“Shortcomings” is a relationship story that mixes in issues of race and gender, and features a rather unlikeable character as its protagonist. Some say it’s Adrian Tomine’s masterwork, others say it’s more of the same from him. Tim (battling a cold that’s bestowed on him the voice of a frog) and Kumar (with a mic […]

Mulele & Tim, long overdue to critique some Web comics on the podcast, find a couple of sites chock-full of them. First, The Supervillain, which features five different creators, a different one every weekday — and an opportunity for other artists on the weekend! Then, the comics of John Roberson, who recently gave this podcast […]

You’ve probably heard of Little Lulu. Perhaps you’ve read one of her comics, or maybe you saw the ’90s cartoon series on HBO. But did you know that, in the mid-20th century, Lulu was a merchandising juggernaut? Tim and Kumar discuss the background of the character, and review the Dark Horse book Lulu Takes a […]

Dave Stevens’ The Rocketeer was part of the early ’80s wave of indy comics that brought us American Flagg! and others. It features a ’30s setting, an un-heroically motivated protagonist, and enough cheesecake to fill a bakery. Tim and Kumar evaluate the value of the work 30 years on.

When last we checked in with Jarrett Williams, he was a student at Savannah College of Art & Design, and creator of the Web comic “Lunar Boy”. Since then, he’s graduated from SCAD and signed with Oni Press to publish a pro wrestling graphic novel series, “Super Pro K.O.”!  Tim talks with Jarret about his […]

FLASHBACK! Brandon has nothing but praise for Mark Millar’s Superman: Red Son; Tim’s feelings about the Dark Horse graphic novel The Truth are somewhat less adulatory…(Originally published October 9, 2006)

The Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly recently passed a law that further limits minors’ access to “Any manga, animation, or pictures (but not including real life pictures or footage) that features either sexual or pseudo sexual acts that would be illegal in real life, or sexual or pseudo sexual acts between close relatives whose marriage would be […]

FLASHBACK: THE PULSE-POUNDING ORIGIN! We revisit the very first time, more than five years ago, that Tim, Mulele, and Brandon recorded their comics discussion and put it up on the Net. The episode was originally published Dec. 5, 2005. Topics include the trailer for Superman Returns, Revelations by Paul Jenkins & Humberto Ramos, and Mike […]

Besides being one of the most highly regarded writers in the comics biz, Alan Moore has also, on several occasions, given artsy poetic readings. Two such readings that he gave in the late ’90s were turned into comics by Eddie Campbell. The text alone is dense enough with meaning, but Campbell’s images add yet another […]

FIVE YEARS of “Deconstructing Comics”! We celebrate with a retro lineup (Tim, Mulele, and Brandon, plus Kumar) discussing the topic that we always used to accidentally end up talking about anyway: Star Wars! Specifically, Dark Horse’s Star Wars Tales #20, an issue in which various indie creators took a crack at the Star Wars characters. […]