Episode 172: Embezzly McCokeHabit

With all the excitement and hype surrounding last week’s release of Marvel Studios’s Black Panther, it’s easy to forget that, when the movie was announced as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase Three three and a half years ago, it looked to be nothing but a flick about another mid-tier character just to keep our juices flowing until Infinity War. While we loved Black Panther when he was pulled out of his element in Wakanda and dropped into a gritty pulp action story, his day-to-day adventures at home never set our world on fire, and we were looking far less forward to this than we were, say, Captain Marvel.

Since then, Marvel installed an A-list director who turned the movie into something much more than the half-decent filler in between Avengers movies we initially expected. We saw the movie this weekend (in a local theater packed in a way we haven’t seen since the first Spider-Man movie), and we discuss, in a spoiler-filled way, how we liked it, what worked for us and what didn’t, the worldbuilding and the depth of the character bench, and some of the political commentary we found to be embedded in the film.

We also discuss January 24th’s Doomsday Clock #3, written by Geoff Johns with art by Gary Franks. This is the third issue in the DCU / Watchmen universe crossover, and we go into it in depth in a segment which we’re beginning to refer to, here at the Crisis On Infinite Midlives Home Office, as “Dr. Manhattan Can’t Do That, Dammit!”

This show was recorded live to tape, with minimal editing. So if you’ve been looking for a comics podcast where one of the hosts wants to move to Wakanda so they can find someone competent to program their Nest thermostat, you’ve come to the right place.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:59:00 — 99.9MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 169: Sports is a Fantastic Album, Selina

After a couple of weeks off due to holidays, family travel, blizzards, arctic vortices, and professional obligations, and we’ve moved past holiday genre movies and into the pre-convention season lull. Meaning that until Marvel Studios’ Black Panther drops in about six weeks, there’s nothing to talk but comics.

And frankly, we’re kinda glad about that. Because as much as we like the comics-related visual entertainment, there’s nothing like a good, old-fashioned comic book to make you feel like a kid again. And sometimes, that kid is very, very angry about what has happened to the Watchmen universe.

So we talk about a few of this week’s new books, including:

• Batman #38, written by Tom King with art by Travis Moore and Giulia Brusco,
• Spider-Man #236, written by Brian Michael Bendis with art by Oscar Bazaldua, and
• Justice League #36, written by Priest with art by Pete Woods!

But no calendar can stop Rob from chiming in on a comic book about the character from Watchmen, so we also discuss the December 27th release, Doomsday Clock #2, written by Geoff Johns with art by Gary Frank!

This show was recorded live to tape, with minimal editing. So if you want to find out what the mythical 102nd use for duct tape is (the dirty one), you’ve come to the right show!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:43:42 — 88.2MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 166: The World’s Worst Detective, or: Rorschach, Meet Vibe

Marvel Studios’s latest Netflix series, The Punisher, dropped all at once a couple of weeks ago, and it was, in a lot of ways, very different than the series that have been delivered up until now. Sure, the other series dealt with adult themes – Jessica Jones tackled being a survivor of abuse, Luke Cage dealt with racism, and Iron Fist took on the perils of being a boring rich white guy no one likes – but none of those series featured a protagonist who stabs people in the neck just to watch them die.

So we spend a chunk of the show talking about The Punisher, how it handles themes of PTSD and how war destroys not only soldiers, but also their families… and how those weighty issues map to a story that delivers the cheap thrill of watching Jersey mooks having their legs broken by a man sometimes known as “Shooty Batman.”

But the money of the week is the release of the first issue of Doomsday Clock #1, written by Geoff Johns with art by Gary Frank. This is the real beginning of DC Comics not only sequelizing Alan Moore’s and Dave Gibbons’s Watchmen, but putting characters from the DC Universe onto a collision course with that universe. While we’ve both been enjoying DC: Rebirth, Rob is a huge fan of the original Watchmen, and thus has been DREADING the release of this book. So we break it down, and come to a couple of surprising conclusions.

This episode was recorded live to tape, with minimal editing, so if you’re looking for a podcast where the hosts are pretty convinced they came up with the moniker, “Shooty Batman,” you’ve come to the right place!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:29:17 — 74.0MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 165: Whiskey Tango Motherbox

Justice League was released to theaters in the United States last weekend, and, to put it mildly, it underperformed. In the same way that the Atlanta Falcons underperformed in last year’s Super Bowl.

Sure, there was a lot of weird buzz about reshoots and rewrites and new directors surrounding the movie, but none of that answers the question: was it any good? And did it deserve to underperform as compared to, say, Batman Vs. Superman, or Suicide Squad?

So we discuss the movie: what worked, what didn’t, what could have been improved, and why we think it didn’t do nearly as well as Suicide Squad, let alone The Avengers. We also talk about ways forward for a cinematic universe that includes starts with Superman killing a guy, and ends, for now, with redacted, under cover of darkness, robbing a damn grave.

This episode was recorded live to tape, so if you want to find out why Amanda think Aquaman went to Bowdoin, you’ve come to the right place!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:36:15 — 104.4MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 116: They Lebowskied Superman

It’s the first full week of DC Comics: Rebirth, and not a single Watchmen character appears in those issues, so we decided it would be a good opportunity to complain again about Watchmen characters appearing in the DC Universe.

Specifically, it was revealed this week that DC Comics didn’t contact Watchmen artist Dave Gibbons to ask him his opinion about adding Watchmen characters to Dc Universe: Rebirth. So we talk about whether that was a bush league move (protip: yeah), some of the history around DC leaving Watchmen alone, and whether DC Editorial really had any choice in asking for Gibbons or writer Alan Moore for even a half-hearted blessing in using their characters in Rebirth.

Then, since we were on a Rebirth roll, we discussed all this week’s titles from that event:

• Superman: Rebirth #1, written by Peter Tomasi with art by Doug Mahnke,
• Green Arrow: Rebirth #1, written by Benjamin Percy with art by Otto Schmidt,
• Green Lanterns: Rebirth #1, written by Geoff Johns and Sam Humphries with art by Ethan Van Sciver and Ed Benes, and:
• Batman: Rebirth #1, written by Scott Snyder and Tom King with art by Miken Janin.

And, just so Marvel doesn’t feel neglected, we close the show by talking about:

• Civil War II #1, written by Brian Michael Bendis with art by David Marquez!

And, as always, the disclaimers:

• This show contains spoilers. If you want to avoid knowing how the DC: Rebirth books end (spoiler alert: no matter what happens, it probably won’t matter next month), then consider yourself warned.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. You want your mom to know what “giddy bottom” means? Get some ear buds.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:34:08 — 92.2MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 115: Death, Taxes and Chris Hardwick

It’s the end of the week of May 25th, 2016: the Wednesday the Big Two drooled on themselves, shrieked “Excelsior!” into the Black Void, and keeled over. At least if you believe the Internet comments.

But before we talk about that, there was one major positive for comics fans this week: AMC debuted the pilot episode of their adaptation of Garth Ennis’s and Steve Dillon’s Preacher this past Sunday. We’re big fans of the comic, which really meant something to us… back when we were in our twenties, same as the characters back in the original 1990s comic. Both we and the comic are older now, with different lifestyles and priorities, so the question is not only whether or not Preacher is a worthy adaptation of the classic Vertigo comic, but can it have the same effect as it did when we were in our twenties?

That’s the good news. The bad news is that we also discuss:

• Steve Rogers: Captain America #1, written by Nick Spencer with art by Jesus Saiz, and:
• DC Universe: Rebirth #1, written by Geoff Johns with art by, well, many, many people!

And, as always, the disclaimers:

• This show contains spoilers. So be aware: if you haven’t been spoiled on the events of either Steve Rogers: Captain America #1 or DC Universe: Rebirth #1, then you clearly haven’t had any access to the Internet and therefore can’t read this warning anyway. But rest assured: we’ll be spoiling them.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. We recite Preacher’s recipe for making a homemade bazooka in this episode. You don’t want your boss to hear that any more than we want this episode entered into evidence in a Felony Menacing trial. So get some headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:48:36 — 106.2MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 101: A Thorough Ravenwooding

It’s been a week since Dan DiDio and Jim Lee hyped an upcoming project or event with a photo of some curtains and the word “Rebirth.” Last week, the comics Internet was abuzz with rumors that it meant a reboot or a return to pre-New 52 continuity or any number of other things. Well, it’s been a week, and in that time, we’ve learned… exactly nothing new whatsoever. But a few tidbits and Tweets have let us to come up with a new theory about the project, which, since we are, after all, part of that selfsame comics Internet, we are more than happy to discuss and kick around.

But one concrete new thing we can all address is the CW show DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. The pilot to the new show aired over the past couple of weeks, so we talk about what parts of the show work, which ones don’t, which characters are gonna need some attention, and why Hawkgirl is part of columns B and C.

We also discuss:

• Grayson #16, written by Tim Seeley and Tom King, with art by Mikel Janin, and:
• Old Man Logan #1, written by Jeff Lemire with art by Andrea Sorrentino!

And, as usual, some disclaimers:

• We record this show live to tape, with minimal editing. While this might mean a looser comics podcast than you are used to, it also means that anything can happen. Like a discussion why Rip Hunter’s time ship should be called “The Re-TARDIS.”
• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout out warnings ahead of time, be aware that we will spoil why Old Man Logan spoils Frank Miller’s and Chris Claremont’s Wolverine.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. You want your boss to find out what happens when a podcast host eats about a million chocolate-covered coffee beans and stares at Batman’s utility belt area? Then get some earbuds.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:43:02 — 96.4MB)

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Thanks for listening, suckers!

Episode 71: The Marvel Universe Is LARPing

This was a big week for the DC Television Universe (or, based on the television network most of it is on, The DCW). We saw crossovers between Arrow and The Flash, with new trailers released for the upcoming Legends of Tomorrow superteam show with characters from both shows, and Supergirl, which might or might not be part of the same continuity. And as we watched it all, we wondered how DC and Warner Bros. managed to create a continuity-consistent version of the Justice League, under our noses and on television, seemingly without our noticing.

So we discuss what DC has built, how what’s coming can only expand upon it, and how, in its own way, it’s at least as exciting as what Marvel has accomplished with their Cinematic Universe… and how it’s possibly more exciting than what DC is trying to do with their characters in major motion pictures.

We also briefly discuss the previews for DC’s upcoming Bizarro, Doctor Fate and Gotham At Midnight, before diving into:

• Secret Wars #2, written by Jonathan Hickman with art by Esad Ribic, and:
• Captain America And The Mighty Avengers, written by Al Ewing with art by Luke Ross!

And, as always, the disclaimers:

• We record this show live to tape, with minimal editing. While this might mean a looser comics podcast than you are used to, it also means that anything can happen! So listen to find out what 90’s television show is our own personal Vietnam!
• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout out warnings ahead of time, assume that we will ruin everything for you.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. Unless you want your employer to hear about Doctor Strange and his “little finger,” you’ll want to find some headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:56:57 — 101.7MB)

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Enjoy the show, suckers!

Episode 56: SDCC 2015 – Joyless Blue Glory Hole

It has been another apocalyptic week at the Crisis On Infinite Midlives Home Office. Continued terrible weather in Boston has led to water pouring into our walls, eliminating our Internet connectivity and therefore our access to any kind of comics news. In fact, this episode is being published thanks to the free Wi-Fi at our local bar, which is the only reason we are here. Yup. No uncontrollable drinking problem here! You don’t know us! You think you’re better than us?

Ahem.

So without much in the way of comics news, we spend this episode talking about what we know. And this week, what we know is trying to register for San Diego Comic-Con 2015. So we discuss the process, what we like, what we don’t, and how it has evolved over the years.

And here’s a little appeal: since it looks like we might not be able to attend SDCC in July, we’re looking for another regional convention we might take a crack at covering. So if you have a favorite convention that takes place over the summer that you think we should cover, let us know at crisisoninfinitemidlives at gmail dot com!

We also discuss:

• Moon Knight #12, written by Brian Wood with art by Greg Smallwood, and:
• Justice League #39, written by Geoff Johns with art by Jason Fabok!

And now, the legalese:

• We record this show live to tape. While this might mean it’s a looser comics podcast than you might be used to, it also means that anything can happen. Like a discussion about how Amazo would lose to Captain Underpants.
• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout warnings ahead of time, be aware that we might ruin plot point or two.
• This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. You want your boss to hear about the frustrations about a swirling blue hole? Didn’t think so. Get some headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:25:06 — 75.1MB)

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Enjoy the show, suckers!

Episode 47: I Shall Become A Fruit Bat

It’s the week before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring… including anyone who might generate much in the way of comics news.

However! DC sneaked a bunch of cancellations into their March solicitations, including a few books that have been around since the start of the New 52. And since it is a slow news week, and since March is the last month before the Convergence event brings all of DC’s eras into the spotlight, and since we are comic geeks who like to speculate, we take the opportunity to review the cancellations and talk about what DC might have in mind post-Convergence.

And since Christmas is right around the corner, we take the opportunity to reminisce about the geek and genre-related toys that we were given as children back in the 70s and the 80s. We hit some of the biggies, like Maskatron, the Millennium Falcon playset, Energized Spider-Man, Magnetic Batman and Robin… and in Amanda’s case, everything a child might need for a life on the Hobo Trail.

And finally, we discuss:

• Justice League #37, written by Geoff Johns with art by Jason Fabok, and:
• Batman #37, written by Scott Snyder with art by Greg Capullo!

And the disclaimers:

• We record this show live to tape. While that mean a looser show than you are used to from other comics podcasts, it also means that anything can happen. Like an unexpected reminiscence about a shattered childhood.
• This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout a warning ahead of time, proceed with caution.
• This show contains adult, explicit language, and is therefore not safe for work. However, there’s every chance you’re on vacation for Christmas this week, and if not, maybe Santa will bring you a new set of headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:58:19 — 107.2MB)

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Enjoy the show, suckers!

Oh, and here’s that sweet, sweet Rob Liefeld jeans ad from the early 90s: