Deconstructing Comics

Mike Barr is perhaps best known for writing the late-’80s hit comic series Batman and the Outsiders. He also created Camelot 3000 and Katana, and wrote many other books for Marvel, DC, and other publishers. On April 13, Mike Barr was a keynote speaker at the Bowling Green State University (Ohio) Batman in Popular Culture conference. Tim was there, and recorded the whole thing, including the Q&A session. So enjoy the insightful, sometimes hilarious, presentation in this episode. Click the image to enlarge

In this episode, we discuss: * The Shika-Machi Journals, by Victor Edison. The start of his comics history of the Japanese town where he lives starts out with Japanese creation myth. What do we think of his retelling of these stories? * Garage Band, by Jason D and Celia Tian. The beautifully-drawn story of three …unlikeable teenagers. Plus: Of course we have to publicize our comics, podcasts, and so on, and our crowdfunding for them. But when does all-out self-promotion become off-putting?

Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s Batman: The Killing Joke is a favorite of many, but also a tough read more many others. And perhaps there’s some overlap. In this episode we meet two who both spoke on this book at recent Batman in Popular Culture conference in Bowling Green, Ohio: * William Weaver on the book’s portrayal of people reacting to trauma, something that Batman and the Joker have in common with virtually every hero and villain; and * Tricia Ennis on how a book reviled by many as a prime example of the “women in refrigerators” trope — where a woman is harmed solely to get at a man in her life, not because of who she is — led to the much-loved heroine Oracle. How can something you hate be the cause of something you love?

FLASHBACK! In light of the recent announcement that MAD will be ceasing publication, we re-present this episode from October 5, 2015: While early 1950s anti-comics hysteria eventually resulted in the cancellation of nearly all their books, EC Comics still had one thing going for them: MAD! Written by Harvey Kurtzman and drawn by some of the best comics artists of the age, this parody comic set the template for much that came after it. But can the humor still be appreciated today? What are we to think of some of the attitudes on display toward, say, women or certain ethnic groups? Tim and Kumar discuss.

In this episode, Tim and Mulele discuss: * A Book for Sad Pets, by Kristin Tipping. Is it a comic? Is it for kids, or would it go over their heads? Is it cute, or dark? * Spencer and Locke 2, by David Pepose and Jorge Santiago, Jr. The noir version of Calvin and Hobbes is back, but does this version take the joke too far?

  One of the most acclaimed Marvel runs of the 1980s was by Walt Simonson on The Mighty Thor. He began writing and drawing it with #337, continued through to #367 (with a quick break in the middle), then gave up art duties but continued writing through #382. This run set aside Dr. Don Blake, focused on mythical threats rather than earthly ones, and injected some humor into what had sometimes been a fairly dry, dour book. Tim and Kumar look back to assess this important run.

In this episode, Tim and Mulele discuss: * Bronze Age Boogie, by Stuart Moore and Alberto Ponticelli. An ambitious comic that tries to cram in too many ideas. The Bronze Age! ’70s pop culture! Time-traveling apes! Prose interludes! Meanwhile, the book’s backup feature is the bomb! Has Ahoy Comics gotten things backwards? * Longdog, by Josh Hechinger and Jorge Munoz. The authors of one of our very early critiques are back together with a story of Sasquatch hunting. It looks good, but is the tone a bit inconsistent? Also, Mulele tells a story of recent tragic headlines here in Japan and how they intersect with comics and his life.

The 1982 Wolverine mini-series, by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller, was seminal in a number of ways: One of the first Marvel minis, a major fleshing-out of Wolverine’s character, a milepost on the road to the expunging of omniscient narration from American comics. Six years back, Kumar and Dana had a lot of reservations about the story; in this issue, Koom, Rob, and Sam have a different take.

This time, Tim and Mulele critique: * Moderate Mania, issue 1 of a comic about bipolar disorder by Charles Brandon Hayes and Randy Walker; and * The Starfall Saga issues 1 and 2, a post-apocalyptic slugfest by Akis Papakonstantinou and Chris Evagelidakis

Comics are booming on Kickstarter.com, and this week Tim talks to three who have turned to it multiple times to get their comics out to fans: * 01:30 Ron Randall has just launched his latest campaign, to fund the next volume of his long-running series Trekker. * 22:23 Arledge Comics’ Natalie Cooper explains how the publisher crowdfunds nearly everything it publishes! Its current campaign is for an anthology of Shakespeare-themed comics. * 33:39 Kelly Tindall, creator of the web comic Strangebeard, explains the challenges of duplicating your first project’s success.

Julia finds that, when she reaches sexual climax, men die. Off Girl, by Tina Fine and Mark Reihill, chronicles her quest for a non-lethal lay, to understand what is causing this problem, and (we’re told) become a superhero. But some storytelling problems are keeping us from getting off on this comic… Dank, the goblin, flunks out of assassin school, answers an ad for an assassin, and is hired to be… a thief (although one who kills a lot). Rene Pfitzner’s Sneaky Goblins is well-drawn and interesting, but can we sympathize with the main character? Tim and Mulele discuss both. And, will Tim catch up on the MCU?

A policeman splashed with chemicals turns into a reptilian human: that’s the idea for J. Pedicini’s Raptor Cop. While it has accomplished art, we find some problems that make it hard to follow the story. Equilux, by Karterpiller, aims to present a real-time story of people living in a futuristic apartment building. The series is just on the edge of being considered a comic rather than illustrated prose. That’s fine, but Tim and Mulele have some suggestions for aspects that may need to be rethought.

In the 1970s, in an effort to diversify its line, Marvel began adapting Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian stories. To push (at least a little bit) beyond what the Comics Code would allow, some of these stories were published in magazine format, as Savage Tales. The second and third issues of this series featured an adaptation of the classic Conan story Red Nails, featuring writer Roy Thomas and artist Barry Windsor-Smith. In this episode, Koom talks with Rob and Sam about the basic idea of Conan, where the title “Red Nails” came from, the strengths and shortcomings of Smith’s art at this early point in his career, and more.

This time, we diverge from the normal format and discuss a variety of topics: 1:17 Writer Craig Hurd-McKenny sent us three of his LGBTQ+-friendly comics, and we discuss them all: The Magic If (art by Gervasio, Melisa Jones, and Tyler Smith-Owings), The Brontes: Infernal Angria (art by Rick Geary), and Some Strange Disturbances (art by Gervasio, Carlos Aon, and Tyler Smith-Owings). 32:16 In Deconstructing Comics last week, Tim talked to some comics retailers in Chicago about the state of the industry. Tim and Mulele react to the retailers’ comments. 55:17 Tim talks about the movies he saw during his visit to the U.S.: Captain Marvel, Dumbo, and Shazam! 1:26:53 We read mail from creators whose comics we’ve discussed in past episodes.

When someone you know, someone who had an impact on your life, leaves us too soon, it can be tough to process. Struggling to accept the 2017 death of comics creator and all-around renaissance man Ed Siemienkowicz (who appeared in DCP episodes 227 and 393) at age 43, Tim spent part of his recent visit to Chicago meeting some of Ed’s friends and family, to commiserate and share memories — and check the progress of Ed’s comic that his friends are finishing for him. Also, Tim talks to Hamster Rage creator Brian Crowley about his ongoing Kickstarter and the state of the U.S. comics industry, and visits three Chicago comics retailers to see how healthy the comics market seems from their perspective, and how it could be better. Challengers Comics Graham Crackers Comics G-mart Comics Ed’s cousin Kristen, drawing group friend Garry Vettori, sister Renee, brother Bob, Tim, aunt Carol, online gaming friend Darrell Degreve Tim, Kristen, Carol, Brian Crowley Ed carved this Cesar Romero Joker into cardboard, and then spray-painted it green! Ed with a bus he designed when he was employed by the Golf Channel.