The Blastoff Podcast

This week in Comics 101, Scott looks at the beginnings of DC's Justice League of America, and in ReTales, Jud tells the tale of the day he wore the shield. http://BlastoffComics.com

In the first of Jud's interviews from the City of Light, Jud visits the Humanoids offices and chats with writer Xavier Dorison, author of The Third Testament, Prophet and Long John Silver. http://BlastoffComics.com

This week in Comics 101, Scott tells us about his friend and mentor Marvelous Mark Gruenwald, and in ReTales, Jud recounts the tale of two very special customers. This one is special, kids. Settle in. http://BlastoffComics.com

In Comics 101, Scott looks at the work of one of comics' greatest creators, Will Eisner, and in ReTales, Jud teaches us all a lesson about taking things for granted in “Los Ojos Son el Espejo del Alma.” http://BlastoffComics.com

Welcome back to our two-episode special of our conversation with Mark Waid, one of the greatest visionaries in comic book history. It was a pleasure digging in deep to what makes this man tick. Here in episode two, we go even deeper. Hang on, dear listeners. The cosmic rays are coming fast and furious now. The ship is heating up. Might as well sit back and relax. There's no stopping it now and there's no telling where we'll end up. http://BlastoffComics.com

There are some guests who need very little introduction. Some who have affected our industry in so many ways that it would require a dedicated program just to list their achievements. Mark Waid is that guest. He's written nearly every comic-book character at nearly every comic-book company (quite a few that he founded himself). He's become an expert at every level of publishing. Owner, CEO, CCO, Editor-in-Chief, Digital Pioneer.  And of course, a relentless wordsmith, creating original characters and transforming long existing ones with brave and bold strokes. Over thirty years of shaping and reshaping so many of the heroes and villains whose adventures we long to daydream about. He builds the ship. He fills it with a crew. And then he pilots it and makes sure we all have a seat right up front. He's a quiet man who can also wield a big stick. A man with strong opinions. Which means, a man with as many enemies as friends. He does not back down, he does not cower, he does not lie. He speaks his mind and types with his heart in his fingers. In this transparency lies the key to the emotional core that sets his comic-book writing aflame. I've known him a long time and he's the same human being now as he was when we first met. Maybe a bit wiser. Skin a bit thicker. He's not a man without fear. He's a man unafraid to walk through it and see what happens next.   Like I said, I'm not going to list his credits. If you don't know who he is, hit pause and open your browser. Type in the name Mark Waid and give yourself a few minutes to cover the terrain of his career so far. When you pick your jaw up off the floor, press play and prepare for a master class in honesty from a master storyteller. http://BlastoffComics.com

This week in Comics 101, Scott looks at the beginnings of Marvel's Fantastic Four in "The Way It Began," Harley is back with more Small Talk, and in ReTales, Jud pulls back the curtain on his life as “I Witness.”   http://BlastoffComics.com

We're honored to welcome one of the most talented and influential publishers in the comic book arena. Chris Ryall is the CCO of IDW Publishing, one of the fourth largest publishers of comic book content in America. He leads as Creative Officer of a company that's had almost 100 of their titles on the NY Times Bestseller list and whose comic titles have won every award from Harvey to Eagle to Eisner. A handful of which, he wrote and developed himself. They're a leader in licensed content, building the comic brands of GI Joe, My Little Pony, Transformers, Doctor Who, Star Trek, Ghostbusters, Godzilla, Judge Dredd and even the revitalized Disney characters we all love so much. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott looks at the beginnings of Marvel's Incredible Hulk in "Driven By Rage," Harley returns with another edition of “Small Talk,” while Jud talks about a special customer, and a very special “Four-Letter Word.” http://BlastoffComics.com

Thundercat has been breaking ground in the music industry since he was a teenager. He had his first hit song at the age of 15, and just a year later before he could vote or get a legal drink, he became one of the original members of Suicidal Tendencies, playing bass in a band that came to define the ‘90s' West Coast punk-rock sound. That's right, folks. Joining us today is none other than Stephen Bruner, also known as Thundercat. During the middle of the last decade, Bruner linked up with Shafiq Husayn and Sa-Ra, and became a permanent fixture at the group's Silver Lake studio that briefly served as the Los Alamos of the L.A. underground music scene. Everyone from Ty Dollasign to Erykah Badu passed through this sprawling nerve center. He joined Badu in her live band and New Amerykah studio sessions. And then in 2011, Bruner joined forces with Flying Lotus, and his musical passion exploded. That year, he released his first solo project, The Golden Age of Apocalypse, which positioned him as an artist that could flip between improvised jazz, left-field electronica and smooth soul in the space of a single song. It was followed by Apocalypse in 2013, and then the more somber 16-minute-long EP The Beyond: Where the Giants Roam, which was rooted in his grief over the sudden death of his close friend, the piano prodigy Austin Peralta. In 2015 he collaborated with Kendrick Lamar and took home a Grammy Award for the groundbreaking album To Pimp a Butterfly. Right now he's on an international tour, playing songs from his new solo album Drunk, which features a single called “Show You the Way,” a song that brings together Michael McDonald and Kenny Loggins for the first time in decades, proof that there's endless reasons Bruner can compose and play with anyone, from Stanley Clarke to Snoop Dogg. Stephen was kind enough to join us on the podcast between performances on the main stage at the Coachella festival; we're grateful he took some time away from his beloved cat Turbo Tron Over 9000 Baby Jesus Sally to talk music, art, life and, of course, comics. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott looks at the beginnings of DC's Flash in "A Flash of the Lightning," while Harley returns for a new installment of "Small Talk." http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott looks at the beginnings of Marvel's Sub-Mariner in "Under Pressure," while Jud recounts how folks from all walks of life pass through our doors in "Don't X-Plain."  Plus, Jud and Scott talk Free Comic Book Day and discuss Scott's newest comics project STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION: MIRROR BROKEN! http://BlastoffComics.com

Our guest today is an Emmy-Award-winning writer for television, having written for series like Wonder Woman, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, L.A. Law, The New Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits. He's a Nebula-Award-winning writer of short stories and novels, including Time and Chance, Moloka'i, Honolulu, and most recently the wistfully nostalgic novel Palisades Park. He's written some of the best Batman comic-book stories ever, including my personal favorite Batman tale of all time, “The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne,” from The Brave and the Bold #197, in which we discover how a middle-aged Batman finally learned how to be brave enough to love again. It's an issue I've returned to time and again over the years, when I need to remind myself that you can tell a lifetime's worth of story in only twenty pages. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott looks at the beginnings of Marvel's Mighty Thor in "Journey Into Mystery," while Jud welcomes you inside the doors of the shop in "An Invitation." http://BlastoffComics.com

Jim Krueger is one of the most important comic-book writers in the business. Working with industry icon Alex Ross, he created the highly acclaimed Earth X trilogy for Marvel Comics. The duo then reunited at DC Comics and produced the Eisner-award winning epic Justice. His writing has given voice to the X-Men, the Avengers, Spider-Man, Batman, Buffy, and he even put his feet into the Star Wars universe, because – well, why not? Independently, he began publishing his own work. Foot Soldiers, recently re-released and reprinted by Image Comics, is a wonder of storytelling, bringing in a wealth of the most talented artists in comics to tell a post-apocalyptic punk-rock superhero epic, and manages to be warm-hearted and nostalgic all at the same time. His original graphic novel The High Cost of Happily Ever After turns the damsel-in-distress genre on its head, and his latest book The Runner will just plain scare the hell out of you. He is a writer, he is a director, he is a producer. He is Jim Krueger. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott looks at the beginnings of the Caped Crusader in "I Shall Become a Bat," while Jud reveals the beginnings of his own kind of crusade in "Number 158." Also, Harley and Amelia return for more "Small Talk." http://BlastoffComics.com

Alan Roderick-Jones is a renowned artist and production designer, who's worked on such wide-ranging and varied projects as Papillon, Tarzan and of course, Star Wars: A New Hope. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott and Jud look at two American literary giants who loomed large in their childhoods and still do to this day: Jack Kirby and Ray Bradbury. Also, the debut of "Small Talk," with Harley Salbacka and a very special guest. http://BlastoffComics.com

Glen Murakami is a legend in the world of animation. In the last twenty years, there were only a handful of writers and artists crafting what turned into the most successful run of comic book cartoon hits in American history. This man was one of those creators. He started his career under the direction of Bruce Timm on Warner Bros. Batman, the Animated Series and Superman, the Animated Series. He won an Emmy Award as producer of Batman Beyond and after a decade working with Timm, he branched out on his own and created the hit Teen Titans series, bringing a groundbreaking anime style to Western television that had never been seen before. He partnered with Dwayne McDuffie to create another animated hit, Ben 10: Alien Force and went on to Executive Produce Beware the Batman. He even won an Eisner Award in the world of the comic book printed page for his work on Batman Adventures Holiday Special (if you haven't read this seminal Mister Freeze story, you need to go to your local comic book store and insist they order it for you!). He's won two Annie Awards, he's worked with the greatest legends in animation history and now, he's on the Blastoff Podcast program! We hope you enjoy this in-depth and illuminating conversation with Glen Murakami. http://BlastoffComics.com

In this week's COMICS 101, Scott explains the origins of Marvel's Iron Man in "Isn't It Iron-ic?." Then in RETALES, Jud looks at how everything fits together in "Connections." http://BlastoffComics.com

Our guest on today's conversation program is one of the most important writers in modern Marvel Comics history. Chris Yost started his career in the world of animation, writing scripts for Marvel Comics' television universe. Wolverine and the X-Men was a huge hit in 2003, when he and Craig Kyle dreamed up the story of a young girl who had been cloned from the DNA of Wolverine, complete with his claws, healing factor and bloodlust. X-23 struck such a chord with the fans that Marvel asked them to bring the character into the world of the printed comics. X-23: Innocence Lost and Target X smashed sales numbers and a legend was born! Chris went on to write long, seminal runs on New X-Men, X-Force, Spider-Man and wrote a stellar adaptation of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game. He even jumped over to the DC Comics Universe to try his hand at the Batman titles.   He continued to write for animation, penning stories for Cartoon Network. TMNT, Batman, the Fantastic Four and Iron Man were all big hits that led to his role as Head Writer on Marvel's smash sensation, Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. He even tried his hand at the Star Wars Universe, working on Lucasfilm's Star Wars: Rebels. As the screenwriter for the live action Thor: The Dark World and the soon to be released Thor: Ragnarok (not to mention the appearance of X-23 in the latest Wolverine movie, LOGAN), Chris Yost has solidified his permanent role in the comic-book mythos. We're thrilled to have him on the show, so sit back and enjoy the ride! http://BlastoffComics.com

In this week's COMICS 101, Scott explains the origins of Marvel's Captain America in "Everybody's All-American." Then in RETALES, Jud gets a little help from Lewis Carroll as he tells the tale of a very special customer with a most unusual secret in “The Jabberwock.” Special thanks to Ashley Adler Krueger for her super-smooth vocal poetry. http://BlastoffComics.com

Michael Stradford is an entertainment-industry executive for the last three decades spanning through music, radio, DVD, film, television and interactive. He's at Warner Home Entertainment as director of creative services right now, but before that, he was at Big Air Studios, which is a film distribution company. And before that, he led the digital production and development team for Crackle at Sony Pictures. He produced groundbreaking digital movie projects (Angel of Death), won awards for that; he's progressive, and he's done some extraordinary things. He's a pioneer for all kinds of added-value materials for DVD at a time when people didn't even know what that was. This man has done a lot. http://BlastoffComics.com

In this week's COMICS 101, Scott explains the origins of DC's Wonder Woman in "Enter Diana." Then in RETALES, Jud talks about some of his customers who, while artistically inclined, may not be expressing that inclination within the bounds of the law, in "Tag! You're It." http://BlastoffComics.com

Gregg Hurwitz is the best-selling artist of 17 novels. His work has been published in over 30 languages. He's written screenplays for every major studio and developed and produced work for every major TV network. You might have seen that spooky sci-fi revival of V a few years back? Yeah, that's him. And he's working on an HBO series adaption of Pulitzer Prize-winner Joby Warrick's book about the formation of ISIS, with Bradley Cooper and Todd Phillips also on board. His original screenplay The Book of Henry, directed by Colin Treverrow (yes, Star Wars' Colin Treverrow), recently wrapped shooting in New York with a cast that includes Naomi Watts, Sarah Silverman, Lee Pace and Dean Norris. And if that wasn't enough for you, he's the New York Times Best-Selling author of some of the most badass Batman, Punisher and Wolverine comics you'll ever get your hands on. His novel Orphan X came out last year, and was immediately grabbed up by Bradley Cooper; they're currently developing it for a feature film franchise. Right now he's on a worldwide tour promoting the follow-up Evan Smoak book The Nowhere Man. He was kind enough to carve out some time in the studio with us, somewhere between Arizona and New Zealand. http://BlastoffComics.com

In this week's COMICS 101, Scott helps you tell one Captain Marvel from another in "Captains Marvel," then takes a moment to remember the recently departed actor and writer Miguel Ferrer in "Gone Too Soon." Then, Jud tells the tale of a little boy and his quest to meet the wizard in "In Brightest Day." http://BlastoffComics.com

An interview with legendary screenwriter, actor, producer and director Carl Gottlieb, whose six-decade-spanning career includes cinematic classics Jaws and The Jerk, as well as television favorites such as The Bob Newhart Show and The Odd Couple. That's a resume large enough for most to envy, but Carl has done so much, much more. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott concludes his two-part look at DC Comics' multiple Earths in "And Then There Was One," while in ReTales, Jud tells how those same DC heroes changed a life for the better in "Gods and Comics." http://BlastoffComics.com

Quinton Peeples has been writing, producing and directing for television for over 30 years, and has a lot to offer us. You might recognize him from his TV work on Flashforward - a great show - The Last Ship, and Unforgettable, or his extremely well received inspirational film Woodlawn. Last year he acted as writer and executive producer on Hulu's 11/22/63, the adaptation of Stephen King's best-selling novel; it was pretty wonderful. This year, he's making the same magic happen with Iron Fist, Marvel's next big comic-book superhero extravaganza for Netflix. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott explains how a comic-book publisher can find itself with "Too Many Earths," while Jud tells the story of a very special customer and his "Three Dollars and Twenty-Four Cents." http://BlastoffComics.com

Todd Stashwick started his career in the cast of Chicago's illustrious Second City improvisational group. He leapt from the stages of New York City onto television screens, and has become one of the biggest character actors in Hollywood. After being the man of a thousand faces in literally hundreds of small- and large-screen projects (trust me, you've seen him take a turn on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Heroes, Justified, Teen Wolf, The Riches, Supernatural, where he brought Count Dracula to life, and scores of other fan favorites), he's finally settled into the role of Deacon on SyFy's hot show 12 Monkeys. He created an online comics and graphic novel series with artist Dennis Calero called Devil Inside - open up your browser right now and look at its badassery. And as if all of that wasn't enough, he's currently writing a licensed Star Wars video game for Electronic Arts that is going to absolutely knock you out. http://BlastoffComics.com

Scott introduces you to Pogo Possum and the rest of the denizens of the Okeefenokee Swamp in this week's Comics 101 offering, "It Ain't Nohow Permanent." while Jud walks you through the end of a relationship in this week's ReTales, "The Break-Up." http://BlastoffComics.com

Our guest on this episode is Cecil Castellucci, one of America's most influential young-adult novelists. Her first book, Grandma's Gloves, won the California Book Award Gold Medal. Her novel Boyproof debuted in 2005 and was named one of the best books for young adults by the American Library Association. She's also in the world of comics; she won the Joe Shuster Award for her graphic novel Plain Janes, which was published by DC Comics' Minx imprint. She was nominated for a Will Eisner Award for her book Odd Duck, and Moving Target, her Princess Leia Star Wars novel, was published to great acclaim last year. Right now, she is working on Shade the Changing Girl, part of the new imprint that DC Comics is putting out, Young Animal, which is spearheaded by none other than Gerard Way. http://BlastoffComics.com

Your hosts Jud Meyers and Scott Tipton are your tour guides through the worlds of comic books, popular culture, comic-book retailing, and nostalgia. In the premiere episode, Scott explains the difference between the golden and silver ages of comic books. Then, Jud muses on the child-like wonder of stepping inside a brick and mortar comic shop. http://BlastoffComics.com