IDW Publishing, which had released four one-shot graphic novels and one five-issue mini-series based on the series, is set to release the 24 OMNIBUS in November 2009. The compendium will feature their complete 24 output to date.

Our own J.C. Vaughn collaborated with writer Mark L. Haynes on the first three one-shots and the 24: Nightfall mini-series, and writer Beau Smith (Wynonna Earp) penned 24: Cold Warriors. Together they answered a few questions about what makes 24 work in comics.

What was your first exposure to Jack Bauer?
J.C.: I caught the first few episodes of the show and liked it a lot, but my school schedule precluded me from seeing most of the episodes when they first aired. I caught a 24-hour marathon on FX cable and stayed awake for pretty much the whole thing. That was it.
Beau: My first exposure was a promo spot on Fox. I saw Kiefer Sutherland running around with a gun and then kicking a guy in the face. I thought to myself: “Sign me up for that.” I haven’t missed an episode yet.
Mark: I remember seeing the promo ad in the TV Guide Fall Preview issue (back when there was one and it was digest sized) and thinking, “Oh, wow. A show in real-time. Sounds like a gimmick.” It wasn’t until J.C. was my roommate and he brought home the Season 1 DVDs that I got a chance to watch the show. Those DVDs in the house, combined with the cable going out, and I was hooked.

Were you hooked immediately or did it take a while?
Mark: Would watching the whole first season twice in a row count as immediately?
Beau: The first season was my least favorite, but due to a lot of really bad sitcoms and reality TV shows, I stuck with it. I’m sure glad I did, because it just got better and better. 24, like the ABC show Lost, is one of the very rare TV shows that gets better season to season. I believe last season was the best yet. The producers and writers do an amazing job of outdoing themselves every year. I admire that kind of work ethic and layering of characters.
J.C.: Entirely hooked when I saw the marathon. I told anyone who would listen about it.

When was the first time you thought it would work in comics?
Beau: I wasn’t sure it would at first. I thought the ticking clock would be a major problem. In reality it ends up enhancing the comic book story telling style. In the last five years comic book story telling has become an endless taffy pull. Story lines that should be four issues get stretched out to 12 and at $3.00 a pop, a comic book story should never be boring. We get way too much boring. The style of 24 gives readers a story that moves with the action. Comics are words and pictures. 24 was made for the comic books format.
Mark: Like a lot of people, I remember thinking there was no way it would work in comics. At an hour per issue, no publisher or reader would sign on for that long. Plus, since 24 tended to be somewhat topical, there’d be no way to get through the story before world events could overtake and potentially invalidate it. Then, it just hit us, dispense with the real-time element and just tell a damn good story about a guy whose mission is his life and then layer in the time element after the fact.
J.C.: I might have been either more rabid about the show than Mark and Beau or just a little more optimistic about the transition into comics. I probably thought it would work right away, but definitely the first time I saw IDW’s CSI comics. Since it seemed unlikely that the show itself would revisit the events of Operation Nightfall, that seemed like a likely place to start. It was our original pitch to IDW. From that they went and got the license, even though it ended up being our fourth story with them.

As a writer, did you have any trouble getting Jack Bauer’s voice?
Beau: I can’t speak for the other writers, but for me, his voice and character were in my head and I had no problem translating the character to the printed page. My pleasure came from getting the opportunity to add what I hope are interesting layers to the foundation of Jack Bauer.
Mark: For me, I’d have to say it was easy due to the immersive way I got acquainted with the show. Once you understood who Jack was and where he was coming from, you knew how he’d respond and that has to be due to the writers creating one of the most compelling and sharply drawn characters on television but also to Kiefer Sutherland’s portrayal.
J.C.: I suppose it would be all serious and writerly to say yes, it was a challenge, but no, not at all. Between the writers, directors and Kiefer Sutherland, I think Jack Bauer is probably the quickest character voice I’ve ever gotten in my head. It’s very distinctive, and remarkably consistent.

Where did the sparks for your stories come from?
J.C.: Real world events, or at least real world trends. Mark and I came at stories differently, but we’re both news junkies, or reformed news junkies at this point (I have stopped watching the news and now wait for the boxed set DVDs). Anyhow, two of our stories concerned oil drilling in ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) and Chechen terrorists, respectively. Within weeks of turning in those stories, both topics were high profile in the news. IDW Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall sent us an email that said “I want to go to Vegas with you guys.” That was pretty cool.
Beau: The show itself is a huge spark. When you have a fire as hot and large as 24, it shoots out a lot of sparks in which to start a whole other fire. My goal was to try and take the story to a location that the show hasn’t or couldn’t go. In 24: Cold Warriors, I thought Alaska in a snow storm would be the other end of the pole from L.A. The weather became a character in the story.
Mark: Generally, it would start with one of us reading or hearing some bit of news and wondering how Jack would deal with the situation. For instance, we decided to use the IRA as a story element in 24: One Shot. At the time, they had been drawn into the peace process, but they were still a terrorist organization, so it seemed reasonable that there were factions wouldn’t go for it. Same goes for the drug cartels in 24 Stories, which lent itself nicely to a prequel story about Jack going undercover with the Salazars. Finally, when were developing Midnight Sun, oil drilling in the Alaskan wilderness was about to be a hot button topic so, boom, Jack goes to Alaska. In retrospect it’s pretty interesting that Beau also viewed Alaska as a great setting for a show which, to that point, had never been out of Los Angeles.

What do you see as the limitations of the comic book form for 24?
J.C.: The real-time gimmick of the show is very hard to replicate. Nearly impossible. Once you get beyond that, though, I don’t see too many limitations.
Beau: I don’t see any. At least I didn’t feel any. The budget was unlimited and getting to introduce and create new supporting characters was a dream come true. The TV show 24 is a perfect example of how characters don’t need to ramble on and on with endless jibber-jabber. 24 is the steak without the fat. I think current comic book writing could stand to trim a little fat when it comes to dialogue and blocks of text. Writing comics isn’t a screenplay or a novel. You have an artist to help carry out the action and emotions. More writers should remember that.
Mark: The main limitation I see is the same one the series faces and that’s how to tell stories based on what the character of Jack Bauer has developed into over eight years. Specifically, Jack has morphed over time from a normal, albeit highly-trained, guy in an impossible situation into more of a superhero who can pretty much survive anything that happens to him. Exposed to deadly radiation? Drink this! Inhaled a lethal virus? Eat that! Is it Jack Bauer or Alice in Wonderland?

Conversely, what do you see as the advantages comic books have over TV in terms of the show?
Beau: As I mentioned before, in comics there is an unlimited budget and the opportunity to create new characters in support. Yes, a TV show gives you fluid movement, but comics lets you study a moment over and over with crystal clarity.
J.C.: Like Beau said, we can do bigger budget stories. We traveled well before the show itself ever changed locations. As we mentioned, one of our stories and Beau’s story was set in Alaska. We got to set the “Year Zero” story, Nightfall, in Kosovo.
Mark: Production costs are the same no matter where the story takes you.

For you, what was the high point of working on 24?
Mark: Getting a script note back from the show’s production folks that said simply, “You guys nailed it.”
J.C.: It was after the fact, but meeting some of the folks who worked on the show and hearing that they liked it. I also really enjoyed it getting covered by Emmy magazine, TV Guide, and other non-comics outlets, and we were fortunate to work with some talented artists. Renato Guedes, of course, has gone on to the highest profile with his regular work on Superman.
Beau: The high point for me was getting the opportunity to be a part of a creation that I admire and enjoy. To work on characters that are iconic, current and hopefully I did that with a sense of respect and dignity. It was wonderful to work with artist Steve Bryant, who prides himself on his art looking like and moving like the characters that the readers and viewers know so well. IDW Publishing signs you on to do what you do best and then they let you have the freedom to do it. I couldn’t ask for more than that.

Anything odd or funny about the experience?
J.C.: It was a very interesting collaboration. Mark and I didn’t write any two of our stories the same way. Also, I was very happy with the incredible number of friends, co-workers and classmates we killed off, if only in name. Unlike TBS, that was actually very funny.
Beau: Getting to have Jack Bauer say “Damnit!” When I’d write him saying it I always smiled.
Mark: Being told that our scripts couldn’t violate series continuity for the upcoming season in the same conversation in which we were told that they wouldn’t tell us anything about what would be happening in the upcoming season. Made that season really fun to watch since the book was mostly drawn by the time the season premiered.

What are you working on now?
Beau: Wynonna Earp: The Yeti Wars (IDW Publishing), DC Holiday (Christmas) Special 2009 with B’Wana Beast (DC Comics), The Green Lantern Corps. Annual (DC Comics) Classic Captain Action (Moonstone).
Mark: A 24/Die Hard crossover. Okay, not really, but come on! Jack Bauer vs. John McClane? Get Nina Myers back from the dead and put her toe-to-toe with that Twinkie-chomping cop and we’re ready to rock and roll. You know you’d read it. Seriously, on the writing front, I’ve just finished a spec television pilot that is awesome feedback. I’m also developing an independent feature film, a web series with the producers of The Ghost Whisperer, and a TV mini-series based on previously unpublished Ray Bradbury stories. Lots of fun, cool stuff!
J.C.: In comics I have Vampire Hunter Dean, which is a sequel to a prose story I did for Moonstone, a new Zombie-Proof story, and several other projects that I really hope to be able to announce soon. Until then, as usual, I’m at work on The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide.

On TV, Fox’s 24 returns Sunday, January 17, 2010, with a two-night, four-hour season premiere.