What do you get when a martial artist, screenwriter, professional poker player, American Ninja Warrior, and Zen priest pens a new comic involving Bodhidharma? That sounds like a lot all rolled into on guy, but it’s no joke. Rylend Grant is all that and more, and he’s the author of the latest offering from the groundbreaking Wuxia comic Immortal Studios: FA SHENG: ORIGINS.            

Ironically, I was first introduced to Rylend when he interviewed me. Back in February of this year, I was a guest on THE WRITERS BLOCK w/ David Avallone & Rylend Grant - Episode 56 - Charlie Stickney & Gene Ching. I’ve been working as the Fight Choreographer for the initial comic from Immortal Studios: THE ADEPT. Alongside Charlie, the writer of THE ADEPT, we had a rollicking chat about Wuxia comics.

FA SHENG: ORIGINS is the prequel to THE ADEPT, exploring the back story of the mysterious Shaolin master that comes to the heroine of THE ADEPT, Amy, in her dreams and teaches her Kung Fu. If only I could learn Kung Fu in my sleep…

Now the tables are turned, and I get to interview Rylend on his work for Immortal Studios. The FA SHENG: ORIGINS Kickstarter campaign ends on Tuesday May 24, 2022. We hope you can help to support us.

GC: How did you get involved with Immortal Studios?

RG: Peter [Shiao, Founder and CEO of Immortal Studios] and I met a few years back after a how-to panel I organized/moderated at the Los Angeles Comic Con and we really hit it off. We just had so much in common. I recognized him immediately as a fellow spiritual traveler, as someone with a really unique point of view, as someone with something real and affecting to say… and I think he saw something similar in me.

It was clear from the jump that we’d eventually work on something together - I was all in on the Immortal mission from the very beginning – it was really just a matter of finding the RIGHT project and our schedules syncing up.

Peter and I stayed close and we’d hang out from time to time, just chatting about philosophy, spirituality, life in general… well, at some point, he finally called me and said, “Rylend, I have THE project.” I was really busy at the time with film and TV stuff and didn’t know if I had the time to take on a new comic book, so I was secretly kind of hoping that this wasn’t truly THE project, but once Peter pitched to me, once I saw what he had down on paper, I was just blown away. I had to do it. I had to make time for it. I’m glad I did.

GC: Do you have a martial arts background (American Ninja Warrior doesn’t count here)?

RG: I grew up in a housing project in Detroit, MI. It was a tough go a lot of the time and studying Tang Soo Do, Aikido, and I Iaido kept me in one piece and kept me out of trouble. I applied that skillset eventually to competitive wrestling and fencing. I’m no master by any stretch of the imagination, but I know enough to know what I don’t know… and that’s perhaps the most important thing to know. If you know nothing else, know that. Ultimately, my experience with martial arts instilled such a tremendous love and respect for these and other traditions, for the folks whom have dedicated their lives to mastering them, to passing them on. First and foremost, I’m writing from that place.

GC: As one of the first major in-person conventions since the pandemic broke out, how was WonderCon?

RG: I did a comic con in Long Beach about two weeks before the country essentially shut down. This WonderCon was the first con I’ve done since. I was away from the scene for over two years and it hurt. I missed it. It was really great to be back, to hang (in person) with all of my creator pals. WonderCon is always such a great event, but it was extra special this year and the crowds were extra amped to support us after the long layoff.

I was sure to say “in person” above because I went out of my way to keep in close contact with all of my comic industry friends during the pandemic. My dear friend David Avallone (writer of ELVIRA and DRAWING BLOOD with Kevin Eastman) launched a podcast called THE WRITERS BLOCK for that very purpose. The conceit is that it approximates the “Bar Con” experience… a bunch of creators sitting around talking shop after a long day on a con floor. We start out exploring a “comics business” topic and then it degenerates, at some point, into us arguing about old Star Trek episodes or something like that. It’s usually great fun. We’ve had some incredible guests recently… Eastman, David F. Walker, Matt Fraction, Stan Sakai, Chris Cantwell, John Layman, Alex De Campi, a bunch of others… it was a great way to keep in touch.

GC: Were there any pandemic shifts evident in the indie comic world evident at WonderCon?

RG: There were still plenty of creators and plenty of publishers that just weren’t yet ready to come back full force to the con scene, but it was nice in a way, it made it a more intimate event. I expect the next con to be bigger and badder… and we’ll eventually get back to normal.

GC: How did you feel about the fan response to the Immortal Studios booth and panels?

RG: It’s so incredible to see how warmly and enthusiastically Peter’s mission has been embraced by the fans. Folks are clearly thirsty for this sort of content and Immortal is serving up some pretty delicious Wuxia lemonade.

GC: This is the first Immortal Studios comic that’s not set in contemporary times - what motivated you to place it during the Boxer Uprising?

RG: Peter can probably answer this more completely/readily than I can. It was his decision to set it when we set it, but here are some thoughts from me….[see Peter Shiao on FA SHENG: ORIGINS]

This is the story of the making of an Arhat. We tend to assume that they just come into existence fully formed, but you’re not born into enlightenment. It’s earned. It’s fought for, tooth and nail, over time. It is too often a byproduct of tragedy and strife. In FA SHENG: ORIGINS, we watch as our titular martial hero is forced through the meat grinder of the Boxer Rebellion, of China’s Warlord Era. He witnesses unspeakable evil is dealt horrible defeat, but he rises, in the end, from the ashes of the carnage, a changed man, a better man, an enlightened man with a mission, deputized by the powers that be in the fight against all that Dharmically ails us.

Short and sweet, I don’t know if there is/was a better time to set this, a time that would have put more pressure on the lump of coal that would eventually become the diamond that is Fa Sheng.

GC: How did your years working as a film/TV writer color your approach to the story?

RG: I have for about 15 years worked as a screenwriter in Hollywood. I’ve written film and television fare for folks like JJ Abrams, Ridley Scott, Justin Lin, Luc Besson, and John Woo. I’ve primarily written big, poppy action fare, and so I am 100% bringing the heat with this thing. Sure, you’ll be getting a healthy dose of philosophy and spirituality, but you are also going to see some bonkers, ass-kicking action and I hope you enjoy the hell out of it.

GC: Tell us about your approach to Fa Sheng. Are you modelling the characters and story on anyone or anything in particular?

RG: Great question. FA SHENG: ORIGINS is first and foremost a historical drama. Sure, we set this amazing magical martial warrior story in the middle of all of it, but I went out of my way to get the history right here. The book primarily takes place during the Boxer Uprising in China (starting around 1900) and the Warlord Era that followed. Our characters are all based on – or composites of – actual players in these conflicts… Imperials, Boxers, generals, warlords, etc. I was hell bent on presenting an accurate and illuminating sketch of place and time, both historically and philosophically. I did SO MUCH reading for this thing and became a kind of mini-expert on the subject. HA! Peter and the folks at Immortal were such a big help keeping things authentic also. I think it’ll really show in the final product. I think our dedication has really elevated this thing.

GC: How does Fa Sheng differ from previous comics that you’ve worked on?

RG: I’ve said this to Peter before, but I think this is finally the comic I was supposed to write. I mean, I’ve done some good work in the medium (I’m primarily a film/TV writer) - My political action thriller ABERRANT won a Ringo Award a few years back and was nominated for two other (Best Writer and Best Single Issue) and my dark superhero noir BANJAX made a dozen critics ten-best lists and was nominated for four Ringos (including Best Series along-side BITTER ROOT and SOMETHING’S KILLING THE CHILDREN) - but I don’t know that I really found my voice in comics until I wrote FA SHENG: ORIGINS. I’d like to think that my previous books were pretty fun, pretty entertaining. But I’d go so far as to say that this book is genuinely important and affecting.

We set the bar so high with this one. It reads like this fun, poppy history book. We’re wrestling with BIG philosophical, spiritual, and existential questions here. We’re looking to make the reader look inward, to wrestle with these same questions his/herself.

GC: How does being a Soto Zen monk color your approach to Fa Sheng’s story?

RG: One of the lesser explored lines in my bio is that I happen to be an ordained Soto Zen Buddhist monk (in the lineage of Brad Warner and Gudo Nishijima). I actually once taught Mike Tyson how to meditate. HA!

As some of your readers are no doubt familiar, about 1500 years ago, a guy named Bodhidharma brought Buddhism to China - to the Shaolin temple, specifically – and began a physical training of the monks there that eventually led to the creation of Shaolin Kung Fu. That Buddhism became known as “Chan” and spread all through China.

About 800 years ago, a Japanese man named Eihei Dogen – unsatisfied with the spiritual teaching he was getting at home – crossed the East China sea (almost a suicide mission back then) to study Chan. He eventually brought it back to Japan and founded the Soto School of Zen.

And about 30 years ago, a man named Brad Warner went to Japan to make monster movies for a company called Tsuburaya Productions (they make Ultraman and other fine Tokusatsu fare). There, Warner found Soto Zen and was eventually ordained at Eiheiji, the very temple Dogen founded when he came back from China.

Well, about ten years ago, after studying with Warner for a good long while, he ordained me. When you’re ordained, you receive a lineage chart that shows you how the tradition/the teachings were passed from person to person throughout the years. I can literally trace my lineage, teacher-by-teacher, back to the Shaolin temple, back to Bodhidharma himself. So, in writing FA SHENG, I am actually taking a really close and enlightening look at a very important link in my spiritual chain and that’s just been fascinating to do.

Also, FA SHENG is a story about a man, a monk, seeking insight, enlightenment, wrestling with life’s big, hairy questions. Well, I do that every day with my Zen practice. It’s been really amazing to be able to present all of that to a hungry, eager audience. In way, I’m kind of teaching Zen with this book, passing on the knowledge that was passed down to me from those who came before me. I’m just doing it in a really fun and heightened way.

GC: For Buddhists, Bodhidharma is an iconic figure. How are you approaching converting him into a comic book character?

RG: We’re doing it very carefully. HA! He’s essentially speaking to our protagonist from beyond, from the spiritual realm. It’s just a slightly heightened way to look at how Bodhidharma speaks to all of us. He’s been gone for hundreds of years now, but his teachings are still very much here for us to consume and digest.

Bodhidharma’s teachings were handed to me by a Zen teacher years ago and I have valued and cherished them. With FA SHENG: ORIGINS, I’m just attempting to pass those teachings on to the reader, hoping they’ll take from them as much as I did.

 

 

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About Gene Ching :

To support FA SHENG: ORIGINS, visit their Kickstarter page here. For more information about Immortal Studios, visit www.immortal-studios.com.

Gene Ching is the Publisher of KungFuMagazine.com and the author of Shaolin Trips.

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