0:01-18:33: Greetings from Graeme “Back From The Wars” McMillan and Jeff “Loverman” Lester! We only have time for the briefest of Billy Bragg references before we’re off to the coverage of San Diego Comic-Con 2019, as only our embedded correspondent can provide! It was a very weird show, with some strange arrangements and a lot of off-kilter preparation. It’s not worth putting a time stamp but at one point, Graeme mentions that the combined DC/Warner Brothers booth was so big Jeff’s apartment could’ve fit in it four times. Well, in editing this, Jeff checked with Edi (who actually has an ability to remember numbers and understand spatial relationships), and ran the actual booth size—two floors of 6500 square feet total—and the actual answer? Jeff and Edi’s apartment could fit in that total square footage EIGHT TIMES. Also discussed: the Strange Adventures announcement from DC; the Undiscovered Country announcement from Image; the Hickman announcement panel at Marvel; the panels Graeme moderated; and more.
18:33-23:20: I don’t know if I can cleanly split this stuff up, but here’s where we started talking about Marvel Studio’s announcements for their upcoming film slate. Graeme lists them out, along with the Disney+ TV shows. And then we whipsaw back to the new X-Men titles announced at the Hickman reveal panel, along with some fun facts revealed there.
23:20-29:00: But here’s what Graeme thinks may have been the biggest story to come out SDCC and it seems like it’s been super-slept on: Comichub which does point of sales software in the retail market, has announced a partnership with NPD Group, and so sales will be entered into Bookscan. Retailers who use Comichub POS software will have their sales counted by Bookscan *and* will also have access to Bookscan data. This could be a huge boon for those retailers and help gain a better understanding of total sales for comics and graphic novels (which, as Hibbs will tell you, is pretty tricky stuff to try and even remotely guess at). For Jeff, there was the announcement of IDW collecting all of Steve Ditko’s Mr. A, and the disquieting acknowledgment (when someone asked) that Ditko quite specifically did not want the material reprinted. Discussed: It’s problematic.
BIG NEWS! I’ve been hired* to do the official HBO Watchmen tie-in comic, TALKING WATCHMEN. (“Hired” in the punk rock spirit of no one asking for this) pic.twitter.com/Vqouh1Oa1F
— Kenny Keil (@kennykeil) July 27, 2019
29:00-38:57: From out of the problematic frying pan and into the problematic fire, we talk about HBO’s Watchmen Comic-Con trailer and Damon Lindelof’s comments at the Television Critics Association about his relationship to Moore’s reaction to the show. (comic by Kenny Keil).
38:57-1:07:49: Here’s some good news from SDCC. Doom Patrol the TV show? It got a Season Two, and pretty much thanks to HBO Max. I for one welcome our corporate synergistic overlords! Also discussed: the Harley Quinn animated show trailer. Also discussed: The Great British Bake-Off; the secret behind Midsommar; the offsite Batman experience; the transition of SDCC from being a movie-based convention to a TV-based convention; the most popular cosplay of the show, maybe?; Kevin Huizenga’s The River At Night; new work by Adrian Tomine, Lisa Hannawalt, and more; what Graeme spent too much money on; the difference between New York Comic-Con and San Diego Comic Con; and much, much more.
1:07:49-1:28:16: Graeme has watched all eight episodes of The Boys on Amazon Prime, and he…liked it?! So much so that he went and got the omnibi off Hoopla and is re-reading them? UNEXPECTED! Discussed: how faithful the adaptation is, who seems to like and who doesn’t on social media, the differences made and their effects; Ennis and his thematic concerns, early Boys with Darick Robertson and later Boys with Russ Braun; the original pitch for The Boys. (And yet, this is mostly a spoiler-free review?)
1:28:16-1:32:54: As long as we’re talking about shows on Amazon Prime, also on Prime is Under The Silver Lake, the follow-up film from It Follows director David Robert Mitchell starring Andrew Garfield, a comedic L.A. noir that mulls over Mulholland Dr., Hitchcock films, Pynchon novels, conspiracy theories and cultural legacies. Jeff really wants to talk about it and talk about it and talk about it, but you guys all get off lucky.
1:32:54-1:42:24: However, all of that is probably the perfect prelude to talking about House of X #1 by Jonathan Hickman, Pepe Larraz, and Marte Gracia. It’s a big batch of comics in one (not cheap but still satisfying!) issue and we muse over its mysteries and finding that comic book sweet spot.
1:42:24-2:00:35: But Jeff may be fronting a bit on the superhero score. He loved House of X #1, he read and liked some other superhero books—here’s looking at you, Batman Universe #1—but what was really his jam these last few weeks was fourteen volumes of You’re My Pet by Yayoi Ogawa. Jeff adores the cartooning, the characterization and the storytelling and it’s all available to those who have a Comixology Unlimited subscription. Also discussed: the first volume of Mars, more of a Shojo manga (You’re My Pet seems to be much more Josei, for these keeping track at home) similarly available on CU by Fuyumi Soryo. Also discussed: Jimmy Olsen #1 by Matt Fraction, Steve Lieber, and Nathan Fairbairn; Superman: Up In the Sky #1 by Tom King, Andy Kubert, Sandra Hope, and Brad Anderson; Batman #75 by Tom King, Tony S. Daniel, Mitch Gerads, and Mitch Gerads; and Bad Weekend TPB by Ed Brubaker and Sean & Jacob Phillips. Also discussed: the end of Walking Dead and reaction about it at SDCC; the resurgence of Todd McFarlane; and more.
2:00:35-2:14:29: Graeme read the aforementioned Huizenga book; got a lot of print stuff from 2000 A.D.; and he runs Jeff through The Batman Who Laughs miniseries, a mini Graeme thought he was only an issue or two behind on but in fact hadn’t checked it out after issue #1. It’s…. a very strange little series?
2:14:29-2:20:25: Oh, and Jeff also tried to get his ass in gear and get out of the big two rut, and read The Wrong Earth #1 and #2 by Tom Peyer, Jamal Igle, Juan Castro, and Andy Troy; and Second Coming #1 by Mark Russell, Richard Pace, Leonard Kirk, and Andy Troy, both published by Ahoy Comics. He liked one and loved the other. Care to wager which is which, Mr. Bond? (And for bonus points, Mr. Bond, can you tell us how Irredeemable ends? Oh wait, never mind, we’ve both checked Wikipedia by now.)
2:20:25-end: Closing comments, interspersed with apologies! Look for us on Stitcher! Itunes! Instagram! Twitter together and separately: Graeme and Jeff! Matt! Tumblr, and on Patreon where a wonderful group of people make this all possible, including Empress Audrey, Queen of the Galaxy, to whom we are especially grateful for her continuing support of this podcast. (Also, don’t forget about Spotify!)
Next week: Pretty sure it’ll be Episode 276!!
And for those of you who engage in the deadliest of sports known as “cut and paste”:
http://theworkingdraft.com/media/podcasts3/WaitWhat275.mp3
I also binged The Boys and started rereading the comic, though not all in one day. :) I much prefer the tv show, and apart from all the problematic stuff and gross out jokes, there is just no tension in the comic. The boys curb stomps everyone they’ve come up against and the Homelander is afraid of them.
I don’t think the adaption is quite as loose as Graeme does though, for instance at least as stated early in the comic Butcher’s motivation is the same (wife fridged by Homelander). I agree that many of the characters in the comic are just cardboard cutouts so they had to invent characteristics whole cloth for them. :) The main plot of the show (supes in the military) is also a thing in the comic, although it moves glacially while they boys beat up random super hero caricatures ad nauseum.
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My main take away from House of X #1 is that the X-Men are the villains, you know with the pod people, Magneto thinking he is a god, Cyclops’ super culty comment about Franklin, etc. So it will be interesting where they go with that.
I agree, the X-Men are the villains, certainly in thrall to tv supposed Prof X… I suspect the secret to Krakoa’s sudden ability to grow wonder drugs is the right plant food. Specifically, the corpses of mutants – the healer Elixir begets the cure for dementia, a long-lived Wolverine clone brings extended life, a psychic cuckoo sister prevents Alzheimer’s, the teleporter Gateway results in Gateways, Limbo ruler Magic is the fuel for No-Place… that kind of thing.
(Apologies if anyone had read that last bit at my blog, Too Dangerous For a Girl, but it’s jolly unlikely!)
The Harley trailer is fun but I don’t think ‘fuck’ has so much comedic value that it’s worth limiting the audience by shoving it in ever other minute. It’s probably telling that there’s no effing in the trailer.
1:42:24 Jeff: It’s not an S&M thing. *proceeds to describe a 24/7 owner/pet romantisexual relationship*
I mean, I guess in the most literal sense it isn’t *specifically* a sadistic or masochistic thing. It’s just a kink lifestyle where 2 people regularly (or continuously? I’m not 100% clear from the description) roleplay owning/being owned by their partner.
Good point, and I think this does a great job of underscoring how terrible I was at summarizing this series?
This is probably where I get boxed in by my own limited understanding–but I associate bdsm situations with *some* kind of sexual arousal associated with the situation? The book spends a long time to make it clear that this isn’t a sexual situation for either, and in fact Sumire (the owner) is both surprised and squicked out by any kind of sexual implications for a long time. It’s almost as if the owner/pet situation makes it harder for her to tell any kind of sexual interest in one another…so that’s part of where my comments were coming from.
You’re My Pet is much more about having a woman be able to experience an unconditionally loving relationship with a man for long enough for her to get over her hang-ups in order to love someone back? And I don’t doubt there are also bdsm stories that have a similar protagonist? But the sexuality of it just seems a very long way away from what I’m used to dealing with. But maybe that’s just a deep cultural misunderstanding on my part?
It’s a tribute to how charming you guys are together that I consistently enjoy your show and listen avidly to your epic rambling even though you’re SO WRONG so much of the time.
Hickman’s Avengers is an all-time great.
So is Tom King. His Batman is terrific.
Midsommar is an instant classic.
Wytches is great and Jock’s art is perfect for it.
I think I’ve hit all the major things you were wrong about IN JUST ONE EPISODE.
Nevertheless… keep up the good work.
(Also, Kirby couldn’t write his way out of a paper bag – but I don’t hold it against him too much, as no comics writer I know of before the ’80s could.)
Oh, yeah, forgot one: King’s Superman: Up in the Sky is really good. But arguably that’s a subset of one I already mentioned.
WRONG WRONG WRONG.
xoxo
I’ve never been impressed with Kirby’s writing either, but for I’d recommend looking outside traditional super hero comics for some good writing. E.g. Will Eisner, Pierre Christin, Jean Giraud, and René Goscinny.
Right, I should have said, “No mainstream superhero comics writer.” Although I know Eisner wrote “The Spirit,” I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.
One of the few themes of the Boys (the Comic) that actually lands is how corporations kind of suppress, flatten, and destroy art and artists, and how they often pervert the nature of things.
Apparently, Ennis is okay with that great socialist institution Amazon completely flipping The Boys on its head and altering it fundamentally…. as long as he’s properly compensated for it. .
I feel like Hickman is doing the best version of the X-Men that you can do with the X-Men at this stage of the comics industry, in that like his other works, it’s basically a jigsaw puzzle of high concept sci if ideas with limited pretense of having characters with emotions and dimensions. Because these characters have long since stopped being much beyond soulless IP sanded down by all the hands that’ve touched them over the years, so sure, let’s enjoy the X-Men and their brand spanking new ethno-state