Identity Stunt Character Evolution: Dominus Smith
When I first started drafting Identity Stunt, Dominus was conceived as a generic villain caricature, a reductive Joker rip-off, probably named “Visage.”
But as the story came together, and I started to think about what I saw as the “opposite” of Beatdown (if there is such a thing), my initial ideas began to fade. I also began to consider aspects of American folklore that drew me in; things like the history and mysticism of the South, specifically the black magic of New Orleans.
And one day I came across an article about a man that was such a fan of Marvel’s Red Skull...that he had himself cosmetically altered to appear more like him. My first thought was, “That looks nothing like the Red Skull.” My second thought was, “But that does look like what a man who’s been possessed by multiple demons, or at least think he’s been, would look like.”
Thus was born Dominus Smith, the “Mad God with the killer fuckin’ teeth,” as I initially coined him (it doesn’t actually mean anything). Up there on the left you’ll see my paltry doodle of what I thought Dom would like like: A deformed mad man in 70′s punk rock attire, born of the Bayou and touched in the head by demons. I passed my chicken scratch on to the artist, and as you’ll notice on the right is what the talented fellow was able to spin using my childish scribbles.
I think he did an amazing job bringing Dominus to life. Don’t you?
--Joe
© 2017 Joe Khachadourian