Deconstructing Comics

Once again we take a look at some comics submitted by their creators; we talk about what we liked about them and what could have been better. Jane Jet book 1: Nuclear Shadows, by writer Amal Desai and artist Paul Essenson, recalls Dave Stevens' Rocketeer -- the art, the jet-pack concept, the time period -- but it deals with a woman getting out of an abusive relationship. Tim and Jason critique. The Fog Within, by writer Sean Wood and artist Deivid Deon, is a post-apocalyptic science fiction story, which... might have a few too many story elements. Tim and Adam discuss issues 1 and 2. Brought to you by: The Law of Equivalent Exchange: A Fullmetal Alchemist manga podcast Our supporters on Patreon

FLASHBACK! While Alan Moore and J.H. Williams' Promethea, published from 1999 to 2005, is not one of Moore's most remembered works, it's not because the author wasn't at the top of his game. Kumar and Emmet find it to be entrancing, even if you don't buy into the various magical and spiritual elements that Moore built into it. Also, inevitably, the incorporation of Promethea and other Moore creations into the DC Universe comes up; is it really just a business decision, or is the publisher singling out Moore's work out of spite? (Originally published April 30, 2018.) Brought to you by: The Quick and the Dad Our supporters on Patreon

FLASHBACK! Harold Gray's Little Orphan Annie debuted in 1924 and was a big success. FDR having not yet turned him against organized labor, Gray shows hardworking Annie going on strike in one of her many jobs. Tim and Kumar discuss the '20s strips, their strengths and idiosyncrasies (one strip=one day?!), and how Gray's outlook changed later. In observance of the strip's 100th anniversary, we re-present this episode! (Originally published September 26, 2011.) Brought to you by: Checkered Past podcast Our supporters on Patreon

Back in Critiquing Comics 154, Tim and Mulele discussed 2019's Captain Marvel; Tim enjoyed it, Mulele did not. Now that we've arrived at the time to give it a full review as part of "Tim Catches Up with the MCU," another viewing has helped us both to clarify our positions and see things we didn't realize the first time around. Join us as we take a somewhat more nuanced look at the film. (Originally published on Patreon February 29, 2020) Brought to you by: The Quarter-Bin podcast Our supporters on Patreon

FLASHBACK! Twenty years after the first collection of Hicksville was released, creator Dylan Horrocks talks to Emmet about how the comic looks to him now. Some of the work's commentary on the comics industry turned out to presage subsequent developments, and in some cases he ended up not going far enough! Also, his source for a Jack Kirby quote that many experts were unaware of; the public's misinterpretation of the term "graphic novel"; the explosion of female and minority comics creators, especially outside of the Big Two; and more. (This episode was originally published on July 2, 2018.) Brought to you by: Worst Collection Ever podcast Our supporters on Patreon

Reading the original Jack Kirby iteration of The Eternals shows that the MCU movie based on the title was rather dour, where Kirby's version veers into wackiness! Sersi shows quite the sense of humor. SHIELD agents appear who just can't seem to accept that they can't get the upper hand on giant space gods! People are broken into atoms, and then reconstituted, alive! Tim and Emmet continue their look at Kirby's 1970s work with Eternals 5-8! Brought to you by: BAT 77: The '70s Batman podcast Our supporters on Patreon

Mitsuru Adachi's Cross Game is a baseball manga for people who don't care about baseball. A tragedy early in the story helps to shape the narrative, but there's also a good dose of unexpected comedy, and sequences that really make us want to cheer for Ko and his friends as they work toward the goal of reaching the high school baseball championship. Kumar at last succeeds at getting this one on the podcast schedule, and Tim is happy to come along. Brought to you by: Who's Who podcast Our supporters on Patreon

Jonah Lobe, after many years designing characters for video games, has recently turned his attention to comics. He's the illustrator of Marvel Anatomy: A Scientific Study of the Superhuman, in which we can finally learn just what's going on inside characters like Wolverine, Venom, and Modok. He's also on the verge of his first Kickstarter campaign, for Quiet: Level One, about a skeleton named Quiet who's up against an evil Conan the Barbarian-type called Galahorn. He talks with Tim about his inspiration for Quiet, the difference between making video games and making comics, whether anatomy is important in cartoony drawing styles, and more. Brought to you by: To the Batpoles! podcast Our supporters on Patreon

On the surface, Sammy Harkham's Blood of the Virgin is about an editor of b-movies in 1970s L.A. who has greater artistic aspirations, but it's also rich with unexpected explorations of character and narrative approaches, themes about the creative process, responsibility, and being an immigrant, and Harkham's best art and writing to date. Over a decade in the making, the book was finally released in a collected volume last year, and the work shows. Matt E. and Kumar can't help but heap praise on it. Brought to you by: The Law of Equivalent Exchange: A Fullmetal Alchemist manga podcast Our supporters on Patreon

Batman meets Italy's humorous horror icon Dylan Dog in a beautiful three-issue series, originally published in Italian and recently released in English from DC. Tim and Emmet could recommend it on the art alone, but the story gives us a lot to discuss as well, including very rich conversations between characters and an interesting take on the Caped Crusader. Brought to you by: Checkered Past podcast Our supporters on Patreon

Paul Pate releases his third "Detective Perez" graphic novel, called Autotropolis, a turned-to-eleven detective story that doesn't take itself too seriously. Tim and Jason find a lot to like and not too terribly much to advise on -- though of course almost any work can still be improved! Right? Griz Grobus, the latest from Simon Roy, is about a robot advocate for eating your veggies on a planet where humans have settled just in the past few hundred years. It's also about how the spirit of a war god ends up in the body of... well, that would be telling. Tim and Adam discuss whether, in this case, maybe a work can't possibly be improved! Brought to you by: The Quarter-Bin podcast Our supporters on Patreon

Sure, comics are great for fantastical stories, but they can tell intimate, personal stories as well -- or sometimes the personal and the fantastical mix well. Artist and writer Pidge is the creator of the series Infinite Wheatpaste, which employs this method. Avery Hill has just published a collection of the series, called Infinite Wheatpaste vol 1: Catalytic Conversions. This week Pidge talks with Emmet about her attraction to the comics medium, but concern that it doesn't cover all the aspects of life that it could: "Having coffee with your friend is worth putting in a comic." Brought to you by: To the Batpoles! podcast Our supporters on Patreon