Off Panel: A Comics Interview Podcast

On this week's episode of Off Panel, writer/artist Declan Shalvey joins the show to talk about his upcoming graphic novel, Savage Town. Shalvey discusses the origins of the story, what made it one he wanted to tell, what made the rest of the creative team the best fits for the book, how it changed as it developed, finding the right balance with humor, the language of Ireland, the full creator-owned experience, how his upcoming Deadpool vs. Old Man Logan mini-series came together, the influence other writers have had on his own writing, whether becoming a "writer" has changed his perception as a creator, the impact of his Art Cred article in Image+, and more.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Becky Cloonan joins the show to talk about her work and the rerelease of By Chance or Providence at Image. She talks that book's origin story, self-publishing, why she wanted to rerelease it AND color it, the updates to the new book, the story behind the dedications in both versions, whether she has crushes on her characters, her current projects, collaboration, working with Steve Dillon, the monthly comic format, finding her voice on The Punisher, her recent focus on writing, focusing on storytelling in art, and more, before diving into five questions about Cloonan the person.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, writer/artist Chip Zdarsky joins the show to talk about the magic of comics and everything he's up to. Zdarsky discusses the first comic that attracted him to the medium, the Warren Ellis forums, the Brimper community, how Sex Criminals changed his life, the cyclical nature of comics, why he decided to handle every aspect of Sex Criminals' art, the human cost of creator-owned, expectations about him and his work because of his public persona, finding the right balance on Spider-Man, collaboration, his recent focus on writing, how much he had to change at Marvel, the unending serial, and a lot more.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Stephen Mooney joins the show to discuss the return of his comic Half Past Danger. Mooney talks the appeal of working on an adventure comic, how the book came together, why IDW was the right fit for it, the origins of the Half Past Danger sequel's subtitle (Dead to Reichs), trying to handle everything himself on the book, the work he did at DC, the impact that work had on him and his career, why he decided to go back to Half Past Danger, how easy it was to jump back into that world, his process on HPD, photo reference, the Irish art community, and more, before closing with five questions about Mooney himself.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, writer Kelly Thompson joins the show to talk her work on Hawkeye at Marvel Comics. Thompson discusses her path to comics, the impact of studying art at SCAD has on her writing, how Jem and the Holograms changed her career, the pressure of working on a licensed book, co-writing at Marvel, the genesis of Hawkeye, the difficulty of following the Fraction/Aja/Wu run, how her scripting has evolved while working with Leonardo Romero and Jordie Bellaire, managing fill-in artists, Julian Totino Tedesco's covers, working on the upcoming Captain Phasma book, before closing with five questions about Thompson.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, writer and editor Sebastian Girner joins the show to talk his new books, Shirtless Bear Fighter and Scales & Scoundrels. Girner discusses his path into writing after starting his career as an editor, how editing impacted his writing approach (and vice versa), the development of both of his new books, what they're all about, the magic of Final Fantasy, what made telling an all-ages story something he wanted to do, how his writing approach depends on his collaborators, the influence of 80s action movies on Shirtless, Paolo Rivera's ncredible cover for Shirtless Bear Fighter #4, the SBF mobile game, why writing comics saved them for him, and more.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, the co-creator, writer, and colorist of Image's Lake of Fire - Nathan Fairbairn - joins the show to talk the book and his experience bringing it to life. Fairbairn discusses how and why he first got into comics, why he didn't try and tackle more writing work for DC or Marvel, why he wanted to go creator-owned, the development of Lake of Fire, why faith was such an important part of the story for him, what made artist Matt Smith the right fit, why he didn't release it as a graphic novel, long-tail success, the marketing/PR side of creator-owned, what he learned during the experience, and more.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, artist Benjamin Dewey joins the show to talk his art on books like The Autumnlands. Dewey discusses his path to comics, pursuing other passions as an artist, finding yourself in your art, how much an artist's personality influences their work, comics and community, the convention experience, his art process, the importance of inking to his work, the overstated impact tools have on art, painting himself versus getting colored by someone else, taking on projects outside of The Autumnlands, before closing with five questions about Dewey himself.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, the AV Club's comic critic - Oliver Sava - joins the show to not talk Marvel's problems, but solutions to those problems. Sava discusses his reaction to AV Club earning an Eisner nomination this year, his hype levels for the upcoming Runaways book, Marvel's current state, expectations for Legacy, and the cyclical nature of Marvel and DC, before Oliver and David share their recommendations on how Marvel could fix things and the books they'd publish if they ran Marvel (with creative teams).

On this week's episode of Off Panel, the host of the comic book interview podcast Word Balloon - John Siuntres - joins the show to talk about his 12 years hosting the show. Siuntres talks the origins fo Word Balloon, his background before the show started, the impact of having so many comic book podcasts, how he developed Word Balloon's audience, monetizing podcasts, the evolution of his show, Secret Empire and the state of Marvel and fandom, getting personal with his guests, show regulars, whether he thinks its harder to develop a show now, Newsarama's impact on the show's growth, before the show comes to a close with five questions about the 12 years of Word Balloon.

On this week's special anniversary episode of Off Panel, friend of the show Brandon Burpee joins for a head-to-head question off where we talk everything comics from the past, present and future. Topics discussed include who won each decade for superhero comics - Marvel or DC, favorite comic anniversary gimmicks, what we'd do to get OG Wolverine back, how to help people who want to get into comics, favorite Off Panel guests, how social media impacts our buying habits, LaVar Ball-ing our favorite comics, Marvel's biggest problem right now, what we'd like to see from Legacy, the tradewaiting experience, the divisiveness of fandom, the state of the X-Men books, and more.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, writer Christopher Sebela joins the show to talk his currently being Kickstarted comic, Short Order Crooks. He talks the Kickstarter experience, what Short Order Crooks is all about, the origin of the project, the value of Two Headed Press, how the Kickstarter developed, how the crew on the book came together, the difficulty of creating Kickstarter rewards, whether he can be the same on for-hire jobs as creator-owned, the amount of food based research he did, what he'd sell at his own food cart, secondary revenue streams for comic creators, his recent experience working in retail, and more.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, The Ringer writer Jason Concepcion joins the show to talk Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and the 2017 slate of comic book movies. Concepcion talks Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (spoiler alert like crazy!) (00:51s), whether Guardians feels disconnected from the rest of the Marvel universe (4:55), the stingers (8:27), what worked in the movie (12:34), whether it had the best Stan Lee cameo (14:53), what didn't work (16:37), then Guardians talk (and the spoilers ends) as we talk the comic movie Mount Rushmore (22:10), hype levels for 2017's remaining comic movies (25:30), the advent of rated R comic book movies (42:09), the state of the X-Men movies (47:00), Inhumans as a TV show (49:30), why comic adaptations work and video game adaptations don't (53:45), before closing with five questions about Concepcion (59:00).

On this week's bonus episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Peter Wartman joins the show to talk his webcomic Stonebreaker. Wartman discusses his path to comics, the comic that unlocked the medium for him, the influence of video game designer Fumito Ueda, how his webcomics Over the Wall and Stonebreaker developed, his art process, the evolution of his art, the impact of being colorblind on his art, the architecture of Stonebreaker, how webcomics have changed since he started, balancing comics and a day job, the Minneapolis comic book scene, and more. Also, in case you missed it, Off Panel now has a Patreon. Support the show at Patreon.com/OffPanel and get fun rewards while unlocking bonus episodes each month.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, writer Mark Russell joins the show to talk his approach and work on comics like The Flintstones and Prez. He talks what he was doing before comics, how he was hired by DC, whether his approach might be different from other comic writers because of his lack of a comic background, his guiding principles for developing comics, the comic book learning curve, working with DC editorial, why he took The Flintstones gig, finding a new take on the classic cartoon, giving non-human characters humanity, collaborating on sequentials with Steve Pugh and Ben Caldwell, what he has in store for his Snagglepuss book, and more.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, artist Mike Norton joins the show to talk his epic workload in recent years. Norton talks what his life has been like since he wrapped Battlepug and Revival, how he balanced multiple projects at once, what he learned most from his recent workload, managing workflow, what he took away from his creator-owned work, studio life, the emotions of ending Revival, whether long runs by a single creative team are dying out, how the role of the comic artist has evolved, the changing landscape of comics, webcomics, the response to his webcomic Lil' Donnie, before coming to a close with five questions about Norton himself. One quick note: I fully botched the money Check, Please! generated on Kickstarter. It wasn't $2.5 million, it was $400,000. Still a lot of money!

In this week's episode of Off Panel, artist Jen Bartel joins the show to talk about breaking into comics. She talks about her art background, the pros and cons of art school, her path to the world of comics, the importance of just making art, the power of the internet and social media, her advice for people looking to break in, why she's focused on covers over sequential art, the reason she prefers inking and coloring over the problem solving part of art, her affinity for neon colors, merchandising, valuing your work monetarily, before the podcast closes with five questions about Bartel herself.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Hannah Blumenreich joins the show to talk her fan comic Spidey Zine and her work on Amazing Spider-Man #25. She talks her experience in art school, what her first foray into comics was, how she has seen her art grow as she's moved along, the origin story of Spidey Zine, the power of fan comics, the personhood of superheroes, what her process is, the restrictions of publishing on Twitter, making her way into working on Spider-Man for Marvel, how working with Jordan Gibson, Jordie Bellaire and Clayton Cowles changed things for her, and what's next for her, before closing with five random questions about her.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Jim Rugg joins the show to talk his upcoming one-shot with writer Brian Maruca, Street Angel: After School Kung Fu Special. He talks the origin story of Street Angel, why it's his home base book, how his art has evolved over the years, whether he thinks he has a core art style, why he likes to adventure with the format of comics so much, why he brought Street Angel to Image, the Pittsburgh comic scene, and more.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Kyle Starks joins the show to talk his new comic at Image, Rock Candy Mountain. Starks discusses what appealed to him about the hobo treasure hunt genre, the tropes of rail travel, researching hobo culture, when the song "Big Rock Candy Mountain" came into play, world building, the realities of hobo life, the language in the book, the impact of colorist Chris Schweizer and designer Dylan Todd, overcoming the perceptions of his "cartoony" art style, his process for bringing an issue to life, before the episode comes to a close with serious basketball talk starting around the 52 minute mark.

In the last episode recorded at this year's Emerald City ComiCon, colorist and writer Jordie Bellaire joins the show to talk her new book at Image Comics, Redlands. She talks the experience of announcing Redlands, how announcements differ between personal projects and for-hire jobs, what Redlands is all about, what made Vanesa del Rey the perfect partner for the book, how del Rey changed the book, how Bellaire's color brain influences he writer brain, why she wanted to add being a writer to her busy schedule, how she ended up in Ireland after living in Florida, why the rep of colorists has improved in recent years, and more.

In the second episode of Off Panel from Emerald City ComiCon, the Oscar nominated writer of Arrival as well as the writer of the upcoming Secret Weapons at Valiant Comics, Eric Heisserer, joins the show. Heisserer talks his comic book origin story, the difference between screenwriting and working on comics, partnering with Raul Allen and Patricia Martin, what appealed to him about the Valiant universe, bringing Secret Weapons back, why Livewire is such a fascinating character to him, how writing film scripts differs from writing comics, humanizing island of misfit toys characters, why he loves writing comics so much, what compelled him to write Arrival, his reactions to Amy Adams not getting nominated and the Oscar mixup on Best Picture, and more.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, Image Comics publisher Eric Stephenson joins the show in a special episode from Emerald City ComiCon. Stephenson talks Image's move to Portland, why there wasn't an Image Expo this year, the big announcements from ECCC, diversity in comics, finding different ways to tell stories in the medium, the devaluation of single issues, managing a publisher in uncertain times, the influx of variants at Image during its 25th anniversary, what he's most proud of from 25 years of Image, how it's changed the most since its launch, how Image's staff has helped drive its growth, and more.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, writer Daniel Kibblesmith joins the show to talk his new comic, Valiant High. Kibblesmith discusses his comic book origin story, whether he needed to dig into Valiant's history for the project, finding the right roles for each character, whether you can go too far in lampooning characters, the differences between writing for TV versus for comics, whether writing comics is a breath of fresh air given his day job, the impact of this presidency on late night, his long term view on writing comics, and more.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Daniel Johnson Warren joins to talk his new book Extremity. He talks Extremity's development, world building, why he needed a little something more to make his lead character work, what makes a good villain, his creative process, the advantages of traditional art for him, colorist Mike Spicer's fit on the book, Extremity's rad logo, commissions, finding joy in art, and more.

In this week's episode of Off Panel, writer Joe Keatinge joins the show to talk 25 years of Image Comics from his perspective as a reader, creator and former employee. David and Joe talk when they discovered Image, what makes Image special, 90s comics revisionist history, what his experience was working at Image, how it's changed over the years, our ten-ish favorite comics from Image's 25 years, what the future looks like for Image, and more.

In the final Image founderscentric edition of Off Panel, Image Comics co-founder Todd McFarlane joins the show to share his perspective on the story of Image. McFarlane talks the appeal of the move away from Marvel, the story behind Image's creation, the meeting at Marvel and why they went to DC after it, why he stayed exclusive to Image, how the Image deal became more appealing to others, Robert Kirkman's fit as a partner, Eric Stephenson's impact, whether Image looks as he expected after 25 years, what the biggest difficulties were in figuring everything out, and more.

In another special edition of Off Panel, Image Comics co-founder Jim Valentino joins the show to share his perspective on the origins of Image. Valentino talks how everything came together, what the biggest motivator was to break away from Marvel, why Image worked and other similar ventures didn't, why expanding beyond superheroes was important, whether it was always their intent to offer the Image deal to others, how Robert Kirkman joined up, Eric Stephenson's influence, what Image's "i" means today, how Image's role in the industry has changed over the years, and more.

In a special edition of Off Panel, Image Comics co-founder Erik Larsen joins the show to share his perspective on the rise of Image. Larsen talks the Image's story from the beginning, whether it worked because of the numbers they brought to Image, whether he expected Savage Dragon to go as long as it has, what the response to them leaving was like, what influenced the wave of big creators to Image in recent years, what made Robert Kirkman a good fit for Image, how Image has changed over the years, and more.

In a special edition of Off Panel, Image Comics co-founder Rob Liefeld joins the show to talk about the publisher 25 years after it started. Liefeld talks the popularity of the Image founders, why it needed to be more than just himself who did it, how Image came together, why Robert Kirkman fits Image so well, Eric Stephenson's role in Image's rise, whether Image's developing surprised him over its 25 years, who the heart and soul of Image is, what Image's future looks like, and more. You can read the article I wrote on Image's history and evolution, featuring Liefeld, on The Ringer.

Brian Hurtt and Cullen Bunn, the artist/writer team behind the recently wrapped The Sixth Gun and the soon-to-be revived The Damned at Oni Press, join the show this week to talk about their collaboration. The pair talks about how they first met, what appealed to them about working together, how they develop projects like The Sixth Gun, world building, getting invested in their characters, designing the world of The Sixth Gun, why they initially launched the book Free Comic Book Day, ending a longform story, where world building to go wrong, their return to The Damned, how market pressures has impacted longform storytelling, and more.

Comics lawyer Caitlin DiMotta joins Off Panel this week to talk about her role in helping some of the biggest names in comics do what they do. DiMotta shares her path to becoming a lawyer, how her background in ballet impacted her, how she first got involved with the comic industry, the importance of her role, creative transparency in deals between creators and publishers, the power of saying "no" in negotiations, whether comic creators should talk to a lawyer when making a deal, the next big frontier of comics, and more.

Writer Joshua Williamson returns to the show to talk about a little bit of everything, from the professional to the personal. Williamson talks about writing the biggest selling title in comics (Justice League vs. Suicide Squad), bringing his Image Comics series Nailbiter to a close, how the health of the comic industry impacts the way he plans his projects, revisiting Williamson's Applecart Theory because of Marvel's latest #1s, what he does with his free time, whether he gets hyped over his recent big news, his initial reaction to learning DC was bringing Watchmen into play, his take on Suicide Squad and comic adaptations overall, how his writing changes depends on the art he works with, his most impossible to resist vice or crutch, how the state of the country impacts as a writer, and more.

This week's first Off Panel of 2017 welcomes artist/writer Declan Shalvey back to the show to talk his first major moves into the world of writerdom and his return to his creator-owned project with Warren Ellis and Jordie Bellaire, Injection. Shalvey talks how the Nick Fury, Jr. story he was the writer/artist for in Civil War II: Choosing Sides came together, the excellence of Marvel editor Wil Moss, the challenges of writing and drawing his own project, the benefits of being a hyphenate, making such a short story work, the difference between scripting for himself versus someone else, how the return to Injection is going, his studio's previous intern getting his first gig, his perspective on Steve Dillon as an artist, and more.

On the 2016 finale for Off Panel, the co-owner of the Eisner Award winning comic shop Challengers Comics + Conversation, Patrick Brower, joins the show to talk about the year for his shop and the state of comic book retail as a whole. He shares how his shop did this year, what worked, what didn't, Rebirth, Civil War II, what he thinks is driving some of the retailer doom and gloom, whether he think it's different than the usual doom and gloom, what he's hearing from other shops, what he loved in comics in 2016, what he's excited for in 2017, and more.

On this week's special episode of Off Panel, frequent guest and friend of the show Brandon Burpee joins the show to talk the year in comics. Brandon and David discuss what worked for them, what didn't, what they're excited for in 2017, before breaking down their 20 favorite comics of the year.

Artist Charlie Adlard guests on Off Panel this week to talk about his work on The Walking Dead as well as his new role as the United Kingdom's Comics Laureate. Adlard talks his incredible (and expansive) run on The Walking Dead, staying engaged with such a long-running project, maintaining an ongoing schedule like he does, his layout phase (or lack thereof), how he and Robert Kirkman work together, working digitally on Vampire State Building, working with an inker after years of not, what exactly being a comics laureate entails, before closing with five questions about Star Wars, Legos, his band, and more.

On this week's Off Panel, artist John Paul Leon joins the show to talk art and his work on comic covers for books like The Sheriff of Babylon and DMZ. He talks his art background, giving fantastical worlds a sense of realism, his approach on covers, how he handled The Sheriff of Babylon, the power and importance of photo reference, the key to a quality cover, how he handles interiors, how color changes the way he approaches a piece, the freedom of comics, and more.

On this week's Off Panel, artist Ryan Stegman joins the show to talk his art and Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows. He discusses his famous stegosaurus signature, when he first realized he wanted to work in comics, the influence of the early 90s on him, why he wants to blow people's minds with his art, animation as an influence, his process, the trouble with layouts, Akira, his rare Spider-Man achievement, why Spidey is his jam, and more.

The owner of comic retailer Comics Conspiracy, Ryan Higgins, joins Off Panel this week to talk Marvel Now and where the publisher is these days. Higgins shares how he got into comics retail, what his customer base is like, his take on Marvel overall, how Marvel Now has performed at his shop, why he thinks Marvel is struggling in his store, why Rebirth has connected so well with his audience, the trouble with variants, the positives of Marvel Now, what he'd do if he ran Marvel Comics, the trouble with relaunches, how he feels about the current state of the comic industry, the perception of the direct market, and more.

Writer Vivek Tiwary joins Off Panel this week to talk the new edition of his graphic novel The Fifth Beatle. Tiwary talks his comic background, what the learning curve was like for writing comics after years in Broadway and beyond, why the story of Brian Epstein was so interesting to him, turning the story into a graphic novel and a TV series, why Andrew Robinson and Kyle Baker were perfect fits for the art of the book, balancing historical accuracy and getting the right feel for the book, why The Fifth Beatle released a paperback edition, promoting his work, and more.

Artist Paolo Rivera joins Off Panel this week to talk how he works and what he's up to these days. He talks how sculpture changes his art, bringing characters to life with his art, what his process is, why he's dialed back on drawing interiors, maintaining cash flow without that, learning to loosen up on bringing scripts to life, why he wishes he left Daredevil later than he did, the importance of ownership, and more.

Writer Shea Serrano joins Off Panel this week to talk about writing and his work for The Ringer and in his New York Times Best Selling book The Rap Year Book. Serrano talks the learning curve of writing, how he refined it as he went along, why he marries his writing with original art, how he paired up with Arturo Torres, the intent of The Rap Year Book, the importance of creating a framework for the book, his process for conceptualizing articles, how he makes writing work for him, why writing for exposure is not the way to go, the FOH army (his massive group of fans), and some hoops talk before closing with five questions about a little of everything, including John Wick, who he's looking forward to watching this NBA season, HEB commercials, and more.

Writer Tom King joins Off Panel this week to talk his work on books like The Vision, The Sheriff of Babylon, The Omega Men and Batman. He talks his experience writing Batman, what appealed to him about comics as a storyteller, his career path, how he's refined his approach as he went along, the Trilogy of Best Intentions, the "Tom King" voice or lack thereof, why consistent artistic collaborators was so important for the trilogy, how his artistic collaborator changes how he writes, baking informational structure into his work, how he views continuity, and more.

Alert! Alert! Things have gotten weird for Marvel Comics lately, between the delayed Civil War II and the uninspiring Marvel Now line, and Off Panel's here to fix everything. To do that, recurring guest Brandon Burpee joins the show to put on co-publisher hats with David and create a whole new Marvel universe line. The show starts with a discussion as to where Marvel is now, how Civil War II has impacted their reading lists, the oddness of some of the Marvel Now titles, event related confusion, how the Rebirth strategy could work for Marvel, before the main event: the Marvel fantasy draft. Ground rules are laid out, and then Brandon and David team up to draft new creative teams for their line of comics, as well as sharing their vision for why these books are the right fit for this new Marvel universe.

Chris Samnee, the co-writer and artist of Marvel's Black Widow, joins Off Panel this week to talk his work on that book and his new Daredevil Artist's Edition from IDW Publishing. Samnee talks how that Artist's Edtion came together, his approach to art, why the inking process is so important to him, what makes working on Black Widow so special, how co-writing that book changes things for him, the superpowers of color artist Matt Wilson, character acting, and more. It's a great chat with one of the best in the biz these days.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, cartoonist Brahm Revel joins the show to talk his Oni Press series Guerillas. Revel shares what the series is all about, how it developed, its long journey to completion, switching from single issues to graphic novels, how the marketplace has changed since it first launched in 2009, why the book took such a turn in the third volume, how the format and expanded timeline of the book has impacted his art, character acting, balancing Guerillas and paying gigs, and more.

On this week's episode of Off Panel, Skybound Entertainment Editorial Director Sean Mackiewicz joins the show to talk his work at the publisher on books like The Walking Dead and Invincible. He talks what his role at Skybound entails, how his role takes him into other mediums, how Skybound develops new titles and talent, their new title Green Valley, how sales viability factors into looking at Skybound pitches, how the editorial experience differs between Skybound and DC, the end of Invincible, and more.

Writer Sara Kenney and editor Karen Berger come onto the show this week to talk their new Image Comics title, Surgeon X. The pair shares what the book is all about, its origin story, how Berger joined up and what made it the one she wanted to return to comics with, the learning curve in going from film/TV to comics and from DC/Vertigo to Image, how the rest of the creative team - artist John Watkins, colorist James Devlin and letterer Jared K. Fletcher - joined the book, balancing realism with entertainment value, and a discussion about why having app for the comic was a move they wanted to do.

Cartoonist John Allison joins Off Panel for the first time this week to talk his work writing Giant Days and writing/drawing webcomics like Bad Machinery and Scary Go Round. It's a conversation that goes all over the place, as Allison discusses keeping the continuity of his webcomics work straight, how his DIY origins and page limits impacted his work on Giant Days, fostering a relationship between readers and characters, character acting in art, world building, properly handling humor, how the webcomic world has changed as the internet has, and much more.