Category: Comics commentary

Comics commentary from our podcast regulars.

#815 Jack Kirby’s “Eternals”, #9-12: Judging books by their covers

Eternals 9-12

Eternals are only human, I guess! In Eternals issues 9-12, many of the Eternals exhibit a segregationist attitude toward the Deviants, and just about everybody assumes Karkas is going to kick the Reject‘s butt in a fight based solely on how they look. Meanwhile, are the Celestials kind, or sadistic? Tim and Emmet discuss Jack Kirby‘s statements on prejudice, as well as a shocking turn of events for a group of Soviet generals, pioneering the concept of dozens of superpowered beings in costumes all hanging out together, and… exclamation points!

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#134 “The R. Crumb Handbook”

Crumb HandbookFLASHBACK! A then-recent R. Crumb compilation is reviewed by a Crumb connoisseur (Kumar) and a Crumb newbie (Tim). The book features Crumb at his sweetest and his most shocking. But can this (or any book) claim to be the perfect Crumb compilation? (Originally published June 30, 2008.)

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Critiquing Comics #238: “Jane Jet” and “The Fog Within”

Once again we take a look at some comics submitted by their creators; we talk about what we liked about them and what could have been better.
Jane Jet
Jane Jet book 1: Nuclear Shadows, by writer Amal Desai and artist Paul Essenson, recalls Dave Stevens’ Rocketeer — the art, the jet-pack concept, the time period — but it deals with a woman getting out of an abusive relationship. Tim and Jason critique.

The Fog Within

The Fog Within, by writer Sean Wood and artist Deivid Deon, is a post-apocalyptic science fiction story, which… might have a few too many story elements. Tim and Adam discuss issues 1 and 2.

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#591 “Promethea”: A mind-bending, life-changing comic

PrometheaFLASHBACK! While Alan Moore and J.H. Williams’ Promethea, published from 1999 to 2005, is not one of Moore’s most remembered works, it’s not because the author wasn’t at the top of his game. Kumar and Emmet find it to be entrancing, even if you don’t buy into the various magical and spiritual elements that Moore built into it.

Also, inevitably, the incorporation of Promethea and other Moore creations into the DC Universe comes up; is it really just a business decision, or is the publisher singling out Moore’s work out of spite? (Originally published April 30, 2018.)

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#296 “Little Orphan Annie”

Little Orphan Annie

FLASHBACK! Harold Gray’s Little Orphan Annie debuted in 1924 and was a big success. FDR having not yet turned him against organized labor, Gray shows hardworking Annie going on strike in one of her many jobs. Tim and Kumar discuss the ’20s strips, their strengths and idiosyncrasies (one strip=one day?!), and how Gray’s outlook changed later. In observance of the strip’s 100th anniversary, we re-present this episode! (Originally published September 26, 2011.)

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#598 Dylan Horrocks looks back at “Hicksville”

Hicksville

FLASHBACK! Twenty years after the first collection of Hicksville was released, creator Dylan Horrocks talks to Emmet about how the comic looks to him now. Some of the work’s commentary on the comics industry turned out to presage subsequent developments, and in some cases he ended up not going far enough! Also, his source for a Jack Kirby quote that many experts were unaware of; the public’s misinterpretation of the term “graphic novel”; the explosion of female and minority comics creators, especially outside of the Big Two; and more. (This episode was originally published on July 2, 2018.)

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#814 Jack Kirby’s “Eternals” 5-8: As wacky as they wanna be

Eternals

Reading the original Jack Kirby iteration of The Eternals shows that the MCU movie based on the title was rather dour, where Kirby’s version veers into wackiness! Sersi shows quite the sense of humor. SHIELD agents appear who just can’t seem to accept that they can’t get the upper hand on giant space gods! People are broken into atoms, and then reconstituted, alive! Tim and Emmet continue their look at Kirby’s 1970s work with Eternals 5-8!

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#813 “Cross Game”: Baseball manga that’s not about baseball (much)

Cross Game

Mitsuru Adachi’s Cross Game is a baseball manga for people who don’t care about baseball. A tragedy early in the story helps to shape the narrative, but there’s also a good dose of unexpected comedy, and sequences that really make us want to cheer for Ko and his friends as they work toward the goal of reaching the high school baseball championship. Kumar at last succeeds at getting this one on the podcast schedule, and Tim is happy to come along.

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#811 “Blood of the Virgin”: About much more than filmmaking

Blood of the Virgin

On the surface, Sammy Harkham’s Blood of the Virgin is about an editor of b-movies in 1970s L.A. who has greater artistic aspirations, but it’s also rich with unexpected explorations of character and narrative approaches, themes about the creative process, responsibility, and being an immigrant, and Harkham’s best art and writing to date. Over a decade in the making, the book was finally released in a collected volume last year, and the work shows. Matt E. and Kumar can’t help but heap praise on it.

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#810 “Batman/Dylan Dog”: Dark Knight meets Nightmare Investigator

Batman/Dylan Dog

Batman meets Italy’s humorous horror icon Dylan Dog in a beautiful three-issue series, originally published in Italian and recently released in English from DC. Tim and Emmet could recommend it on the art alone, but the story gives us a lot to discuss as well, including very rich conversations between characters and an interesting take on the Caped Crusader.

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