Visual censorship comparisons after the jump (NSFW but probably safe for Japanese kids):

For this episode I read two different versions of DragonBall — the original floppies in CBR format and the slightly-larger-than-usual “White Book” edition.

Floppy Cover

White Book cover

I had initially read online that the White editions were the most uncensored version, so I bought Volume 1. After further reading, I discovered that this was actually the complete opposite: the White Books are the most censored version of Dragon Ball up until Volume 3. Starting with Volume 4, they started putting a “Ages 13 and Up” label on the front, and this series then becomes the mosst UNcensored version available. My understanding is that editions AFTER the White Book series returned to being censored again to various degrees, with almost no two editions the same. Note the DRAGON BALL Z cross-promotion on the cover of the White edition — as we discuss in the episode, I suspect fear of the mass TV audience is what all the edits in this edition.

Here is a sampling. (It’s been several years since I read them in Japanese, so I can’t speak to changes in the floppy editions from the Japanese originals.) I apologize in advance for the sloppiness of my scans.

A dialog change:

Another dialog change here. Is the word “shorts” really that suggestive?! Isn’t the word “studly” by connotation even more suggestive?

Nudity change:

Also, in the White edition, Goku’s privates are covered up by the towel in this scene:

Another nudity edit here. This time, Bulma’s breasts are covered with reflection in the glass. I believe I have also seen another version where she is instead covered by suds.

Also, how does Bulma’s pose make any sense in this edit? (Notice the art touch-up as well.)

All of Goku’s “pat-pats” to check for male genitals have been re-drawn and are referred to as “staring”:

Two key (and hilarious) panels completely removed:

The VERY racy “bra size” gag (the edit makes Oolong’s puff-puff gesture nonsensical):

Finally, a non-sexual penis reference. I find this one problematic because it avoids the hilarity of Goku still not understanding that women do not have penises:

What I find slightly odd about all this is that Toriyama refused to allow his work to be flipped (left-to-right reading) for Western audiences, resulting in the unprecedented first non-flipped manga in North America. And yet, he seemed to have no issues with them editing the artwork for other purposes.

Kumar

Harvey Pekar, author of “American Splendor,” died recently at age 70. A remembrance of some of his work.

San Diego Comic-Con is over for another year. What are some things that we WISH would have been announced there?

• James Stanley (“Part Time Shuffle”)
• Elan Trinidad (“God TM”)
• Mike Luoma (“Everybody Lies“, “Vatican Assassin“)

Also: Farewell to Al Williamson.

Links, links, and more links:

• A new beginning for the black superhero?
• Why we need minority heroes in superhero comics
• The five most unintentionally offensive comic book characters (featuring racial separatist Tyroc, black Lois Lane, and “pimp” Falcon)
• Yellowface: A Story in Pictures
• Why Ebony White isn’t Sassy
• Top 12 Latin Superheroes
• Black Racer
• Black Panther
• Is Mark Millar sexist and racist?
• Why does this insanely racist thing happen in Spider-Man: Fever?
• Idris Elba to play Heimdall in Thor movie
• EC’s controversial 1950s story “Judgement Day”

You’re more responsive than we thought! Tim discovers a cache of listener e-mail he didn’t notice before; he reads the messages and discusses with Mulele.

These sites are referenced:

• Ken Dahl’s site
• James Stanley (“Part Time Shuffle”)
• Elan Trinidad (“God TM”)
• Mike Luoma (“Vatican Assassin“, “Everybody Lies“)

Boom! Studios’ Mr. Stuffins was originally launched as a three-issue miniseries in 2007, but it was left unfinished. It appeared more recently as a completed graphic novel, with the same script (almost) but a different art team, giving us an opportunity to compare the choices that the two different art teams made on presenting the same story.

A comic about the Beatles! Sounds pretty cool, right? Well, The Beatles Experience (from Bluewater Comics) gets praise for presenting the Fab Four within their historical and musical context, and including some interesting anecdotes — but without a speck of sourcing. Worse yet, it veers into straight fiction in a couple of particularly egregious ways…

Finally, Mulele gives Tim some more pointers on his art. See the discussed illustrations below the break…

Since critiquing comics is what we do, Tim goes in search of struggling Web comics creators who need some pointers. Instead, he ends up with two awesome comics! Hanna is not a Boy’s Name is a comedy with horror elements, lively art, and mucho f-bombs; reMIND is a beautifully rendered work about a cat, a babe, and a mysterious lizard-man. Tim and Mulele review.

Plus: Farewell to Frank Frazetta.

FLASHBACK! While we take a week off, enjoy this vintage episode from December 10, 2007!

How comics & movies have influenced each other: what Scott McCloud won’t tell you! Also, digital inking, The Spirit, and All Star Superman! Mulele, Patrick G., Tim, and Tim’s brother Paul discuss.

Interview in Tufts Magazine

Also in this episode, Tim, Mulele, and Kumar discuss the upcoming WeirdCrimeTheater.com and Tim’s ongoing paid drawing gig (see his finished works below the break).

Sketches of the first four drawings can be seen here.

Then an interview with (former) Tokyo resident Ed Siemienkowicz and a discussion of how to develop your own style. Tim continues to struggle with this as he is paid (!) (by an English school) to do some illustrations.

Finally, Mulele has a few words about WordPress plugin ComicPress, and why he’s switching to InkBlot — er, no, sorry, Webcomic 2.1

Doug Jackson, a Tokyo-based business consultant, was involved in adapting Patrick Lencioni’s “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” into a “manga version.” He talks to Tim about the challenges he faced in turning  Lencioni’s “business fable” into a comics script, and the potential for using sequential art as a teaching tool.

Grant Brownrigg of Grantland.net sells usage rights to his business-themed comic strips and one-panel cartoons through the site, for use in everything from newsletters to presentations. He tells Tim about how the business started in 1984 and how it has evolved.

Rashad Doucet, a published children’s book author in his own right, joins Tim in comparing the two adaptations, as well as discussing Yuko Osada‘s “Toto: The Wonderful Adventure” and, uh, “sexy Dorothys“.

Blank creators Brothers of the Silence are publishing the comic in Flash on their site, and as image files on Facebook and several other sites. “Brothers” Ian LeWinter and Don Richmond talk about creating the comic and promoting it via social media sites.

Dale Wilson of DWAP Productions, making his second appearance on this podcast, discusses the ways his company is getting its traditional paper product out in handheld device formats.

Remember “Yon Kuma”? Tim and Mulele reviewed it a year ago. It’s now called “Bear Beater Bunyan,” and it’s an iPhone app. Artist Jorge Munoz talks about the path he and writer Josh Hechinger followed in making the comic available for handhelds.

“Bear Beater Bunyan” is just one of many comics available from Robotcomics.net. Robot Comics Deputy Director Dave Baxter fills us in on the state of the growing comics market for handhelds and how Robot does what it does.

Finally, Tim and Mulele review some of Robot’s output.

Then Mulele critiques Tim’s recent artwork, and discussion of how to draw facial expressions ensues (view full post to see pictures below).

A schoolboy and a schoolgirl. He is sleeping in class. She is trying to wake him up, but he doesn't wake up. The teacher is angry beside him.

A dog is running. Collars and leads are attached to the neck of the dog, but it seems the owner had let go. A boy is chasing the dog from far away. The dog is approaching a little girl, so she is scared.

Two students are sitting side by side in the library. The schoolgirl student is happily reading a book. But the schoolboy is having the book upside down. It seems he can't concentrate. He loves her, so he is excited.

Two boys swam in the river. But there is the "No Swimming" sign by the river. The old man passed by the river, he scold them.

You call these facial expressions?!

Stumptown annotations of Polyp

To explore these questions, Kumar, Mulele, and Tim chose four scripts from the Comicbook Script Archive site, and read them alongside the finished comics that resulted from them: Punisher Max #39, by Garth Ennis and Leandro Fernandez; Y: the Last Man #18, by Brian K. Vaughn and Pia Guerra; Daredevil 28, by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev; and (the ringer of the lot) Batman: the Killing Joke, by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland. Here’s the resulting discussion!

Animation has always drawn on comics as a source of material. But what is involved in adapting a comic to animation? Our resident animation expert Patrik W joins Tim to talk about the special considerations of animation character design, as well as storyboarding and more.

Preston Blair’s classic “Advanced Animation”

Blog of Ren & Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi

Hiromu Arakawa’s Fullmetal Alchemist combines the “steampunk” aesthetic with well-developed characters and a story that explores themes of war and hope, and highlights how any skill and any belief system can be used for good or ill. Tim and newcomer Hiroyuki (our first-ever Japanese guest!) roll up their sleeves, go through the first 19 volumes, and give this manga the scholarly treatment it deserves.

Emily the Strange began life as a character that appeared on merchandise, but lately she’s been fleshed out with a Dark Horse comics series and much more. Tim and Mulele talk about the first two trade paperback collections, and the controversy surrounding her origins.

Also, if you’re looking for a comics-creator “scene”, what’s the best city to go to? Some possibilities.

Steph Godfrey, of San Francisco by way of Perth, Australia, recently made a comic called Panorama, based on a dream she had and how it affected her life. Tim talks to Steph about the background of the comic, and then reviews it with Mulele.

Darrin Bell, creator of the strip Candorville, talks about dealing with the expectations of a newspaper audience (and the thought processes of newspaper editors), the dynamic between characters Lamont and Susan, why he published his new book, Katrina’s Ghost, via Lulu, and, by the way, what’s up with the vampires?!

Osamu Tezuka’s “Apollo’s Song” came out in 1970, about the same time as “Ode to Kirihito”. It explores issues of love, sex, and death. How does this “adult” work of Japan’s God of Comics stack up against the masterwork “Kirihito”? Tim and Kumar review.

FLASHBACK! Osamu Tezuka is Japan’s “God of Manga.” Ode to Kirihito may be one of the reasons. Tim and Kumar review.

Tim and Mulele sit in a restaurant in Shinjuku, turn on the recorder, and see what develops. Topics include: Creator time management, Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto, Hope Larson’s Gray Horses, Caveman Science Fiction, the casting of the Popeye movie, podcast promotion, Mulele’s epiphany about his slow productivity the past three years, and the status of his current comic Elbis.

Another Web comics discussion, this time looking at two artists’ portfolio sites: Jordyn Bochon’s 8et8.net, and Aaron Diaz’s Dresdencodak.com. Both have their awesome points, but neither is perfect. Tim and Mulele weigh the good and not-so-good points.

If you’ve been feeling like mainstream comics coloring is sometimes over-rendered, hyper-realistic, and/or muddy, you’re not alone. Ron Richards has been very vocal in, er, expressing his displeasure with it on the iFanboy podcast. Ron joins Tim and colorist Brian Miller of Hi-Fi Design to discuss the reasons the color turns out that way, problems that colorists should learn to avoid, and, well, just what is “good coloring” anyway?

FLASHBACK! Marvel & DC colorist Brian Miller joins us to talk about how colorists get work in comics, coloring techniques, and more!

In the beginning, there was Hellboy. Well, the beginning of Deconstructing Comics, anyway. Brandon and Mulele are both longtime connoisseurs of Mike Mignola’s work, and in early episodes, the work being discussed was often held up to Hellboy for comparison. And yet, until now, we’ve never actually reviewed Hellboy! Tim and Mulele rectify that by looking at Seed of Destruction, Wake the Devil, and The Conqueror Worm. What really worked in those stories, and what probably could have been better? And what connection does Tim make between Hellboy and the band REM?

Plus: A Mulele update!

Chris Bachlo’s art has long had a compelling style to it, and yet it was sometimes very difficult to decipher just what was happening on some of his pages. This was perhaps particularly pronounced in his work on Steam Punk with Joe Kelly, back at the turn of the millennium. But his recent work on such Marvel titles as Amazing Spider-Man and New Avengers has been completely clear and easy to understand. What did he change to clear things up? And, by the way — will Steam Punk ever be completed?!

Writing erotic comics? What’s so hard about writing a story about sex? Dale Lazarov, writer of gay erotic comics like “Sticky,” “Manly,” and the forthcoming “Nightlife,” talks about the challenges of writing erotic comics, and of dialog-free comics.

Rumiko Takahashi is Japan’s leading female cartoonist and has created series that are loved the world over. Tim and Kumar discuss two of her series: “Ranma 1/2″, about a gender-switching martial arts master, and “Inuyasha”, about a 16th-century demon, a 20th-century high school girl, and a powerful jewel.

A 200th episode extravaganza!

	St. Louis resident Matt Kindt, creator of Super Spy, has been hard at work on several new titles, set at various points in the 20th century. Matt tells us what’s coming up and answers a few questions about Super Spy.
	Tracy Butler, also of St. Louis, shares Matt’s interest in comics set in the past — in particular, St. Louis in the 1920s. Her Web comic Lackadaisycats (now available as a book) is beautifully drawn, interesting, and hilarious.
	Then Tim and Mulele respond to some recent mail from listeners, and Mulele gives his impressions of the Image series Chew!

FLASHBACK! Top Shelf, publisher of Alex Robinson’s Tricked and Box Office Poison, has published another masterpiece: Matt Kindt’s Super Spy! Also: Tripwire magazine’s list of top graphic novels, and an impromptu discussion of Steve Canyon! (Plus: thrill to Tim’s undeveloped editing skills circa 2007!)

Repeatedly collected and published since it went into the public domain, Winsor McCay’s Little Nemo is perhaps the most celebrated comic strip of the early 20th century. Peter Maresca, whose Sunday Press republished all the Nemo strips at their original size a few years back, talks with Tim about what’s good and bad about the strip, and the influence it still has on modern comics.

FLASHBACK! With the 200th episode around the corner, a look back at the 100th episode! Tim interviews Phil Dunlap, creator of the syndicated comic strip Ink Pen: How did he get into syndication? What’s his advice for others who would like to do the same? Listen for the answers!

Disney buys Marvel? Yeah, OK. Macintosh owners Tim, Patrik W, and Mulele discuss the Steve Jobs connection — could this lead to X-men on your iPhone?

If someone said, “What are these ‘comics’ of which you speak? I would like to try some,” what would you hand them? Watchmen? Why not? What might be a better choice?

How are Japanese attitudes toward comics different from those of Americans? Patrik has some interesting insights.

Patrik talks about the comics art exhibition he’s organizing. Also, what we’ve been reading.

The Hunter

Inkdick

Order of the Stick

Snake ‘n’ Bacon

Canadian cartoonist Adrian Raeside is a veteran of editorial cartoons, the comics page (The Other Coast), animation, and children’s books. He talks about all of these and his newest book, Return to Antarctica, in a wide-ranging interview.

Frank Miller produced two of the most influential Batman books ever, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One, within a short period in the mid-’80s. The stories present the end and beginning of Batman’s career, respectively. Tim and Kumar talk about what’s good, and in some cases maybe a bit annoying, about both books.

A review of Web comic Dead Heaven by Chris Steininger leads into a discussion of Tim’s pet peeves about Web comics. Tim’s been reading the pirate manga series One Piece, and Mulele recommends a site centering on print design, that could inspire unusual ways to present your comic.

Many comics have been adapted to movies, but few have tried to reproduce the experience of actually reading a comic. These two did: Warren Beatty’s Dick Tracy, and Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller’s Sin City. Tim, Mulele, Paul, and newcomer Rod discuss. Also: Paul and Mulele give Miller’s The Spirit a quickie review.

John Siuntres was one of the first comics podcasters back in 2005, and he’s been interviewing big names in American comics ever since. Tim chats with him about his background, how he got started with Word Balloon, and the state of mainstream comics.

Whether it’s Old Man Logan, Days of Future Past, or Dr. Doom’s recent hallucination of a utopian future, possible futures and alternate time-lines are fun for both creator and reader. Tim and Patrik talk about alternate timelines (is there one where Dark Reign is finally over?), plus un-rebooting books, and the lack of new heroes challenging the old guard for popularity.

Kazu Kibuishi’s Bolt City Web site is a smorgasbord of awesomeness, featuring the monthly strip Copper, early work Clive Cabbage, first pages of his book Daisy Kutter, and how-tos for working on scanned art in Adobe PhotoShop. Kibuishi is also the editor of a series of anthology comics called Flight. Tim and Mulele review the site and the first volume of Flight.

Though it had a lot of buzz when it first appeared in 1983, Howard Chaykin’s dystopian-future comic American Flagg! had fallen off the radar until recently. Now Image Comics has released two volumes containing the first 14 issues. Tim and Kumar discuss.

What are the good and bad points of collaborating with someone on a comic? What adjustments do writer and artist need to make to each other’s way of working? As a case study in collaboration, Mulele and Kumar discuss the ups and downs of their collaborations on the comics “Full Throttle” and “Weird Crime Theater.”

FLASHBACK! The first time Mulele mentioned his co-creation Weird Crime Theater on the podcast, leading into a discussion of newspaper comic strips.

FLASHBACK! Discussion of Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis (part 1), Ghost World by Daniel Clowes, and the second Fear Agent trade paperback, by Rick Remender and Jerome Opena — with side discussions on Taro Gomi, Lynda Barry, and the reasons why Tim’s comic was rejected by a publisher. Tim and Brandon discuss.

Our friend Jarrett Williams returns to talk about his experiences at the Savannah College of Art and Design, including the SEQALAB podcast and his Web comic, Lunar Boy. Also, a talk with Mulele about the conclusion of his project for Kodansha, and what he plans to focus on next…

While he’s never stopped working, Steve Ditko’s most celebrated work was done decades ago, and he’s slammed the door on many opportunities for further success. If sticking to your principles prevents fame and fortune, is your career a failure or a success? Tim and Paul discuss the Fantagraphics coffee table biography “Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko” by Blake Bell.

So many comics on the Web. What’s worth reading and what isn’t? Tim and Mulele critique four Web comics, pointing out what’s good and bad about each — from a reader’s perspective, as well as a creator’s.

Not at all in time for Earth Day, Tim talks to three creators of environmentally-themed comics: Alex Hallatt of “Arctic Circle“; Signe Wilkinson of “Family Tree“; and Dan Wright of “Rustle the Leaf“. How do these creators avoid the pitfall of coming off as ‘preachy’? How can an artist’s creation process be made more environmentally friendly? The answers to these questions and much more!

Masamune Shirow’s future tale “Ghost in the Shell” reads like someone’s private comic that wasn’t meant for public consumption. Tim, Mulele, and Kumar find that they can’t so much consume the story as gag on it uncomprehendingly… although the pictures are nice.

FLASHBACK! The Four Immigrants Manga is the story of Japanese immigrants in early 20th century San Francisco. Tim and Kumar review.

The Four Immigrants Manga : A Japanese Experience in San Francisco, 1904-1924

STORM, the fourth (at least!) member of the San Francisco comics cooperative Writers Old Fashioned to appear on this podcast, talks about his comic Princess Witch Boy, recent West Coast conventions, LGBT comics, and why Ororo Munroe trumps Scott Summers any day of the week…

FLASHBACK! Our first encounter with San Francisco’s “Writer’s Old Fashioned” comics cooperative was when Tim called first-time graphic novelist Matt Silady “lazy” during a review of his book. Matt e-mailed us in protest, and we had him on the show!

Tokyo writer John Paul Catton talks about his experience with Marvel UK in the ‘80s, his current Web comic project with Phill Evans, and why it’s a mistake to make comics scripts imitate TV.

FLASHBACK! Tim reads some postings from a comics writers’ e-mail list about building a new world for your characters. One poster recommends reading Joseph Campbell‘s books; another poster can’t stand Joseph Campbell. Brandon, our resident Joseph Campbell expert, critiques that poster’s critiques.

Up-and-coming writer Jason Miller talks about the sci-fi/mystery graphic novels he has written with his brother Ian, to be published by Arcana Comics.

Tim and Mulele (and an unexpected special guest!) report from the movie theater before and after seeing Zach Snyder’s “The Watchmen”, then talk on Skype a week later about how a cerebral comic became an action movie, as well as reviewing the reviews of the movie by half a dozen other podcasts!

FLASHBACK! Tim interviews Dale Wilson of DWAP Productions, an indy publisher in Los Angeles that has published some work by one Mulele Jarvis…

After a long time away, Brandon is back to discuss with Tim the travels of Guy Delisle (“The Burma Chronicles”) and K. Thor Jensen (“Red Eye, Black Eye”).

FLASHBACK! Way, way back to the early days of the podcast: three guys sitting in a room, talking comics. Tim, Mulele, and Brandon discuss Steven T. Seagle and Teddy Kristiansen’s “It’s a Bird”, and Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale’s “Spider-man Blue” and “Hulk Gray”. (Regarding sound quality: in those days, I purposely downgraded the sound to keep the MP3 file small!)

Longtime comics and Star Trek-novel writer Peter David talks about being a writer, balancing the conflicting expectations of the mainstream comics audience, and why he’s learned to have NO expectations whatsoever of any movie before he actually sees it!

FLASHBACK! Re-presenting Tim’s interview with Alex Robinson. He talks about Box Office Poison, Tricked, Lower Regions, and the then-upcoming Too Cool To Be Forgotten, as well as the difficulty of working toward a deadline that’s months away…!

Is the hysteria over Diamond’s sales $1000 sales threshold increase founded? Tim talks to two publishers, a retailer, and a Diamond VP and finds that, while the seas are not always smooth sailing, the ship that is the U.S. comics market does not seem to have too many leaks.

FEATURING:

• Brian Hibbs, Comix Experience, San Francisco
• Gary Groth, Fantagraphics
• Larry Young, AIT/Planet Lar
• Bill Schanes, Diamond Comic Distributors

“Only want 2 see u laughing in the Dark Reign…” Patrik and Tim compare notes on the new Dark Reign status quo, including some of the funnier moments so far.

What are the Fibonacci numbers, and how do they relate to European comic “Blacksad”? Mulele explains it to Tim. Also: the latest on Mulele’s quest to publish a comic in Japan; and what lessons does Tim’s (non-comics) publishing experience have for any creator looking for a publisher?

Tim in Tokyo is joined by Lunar Boy creator Jarrett Williams in Savannah, Georgia, to review Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S.!

Longtime listener Jorge Muñoz sent us some comments on our Meta Episode, and also a link to his Web comic. Tim and Mulele discuss both.

Tim and Mulele review Richard Delgado’s amazing “Hieroglyph”. Also, what is Comics Monkey, and why is it *not* a substitute for Diamond?

Paul Karasik and David Mazzucchelli’s comics version of City of Glass, a 1985 novel by Paul Auster, is an amazing adaptation of an unfilmable novel. Tim and Kumar assess the herculean task of adapting it, in probably the only medium capable of doing so: comics!

Last year, writer Jason McNamara and artist Paige Braddock both appeared on the podcast. At last, Kumar and Tim have gotten ahold of their collaboration, “The Martian Conspiracy,” and they’re here to give their unbiased opinions. PLUS: Win a copy of The Martian Conspiracy, provided by ComicsNOW! Tim explains how to enter the drawing.

Children’s book writer Mo Willems has been found out: he’s actually a comics creator! He talks to Tim about the state of American comics for kids, the effect of his animation background on his approach to creating books, and… just why does that pigeon want to drive a bus, anyway?!

In 2007, B.C. creator Johnny Hart passed on, and his grandson Mason Mastroianni (with the help of other family members and friends) picked up the torch. What’s it like to work on a “legacy strip”? Is there a future in the funny pages anymore, anyway?

Marvel’s 2007 “Omega the Unknown” series by Jonathan Lethem was a “paraphrasing” of a Steve Gerber series from the ’70s. How do the two stack up? What does Lethem’s version have to say about Gerber’s? Tim and Paul compare and contrast the two Omegas.

This week we’ll get the latest on Mulele’s project with the Japanese publisher Kodansha. This has been cooking for two years now. Will a published comic be the final result?

See more panels from The Mindgator

This podcast has changed a lot in three years; where do we go from here? Tim and Mulele try to get conversation started, but we want to hear from YOU!