Category: Podcast

Deconstructing Comics Podcast, published every Monday, features comics creator discussion and comics reviews.

#360 Two Trippy Audio Comics

Jim Woodring doing kids’ books!? That was apparently the thought behind Trosper, a 2001 release from Woodring that came with a Southwest Asia-influenced music CD by Bill Frisell. A baby elephant-like creature runs from things that go bump in the night. Maurice Sendak would be proud.

Going further back, Daniel Clowes’ early ’90s comedy/nightmare graphic novel Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron also has a musical soundtrack (sold separately), from Victor Banana. The book is a lesson in controlled chaos; the CD, a commentary on it. Tim and Kevin explore the audible and visual aspects of both these comics.

PLUS: Ritz Crackers! Jimmy Durante! The Brady Bunch! This one has it ALL! (including spoilers!)

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#359 Two Kinds of Monsters

What do you do when your town monster just doesn’t bring the scary? Hire someone to get the big red guy out of his funk. Rob Harrell breaks out of the funny pages with his first graphic novel, Monster on the Hill; Tim & Mulele review.

Meanwhile, much scarier monsters lurk in the background of Justin Randall’s Changing Ways, Book 2. Tim & Brandon take a look and compare with Book 1. The monsters are scary, but is the book?

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#358 Carl Barks, “The Good Duck Artist”

From 1942 to 1966, many of the Donald Duck comic books published by Dell Comics were written and drawn by Carl Barks. Like most comic book creators at the time, his name was unknown; the Duck comics were all credited to Walt Disney. Fans only knew that his work was by the GOOD duck artist. Barks created Scrooge McDuck and many of the other duck characters that are taken for granted as part of Disney canon today.

What made Barks the standout Duck artist? Were they meant to be satirical, or simply enjoyable stories? Tim, Kumar, and Tom Spurgeon discuss Barks’ work, particularly the Fantagraphics volume “Lost in the Andes.”

Comics Journal review of Lost in the Andes

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#357 Expanding Comics’ Audience, pt 3: Newspaper strips

Comics that you buy in comics shops or bookstores are facing enough business challenges, but how about newspaper comics? Their traditional delivery system is dying out, with many printed papers ceasing publication. The comic strip faces a number of challenges, but there are positive trends as well. How are Web comics and other new technology changing the game? This week, Tim talks newspaper(-style) strips with Tom Racine, host of the Tall Tale Radio podcast!

Stephan Pastis interview (gigaom.com)

 

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#356 On Backgrounds

Drawing backgrounds is seldom the most enjoyable part of drawing a comic. Many artists dislike it, and might try to give it short shrift. But it’s an important part of telling your story, so you’ve got to do it right. Tim and Mulele discuss some important points to keep in mind when drawing your backgrounds — and a few things to avoid.

Sean Gordon Murphy’s background tips

Drawinghowtodraw.com (beware of the popup ad!)

idrawdigital.com: backgrounds tutorial

Schweizercomics: tangents

The Mindgator: invisible Coke machine in last panel

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#355 Give ’em enough (Eu)rope: “Nemi” and “Blacksad”

Nemi and Blacksad

In more than seven years of doing this podcast, our coverage of European comics has been, um… underwhelming. This week, Tim tries to change that, discussing two European comics with European co-reviewers!

First, Nemi, the overzealous goth girl from Norway, whose eponymous strip by Lise Myhre has become popular in numerous European countries. Norwegian Line Olsson (of the Boston Comics Roundtable) joins Tim to discuss.

Then, the second Blacksad installment, “Arctic Nation”, by animators Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido. Is racism the point of this noirish “furry” tale, or is it just the framing device for something else? Eugenia Koumaki in Athens co-reviews with Tim.

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#354 Expanding comics’ audience, pt 2: Manga

The 2000s have been thought of as a “manga boom” in the US. Well, that’s true in comparison to the ’90s, but North American manga sales have never come close to the numbers in Japan. Sales of manga — and books in general — have dropped the past few years, but there are signs that the market has stabilized.

Deb Aoki, who writes about manga for About.com, joins us again this week to discuss the reasons why publishers hesitate to put out new manga titles, why Jmanga died and Manga Reborn’s business model is imperfect, and what bright spots there are for the future.

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#353 Chinese history in comics form

Understanding China through ComicsElectronic publishing has made it possible for anyone, anywhere in the world, to make their work available to millions of people. Chinese graphic designer and sometime comic creator Liu Jing is one of them. He’s using modern technology to put out his comics history of one of the world’s oldest civilizations: Understanding China through Comics. Tim talks to Jing about his book, as well as Chinese comics, copyright enforcement, censorship, and more.

(Thanks to MandMX.com for their help in getting in touch with Jing!)

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#352 “Lulu”: Staging a classic on paper

Many classics have been presented as comics, but Frank Wedekind’s “Lulu” plays have, as far as we know, not made it to the page until now; occasional Deconstructing Comics contributor John Roberson has recently released Book One of his adaptation. He talks to Tim about including the level of sexual frankness Wedekind may have intended, censorship, self-publishing, and more.

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