Deconstructing Comics – Page 41 – A podcast about the craft of comics

Critiquing Comics #133: “The Old Man of the Mountain” and “On Syntaphore”

Old Man of the Mountain issue 1, by Tom Rapka and Ariez Hernandez, includes an execution-style murder and three teens getting brutally, graphically cut to pieces. And yet, somehow it feels like it’s not meant to be a horror series. What is this comic trying to do?

That question goes double for On Syntaphore, by Lion’s Lips, because, while the art is attractive, the story is hard to discern — and even the reason for that isn’t quite clear.

Tim and Mulele discuss both, and also some listener mail, and Mulele’s upcoming trip to the Toronto Comic Arts Festival!

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

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?

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Critiquing Comics #132: “A Light Before the Darkness”, “The Satsuma Rebellion”, and publishing contracts

Tim and Mulele critique a couple of history-based comics:

A Light Before the Darkness by Ken Mora and Cyrus Mescarcia tells the story of an artist named Michelangelo — but no, not that one. It’s about Michelangelo Da Caravaggio Di Merisi, often known simply as “Caravaggio”. Mora seems to have done his homework, but has he given us a reason to buy into his subject?

The Satsuma Rebellion is Sean Michael Wilson and Akiko Shimojima’s retelling of the titular event in Japanese history. We found it interesting — but then, we live in Japan.

ALSO: Mulele’s “PSA” about what to look for when signing (or, perhaps, NOT signing) a contract with a publisher.

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#590 Chris Stevens and “Once Upon a Time Machine”

Chris Stevens, a comics writer and editor who has co-edited two volumes of the anthology series Once Upon a Time Machine (the second volume is newly released) talks with Koom about Frank Miller’s work, Chris’ time with Philadelphia indy publisher Locust Moon, income inequality among comics creators, and of course, some of the stories he’s edited for the anthologies.

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Critiquing Comics #131: “Vengeance, NV” and “Teenage Mutant Ninja Pizza”

A woman with glowing eyes enters a home, tells the cat that she’s there with Kristen. A man is dying after a superhero battle; after he’s recognized, he tells an acquaintance “Don’t tell Kristen.” Question: Who is Kristen!? That’s just one of the many things we have trouble figuring out about Vengeance, Nevada, by BJ Mendelson and Piotr Czaplarski.

One thing we had no trouble figuring out: Daniel Arruda Massa and Nick Marino are on a roll. After wowing us with their irreverent but undeniably skillful Holy F*ck and Holy F*cked, they’re back with Teenage Mutant Ninja Pizza, a comic that totally shouldn’t work, but does. Tim and Mulele open the box and dig in.

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#589 Dorman, Mackie, and McCrea at Toronto Comicon

This week, three interviews that Koom got at Toronto Comicon, in a special two-hour episode!

Dave Dorman is best known for his Star Wars art, as well as other fantasy work, and even some Batman. Here he talks about being one of the first students at the Kubert School, and the lasting friendships he made there with other now-famous names, and about his approach to painting, including doing likenesses.

Howard Mackie entered Marvel in 1984 as an editor, and eventually became the writer on such characters as Ghost Rider, Iron Man, and Spider-Man. He talks about that transition, working with the guys who would later form Image Comics, and what he’s done since leaving Marvel.

John McCrea is best known for his work with Garth Ennis on such works as Troubled Souls, Hitman, and Section 8. What’s it like working with Garth? Why should you avoid doing work that goes against your publisher’s expectations? Why did he set out to do a different kind of comics than the type he’s seemingly best suited for?

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Critiquing Comics #130: “Jynx” and “Dark Soul”

Jynx and Dark Soul

Two manga-influenced titles are up for critique this time. First, in Kyle Fast’s JYNX, a white-furred monkey takes off to find adventure, leaving his guardian in the lurch. Then, organized crime gangs face off in Kitito Minami’s Dark Soul. Tim and Mulele give their opinions and advice.

Check out Mulele’s Kickstarter project!

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#588 We love “HATE”

HATE

Peter Bagge’s HATE was an amazing hit for a ’90s indy comic, outselling some Big Two titles. Tim, Kumar, and Tom Spurgeon talk about some of the amazing aspects of this strip, and discuss whether it’s accurate to classify it as a comic about slackers.

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Critiquing Comics #129: “The Goodes” and “Undergrown”

Tim and Mulele finish up their look at Irrational Comics’ 2018 PITCH page with L.J. Bell’s The Goodes (a superhero/kid-dealing-with-parents’-divorce tale) and Julian Dominguez’ Undergrown (exploring the idea of an earth with no humans on its surface). Irrational Comics gives each writer eight pages to rope readers into his or her tale; did these writers make the best use of the eight pages? Who won this year’s contest?

Also, Mulele fills us in on his new Kickstarter project!

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#587 Science in a comic: Dialogue about “The Dialogues”

This is the story of a very unusual project: a 250-page comic showing people talking about science. Not your cup of tea? Actually, the seeming lack of overlap between “comics people” and “science people” is part of this story. It was one reason this book took nearly two decades from inception to publication.

In this episode, Ryan Haupt joins Tim to review this book, called The Dialogues; then, the book’s author, USC physics professor Clifford V. Johnson, explains the arduous journey of this book, which explains a topic that’s poorly understood by the public via a medium that’s also poorly understood by the public.

Also including some actual science talk, including Ryan’s recommendations for other non-fiction comics about science!

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