TSSZ Interviews Ziggyfin

Last week, we featured Reggie Graham – better known as Ziggyfin – and his impressive artwork. Since then, we sat down with him to discuss his Sonic Adventure 2 comic series and why he chose to pursue it. We thank Reggie for his time, and you can read our interview in full below!
TSSZ: What inspired you to take up producing artwork and a comic series based on Sonic?
Graham: Drawing has been something I’ve loved to do since I was a little kid. I doodled on everything (including homework), and it was mostly Sonic stuff. I’ve been talking about getting into comics ever since I read Archie’s Sonic The Hedgehog #138, but to make it a reality I actually needed to start a comic. I have a bunch of original ideas with my own worlds and characters that I have planned for the future, but Sonic is where everything started for me, so I decided I wanted my first comic about the blue blur himself.
TSSZ: Why use Sonic Adventure 2 as the basis for your comic series?
Graham: I love, love, love this game! I spent hours and hours playing Sonic Adventure 2 (mostly in the Chao Garden) whenever I got the chance. I actually started drawing an SA2 comic when I was a lot younger, but didn’t get too far before I stopped. I loved reading the Archie comic adaptations of Sonic games, but they never fully completed SA2, which always bothered me for some reason. So I just decided that, since it’s my favourite game and I would love to work on Sonic comics, I’m going to show the world my interpretation of Sonic Adventure 2!

TSSZ: How do you produce the pages of your comic? Can you detail the programs you use and your general creative process?
Graham: So obviously the writing portion of this comic is inspired by the video game, but I’ll be changing some things and putting my own dialogue in down the road. Next week (or the week after) we’ll actually see some characters who only showed up in 2-Player mode. But I’m losing track of the question. Okay, creative process! First, I plan what’s going to be going on in the issue I’m working on, and write the script. Then I make thumbnails for the pages that are very, very sketchy. I pencil the pages on 11 x 17 Comic Board Art paper, then scan the pages and ink them on the computer. I use the pen tool on Photoshop for most of my lineart, but it takes quite a while so I might start working on my inking traditionally. Then I colour everything on Photoshop. This is probably my favourite part. I also letter the pages in Photoshop. Basically, the moral of the story is that Photoshop is life.
TSSZ: Working on something like a comic series is an endeavor that requires a lot of long-term dedication. How do you stay motivated to keep working on it?
Graham: All I want to do with my life is create stories that people will be inspired by. I love this story, it’s world, the characters, and I love making the comic. But keeping yourself motivated to work hard on something is no easy task. I think of this comic as my free time practice to hone my skills. I want to get better and better. Once I finish, I want to look at the first few pages all the way to the last ones and say “whoa…I’ve learned a lot from this adventure and come a long way.” So I’m always looking ahead. “How can I make the next issue better? What can I work on with my writing style? What are better ways to cameo Big the Cat? What can I add to the story to make it more fun?”
TSSZ: What was the first Sonic game you ever played, and which one is currently your favorite?
Graham: Funnily enough, it was Sonic Adventure 2: Battle! I’m only 19, so I grew up in the GameCube era of Sonic. I played SA2 at a friend’s house and convinced my parents to get me a GameCube for Christmas with that game. To this day it’s still my favourite. I also enjoyed the first Sonic Adventure, since I loved exploring hub worlds, and Sonic Heroes was fun as well! For the new games I really enjoyed Sonic Unleashed (for some reason I love hub worlds), and Sonic Generations was pretty fun, but I wasn’t too keen on the story. Still, Sonic Adventure 2 is by far my favourite game…mostly for the Chao Garden.