1. Younger Luba or older Luba?

Both are nice but I might prefer the older Luba. I’m more into women than girls which puts me in a minority among most straight guys.

2. Do you ever drink and draw? If not, are there any other vices you partake in while making art??

I have been a little tipsy when drawing but I could tell it wasn’t a good idea, especially with inking. I have been high on pot while drawing but it was only pencils, because I was aware that I wouldn’t do any kind of inking justice. I’ve never been a druggie.

3. I felt like I was watching Animal Planet on acid, reading Blubber #1, and I loved it! Will issue #2(arrives Jan. 27th) be as wonderfully weird as the first?

Blubber #2 will move towards humans being involved with the critters, then the critters will be phased out as the series continues and will end up a human being sex fetish/humor comic sure to alienate people. I’m ok with that because I feel indy comics are much too conservative these days.

4. What was the last good movie you’ve seen?

The movie that sticks with me the most right now is POSSESSION with Sam Neil and Isabelle Adjani from 1981, I think. It’s about a nasty divorce from the husband’s point of view so there’s a lot of delusional thinking coming from him. His difficult wife (Adjani) has a breakdown scene in a subway tunnel where she loses her marbles for 3 minutes straight, no shit. Then there’s the…’thing’ growing in her apartment….

5. I’m looking forward to seeing what you and Darwyn Cooke have in store for the conclusion of TheTwilight Children(issue #4 hits shops on Jan. 27th). If the story allows, it would be great to see a sequel .

I think Twilight Children would be a natural fit for a movie(or TV). Any possibility of that and/or any of your other stories coming to the big(or small) screen, anytime soon??

Twilight Children is perfect for a TV miniseries like Fargo. Love to see it. As far as Palomar goes, I know somebody working to get that on screen or TV but he’s up against the usual brick walls. In the movie business you get a lot of ‘yes’ but nothing happens.

6. Your new collection, Comics Dementia, hits shelves on Feb. 8th. This will have some hard to find, out of print material from years ago. What do your friends & family think of your wild(sick) imagination??

My mom doesn’t look at my stuff but she’s happy that I’ve done something with my life. My stuff is too harsh sometimes for most people. Ok with me.

7. Describe your worst dating experience.

I had a blind date with a girl once and it was nice, then 5 years later when I was into punk I went on another date with her and I think she was mortified. We went to see Blondie and I think she was appalled seeing all the sleazy horror surrounding such a satanic bubble gum band. I never saw her again.

8. In 2015 you had an incident where your book Palomar was taken off the library shelves at Rio Rancho High School(New Mexico), because of a complaint that it was “pornographic”. Now, students there can check Palomar out with a parent’s signature.

In general, what are your thoughts on censorship, and how did you view the situation in New Mexico as a parent yourself?

I don’t think of it much. Another conservative moron misreading my work. Snorrrrrrre. Sure, as a parent I didn’t let my daughter see my stuff but now she’s 15 and she’s seen a lot worse crap online.

9. Have you had any funny or embarrassing moments being out in public at comics conventions/book signings/etc?

Also, can you share any anecdotes from the early days of promoting your first self-published, black & white issue of Love & Rockets with Jaime and Mario?

We took copies of our self published L&R to a small con and the advice we got was that we needed a color cover. Most other indy cartoonists felt we were just another small comic struggling and that we were all doing the same thing except we weren’t Marvel or DC, which in those days were the holy grail. You made comics just to get in the door of those companies. Well, I’ve worked with those companies and here I am still doing my thing. There are no weird moments that stand out in or 34ish years of being out there. That’s what’s weird.

10. Love and Rockets: New Stories #8 releases on Feb. 8th. We get more of Jaime’s Maggie & Hopey and the 2nd part of your “The Magic Voyage of Aladdin” comic starring Fritz and Mila.

In addition to that, what else should we look forward to from you in 2016?

Besides Blubber #2 and The Twilight Children coming out on Jan 27 and L&R #8 and Comics Dementia coming out on Feb 8, I’ll have Maria M 2 and Blubber #3 in the spring, I hope, and in the summer my Garden of Flesh graphic novel, an adult take on the story of Adam and Eve which is planned to be in color and the new 32 page revamped L&R #9 (or #1 vol 4, not sure yet), in the fall Blubber #4 and in early winter L&R #10 (or #2) and Blubber #5, likely the collection of The Twilight Children and somewhere during the year a 4 issue crime mini series. Maybe more…

Links: @BetomessGilbert :: Fantagraphics Profile

Thank you, Gilbert!

Interview date: Jan. 2016 – A. Yates