to further humanize him and Dustin created wonderful character. He's a really great designer. He designs each robot so that they could almost be built. And each is based on their function, so they all look totally different. We don't just have one or two generic robots that we see all over.
IGN: You signed a movie deal with Sony. What’s the status of the Descender movie right now?
Lemire: It's still very early in the process. Sony is looking at Descender as a franchise of films rather than just one movie. Dustin and I will be executive producers. Right now they are talking to different writers and directors looking to find the right fit to adapt the material.
For our part, we are very focused on the comic. Making the best comic book we can. Whatever happens with the film is a bonus, for us the comic book is our main focus and priority.
IGN: What would you say to readers to get them to check out Descender?
Lemire: Dustin and I have spent a lot of time building the world and the mystery. We know where everything is going and it's a story full of heart and twists. And it's beautiful looking.
Keep reading for all the details on All-New Hawkeye!
IGN: What did you like most about Matt Fraction and David Aja’s run? What made it work so well? And what of that are you bringing into your run?
Lemire: The humanity of it. The sense that Kate and Clint were real people, not comic book characters. It was funny and heartwarming and human. These were people first and super heroes second. I hope to capture that as well.
IGN: The first issue was a great team-up issue with Clint and Kate, who both still go by Hawkeye. What would you say is the importance of Kate to the Hawkeye comic?
Lemire: Hawkeye is more than one person now. Hawkeye is both of them. Alone they don't function. Together they are able to overcome their faults and become something more.
IGN: Is she ever going to change her name to something other than Hawkeye?
Lemire: Nope. She is Kate Bishop. He is Clint Barton. Together they are Hawkeye.
IGN: Secret Wars is coming up. How will that affect All-New Hawkeye? Will it crossover or go on hiatus or just ignore it and keep going?
Lemire: We will have a short hiatus, I believe.
I cannot reveal how Secret Wars will affect Hawkeye. I've been told that I cant say ANYTHING about it. Sorry!
IGN: With Hawkeye having such a huge profile with Avengers: Age of Ultron coming up, were you given any details on what is going to happen to the character in the movies? If so, did that influence anything you did with the comic?
Lemire: I was not privy to any inside info on the new Avengers film.
I think Hawkeye's character is pretty well established now, between what Fraction did and his role in the various Avengers books, so it's just a matter of being consistent with that and also finding ways to make the book fresh and personal to me.
Having said all of that, your question made me think how great it would be to see Kate on the big screen one day!
IGN: Did you catch the Avengers: Age of Ultron trailer?
Lemire: I have not seen it yet. I've had a busy week with Descender and Hawkeye coming out.
I've been a bit unplugged. I'm not a big "trailer guy" anyway. I'd still rather wait to see a film with fresh eyes when I can. There's too much advanced info and many spoilers online for films and comics these days. Seems like everyone has an opinion about things before they even read or see them.
IGN: Any final words on All-New Hawkeye about what fans can expect from the series?
Lemire: Stunning art from Ramon Perez. And there is a twist at the end of issue 5 that NO ONE is going to see coming. Joshua is IGN’s Comics Editor. If Game of Thrones, Green Lantern, or Super Smash Bros. are frequently used words in your vocabulary, you’ll want to follow him on Twitter and IGN.