His name is Rio! And he dances on the sand! My name is Jeff! I was not a fan of the meme!

Together, we are here to finish what we started, which is answering the questions of the beautiful benighted souls on Patreon!

First up is Tim Rifenburg:

Hey Guys,

Thanks for doing the question thing again.

  • Question 1: Is there any character / company crossover you would like to see and who would write and draw it?
  • Question 2: Are you ever sorry you started the FF read through? I enjoy listening to your thoughts but you sometimes seem like you are struggling through the books.

Then there’s Ethan Johnson:

There are two variations, I don’t care which one you answer.

  • Marvel buys DC and moves existing Marvel creative teams intact to take over DC properties.  Pair creative teams with books.  I’ll allow recent iconic teams, because if you don’t put Hickman & Opeña on LSH, you’re crazypants.
  • Same scenario, but no DC.  Just shuffle existing intactcreative teams onto other properties, like when Byrne & Mantlo swapped Alpha Flight & Hulk!

(Psst! Because Jeff was so proud of his list, he insisted on including it here:)

  • Okay. Hickman and Opena on LSH. Sure. But honestly I think a better take would be Gillen & McKelvie?

And, then, uh, in no particular order, other than how I think of ‘em:

  • Al Ewing and Barry Kitson on JLA;
  • Al Ewing and Elsa Charretier on The Flash;
  • Al Ewing and John Cassaday on Forever People;
  • Dan Slott turned Spider-Man into Batman; maybe if he wrote Batman, he’d turn him into Spider-Man? No, just kidding: I’d give Dan Slott and Sanford Greene Angel & The Ape. (Maybe Slott could have Batman, Inc?)
  • Chip Zdarsky and Leonardo Romero doing Ambush Bug: Year Done;
    Ta-Nehisi Coates and Brian Steelfreeze doing Superman (I should probably say Wonder Woman and then they can just lightly rewrite their issues?);
  • And I guess Mark Waid and Chris Samnee on Action?
  • Jason Aaron and Goran Parlov doing Jonah Hex as one title, Batman as the other (I guess I was kidding about Dan Slott?)
  • Bendis doing Green Lantern (with Mike Deodato?), Aquaman (or maybe that’s Mike Deodato?), Green Arrow & Black Canary (with Dave Marquez), and Teen Titans (with Mark Bagley)
  • Ryan North and Erica Henderson get the coveted The Brave & The Bold treatment
  • Greg Pak and Chris Samnee/Stuart Immonen could take Wonder Woman?
  • Felipe Smith writing and drawing Vibe;
  • G. Willow Wilson and Tradd Moore on Teen Titans;
  • Jeff Lemire and Greg Smallwood on The Rose & The Thorn;
  • Ryan North (again!) and Gurihuru on Lois Lane;
  • Becky Cloonan and Olivier Coipel on Nightwing;
  • David Walker and Robbi Rodriguez on Batman and the Outsiders;
  • Tom Taylor and Phil Noto on Catwoman;
  • Nick Spencer and Jesus Saiz on Freedom Fighters;
  • Chris Hastings and Daniel Acuna on Metal Men;
  • Mark Waid And Humberto Ramos on Impulse;
  • Roxane Gay and Jackson “Butch” Guice on Suicide Squad;
  • Jason Aaron and Alex Maleev on John Constantine;
  • Matthew Rosenberg and Joe Quinones on Harley Quinn;
  • Gerry Dugan and Jim Cheung on Secret Six;
  • Jeff Lemire and Mike DelMundo on The Question;
  • Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo on Thriller.

Thomas Williams is curious:

The past two years during either SDCC  or NYCC, Valiant do a huge sale and I end up buying the entire past year of back issues and binging them. I always find that the comics are just great with solid story, characters and art. However once this sale is over I am back to forgetting these books in my weekly purchases. What can Valiant do to get people like me to remember them throughout the year?

Also Graeme, of VanLente’s Archer and Armstrong and Timewalker which do you prefer?

Evan Cass wants to know:

Are there artists that you used to adore aesthetically that you can’t stand anymore due to those same aesthetics? Two of my favorite artists as a teen were Art Adams & Ron Lim; I loved their work. Now as a 40something their work literally upsets my stomach; it repulses me. I’m curious if you’ve experienced similar with any former favorites, and why you think that might be. Thanks for the show.

Here comes good ol’ Badger Mushroom:

You asked your Patreon patrons (of which I am one) for questions to waffle about. So here’s one: what do you two think of the recent purchase of The Beat by Lion Forge? Any implications for comics journalism?

(I should note that I have great respect for Heidi MacDonald and the staff of The Beat. I just want to hear the experts weigh in. ;) )

Thanks to you both for an entertaining and informative podcast, and thanks to Empress Audrey, Queen of the Galaxy, for bestowing her mercy on us all.

Brendan O’Hare has all the best questions!

For Jeff: Who did you wife/husband up on Stardew Valley?

For Graeme and Jeff: I know Jeff recently parted ways with most of his comic book collection, but are either of you still going through back issue bins to fill in a run? If so, which ones?

And finally, here’s our pal Roger Winston:

I totally missed submitting a question for the Q&A podcast, but I see you are extending it to a second episode. I know you are already full of questions, but here’s mine just in case you need another:

Background:

I sold off the bulk of my collection (~22k books) several years ago and stopped reading. But a few years after that, I discovered digital and got back in (mostly thanks to my iPad and Locke & Key). Now I am totally addicted to Comixology (and to a lesser extent, Marvel Unlimited) and spend way too much money there, buying a lot of books, most of which I will probably never read. I think I felt a need to replace my print collection with digital. At least it takes up less space.

Question 1:

Do you ever think there will come a time when we will lose the rights to the comics we have bought digitally? I don’t think I ever read the Comixology terms of condition, out of fear. But I worry about them going out of business or changing their model or dropping publishers or whatever. Although them being owned by Amazon does make me feel more secure. I have downloaded DRM-free whatever I can for backups, but that is limited to some indie publishers (mostly Image in my case) -Marvel & DC don’t allow that. So was I stupid to have sank so much money (most of it during sales, luckily) into something that could potentially go away before I have a chance to enjoy it? Oh, the hazards of being an obsessive collector, even when there’s no physical component.

Question 2:

Do you think DC will ever come out with a DC Unlimited type service? The bulk of the digital comics I have bought are DC. On one hand, I would love this, because then I could stop buying back issues. (I’ve bought very few Marvels since subscribing to MU.) OTOH, I would hate this because it means I spent a lot on things I could then read a lot cheaper. I have heard some suggestions that DC’s new TV streaming service might include a comics unlimited type service as well, which does make a certain amount of sense.

And that’s that!  Again, our thanks to all of you for tuning in, and a super big thanks for those of you on Patreon for you generosity!

Join us next week for a Baxter Building!  Issues #314-324 of The Fantastic Four!

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26 comments on “Wait, What? Ep. 237: Big Questions

  1. Jeff Lester Nov 12, 2017

    And for those of you who prefer just the link:

    http://theworkingdraft.com/media/podcasts2/WaitWhat237.mp3

    • Bruce Baugh Nov 12, 2017

      This episode was a pure delight to listen to. :)

      Also, this being comics, we know perfectly well that if you did break up, you’d be back together within a year, with nothing but continuity glitching needing patching over to show for it.

  2. Zachary Adams Nov 12, 2017

    I keep trying to come up with adorable Mystery Train, but instead it just turns into weird grimy 70s DC horror.

    • I keep picturing Casper the Friendly Ghost as a coldhearted Western killer in DEAD MAN.

  3. Tomas Syrstad Ruud Nov 13, 2017

    Fantasy as you like it! Is he MOUSE or MONSTER or… is he BOTH?

    (It just stands to reason that the thing that finally broke you up would be a disagreement about whether Tom King likes Batman or not.)

    • Jeff Lester Nov 14, 2017

      Wasn’t until the second time I read the comment I recognized the Incredible Hulk cover blurb. Very nice!

  4. I didn’t think Graham was being a dick last time, just too dogged in not letting someone have an opinion without justifying it to the nth degree. I’ve noticed Graeme rarely responds to any tweets or comments, I just assumed he’s hated me ever since our Fantasy Advertiser days…

    … kidding, the man is busy! As long as he hangs on our every word, that’s fine.

    Talking of artists we didn’t get as kids that we grew up to like, I used to find Wayne Boring’s Superman ultra stiff. Eventually I found it magical, and still do – and no one draws more goddess-like women (well except that time a fish had Lois’s head).

    • Martin Gray Nov 14, 2017

      Oh, and I loved your Bleeding Cool chat. Rich certainly puts out better stuff when there’s a big story, or two, as this past week with Bendis and Berganza. Jude Terror, I don’t get… i never knew of The Outhousers, why did he have such a reputation? And as an old journo, I don’t trust anyone using a pseudonym.

      Would you do me a favour – if you’re going to spend a while discussing something that’s perhaps not in the common culture (that’s what we had in the olden day, before the zeitgeist), give af least a little context? That Sweet Valley High, or whatever, chat had me really confused, and I was stuck on a rowing machine, unable to move forward.

      • Martin Gray Nov 14, 2017

        I’m pretty sure you’ve had a long chat about ‘performative allyship’ in the past couple of years, though you may not have used the phrase. So no need!

  5. Garrie Nov 14, 2017

    Scary question about digital purchases disappearing with new company contracts… I checked my IDW Dr. Who purchases and they still remain readable in my library.

    • Brendan Nov 14, 2017

      I second that the Comixology/digital comics question was terrifying.

  6. Voord 99 Nov 14, 2017

    I feel terrible about saying how much I liked the last episode, now that it has been explained to me that what came across to me as engaged, passionate debate was really a blood-crazed festival of rage and hatred.

    • Jeff Lester Nov 14, 2017

      Yes, shame on you!

    • David Morris Nov 16, 2017

      Me too on this. Also I was somewhat Team Graeme on the debate… oops. Maybe it’s a British thing?

  7. Roger Winston Nov 14, 2017

    Thanks again for answering my digital comics questions, it was very enlightening. I already tweeted some comments about it, but I wanted to add one thing here. I am hoping that if Comixology ever does drop publishers, that the purchased comics libraries would still be available for reading in the individual publisher’s apps/websites, since they are there now already. Shouldn’t be that hard to separate out the accounts, but who knows. I remember going through something similar with Comixology/IDW/Madefire awhile ago, but can’t remember exactly what that was about. I was bummed that the reverse didn’t work when Dark Horse joined Comixology and the books I bought through the DH app were not available on the Cmx app.

    Anyway, great podcast Jeff & Graeme, keep it up! I do miss the “dosh” though…

  8. Brendan Nov 14, 2017

    Thanks for a-ing my q’s, G+J.

    In Stardew Valley, like Jeff, I felt Leah’s romance storyline was a little forward. I liked Penny more, but kept saying the wrong thing to her so married Leah. In the end it felt like I was hiding something and she was putting more into the relationship. Weird stuff. As for Robin, similar feelings for me. There’s always someone who is off the menu! Also it’s pretty amusing that Jeff married Clint’s crush and then said that the situation was heartbreaking.

    With the back issue diving, I’ve also had an online comic store tell me that stock went missing when completing a run. I kinda pick up anything Martian Manhunter, Deadshot, and anything that looks like that good 80s DC or some indies that wouldn’t be in digital. I actually kinda go by the house ads for what to look for, funny enough. As an aside, I haven’t read enough Legion of Superheroes, but it would probably take a weird creative team to get me interested in reading anything new with them, like a Fraction/Aja Hawkeye-esque project.

    • Jeremie McKnight Nov 15, 2017

      Long time fan – love the podcast! Having said that, unfirtunately I’m commenting for the first time to criticize.

      Jeff, your hand-wringing and Brian Hibb’s discomfort around taking down the bathroom artwork is not a great look, if you are also going to say you are any kind of ally to women in the comics community.

      On Brian’s part, he is literally valuing celebrity and nostalgia over the discomfort of the women who gave him feedback. You can’t say “Your opinion matters to me.” by asking for people’s opinions, but then say “Eh. they don’t matter enough to me to act on those opinions.” If anything, he has now doubly proven that their opinion and comfort don’t carry much weight by actively seeking them out and then saying, “This is hard. I just don’t know what to do.” afterwards.

      And Jeff, your Devil’s advocating for Brian might as well be just one more example of those classic online situations of a man explaining to women why *in this particular instance* their opinions and discomfort may not matter enough for something to change.

      I agree with Graeme – The solution is actually very simple and easy: You suck it up and decide a drawing on a wall takes a back seat to actual human beings expressing actual needs. Brian, and to a lesser extent Jeff, wringing their hands around something like this is literally the history of male privilege, and the patriarchy: Men’s comfort and discomfort trumping the needs of women. I mean, in this case Hibb’s discomfort is outweighing *multiple* women’s! Whose opinions he asked for!! It’s not even a 1:1 ratio!!

      Look, it genuinely sucks that something he loves and takes great pride in is now the center of an issue like this. But, do you know what else a person could choose to take pride in, instead? Being a goddamn human being who actively listens to and values the perspectives and experiences of women in his community. Not being just one more male authority figure who shrugs his shoulders, and makes clear that his discomfort and inconvenience is going to make sure that the status quo, yet again, wins out. Taking an opportunity to use meaningful action, rather than empty words, to prove his allyship – and not only when it is going to go financially benefit him as a retailer – to a segment of the comics communities that has often been treated, at best, as a sexy commodity for the fanboy gaze, and at worst, as being completely and utterly invisible.

      Uh…and, HEY! Big fan of the show!

      • Wish I could applaud this comment. It’s a lesson I’m still learning and one that clearly they are as well.

        I for one would love to hear you two wrestling over your opinions on the matter of performative allyship. Not because you guys have any authority or expertise, but because I like you guys and I like hearing you work through your thought processes. I also think putting your thoughts out there gives the community an opportunity to correct you in an amiable way. Otherwise you’re just avoiding the topic so you don’t stick your foot in your mouth

  9. Thibaut Nov 15, 2017

    Hey guys, very entertaining episode as always!
    Not that I’m that invested in it, but I just wanted to react to what Graeme said about the Waid/Samnee sort-of-reboot of Captain. While I agree that it’s a problem that it doesn’t reference Secret Empire, it’s a problem strictly on the editorial side of things. In and of itself it’s a nice professional book that hugely benefits from not referencing Secret Empire, which was a pile of crap and doesn’t need to be referenced ever again. Though I agree that it’s kind of ridiculous that nazi America can be forgotten this fast, I also think that the real problem was to let the piece of shit of a story be published in the first place. Basically, Waid is doing what we all will be doing from now on : forget this story ever existed. Besides, it is an extremely pretty nook so YAY.
    Regarding the status of the Steve/Bucky relationship, I again don’t agree with Graeme that outing them as a couple would change the comprehension of cap’s reaction to Buck’s death nor that of the Winter soldier story arc. Basically, Steve is devastated by the death (and later rebirth as an enemy) of someone he really much cares about and loves, be it his best friend or his lover.
    However, I’m absolutely in favor of them being a couple because it would simply make so much sense. And though I don’t think it would change anything about the more dramatic sides of their histories, it would explain perfectly their day-to-day relationship, the weird “buddying” and all those quieter moments when they’re just being there for each other and smiling tenderly at each other.

    • David Morris Nov 16, 2017

      I was annoyed by the line in the back-up origin (not by Waid and Samnee) which was something like ‘that was when he proved he was neither small nor weak’. As if being big and strong is the point of the character. I’d like some AU Steves who never got the serum and still are great.

      • Thibaut Nov 17, 2017

        The exact lines being “He was offered a chance to enlist if he subjected himself to a medical experiment. In that moment, Steve Rogers proved he wasn’t weak or small. He was meant for greatness” I do not read it like you do. I think him taking the decision to stand for his country/freedom/whatever is what proves he never was weak in the first place, the real strength being his force of will or something like that. These back-up pages were weird, like there’s ANYONE reading this comic book who doesn’t know the origin of CA.

  10. Mike Loughlin Nov 15, 2017

    Re Valiant: The company suffers from being a publisher of super-hero comics that’s not Marvel or DC. They have good creators, but no big names. They now publish ongoing series of mini-series, which can be confusing to readers who aren’t already fans. I don’t know how they expect to grow their readership beyond “hope the movies do well.”

    Re Creative team swapping: Great list Jeff! I came up with a few suggestions for DC creative teams on Marvel books:

    Tim Seeley & Javier Fernandez on Spider-Man
    Greg Rucka & Nicola Scott on Spider-Woman
    Benjamin Percy & Juan Ferrayra on Iron Man
    Tom King & Mikel Janin on Hulk
    Mark Russell & Steve Pugh on Gwenpool
    Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo on Punisher
    Dan Abnett & Brad Walker on Dr. Strange
    James Tynion IV & Eddy Barrows on Avengers
    Priest & Joe Bennett on New Warriors
    Steve Orlando & Marcus To on X-Men
    Gail Simone & Rafael Albuquerque on Daredevil
    Peter J Tomasi & Pat Gleason on Captain America

    Not DC creators, but I’d move heaven & earth to get Raina Telemeger, Coleen Coover, & Hannah Blumenreich to do comics centered around teenage girls or young women: Squirrel Girl, Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur, Ms. Marvel, Hellcat, Dazzler, Runaways, or Ironheart. They’d be Marvel’s best-sellers.

  11. Darrell G Nov 17, 2017

    A world where Steve and Bucky are lovers is interesting, but don’t you have to start out with them being lovers in 1940’s America during the war, when Steve was in his early 20’s and Bucky his 13-14 year old sidekick? Is that where you’re willing to go just to have “Stucky” in 2017?

    • Mike Loughlin Nov 19, 2017

      I had similar thoughts, Darrell, but then I remembered a retcon introduced in the Brubaker run that has Bucky being around Steve’s age. IIRC, the public was told he was a teenager for propaganda reasons.

  12. Don’t mind me, commenting on an ancient episode before I even listened to it the whole way through. But I just wanted to help with the Jim Jarmusch comics imprint. DOWN BY LAW should be separate from MONSTER MOUSE and GHOST DOG. The lead characters in Down By Law need to be attorney…cartoon ducks!

    Yep, I traveled back in time just to say that. My sincere apologies.