If it’s true what they say, that a hero is only as good as their villain, then a superhero is only as good as their rogues gallery. It’s not important whether a hero’s enemies come from another planet to wage war, have recently escaped a mental asylum, or are their own jealous sibling. What matters is that a hero has a diverse and well-stocked stable of villains, adversaries, and recurring antagonists. On this episode, we talk about what it takes to have an exemplary rogues gallery, and we spotlight a few of our favorite unsung examples.

EP58 Green Lanterns of Sector 2814
There’s no real format for the superhero. Sometimes the superhero is an alien escaping from a dying world or a divine being who’s come to Earth to protect humanity from powerful threats it could never hope to defend against. But sometimes the superhero is just a simple galactic beat cop doing their best to maintain peace and order across the stars and spaceways. This episode we concern ourselves with the Green Lantern Corps, specifically those Green Lantern’s who’ve hailed from none other than Space Sector 2814. (That’s Earth!) Whether in brightest day, or blackest night, when the chips are down, these are the Earthborn Green Lanterns that have the will to overcome fear and save the world.

While some superheroes fly to other planets and punch alien warlords with their rocket-powered fist, others patrol the gritty streets of Hell's Kitchen leaping from rooftop to rooftop smacking crime with a billy club. Our Daredevil Deep Dive! For your entertainment and education, we dive into everything you could possibly want to know about the Man Without Fear, his allies, his enemies, and his origins, and we breakdown what simply has to be the only courtroom drama / swashbuckling ninja epic ever conceived.

Holy 54th episode, Batman, this entire episode is dedicated to Robin!  Or more accurately, Robins. The brightly colored half of the Dynamic Duo, more a mantle than any single character, the Boy Wonder has defined what it means to be a superhero sidekick, and what it means to evolve into something more. On this episode, we discuss our favorite young highflying adventurers who have donned the domino mask, followed in the footsteps of the Dark Knight, and risked their lives to keep Gotham safe.

Hello kiddies! Halloween approacheth! 'Tis the season to make mischief, honor the dead, and pay our respects to those morbid and macabre creatures who among other things go bump in the night.   And, as it happens the barrier between horror stories and superhero stories in comic books is as thin and porous as the barrier between the living and the dead on All Hallow's Eve. In our Halloween episode, we examine the ways monsters and horror elements have intersected the world of superheroes. Enjoy this installment, boils, and ghouls…if you dare!

We did it! One year of the FANtom Zone! We have covered so much and you listened! For this episode, we asked our listeners to ask us anything! You guys delivered! Thank you to everyone who made doing this crazy podcast worth it! We love you! 

One of the greatest achievements in comic book adaptation is undoubtedly the creation of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Whether it was keeping the narrative momentum of the original Avengers story arch rocketing forward, or expanding its universe into bold new frontiers and franchises, the MCU's Phase two was as significant and as memorable as its first. Here we look at the good, the bad, and everything in-between concerning phase 2 of the MCU.

The Joker movie currently burning up the box offices is, perhaps surprisingly, one of the most controversial of the decade. The conventional wisdom about comic book movies these days is that they have more in common with amusement park rides than traditional cinematic drama. Superficial, light-hearted, and formulaic are just a few words commonly associated with spandex on the silver screen. But Todd Phillip's gritty origin story of the Clown Prince of Crime is far from an orthodox comic book translation. Masterpiece or cynical blunder, we try to get to the bottom of it as we review a movie called Joker.