Wait, What?, Ep. 352: But I Was There

November 6, 2022

00:00-19:57:  Greetings! It’s our first episode of November, and during our October skip week, we were hanging out in Portland together.  Time being time (the 21st century edition thereof, anyway), we are mystified at how something so recent can feel so long ago, whether we were working our sweet ass off (Graeme) or alternating between naps, video games, and horror movies (Jeff).  (Oh, and Jeff’s old headset just isn’t working with his Mac anymore and his new one is a bit weird so apologies if things sound a bit muffled on his side of things.)  But if you want a recap about our time together in Portland—a recap that involves a troubling amount of dog dick—this is the place to be!
19:57-28:56: To follow up with more non-comics, hilarious at-home stories (but with less dog dick) Graeme has a great story about the ten year old trick or treating.  It’s no Chewbacca autoerotic asphyxiation speculation but in many ways I’m even more tickled?
28:56-1:35:48: “Speaking of sucking, maybe we should talk about comics?” is Jeff’s delicate segue to the comics talk.  And that sounds a bit harsh, admittedly, but keep in mind Jeff’s topic of discussion is The Spawn Compendium, a collection of the first 50 issues of Spawn, which he read in all of a day and a half.  We talk about the unspoken influence on the title, the most enjoyable issues in the fifty issue run, a semi-lengthy digression about the genius of Avenue 5, where the Spawn fans come from, Doom Force, Keith Giffen being salty about Image, and much, much more.
1:35:48-1:43:28: What has Graeme been reading?  He’s been reading old back issues of Amazing Heroes and The Comics Journal, including things like an eighteen page interview with Marv Wolfman, and ruminating on how and why interviews have changed in the decades since.
1:43:28-1:48:29: Another thing Graeme’s been reading?  The Fuse by Antony Johnston and Justin Greenwood.  Like Graeme fave Brink, it’s a detective series on a space station.  “BBC Sunday evening series detective fiction,” is what Graeme calls it, which is very close (I think) to Alan Moore’s description of The Fuse as “terrifically thought-through SF in collision with a Scandinavian noir police drama.”  And all four volumes are on Hoopla!
1:48:29-1:56:37: And from there, Graeme talks about attending a screening of Mission Hill, the animated sitcom that ran for a few episodes on the WB at the turn of the century before becoming a cult hit on Adult Swim and TBS.  Graeme and Chloe were there to watch the screening with an audience and the creators who’d never seen it with an audience before.
1:56:37-2:27:26: Big comics news! Well, that is to say…big news about us and so therefore in a weird way, big news about comics.  After thirteen years, we’re ending the podcast at the end of the year.  We are in very different places in our lives to the point where the time we spend doing this is in direct competition with a lot of other commitments.  We are not leaving with any animosity or regrets…but we are leaving.  And we’re gonna be kinda weird and confused about it?  Oh, but shoot us questions for a (final?) Q&A episode in two weeks!
2:27:26-end: Closing comments! Stitcher! Itunes! Instagram! Twitter together and separately: Graeme (and not a Twitter: Graeme at Popverse!) and Jeff! Also: 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.
NEXT WEEK:  Drokk! Read Judge Dredd The Complete Case Files, Vol. 40 and join us next week!
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19 comments on “Wait, What?, Ep. 352: But I Was There

  1. Jeff Lester Nov 6, 2022
  2. Genuinely gutted to hear you are wrapping up the podcast, but it’s been an absolute pleasure listening to it, right from the start. All the best for the future, gang.

  3. Chris M Nov 7, 2022

    Damn, I’m gonna miss listening to you guys. This podcast has been a source of genuine joy for me for a long time (since way back in the Savage Critic days), and I think I relisten to Baxter Building once a year or so. Thanks for everything.

  4. Genuinely upset to hear that the podcast is coming to an end and you’ll be very much missed, but looking forward to the final few podcasts. As someone who works from home you’ve gotten me through some lonely working days. All the best for the future.

  5. Bill Reed Nov 7, 2022

    This will be the end of an era. Or multiple eras, even. I’ve been listening since day one, when I had to play the audio while sitting in front of my computer. I fell behind a while back due to working from home in pandemic times, so (fortunately?) I’ve still got over a year of new-to-me episodes. You’ll be much missed. Thanks so much for keeping me sane and entertained all these years.

  6. andrew brown Nov 7, 2022

    wow, end of an era. I’ve been listening since Savage Critic days and I just want to thank you guys for making such a great podcast. thanks for the years of quality entertainment. Enjoy retirement

  7. Oh no! I’m so sorry the podcast is ending! As I was downloading this episode, I was just thinking to myself that over this past year this had become my favorite comics podcast. Best of luck to both you guys in the future, and I’ll make sure to savor this episode and the next… and all the Drokk and Baxter Building episodes I’ve missed. (Was really looking forward to you taking on the LSH next, as I believe you mentioned as a possibility once upon a time.)

    Thanks for so many hours of wonderful, often hilarious, listening.

  8. Gary A. Nov 7, 2022

    I’m sad you guys are going, but I’m so happy that it is after the Holidays. That means my Holiday driving will still be filled with Graeme and Jeff debating while everyone else in the car is asleep. Thank you for that!

    With that being said, here are some questions that I think only you guys can answer:

    1) The This American Life Question: Now that you’re wrapping up your Comics Podcast, what did you think it would be like podcasting about Comics when you first started out in the 2000s? What was it actually like?

    2) The Gossip-y Question: Throughout the years have heard a lot of Graeme saying, “Oh, I got a good juicy tidbit that I want to talk about, but I’ll tell you off air.” Now that this is the last one and we’re all friends here, can you tell us about at least one of your favorite comics gossip tidbits that the two of you shared, off air?

    3) The Wait What Bump Question: Now that you both are leaving the podcast stage, what new upstart podcast do you pass the “Wait What” stamp of approval to? What new comics podcast(s) should we listen to now?

    (alternate question)

    4) The James Lipton Question: If heaven exists, what would you like Jack Kirby to say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

  9. CJ Kral Nov 7, 2022

    *Ugly sobbing*
    *Ugly sobbing*
    Good bye, I’m going to miss you guys.
    *Ugly sobbing*
    But I understand. If you want to end then (cries) that’s okay.
    *Ugly sobbing*
    *Ugly sobbing*
    Also Fuck You!
    *Ugly sobbing*
    I like Spawn!

    I mean you’re not wrong with your criticism. I mainly read it because I’m an absolute slut for 90’s image. Also Spawn is a piece of shit as a character and he constantly fucks up his life, but he sticks with with his poor decisions and keeps fighting despite knowing that nothing good is going to come out of it. I don’t know why, but I genuine enjoy that aspect of it.

  10. Matthew Nov 7, 2022

    A question for you: What other podcasts do you listen to? (Both comic-related ones and others.)

  11. Joe Iglesias Nov 8, 2022

    It’s been a privilege and a pleasure to listen in on your conversations the last oh-my-god-has-it-been-that-long. I wish y’all all the best, and I hope we do get the occasional guerilla podcast drop in 2023 and beyond. I hate to see you go but I love watching you leave…

    Regarding Todd McFarlane’s Zeno’s paradox plotting, the Spawnometer podcast quickly pivoted to a general “early days of Image” format once they discovered that so little happens in any given issue of Spawn that they were struggling to fill ten minutes discussing it.

  12. I am sad I won’t have you chaps visiting my ear for much longer, but goodness me, you’ve done your bit. Thanks for the many hours of great listening, we won’t lose touch. And yes, do come back if the mood takes you!

    With so few Wait What episodes left, I reckon you should combine the Randy Newman, Chloe, karaoke and Jeff is High shows into one. That leaves more room for Top Comics Talk.

    Here’s a question – what is the typical Whatnought?

    Guilty admission. I misunderstood and thought you had only a couple of weeks left, so cancelled my small input of dosh. I could go back to Patreon, I don’t want to see you starve.

    I know the real reason you’re going away, it’s so Jeff never has to finish Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow to give me his opinion…

  13. Thank you dear Empress, you truly are the Queen of the Galaxy.

    Thanks Graeme and Jeff for being the vessels.

  14. Dan Billings Nov 9, 2022

    I will genuinely miss hearing from both of you. Thanks for everything you have done. Definitely a sad day, but life changes. After losing my comic shop and much connection to anyone who reads them, you gave me a lot of laughs and good times. Wish you both the best in your future endeavors.

  15. Shadavid Nov 9, 2022

    The old showbiz adage is ‘Always leave them wanting more.’ Congratulations gents! The Halloween anecdote and the discussion of Jeff’s time in Spawndage would have made this a memorable episode by themselves.
    I may be a delicate flower but Doom Force always seemed mean-spirited to me. The obvious comparison in that run is ‘And Men Shall Call Him – Hero!’ which is full of affection. It serves to point up the lack of generosity in Doom Force.
    Anyway, in what must now be my frankly familiar style of over sharing I’ll tell you how and why I came to be in your audience. I came on board after the House to Astonish crossover, so not from the start. I started to listen to podcasts shortly after finding myself bereaved unexpectedly at fifty. Your engaging and frequently funny conversations brightened a lonely, bleak time. You didn’t intend that, I dare say but that’s the thing with putting creativity out in the world, it does things the makers never expect and often never know. Thanks guys.

  16. Tim Rifenburg Nov 10, 2022

    Sorry to hear you are ending and glad that it is not because you no longer have anything to say to each other. It always felt like we were just hearing a friendship and discussion you let us in on. I am hoping you pop up with a podcast when you feel you have something you really want us to hear, just can’t resist opining on or are passionate about something. (but that is just me being selfish and greedy with your time). You have made yard work and snow shoveling easier and more fun to do and I have been both educated and entertained by the discussions. Since you are doing your last Q and A here is my last question to you. What would you have done after getting through Judge Dredd? Is there a series, creator or topic you would have liked to do a deep dive on or explore in some depth? (Personally, I would have loved seeing you tackle Claremont’s X-men run, Levitz’s Legion run or see you explore an artist’s work.) I was curious about what might have been next. Thanks for all you did to keep us entertained and enjoy some free time without us.

  17. Matthew Nov 11, 2022

    Thanks a lot for years of the podcast. I came on board with the big podcast crossover you did, and in that spirit it seems appropriate to ask this question for the Q&A. What podcasts/blogs/substacks/etc do you recommend to replace Wait What? And hold on, I want to make this question a little more complex by asking what you recommend to replace specific aspects of Wait What? To expand…

    1. If I want to get comics industry gossip like Graeme occasionally dishes out, I should go to…
    2. If I want hear manga reviews like Jeff gives us, I should do to…
    3. If I want to serial episodes reviewing entire comics runs like you did with Baxter Building and Drokk! I should go to….
    4. If I want to hear random reviews of older comics you stumbled across on Comixology sales or through Hoopla, I should go to…
    5. If I want to hear discussion and banter about the latest comic news and industry announcements, I should go to…

    Thanks again for all the time you put into the podcast! I would have emailed this, byt you have the podcast email posted nowhere that I can find and I didn’t write it down when you verbally went through it during the podcast. Something-something at gmail dot com I remember.

  18. Voord 99 Nov 12, 2022

    To add my voice to the chorus…

    I’ll miss this podcast a tremendous amount. I think I’ve been listening since the beginning, definitely since the Savage Critics days. I already knew Graeme from his Fanboy Rampage, back in that early-2000s fascinating, lively, and, yes, sometimes nasty, but still brilliant and sadly short-lived efflorescence of comics blogging, so it was a natural thing for me to start listening to. Our hosts are the masters of long-form pop-culture podcasting, able to sustain an interesting free-flowing conversation across several different topics in a way that no other podcast that I’ve encountered can match.

    But, since I should get my question in while there’s still time: Since you started the podcast, the landscape of comics has radically changed, for instance with the arrival of digital comics as perhaps the most important way in which comics are now consumed. And considering the genre of superhero comics in particular, this podcast’s existence is almost exactly contemporaneous with the rise of the MCU to a once-unthinkable level of prominence in pop culture at large, so that it’s not ridiculous to regard superheroes as the equivalent of what Westerns once were, leaving actual superhero comics looking like a tiny appendage on the huge monster that they have spawned. And of course, we have seen dramatic changes over the period in which this podcast has existed in the wider world outside pop culture. When the podcast started, Obama was at the beginning of his presidency, and Trump was a tv star. We’ve seen Britain leave the European Union; we’ve seen a massive global pandemic; so much has changed. Taking all that into account, what’s your favorite waffle?

  19. Nate A. Nov 13, 2022

    I found your podcast through Savage Critics, which makes your podcast, like House to Astonish (once affiliated w/Comics Should be Good) and Silence (via the Mindless Ones), a connection to the good old days of the comics blogosphere. Not having you guys around is another reminder that things change and not always for the better. That said, I’m happy for what you’ve provided by way of company and commentary, and I look forward to following you as you move on to new things. I’m also looking forward to the rest of your run!!