Comics commentary from our podcast regulars.
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.
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FLASHBACK! Osamu Tezuka is Japan’s “God of Manga.” Ode to Kirihito may be one of the reasons. Tim and Kumar review.
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11/23/09 Magical Mystery Podcast
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.
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11/16/09 Web comics portfolio sites
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.
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11/9/09 What is “good coloring”?
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?
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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!
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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.
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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!
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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!)
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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.
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