The Comic Source Podcast

Jace and Rocky chat about some of the independent titles for the week of November 13, 2024. String gives us a look inside the life of a young girl who can see attachments between those that have been intimate with each other or have or will murder someone, just as we as the readers are trying to decide if it is a gift or a curse, she sees a murder string connected to her! The second issue of The Big Burn continues the story of a professional crew trying to steal back their souls from the devil, but the heist may be over before it even gets started when the group is betrayed from within. The debut of Arcbound leans into some familiar science fiction tropes but it's full of action and fun with an infectious art style. Dark Empty Void ramps up both the mystery and the action, but the answers the team exploring the black hole are getting may not be the ones they want. Speaking of mysteries the detective duo in Huge Detective is discovering their mystery may go much deeper than expected, while the heist on the prison planet in Life has also hit a snag when that crew discovers just what has been done to the prisoners incarcerated there and the horror that comes with that discovery. Plus, the debut of G.I. Joe has a shocking final page that has to be seen to be believed. Join us as we talk about all these titles plus a whole lot more!

Jace and Rocky talk about an absolutely incredible week of DC Comics titles for November 13, 1024. Every title is awesome and the guys had a tough time picking their Books of the Week because everything was so good! Absolute Batman picks up right where #1 left off with tons of action and a reminder to leep movign forward it the face of adversity. Over in Black Lightning we get some of the aftermath of Absolute Power and it appears the Jefferson Pierce will be helping those with newfound or changed abilities and the person who needs his helps most may be much closer than he might hope. Gotham By Gaslight: The Kryptonian Age ends on a fantastic cliffhanger. we are just sad we will have to wait until next year to pick up the next part of the story. Batman: Dark Age comes to a conclusion in a surprising way which suits this very different take on Batman perfectly, while the character dynamic between Bruce and Damian is also explored in a different way in the pages of Batman and Robin. Superman continues to fight to get back to the present while being trapped in Krypton's past, but at least he is gaining a new perspective on his parents. In World War V, it feels more than ever like the world is winding down and if the remaining members of the human race and the vampired don't stop fighting soon, there may be nothing left to fight over. Finally, epic action, tons of characters and gorgeous artwork in Green Lantern continue to build to what feels like an immensely impactful cosmic story.

Jace welcomes Global Comix Founder & CEO Chris Carter to the show. Chris talks about the extensive work Global Comix has done behind the scenes to build an extensive catalog and ensure the user interface and reading experience is the best it can be. Chris also discusses the decision to use a subscription based model for GC and how the onbaording process when you create an account helps the system to make recommendations for titles you may enjoy. Plus, a walk through for how to publish your on comics on the platform and how they can be monetized. Join us for this look into the future of digital comics and how GC can be the modern day spinner rack for the comic industry.

Jace is joined by Chris Ryall from Syzygy Publishing to chat about the just released archival art book The Mighty Marvel Calendar Book: A Visual History. It's joins the previously published Origins of Marvel Comics by Stan Lee which is also a look bak in time at a specific period in Marvel Comics history, that itself was looking back on the earliest days of the Marvel Age of comics by reprinting the first appearance of iconic characters like Spider-Man, the Hulk, The Fantatic Four and more. Chris talks about the extras contained in this collection of calendars with never before seen unaltered artwork from legendary creators like Jack Kirby. It's a really fun trip down memory lane so be sure to listen in!

Jace chats with Steve McGarry and Luke McGarry about the Mullets collection. Steve created the strip back in 2003 with fellow cartoonist Rick Stromoski. The comic revolved around the characters Kevin and Scab, two dim-witted friends who shared a trailer and worked at a place called Mildew's Hardware Store, which was owned by Kevin's dad. The strip lasted for a little over a year, but had a cult following. For the first time the entire strip is beign collected, Plus, Luke McGarry creates a brand new Mullets story set in the present day that gives us an idea of what Kevin and Scab are up to now. Check out the campaign to see what options are available and join the campaign.

Jace welcomes Tom King and Ryan Sook to the show to chat about the upcoming Black Canary: Best of the Best. Tom talks about the birht of the project from conversations that are likely familiat to many comic fans, about who would beat who in a fight. Also, in his constant evolution as a writer where he is always searching for new ways to tell a story, he talks about the inherent challenges of having two competitors brawling but not speaking. He solves the problem in a unique way and tells us about that decision. The balance visually between the fight and emotiona relationship scenes was something that Ryan was very aware of and he talks about welcoming that challenge. Also for the first time in his career, he had the entire script for the series in hand before he ever started. This gave him the unique opportunity to visually pace the entire story in a way that isn't possible most of the time. Join us to hear all about the series and be sure to pick up issue #1 in comic shops November 27th. Final Order Cutoff for issue #2 is November 25th.

Jace and Rocky talk about a few of the independent titles for the week of November 6, 2024. The search for clones who can turn into psychopaths at any moment continues in Skin Police, but we meet the clone rebellion who have a much better way to deal with clones "poping". Exit City is the final entry into the Underworld Universe at Mad Cave and it might be the most compelling yet as we are introduced to a pair of detectives with very different tactics in dealing with crime in this futuristic setting. We are told the line between cops and criminals in Exit City is razor thin, we can't wait to see how that plays out. Something is Killing the Children gets a #0 issue that sets the groundwork for the first few arcs of the series that introduced Erica Slaughter. Finally, Kill All Immortals continues it's action-packed run with a shockign cliffhanger that you have to read to believe. The betrayal, emotion and consequences in this book are second to none!

Jace and Rocky take a deep dive into Absolute Superman #1 with a page by page breakdown. The creative team does an incredible job with a Superman who is incredibly true to the core of the characters but everything else feels very fresh. The isolated feel of Kal-El is so different from what we are used to, but makes so much sense with the version of Krypton we see in the first issue. When you couple that with incredible line and color work, you end up with an amazing start to this story. Whether it's the caste society of Krypton or the echoes of that we see in the small mining encampments of Brazil this version of Kal-El is pulling from the earliest days of Superman fighting for those too weak to fight for themselves. An amazing first installment and worthy of the hero that started it all.

Jace and Rocky chat about the DC Comics for the week of November 6, 2024. Batgirl returns to headlining her own title in a new #1 with great action. JSA also has a strong debut issue with a huge cast all getting a chance to shine. There is a stunning final page in Batman, as well as a great cliffhange in Action Comics. Birds of Prey has, what is arguably it's best issue to date and Posion Ivy continues it's excellent run, as well. There are plenty of other great titles this week also, but our choice for Book of the Week is an easy one. Absolute Superman is a masterclass in storytelling from both a narrative and visual standpoint. This is not only the best book of the week, but perhaps of the year. What an incredbile entry into the Absolute Universe. Listen in to get out thoughts in all the DC books this week.

Jace talks with writer Mark London and color artist David Baron about Exit City. This is the third and final title that fits into the Underworld Universe at Mad Cave Studios. The universe is so unique in that each title truly stands on it's own in terms of story and style, how they will come together remains to be seen. Exit City itself is part science fiction and part old school police procedural. We are introduced to Detectives McCormick and Miller who must work together to solve the mystery of a brutal accident, which may not be an accident at all. They come at the job from very different prospectives with very different methods, it will be interesting to see if they can get along, let alone work together.