Deconstructing Comics

Last summer’s Superman movie was a welcome improvement over many recent films featuring the character, and over much of the recent superhero film entries in general. Kumar and Emmet this week discuss how it comments on Zach Snyder’s take, on internet culture, anti-immigrant sentiment, and more. They also address such topics as how the film … Continue reading #854 “Superman” (2025): Its commentary on other supermen

What if your first Star Wars movie were Return of the Jedi? You’d have questions! That’s how Tim felt once he got started reading Robotech II: The Sentinels volume 1, a comics continuation of the animated Robotech show that hit the U.S. in 1985. Robotech was a combination of three different anime — why?? And … Continue reading #853 The strange history of “Robotech”

One of the most highly-regarded English-language strips of all time is George Herriman’s Krazy Kat, featuring the odd love/hate triangle of Krazy, Ignatz, and Officer Pupp. Why was Krazy so gender-ambiguous? How did Herriman’s (somewhat mysterious) racial background influence the strip? Tim and Kumar discuss this and much more. (Originally published September 2, 2013.) Brought … Continue reading #369 “Krazy Kat”: Show me the bricks

In 2023, King Features Syndicate decided to bring Flash Gordon, originally created by Alex Raymond and first published in 1934, back from rerun purgatory with new strips, written and drawn by Dan Schkade. Dan was also the artist on Dynamite Entertainment’s Will Eisner’s the Spirit Returns in 2016, and is also known for his original … Continue reading #852 Dan Schkade and “Flash Gordon”

From 1942 to 1966, many of the Donald Duck comic books published by Dell Comics were written and drawn by Carl Barks. Like most comic book creators at the time, his name was unknown; the Duck comics were all credited to Walt Disney. Fans only knew that his work was by the GOOD duck artist. … Continue reading #358 Carl Barks, “The Good Duck Artist”

Captain America and the Falcon #212 concludes the Arnim Zola/Red Skull storyline in somewhat perfunctory fashion, and gives a living castle with big teeth much less P.R. than it deserved! In #213 we meet the strange and underutilized assassin the Night Flyer! (Underwhelming name? Must’ve been named by Jack Kirby!) Tim and Emmet discuss both … Continue reading #851 Jack Kirby’s “Cap and Falcon” 212-213: “I love you, baby!”

Joe Mallard, a favorite of Tim and Jason’s from a year ago, is back! Creator Asante Amani has sent us issues 4-6 of this crime series. Did it go over with us as well as the first two issues did? Ky Lawrence has created a trippy graphic novel about survivor’s guilt. In Dream Machine, our … Continue reading Critiquing Comics #245: “Joe Mallard” 4-6 and “Dream Machine”

We’ve been building up to it for months with our reviews of previous Fantastic Four movies. Now it’s here, the FF’s debut in the MCU, Fantastic Four: First Steps. How well did it scratch that FF itch? Kumar and Jordan once again join Tim to review the film, and discuss how it stacks up against the … Continue reading #850 “Fantastic Four: First Steps” (2025): Did it live up to the hype?

This week, Koom interviews Wahab Algarmi, author of Almost Sunset, a graphic novel about a Muslim American boy’s search for balance between his family traditions and the demands of life in Middle School. Koom and Wahab discuss their international family backgrounds as well as the merits or demerits of 1990s Image comics! Almost Sunset on … Continue reading #849 “Almost Sunset”: Wahab Algarmi on growing up Muslim in America

Ben Wickey has created a graphic novel, More Weight: A Salem Story, that gives us a very deep dive into the Salem witch trials: why they happened, who was to blame, and how the city has dealt with their legacy. This week Koom gets the scoop on what inspired Ben, why his art style seems … Continue reading #848 “More Weight”: Ben Wickey talks Salem witch trials