The Comics Canon

In this episode, Curt and Kevin welcome comics creator and Creative Loafing Atlanta editor in chief Carlton Hargro for a wide-ranging look at the year in movie and TV adaptations of Marvel Comics properties … plus a little-known indie film you may have heard of by the name of Wonder Woman. Spoilers abound in this non-canonical spectacular as we review the swinging Spider-Man: Homecoming, the high-...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin welcome your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man to the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a pair of powerful Spidey Super Stories! First up, they swing into action with a discussion of one of the most famous comic stories of all time: the origin of Spider-Man in Amazing Fantasy #15! After that, it's on to an action-packed tale of great power and great responsibility (and...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin unearth the spine-tingling tale that kicks off a "shared universe" of classic characters including the beastly Mr. Hyde! No, we're not talking about the Tom Cruise flop The Mummy, but The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. 1 by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill, originally published by America's Best Comics! Mina Murray, not long removed from her encounter with a cer...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin are joined by guest vocalist Ryan Lucas as they discuss the first two volumes of the Scott Pilgrim series: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, written and drawn by Bryan Lee O'Malley and published by Oni Press! Scott Pilgrim, aimless 23-year-old bassist for Toronto band Sex Bob-Omb, is dating 17-year-old high school student Knives C...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin prepare for the long-awaited Wonder Woman movie with a look at the comic-book origins of everyone's favorite Amazon, including her brief introduction in 1941's All-Star Comics #8 and her debut in the pages of her very own magazine, 1942's Wonder Woman #1, published by DC Comics! After that, it's on to a more contemporary take on the character's formative years, as w...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin trek across Bifrost, the rainbow bridge and wade into the ongoing conversation about diversity in superhero comics as they discuss Thor Vol. 1: The Goddess of Thunder, collecting Thor (2014) #1-8 by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman, published by Marvel Comics! The son of Odin is no longer worthy to wield his mighty hammer, Mjolnir! When a mystery woman picks up the...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin get ready for the new Guardians of the Galaxy film by taking a rocket ride to the Kree homeworld for a look at the comic-book origins of this cinematic band of space-faring misfits, as seen in Annihilation: Conquest – Star-Lord #1-4, published by Marvel Comics! But first, they make a brief 1,000-year detour to the far future to check in with the stalwart 30th-centur...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin take a break from titanic teens, movie misanthropes and murderous mutants to tackle a truly uncanny topic: Grant Morrison's twisted take on the "World's Strangest Heroes" with a discussion of Crawling From the Wreckage, collecting issues 19-25 of The Doom Patrol, published by DC Comics! Cliff "Robotman" Steele checks into a psychiatric hospital following the near-de...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin get ready for the third comics adaptation in as many episodes with a discussion of the landmark Teen Titans storyline The Judas Contract, as featured in The New Teen Titans issues #42-44 and New Teen Titans Annual #3, published by DC Comics! These Teen Titans aren't just kid sidekicks anymore -- they've dealt with supervillains, marauding aliens, a deadly cult leade...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin prepare for yet another comic-based film adaptation with a Daniel Clowes double feature: a discussion of the teen turmoil of Ghost World and the middle-aged turmoil of Wilson! First, best friends Enid Coleslaw and Rebecca Doppelmeyer find themselves at a crossroads – one populated by creeps, geeks and obnoxious, extroverted, pseudo-Bohemian art-school losers. When E...

In this episode, Kevin and "Old Man Holman" mark the release of the new Logan movie by gassing up the Spider-Mobile for a road trip across a post-apocalyptic wasteland to discuss Wolverine: Old Man Logan, collecting Wolverine #66-72 and Wolverine: Old Man Logan Giant-Size #1, published by Marvel Comics. Fifty years after the villains of the Marvel Universe teamed up to defeat the world's heroes, a...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin are joined by special guest Glen Weldon – NPR contributor, panelist on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast and author of The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture – as they discuss Batman: The Court of Owls, collecting Batman (Vol. 2) #1-7, published by DC Comics! The Dark Knight Detective has always believed the Court of Owls to be nothing more than a...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin go nuts as they enroll at Empire State University, joined by their first-ever guest – Curt's teenage daughter, Evelyn – to discuss Squirrel Power, collecting issues #1-4 of The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, published by Marvel Comics! She's fought crime with the Great Lakes Avengers and even defeated the powerful space baddie Thanos. But now Doreen Green, alias the afor...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin don their finest trench coats, open up a fresh pack of Silk Cut and throw back a couple of pints of holy stout as they discuss the Dangerous Habits storyline from John Constantine: Hellblazer issues #41-46, published by DC Comics! John Constantine has faced down more than his share of demons and other supernatural threats. But everyone's favorite chain-smoking magic...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin travel to a galaxy far, far away to mark the release of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story with a discussion of Darth Vader #1-6, published by Marvel Comics! Following the events of Episode IV: A New Hope, Darth Vader finds himself on the outs with Emperor Palpatine. Enlisting the aid of a "rogue archeologist" and a pair of murderous droids, the Dark Lord of the Sith begi...

In this last episode of 2016, Curt and Kevin look back on TV and movie adaptations of comic book stories from the second half of the year, pick their favorite small- or big-screen comics properties of the last 12 months, and ask "Just what makes a good comics adaptation, anyway?" In this non-canonical extravaganza, we also tackle the disjointed mess that is Suicide Squad, check in on DC's improvin...

In this episode, a morally challenged, mentally unstable captain of industry rises to a position of awesome power! That's right—join Curt and Kevin as they shine a light on the Marvel Comics event Dark Reign with a discussion of the Secret Invasion: Dark Reign one-shot and Dark Avengers Vol. 1: Assemble! After repelling a horde of alien invaders and their shapeshifting matriarch, Norman Osborn is...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin travel to the top of the George Washington Bridge (played by the Brooklyn Bridge) while discussing what may be the most iconic storyline in Spider-Man history (and one of the most influential moments in all of comics) as they take a swing at The Night Gwen Stacy Died, from Amazing Spider-Man #121-122! But first, they pay a quick visit to the (web-)swingin' 60s for a...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin lace up their running shoes for a mad dash through a mad, mad world as they careen headlong into Flashpoint, the five-issue miniseries by Geoff Johns and Andy Kubert — the storyline that paved the way for DC Comics' New 52! Barry Allen, a.k.a. the Flash, wakes up one day to a drastically different reality: His late mother is alive, he's lost his super-speed, and the...

In this magical episode, Curt and Kevin trek to the furthest reaches of India en route to the dreaded Dark Dimension as they prepare for the upcoming Doctor Strange movie with not one, not two, but THREE sizzling tales of '60s sorcery featuring Marvel Comics' Master of Mystic Arts! First, we revisit the origin of comicdom's Sorcerer Supreme, as arrogant surgeon Stephen Strange meets his mentor-to-...

In this HUGE mini-episode, Curt and Kevin take a break from passing judgment on comic book stories and turn their attention to the upcoming presidential election with a QUALITY discussion of YUGE! 30 Years of Doonesbury on Trump, a collection of Doonesbury comic strips by Garry Trudeau. It's a first-class episode, people, mark my words, okay? First class! Things Discussed in This Episode: The diff...

In this monsterrific episode, Curt and Kevin embark on their most spine-tingling, bone-chilling installment yet, as they investigate not one but two monster tales from comicdom's king of creepy-crawly creatures, Jack Kirby! First, it's a trip to Anytown, USA, where a mild-mannered biologist must match wits with an interplanetary tyrant of the trees (and future Guardian of the Galaxy) in "I Challen...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin travel from war-torn Latveria to Civil War-torn Manhattan as they tackle not one but two stories starring Marvel Comics' invulnerable sentinel of the streets, Luke Cage, in anticipation of the Netflix series of the same name. First, it's a fantastic voyage to the swingin' 70s, as the hot-headed hero of Harlem jets halfway across the globe to join a robot rebellion a...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin must brave a foreign world of influence, intrigue and insurrection as they discuss Black Panther: A Nation Under Our Feet, collecting the first four issues of the new Marvel Comics title by MacArthur Genius Grant recipient Ta-Nehisi Coates and Brian Stelfreeze. The once-invincible African nation of Wakanda has fallen on hard times, and so has its superhero king, T'C...

In this episode, Curt and Kevin set off in search of the Rocketship Forest, tiptoe past the gunpowder fields and try to evade the withering gaze of Lying Cat as they discuss Saga, Vol. 1, collecting the first six issues of the hit Image Comics title by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. Newlyweds Alana and Marko are on the run, desperate to escape an ongoing interstellar war and raise their newbo...