Comics Alternative

Today, September 30, is International Podcast Day! To celebrate the occasion the Two Guys with PhDs Talking about Comics get together with some of the other cohosts of the show, Gwen Tarbox, Andy Wolverton, and Gene Kannenberg, Jr., to talk about podcasts and podcasting. As such, they don’t necessarily focus on comics podcasts — although podcasts about comics comes up often during the discussion — but instead, they share their insights and experiences concerning a wide variety of podcasts. For example, everybody begins by recounting the first podcasts they ever listened to, or what brought them to the medium. They also discuss how they discern podcasts in terms of topic, content, hosting, and sound quality. And of course, each shares the various podcasts she or he currently listens to on a regular or semi-regular basis…and how and when they listen to them. They even discuss their work on The Comics Alternative and how their experiences as podcasters have affected the way they listen to (and critique) other po

For the September episode of the manga series, Shea and Derek discuss two very different titles, although both heavily invested in popular genres. They begin with Eiji Otsuka and Housui Yamazaki's The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Ominibus 1 (Dark Horse Books), a different take on both horror and detective narratives. Although the English-language releases of this title began in 2006, Dark Horse has just this month published the first of the omnibus editions, one that collects the first three volumes of the series. The guys begin by describing the premise as a cross between supernatural horror and Scooby-Doo, where you have a bunch of young investigators, each with a particular set of skills informing their unique form of "detecting." (Derek also compares Otsuka's storylines to The Rockford Files, another series featuring an unlikely investigator constantly down on his luck.) Both enjoy the title well enough, although Shea is less impressed than is Derek, feeling that the routine becomes formulaic rather q

On this episode of the interview series, Andy and Derek are happy to have as their guest Dean Mullaney, the editor of IDW’s the Library of American Comics and the EuroComics series. His most recent book, The King of the Comics: One Hundred Years of King Features Syndicate will be coming out next month, just in time for the world-famous syndicate’s centennial. Dean talks with the Two Guys about the process of gathering strips, his experiences digging through library archives, the importance of working with collectors and enthusiasts, and the challenges of culling the most representative selections for each of his volumes. His new King Features project is no exception, and in fact, Dean describes it as one of his most ambitious, and satisfying, collections to date. Coming in at over 300 pages, the book covers the entire history of the syndicate, even touching upon the early days of William Randolph Hearst’s newspapers. Derek and Andy also talk with Dean about a couple of his other recent works, Bravo for Advent

And here it is, the third (and final) of the three on-location shows of interviews Derek and Andy W. conducted while at last weekend's Small Press Expo. At the event, the Two Guys spoke with a number of creators attending SPX, interviewing each for anywhere from 5 to around 20 minutes. In some cases, the guys are quite familiar with the artist's works (and may even have reviewed their comics on past episodes). At other times, Andy or Derek may not know the work of the creator, but use the interview opportunity to learn more about the artist. In this episode, you will hear conversations with Amy Godfrey & Patrick Holt, Will Dinski, R. Sikoryak, Jay Hosler, Nick Bertozzi, Jason Little, Simon Rinehardt, and Mickey Zacchilli. The exhibition hall of SPX 2015 was packed, and, as a result, the din of the crowd was at times difficult to talk over. But the Two Guys addressed the sound challenges as best they could. Sometimes they talked with the creators at their tables, and at other times -- such as the interviews wi

This is the second of three on-location interview shows based on Derek and Andy W.’s attendance at last weekend’s Small Press Expo. At the event, the Two Guys took the opportunity to talk with several creators exhibiting at SPX, interviewing each for anywhere from 5 to around 20 minutes. In some cases, the guys are quite familiar with the artist’s works (and may even have reviewed their comics on past episodes). At other times, Andy or Derek may not know the work of the creator, but use the interview opportunity to learn more about the artist. In this episode, you will hear conversations with Dakota McFadzean, Andy Warner, Jonathan Baylis, Amelia Onorato, Sam Spina, Keith Knight, Gregory Benton, and Dean Haspiel. The exhibition hall of SPX 2015 was packed, and, as a result, the din of the crowd was at times difficult to talk over. But the Two Guys addressed the sound challenges as best they could. Sometimes they talked with the creators at their tables, and at other times — such as the interviews with Gregory

Last weekend, Andy W. and Derek attended Small Press Expo in Bethesda, MD. While there, they were able to interview a variety of creators about their recent releases, their larger body of work, and any future projects they may be working on. The result was an impressive collection of interviews -- 28 in all -- each of which lasted from anywhere between 5 minutes to over 20 minutes. The guys have now edited these conversations and are presenting them in a series of three on-location interview episodes conducted at SPX. In this first installment, Derek and Andy talk with Derf Backderf, Theora Kvitka, Ethan Riley, Miss Lasko-Gross, Stuart & Kathryn Immonen, Jennifer Jordan & Sophie Goldstein, Gina Wynbrandt, Julian Hanshaw, Kristen Gudsnuk, Rune Ryberg, Ben Towle, Cole Closser, and Meags Fitzgerald. The exhibition hall of SPX was packed, and, as a result, the din of the crowd was at times difficult to talk over. But the Two Guys persevered, despite the sound challenges. Sometimes they talked with the creators at

This week's episode of the podcast is special, and in a number of ways. First, Derek and Andy W. record the show "live" from a common location and not from a distance via Skype. Also, they discuss their experiences at this year's Small Press Expo, which took place September 19-20. Most importantly, though, this episode is notable for its focus on the 2015 Ignatz Awards, the first time that the Two Guys have discussed this industry recognition in any in-depth manner.  In fact, almost the entire episode is devoted to the Ignatz nominees, a substantial number of texts, and as a result, this show goes longer than usual. And they break up recording the show over a two-day period: the first third after day one of SPX (and before the Ignatz winners have been announced), and the final segment after the event has ended. Andy and Derek begin by sharing some of their experiences at SPX, including the people they met, the creators they talked with, the small press publishers who attended, and the general demographics of

While at this year's Small Press Expo, Derek had the opportunity to talk with the great Bill Griffith, whose new book from Fantagraphics, Invisible Ink: My Mother's Secret Love Affair with a Famous Cartoonist, debuted at the event and will soon be available in stores everywhere. As the subtitle suggests, this is a different kind of book for Griffith, a radical departure from his syndicated Zippy strip. Not only is it a deeply personal and moving memoir, but it's his first long-form work in comics. It is a narrative of his mother's sixteen-year love affair with a prolific and recognizable cartoonist of the of the 1950s and 1960s. But even more than that, it's Bill's own story about the discover of his mother's hidden secret -- he learned about the affair in 1972, right after the death of his father -- and his ongoing attempts to undercover the details and understand the dynamics of a family life now long behind him. Indeed, Invisible Ink can be read as a detective narrative, with its autobiographic protagonist

The Comics Alternative is happy to feature a brand new monthly series, this one devoted to comics and graphic novels for young readers. The cohosts for this show are Gwen Tarbox and Andy Wolverton. Longtime listeners of the podcast will know that Andy is an old hand at cohosting duties, filling in for Andy Kunka occasionally and, up until recently, being the cohost on the monthly webcomics series. (In fact, Andy left the webcomics show so that he could pursue this new idea.) Gwen is a professor of children's and young adult narrative, especially as it applies to comics. This is her first time cohosting a podcast, and everyone at The Comics Alternative is excited about having her on the team. Now, every month Gwen and Andy will look at two recent comics written for a young audience, one for teenage or young adult readers and another title devoted to younger children. For their inaugural episode of Two PhDs Talking About Comics for Young Readers, discuss recent developments in comics for children and teenagers,

This week the Two Guys with PhDs Talking about Comics explore four new titles, each quite different one from the other. They begin with the new graphic novel from New Zealand creator Ant Sang, The Dharma Punks (Conundrum Press). On the surface it is a story about coming to terms with death, but there's much more going on in this 415-page book. In fact, this is one of the most ambitious narratives the guys have encountered so far this year, and certainly the most philosophical. Its protagonist, Chopstick, tries to comes to grips with the suicide of a close friend and what that loss means in his own life, while at the same time participating in an anarchist act against a corporate franchise. The events in the book take place roughly over a two-day period, but one of strengths of this narrative is how Sang manipulates time in a Faulkner-like manner, making the past ever-present. This is a rich and complex text, and at times Gene and Derek feel at a loss trying to put the gist of The Dharma Punks into words for a

The Two Guys are happy to have as their guests Gabriel Hardman and Corinna Bechko. Their first collected volume of Invisible Republic has just recently been released, and the guys talk with the creators about the origins of this project, its initial incubation period, and their efforts in bringing the series to Image Comics. Invisible Republic is a science fiction narrative, taking place on a distant moon in the Gliese system in the twenty-eighth century, but it's much more of a story of political intrigue set against a backdrop of journalistic investigation. The first trade collects issues #1-5 of the series, and the next narrative arc begins later this month with issue #6. Derek and Andy W. also ask Corinna and Gabriel about their collaborative relationship, their work on Invisible Republic as well as other series (including the Planet of the Apes franchise), and how it may complement -- or perhaps even challenge -- their personal partnership. The guys also use the opportunity to talk with the two about the

Mullets, Cheesecake, and FantasyvilleFor September's webcomics episode, Sean and Derek have some fun titles lined up for you, the devoted Comics Alternative listener. They begin with an incredible futuristic sci-fi series partially informed by one of the worst hairstyles to come out of the 1970s/1980s. Daniel Warren Johnson's Space Mullet is the story of an ex-United-Earth-space-marine-turned-space-trucker and his partner, a sensitive yet wisecracking Zozobian, as they try to come to terms with their pasts as their pasts doggedly continue to creep back into their lives. The guys are absolutely taken by Johnson's highly detailed art -- Sean, in particular, loves Johnson's spaceships, although he's not entirely thrilled by the way the protagonist's mustache is drawn -- as well as the complex way in which his story is unfolding. They point out that the webcomic does not come out as consistently as the creator would like, and he apologizes often for this fact. But that's OK; given the quality of Space Mullet, the

On this week's review show, Derek and Andy W. look at three new titles, beginning with the new graphic novel from Ethan Young, Nanjing: The Burning City (Dark Horse). This is a riveting historically based narrative centered on Japan's actions against the Chinese Nationalist capital during the Second Sino-Japanese War. It involves a captain in the Republic of China's army trapped within Nanjing, now overrun by the Japanese, and his attempts to get himself and one of his soldiers out to safety. Young never flinches from the horrors of the war, yet at the same time he never falls prey to the temptation of demonizing the aggressor. His is a very human story, and both the invading Japanese troops and Chinese victims are shown in all of their complexities. Next, the guys discuss the first issue of Jeff Lemire and Emi Lenox's new series, Plutona (Image). This is a different kind of spin to the superhero genre, and the story begins by introducing us to a group of five suburban kids, each with his or her own personali

On this episode of the interview show, Andy and Derek have as their guest Glenn Head, whose new book Chicago: A Comix Memoir was just released from Fantagraphics. They talk with Glenn extensively about the the work and how it is a marked departure from his previous comics. Chicago is Glenn's coming-of-age account of leaving Madison, NJ, in 1977 to attend the Cleveland Institute of Art, and then deciding to find himself by suddenly running off to Chicago with no friends, no money, and no plans. He quickly finds himself destitute, panhandling on the streets, and young prey for any number of nefarious forces. Between homeless shelters and McDonald's meals, Glenn tries to make his way into the comics business, along the way meeting the likes Skip Williamson, Robert Crumb, and even Muhammed Ali. His sojourn in the Windy City leads him down some dark paths, but not nearly as dark as the aftermath back home in Madison where he begins to process the events and come to terms with what those Chicago experiences meant t

The Two Guys with PhDs Talking about Comics are proud to have as their guest Marisa Acocella Marchetto. Her new graphic novel, Ann Tenna, was just released by Knopf, and it’s a fantastical, sci-fi-infused story of psychological balance and self-discovery in our overly “media-cated” culture. The titular protagonist, a glamorous, super-connected entrepreneur of glitz and gossip, becomes disconnected from her higher self…literally. Her cosmic doppleganger, Superann, steps into Ann’s life via a near-fatal accident, and results are a hard-cold lesson in emotional and interpersonal priorities. Along the way, Ann visits psychedelic celestial planes, experiences out-of-this-world fashions, rubs elbows with the spirits of Coco Chanel and Heinrich Hertz, and taps into universal networks of communication that put our social media to shame. Andy and Derek talk with Marisa about the genesis of of this narrative and how it fits in with her earlier books, Just Who the Hell Is She, Anyway? and Cancer Vixen. They learn that A

Another month is upon us, so that means it must be time for Andy and Derek to open up the latest Previews catalog and begin making out their wish lists. (Actually, Derek is the only one opening up the catalog. Andy finds himself without one for this month, having to rely only on text-only order form.) Most of solicits in the September catalog will be released in either November or December, just in time for the holidays, and the guys wondered if this would be another chock-full issue leading to another longish episode of the podcast. They got their answer fairly quickly. They cover a lot in this episode. However, there’s much more that the Two Guys wanted to highlight, but there’s only so much time to record the episode (plus, toward the end, the guys were getting a little tired and hungry). Also in this episode, the guys fantasize about themselves being tastemakers, discuss the challenges in teaching Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, and highlight Garth Ennis and John McCrea’s memorable run on The Demon. More notab

On this month's manga episode, Shea and Derek discuss two distinctly different titles. They begin with Batman: The Jiro Kuwata Batmanga (DC Comics). The second in this planned three-volume series, collecting all of Kuwata's Batman work, just came out last month, and the Two Guys look at both volumes one and two. These Batmanga stories were originally serialized in Japan between 1966 and 1967, at the height of the Adam West Batman craze, and both Derek and Shea comment on how much Kuwata's stories were informed by that TV series, as well as by the "New Look" of earlier in the decade. At the same time, this manga never comes across as intentionally campy or self-conscious of itself as a pop-cultural product. In fact, one of the guys' first topics of conversation is how much Kuwata's Batman takes from its American version and how much is unique and original to the manga. Surprisingly, there are relatively few American imports into the Batmanga stories -- Jim Gordon is prominent throughout, and both Alfred Pennyw

This week the Two Guys with PhDs Talking about Comics look at three recent titles, each one an example of genre mash-up. They begin with a new book that isn't really so new. Philippe Druillet's The 6 Voyages of Lone Sloane (Titan Comics) is actually a reprint of a series of stories originally published in the Franco-Belgian comics magazine Pilote between 1970 and 1971, and then later made available to English speakers through both Dark Horse Comics and NBM. Each short narrative centers on the titular character, a space wanderer/adventurer who encounters a variety of pirates, robotic threats, despotic rulers, and space gods along his multi-dimensional journeys. Druillet's style is colorful, lush, and baroque, demonstrating much of the cultural psychedelia of the time, and the artwork is nicely showcased through the bandes dessinées format in which Titan Comics chose to publish this edition. Derek and Gene discuss in some detail Druillet's non-traditional panel layout and how he utilizes the mise-en-page to bot

On this episode of the interview show, Derek talks with Jeremy Baum about his latest book, Dörfler (Fantagraphics), a dream-like narrative that combines elements of fantasy, science fiction, psychedelia, pin-up art, and video-game tropes. Structured around multiple (primarily) female characters who appear to inhabit different dimensional realms, Baum’s story is both futuristic as well as surreal. His highly detailed art, composed primarily of grays and blue tones, reveals a dystopic landscape that juxtaposes urban modernity with pastoral themes, resulting in a discursive narrative where both time and space are fluid. Jeremy talks with Derek about the psychological nature of his art and how the philosophies of such writers and artists as Carl Jung, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and Robert Crumb inform his aesthetics. This is born out most notably in the visual leitmotifs that not only crop up throughout Dörfler, but also largely define Jeremy other works. In fact, the two go on to discuss much of Jeremy’s previous comic

The Two Guys are back with another special episode of The Comics Alternative, and, just in time for the new school year, this time they hold a roundtable discussion on teaching comics. Joining them in the discussion are Randy Duncan and Matthew J. Smith. They, along with Paul Levitz, are the coauthors of The Power of Comics: History, Form, and Culture (Bloomsbury Academic), the first real textbook devoted to comics that was just recently released in its second edition. In fact, Derek begins the conversation by asking Matt and Randy about their experiences pulling together the project, some of the challenges they faced creating a comics-centered textbook, and what kind of feedback they have received from instructors using it. But the conversation soon transitions into a larger discussion of comics in the classrooms, e.g., strategies for teaching, the hard choices when creating syllabi, negotiating student expectations, reading lists and text availability, assignment choices that reflect the medium, and course