Comics Deserve Better

On the penultimate episode of Comics Deserve Better Season 2, Brian, Darci, and Logan discuss the historical fiction/biography/magical realism comic Papaya Salad by Elisa Macellari. This 2020 release is an Thai/Italian comic about Macellari's great-uncle as he goes from rural Thailand to serving in the military in Europe on the eve of World War II and gives a unique perspective on this historical conflict.

Also, there's the usual news chatter including new Image comics by Guillem March and James Harren, upcoming books Brindille and Chef's Kiss, and Dan Rather working on a graphic novel. There's also a discussion of Grant Morrison doing an origin story for Atomahawk, more R-rated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and finally, an obituary for legendary cartoonist, Richard Corben.

Other comics mentioned on the podcast were Homunculus, Gonzalo, Minotaar, Cry Wolf Girl, Under the Dead Oak Tree, Karmela Krimm, Phonogram: Singles Club, Ronin Island, The Picture of Everything Else, and Reckless.

(Episode art by Elisa Macellari)

The amazing Rebecca Hart joins Logan, Brian, and Darci to chat about the first volume of the queer, British YA comic Breaks by Malin Ryden and Emma Vieceli. They also break down the latest indie comics (or comics adjacent) news like Umbrella Academy's Elliot Page coming out, a new Witchblade creative team, and David Lee Roth's foray into the world of graphic novels (And VR?)

Other comics mentioned on the show, include Porcelain, Legend of Zelda by Hand Drawn Games, Gunnerkrigg Court, Grind Like A Girl, Ind-Xed, Home Sick Pilots, Stillwater, and Gorillaz Almanac.

(Episode art by Emma Vieceli)

After a week off for Thanksgiving, Brian, Darci, and Logan are back to talk about indie comics. They discuss the announcement of the upcoming Houghton Mifflin graphic novel The Worst Ronin, the remastering of Mike Grell's legendary Jon Sable, Freelance series. and maybe dig into yaoi manga a little bit too much.

Then, they chat about Andi Watson's 2020 comic The Book Tour, the black and white saga of an author who can't sell a single copy of his book and keeps getting put up in worse and worse hotels and ends up in a quite conundrum and wrap up things up by mentioning what they're thankful for in 2020. Other comics mentioned on the show include A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, Fake, I Walk with Monsters, Lumberjanes: End of Summer, Trese, and Kill A Man. 

(Episode art by Andi Watson)

On this episode of Comics Deserve Better, Brian and Logan geek out about the darkly comedic, crime comic 4 Kids Walk Into A Bank by Matthew Rosenberg, Tyler Boss, and Thomas Mauer.  They break down the cast of annoying, yet endearing middle school-aged characters, their favorite sequences, and the connections that this Black Mask Studios masterpiece has to other works of pop culture.

Brian and Logan also discuss the latest indie comics news, including Graham Coxon's comic Superstate from Z2, the announcement of Vault's queer monster love story Hollow Heart and Geoff Johns and Gary Frank's creator-owned series Geiger, and a new ordering format from Scout Comics. They also talk about the upcoming Black Hammer: Visions and their dream creators on the miniseries.

Other comics mentioned on the show are We Only Find Them When They're Dead, Getting It Together, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, and 12 Reasons to Die.

(Episode art by Tyler Boss)

On this episode of Comics Deserve Better, Brian, Darci, and Logan take a little undersea voyage and discuss the gorgeous visuals, complex characters, and clever storytelling of Matt Kindt and Sharlene Kindt's Dept. H from Dark Horse Comics. Seriously, this is a beautiful book with one hell of a mystery plot.

They also discuss this week's comics news, including Grant Morrison coming out as non-binary, the announcement of the Luther Strode and Henchgirl TV shows, the podcast Bubble becoming comic, and new books from Steve Skroce (Post Americana) and Mike Mignola (Young Hellboy: The Hidden Land)

Other comics mentioned on the show include Wynd, Origins, Red Atlantis, Planet Paradise, Spice & Wolf, and Ablaze's The Cimmerian.

(Episode art by Matt Kindt)

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Take a break from doom scrolling and listen to some chatter about great indie comics. Brian, Darci, and Logan cover their first Fantagraphics comic and get their true crime and class warfare on as they gush over Maids by Katie Skelly, which tells the story of the infamous Christine and Lea Papin murders.

They also discuss Bad Idea's business strategy, the upcoming release of Archaia's Girlsplaining, Mirka Andolfo's Merciless, and cross over to the music world and preview Mitski's upcoming soundtrack for a Z2 comic. Other comics mentioned on the show include Blue in Green, Shuzo Oshimi's Inside Marai, Heavy, Eniac, Under-Earth, and Happy Hour.

(Episode art by Katie Skelly)

On this week's Comics Deserve Better, Brian, Darci, and Logan dig into These Savage Shores by Ram V, Sumit Kumar, Vittorio Astone, and Aditya Bidikar. It's historical fiction-meets-horror set in 18th century Southeast India and effectively decolonizes the vampire story while also riffing on epistolary novels and nine panel grids. They also chat about the 2020 Ringo Award winners, Copra's new publishing format, and Elsa Charretier's KickStarter.

Other comics mentioned on the show include Dracula Motherf**ker, Shuzo Oshimi's Happiness, Edgar Allan Poe's Snifter of Blood, Sympathy for No Devils, Papaya Salad, and Sophia Yanow's Contradiction

(Episode art by Sumit Kumar)

On this week's Comics Deserve Better, Brian, Darci, and Logan discuss a couple of horror one-shots from Source Point Press. The comics are the maritime scarefest Beyond the Demon, The Sea by Ben Goldsmith, Davy Broyles, and Justin Birch and the almost-silent Gothic horror book Burning Tree by Nuna. They also chat about indie comics news like Heavy Metal's Magma Comix imprint, Abbott 1973, TKO's third wave of graphic novel, and Dark Horse Comics' Halloween sale. Other comics mentioned on the show include Culdesac, Blood on the Tracks, Die, Bitter Root, Death of the Horror Anthology, and Maids.

(Episode art by Nuna)

After a short hiatus, Comics Deserve Better is back and ready to cover your favorite indie comics! In this episode, Brian and Logan interview talented writer/artist Zoe Thorogood about her debut graphic novel, The Impending Blindness of Billie Scott. They chat about everything from color palettes and character designs to the power of art to inspire and even video games! Later, Darci joins the fun to talk about the indie comics Bang!, The Citric Arc, Getting It Together, We Live, Stillwater, and The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys: National Anthem. 

(Episode art by Zoe Thorogood.)

In the Comics Deserve Better Season 1 finale, Brian, Darci, and Logan talk about the end of Stumptown (The TV show) and Lumberjanes as well as Brian Stelfreeze's new creator owned title. They also cover selected stories from the graphic medicine masterpiece, Corpus: A Comic Anthology of Bodily Ailments and talk about their personal connections to them. The episode and season wraps up with previews of Seen: True Stories of Marginalized Trailblazers, Trungles' The Magic Fish, and Steve Orlando and Davide Tinto's Commanders in Crisis plus all of the hosts' favorite comic of the season!

(Episode art by Mark Wang)