THE ROAD FROM JETBURN TO DEATHWAKE AND MEDDLE-HEAD

An Instagram question poll was posted, and these were the questions asked. All questions are anonymous. This segment is to further expand on the Instagram questions.

Before there was Meddle-Head. Before there was Deathwake. There was Jetburn! Published years before either character found their footing, Jetburn served as an early blueprint for ideas that would eventually splinter into two entirely different comic series.

Question:

When did you realize Jetburn wasn’t going to remain a single project?

Answer:

The story and the design started pulling in different directions.

The concept of betrayal was always the strongest part of Jetburn. I was fascinated by the idea of someone turning against the organization they belonged to. What would push someone to betray the people they worked alongside? What kind of trust has to exist before that betrayal even matters?

That became the foundation for Meddle-Head.

At the same time, I loved the visual design of Jetburn, but it didn’t feel “super” enough for the story I wanted to tell. Rather than abandon the design, I eventually recycled and evolved it into what would become Deathwake.

Question:

What survived from Jetburn and made its way into Meddle-Head?

Answer:

The core idea of betrayal.

In Jetburn, the character was leaving a villain organization. In Meddle-Head, I flipped the concept completely. Instead of abandoning a villain group, Velahan abandons a hero agency.

That change opened up entirely different questions. Rather than asking why someone would betray villains, I became interested in exploring the hypocrisy that can exist inside institutions that claim to be heroic.

Question:

How did Deathwake evolve from the original Jetburn design?

Answer:

The design had to become more extreme.

I looked at a lot of gothic imagery and creators like Tim Burton. I wanted sharper silhouettes, larger shoulders, and characters that immediately stood apart from traditional superheroes.

Deathwake isn’t meant to be handsome. He’s ugly. He’s damaged. He feels more like a creature than a traditional hero.

That distinction became important because I wanted the world around him to feel visually dangerous.

Jetburn's Original Design

Question:

Deathwake also centers around leaving a larger organization. Was that intentional?

Answer:

Absolutely! If Meddle-Head examines someone leaving a hero agency, Deathwake explores someone leaving a villain legion.

I wanted the villains to look unapologetically villainous. Pointed ears. Tattered clothing. Harsh silhouettes. The kind of imagery people have associated with evil for centuries.

But I also wanted to challenge the idea that evil automatically means chaos.

The villains in Deathwake have rules. They have standards. They don’t see themselves as heroes, but they aren’t randomly targeting civilians either. They’re focused. They’re direct.

That made them more interesting to me.

Question:

What themes separate Meddle-Head and Deathwake?

Answer:

Meddle-Head is about hypocrisy.

The hero agency presents itself as a force for good, but many of the people inside it are covering up wrongdoing because they believe the good they do outweigh the bad.

Deathwake is about personal codes.

The villains know exactly what they are. They aren’t pretending. The conflict comes from deciding where their personal lines exist and what happens when those lines are crossed.

Question:

Both characters seem obsessed with integrity in different ways.

Answer:

That’s probably the most important theme in everything I write.

Integrity is more important than fitting in.

Just because nobody around you shares your values doesn’t mean you should abandon them. Standing by what you believe doesn’t require compromising yourself to satisfy other people.

Both Meddle-Head and Deathwake approach that idea from opposite directions.

Question:

Readers have noticed similarities between the two characters. Are they connected?

Answer:

Very much so.

They’re part of the same universe.

The shared visor design isn’t accidental. Both characters emerged from the same creative roots, even if they eventually grew into different stories.

Question:

Will they ever meet?

Answer:

Yes. That’s always been the plan.

Eventually, after Meddle-Head leaves the hero agency and begins operating independently, he’ll cross paths with Deathwake. Their ideologies are different enough that conflict becomes inevitable.

I’ve always envisioned a major confrontation between them.

Question:

Are you building a traditional superhero universe?

Answer:

Not really. I’m less interested in copying Marvel or DC and more interested in creating a shared universe where different stories can coexist while maintaining their own identity.

A Meddle-Head story should feel different from a Deathwake story, even though they occupy the same world.

That’s the goal.

Question:

What’s next for Meddle-Head?

Answer:

Meddle-Head will continue appearing in the next four issues of Murlant Magazine.

After that, the series will move into an exclusive digital format and continue on MurlantMagazine.com.

The story is far from over.

In many ways, it’s only beginning.

Jetburn may no longer exist as an active series, but its influence can still be felt throughout the growing Murlant Universe. What began as a single comic eventually split into two distinct paths: Meddle-Head, a story about institutional hypocrisy, and Deathwake, a story about personal codes and vengeance.

Different roads.

Different philosophies.

The same question lies at their center:

What are you willing to betray, and what are you unwilling to become?

Jetburn #1

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