Comics have always been fascinated with the world of professional wrestling. Creators like the Hernandez Brothers, Aubrey Sitterson, among countless others, have all gone to great lengths to bring the highs and lows of the squared circle onto the comics page. But it is a rare treat for wrestlers to create comics. Since 2008, Michael Kingston, artists Michel Mulipola and Doug Hills have been doing just that with Headlocked, a coming-of-age wrestling series. They've also created a spinoff comic series, Headlocked: Tales From the Road, which tells stand-alone stories co-written by wrestlers from WWE, AEW, and the independent circuit. Kingston is currently crowdfunding Headlocked: Tales From the Road Volume Two on Kickstarter.
Headlocked: Tales From the Road's second volume features 12 short stories co-created by a who's who of wrestlers and artists including Jerry "The King" Lawler, Rob Van Dam, AJ Styles, Frankie Kazarian, Danhausen, Doug Hills, J. Gonzo and more. Kingston recently spoke with CBR about collaborating with this star-studded cast and his creative influences.
CBR: You've described Headlocked as an HBO-Style drama. Which HBO shows have you looked to for inspiration?
Michael Kingston: I know these aren't exactly HBO shows but the two shows that I think have influenced Headlocked the most are Breaking Bad and Nip/Tuck.
Breaking Bad, to me, was one of the few shows where the protagonist really evolved over time. With Headlocked, I really want to show the evolution of Mike Hartmann. He begins the story as a theater kid who just wants to learn this new performance art he's unexpectedly discovered. What happens when this fresh-faced suburban kid steps into what is essentially the Wild West?
I always liked how Nip/Tuck used the surgeries to reinforce that episode's theme. Similarly, whatever Mike Hartmann learns about the craft of wrestling in a particular episode is also tied to his coming of age as a man.
Speaking of your influences, what comics, wrestling or otherwise, have influenced you as a writer?
My biggest inspiration as a writer was Paul Chadwick. Like everyone, I think I came to comics through superheroes, and when I discovered Concrete… It blew my mind. Concrete: Think Like A Mountain was probably the single most influential comic in my development as a creator.
Other books that I consider influential are Astro City, Scalped, 100 Bullets, Criminal, Casanova, and Unknown Soldier.
What is your favorite era of professional wrestling to write about?
I really don't think there is an uninteresting era to write about. As long as there is a ring and the promise of a payday, something interesting is bound to happen. I do have some ideas for some longer-form series set in Portland in the '80s and something set back in the Gotch/Hackenschmidt era… So I'm down with a little of everything.
When you sit down to write a story with a wrestler with an established persona, like Rob Van Dam for example, how does your knowledge of their career and their character impact your process?
It helps in that it gives us a starting point to determine what type of story we're going to tell. When we start throwing out ideas, it definitely helps to be in familiar territory. So for instance, you mentioned RVD, in Volume 2 the story we conceived has a 60's propaganda vibe to it… Think Reefer Madness but not in a way you'd expect.
How did you decide which artists to pair with each story?
You want someone who can bring that story to life.
For instance, the Penta story takes place in Mexico and features a young boy selling Lucha masks outside of the big wrestling arena. J. Gonzo who does the excellent La Mano del Destino just has the style that fits that story to a tee. There was literally no one else who I wanted to do that. When I did a Christmas story with Mick Foley… It had to be Jill Thompson. I do my best to find the right folks for the job.
You had a lot of material to work with when putting this book together. How did you go about choosing which of the Tales from the Road comics made it into this volume?
I try to find a good mixture of story tones/themes, companies represented, and the experience level of the collaborators. It's a little complicated but it usually comes together nicely… If I feel I'm missing something, I can always fix that by who I choose for the exclusive collaborations.
How did the already completed stories influence the four pieces that were made specifically for this volume?
I’ve known Effy, Danhausen, and Danny Limelight since before any of them really broke through on the indies. I have a ton of respect for their hard work and creativity. We had been kicking around ideas for a while. I tend to seek out folks that are motivated and creative because they get it more than most.
The RVD story happened almost by accident. I've known Rob since the beginning… He's an OG Headlocked supporter and we had already collaborated on a story in Tales From the Road Volume One. We were at GalaxyCon in North Carolina and the idea came out of an unrelated discussion we were having. I loved it so much. It instantly shot to the front of the line.
Are there any plotlines or ideas in these stories that you want to incorporate into the main Headlocked universe?
John Morrison's story actually features Scott Nightingale, who is a pivotal character in Headlocked. The story we conceived is entertaining even if you've never read HL but if you have, it highlights a pivotal moment in Scott's backstory.
Beyond that, I usually try to incorporate characters introduced in TFR into HL when I can and vice versa… Usually in just small ways to illustrate the shared universe. But as Headlocked progresses, you can bet Mike Hartmann will find his way into the orbit of some of the characters we've introduced in TFR.
What wrestlers would you like to work with in the future?
The flippant answer is all of them… I don't think there's a single person in that business that doesn't have an interesting story in them. A couple of names that sort of jump in my head right off are Bray Wyatt, Edge, Paul Heyman, Shayna Baszler, Britt Baker, Xavier Woods, Carmella, Boogeyman, and Bo Dallas.
Headlocked: Tales From the Road Volume Two is currently available for preorder via Kickstarter.
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