The Ayn Rand Simile Or Metaphor Theme Song Annual season continues and concludes here at the Fantasticast. Steve and Andy get to grips with Amazing Spider-Man Annual #4, featuring the latest team-up between the Human Torch and Spider-Man. Memories of Strange Tales Annual #2 are lingering, and with irrelevant villains, forced conflict, and leaps in storytelling logic so vast even Evel Knievel would think twice before leaping across them, there's good reason for these to linger. For, hidden undern...
Apr 26, 2014•58 min
KERPLUNK - Spelt K-E-R-P-L-U-N-K It's annual season once again at the Fantasticast. 1967 served up two annuals featuring members of the Fantastic Four, so to avoid a super-sized episode (and to save Steve's editing muscles), we've split the episode into two. First up for Andy and Steve is Fantastic Four Annual #5. This issue features guest-appearances from almost every friendly face featured in the series (but no Wyatt Wingfoot or Willie Lumpkin). There's also a three-page slice of insanity, pum...
Apr 19, 2014•1 hr 6 min
The Great Latverian Bake-Off! It's muffin week here in the Fantasticast tent. Will Mary Berry be impressed by Victor's blueberry surprise muffins? And will Paul Hollywood survive his criticism of Victor's cake density? Will Steve Lacey, Andy Leyland and returning guest host Seb Patrick find a coherently-plotted story amongst the destruction of the Beehive? When exactly opens the cocoon? And will Stan ever learn to use correct syntax in his story titles? It's the actual first no-really-we're-not-...
Apr 12, 2014•1 hr 12 min
Sgt Fury's Lonely Hearts Club Band Hello, and welcome to our special 75th episode* spectacular. To celebrate 75 episodes* of The Fantasticast, Steve Lacey and Andrew Leyland decided to invite a special guest onto the show. In no way at all was the special guest invited, and at a later date Steve discovered that this was going to be the 75th episode. Oh no. Joining us this week is writer and critic Seb Patrick. A regular contibuter to Den of Geek and Film4.com, Seb is one half of the writing team...
Apr 05, 2014•1 hr 19 min
Definitely Not Not Brand Echh! It's really not. What it is, though, is the 74th episode of The Fantasticast, hosted by Steve Lacey and Andrew Leyland. This week we're looking at the first physical appearance of the Kree in the Marvel Universe, as both the Supreme Intelligence and Ronan The Accuser make their debut appearances in the Marvel Universe. Hint: One of these is a lot more prominent than the other! Yes, it's Fantastic Four #65. We've also dragged show artist Michael Georgiou back for a ...
Mar 29, 2014•1 hr 2 min
Mike Draws Us In With His Synopsis A little twitter-based humour for you there... It's been a while since Steve and Andy invited a guest onto the show, and Fantastic Four #64 seemed like the perfect opportunity to do so. Joining us this week is the writer and artist of Elemental Micah, and the cover artist of this very show, Michael Georgiou. Michael jumps aboard as we gently explore the theories of Erich von Daniken (and by explore, I mean completely neglect to mention). The Kree make their fir...
Mar 22, 2014•1 hr 17 min
BLAST It, I Need A Funny Subtitle Episode #72 of The Fantasticast is here, ready to BLAST you with a BLAST of audio goodness, BLASTing from your speaker/headphones into your non-BLAST-proof ears! BLAST BLAST BLAST! (Have you guessed that this week's villain is BLASTarr yet?) Steve Lacey and Andy Leyland are here to continue guiding you through the Fantastic Four from the very beginning, this week looking at Fantastic Four #63, featuring a mighty team-up between the Sandman and Blastarr. Along th...
Mar 15, 2014•1 hr 10 min
Punch A Submarine To Death It's episode 71 of The Fantasticast and, in a rush to get the episode released so Steve can go watch Monty Python, he forgot to record a pre-titles stinger. So, imagine him singing the theme to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, or something along those lines... This week, Steve and Andy dig into Fantastic Four #62, featuring some terrible peril for Reed, the first appearance of Blastarr, and Triton punching a submarine to death. How could anyone not like this issue? Don't ...
Mar 08, 2014•1 hr 4 min
The summer sun is fading as the year grows old And darker days are drawing near The winter winds will be much colder But The Fantasticast is here! Today on The Fantasticast, Steve and Andy take a look at a powerful solo debut for a long-time Marvel universe villain in Fantastic Four #61. Yes, it's the Sandman, divorced of the Frightful Four and equipped with a great Jack Kirby-designed costume. It's a fast, brutal, action-filled issue that takes the team to and entirely new place... Don't forget...
Mar 01, 2014•1 hr 8 min
After nearly two-and-a-half years, Steve and Andy reach the conclusion of their journey. With their coverage of Fantastic Four #60, they have exhausted the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby issues collected by Marvel in Omnibus form. Today, we clobber our final vagrant. Such sad tidings aside, we also have one of the best fights seen yet in the Fantastic Four as the team go head-to-head with the cosmically-powered Doctor Doom, with the fate of the planet hanging in the balance. All this, and a special appeara...
Feb 22, 2014•59 min
Hello, and welcome to the 68th episode of the show! Your hosts, Steve Lacey and Andy Leyland, are all fired up and ready to look at Fantastic Four #59: Doomsday! First, though, there's the small matter of our Listener Question of the Month, where we asked our listeners to tell us their feel good Fantastic Four reading experiences. Our feedback was limited, but we've gathered it all together anyway. There's also a new Listener Question of the Month for you all to answer... but you'll have to list...
Feb 15, 2014•1 hr 4 min
The Silver Surfer: Imprisoned and drained. Doctor Doom: Enhanced with the power cosmic. The Inhumans: Still trapped. The Fantastic Four: Blissfully unaware of Doom's power, and wilfully ignorant of unusual lightning strikes. Professor Alan Middleton: Still here after an entire week. His family miss him. He's eaten all the cereal and won't go and buy some more. Terrible house guest. Although he did write a synopsis for Fantastic Four #58, which saved Steve and Andy the bother of doing so. Along t...
Feb 08, 2014•1 hr 8 min
So, who like Latverian monarchs? Who likes cosmically-powered ex-world-eater heralds? Who likes surfing? Who would like to see all three combined, and served with a side-salad of granule-based supervillain? And how would you like if such a story were to be covered on the show in the presence of the Cultural Attache to the Embassy of Latveria (or whatever his title is)? We think you all would, which is why Steve and Andy are proud to welcome back to the Fantasticast... Professor Alan Middleton! A...
Feb 01, 2014•1 hr 18 min
It's time to dust off a character whose copyright is about to expire, deliver a resounding beat-down to a litigious creator, and welcome back the original android Human Torch to Marvel Comics. Join Steve Lacey and Andy Leyland as they cover Fantastic Four Annual #4, featuring The Torch That Was, and take a look at the behind-the-scenes goings-on that led to this copyright-retaining revival. Send in your feedback to fantastic4podcast@gmail.com , leave your comments at the libsyn site, or at fanta...
Jan 25, 2014•1 hr 4 min
I'll give you three guesses as to which villain makes a return in this issue, and the other two guesses just don't count. Yes, Klaw is back, and he's shed the meth-addict look for some a classic Kirby onesie, complete with unfortunate highlights around his backside. Fantastic Four #56 is devoted to clearing up the biggest loose end of the Fantastic Four's sojourn to Wakanda. See Sue fail to be silent. See Reed abandon his reasoning and resort to the power of his fists. See... er... something hap...
Jan 18, 2014•58 min
It's our shortest ever episode as Steve and Andy see what happens when the Silver Surfer returns to the lives of the Fantastic Four in issue #55. It's a fantastic issue-long punching match between Ben Grimm and Norrin Rad, with at least one incredibly suspicious tactical decision from the ever-lovin' blue-eyed Thing along the way. Send in your feedback to fantastic4podcast@gmail.com , leave your comments at the libsyn site, or at fantasticflameon.wordpress.com . Follow us on twitter, where we ar...
Jan 11, 2014•51 min
Year Three of The Fantasticast is here! If we were Batman, we'd be introducing our kid sidekick right about now... But as we legally can't do that, instead we're going to return to Lee and Kirby following our end-of-year shenanigans. Steve Lacey (20 Minute Longbox, Who True Freaks) and Andy Leyland (Heykids Comics, Who True Freaks) are here to guide you through Fantastic Four #54, featuring the first appearances of Prestor John and the Evil Eye, two bastions of the Marvel Universe who definately...
Jan 04, 2014•1 hr 4 min
Welcome to The World's Silliest Comic Podcast! As our listeners rouse themselves from the annual turkey coma, we head back in time 31 years to celebrate with 20th year of publication of the Fantastic Four with a good old-fashioned roast. Yes, this episode, Steve Lacey and Andrew Leyland present the glorious gag-packed jam issue, Fantastic Four Roast, masterminded by Fred Hembeck. Check out the list of creators: Fred Hembeck, Jim Shooter, Ron Wilson, Jon Byrne, Michael Golden, John Romita Jr, Al ...
Dec 28, 2013•1 hr 10 min
Happy Christmas, and welcome to the first of our two end-of-year special episodes of The Fantasticast. Once again, Steve and Andy are throwing the Lee/Kirby issues out of the window (not literally - we've proved over the past two years just how dangerous hardback collections of these comics can be) and are choosing two issues from across the length and breadth of the 53 years of the Fantastic Four. Andy's selection is up first, and he's chosen 1981's Marvel Two-In-One #74, a Christmas-themed tea...
Dec 22, 2013•1 hr 3 min
No, it's not another origin song - your ears are safe! Instead, it's an origin story, as Stan and Jack tell the tale of the Black Panther, and the tragedy that birthed him. Join Steve Lacey and Andrew Leyland as they take a look at Fantastic Four #53, violent murder, giant red sound elephants, and a chilling comparison with Gotham's greatest hero. Don't forget to answer our Listener Question Of The Month: We want to know your feel-good Fantastic Four reading experiences! Send in your feedback to...
Dec 14, 2013•1 hr 1 min
We've been back in, re-tooled, and fixed the audio. We're back, re-recorded and 100% kinder on your ears than the original episode would have been. This time around, Steve and Andy get to grips with the introduction of the first black superhero, The Black Panther. Will this be a measured and respectful look at tribal life in another country, or will we get caught up in hideously inappopriate and dated stereotypes? The answer lies within. We also launch our new Listener Question Of The Month. if ...
Dec 07, 2013•1 hr 9 min
Hello, and welcome to the 58th episode of the Fantasticast, your guide to the Fantastic Four from the very beginning. Your hosts - Andrew Leyland (Heykids Comics) and Steve Lacey (20 Minute Longbox) are here to guide you through the contents of Fantastic Four #52, featuring the first appearance of the Black Pa- Wait, what? Oh, right, that episode doesn't yet exist, thanks to an unfortunate piece of distortion on Andy's microphone that rendered the recording un-listenable. We'll be doing that nex...
Nov 30, 2013•18 min
This special episode of The Fantasticast statistically has a high chance of something magical happening if you listen to it on the day of release. For Saturday 23rd November is the anniversary of an assassination, the anniversary of a TV show, and more importantly, the first day of the Thought Bubble Comic Convention, which both Andy and Steve are attending. So, as you listen to this episode, we may very well be facing each other, dressed in our Fantasticast t-shirts, and generally being fantast...
Nov 23, 2013•1 hr 5 min
Guided by The Watcher, The Human Torch ventures into sub-space to seek the only weapon useable against Galactus. Meanwhile, cowed by The Punisher, The Thing, Mr Fantastic and The Invisible Girl find themselves powerless against The Destroyer Of Worlds. Only the power of The Silver Surfer can halt Galactus's plans to devour the Earth. Steve and Andy, even more unable to affect the seemingly unstoppable sequence of events, have to satisfy themselves with recording a new episode of The Fantasticast...
Nov 16, 2013•1 hr 8 min
Or, as this episode proves, rather a lot of mistakes, both huge and small. Yes, it's another fill-in show, and we can promise you no singing this time around. Except that we can't really, there will be singing. But what we can give you is a selection of the best openings and outtakes from the first 10 episodes of The Fantasticast for your enjoyment. Steve and Andy will return next week with their coverage of Fantastic Four #50 and the conclusion of the Galactus Trilogy. Send in your feedback to ...
Nov 09, 20130
The Jack Kirby Collector has this to say about page 2 of Fantastic Four #49: "[it's] the exact point when the 1960s super-hero comics peaked." The Encyclopaedia Galactica also covers this subject, going into greater detail about the impact of a second splash-page at the start of the comic, conveying the majesty and scale of the two characters portrayed. The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy simply mentions that as the Earth is not about to be destroyed by a Vogon Constructor Fleet, then the event...
Nov 02, 2013•1 hr 8 min
With real life getting in the way of editing a podcast, Steve has thrown together a brief filler episode to keep you all going for the next seven days. Send in your feedback to fantastic4podcast@gmail.com , leave your comments at the libsyn site, or at fantasticflameon.wordpress.com . Follow us on twitter, where we are @fantasticast
Oct 26, 2013•9 min
MY JOURNEY HAS ENDED THIS PLANET SHALL SUSTAIN ME UNTIL IT HAS BEEN DRAINED OF ALL ELEMENTAL LIFE SO SPEAKS... GALACTUS! With these words, so ends the first part of a three-part story regarded by many as the peak of Marvel's 1960s comics. Steve Lacey and Andy Leyland tackle Fantastic Four #48, wrapping up the opening story in the saga of the Inhumans, and introducing the Silver Surfer and Galactus to the Marvel Universe. 'Nuff said! Send in your feedback to fantastic4podcast@gmail.com , leave yo...
Oct 19, 2013•1 hr 16 min
Sue's Inappropriate Haircut When would be the least-appropriate time to get a haircut? 10 minutes before you're expected to walk up the aisle? Halfway through the Mens 100m Olympic final? Or on board a plane zooming halfway around the world, chasing a myserious super-powered being who has kidnapped another mysterious super-powered being and who may very well turn against mankind? Well, the Fantasticast is here to reveal this answer. Steve and Andy get to grips with Fantastic Four #47, as the sag...
Oct 12, 2013•59 min
Who Seeks The Seeker? Hello and welcome to the 52nd episode of The Fantasticast. There are now enough episodes for you to listen to one a week for an entire year. But it's not just about obvious and underwhelming numerical facts! This time around, Andy's got a cold, and Steve's taken advantage of that to create the most revolting episode introduction yet. We're covering Fantastic Four #46 (in Andy's case, in a liberal dose of snot), as the Inhuman saga heats up and we get to see just how much of...
Oct 05, 2013•1 hr
