The man behind one of the most enduring independent characters of all time, Captain Canuck, brings his maple leaves to the Dollar Bin Bandits! That's right, Richard Comely joins Oren and special guest host Sean McMillan to reflect on the genesis of our super neighbor to the north. The Captain made his debut in 1975 and became an immediate sensation, with the first issue outselling all other comic books in Canada that year. Comely stuck with the character through thick and thin, publishing Captai...
Jul 13, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 45
Joe and Mike remember the comics work and careers of three all-time greats that left us in recent months. We dig into Neal Adams' defining art on Batman and Green Lantern/Green Arrow , as he brought a healthy dose of realism to our four-color friends. We talk about our personal favorites within George Perez's huge body of work, appreciating the expressive detail he brought to The New Teen Titans and Crisis on Infinite Earth (among others). And finally, we tip our hats to Tim Sale, a painterly ar...
Jul 08, 2022•34 min•Season 2Ep. 44
It's the stuff of legend. Barbara Randall Kesel writes a 10-page letter to Dick Giordano, DC's head honcho in the 80s, explaining why the publisher was failing both its female character and readers. Next thing you know, she's offered a writing gig (taking on a Batgirl backup feature in Detective Comics ) and enters the male-dominated comics industry as a new voice for equality. She goes on to become an editor at DC, co-writing, with then-husband Karl Kesel, a Hawk & Dove miniseries that was ...
Jul 06, 2022•57 min•Season 2Ep. 43
Once an editor at DC and Dark Horse, Michael Eury is now a historian and promoter of the comic book medium and pop culture in general. Since 2003, he's edited Back Issue! (TwoMorrows Publishing), a magazine dedicated to the comics of the 1970s through today. He's also published a number of books, including ones dedicated to Captain Action, Dick Giordano, Krypton, and the Justice League. Mike gets into it all with the Bandits, and you, lucky listener, get one heck of a bonus episode with someone ...
Jul 01, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Season 2Ep. 42
Dan Brereton is an artists' artist. Skilled as much with a paint brush as a pencil, he broke onto the comics scene via Eclipse Comics and the Black Terror limited series. He then hooked up with DC, where he brought his painterly style to titles like Batman: Thrillkiller , Superman and Batman: Legends of the World's Finest , and JLA: Seven Caskets . He's perhaps best known for his own series, The Nocturnals , a team book that originally started at Malibu Comics. Dan's work has appeared outside of...
Jun 29, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Season 2Ep. 41
Transformers! Transformers, Transformers, Transformers. If you don't like where this is going, abandon ship now, because our guest today has been associated with Transformers comics for over 30 years. That's right, it's the British Bob Budiansky: Simon Furman! Simon was already working on a Transformers comics for Marvel UK, when Bob (the original writer and developer of the Transformers characters) chose him to take over the main US title. Simon expanded the Transformers mythos from there, deve...
Jun 22, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 40
Under-appreciated. It's a label that applies to many of the creators we have on this show, but never has it applied more than to today's guest: Rick Burchett. A journeyman penciller who's worked at virtually every publisher under the sun (including First, Pacific, Capital, AC and DC and Marvel, natch), Rick often changed his style to fit the content of the comic. Pre-DC, he worked on books like E-Man , American Flagg! , and The Phantom . He pencilled the adventures of most of the Justice League,...
Jun 17, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Season 2Ep. 39
Are you ready? Our old-timey podcast is going full Matrix with the co-creator of the digital comics platform ComiXology: John Roberts! A genius of the ones and zeroes, this is the guy who took our precious four-color heroes, digitized them, and created a whole new reading experience for comics. We get into his early days creating and refining DotComics at Marvel, the inception of ComiXology as the winner of an NYU business plan competition, and all of the innovations throughout the years, from G...
Jun 15, 2022•1 hr 15 min•Season 2Ep. 38
What, another member of the Crusty Bunkers?! That's right, time to punch one more hole in your CB frequency card, because we have Mr. Carl Potts on the pod! This card-carrying member of Neal Adams' Continuity Studios got his start adapting TV shows like The Six Million Dollar Man before landing at Marvel in 1983. As an editor, Carl was a talent magnet, having brought on or mentored such luminaries (and some past guests) as Art Adams, Jon Bogdanove, June Brigman, Mike Mignola, Larry Stroman, Whil...
Jun 08, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Season 2Ep. 37
How do you separate yourself from all the other independent books in an ever growing market? Well, Austin Hough ( The Masters ) and Phillip Russertt ( Tragedy ) are doing just that with books that feature incredible writing and a multitude of new and established artists that have gained them both a loyal following. Check out their journey into comics and what goes into creating your own book in our latest episode! Check out their latest on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/themas...
Jun 03, 2022•56 min•Season 2Ep. 36
No, not Edward Leialoha (Torpedo) from G.I. Joe. You see, that character was named after today's guest: inker, penciller, and all-around chill dude, Steve Leialoha! After starting his career on the early independent book Star*Reach, Steve went on to make his bones freelancing for Marvel on such titles as Warlock , Star Wars, Marvel Team-Up , Firestar , and New Mutants . The Star Wars gig even landed him at an early test screening of the first movie! He may be best known for his Howard the Duck w...
Jun 01, 2022•57 min•Season 2Ep. 35
Break out the cloning machine because we've got not one, but two amazing guests on the same episode this week! That's right, in another Oren Only edition, the Bandits welcome writers Howard Mackie and Terry Kavanagh to the pod. Best known for playing a major role in the pitching, planning, and writing of the infamous Spider-Man story, The Clone Saga, the two did amazing work together and separately in 80s and 90s Marvel. For just a sampling, Mackie oversaw the New Universe line, launched the Dan...
May 25, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Season 2Ep. 34
Reed Tucker (or Reed Tucker as we call him) is a freelance journalist and writer, who has hundreds of magazines and articles to his name. But more importantly, he's the guy who wrote Slugfest: Inside the Epic 50-Year Battle Between Marvel and DC . Now we've got your attention, right? As cool as the book is, which takes you through the Big Two rivalry in depth, the Roku show of the same name is even cooler! Executive produced by Avengers: Endgame directors Joseph and Anthony Russo, the formerly Q...
May 20, 2022•49 min•Season 2Ep. 33
Writer extraordinaire Steven Grant is in the hot seat this week. You may know him best from the famous mid-80s Punisher mini-series he created with Mike Zeck. But he's got a lot more under his belt. For Marvel, he was a presence on the Avengers and Incredible Hulk , and he co-wrote Marvel's first limited series and one of its earliest universe-wide crossovers, Contest of Champions . You may have heard of his creator-owned character Whisper or followed his two-year run on Dark Horse's Comics Grea...
May 18, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Season 2Ep. 32
He's back, and he's not just talking Silver Surfer! Ron Lim returns for a career retrospective, starting with Badger and Ex Mutants , going heavy on the Infinity Trilogy (Gauntlet, War, Crusade), and jamming on 90s Marvel classics like X-Men 2099 and Venom: Lethal Protector . OK, fine, we do return to Silver Surfer and fan favorites like Captain America and Spider-Man. It's a long walk and a good talk, so dig in! Silver Surfer Rebirth , by Lim and Ron Marz, is wrapping up this month -- check it ...
May 11, 2022•48 min•Season 2Ep. 31
What's it like to put on a comic convention? Ask today's guest, Mitch Hallock, who has almost single-handedly grown TerrifiCon into Connecticut's largest comic book convention! How does he find guests? What's changed over the years? How does the show keep focused on comics and defend against turning into a pop culture free-for-all? All will be revealed by this modern ringmaster! TerrifiCon takes place July 29 - 31, 2022 at Mohegan Sun in CT: terrificon.com . You can follow Mitch on Instagram @mi...
May 06, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Season 2Ep. 30
Yes, that Aaron Lopresti! The artist behind Malibu's Ultraverse's Sludge joins the Bandits for a retrospective of his impressive comic book career. From X-Men, Captain Marvel, and Planet Hulk at Marvel to Wonder Woman, Justice League: Generation Lost, and New 52: Futures End at DC, this guy has put in the work at the big two. And now, he's striking out on his own with his Indiegogo-funded passion project, Wraith of God , which is about to be published! You can follow Aaron at his website, aaronl...
May 04, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Season 2Ep. 29
Presenting, among other things, the 10th Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics: Mr. Tom DeFalco! Tom has done basically everything in comics, from shepherding Hasbro-licensed comics G.I. Joe and Transformers into existence, to writing and editing all manner of Spider-Man projects, to co-creating characters like Spider-Girl, Silver Sable, and Thunderstrike. We're already exhausted, and we haven't even talked about his time as Marvel's big cheese from the late 80s to early 90s! But we do in the episode...
Apr 27, 2022•1 hr 21 min•Season 2Ep. 28
What are friends for? Why, co-writing comics of course! Dan Mishkin and Gary Cohn (or Gary Cohn and Dan Mishkin if you like) are the dynamic duo behind big chunk of DC's 1980s output. They may be best known for creating the characters Amethyst (Princess of Gemworld) and Blue Devil. But after this episode, they'll be known for getting grilled by our own Bandit Oren in a 2-on-1 interview for the ages! ________________________________ If you liked this podcast, please rate, review, and subscribe on...
Apr 22, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Season 2Ep. 27
Probably best known for his work with Mark Waid on Captain America, Ron Garney couldn't be more different than the star spangled Sentinel of Liberty. He's a certified badass that had to wake up the day after our interview for some 5:00 Jujutsu. Maybe that's why his Hulk and Wolverine were among the most savage ever drawn. And perhaps that's why he was hand-chosen by Keanu Reeves to draw his first comic, BRZRKR . Ron even did some costume design illustration for major feature films like I Am Lege...
Apr 20, 2022•51 min•Season 2Ep. 26
Here's a fun one for all you 90s kids! The Bandits welcome Adam and Michael from Wizards: The Podcast Guide to Comics for a convening of our favorite gimmick covers of all time. Witness as we attempt to organize the proceedings into four rounds: Die-Cut, Polybagged, Foil/Chrome, and Wild Card! Marvel as these covers unfold, pop up, are obscured by thick promotional copy, and blind you with their extreme shinyness! Laugh at the sheer absurdity of the increasingly desperate attempts to extend the ...
Apr 15, 2022•55 min•Season 2Ep. 25
The guy started as an unpaid college intern in 1989. Now, more than 30 years later, he's Senior Vice President of Publishing at Marvel. That's right, we're talking to Marvel's longest running editor, fount of comic book knowledge and history, and all-around swell guy, Tom Brevoort. During his decades-long career, Tom has overseen books for nearly all of Marvel's catalog of characters, as well as famous storylines like New Avengers and Civil War . What we're trying to say is that Tom Brevoort kno...
Apr 13, 2022•1 hr 20 min•Season 2Ep. 24
Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready for a Hembeck of a good time? Well, that's what you're getting with this podcast-only episode of DBB. Master of superhero parody and curlicue joints, Fred Hembeck sits down with the Bandits to discuss his seriously funny career. You probably know Fred from his cartoons in Marvel Age , but he's worked across the industry, including First Comics, Fantagraphics, and Archie Comics. We get into it all, and don't worry: Brother Voodoo was not harmed during the makin...
Apr 08, 2022•53 min•Season 2Ep. 23
Superman's #1 fan is back in Bandit Town! That's right, Mark Waid returns for more interrogation, this time without that pesky half-hour time limit. We get deeper into Flash (specifically the Speed Force and his supporting cast of speedsters), Kingdom Come , the 52 weekly series, and Mark's remembrances of his late friend and collaborator, Brian Augustyn. Finally, we dive into the world of Irredeemable and Incorruptible , taking on both the comic series and the upcoming Netflix adaptation. It's ...
Apr 06, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 22
In this roundup edition of Bandit Bits, Bandits Joe and Mike take a trip around the comics world, starting with a look at ComiXology's recent update. Then we move on to the various adaptations hitting the screens this spring. Is Daredevil's integration into the MCU a good thing? Is Marvel at the tipping point with its multiverse building movies? How dark is too dark for The Batman? We also dive into some of our favorite creators via their March birthdays and finish it off with a discussion of Ma...
Apr 01, 2022•57 min•Season 2Ep. 21
It's right there in his Instagram handle: Comic Legend Bob Layton . And it's true: not many of our guests have had his level of impact on the industry. Using the fanzine he created with Roger Stern ( Contemporary Pictorial Literature or CPL ) as a springboard, Layton would soon come under the apprenticeship of Wally Wood (and later the mentorship of Dick Giordano) and join the Crusty Bunkers inkers collective. After a short stint on Champions with Marvel, he developed his inking talents on All S...
Mar 30, 2022•1 hr 11 min•Season 2Ep. 20
Al Bigley has drawn it all, including comics, storyboards, merchandise, and more. His work spans not only Marvel and DC, but Golden Books, Disney, Saban, Film Roman, Scholastic, McDonald's and Kenner Toys. He was one of the first to draw the adventures of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and contributed storyboards to the Avengers and Wolverine and the X-Men animated series. He even does some impressive cosplay as chronicled on his Twitter feed: @AlBigley. So listen up to this bonus episode, bandito...
Mar 25, 2022•56 min•Season 2Ep. 19
If you know Kelley Jones -- and you should -- you're probably conjuring up one of his creepy, highly-stylized Batman: Knightfall covers from his run in the 90s. That's fair. Those covers and his interior art on the Dark Knight are iconic. But Kelley is more than that. He contributed to the look of the Dreaming in several issues of Sandman . He also redesigned Deadman to look more like, well... a dead man. More Batman work followed, as well as stints at Dark Horse and Marvel. Kelley draws the mos...
Mar 23, 2022•1 hr 27 min•Season 2Ep. 18
Not just another inker-turned-writer, Jimmy Palmiotti has had an outsized impact on the industry that welcomed him way back in 1991. Starting with hard-edged Marvel titles like Punisher , Ghost Rider , and The Nam , Jimmy went on to found Event Comics with friend and frequent collaborator, Joe Quesada. After co-creating characters like Ash and Painkiller Jane, he and Quesada helped turnaround Marvel with their Marvel Knights line. Jimmy eventually moved to the Distinguished Competition, where (a...
Mar 16, 2022•1 hr 19 min•Season 2Ep. 17
If you ever thought studying chemistry and math could get you into comics, you were right! At least if your name is Val Semeiks. After studying STEM in college and trying his hand at advertising, Val finally found his vocation as a comics penciller, starting with Conan and continuing with big runs on The Demon and Lobo at DC. Collaborating with writer Alan Grant, the artist took on the rhyming hellspawn and big bad bastich with the maniacal aplomb. He also worked on Wolverine , JLA , and even th...
Mar 11, 2022•36 min•Season 2Ep. 16
