Like the animator’s giant eraser in Chuck Jones’ classic Merrie Melodies short “Duck Amuck,” a wave of anti-matter sweeps across countless realities, obliterating everything in its path until only a handful of universes are left in the epic 12-issue event Crisis on Infinite Earths, by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, published by DC Comics! Aided by the mysterious Monitor, some of comics’ greatest heroes are all that stand between the remaining worlds and the malevolent ... um, Anti-Monitor! Join ...
Nov 27, 2019•59 min
You finally achieve your lifelong goal—absolute dominion over all of creation, not to mention the wife of your bitterest rival—only to find that godhood isn't everything you'd hoped for. We've all been there, right? Victor Von Doom certainly has, in the epic 2015 miniseries Secret Wars, by Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic, published by Marvel Comics! Join us as we answer the burning questions: Can Curt and Kevin avoid getting deep in the weeds of this superhero crossover event? (Not so much.) And...
Nov 12, 2019•1 hr 20 min
The all-powerful Beyonder transports some of Earth's mightiest heroes and villains to a patchwork planet known as Battleworld, conveniently outfitted with high-tech ships and fortresses! His one command: "Slay all your enemies and all you desire shall be yours!" Thus begins one of comics' first and most famous multi-part crossover epics: Secret Wars, written by Marvel Comics editor in chief Jim Shooter and drawn by Mike Zeck and Bob Layton! Conceived to support a line of Mattel toys, this 12-par...
Oct 29, 2019•1 hr 17 min
In this episode, we get into the spooky spirit of Halloween with a look at Through the Woods, a collection of unsettling horror stories by cartoonist Emily Carroll , as well as a trio of chilling and inventive webcomics: Margot’s Room , Some Other Animal’s Meat , and the Eisner Award-winning When the Darkness Presses ! Through the Woods weaves a dark fantasy setting that echoes the classic horror stories of fairy tales and folklore, grounded by Carroll’s gorgeous artwork and spidery lettering, w...
Oct 15, 2019•1 hr 26 min
Just in time for the Oct. 4 release of Todd Phillips’ Joker movie, Curt and Kevin are joined by Atlanta actress and comics fan Jennifer Lee for a timely (and faintly explicit) discussion of the 1989 graphic novel Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, by Grant Morrison and Dave McKean, published by DC Comics! On April Fools’ Day, the inmates, led by the Joker, have taken over Arkham Asylum and taken the staff as hostages. Their one demand? That Batman join them for a lethal game of hid...
Oct 02, 2019•1 hr 23 min
In this episode, Crimewave!, our series on gritty crime comics, comes to a rollicking (and not entirely swear word-free) conclusion with the “Mommy and Clyde” graphic novel Bastard, written and drawn by Belgian cartoonist Max de Radiguès, published in America by Fantagraphics Books! After taking part in a massive heist that targeted 52 different locations in the same city at the same time, May and her son Eugene are on the run, trying to stay ahead of the police while hiding duffel bags stuffed ...
Sep 18, 2019•53 min
In this episode, Crimewave!, our series on gritty crime comics, rolls on with Death Chases Me, the first volume of the James Ellroy-meets-H.P. Lovecraft occult noir Fatale, written and drawn by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips, published by Image Comics! In 1950s San Francisco, reporter Dominic Henry Raines meets with the mysterious and attractive Josephine, girlfriend of corrupt police detective Walt Booker. As Raines investigates Booker, he falls under Josephine’s spell, unaware that there’s more...
Sep 04, 2019•1 hr 2 min
In this episode, Crimewave!, our series on gritty crime comics, continues with a fictionalized account of the real, ripped-from-the-1930s-headlines case of the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run , co-written and “executed” by one of the biggest names in comics before he was one of the biggest names in comics: It’s Torso, by Brian Michael Bendis and Marc Andreyko, originally published by Image Comics! Between 1935 and 1938, a mysterious figure murdered, dismembered and decapitated at least 12 victims i...
Aug 21, 2019•1 hr 10 min
In this episode, Crimewave!, our series on gritty crime comics, continues with Darwyn Cooke's crackling adaptation of The Hunter! Beautifully illustrated in black, white and teal, this stylized revenge tale from IDW Publishing is the first in a four-part series adapting novels about the career criminal Parker by the late Donald E. Westlake, writing as Richard Stark. Physically imposing and intense, the man known only as Parker storms into New York City in 1962, where he confronts the wife who sh...
Aug 06, 2019•1 hr 11 min
In this hard-boiled episode, we kick off Crimewave!, a series of episodes on gritty crime comics, complete with its own theme song! And for our money, there ain’t no better way to get things rolling than by jawing about Frank Miller’s bare-knuckled Sin City: The Hard Goodbye, published by Dark Horse Comics, see? Here’s the thing about Basin City—it’s the kinda place where a hulking bruiser like Marv can spend a once-in-a-lifetime night of passion with an angel like Goldie, only to wake up the ne...
Jul 24, 2019•1 hr
In this episode, our look back at 80s mutant mania continues with The Demon Bear Saga from The New Mutants Vol. 1 #18-20, and the follow-up double-sized story Slumber Party from #21, by Chris Claremont and Bill Sienkiewicz, published by Marvel Comics! Danielle Moonstar, haunted by visions of the monster that killed her parents, summons it to a showdown on the snow-covered grounds of Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. It doesn’t go well. As she lies near death, her fellow students find themse...
Jul 10, 2019•1 hr 8 min
In this episode, we welcome Tedd Walley , writer, artist and publisher of Mathilda: The Forces of Evil vs. The Third Grade , as we travel to the distant future of 2013 for a discussion of the landmark X-Men storyline Days of Future Past from Uncanny X-Men #141-142, and finish it off with Demon from #143, by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, published by Marvel Comics! In a dystopian future America ruled by the mutant-hunting Sentinels, Kate Pryde and the few remaining X-Men launch a desperate plan...
Jun 24, 2019•1 hr 9 min
In this episode, we temporarily set aside our “clean” rating to wind up our four-part series on Watchmen with a discussion issues #10-12 of the landmark comic-book series written by Alan Moore, drawn by Dave Gibbons, and published by DC Comics! As President Richard Nixon prepares to launch nuclear missiles, Nite Owl and Rorschach discover that the person behind the Comedian’s death and Dr. Manhattan’s self-imposed exile is their former colleague, Adrian Veidt! When they track him to his Antarcti...
Jun 12, 2019•1 hr 22 min
Like sands through the hourglass, our four-part series on Watchmen continues with a look at issues #7-9 of the groundbreaking comic series written by Alan Moore, drawn by Dave Gibbons, and published by DC Comics! As the world marches closer to the brink of nuclear war, Dan Drieberg and Laurie Juspeczyk become lovers. They also defy the nation’s ban on costumed heroes and rescue the residents of a burning building. Determined to find out who’s killing other masked adventurers, Nite Owl hatches a ...
May 28, 2019•1 hr 14 min
Like clockwork, our four-part gaze into the abyss of Watchmen continues as we analyze the hidden meanings of the inkblots contained in issues #4-6, written by Alan Moore, drawn by Dave Gibbons, published by DC Comics! Alone on Mars, Dr. Manhattan examines his past, jumping back and forth through time as he recalls the accident that gave him his godlike powers. Back on an Earth growing increasingly fearful of atomic conflict, a homeless Laurie Juspeczyk moves in with lovestruck Dan Dreiberg and A...
May 15, 2019•1 hr 7 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin start the clock, kicking off a four-part exploration of one of the most acclaimed comic book series of all time with a look at Watchmen #1-3, written by Alan Moore, drawn by Dave Gibbons, and published by DC Comics! In an alternate-reality version of 1985, a man named Edward Blake is thrown to his death from his penthouse apartment. Investigating this Manhattan murder mystery, the faceless vigilante known as Rorschach discovers that Blake was once the government-s...
May 01, 2019•1 hr 22 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin mark the 1,000th issue of Detective Comics and the 80th birthday of Batman with a look back at three early milestones in the career of DC Comics’ mega-popular Caped Crusader—beginning with his first appearance (as “The Bat-Man”) in Detective Comics #27 from 1939! From there, it’s on to the world’s best-known origin story from 1939’s Detective Comics #33! And last but not least, since a snarling Dark Knight Detective is only as good as his anarchic arch-enemy, it’s...
Apr 17, 2019•53 min
In this episode, a week ahead of the April 12 debut of the Hellboy movie, Curt and Kevin awaken ancient spirits to explore the origin of everyone’s favorite wisecracking monster-hunter in 1994’s Hellboy: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola and John Byrne, published by Dark Horse Comics! During World War II, the Russian psychic Rasputin conjures an otherdimensional being to help the Nazi war effort, resulting in the appearance of a young demon boy among Allied forces. Nearly 50 years later, that ...
Apr 03, 2019•50 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin wrap up their series on comics’ Captains Marvel (and prepare for the April 5 release of Shazam! ) with a look at the Big Red Cheese himself , the original Captain Marvel, aka Shazam, in 1940’s Whiz Comics #2 and 2007’s Shazam! The Monster Society of Evil, written and drawn by Jeff Smith and published by DC Comics! In Bill Parker and C.C. Beck’s charming origin story, homeless young orphan Billy Batson boards a crazy train to the subterranean lair of an ancient wiz...
Mar 20, 2019•1 hr 14 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin look toward the March 8 debut of Captain Marvel with a look at two key stories featuring Carol Danvers: In Pursuit of Flight (Captain Marvel Vol. 7, #1-6) and 1977’s Ms. Marvel #1, published by Marvel Comics! The former Air Force pilot has come a long way since her first outing as a superhero, which sees her flying into action against the backdrop of the women’s liberation movement to … save bigoted magazine publisher J. Jonah Jameson??! Thirty-five years later, w...
Mar 06, 2019•1 hr 5 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin prepare for the March 8 debut of Captain Marvel with the first of two episodes on Marvel Comics characters with that name! First up: the Kree warrior Mar-Vell, as seen in The Thanos War from Captain Marvel Vol. 1, #27-33! This Captain Marvel was an alien soldier who became a superheroic protector of Earth in order to capitalize on a lapsed trademark. In these issues from 1973 and 74, writer and artist Jim Starlin made the character more than just a savvy bit of br...
Feb 20, 2019•1 hr 20 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin prepare for the Feb. 15 debut of The Umbrella Academy on Netflix with a look at The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá, published by Dark Horse Comics! Brimming with inventive energy, this engaging miniseries follows a group of extraordinary children—each born to women showing no signs of pregnancy on the same night—adopted by inventor Sir Reginald Hargreeves, who grooms them to save the world. Decades later, these superpowered sibling...
Feb 06, 2019•1 hr 10 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin brave the fire-pits of Apokalips to discuss one of the most critically acclaimed series of the year, Mister Miracle #1-12 by Tom King and Mitch Gerads, published by DC Comics! Something is wrong with Scott Free, the New God who is also the celebrity escape artist known as Mister Miracle. Following a failed suicide attempt, his perception is plagued by glitches and he sees things or people that aren’t there. Along with his wife, the warrior Big Barda, he’s called f...
Jan 23, 2019•1 hr 5 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin take a break from graphic novels and caped crusaders for a look at two clever, contemporary comic strips … the webcomic xkcd and cartoonist Olivia Jaimes’ take on the newspaper comic strip Nancy ! Created by Ernie Bushmiller, the original Nancy was hailed as a pinnacle of comic-strip architecture. When the pseudonymous Olivia Jaimes took the reins in April of last year, she gave it a fresh sensibility that has revitalized the 80-year-old strip and drawn rave revie...
Jan 09, 2019•1 hr 17 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin discuss the graphic novel that inspired one of Curt’s favorite movies of the year: The Death of Stalin, by Fabien Nury and Thierry Robin, published by Titan Comics! In this satirical account based on actual events, Joseph Stalin, head of the Soviet Union, collapses from a severe stroke in February of 1953, setting off a chain of events that threatens to throw the socialist state into chaos as the members of the Soviet Central Committee bicker about what course of ...
Dec 26, 2018•1 hr 4 min
In this special crossover episode, Curt and Kevin welcome Chris Jordan, Lyric Eschoe and Kenneth Franklin of VOX ATL to discuss the new animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse! (Be advised: Spoilers are discussed.) Topics discussed in this episode include the cultural importance of Miles Morales , the film’s exciting visual aesthetic, Michael B. Jordan in Fantastic Four, the YA novel Miles Morales: Spider-Man by Jason Reynolds, the legacy of social activism in comics, and the idea that “...
Dec 19, 2018•43 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin take the plunge with a discussion of “nobody’s favorite superhero,” Aquaman! First up, they plumb the depths of the seafaring sentinel’s first appearance in 1941’s More Fun Comics #73! Can this freshman warrior of the waves sink the dastardly plans of a Nazi submarine crew? Then, it’s a deep dive into the character’s 2011 reboot from Aquaman Vol. 7, as DC’s defender of the deep goes toe to webbed foot with the man-eating menace of … the Trench! When these sharp-to...
Dec 05, 2018•1 hr 13 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin discuss another graphic novel that has taken on a new level of relevance in today’s political landscape: the first volume of Marjane Satrapi’s comics autobiography Persepolis. It’s an engrossing and eye-opening account of the author’s childhood in the late 70s and early 80s, as she comes of age against the backdrop of the Islamic Revolution and a subsequent war with Iraq—seismic events that placed her family in danger and took the lives of friends and loved ones i...
Nov 21, 2018•1 hr 2 min
It’s Election Day in the U.S., and we’re marking the occasion by casting our ballots for a lesser-known gem: Shaun Tan’s wordless 2006 graphic novel The Arrival. Set in a world similar to but slightly different from our own, this vividly imagined and beautifully illustrated tale traces one man’s journey from his menacing homeland to a strange and fantastic new world. Along the way, he meets other immigrants who share their stories of hope and hardship. Can our protagonist navigate this wondrous ...
Nov 06, 2018•59 min
In this episode, Curt and Kevin are off to never-never land as they conclude a look at game-changing DC horror comics with a discussion of The Sandman: Preludes & Nocturnes, collecting issues #1-8 of the Sandman by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg and Malcolm Jones III, published by DC Comics! When an ambitious magician attempts to capture Death, he instead ends up Runnin’ Down a Dream … that is, Dream, aka Morpheus, King of Dreams! When a weakened Morpheus finally escapes decades la...
Oct 24, 2018•1 hr 23 min
