Anti-heroes are all the rage, but does everyone who uses that term mean the same thing? John talks with novelist, biographer and University of Vermont English professor Philip Baruth about what makes an anti-hero, and then John and Jim do a deeper dive into antiheroes and comics.

From the vault - and with very poor sound quality - Jim and I are taking a break and reposting the conversation former host Liane Allen and I had with Emmy-winning producer Steve Benen joins about his book The Impostors: How Republicans Quit Governing and Seized American Politics, living with a post-policy Republican Party, and blogging. We talk about Steve's early days as a blogger and podcaster, what's changed about our politics since the Trump presidency, why there is reason for optimism... and since this is OWC, we also talk some sci fi and comics.

No podcast purporting to cover all things geek could possibly be complete without a geek science episode! John and Jim are joined by astronomy professor/teacher Jeffrey Adkins to cover the juicy pop science that all sci fi nerds love, from gravity waves to flash mobs, Niven-style! We also save some time to discuss Jeff's non-sci-fi book, The Boy Who Skipped.

Andrew Liptak, a veteran of Gizmodo, Grist, io9, Kirkus Reviews, Pando Daily, Polygon, Slate, The Verge and many many others (seriously) joins us to discuss his book Cosplay: A History: The Builders, Fans, and Makers Who Bring Your Favorite Stories to Life. 

No one else in the sandbox this time. Jim schools John on all the comics he's not reading, John whines about Star Trek, and all is as it should be. Actual guests will return next go-around...

Back in the day, John and former co-host Liane Allen hosted Tim Russ ostensibly to talk about diversity in Star Trek - which we did - before the conversation just kind of went off (and we learned Mr. Russ is a man of strong opinions). We talk telecom policy, the "Jackass" Party, and more... an hour and a half trimmed down to a nice bite-sized half hour.

Three comics geeks drooling over the Netflix Sandman series and comparing it to the comics. What's not to love? Ryan Higgins of the Comics Conspiracy store and podcast joins us.

John and Jim geek out over legendary comics writer John Ostrander who talks to us about his work, his writing process, the artists he gets into a groove with, the treatment of creators, and more more more! Don't miss this one!

Bleeding Cool Editor-in-Chief and lead film critic Kaitlyn Booth joins J&J to discussed the recently-passed 2022 San Diego Comic Con, Warner Brothers' new clear-cut business model (Batgirl, we hardly knew ye), and other stuff too.

Musician and author Jim Infantino joins John and the other Jim to talk about his Wakeful Wanderer series and his life as a musician. We also get into some tales of his uncle, comics legend Carmine Infantino, before digging into Jim's song "The Ballad of Barry Allen." Fun stuff.