But lots of people do parody now. The whole mash-up thing that's so prevalent now was starting in the 80's when I was starting to think about this stuff. I certainly wasn't the first person to do it but now... comics mash-ups, all kinds of mash-ups are everywhere.

The characters have desperation and it doesn't work out for everyone. Maybe it's not fair because I'm responding to the adaptations that smooth out the edges.

But lots of people do parody now. The whole mash-up thing that's so prevalent now was starting in the 80's when I was starting to think about this stuff. I certainly wasn't the first person to do it but now... comics mash-ups, all kinds of mash-ups are everywhere.

I felt what I was trying to do was make people realize that comics could be deep. I stopped myself in the middle of saying that because the Bazooka Joe thing I do with Dante's Inferno, that was just a goof. I wasn't trying to make people look at Bazooka Joe more seriously. But in my mind it's always been important.

I guess I try to find the humor by juxtaposing deeper themes in literature with what people perceive as being lighter, disposable children's fare in comics.

Speaking for myself, but [Kriota] probably [agrees], I don't do different things because I have to, but certainly my career's taken a lot of twists and turns because things work out for a while and then something shifts and they don't. I went into illustration as a way of supporting my comics career. Then I got really interested in performance and I knew that was always going to be more of a hobby, but that's something I've kept doing.

Well, I'm drawn to stuff that is darker. I will probably do a version of Jane Austen at some point because her books are really well known. Unfortunately they've been parodied to death, but they're so well known that I feel like I should approach it and I think I have an idea that will definitely spin it in a different way. There's melancholy and sadness around the edges. I haven't read all of her books, but it seems they often have... essentially happy endings?