I was in New York last weekend and had some great reading material for the cab ride from Manhattan to JFK Airport: The new hardcover edition of "100%" by Paul Pope, easily one of the most intriguing figures in comics.

The tale, which weaves the heartfelt and the sordid, takes place in New York in the winter of 2038 and follows the collision of six lives led by people on the edge or at the bottom. The main character in the story, though, is Pope's vision of a dank, sullen metropolis where titillation has become so elusive (and digital technology so pervasive) that strip clubs have "gastro" dancers, girls who not only reveal every inch of flesh but are also wired-up so the leering audience can watch the blood surges inside their heaving innards of vast screens. The very human characters who live, love, struggle and sacrifice against this backdrop make the story a landmark work. It was first published as a five-issue comic book in 2002 and 2003 and if you missed it (or want a reminder of its quality) I recommend that Vertigo hardcover.

Anyway, back home in L.A. I  came across this Pope interview on Graphic NYC that you might enjoy. Pope (who is a bit of a rock star, as far as comic creators go) was interviewed by Christopher Irving and the video was directed by Seth Kushner and Carlos Molina.

-- Geoff Boucher

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T.J. Kosinski, one of our talented summer interns here at The Times, wandered around Comic-Con International a few weeks ago and interviewed some of his favorite comics creators. This is the second of his guest posts.

To me, Paul Pope is a comic-book rock star. He's been called "the Jim Morrison of American comic books" for the delirious poetry he creates with his words and brushstrokes.

The creative mind behind Vertigo's riveting "100%" and the Eisner-winning "Batman: Year 100" is now pushing his art off the page and into toys, design, electronics and even wallpaper...

Yes, that's right, he is extremely busy.

In the past year, Pope designed exclusive screen-print posters for Diesel, worked on a clothing line for DKNY Jeans, released a monograph entitled "Pulphope," illustrated the cover of "Pop Gun: Vol. 2," and recently premiered his first action figure.

Then there's the icing on the cake: a reissue of Pope’s long out-of-print "THB" series is scheduled for sometime in 2009 with “a lot” of brand-new material, he says.