The Comics Canon

We're With the Banned, our miniseries on banned and challenged graphic novels, concludes (at least for now) with a stop at Daniel Clowes' Ice Haven, a “narraglyphic picto-assemblage” published by Pantheon Books! A collection of comic strips covering a variety of styles and perspectives, this peek behind the curtain of suburban America introduces us to an absorbing cast of characters including bitter would-be poet Random Wilder, lovesick teen Violet Van Der Platz, her young stepbrother Charles, clueless detective Joe Ames, aspiring writer Vida Wentz, and … (ahem!) comic book critic Harry Naybors. How does the abduction of uncommunicative tot David Goldberg affect our cast? What do Leopold and Loeb have to do with any of this? And can Ice Haven find itself welcome in that idyllic small town known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       What's the deal with Blue Bunny? ·       Is one of our cast an unreliable narrator? ·       “Planting the Seeds of Divorce” ·       We need to talk about Harry Naybors ·       What does Daniel Clowes have against critics? ·       Transformers Vol. 1: Robots in Disguise ·       “The Falls” by George Saunders Join us in two weeks as we discuss a pair of controversial Swamp Thing stories from the Alan Moore era: Rite of Spring (#34) and Windfall (#43)! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense FundImpress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

We're afraid you'll have to wait another week for our episode on Daniel Clowes' Ice Haven. But that doesn't mean you'll have to wait a whole week to hear Curt and Kevin talk at length about comics. In fact, you can hear them render judgment on some fun comic-book stories of yesteryear this very day! Confused? Kevin's here to explain.

On this episode, We're With the Banned, our miniseries on banned and challenged graphic novels, takes on the most banned book of the past several years – Gender Queer: A Memoir, by Maia Kobabe, published by Lion Forge Comics/Oni Press! We discuss some fairly personal topics and fumble a bit (although not as much as we may have feared) with the author's preferred pronouns (e, em, and eir) as we discuss Kobabe's account of eir struggles with gender dysphoria and other issues on the road to identifying as nonbinary. It's an important work, especially in our current cultural moment. But is that enough to guarantee entry into that bastion of One Direction fandom known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       The Spivak pronouns ·       A brief discussion of Barbarian ·       Bad news from the future ·       How did we end up talking about typing class? ·       Curt's review of Thunderbolts* ·       Gamemasters: The Comic Book History of Roleplaying Galmes Join us in two weeks as We're With the Banned continues with a discussion of Daniel Clowes' Ice Haven! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

We're With the Banned, our miniseries on challenged comics and graphic novels, rolls on with a discussion of Yusei Matsui's manga Assassination Classroom Vol. 1: Time for Assassination, published by Viz Media! Consider this a big ol' content warning, as this charming and bizarre story contains many scenes of attempted murder inside a school, as the underachieving students of classroom 3-E are charged with assassinating their teacher! Oh, and that teacher, Koro Sensei, just happens to be a tentacled creature with a giant smiley face for a head, who's already destroyed most of the moon -- and threatens to do the same thing to the planet Earth unless our hapless junior high students can assassinate him before the school year ends! This may be the silliest book we've covered on the podcast – far sillier than Ambush Bug for sure. But will that be enough to win a seat at that cool kids' table known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Why was this book banned? ·       Voice casting Koro Sensei ·       Sinners ·       The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss ·       Deadly Class Vol. 1: Reagan Youth, by Rick Remender and Wes Craig Join us in two weeks as We're With the Banned continues with a discussion of Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense FundImpress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!  

Content warning: Sexual assault, cruelty to animals In this episode, We're With the Banned, our miniseries on banned or challenged comics and graphic novels, continues with a discussion of Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughan and Niko Henrichon, published by Vertigo/DC Comics! Based on a true story, this absorbing graphic novel follows four lions who escape from the Baghdad Zoo following a bombing by American forces in April of 2003. Filled with smart dialogue, sharp characterization and rousing action, it quickly makes you forget you're reading a book about talking animals as it draws you into its vividly realized world and makes you care for its four protagonists. Will Noor, Zill, Safa and Ali find food and safety on the deserted, shell-shocked streets of Baghdad? And will they at last roam free in that heavenly habitat known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·     Curt's no good, very bad day ·     Why don't more people talk about Brian K. Vaughan? ·     Why has this book been challenged? It's not because of the Iraq War ·     Three Kings ·     Four Lions ·     The New Gods by Ram V. and Evan Cagle J   Join us in two weeks as We're With the Banned continues with a discussion of Assassination Classroom Vol. 1 by Yusei Matsui! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense FundImpress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!  

In this episode, we kick off We're With the Banned – a miniseries on banned or challenged comics and graphic novels – with a discussion of This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki, published by First Second Books! In this delightful, finely detailed coming-of-age story, friends Rose and Windy contend with their impending adolescence during a summer beach trip, set against a pair of contrasting conflicts revolving around pregnancy, communication and depression. Will Rose get over her crush on store clerk Dunk and realize she's backing the wrong horse? Will Windy ever slow down and take a breath? And can they prevail in that high-stakes game of Beach Blanket Bingo known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund ·       We welcome a surprise guest ·       Petit Maman ·       The Power Fantasy Vol. 1: The Superpowers Join us in two weeks as We're With the Banned continues with a discussion of 2006's Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughan and Niko Henrichon! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, blind lawyer Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, is behind bars – but so are Hammerhead, the Kingpin, and a host of other hardened criminals in 2006's The Devil in Cell Block D, by Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark, published by Marvel Comics! When someone close to him suffers a grisly fate, a spiraling Matt Murdock is bent on revenge! And if that weren't bad enough, Bullseye and the Punisher join the fun as simmering tensions come to a boil, resulting in an all-out riot!  Who is the mysterious figure manipulating things from behind the scenes? Who is the fake Daredevil patrolling the streets of Hell's Kitchen while Matt cools his heels in the slammer? And can ol' Hornhead prevail in that four-color courtroom known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       A brief discussion of HBO's Oz ·       A flaw in the design of Ryker's Island ·       A question about comic-book aspirations ·       The Devil Takes a Ride ·       Daredevil Vol. 1 by Mark Waid and Paolo Rivera ·       A VERY SPOILERY discussion of the first two episodes of Daredevil: Born Again on Disney+         Join us in two weeks as we kick off a miniseries focused on banned and challenged comics with a look at This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

A mere 16 years after the Kingpin learns Daredevil's secret identity in Frank Miller's Born Again, that secret becomes front page news in 2002's Out, by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev, published by Marvel Comics! Returning to his indie crime-comic roots, Bendis puts attorney Matt Murdock through the wringer in this compelling story grounded in street-level atmosphere by artist Maleev and colorist Matt Hollingsworth. Is gaslighting your friends and loved ones okay if it means you can put on a costume and fight crime? Just how much are we supposed to root for a hero who doubles down on lying to the entire world? And can Matt Murdock get a fair shake from that sleazy tabloid known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Homicide: Life on the Street ·       A few words from our sponsor ·       Some random podcast ideas ·       The Origin Story podcast ·       The Big Empty by Robert Crais ·       To Live and Die in L.A. ·       Daredevil: Underboss ·       Amazing Spider-Man: Civil War Join us in two weeks as join ol' Hornhead behind bars for The Devil in Cell Block D (issues #82-87), by Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

Our six-episode, six-decade overview of the Thunderbolts and the Masters of Evil comes to a close (for now, at least) as we discuss two time-hopping tales from 2011 and 2012: The Great Escape from Thunderbolts #163-165 and Like Lightning from #172-174, published by Marvel Comics! Following the events of the Fear Itself crossover event, most of the Thunderbolts manage to escape their prison home, only to end up in World War II Austria, side-by-side with Captain America and Prince Namor, fighting the Nazi forces of Baron Zemo! Then, we skip ahead a few issues (and decades) as they find themselves confronting the original Thunderbolts, led by (Son of) Baron Zemo! Can these temporally tossed antiheroes repair the timeline before they cease to exist? And will these issues be deemed an excellent adventure or a bogus journey by that Time Variance Authority known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Hey, it's Centurius! ·       Thunderbolts #163.1 ·       The tearjerking tale of Techno vs. Fixer ·       Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931) ·       MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios ·       A Thunderbolts movie theory (recorded before the new trailer was released) Join us in two weeks as we use the March 4 release of Daredevil: Born Again on Disney + to discuss Daredevil: Out by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

Our decade-by-decade series on Marvel Comics' Thunderbolts rolls into the 21st century as we discuss Burning Down the House, collecting Thunderbolts #126-129 and #132 by Andy Diggle and Roberto de la Torre, published by Marvel Comics! After saving the Earth from the Skrulls' Secret Invasion, Thunderbolts director (and Green Goblin) Norman Osborn is headed for bigger and better things … but not before he turns the Thunderbolts against each other on his way out the door! Then, it's high-flying mayhem aboard Air Force One as we meet an all-new T-Bolts squad led by Black Widow (no, not that one – the other one) and Osborn protects President Not Barack Obama from … the Green Goblin??? Will Songbird survive against the combined might of Moonstone, Venom and Bullseye? And will this new black-ops hit squad succeed against that Wild Covert Action Team known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       The inevitable Talking Heads chatter ·       Wait, what happened to covering Faith in Monsters? ·       Why the Irredeemable Ant-Man is the best(?) shrinking character ·       How lame is Mister X? Pretty lame, right? ·       Dark Avengers: Molecule Man and Siege ·       Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation Join us in two weeks as the Thunderbolts reach the 2010s, only to hop right back out in two time-traveling tales: The Great Escape (Thudnerbolts #163-165) and Like Lightning (#172-174)! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we look back at one of the best-reviewed graphic novels of 2024: Final Cut by Charles Burns! When Brian, a shy, socially awkward artist, meets Laurie, the soon-to-be star of his new amateur sci-fi horror movie, she quickly becomes his muse, sharing space in his drawings and his mind with the film's giant, pod-spewing aliens. Like him, Laurie is an outsider, wrestling with her own inner demons. But as his obsession with her grows, his grasp on his mental health weakens.  This vividly drawn tale of longing – to create and to connect – is part love-triangle teen romance and part love-letter to the science fiction creature features of a bygone era. But is all of that enough to make the cut with that Invasion of the Body Snatchers known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Curt and Kevin's 8mm adventures ·       We have to talk about Tina ·       The Strange Tales of Oscar Zahn ·       Curt's existential crisis ·       Brief thoughts on Madam Web and The Northman ·       Ultimate Spider-Man Vol. 1: Married With Children Join us in two weeks as we return to our decade-by-decade look at the Thunderbolts with a look at 2007's Faith in Monsters! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

You read that right – it's time for another installment of our recurring comics-themed quiz! As we briefly pause our miniseries on Marvel Comics' Thunderbolts, Kevin grills Curt with a series of questions loosely related to the theme of comics villains turned heroes! We'll be back in two weeks with a look at one of the best-reviewed graphic novels of 2024, Charles Burns' Final Cut! Then on Jan. 29 we return to the Thunderbolts with a look at 2007's Faith in Monsters arc by Warren Ellis and Mike Deodato!

THE WAIT IS OVER! Our decade-by-decade series on Marvel Comics' Thunderbolts continues as we finally discuss Thunderbolts (1997) issues #1-4 and the Thunderbolts 97 Annual, by Kurt Busiek, Mark Bagley, Vince Russell and a host of others! In the aftermath of the deadly Onslaught event (hey, you guys remember Onslaught?), the world is shaken by the apparent deaths of the Avengers and the Fantastic Four! But there's a new superhero team in town … the Thunderbolts! Who are these mysterious do-gooders? What's their connection to Baron Zemo and his Masters of Evil? (Hmmmm…) And can the Marvel Universe's newest heroes face down the mind-boggling menace of that Wrecking Crew known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       What we talk about when we talk about the 90s ·       Who will protect us from Blastaar, the Living Bomb Burst??? ·       Bada bing! It's the Rat Pack, baby! ·       How to Baby by Liana Fink ·       Creature Commandos on Max ·       The Lightning Round podcast Join us in two weeks as ring in 2025 with a fun mini-episode! Then, on Jan. 15, we discuss one of the best-reviewed books of 2024 (probably Final Cut by Charles Burns) before returning to the Thunderbolts on Jan. 29 with the Civil War-adjacent tale Faith in Monsters, by Warren Ellis and Mike Deodato! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, our-decade-by-decade series on Marvel's Thunderbolts (NOT the Thunderbirds, as Kevin erroneously calls them in the intro) continues as we discuss The Avengers: Under Siege – specifically, The Avengers #273-277 by Roger Stern and John Buscema! Helmut Zemo, the son of one of Captain America's greatest enemies, and a waaay-overstuffed Masters of Evil take over Avengers Mansion and begin systematically taking down Earth's Mightiest Heroes! Hercules, the Prince of Power, lies at death's door! Monica Rambeau, the new Captain Marvel, is trapped in the Darkforce Dimension! And the Black Knight … is taken out rather easily. This action-packed epic has it all: Squabbling supervillains! A quick stopover in Paris! Tons of property damage! And a galaxy of guest stars including Ant-Man! Paladin! The Shroud! And Doctor Druid! But is all of that enough to mount a hostile takeover of that impregnable fortress known as … The Comics Canon? Recommended in This Episode: ·       Fantastic Four #177: “Look Out for the Frightful Four!” ·       Star Trek: First Contact ·       The Suicide Squad Next episode: At long last! We discuss Thunderbolts: Justice, Like Lightning…! featuring Thunderbolts (1997) #1-6! WHO are the Thunderbolts? And WHAT is their connection to the Masters of Evil? ALL WILL BE REVEALED! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

Content warning: suicide In this episode, our-decade-by-decade series on the Thunderbolts intersects with one of the biggest political scandals of all time as we discuss Secret Empire and the short-lived career of Nomad, as brought to us by Steve Englehart, Sal Buscema and Frank Robbins, published by Marvel Comics! First, the shadow of Watergate looms large over Captain America and the Falcon #174-176, as the Sentinel of Liberty and his partner-in-crimefighting take on the sinister Secret Empire, leading to a shocking moment that changes Cap's life forever! … or at least for a few issues, as Steve Rogers adopts a new identity as the blandly generic Nomad is issues 180-183! These issues have everything: The X-Men! S.H.I.E.L.D.! The Sub-Mariner! The Serpent Squad! A cameo by the Red Skull! And the surprise guest appearance of 1974! But is all of that enough to earn membership in that clandestine cabal known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Wheel! Of! MUTANTS! ·       A few words about Frank Robbins ·       What is up with the Gamecock? ·       What's Redwing's favorite music genre? ·       The Bog Wife ·       Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles Join us in two weeks as we discuss Avengers: Under Siege! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we kick off a decades-spanning series focusing on the hot new superhero team of 1997: the Thunderbolts! And we begin with some early Avengers issues introducing Captain America's arch-nemesis Baron Zemo and his Masters of Evil! But first, we begin with Avengers #4, in which the Sentinel of Liberty himself is fished out of the North Sea and joins the Marvel Universe! Then it's on to Avengers #6, in which Baron Zemo enlists the Black Knight, the Mysterious Melter and Radioactive Man in the inaugural lineup of the Masters of Evil, a team of supervillains that might have some role to play in the formation of the Thunderbolts some 30+ years later! In Avengers #7, Zemo is joined by a pair of Asgardians, the Enchantress and the Executioner—who, in Avengers #9, hatch a scheme that involves the debut of future Avengers mainstay Wonder Man! Will this concept of a villain who turns into a hero have some bearing on the Thunderbolts? Is Avengers #6 the silliest comic we've ever discussed on this podcast? And can these pulse-pounding issues pass muster with that eternally youthful Middle-Aged Brigade known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Curt's dream, revisited ·       You know what this story needs? An alien who turns people to stone! ·       Seriously, what's the deal with the Teen Brigade? ·       Rick Jones makes a boneheaded mistake ·       Twin Peaks: The Return ·       Venom: The Last Dance ·       Avengers Vol. 1 # 16: The Old Order Changeth! ·       Infamous Iron Man Vol. 1: Infamous Join us in two weeks as we take a detour into the 1970s for a look at two pivotal moments in the life of Captain America: Secret Empire and The Coming of the Nomad! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

 In this episode, we relax our usual format a bit as Bryan Stratton, Robb Milne and Jamie Wenger from the Marvel by the Month podcast join us to discuss (and assign ratings to) some iconic -- and less-than-iconic -- Jack Kirby monsters from before Marvel's superhero era! Monsters discussed in this episode: ·       Diablo, the Demon From the Fifth Dimension! (Tales of Suspense #9, 1959) ·       Taboo, the Thing From the Murky Swamp! (Strange Tales #75, 1960) ·       Groot, the Monster From Planet X! (Tales to Astonish #13, 1960) ·       Xemnu, the Living Hulk! (Journey Into Mystery #62, 1960) ·       The Blip! (Tales to Astonish #15, 1961) ·       Goom, the Thing From Planet X! (Tales of Suspense #15, 1960) ·       Googam, Son of Goom! (Tales of Suspense #17, 1961) ·       Fin Fang Foom! (Strange Tales #89, 1961) Recommended in this episode: ·       The Ultimates ·       The Atlas Comics Library No. 1: Adventures Into Terror Vol. 1 ·       The Shadow Over Innsmouth by Gou Tanabe ·       The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia ·       Dracula Vol. 1: The Impaler by Matt Wagner and Kelley Jones       Join us in two weeks as we look ahead to next year's Thunderbolts movie with the beginning of a series of episodes exploring the origins of the Thunderbolts and the Masters of Evil through the decades, beginning with Baron Zemo in Avengers #4, 6, 7 and 9!

In this episode, we kick off a month of horror-themed comics with a look at Tatsuki Fujimoto's incredibly popular manga Chainsaw Man, a fresh and creative mixture of body horror, supernatural devil creatures, superhero-adjacent action and 80s boob comedy! In these chapters from Chainsaw Man volumes 1 and 2, we meet Denji, a down-on-his-luck teen whose body fuses with Pochita, a devil in the form of an adorable dog with a chainsaw sticking out from its head. Denji gains the ability to sprout chainsaws from his arms and face, and is soon conscripted by pretty Makima into a government devil-hunting agency and partnered with Power, a brash and uncontrollable blood fiend. But all he really wants is … to touch some boobs! Can the not-too-bright Denji triumph over the fearsome Bat Devil and the creepy Leech Devil, not to mention his mentor Aki? Will he wise up and realize that Makima seems to be bad news? And can he join the hallowed ranks of those Devil's Advocates known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       What would Pitbull say? ·       The Substance ·       Exceptional X-Men #1 ·       Faster, Purple Worm! Kill! Kill! Join us in two weeks as our October festivities continue with a celebration of classic Marvel monsters including Groot, Diablo, the Blip, Fin Fang Foom and others!

With Joker: Folie à Deux rolling into theaters next, the time seems right to dive into Batman's most famous nemesis, the Joker, with a trio of stories highlighting different, pre-Dark Knight Returns iterations of the Clown Prince of Crime! First up is “The Man Who Wrote the Joker's Jokes” from 1951's Batman #67, in which everyone's favorite mass murderer seeks a gag writer! Then, in 1976's The Joker #7, a scientific accident gifts the Joker with Lex Luthor's intellect, and Luthor with the Joker's madness! Last but not least, we switch gears with 1978's “The Laughing Fish” and “Sign of the Joker,” from Detective Comics #475-476, featuring one of the Ace of Knaves' most bizarre schemes yet! Can the Grand Mogul of Mountebanks win the day against Batman, Lex Luthor, and the Gotham City Copyright Commission? And do these stories have what it takes to win over the crowd at that Ha-Hacienda known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode:   ·       “With no legs, the frog becomes deaf!” ·       The Origin of The Comics Canon! ·       Bruce Willis goofs on Curt ·       Detective Comics #473: The Malay Penguin ·       Rebel Ridge ·       Batman and Bill ·       The Immortal Hulk Vol. 1: All Weather Turns to Storm ·       Please consider making a donation to The Hero Initiative   Join us in two weeks as we get ready for spooky season with a look at Tatsuki Fujimoto's popular manga Chainsaw Man! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we take a long-overdue look at one of the most acclaimed crimefighters in comics history, Will Eisner's The Spirit! Published in its own special insert in Sunday newspapers in the 1940s and early 50s, The Spirit featured seven- and eight-page stories about a masked hero in a suit and tie who helped the police of Central City fight criminal masterminds, underworld figures and slinky femmes fatales. Initially influenced by the pulps, The Spirit soon became known for short stories that showcased Eisner's genre-defying imagination and visual invention—stories in which the Spirit himself often wasn't even the main character! Starting with the 1940's “The Origin of the Spirit,” we dive into eight tales that demonstrate the wide range of this influential comic. But does The Spirit have what it takes to kick back in that tastefully appointed crypt known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Curt has a dream ·       Who was handling Paste Pot Pete's branding? ·       Is The Spirit the Citizen Kane of comics? ·       Will Eisner's Shop Talk ·       Two of the Spirit's femmes fatales ·       The Story of Rat-Tat the Toy Machine Gun ·       Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Join us in two weeks as we mark the upcoming release of Joker: Folie a Deux and other Batman-related properties with a handful of stories featuring everyone's favorite clown prince of crime, the Joker! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we conclude our three-part look at V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd, as collected by Vertigo/DC Comics! V disables Norsefire's surveillance apparatus, nudging the citizens of London toward revolution. Rose Almond takes action. Schemes are hatched as Helen Heyer and Peter Creedy vie to take control of the government. Detective Finch takes a bad trip. And Evey prepares to fulfill her destiny. As society collapses, will any of our players get a happy ending? And will they finally step into the spotlight of that vicious cabaret known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       V's Bugs Bunny physics ·       We've got a fever, and the only cure is more Scottish brogue! ·       A surprise induction into The Comics Canon! ·       The Filth and the Fury ·       Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep and The Simple Art of Murder Join us in two weeks as we take a long-overdue look at Will Eisner's The Spirit! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we continue our three-part look at V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd, as collected by Vertigo/DC Comics! Abandoned by V on the streets of London, Evey Hammond knows a brief moment of happiness before she's captured, tortured and interrogated about her role in V's crimes. Rose, widow of the late Derek Almond, suffers a series of humiliations. Meanwhile, V's body count grows as he issues an ultimatum to the people of London. Can Evey hold on to that last little inch of herself, even if it costs her her life? And can our cast of characters make it past the bouncer into that Kitty Kat Keller known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       Remember, remember the fifth this November ·       Boy, were we wrong about Dascombe! ·       V's maybe not the greatest lyricist ·       Amy Lennox's performance of “Cabaret” ·       Gen V ·       Rogue Trooper: Tales of Nu-Earth Vol. 1 Join us in two weeks as our three-part series concludes with Book 3: The Land of Do-As-You-Please! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, for … oh, no particular reason … we kick off a three-part look at the classic graphic novel V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd, collected by DC Comics!  Originally published in serial form in the British anthology magazine Warrior, this dystopian fantasy follows the anarchist vigilante known only as V, clad in a creepy Guy Fawkes mask, who's hell-bent on taking revenge on the staffers of a post-war “resettlement camp!” This mysterious, magnetic revolutionary rescues a 16-year-old would-be sex worker named Evey from a horrible fate at the hands of the nation's secret police, and soon enlists her in his one-man war to bring down the fascist British state! But is there more to the strangely powerful V than first appears? (Spoiler alert: Yes!) And can he hope to silence that Voice of Fate known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·       The scourge of … THE BEATNIKS! ·       Pynchon, V? Really? ·       Maybe we shouldn't have given the guy in Room V so much freedom… ·       The Abominable Dr. Phibes ·       Kite Man: Hell Yeah! Join us in two weeks as we roll merrily along with Book 2: This Vicious Cabaret! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

This episode contains explicit language and talk of sexual assault. On this episode, we take a butcher's at the book that begat the critically acclaimed streaming series The Boys—specifically, The Name of the Game, collecting the first six issues of The Boys by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, originally published by WildStorm Productions and later collected by Dynamite Entertainment! When Hughie Campbell's girlfriend is killed during a superpowered battle, he's recruited by Billy the Butcher to join The Boys, a CIA-sanctioned squad of humans tasked with monitoring the superhero community and acting when they step out of line. Meanwhile, Annie January, aka Starlight, achieves her lifelong dream of joining the world's premier superteam, The Seven—only to find that the world's greatest heroes are corrupt, narcissistic, cruel ... and worse. And Hughie quickly learns that his new gig isn't all it's cracked up to be, either. Can these two innocents navigate this unpleasant new world without losing their souls? And can this book filled with sex, graphic violence and gross-out gags survive a meeting with that Human Resources department known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         A Comics Canon news break ·         We need to talk about that hamster ... ·         A discussion of The Boys on Amazon Prime Video ·         Garth Ennis' Red Team ·         The Mighty Join us in two weeks as we begin a discussion of Alan Moore and David Lloyd's V for Vendetta! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

We're back with a look at everyone's favorite gruff, eyepatch-wearing super-spy (non-Samuel L. Jackson division) as seen in 1968's Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. #1, 2, 3 and 5, published by Marvel Comics! Writer and artist Jim Steranko injects a dose of modern psychedelic and pop-art imagery and a strong sense of design into these four issues, creating a surreal visual experience the influence of which is still being felt in comics pages today. The stories those images tell, on the other hand ... Can this tough-talking, shirt-shucking, gun-toting fireball of a secret agent stop a mad scientist from destroying the world, solve a ghostly mystery on the Scottish moors and uncover the identity his mysterious nemesis Scorpio? And can Marvel's answer to the 1960s spy craze join the elite ranks of that Impossible Missions Force known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Hey, what happened to that rocket sled? ·         There's something familiar about this Centurius guy ·         Nick Fury Explains It All ·         Queen & Country: Operation Broken Ground and Operation Morningstar ·         Danger: Diabolik ·         Velvet Vol. 1: Before the Living End ·         Duck Soup ·         For Whom the Bell Tolls Join us in two weeks as we discuss The Boys Vol. 1: The Name of the Game! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Due to a family emergency, we weren't able to get together and record a new episode for this week. So here's an encore presentation of our Deadpool episode, With Great Power Comes Great Coincidence from May 2018. Please enjoy, and we hope to be back with you again in two weeks!

Richard McGuire's 2014 graphic novel Here takes place in one location—the corner of a living room in a house in what is probably Perth Amboy, New Jersey—over the course of billions of years, from 300,000,500,000 B.C. to the far-off year 22,175. In between, we see slivers of events both dramatic and mundane, catching glimpses of ordinary lives and extraordinary creatures, and watch as small moments echo and comment on each other across the decades and centuries. It's a fascinating work that makes use of the comics medium in original and inventive ways, a seemingly unfilmable book that's somehow being adapted into a major motion picture starring Tom Hanks and Robin Wright, directed by Robert Zemeckis, for release later this year. But is that enough to score a ticket to that Land That Time Forgot known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         An unlikely Forrest Gump sequel ·         Hey, it's Ben Franklin! ·         The Reversible Man by Alan Moore and Mike White ·         Evil Season 4 ·         Reinventing Comics by Scott McCloud ·         Flash Gordon by Dan Schkade   Join us in two weeks as we discuss Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Who Is Scorpio? by Jim Steranko! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

On this episode, we use the popularity of the first season of X-Men 97 as an excuse to tackle a story we've long had our eyes on: The Brood Saga from Uncanny X-Men #162-167 by Chris Claremont, Dave Cockrum and Paul Smith, published by Marvel Comics! The X-Men have been captured by the Brood (a race of nasty winged aliens) and implanted with eggs—when they hatch, the X-Men will transform into superpowered Brood queens! Can our beloved mutants (and their friend Carol Danvers) escape these evil ETs and save a race of space whales before turning into Brood 2.0? And can this spacefaring superhero saga make landfall on that forbidden planet known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         The 10 basic X-Men plots ·         Are convoluted X-Men stories a feature or a bug? ·         The influence of Alien on the Brood ·         Kitty Pryde is a great character ·         Chris Claremont's Phoenix obsession ·         Curt has issues with the New Mutants ·         Immortal Hulk Vol. 10: Of Hell and Of Death ·         Sugar on Apple TV+ Join us in two weeks as we shift gears to discuss the graphic novel Here by Richard McGuire! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

 Mild parental advisory warning: The b-word is used once or twice. On this episode, the recent launch of the series “Ripley” on Netflix gives us a reason to discuss Flung Out of Space: Inspired by the Indecent Adventures of Patricia Highsmith, by Grace Ellis and Hannah Templer, published by Surely/Abrams ComicArts! When we meet the future author of “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” she's struggling to overcome her attraction to women and escape her job as a writer of comic-book stories—a job she hates. While freelancing for a pre-Marvel Comics Stan Lee to pay for a psychiatrist to “cure” her, she falls for Virginia, a member of her therapy group who helps inspire her to write “The Price of Salt,” which would become a landmark of queer literature. Can a deeply conflicted Pat overcome her disdain for comics (spoiler: no) and herself? And will this moving graphic novel earn its way into that exclusive speakeasy known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         What if Patricia Highsmith worked in a comic book store? ·         Which previous episode should we “redo” next? ·         Ripley on Netflix ·         Vulture: Is Tom Ripley Gay? ·         Love Lies Bleeding ·         Fallout ·         Carol ·         Spider-Man and the X-Men  Join us in two weeks as we discuss Uncanny X-Men #162-167, better known as the Brood Saga! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! ·       And as always, thanks for listening!

One of our co-hosts is quarantined at home, so we've decided to postpone our next proper episode until we can be together in person! Meanwhile, Curt surprises Kevin with a pop quiz on quotes from books we've covered on the podcast. How good is Kevin's recall? (Spoiler: It's bad! Very, very bad!)

 Content warning (death by suicide) Our reexamination of Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns continues! How good IS this story, really? Will things go differently than they did in our fourth episode way back in 2016, allowing this universally acclaimed 1986 miniseries to avoid nuclear winter and score a ticket to that David Endocrine Show studio audience known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         The only Bartleby the Scrivener reference you'll hear in a comics podcast this week! ·         What's the deal with the flying bomber Garbage Pail Kids? ·         The 99% Invisible Power Broker Book Club ·         Robert Caro's The Path to Power ·         Douglas Wolk's Reading Comics: How Graphic Novels Work and What They Mean ·         Some Fantastic Four movie talk Join us in two weeks as we discuss Flung Out of Space: Inspired by the Indecent Adventures of Patricia Highsmith, by Grace Ellis and Hannah Templer! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Explicit (a few swears scattered throughout) and content warning (brief mentions of death by suicide and attempted sexual assault) This isn't a podcast—it's an operating table, and we're the surgeons! This time, we revisit one of our most controversial episodes (okay, pretty much our only “controversial” episode) with the first installment of a two-part, in-depth reexamination of Frank Miller's 1986 landmark miniseries Batman: The Dark Knight Returns! Does this paradigm-shifting, game-changing series hold up to scrutiny nearly 40 years since its publication? And what are its chances of finally gaining entry into that Home for the Emotionally Troubled known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Howard Chaykin's American Flagg ·         Buy-ins you have to make when reading a Batman comic ·         What's the deal with the Mutant gang? ·         Curt gets something off his chest ·         Late Night With the Devil ·         Aard Labor, Tom Ewing's breakdown of Cerebus, on Freaky Trigger ·         Christine by Stephen King ·         The unique terror of calling girls back in the landline era Join us in two weeks as we conclude this two-part look back and once again render judgment on The Dark Knight Returns! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!  

On this episode, it's the return of “Miller March,” featuring a month of Frank Miller comics! First up is the 1982 miniseries Wolverine by Chris Claremont and the aforementioned Mr. Miller, published by Marvel Comics! The very first comic series to feature Wolverine's name in the title takes Logan to Japan, where his lady love Mariko has entered into an abusive marriage arranged by her father, the crime lord Shingen. His heart broken by Mariko, humiliated by Shingen, Logan spirals into a dark night of the soul as he's pursued by the deadly ninja clan known as the Hand! Will Logan's new friend Yukio stop trying to make “Gotcha!” happen? Can Logan redeem himself, defeat his enemies and regain Mariko's love? And can this miniseries fight its way ino that House of Flying Daggers known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         There sure are a lot of ninja in 1980s Japan ·         Does the Hand recruit from Cobra? ·         Avengers: The Impossible City ·         Shōgun ·         X-Men Epic Collection: The Fate of the Phoenix ·         Doctor Who: The Fourth Doctor Anthology ·         Curt's appearance on The Origin Story Podcast Join us in two weeks as we revisit our most controversial episode with a FRESH NEW LOOK at Batman: The Dark Knight Returns! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

On this episode, we take a long-overdue look at one of the most influential manga of the last 50 years: Lone Wolf and Cub by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima! Specifically, selected stories from Vol. 1: The Assassin's Road, as published by Dark Horse Manga! Who is this taciturn assassin known as Lone Wolf and Cub? Why does he push his young son across feudal Japan in a wooden baby carriage with a banner that reads “Son for Hire, Sword for Hire?” How did he get to be such a proficient killing machine? And can father and son survive their harrowing journey along that Road to Perdition known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         “I'm Ogami Itto, and this is Jackass!” ·         Daigoro's tricked-out baby cart ·         The return of everyone's vampire-slaying pig! ·         Dune: Part Two ·         Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 1 ·         House of R on the Lone Wolf and Cub trope Join us in two weeks as we discuss the 1982 Wolverine miniseries by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Our two-part look at Hulk/Thing fights wraps up with a look at one of the twosome's more recent titanic tussles in Fantastic Four Vol. 6, issues 12 and 13, by Dan Slott and Sean Izaakse, published by Marvel Comics! But first, because this episode drops on Valentine's Day, we discuss the wedding of Ben Grimm and Alicia Masters in Fantastic Four Vol. 6 issue 5, most notably the story “4-Minute Warning” by Dan Slott and Aaron Kuder! Then it's time for the main event, as the Immortal Hulk interrupts Ben and Alicia's honeymoon, with a little help from Alicia's father, the pernicious Puppet Master! Is this really our last episode discussing these Marvelous melees? (Who knows?) Can the Thing keep the Immortal Hulk from endangering an entire seaside resort before he reverts back to all-too-human Ben Grimm? And can either of them prevail against that titanic tag team known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Kevin responds to Curt's song from last episode ·         We talk about whether we should talk about Cerebus ·         Curt's article on the ends of Bone and Cerebus ·         Point of Origin from Fantastic Four Vol. 6, issues 14-19 ·         Do A Powerbomb ·         The Thing Vol. 1 #6, “Mindscape”     Join us in two weeks as we make a long-overdue return to the world of manga to discuss Lone Wolf and Cub Vol. 1: The Assassin's Road! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook, Bluesky or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, IT'S CLOBBERIN' TIME as we kick off a two-part look at one of Marvel Comics' most storied tradiitons: epic slugfests between the Hulk and the Thing! Specifically, the first two face-offs between these fearsome foes in Fantastic Four #12 and #25-26, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby! First, everyone's on their worst behavior as General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross enlists the FF's aid in subduing the Hulk, who's accused of sabotaging a military experiment! Then, with his teammates sidelined, it's up to Ben to stop the angry green goliath from rampaging across New York City, in a knock-down drag-out brawl guest starring the Mighty Avengers! Can the ever-lovin' blue-eyed Thing prevail against the jade giant? And can these stories go the distance in a title match against ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         A literal card-carrying communist ·         How pretty young ladies can help their men ·         “Aunt Petunia was pretty hardcore!” ·         Giant-Man's pill problem ·         What If? Season 2 and Echo ·         Doctor Who: The Angels Take Manhattan ·         Marvel Two-in-One #46 ·         Curt introduces an unscheduled order of business Join us in two weeks as we polish off this two-parter with a matchup of more recent vintage: The Thing vs. The Immortal Hulk from Fantastic Four (Vol. 6) #12-13! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!  

Content warning: Mentions of suicide; general gaslighting, psychological domestic abuse. In this episode, we look back at one of the best-reviewed books of 2023: A Guest in the House by Emily Carroll, published by First Second! Shy, awkward Abby is newly married to widowed dentist David and adjusting to domestic life with him and his pre-teen daughter Crystal. But David's stories about his past wife, Sheila, don't add up. And there's more to Abby than meets the eye, as well – as becomes apparent when she strikes up a halting friendship with Sheila's ghost! Can this gripping story survive a night in that haunted mansion of horror stories known as ... The Comics Canon? Recommended in This Episode: ·         Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein ·         Three Rocks: The Story of Ernie Bushmiller: The Man Who Created Nancy, by Bill Griffith Join us in two weeks as we kick off a two-parter looking back at historic matchups between the Hulk and the Thing! First up: Rounds 1 and 2, from Fantastic Four #12 and #25-26! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this not-so-mini mini-episode, we look back on the last episodes, each ranking our 10 favorites. How many titles did we agree on? We also discuss Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, the Transformers movies, the current state of the Big Two publishers, comic strips, some things we'd like to cover in the coming year, and a possible reconsideration of one of our most controversial decisions! Plus: Curt opens a present live on-air! Join us in two weeks as we resume our regular programming with a look at Emily Carroll's A Guest in the House! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on The Platform Formerly Known as Twitter or Facebook! And as always, thanks for listening!

Just in time for Christmas, Emmy-winning writer (and co-host of The Flop House) Dan McCoy joins us to unwrap a trio of Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge stories by the late, great Carl Barks!  In “Only a Poor Old Man,” Uncle Scrooge's first full-length adventure, everyone's favorite spats-wearing billionaire fights to protect his fortune from the Beagle Boys in a rollicking heist tale! In “Luck of the North,” Donald drags his nephews to rescue his insufferable cousin Gladstone Gander in a madcap, Tintin-esque adventure.  And in “A Christmas for Shacktown,” Donald, Daisy and the boys try to raise money to give the denizens of Duckburg's poverty-stricken neighborhood a memorable Christmas celebration. Can Donald and company prevail against industrious thieves, a polar bear and a bottomless pit? And can these tales safely find their way to that Island of Misfit Toys known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         There's a lot to admire about the Beagle Boys ·         Isaac Asimov's iCarly ·         Kevin shares an embarrassing story ·         Pogo by Walt Kelly ·         I Must Be Dreaming by Roz Chast ·         Eat the Rich by Sarah Gailey and Pius Bak ·         Iron Man # 215-216 Join us in two weeks as we pause to take a look back before plunging ahead into 2024! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or the platform formerly known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

It's our bicentennial episode, and we celebrate by going back to 1976 for a momentous match-up between comics' two most popular characters: Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man, by Gerry Conway and Ross Andru, published by DC and Marvel Comics! This first-ever inter-company crossover event finds the Man of Steel and Ol' Web-Head going toe-to-toe (of course) before joining forces to combat the combined threat of criminal masterminds Lex Luthor and Doctor Octopus! Can the Man of Tomorrow and your Friendly Neighborhood Wall-Crawler rescue Lois Lane and Mary Jane Watson and thwart this dastardly duo's perilous plan? And can our awesome allies win their way into that World's Finest Two-in-One known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Great moments of 1976 ·         Curt's beef with Superman ·         The Flying Octopus! ·         Our shirts are marvelous—a reader says so! ·         Godzilla Minus One ·         Monarch: Legacy of Monsters ·         JLA/Avengers ·         My Effin' Life by Geddy Lee   Join us in two weeks as we make a return visit to Duckburg (and Carl Barks) for a special Christmas-themed episode! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or the platform formerly known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Happy Bonesgiving! In this episode, we celebrate our favorite(?) holiday with another excursion into the world of Bone, this time skipping ahead to Bone Vol. 5: Rock Jaw, Master of the Eastern Border, written and drawn by Jeff Smith, published by Cartoon Books and Scholastic! Fone Bone and Smiley Bone are separated from the rest of the book's main cast, attempting to set an adorable baby rat creature free into the wild, when they run afoul of the menacing mountain lion Roque Ja, who plans to turn them in to Kingdok, monstrous leader of the rat creatures and servant of the mysterious Hooded One! Can the Bones, the possum kids and a menagerie of cute young orphans evade these dangerous predators? And can they find shelter in that literary lion's den known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         J'accuse, Smiley Bone! ·         Curt reads some love poetry ·         That time Lassie committed murder ·         Bone Vol. 6: Old Man's Cave ·         The Marvels ·         Loki Season 2 ·         That Madame Web trailer ·         The Righteous Gemstones, Season 3 ·         Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner Join us in two weeks as we commemorate our 200xth episode (!!) with one of the most important comic book stories of all time: Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or the platform formerly known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Content warning: sexual abuse and implied sexual assault In this episode, friend of the show and John Constantine authority Tracy Tanoff joins us in unpacking a defining moment in the life and career of everyone's favorite street-level mage (and con man) with a discussion of John Constantine, Hellblazer #11: Newcastle: A Taste of Things to Come, by Jamie Delano, Richard Piers Rayner and Mark Buckingham, published by DC Comics! 10 years before the cataclysmic events of American Gothic, a young John Constantine and his band of occult amateurs investigates strange happenings at an abandoned rock club, only to quickly find themselves hopelessly out of their depth! Can John and his friends survive the monstrous Norfulthing? Can John rescue a young girl named Astra from the clutches of the demon Nergal? And can he bluff his way past the bouncer and into that hellish hole-in-the-wall known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Curt comes hard at Sting ·         Legends of Tomorrow: Bad Blood ·         Hellblazer: Rise and Fall ·         Carmilla: The First Vampire ·         Dracula Vol. 1: The Impaler ·         Mucous Membrane is having a moment ·         Your Band Sucks, by Jon Fine Join us in two weeks as we return to the world of Jeff Smith's Bone with a look at Bone Vol. 5: Rock Jaw: Master of the Eastern Border! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or the platform formerly known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!  

One year (almost to the day) since we discussed the first half of American Gothic, we round out the scare-iffic month of October with a look at the final five issues (Swamp Thing #46-50) of this groundbreaking storyline by Alan Moore, Stephen Bissette and others, published by DC Comics! First, Swamp Thing and John Constantine rub elbows with DC's superhero elite in the midst of the Crisis on Infinite Earths! Then things really get cooking, with a shocking revelation in the Amazon rainforest, a not-so-shocking betrayal in Brazil, and a star-studded battle against Darkness itself as Heaven hangs in the balance! Oh, and Abby Arcane is arrested as a sex criminal! Can the Avocado Avenger and his allies tip the scales in the climactic showdown of light vs. dark? And can this epic finale book passage on that prestigious Jungle Cruise known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Aren't we over the Phantom Stranger's shtick by now? ·         Curt comes after Mufasa of “The Lion King” ·         Double Walker by Michael W. Conrad and Noah Bailey ·         The Fisherman by John Langan ·         Reservation Dogs on Hulu ·         The Replacements' Tim: The Let It Bleed Edition on Rhino Records Join us in two weeks as we visit a key moment in John Constantine's past with a look at Hellblazer #11: Newcastle: A Taste of Things to Come! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or the platform formerly known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Wait, where's Swamp Thing: American Gothic, Part Two? Well, Curt and Kevin weren't feeling so well this week, so they decided to take it easy and record a short mini-episode on the comics-related film and TV adaptations of the year so far. (Except, of course, it turned out to be not so short after all.) Mild spoilers abound as Curt (and occasionally Kevin) opines on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, The Flash, Secret Invasion, among others. Join us in two weeks as we no-really-this-time-we-mean-it return to Moore's much-heralded American Gothic storyline with a look at Swamp Thing #46-50 (and revisit our episode on the first half to refresh your memory)!

(Note:You may just ever-so-faintly hear a neighbor's barking dog occasionally adding his two cents in the background for the first half or so of the episode.) A perennial Spider-Man foe gets a horror-monster makeover (and our Spidey Super Stories miniseries concludes) with 2010's Shed from Amazing Spider-Man #630-633, by Zeb Wells, Chris Bachalo and Emma Rios, published by Marvel Comics! After a long struggle, scientist Curt Connors loses control of his scaly alter-ego, the Lizard, who's clearly been working out during the offseason! The reptilian rogue immediately embarks on a killing spree, and Connors' young son Billy is his next target! Can Ol' Web-Head keep this cold-blooded criminal from turning all of New York into a mindless horde of murderous, lizard-brained zombies? And can he tip the scales in favor of inclusion in that tangled web known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Spidey's relationship with Catwom—we mean, the Black Cat ·         The true villains of this story ·         Six Degrees of Peter Parker ·         Beef on Netflix ·         Why Curt's interested in the Thunderbolts movie ·         Amazing Spider-Man #44-45: “Where Crawls the Lizard!” and “Spidey Smashes Out!” ·         Amazing Spider-Man: Civil War ·         Becoming Superman, by J. Michael Straczynski Join us in two weeks as we return to Alan Moore's Swamp Thing: American Gothic arc with a look at Swamp Thing #46-50! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or the platform formerly known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Despite popular demand, our recurring comics-themed quiz returns! This time, Curt surprises Kevin with a pop quiz on everyone's favorite unstoppable X-Men villain, following last week's episode on Amazing Spider-Man: Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut!

In this episode, we swing back into our Spidey Super Stories miniseries with a pair of acclaimed Spider-Man tales from the early 80s: The two-part Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut from Amazing Spider-Man #229-230, and The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man, from Amazing Spider-Man #248! First, everyone's favorite wall-crawler races to stop the X-Men villain Juggernaut from kidnapping the psychic Madame Web, only to find that such a task is easier said than done as the relentless behemoth leaves a trail of destruction in his wake! Then, Spider-Man pays a nighttime visit to his biggest fan. Join us as we ask the burning questions: Why does ol' web-head reveal his greatest secret to young Tim Harrison? Can our overmatched, outclassed hero prevail against an unstoppable force as the Juggernaut? And can these stories make a dent in that immovable object known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Seriously, why does the Juggernaut need a force field? ·         Assistant Editors' Month at The Daily Bugle ·         1977's Iron Fist #11-12 ·         Silver Surfer: New Dawn and Worlds Apart, by Dan Slott and Mike Allred ·         Doctor Who: School Reunion ·         Nothing can kill the Grimace   Join us in two weeks as we wrap up our Spidey Super Stories miniseries with Shed from Amazing Spider-Man #630-633! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or the platform formerly known as Twitter! And as always, thanks for listening!

Media critic Matt Goldberg returns as we temporarily pause our Spidey Super-Stories miniseries to discuss the unstoppable cultural phenomenon known as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with a look at the book that started it all—Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 (and also #2) by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird! Before the seven different movies (including the well-received new “Mutant Mayhem”), the animated series, the video games and the action figures, there was just a self-published black-and-white comic riffing on Frank Miller's Daredevil run with a brilliant title. How did this modest 40-page comic spawn a decades-spanning multimedia juggernaut? And does it have what it takes to enter that Forbidden Kingdom known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         The Turtles Generation ·         The part of the Turtles' origin that requires suspension of disbelief ·         “What if Ultron was a chicken?” ·         The 80s rash of Turtles “parodies” ·         Usagi Yojimbo ·         The Last Ronin ·         Lynda Barry's Poodle With a Mohawk ·         The Police Story trilogy ·         Batman: Failsafe Vol. 1 ·         Check out Matt's Substack, Commentary Track Join us in two weeks as we swing back into Spidey Super Stories with a Juggernaut two-parter from Amazing Spider-Man #229 and 230 and The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man from Amazing Spider-Man #248! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, Spidey Super Stories swings into a different gear as we examine yet another version of everyone's favorite wall-crawler with a look at Ultimate Spider-Man: Learning Curve, with a special emphasis on issue 13, Confessions, by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley, published by Marvel Comics! We discuss the ways in which the Ultimate Universe Peter Parker and his supporting characters differ from their Marvel Universe counterparts, the sharp contrast between this title and Spider-Man comics from the 1960s through the 90s, and a conversation with Mary Jane more monumental than supervillain slugfest—especially when Aunt May barges in! Can this Peter Parker make it through his first meeting with this universe's Kingpin? And more importantly, will he survive the scrutiny of ... Your Friendly Neighborhood Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Wait! What happens to Carson Daly??! ·         The Archie Comics era of Spider-Man ·         Zot! #35: The Conversation ·         Spider-Gwen Vol. 1: Most Wanted ·         Ultimate Spider-Man Vol. 3: Double Trouble ·         Fantastic Four (2022) Vol. 1: Whatever Happened to the Fantastic Four? Join us in two weeks as we temporarily pause Spidey Super Stories for a look back at the origins of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook! And as always, thanks for listening!

Bryan Stratton and Robb Milne from the Marvel by the Month podcast join once again us as Spidey Super Stories continues with a look at The Superior Spider-Man: My Own Worst Enemy, collecting The Superior Spider-Man (2013) issues 1-5 by Dan Slott, Ryan Stegman and Giuseppe Camuncoli, published by Marvel Comics! Doctor Otto Octavius, one of Spider-Man's deadliest enemies, is in control of the wall-crawler's body! And he's vowed to be a better Spider-Man than Peter Parker ever was, utilizing his technological genius in a more aggressive approach to crimefighting in a story that not-so-subtly pokes fun at the Distinguished Competition's Caped Crusader! Can Peter's hapless spirit keep the former Doc Ock from ruining Spidey's reputation—or wooing his ex, Mary Jane Watson? And does this “superior” Spider-Man have what it takes to Face/Off against ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Are there fewer “great” Spider-Man stories than there should be? ·         A good couple of minutes on the Spider-Buggy, of all things ·         Sandman Mystery Theatre Compendium One ·         Black Phoenix Omnibus ·         The Death of Captain Stacy from Amazing Spider-Man #88-90 ·         Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 5 ·         Radiant Black Vol. 1: (Not So) Secret Origin Join us in two weeks as Spidey Super Stories continues with Ultimate Spider-Man: Confessions! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook! And as always, thanks for listening!

We kick off Spidey Super Stories, a series dedicated to everyone's favorite web-slinger, Spider-Man, with a look at “Spider-Man No More!” from Amazing Spider-Man #50, along with two early clashes with the Kingpin in #51-52 and #69, by Stan Lee and John Romita, published by Marvel Comics! Fed up with a public that hates and fears him, Spider-Man hangs up his web-shooters to devote more time to his studies, his social life and his sickly Aunt May (not necessarily in that order) ... just as a mysterious crime lord known as the Kingpin is tightening his grip on New York City! Has the wall-crawler given up crime-fighting for good? (C'mon, what do you think?) More importantly, will he come to his senses in time to win over those Amazing Friends known as ... The Comics Canon? In This Episode: ·         Spider-Man vs. the Spoiler ·         The stones on Frederick Foswell ·         The 1967 “Spider-Man” theme ·         Spider-Man: The New Sinister ·         Captain America and the Falcon #176-176 ·         Thor: Goddess of Thunder Join us in two weeks as Spidey Super Stories continues with Superior Spider-Man: My Own Worst Enemy! Until then:Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook! And as always, thanks for listening!