Legendary manga artist Akira Toriyama passed away in March 2024, leaving behind an enduring legacy of work -- most notably his 42-volume magnum opus DRAGON BALL. Dragon Ball began in 1984 and spawned a still-ongoing saga and media empire, and is often regarded as the most influential manga and anime series of all time. In this episode, we'll rekindle our 1990s Dragon Ball / Dragon Ball Z memories, and discuss volumes 1 & 2 of the manga!

Rest in peace, Akira Toriyama! "Thank you! — and good bye!!"

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In 1984, Marvel Comics created a spinoff line of all-ages kid-targeted comics called STAR COMICS! Overseen by Tom DeFalco and Sid Jacobson, the Star Comics line lasted through 1988 and introduced the comic reading world to the original characters Misty, Planet Terry, Royal Roy, Top Dog, Wally The Wizard, and [most famously] Peter Porker: The Spectacular Spider-Ham! -- along with comics based on licensed IPs from cartoons and toy lines, including [deep breath...] Air Raiders, Animax, Care Bears, Chuck Norris' Karate Kommandos, Defenders of the Earth, Droids, Ewoks, Flintstone Kids, Foofur, Fraggle Rock, The Get-Along Gang, Heathcliff, Hugga Bunch, Inhumanoids, Madballs, Masters of the Universe, Muppet Babies, Popples, Rocky & Bullwinkle, SilverHawks, Strawberry Shortcake, ThunderCats, and Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light!

Joining us on this nostalgic adventure is special guest ADAM THORN, founder of the annual TerribleFest Film Festival! TERRIBLEFEST 7 is happening on March 22-24 2024 at Toronto's Eyesore Cinema - admission is just $3 per movie, or $12 for a weekend pass! Find out more at https://terribletoonietuesday.tumblr.com/terriblefest/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and https://www.instagram.com/riotatthemovies/

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Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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As long-promised for our 52nd episode! -- What's a "Crisis"? What's a "multiverse"? What's a "52"? These words get thrown around a lot in DC Comics, as well as in off-page discussions of their lore, continuity, and publishing history. In this episode we'll attempt to give a basic Crisis 101 overview for the total newcomer, discussing the 1985 continuity-streamlining event "Crisis on Infinite Earths", and its 2005-06 sequels "Infinite Crisis" and "52"!

Mike LOVES these stories, but -- unlike most things covered on The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast -- these are not recommended as "casual reading"! [Moreso just covered here as a basic primer of some terminology, history, and editorial decisions that are impossible to avoid when discussing DC Comics' often-complicated legacy.]

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Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

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Listener Adam Bishop sent us an absolutely wild assortment of VERY random comic books to discuss! Strap in and enjoy as we wax eloquent on Baywatch, Jesus, Faust, Back To The Future, Danzig, The Maxx, assorted eros comics, X-Men: The Animated Series: The Comic, The Time Machine: The Movie: The Comic, and more!

This episode and format is perfect timing for us to finally launch our oft-requested PATREON, which is live now at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/theveryfinecomicbookpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Join our Patreon for a weekly bonus episode of Justin+Mike riffing on slightly-more-WTF comics than would fit into the main episodes! Up first -- Street Fighter: The Movie: The Comic Adaptation!

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If you're enjoying The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast, please take the time to Rate it [on Spotify], Rate+Review it [on Apple Podcasts], Follow/Subscribe, and tell a friend! New episodes forthcoming weekly!

Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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SKREEONK!!! It's our monstrous 50th episode! What better way to celebrate than with the Big G himself - GODZILLA!!! Many publishers have put out Godzilla comics over the years, including a Marvel Comics series in the 1970s, and a longrunning line from IDW Publishing since 2010. In this episode, we'll be taking a look at the Godzilla titles published by Dark Horse Comics from the late 1980s through mid 1990s. We mayyyyy spend a disproportionate amount of time reviewing the incredible "GODZILLA VS. BARKLEY" one-shot from 1993, inspired by this legendary Nike commercial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oCF-QFuoYs

THANK YOU to listener Jon Freeman for gifting these books to Justin at a Godzilla-palooza marathon at Pennsylvania's Mahoning Drive-In Theater!

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If you're enjoying The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast, please take the time to Rate it [on Spotify], Rate+Review it [on Apple Podcasts], Follow/Subscribe, and tell a friend! New episodes forthcoming weekly!

Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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<3 <3 <3 Happy Valentine's Day! <3 <3 <3

Joan Peterson discovers she is trapped in an endless, terrifying cycle of "romance" -- and every time she falls in love, she’s torn from her world and thrust into another tear-soaked tale! It's the tropes and trappings of the 1940s-50s "romance comics" boom with a scifi/supernatural twist in LOVE EVERLASTING from Image Comics! Written by Tom King, illustrated by Elsa Charretier, colored by Matt Hollingsworth, lettered by Clayton Cowles!

Check out Elsa Charretier's incredible YouTube channel here! -- https://www.youtube.com/@ElsaCharretierChannel

Closing song: "The Finish Line of Love" by Moes Haven, from the album Stromboli's Alarm Clock -- https://open.spotify.com/album/7EaxQt13f2lS8xbGXHtOmX?si=WaaJFHp0QbaNOpJL7HqgFg

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Follow us on Instagram at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/theveryfinecomicbookpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and send us questions to potentially read on-air via IG DM or via email at [email protected]

If you're enjoying The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast, please take the time to Rate it [on Spotify], Rate+Review it [on Apple Podcasts], Follow/Subscribe, and tell a friend! New episodes forthcoming weekly!

Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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Guardian! Shaman! Snowbird! Puck! Northstar! Aurora! Sasquatch! Marrina! Together they are ALPHA FLIGHT, Canada's premiere superhero team! Originally appearing in an issue of Chris Claremont's Uncanny X-Men, these avengers of the great white north eventually got their own Marvel Comics series in 1983 which was written+drawn by John Byrne for the first 28 issues. It was a smash hit (surprising even Byrne himself), and wound up running for 130 issues under various creative teams until 1994. In this episode, we take a look at the book's original Byrne run and its introduction of these iconic characters -- as well as as a look at the series' geographical accuracy with special guest Neal Armstrong of Martian Crisis Unit!

Also featuring: A dramatic retelling of the legendary Alpha Flight #25!

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If you're enjoying The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast, please take the time to Rate it [on Spotify], Rate+Review it [on Apple Podcasts], Follow/Subscribe, and tell a friend! New episodes forthcoming weekly!

Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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During a cold World War II winter, a handful of soldiers find themselves enlisted into a theological battle against fallen angels in THE LIGHT BRIGADE by Peter Tomasi & Peter Snejbjerg! How has this action-packed miniseries NOT become a movie yet??? Get on that, Hollywood!!!

Closing song: "Between Two Wars" by The Big Heist, from the album Tightrope: https://open.spotify.com/album/3ixgGNHQI9qbI5pUldMGVs

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Follow us on Instagram at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/theveryfinecomicbookpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and send us questions to potentially read on-air via IG DM or via email at [email protected]

If you're enjoying The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast, please take the time to Rate it [on Spotify], Rate+Review it [on Apple Podcasts], Follow/Subscribe, and tell a friend! New episodes forthcoming weekly!

Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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Do you love... golllllddddd?

So do the protagonists of Satoru Noda's manga series GOLDEN KAMUY, a gold rush tale set in the early 1900s in Japan's northern region of Hokkaido, in the aftermath of the Russo-Japanese War. This epic and thoroughly-researched manga just wrapped up in 2022, and is also currently airing as an anime series on Crunchyroll, and a live-action film hitting Japanese theatres on January 19 2024! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfQLBf2dL80

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Follow us on Instagram at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/theveryfinecomicbookpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and send us questions to potentially read on-air via IG DM or via email at [email protected]

If you're enjoying The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast, please take the time to Rate it [on Spotify], Rate+Review it [on Apple Podcasts], Follow/Subscribe, and tell a friend! New episodes forthcoming weekly!

Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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Happy new year!

What are some good beginner comics / graphic novels for someone new to the medium? -- it's a question we get asked frequently by friends and colleagues since starting this very fine comic book podcast. In this episode, we go through an assortment of popular and critically-acclaimed modern favourites which should be very/perpetually available at your local bookstores and libraries, along with recommended reading ages for each!

BONE by Jeff Smith

PARKER by Darwyn Cooke

SAGA by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples

LOCKE & KEY by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodríguez

MONSTRESS by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda

LUMBERJANES by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis, Gus Allen, and ND Stevenson

SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN by James Tynion IV, Werther Dell'Edera, and Miquel Muerto

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Follow us on Instagram at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/theveryfinecomicbookpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and send us questions to potentially read on-air via IG DM or via email at [email protected]

If you're enjoying The Very Fine Comic Book Podcast, please take the time to Rate it [on Spotify], Rate+Review it [on Apple Podcasts], Follow/Subscribe, and tell a friend! New episodes forthcoming weekly!

Mail us things c/o Justin Decloux, Unit 1010, 3230 Yonge St, Toronto, ON, M4N 3P6, Canada

Thanks for listening! Keep reading comics!

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