The Comics Canon

In this episode, we load up our rucksacks and make a long-overdue trip to the world of bande dessinées—and one of the most popular comics characters of the 20th century—with a look at Tintin in Tibet by Hergé!

When Tintin learns of a plane crash in the Himalayas, a dreamlike vision convinces him that his friend Chang has somehow survived the crash. Joined by his faithful dog Snowy and the irascible Captain Haddock, Tintin travels to Tibet, determined to rescue his friend against impossible odds!

Will our intrepid trio survive a brutal blizzard and the fearsome Abominable Snowman and find Chang before it's too late? And will this beloved boy adventurer make it to that remote Himalayan hideaway known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• The Totally Tintin podcast
• Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of Tintin
• The art of Herge
• Some of our favorite Captain Haddock expletives
• The Black Island
• Touching the Void
• Tintin in Tibet from the Adventures of Tintin animated series
• Bastard by Max de Radiguès

Join us in two weeks as we explore a pivotal moment for one of Marvel Comics' most popular characters with a look at Iron Man: Demon in a Bottle!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we're joined by Bryan Stratton and Robb Milne of the Marvel by the Month podcast to complete our first podcast crossover (you can hear the first part here)—and to discuss Ultimate Comics Spider-Man: Death of Spider-Man, by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley, published by Marvel Comics!

Just when things are looking up for the Peter Parker of Earth-1610, life comes crashing down around him. His arch-nemesis Norman Osborn, the Green Goblin, has escaped from S.H.I.E.L.D. with a handful of superpowered felons. Worse yet, he knows that Parker is Spider-Man and has murder on his mind!

You've seen the title of this episode, so you know things don't end well. The question is, can Spidey protect Aunt May, his friends, and innocent bystanders from Osborn's insane fury? And can this landmark tale ascend to that ultimate universe of four-color finery known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• The Ultimate Comics line
• May Parker's friends, Smith and Wesson
• Amazing Spider-Man #33
• Our Panels of the Week!
• The Death of Captain America
• The Death of Jean DeWolff
• Ultimate Spider-Man Vol. 9: Ultimate Six
• Redshirts by John Scalzi

Join us in two weeks as we discuss the alliterative Tintin in Tibet!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

We celebrate our fifth anniversary by finally tackling a seminal work by one of the biggest names in comics: Smile by Raina Telgemeier, published by Scholastic/Graphix!

In this Eisner Award-winning graphic memoir, sixth-grader Raina suffers a dental injury that upends her entire world, kicking off a years-long succession of visits to various "odontists" involving surgery, braces, headgear and a retainer with fake teeth attached.

And as if all that weren't enough, she also has to deal with middle-school crushes, some toxic friends and the 1989 San Francisco earthquake!

Can Raina overcome her insecurity about her teeth and learn to accept herself? And can this orthodontic odyssey graduate to that ivory league known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• Newspaper comic strips
• M. Forster on plot vs. story
• A cosmic Community coincidence
• No one wants to be judged by who they were in middle school
• Zot! The Complete Black and White Collection
• The Expanse Book 5: Nemesis Games
• Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh
• Lumberjanes Vol. 1: Beware the Kitten Holy

Join us in two weeks as we discuss Ultimate Spider-Man: Death of Spider-Man!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

(Note: Due to some sound issues, we were forced to re-record a couple of spots in the first few minutes of the podcast.)

In this episode, we kick off 2021 with one of the best-reviewed books of 2020: Superman Smashes the Klan by Gene Luen Yang and Gurihiru, published by DC Comics!

Taking inspiration from the 1940s radio serial The Adventures of Superman, this three-issue limited series follows the Chinese-American Lee family as they arrive in Metropolis, where they're met with open arms, but also unintentional microaggressions and racist jokes. They also attract the attention of the Klan of the Fiery Cross, which kicks off a campaign of intimidation to drive them out of town, including cross-burning and kidnapping!

Can young Roberta and Tommy Lee help the Man of Steel stop the Klan before lives are lost? Can Superman make sense of his troubling visions and discover the truth about his alien heritage? And can this book find a home in that promised land known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• Do certain story choices diminish the threat of the Klan?
• The secret origin of Tommy Lee
• Superman vs. Hollywood by Jake Rossen
• The Adventures of Superpup
• Caliban's War and Cibola Burn by James S.A. Corey
• Superman: The Unauthorized Biography by Glen Weldon
• Flash Gordon: On the Planet Mongo by Don Moore and Alex Raymond

Join us in two weeks as we discuss Raina Telgemeier's Eisner Award-winning 2010 graphic novel, Smile!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

Explicit Warning! This episode contains strong language and is recommended for mature listeners.

For the last episode of 2020, we segue seamlessly from Bucky Barnes to another iconic comics antihero, Buddy Bradley, with a discussion of five stories featuring the Bradley clan from Peter Bagge's 1980s anthology Neat Stuff, published by Fantagraphics Books!

Specifically, we dive deep into "Rock 'n' Roll Refugee," "Mom Power," "Sneakin' a Peek at Babs Bradley's Secret Diary," "Hippy House," and "Merry F—king Christmas." (A sixth story that was announced last episode, "You're Not the Boss of Me," was cut for time.)

In these stories and others, Bagge presents a typical '80s suburban family in all its dysfunctional glory, laying the groundwork for the likes of Married ... With Children and The Simpsons.

But Bagge balances the caustic family dynamics with faithful depictions of the teenage experience and explorations of such issues as religion and the plight of the working suburban mom, employing a wonderfully expressive and exaggerated cartooning style influenced by MAD Magazine and Looney Tunes shorts, among others.

Will Buddy ever stop being such an a—hole? And will the Bradleys be invited into that nuclear family known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• The provenance of Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill"
• Kevin's Uncle Ben moment
• The best-ever description of Boone's Farm
• All in the Family
• The Complete Hate
• Our Eltingville Club episode
• Peter Bagge's recent graphic novel biographies
• Peepshow: The Cartoon Diary of Joe Matt

Join us in two weeks as we begin 2021 with one of the best-reviewed comics of 2020: Superman Smashes the Klan!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

For decades, Bucky Barnes sat cooling his heels with Ben Parker in the exclusive club of characters Marvel Comics would never bring back from the dead. But all that changed in 2006, as chronicled in Captain America: Winter Soldier—specifically, Captain America issues 1-6. 8-9, and 11-14—by Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting, Michael Lark and others.

While chasing down a terrorist plot with S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Sharon Carter, Captain America starts having flashbacks to World War II and the heroic death of his teen sidekick, Bucky—who might also be the Soviet assassin known as the Winter Soldier!

Can the Star-Spangled Avenger help this ruthless killing machine remember who he is, while also facing off against Crossbones and a Russian mastermind with a Cosmic Cube? And can this popular and influential story arc score an invite to that Party in the U.S.A. known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• Walking in a Winter Soldierland
• The Avengers' leather jacket era
• The soap opera elements of Winter Soldier
• Comparisons to Captain America: The Winter Soldier (the movie)
• Velvet by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting
• The Expanse series of novels
• Strange Adventures by Tom King, Mitch Gerads and Evan "Doc" Shaner
• Rorschach by Tom King and Jorgé Fornes

Join us in two weeks as we segue seamlessly from hard-hitting superhero action into a collection of stories about the Bradley family from Peter Bagge's 1980s comic Neat Stuff!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we quack the case of everyone's favorite talking waterfowl with a look at Steve Gerber's Howard the Duck! Specifically, his appearances in Giant-Size Man-Thing issues 4-5 and Howard the Duck (Vol. 1), issues 1,2,3, and 5, published by Marvel Comics!

Trapped in a world he never made, this irascible, cigar-chomping mallard became a breakout star following his debut in Man-Thing #1 and went on to star in his own series, known for its biting satire (and for having him often appear as a parody of fellow Marvel Comics characters).

Can our fowl-tempered philosopher prevail against such absurd antagonists as Pro-Rata, Turnip-Man, Count Macho and the undead menace of Bessie the Hellcow? And will he take his rightful place among that duck dynasty known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• The Bird Pun Swear Jar
• Milkshake Duck
• Curt's favorite comic book sound effect
• Smokestacks and skyscrapers
• Master C'haaj
• Our Immortal Hulk episode
• Mark Gruenwald
• Dark Avengers Vol. 2: Molecule Man
• Thundarr the Barbarian
• Howard the Duck Vol. 0: What the Duck?

Join us in two weeks as we look ahead to Marvel Studios' 2021 slate of Disney+ shows with a discussion of Captain America: The Winter Soldier!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

Bro! On this episode, comics writer and publisher Carlton Hargro (20th Place Media) returns as we take aim at "the breakout star of the blockbuster Avengers film" with a discussion of Hawkeye (2012), specifically issues 1-5 (as seen in Vol. 1: My Life As a Weapon) and 11 ("Pizza Is My Business"), by Matt Fraction, David Aja and Javier Pulido, published by Marvel Comics!

This charming take on the World's Greatest Marksman deftly balances humor, action, dense plotting and a strong, unifying visual style courtesy of David Aja and the muted color scheme of Matt Hollingsworth.

Can Avenger Clint Barton and his protégé, Kate Bishop (who also goes by Hawkeye) survive encounters with tracksuit-clad mobsters, the Circus of Crime, and a dangerous auto-thieving redhead? Can Clint's pizza-loving canine companion, Lucky, solve the murder of one of Clint's neighbors? And can these stories hit that moving target known as ... The Comics Canon?

In This Episode:

• Save the Cat and Does the Dog Die?
• How is the Circus of Crime still in business?
• Pulp by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips
• Hawkeye: Kate Bishop Vol. 1: Anchor Points by Kelly Thompson, Leonardo Romero and Michael Walsh
• Daredevil Vol. 1 by Mark Waid, Paolo Rivera and Marcos Martin
• 20th Place Media on Instagram

Join us in two weeks as we discuss Steve Gerber's Howard the Duck!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

The second volume of Art Spiegelman's award-winning graphic memoir finds the artist grappling with the success of the first, and questioning his ability to pull off such an ambitious project.

In doing so, he adds another layer to the book's metaphorical conceit of depicting various ethnicities as different animals, and creates a work more reflective and self-aware than its predecessor.

Meanwhile, as Spiegelman's often contentious relationship with his father takes him from the Catskills to Florida and back to New York, Vladek's recollections take him from the horrors of Auschwitz through the end of the war. But although he's finally free of the concentration camp, his trials are far from over.

Recommended in This Episode:

• Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
• Safe Area Gorazde and War's End: Profiles From Bosnia 1995-96, by Joe Sacco

Join us in two weeks as we change course to discuss Hawkeye: My Life as a Weapon, by Matt Fraction and David Aja!

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!

Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel Maus had a profound effect on the public perception of comics as an art form when its first volume, serializing installments that had first appeared in the alternative comics anthology Raw, appeared in 1986.

In it, Spiegelman's conversations with his father, Vladek—background for a comic the artist wants to write—serve as an entryway into the elder Spiegelman's harrowing, matter-of-fact account of his experiences in Poland in the 1930s and 40s, including his eventual arrival at the Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz. In one of the book's most disarming touches, all of its Jewish characters are portrayed as bipedal, clothes-wearing mice, while Germans are depicted as cats, and the non-Jewish people of Poland as pigs.

In this first volume, Vladek paints an increasingly grim portrait of a changing Poland and recounts the various indignities, humiliations and atrocities he and other Jews experienced during the first stages of the Holocaust.

In This Episode:

• Prisoner of the Hell Planet
• The Wild Party: The Lost Classic By Joseph Moncure
• Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio
• Our appearance on Marvel by the Month: December 1966

Join us in two weeks as our two-parter concludes with a discussion Maus: A Survivor's Tale II: And Here My Troubles Began.

Until then: Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Twitter or Facebook!

And as always, thanks for listening!