Deconstructing Comics Podcast, published every Monday, features comics creator discussion and comics reviews.
A Dark Horse press release touts volume two of Angel Catbird. Seems like a lame superhero comic, but … wait, it’s written by acclaimed novelist Margaret Atwood? Maybe it won’t be lame…? Do novelists make good comics writers? Tim and Mulele discuss.
Also: Yiffing in Hell continues to haunt us… and some listeners weigh in!
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Over the decades, Captain America has changed his name, changed his costume, changed his mission, and been temporarily replaced by others. These changes, and other story developments, have often reflected changes in the national mood, such as post-Watergate malaise or the struggle to understand why 9/11 happened and how the U.S. should respond to it.
In this episode, Emmet O’Cuana talks with Neal Curtis, of the University of Auckland in New Zealand. Neal recently presented the paper “Captain America: Patriotism, Nationalism, Fascism” and is the author of the book “Sovereignty and Superheroes“. He talks here about how Cap has reflected changes in America, from World War II to the age of Trump.
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The unidentified creator of the strip Ned & Annie promises to “bring back funny comics.” Does the comic succeed on those terms? What makes a comic funny (or not)?
Also, responding to a comment on CCP #102 comic “Yiffing in Hell“, Mulele on “Mindgator“, Tim on “To the Batpoles!” and a followup on last Monday’s DCP on how the podcast might evolve.
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After twelve years in prison, Andy meets with Todd, who was his friend but let Andy take the fall for something they did together. Is meeting up with Todd really a good idea? And, how well does this comic build tension toward its climax? Tim and Mulele discuss The Glory by Glenn Møane, Tirso Llaneta, Monte Thompson, and Sean Rinehart.
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What is this podcast? How could it be better? Tim gives his thoughts. What are yours?
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When webcomics creators aren’t creating webcomics, what are they reading? This week we check in with a couple of creators whose work we’ve looked at previously — Victor Edison and Maya Kern — and get their recommendations: Chris Carlier’s “Little in Japan” and G.G. Digi’s “Cucumber Quest“!
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Yiffing in Hell: Episode I – Secret Reunion in Carfax Lodge is a graphic novel by Mexican artist Geladaa. The slogan “A book you will know less about after putting it down than before picking it up” sets off some pretty major alarm bells, but Tim and Mulele forge ahead to investigate.
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SP4RX is Wren McDonald‘s first full-length graphic novel, a cyber-punk story that fondly remembers “the future of the past”. This week Wren talks about world building in SP4RX, his process, work-life balance, and more. Support Deconstructing Comics on Patreon to hear more of this interview!
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An old camera found in a shop in Kathmandu starts up a sometimes exasperating, but ultimately engrossing, story of climbing Mt. Everest, with one of the most satisfying endings you’ll ever see. Kumar (who translated the story into English for Fanfare/Ponent Mon’s edition) and Tim discuss Baku Yumemakura and Jiro Taniguchi’s The Summit of the Gods.
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While we’ve talked before with Austin Tichenor and John Roberson about adapting comics to the stage, we’ve never talked about (or even thought about!) adapting the lives of comics creators to that stage! But Lenny Schwartz has done it, and more than once, writing and directing “Co-Creator” (about Bill Finger and his claim to the Batman legacy) and “The Man Who Saw Snoopy” (about Charles Schulz, of course!). And he has another in the works on Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko.
This week Lenny tells Tim about writing these plays, just how much credit Bob Kane and Stan Lee may actually deserve, how Schulz used Peanuts as his diary, and much more.
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