PLAY PODCASTS
Building a better bloodbath: James Tynion IV on 'Exquisite Corpses' and the power of collaboration
Episode 329

Building a better bloodbath: James Tynion IV on 'Exquisite Corpses' and the power of collaboration

With Exquisite Corpses, writer James Tynion IV is taking one of the boldest creative swings of his career. Blending horror, action, and satire, the 13-issue Image Comics series launched this week. Beyond the bloodshed lies something even more ambitious: a writer’s room-style collaboration, a card game tie-in, and a deeply personal reflection on power, fear, and storytelling. We sat down with Tynion to discuss the creative chaos behind the book, the themes at its core, and why Exquisite Corpses is just the beginning. Plus, we make our picks of the week!

AIPT Comics

May 18, 20251h 26mExplicit

Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (cdn.simplecast.com) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.

Original episode page

Show Notes

Visit our Patreon page to see the various tiers you can sign up for today to get in on the ground floor of AIPT Patreon. We hope to see you chatting with us on our Discord soon!

NEWS

  1. Spider-Gwen gets 'Brand New Day' in new series launch
  2. Marvel reveals cover and Quesada talks 'Marvel Knights' The World to Come' #3
  3. 'Marvel All-On-One' #1 anniversary one-shot coming August 2025
  4. 'Imperial' gets new teaser promising spin-off one-shots, and issue 3 solicit
  5. Sequel 'Cemetery Kids Run Rabid' #1 set for August release
  6. Skybound and Universal reteam for 'The Invisible Man'
  7. Casey Jones gets a solo series
  8. Scott Snyder reveals new look at Bane and ‘Absolute Batman’ vol. 2 title
  9. DC Comics solicitaitons for August!
    1. New existential horror 'Superman: The Kryptonite Spectrum' coming August 2025
  10. 2025 Eisner Awards nominees are in!

Our Top Books of the Week

Dave:

  1. Absolute Batman #8 (Scott Snyder, Marcos Martin)
  2. Spider-Verse Vs. Venomverse (2025) #1 (Mat Groom, Kyle Higgins, Luciano Vecchio)

Alex:​​

  1. Exquisite Corpses #1 (Tynion, Michael Walsh)
  2. All-New, All-Deadly Gwenpool #1 (Cavan Scott, Stefano Nesi)

Standout KAPOW moment of the week:

Alex - Doom Snikt in OOUD #4

Dave - Battle Beast #1 (Robert Kirkman, Ryan Ottley)

TOP BOOKS FOR NEXT WEEK

  1. Alex: The Vision & the Scarlet Witch #1 (Orlando, Lorenzo Tammetta), Absolute Flash #3 (Lemire, Robles)
  2. Dave: Into the Unbeing Part 2 #4 (Zac Thompson, Hayden Sherman)

JUDGING BY THE COVER JR.

  1. Dave: The New Gods #6 (Nimit Malavia)
  2. Alex: The Ultimates #12 (Inhyuk Lee variant)

Interview: James Tynion - Exquisite Corpses #1 out May 14, 2025

1. What drew you to the exquisite corpse method as a structural framework—and how did it shape your writing process across collaborators?

2. You’ve said before that horror lets you explore personal fears in metaphorical ways—what fear sits at the heart of Exquisite Corpses for you personally?

3. This project is filled with shifting tones and visual voices—how did you maintain thematic cohesion across multiple artists and chapters?

4. You’ve tackled horror through multiple lenses—from psychological horror in The Nice House on the Lake to body horror in Something is Killing the Children. Where does Exquisite Corpses fall on your personal horror spectrum?

5. You’ve spoken about burnout and choosing joy in your writing—did this collaborative process reawaken anything in you creatively?

6. There’s a class warfare element baked into the DNA of Exquisite Corpses. How important was it for you to make that commentary explicit rather than just subtext?

7. You’re known for big ideas in genre fiction. Was there ever a version of Exquisite Corpses that could’ve been a prose project or TV pitch—or was comics always the only way this could work?

8. What’s one element in Exquisite Corpses—a character, twist, or scene—that you’re most excited for readers to finally experience, but can’t say anything about yet?

Topics

casey joneseisner awardszac thompsonabsolute batmanthe ultimatesbatmanimperialcomicsmarvel comicsjames tynioncemetery kidsjames tynion interviewspider-gwenaiptvenomversetiny onioninvisible mansupermanbattle beastimage comicscomic book newsbaneabsolute flashexquisite corpsescomics newsgwenpoolmarvelspider-versemarvel knightsuniversel monstersdc comicscomic booksskyboundthe new godsjames tynion ivaiptcomics
← All episodes of AIPT Comics