A note from URSA MINORS! creator Neil Kleid:
URSA MINORS #4 is out today and the feeling is bittersweet. When the INTIMIDATORS was prematurely canceled, I felt a bit robbed of not being able to complete the entire story and knew that the arc would not get collected in a trade paperback due to poor sales and lack of interest. With UM, I'm torn because I honestly never really thought that it would eve get published. When SLG signed us aboard and we started talking marketing and our hopes for the series I really got excited... I had these grand plans involving a trade, action figures and some plush dolls... but the comic book market is fickle and though this time we got to finish the series it looks like there will be no trade collection.
URSA MINORS may not have struck a chord with the comic buying public but I can honestly say that it was probably the most fun project I've written to date. Paul and I really let ourselves lose any and all inhibitions and just created structured nonsense where we could express our love for ninjas, bears, robots, pop culture and William Shatner. We came up with this idea in a chat room almost three years ago and never really had aspirations for it other than maybe getting a one shot or a mini comic done and here we are, years later with a completed four issue mini series beautifully rendered by 'Nando, an artist I keep having to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming about the fact that he wants to work with me. 'Nando hooked me up with a new WFH project I'm excited to work on this year and he and I are already prepping our next creator owned project, OUTER RACE, which promises to be as much if not more fun than URSA MINORS.
If you go back and really explore the four issues of UM you'll notice that not only is this book an ode to popular culture, it's also an homage to a variety of cliched plot devices . For instance, Issue One is the quintessential mistaken blind date identity story and the Rabbi Ninja backup story touches on the old two places at the same time bit seen on the Flintstones and more recently in the Robin Williams film "Mrs. Doubtfire."
Issue Number Four, which comes out today, was a blast to write because it allowed for a bit of touch back to the previous three issues. It incorporates confusing elements from Issue One and the ending is probably the best idea I'll ever have. It also leaves things open ended so we can one day, perhaps, revisit the Kodiak Krew of Bigby City.
Tom, Rich and Harry... Rena, Gene, Robot Kevin Smith... General Lo Mein, Rabbi Ninja, Explodey, H-Bomb and Platypus Dorchester and Future Rich and Bling Ninja and everyone in Bigby City:
It was fun. Let's do it again sometime.
Neil Kleid
Writer, URSA MINORS!
PS: For old time's sake, one of my favorite bits from the series:
