Richard: How excited were you to learn "The Expendable One" was going to become a movie?

Jason M. Burns: I was very excited. It’s been my dream to work in Hollywood since I was a kid, so this was a big step for me, both in my career and my personal life. It’s my hope that this is just one notch under my belt in a long career as a writer/creator in the film and television industry.

Richard: What was the process you went through to have this comic become a movie?

Jason: Not as complicated as it would seem. The producers (Trevor Macy and Mark Evans) got a hold of the book, liked it, we met, they expressed their vision for it, and the next thing I knew it was being made into a movie. They understood the world and enjoyed the campy humor aspects of the book, so it really seemed like a good fit.

Richard: What is the sequel "The Boob Versus the Boobs" about?

Jason: Twigs Dupree, the lead character from The Expendable One, is tracked down by a group of sexy female, seemingly indestructible robots. The villain, referred to only as Very Bad Man, runs the company that builds the robots and is threatened by the fact that an indestructible man exists… basically because if the military was to find out that they could just inject their soldiers with a serum and make them immortal, they wouldn’t spend the millions of dollars for the same thing in a robot.. hence putting him out of business. So, he sends him bots to find a way to assassinate Twigs and hilarity will hopefully ensue.

Richard: Who is Twigs Dupree?

Jason: He is the main focus of The Expendable One… a bumbling oaf who accidentally injects himself with a concoction that makes him immortal. He decides to try and use his new powers for good, and in the process, gets involved in some rather sticky situations… even for a guy who can’t die.

Richard: How did you start out in the comics business?

Jason: I was working towards a career in screenwriting while also working as an entertainment journalist. I had always read comics, so when a story came across my desk to do a feature on independent comics, I jumped at the opportunity. (This was back in 2004). I ended up interviewing Jessie Garza over at Viper Comics for the piece because of their recent success at the time with Dead @ 17, and from that interview, we stayed in touch. He had someone back out of doing a short story in the Dead @ 17: Rough Cut book, so knowing that I was a writer, he asked me if I wanted to give it a shot. I did, and then before I knew it, they were publishing a couple of my books. It all happened by chance, but it’s been one of the best things that ever happened to me.

Richard: How did you end up at Viper Comics?

Jason: As mentioned above, it was by chance, but once we started working together, our professional relationship continued to grow and eventually they asked me to come on as a partner within the company.

Richard: What does 2007 hold for you? What comics will you have coming out?

Jason: 2007 is a very big year for me with a number of projects due out, including “The Expendable One: The Boob Versus the Boobs” (August), the horror/adventure graphic novel “The Underworld Railroad” (August), the Goonies-like adventure “The Sleepy Truth” (October), “A Dummy’s Guide to Danger: Lost at Sea” (Fall), the comedic adventure series “Imaginary Friends” (Winter) and the horror graphic novel “Rabid” (Winter). “The Dummy’s Guide to Danger” trade paperback is also be out this June, collecting the first series as well as featuring a new short story with art by Paul Tucker… the artist that worked on “The Underworld Railroad.” I’m also working in the film and television industry and hope to have more to discuss there in the very near future once more announcements are made.

Richard: What is "A Dummy's Guide to Danger"?

Jason: It’s a detective series with a twist. It’s about a private investigator named Alan Sirois and his partner Mr. Bloomberg, a paraplegic ventriloquist dummy that Alan believes is alive and has been crippled thanks to a bullet that was lodged in his spine. It’s a quirky tale, but one of the most fun for me to write because I’m so in love with the characters… or essentially… one character who is two people. The first series came out in 2006 and the sequel, “A Dummy’s Guide to Danger: Lost at Sea” will be out later this year, and for me, if you liked the first one, then you’ll really like the second installment because we upped the ante on everything and we brought in artist Joe Eisma, who is just incredible.

Richard: Who have you enjoyed working with the most?

Jason: I’ve had a lot of great experiences with people. I’ve been lucky. Currently Joe Eisma and I have hit it off creatively and we plan on doing more past the Dummy sequel, including a series he originally created that I think will be a lot of fun once we dive into it. Paul Tucker (“The Underworld Railroad”) and I have a similar relationship and I’d love to work with him again. Erik Valdez y Alanis (“The Sleepy Truth”) is one of the most professional people I’ve ever worked with and his art just blows my mind for its uniqueness. Guy LeMay (“Rabid”) is also someone I really like working with… and he’s been known to play my leg like a guitar after a few drinks in San Diego. Haha! I’ve been working with Dustin Evans (“Imaginary Friends”) for quite some time now and he’s super cool and talented… and then of course there are those that I did work with in the past that I love, including Bryan Baugh (“The Expendable One) and Ron Chan (first Dummy). Like I said, I’ve been really lucky and knock on wood that I continue down that path, meeting great people and building great professional relationships.

Richard: You have done interviews with various famous people which ones stand out most?

Jason: As a kid that grew up watching the WWF and loving The Rockers, interviewing Shawn Michaels was pretty sweet, as was Bruce Campbell and Robert Englund for all of my horror fanboy glory. But for me, celebrities have always just been regular people, so I never really got caught up in stuff. Generally if I got excited about interviewing someone, I’d be let down, but the people I didn’t expect to be cool, always ended up being the best interview. Expectations can kill you.

Richard: What does an assistant publisher do?

Jason: I seek out new material to publish, I help manage and edit the existing projects, and I play a big roll in finding projects that will translate to film and television. The position isn’t too defined because at Viper we all have our hands in the same pot… helping each other and all working towards the same goal.

Richard: Do you have a myspace fans could check out?

Jason: Sure do. www.myspace.com/jasonmburns . Come say hello.

Richard: How can someone contact you?

Jason: Usually through myspace is the best. I respond to everyone.

Richard: Any last words of wisdom?

Jason: Refrigerate after opening.