This week, the Pals talk about the possibility of Black Panther getting an Oscar nomination for best picture and whether or not that's meaningful, the end of Tom Taylor's successful Injustice series, and some of the major occurrences at Marvel and DC that have resulted in controversy, and our takes on those issues.

00:04:10 - Random Question of the Week

00:15:20 - Pals Pulls:

Marco - Bone Parish #2, New World #2

Pete - Lex Luthor Porky Pig Special #1

Sean - Catwoman Tweety and Sylvester Special #1

News:

00:26:03 - Marvel Studios Pushing For Black Panther Best Picture Nod:

https://comicbook.com/marvel/2018/08/23/black-panther-academy-awards-oscar-campaign/

00:39:22 - Marvel Resurrecting Original Defenders Team for Miniseries:

https://comicbook.com/marvel/2018/08/24/marvel-comics-defenders-hulk-namor-silver-surfer-dr-strange/

00:43:43 - RiRi Williams Getting Solo Title:

https://www.newsarama.com/41439-new-riri-williams-ironheart-ongoing-launches-this-fall.html

00:58:12 - Walmart Partners With Kobo to Launch Digital Books Serivce:

https://www.newsarama.com/41501-walmart-gets-in-digital-comics-market.html

01:06:37 - IDW President and Publisher Under Fire:

https://comicbook.com/comics/2018/08/21/lisa-bloom-hired-as-lawyer-for-case-against-idw-president-publis/

01:16:57 - Tom Taylor's Injustice Series Coming to an End:

https://comicbook.com/dc/2018/08/24/tom-taylor-posts-heartfelt-goodbye-to-injustice-comic/

01:21:16 - Bryan Hill Writing New Batman and the Outsiders Comic:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2018/08/22/a-ferrari-test-drive-hate-groups-message-boards-bryan-edward-hill-goes-to-extremes-to-find-his-comic-characters/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.11230499c639

01:25:14 - Main Topic:

Marvel and DC have both come under fire recently over controversial situations occurring in their books. We examine each situation and answer the age old question: should comic books reflect the real world, or should they be a safe haven for all people to escape reality?

Champions #24 to Deal With Gun Violence in Schools:

https://www.newsarama.com/41416-marvel-notifies-retailers-of-school-shooting-story-in-champions-24.html

Fans Upset Over Batman Possibly Being Revealed As Atheist:

https://comicbook.com/dc/2018/08/16/is-batman-atheist-dc-comics/

Outrage Over Bendis' Use of 'Autistic' as Slur In Action Comics #1002:

https://www.cbr.com/action-comics-autism-criticism-bendis-response/

The Comics Pals is a weekly comic book podcast where a group of comic book journalists and friends get together to talk comics.

The Pals:

Sean: twitter.com/SeansSoapbox

Pete: twitter.com/Loud_Pete

Cale: twitter.com/Totointow

Marco: twitter.com/mrmarcoanimoto

Phil: twitter.com/Cyborgbebop