Dave Wielgosz and Riley Rossmo Talk TMNT

Today's episode is a very special episode for the host Dan. Not only does he get to interview one of the artists who defines what comics look like for him but he gets to interview a close friend and a personal hero. Dave Wielgosz and Dan have been friends since college where Dave set out to become a comic book writer. Since then, Dave has worked tirelessly to fulfill that dream and ended up becoming an associate editor on Batman. He was doing this while writing all of his favorite characters. This is his first story after betting on himself and going to become a writer full time. This breaks our normal intro format but I just need to say that I could not be more proud of my friend and he inspires me every day. In this episode we are talking about this dynamic duo's story in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Black, White, & Green #3 which will be on sale on July 31st but you FOC closes on June 24th. What that means is that if you want to make sure your store has a copy, call them today and preorder it! It helps stores know what you want and makes sure they have enough for everyone. I was lucky enough to get to read their story early and I can tell you it's worth every penny. The art is sharp and dynamic while using the limited color palette like a sharpened kitana to fight foot ninjas in the subways of NYC. I cannot say enough good things about this homage to Frank Miller's Sin City. We also dive a bit into Dave and Riley Rossmo's previous works together which include the INCREDIBLE Martian Manhunter which you need to read. Riley talks about his approach to character design and why he makes characters look the way they do which is much more thematic then most people may think. Dan and the duo also talk about the importance of color and how Riley uses it in their short story. Riley also teaches Dan a new term that he has to write down to use at a later date so he sounds like a smarty pants art critique.

Nicole Maines made history when she joined Season 4 of The CW's Supergirl in 2018 as the first transgender superhero in live-action; Nia Nal, known as Dreamer. Maines has continued her involvement with Dreamer's story since the show ended in 2021, first with stories in the DC Pride anthologies, including penning the introduction for 2022's entry, and further appearances in books such as Superman: Son of Kal-El and Lazarus Planet. Suicide Squad: Dream Team #1 / Maines, Barrows, Ferreira, Lucas, Carey / DC Comics Now, Nicole Maines is back to write more of Dreamer's adventures. Firstly in an ongoing series, Suicide Squad: Dream Team, which sees her joining Task Force X with artist Eddy Barrows. And secondly, in Bad Dream: A Dreamer Story, an original YA graphic novel which sees Maines teaming up with artist Rye Hickman to tell Dreamer's origin story. Bad Dream: A Dreamer Story / Maines, Hickman / DC Comics We were lucky enough to be joined on the podcast by Nicole Maines to chat all about these new books, and maybe m

Adapt Deez, a brand new season of GateCrashers, is dedicated to appreciating media adaptations in all their many forms! From the classic book-to-movie adaptations to the many iterations associated and in-between, episodes of Adapt Deez will focus on a specific property and its (officially licensed) adaptations. Not simply a recounting of the differences and similarities between each adaptation, Adapt Deez aims to highlight the ways in which each iteration shines and how its individual media-specific properties—such as film scores, casting, and packaging—elevate the material and affect the way each work is received.  In today’s episode, Amanda and Jon discuss the many iterations of The Lightning Thief, the first book in the Percy Jackon & the Olympians series by Rick Riordan. Originally published in 2005, The Lightning Thief has gone on to receive critical acclaim and has since spawned numerous adaptations and launched the Camp Half-Blood Chronicles, a media franchise consisting of various mediums, including three additional book series, several standalone novels, graphic novel adaptations, short story collections, films, a television series, a musical, a video game, and more. The Lightning Thief follows 12-year-old Percy Jackson, who lives with ADHD and dyslexia. When on a school field trip, he encounters a Fury, a goddess of vengeance sent to eliminate him. Though he survives the encounter, nothing about Percy’s life will ever be the same, especially when he learns that his best friend Grover is actually a satyr assigned to protect him and his favorite teacher turns out to be a centaur named Chiron. Things continue to spiral until Percy arrives at Camp Half-Blood—a protective stronghold for demigods, or children of Greek gods—and is informed that Zeus believes Percy has stolen his master lightning bolt, sending Percy on a dangerous quest to retrieve it or risk further peril. Focusing on the first book, Amanda and Jon dive into both the 2010 film adaptation Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief—directed by Chris Columbus and starring “white boy of the century” Logan Lerman as the titular Percy Jackson—and the recently released Disney+ series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians (with a special shout out to the Off-Broadway musical of the same name).  

Adapt Deez, a brand new season of GateCrashers, is dedicated to appreciating media adaptations in all their many forms! From the classic book-to-movie adaptations to the many iterations associated and in-between, episodes of Adapt Deez will focus on a specific property and its (officially licensed) adaptations. Not simply a recounting of the differences and similarities between each adaptation, Adapt Deez aims to highlight the ways in which each iteration shines and how its individual media-specific properties—such as film scores, casting, and packaging—elevate the material and affect the way each work is received.  In today’s episode, Amanda, Amir, and Jon discuss the Academy Award-winning movie The Social Network. The film—which received eight nominations at the 83rd Academy Awards, including for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for leading man Jesse Eisenberg, and won for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Original Score, and Best Film Editing—released in 2010 from Sony Pictures, and was directed by David Fincher. The screenplay was written by Aaron Sorkin, and was adapted from The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook, a Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal, a work of narrative nonfiction by Ben Mezrich that was published in 2009 by Doubleday. The Social Network tells the story of the founding of social media service Facebook in 2004 by Harvard college students Mark Zuckerberg, Eduardo Saverin, Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes, and Andrew McCollum. Focusing primarily on the relationship—and fall out—between Zuckerberg, played by Eisenberg, and Saverin, portrayed by Andrew Garfield in what would become his international breakthrough role, The Social Network spans several years from Facebook’s inception to the depositions between Zuckerberg and Saverin, and Zuckerberg and Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (Armie Hammer/Josh Pence), twins and fellow Harvard students. If you think that sounds dry, just wait until you witness Amanda, Amir, and Jon’s dramatic reenactments of iconic scenes—we guarantee you’ll be just as riveted by this biographical drama as we were more than a decade ago.  

Adapt Deez, a brand new season of GateCrashers, is dedicated to appreciating media adaptations in all their many forms! From the classic book-to-movie adaptations to the many iterations associated and in between, episodes of Adapt Deez will focus on a specific property and its (officially licensed) adaptations. Not simply a recounting of the differences and similarities between each adaptation, Adapt Deez aims to highlight the ways in which each iteration shines and how its individual media-specific properties—such as film scores, casting, and packaging—elevate the material and affect the way each work is received.  In the first episode of the season, Amanda, Patrick, and Jon discuss the book Holes by Louis Sachar, which was published in 1998. The Newbery Medal-winning novel follows 14-year-old Stanley Yelnats who, following a false criminal accusation, is sentenced to 18 months at Camp Green Lake, a juvenile correctional boot camp in Texas. Stanley imagines a picturesque, lakeside facility, at which he’ll participate in classic character-building activities. But when he arrives, he learns that Camp Green Lake is located in the middle of a dried-up lake bed; it hasn’t rained there in over 100 years; and instead of swimming and hiking, Stanley must dig a hole while baking away in the unforgiving desert sun. Holes was adapted into a feature film of the same name by Walt Disney Pictures in 2003. Directed by Andrew Davis—with a script written by the author himself—the movie stars film industry greats such as Sigourney Weaver, Patricia Arquette, Jon Voight, Dulé Hill, Henry Winkler, and Tim Blake Nelson. It was also the motion picture debut of Shia LaBeouf, who played Stanley. The novel is still taught in middle school classrooms and the movie’s end credit song—”Dig It” by the D-Tent Boys—remains just as iconic today as it was when we first heard it on the Disney Channel more than 20 years ago.  

It’s the season finale of Capes ‘N Cowards, and we saved the best for last. Today we’re talking about Minor Threats, the delightfully diabolical comic from Patton Oswalt, Jordan Blum, and Scott Hepburn that ignited an all-new universe. The series follows five D-list supervillains who try to stop a rampaging superhero called the Insomniac from tearing their city apart. After the Insomniac's sidekick, Kid Dusk, was killed by his nemesis, the Stickman, the Insomniac was thrust into the pursuit of vengeance, and the only way for our heroes- I mean, villains- to put an end to it is to kill the Stickman themselves. The story features an imaginative twist on the familiar archetypes and tropes of comic books, all from the perspective of the kinds of characters usually stuck at the bottom of the food chain. Can’t get enough caped capers? Good, because this episode has an all-new audio drama from the world of Minor Threats. Hear the triumphant ascension of two misfit nobodies, B.A.C. and Parvus Canus, who use their respective masteries over whiskey (as well as other fluids) and dogs (under forty pounds) to seize a new future together. It’s truly a beautiful tale.

We are back with another adventure in our Capes 'N Cowards season! Last week we brought you the adventures of The Venture Bros. but this week we return fully to the worlds of superheroes. On today's episode, we are covering one of the weirder superhero films, we are talking about Mystery Men. Mystery Men is a film loosely based on Bob Burden's Flaming Carrot Comics. It follows a group of misfits, weirdos, and outcasts from the superhero world of Champion City. The team is "lead" by Mr. Furious and features the Shoveler and the Blue Raja. As the world turns quickly turmoil, this group of weirdos has to find more like them to make a team to save the world. These aren't the cream of the crop but more like the heroes you call when everyone else is busy but they've got the heart to save the world. The film has one of the most impressive cast lists including Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, William H. Macy, Greg Kinnear, Claire Forlani, Kel Mitchell, Paul Reubens, Janeane Garofalo, Wes Studi, Geoffrey Rush, Lena Olin, Suzy Izzard, and Tom Waits. The cast is stacked with absolutely incredible talent and features a handful of cameos that still blow me away. Who decided Michael Bay would play a frat boy supervillain? I just want to shake their hands. Cid and Dan talk about the film at length. Cid gives their thoughts on what the film is trying to capture. They also get into how the film has aged but more so how it was ahead of it's time. As the superhero film craze gets closer and closer to bursting, it's the best time to take a look back at Mystery Men which satirized these films before they even existed. If there was any film that was released before its time, it is Mystery Men. It sits in a place before the superhero craze changed film forever. Make sure to check out our past episodes including the first episode of the season which covers The Boys which you can see a lot of inspiration from this film in.

I have been a Power Rangers fan since before I could even read. I grew up with the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. The first film was one of the first films I saw in theatres. I never really expected to end up interviewing one Ranger let alone many. But today's episode features our second original ranger, Amy Jo Johnson aka the original Pink Ranger Kimberly. Amy was kind enough and enjoyed our interview enough to call her co-writer Matt Hotson as soon as we wrapped our interview to make him jump on. Together they have written a new comic from BOOM! Studios called Power Rangers: The Return which you can get now anywhere you get your comics. Power Rangers: The Return brings us back to Angel Grove years after the Power Rangers have disbanded. We see a much older version of the Rangers and friends that we knew from the show. The Rangers haven't done their teenagers with attitudes thing in years. A few members get together after a memorial for a fellow Ranger. Things from there get hectic and that quiet life that Kimberly thought she finally had will be slipping through her fingers. Amy Jo Johnson has done much since her Power Rangers days which includes directing and becoming a singer/songwriter. We discussed creating art from all the different angles that she has a hand in. We discuss the co-writing process at length with each writer but at separate times. It's an interesting interview to listen to to see how each side of a duo works and sees the other in the process. Amy also talks about how writing a comic has been Matt's dream for some time. We get to hear how happy she was for him on the day of release then we get to hear it straight from him. We discussed putting art out into the world but it was very exciting getting to hear on the day that someone's dream came true.

GO TEAM VENTURE! We are back for our second installment in our Capes 'N Cowards season. This season is a celebration of stories where unlikely characters have to rise to the occasion of herohood. In that vein, today we are taking a look at The Venture Bros.! We watched the first two seasons of the Adult Swim cartoon to see who may want to check this one out. The Venture Bros. is an adult animated television co-created by Chris McCulloch aka Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer that aired on Adult Swim for 7 seasons. The duo ran the show with their unique vision and inspirations that are clear throughout the entire series. The show follows Dr. Thaddeus "Rusty" Venture, his bodyguard/father-figure/secret agent Brock Samson, and Dr. Venture's two teenage fraternal twin sons Dean and Hank Venture. Through the series they get into all sorts of satirical pulp adventures with heavy emphasis on science fiction, superheroes, and other things that influenced the show. Jordan joins Dan once again to talk about a show he has wanted to cover forever. Jordan reveals his origins with the series which are very similar to those we have heard in the Evil Dead episode from GateSlashers 2. Dan talks about his only experience with the show before this episode and how it includes electronic cigarettes and New York City Comic Con.

GateCrashers is back with Season 6! With our return, we are switching new a new release format. From here on we will be releasing the show in seasons! Each season will have its unique theme with episodes and content reflecting that theme. Our first season is called Capes 'N Cowards. We will be taking a look at different superhero-style universes that we think are worth checking out! This season will include The Boys, Venture Brothers, Mystery Men, and Minor Threats! We begin this new season by kicking off with The Boys with Dan and Ethan. Ethan had never watched or read any of The Boys before we began preparing for this episode. We can promise that he will never be the same after this diabolically and rather... milky show. Dan was practically raised by Garth Ennis comics so he has been very excited to finally get to a fantastic adaptation that we think is worth your time to check out. The Boys follows a group of unlikely non-superpowered individuals as they do everything they can to get their brand of revenge against The Seven and Vought. The superheroes of this world are unlike any other because they are mostly the worst humanity has to offer with corporate backing. There is also a lot of Billy Joel so that is a huge plus for any show. The show's first 3 seasons and the spin-offs are available for streaming on Prime Video. Join us as Dan talks about all of The Boys skins in Call of Duty and we try to stay on topic as we talk about this week's topic. Be sure to leave us a review on any platform where you listen and subscribe. Those both help us tremendously find new listeners to help them find things that could bring them joy like it brings up.