Comics News

Tripwire Talks To Creators Marc Guggenheim And Sedat Oezgen Talk About New Comic The Whisper War

Published

7 months ago

January 31, 2026

Admin

A New Secret War

Tripwire editor-in-chief Joel Meadows spoke to creators Marc Guggenheim and Sedat Oezgen about their new comic series The Whisper War coming in February from Comixology Originals…

MARC GUGGENHEIM

TRIPWIRE: What was the genesis of the series?

How did you get to team up with artist Sedat Oezgen?

It seems to be a sci-fi hybrid series, so talk us through your approach to it as an writer.

MARC GUGGENHEIM: Sorry, I answered the first question and then realised that in doing so, I answered the second and third as well:

It started in a rather unusual way. I had been helping a friend with an OGN project that Sedat was working on. Things ultimately didn’t work out on that project, but I got to know Sedat and his work and we resolved to find something to work together. Then the 2023 WGA strike hit and I had some free time to think on it. My thoughts were informed by knowing Sedat’s work and reviewing his portfolio to determine the kind of things he gravitates to as an artist; what he likes to draw.

At the same time, like I said, the WGA strike was going on. At the risk of being reductive, the strike was over things relating to the streaming business a business that arose in the aftermath of the previous strike in 2007. This is a long way of saying that I got interested in the idea of how a conflict based in a new technology creates the foundation for the next conflict.

Obviously, however, the vagaries of the streaming model, mandatory minimums, span protection, data sharing, etc. don’t make for very interesting comics, so I replaced all that with a different “new technology”: Time travel.

TW: How would you describe it in one pithy sentence?

MG: Geez, I don’t know if I’m capable of pithy, but I’ll try: A murder investigation reveals the existence of a galactic conflict that no one remembers because the war was over time travel.

TW: How closely have you worked with Sedat?

MG: In the past, we’d only worked tangentially together on that aforementioned OGN. But I’d spent a lot of time with him at comic conventions and gotten to know him as a person and his voice as an artist.

TW: What’s it been like working with Comixology Originals?

MG: It’s been terrific. This is my second project with Comixology, and the fine folks there are delightful to work with. They’re incredibly supportive and enthusiastic.

TW: What are the pros and cons of working with a publisher who is exclusively digital ?

MG: Well, the pro is having the weight of the Amazon machine behind the project and they really provide a very wide creative berth. The con, obviously, is that digital-only has a smaller cultural footprint. But I hope that changes, obviously.

TW: Are there plans to bring this to print down the line too?

MG: Yes, one of the great things about Comixology is that after the digital publication, they have print partners who publish the more successful series. I’ve already had conversations with one such publisher about Whisper War.

SEDAT OEZGEN

TW: What was the genesis of the series?

How did you come on board the series?

SEDAT OEZGEN: I had previously worked with Marc on another project, where he was involved as a producer. During the development of that project, Marc saw how reliable and professional I was in my approach. Unfortunately, I had to leave the project because it wasn’t the right fit for me.

Marc recognised my potential and told me that he would love to work with me again someday. After that, Marc and I stayed in touch and occasionally discussed the possibility of collaborating on something together—but it had to be something special. Since both of us are huge fans of science fiction, we wanted to create our own universe, one in which everything was possible and only our imagination would limit our artistic expression.

TW: It seems to be a sci-fi hybrid series, so talk us through your approach to it as an artist

SO: I think that was possibly the easiest aspect of my job. I was bursting with ideas about how this world and universe could look. It has always been my biggest wish to work on a creator-owned sci-fi series. The most difficult part was stopping myself from going too crazy with the art.

After reading the first script, I knew I had to approach the entire project from a completely different perspective. I decided to draw the pages on oversized paper (approximately 16 × 22 inches). I wanted to make everything as cool and as epic as possible.

TW: How closely have you worked with Marc?

SO: Marc and I worked very closely on the project, constantly exchanging ideas. Although Marc gave me complete artistic freedom, I always wanted to make sure he was happy with the visual direction I was taking for the series. Marc was extremely encouraging throughout the process, and out of our professional collaboration a genuine friendship developed.

TW: What’s it like to work with a writer with such a pedigree?

SO: On the one hand, it was very intimidating, because Marc has worked in TV, film, and comics for so long that he has collaborated with the best of the best. That being said, I have rarely worked with anyone who was as much fun to collaborate with. Marc was always encouraging and genuinely appreciated that I tried to push every artistic aspect of the project to the next level.

This speaks volumes about his level of professionalism. He understands that when an artist enjoys working on a project as much as I did on The Whisper War, that artist will give 1,000 percent instead of just 100.

TW: What’s it been like working with Comixology Originals?

SO: I also have to say that working with ComiXology—and especially with Jeff DiBartolomeo—was an exceptional experience. Jeff was a huge advocate for the project and did everything he could to support us and make sure we were happy. And we truly were.

His enthusiasm and trust in the creative process made a real difference, and it was incredibly rewarding to collaborate with a publisher that so clearly believed in the series and in our vision.

TW: What are the pros and cons of working with a publisher who is exclusively digital ?

SO: That’s a good question. When we first started talking to ComiXology about possibly doing this project, I had some minor concerns, because I’m usually a physical collector. Ironically, during the process I found out that a lot of people have either completely or partially switched to reading comics digitally for convenience.

I think especially Millennial and Gen Z readers are far more open to the idea of reading comics—or books in general—on a digital device rather than having to buy a physical copy. If they really like a comic, they often end up buying the physical edition as well. This made me realise that digital and print don’t have to compete with each other, but can actually complement one another perfectly.

TW: Are there plans for this to be published in print after it concludes digitally?

SO: From what I understand, there are also plans to publish the series in print. Ironically, it was Jeff from ComiXology who first brought up the idea, which showed us how committed ComiXology was to making sure this book reached as many readers as possible.

That level of support and forward thinking gave us a lot of confidence and reinforced the feeling that we had the right partners for this project—partners who truly cared about the series and its audience.