#237 Web comics from our listeners!

At last the time has come! As we promised a few weeks back, this week Tim, Kumar, and Mulele critique comics by listeners:

#141 “Dr. Slump” and “Cromartie High School”

Dr. SlumpFLASHBACK! In our August 18, 2008 episode, Tim and Kumar discuss gag manga! We cover two hilarious Japanese comics series, “Dr. Slump” by Akira Toriyama, and “Cromartie High School” by Eiji Nonaka.

#231 Comics Translation

Thinking of looking for work as a comics translator? What issues are you likely to face in doing the work? Our very own Kumar, translator of dozens of Japanese comics for Dark Horse, talks to Tim about translating puns, accents, sound effects, song lyrics, and more.

Plus: Farewell to Frank Frazetta.

#229 Thoughts on thought balloons

In a recent interview, Steven King is quoted as saying that a Vertigo editor asked him not to use thought balloons in his work on American Vampire. An article in Comics Comics Mag brought this to our attention, and sparked discussion. Why do some editors now discourage, or even ban, thought balloons — even when the writer is Steven King? Are they perceived as being cheesy, and if so, why? Tim, Kumar, and Mulele discuss. Also: The Walking Dead, Billy Bat, and Gin-Tama!

#226 Hey, Managers! Comics!

Comics are being used increasingly to get messages across visually, even those aimed at the business world.

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 turningĀ  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.

#225 Wizards of Oz… and “Toto” too!

L. Frank Baum’s classic children’s story The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published 109 years ago and still inspires attempts to adapt it to other media. While the 1939 MGM movie tends to define the story in the minds of many, subsequent adaptations do stick closer to the original book than to the movie, including the two we discuss this week: a French version adapted by David Chauvel and Enrique Fernandez (published in English by Image), and Marvel’s recent version, adapted by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young.

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“.

#224 Our Notes on “Death Note”

A bored, punk-dressing god of death and a genius high school boy are the main characters in Death Note, written by Tsugumi Ohba and drawn by Takeshi Obata. The boy, Light Yagami, receives from the god a notebook with which he can kill people simply by writing their names in it. A plot with many twists and turns ensues. Tim and Kumar review — first without spoilers, and then, 38 minutes in, totally and utterly with spoilers.

#213 Fullmetal Alchemist: An in-depth discussion

Fullmetal Alchemist

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.

#208 Apollo’s Song

11/30/09 Apollo’s Song

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.