Classic Comics Cavalcade

"Death is the Black Racer!" But as Jason and Amir discuss Jack Kirby's New Gods #3, they ponder if a flying skiier is as cool and interesting as a certain silver skinned guy on a surfboard. Also, they talk much more about Jack Kirby's astonishing storytelling, the mysterious purpose of the Black Racer, and Darkseid's latest infernal plans.

The Fourth World is Jack Kirby's cosmic sublime. Amir and Jason continue their reading of Jack Kirby's New Gods with a discussion of New Gods #2, "O Deadly Darkseid!" It's a fun and lively conversation we think you'll enjoy!

Jack Kirby's New Gods is one of the greatest comic series of all time. Jason has read these comics many times but Amir is completely new to them. Together they decided to work their way through Kirby's sublime cosmic series together. Join them for part one of what we think is a very interesting discussion about this great comic.

Eric Hoffman and Jason Sacks, 2 of the editors of Steve Gerber: Conversations (published by University Press of Mississippi) are joined by writer and critic Nick Hanover to discuss three of Steve Gerber's 1990s comics: Foolkiller , Sludge and Nevada . The team delves deep into Gerber's work, exploring the ideas and motivations behind those often brilliant comics. This is the second part of a multi...

Eric Hoffman and Jason Sacks, 2 of the editors of Steve Gerber: Conversations (published by University Press of Mississippi) are joined by writer and critic Nick Hanover to discuss four of Steve Gerber's great 1970s comics: Morbius the Living Vampire, Son of Satan, Shanna the She-Devil and Guardians of the Galaxy. The team delves deep into Gerber's work, exploring the ideas and motivations behind...

This week noted comic historian Frank Young joins Jason to discuss ELMO, a classic lost comic strip which Frank describes as "like David Lynch created Li'l Abner. As the conversation reveals, ELMO was a unique comic full of dark humor and strange characters, a fascinating portrait of post-WWII America and a hell of a great read. Even if you haven't read it, I think you'll enjoy the conversation --...

First Second Books editor Robyn Chapman joins Jason this week to discuss Stuck Rubber Baby , one of the finest graphic novels of the 1990s and a brilliant exploration of LGBTQ awakening, the civil rights movement and much more. As Jason and Robyn discuss, this is a graphic novel of rare beauty and depth, the product of a brilliant cartoonist at the absolute top of his skills. Hope you enjoy and pl...

The Comics Cavalcade Book Club is back in session as Daniel Elkin and Keith Silva join Jason to discuss a surprising choice for books: 2019's House of X/Powers of X. It's surprising because Daniel and Keith are not huge superhero fans, but like the pros they are, Daniel, Keith and Jason dig deep into Jonathan Hickman's magnum opus to tease out depth, symbolism and just what was up with Professor X...

Legendary designers Seymour Chwast and Steven Brower have created a charming and fascinating graphic biography called The Mighty Elvis which celebrates the life and times of the King. They join Jason for about 35 minutes of conversation about the complicated life and legacy of Elvis Presley, the pleasures of working as a designer, the importance of education, their shared love for comics and much...

Steve Ditko was one of the most unique creators ever to work in the comics industry. You probably know him as the creator of Spider-Man and Doctor Strange, but a lot of his work is more obscure and much harder to find than the early appearances of Doctor Octopus and the Green Goblin. Jason and Mark talk Ditko's complex and fascinating career and approach to his work in this fun, breezy and fast-mo...

Nate Powell is one of the most insightful cartoonists in comics, a man whose honest and heartfelt work reflects his inner sensibilities, search for deeper meaning, and his deep connection to his past. In this 2015 interview, conducted shortly after his short story collection You Don't Say , we delve into all those areas as well as have a really pleasant and interesting talk. 

Continuing Jason's obsession with classic fanzines, writer/artist/columnist Ken Meyer joins Jason to talk about some of the classic yet under-known fanzines of the 1960s, '70s and '80s, including RBCC, The Collector and Ultrazine. They also talk about some of the classic fan artists of that era, which includes John Byrne, George Perez and Dave Cockrum as well as John Fantuccio, Don Rosa and the gr...

My guest today is Tom Peyer, longtime comics writer and editor. In the coming hour, we discuss his Ahoy Comics Hashtag: Danger, High Heaven and The Wrong Earth, the way heroes are perceived in different eras, the birth of Vertigo Comics, his acclaimed (but under-known) series Hourman, a strange and little-known proposal to revise Superman, the late '90s version of Magnus Robot Fighter, future plan...

My guest today is Stuart Moore, longtime comics writer and editor. In the coming hour, we discuss his Ahoy Comics Bronze Age Boogie and Captain Ginger as well as his love for 1970s style comics, his transition from the book press to comics, the pre-history and birth of Vertigo Comics, the birth of The Invisibles and Preacher, Steve Gerber's Howard the Duck, Stuart's own writing, including his seri...

In part six of the epic interview Dominick Grace, Eric Hoffman and I conducted with famed comics writer/editor Jim Shooter, we discuss why John Byrne hates Shooter, Chris Claremont's commitment to characters, the corrupt practice of lapping, freelancing later in life.

This is part five of the epic interview Dominick Grace, Eric Hoffman and I conducted with famed comics writer/editor Jim Shooter. This time we discuss Frank Miller's meteoric ascent as comics' greatest artist, the way Walt Simonson explained to Shooter that Thor would be turned into a frog, the secret origin of Epic Comics, the evolution of Marvel between different generations, Shooter's time at D...

In part four of this epic six-part interview with Jim Shooter, the legendary writer and editor tells the behind the scenes story of the birth and rise of VALIANT Comics, VALIANT's strange beginnings publishing Nintendo comics, the reasons Shooter left VALIANT, the strange stories of DEFIANT and BROADWAY Comics, Secret Wars II, the power of paying attention to fundamentals, and much more. Come back...

In part three of this epic interview with Jim Shooter, the legendary writer and editor discusses Shooter's favorite work of his own, the reasons VALIANT had a consistent universe which changed in real time, the death of the New Universe, behind-the-scenes stories of Marvel's 1980s financial problems, the birth of VALIANT Comics, Shooter's failed bid for Marvel Comics in 1989 and much more. Come ba...

In part two of this epic interview with Jim Shooter, the legendary writer and editor discusses how he received the editor-in-chief job at Marvel, the 1970s Comics Guild strike against Marvel, the time Stan Lee thought Shooter was an idiot, Marvel's work-for-hire contract, the secret origin of the "Secret Wars" series, the reasons behind "Crisis on Infinite Earths", the idea behind the VALIANT "Uni...

Jim Shooter is one of the most fascinating and controversial figures in comics history. Loved by some, hated by others, and misunderstood by many, Shooter stands alone as one of the most complex figures ever to work in comics. Several years ago, in preparation for Jim Shooter: Conversations , Eric Hoffman, Dominick Grace and Jason Sacks had the chance to interview Shooter for several hours. We wil...

For many years Harvey Comics were perhaps the premier publisher of kids' comics in America, with characters like Casper the Friendly Ghost and Richie Rich providing wholesome entertainment for elementary school kids. But since Havey went under in the mid-1990s, this "little company that could" has largely passed out of the imaginations of readers and fans. I was joined by Jonny Harvey, director of...

In part three of our three-part celebration of the great comics historian Bill Schelly, Bill's good friend Jeff Gelb. We talk about the "golden age of fanzines" in the 1960s, Bill's rediscovery of comics fandom in the 1990s, what made Bill a special historian and all that good stuff about history. What makes this episode special, though, is that it's a portrait of the deep bond between these two f...

In part two of our three-part celebration of the great comics historian Bill Schelly, Bill's good friend, fellow historian Frank Young joins Jason to reminisce about Bill, sharing stories about Bill's commitment to greatness, his love for film, and the unique challenges of having a friend who wrote a book about which you are an expert. This was another wonderful episode of the show. You can hear F...

In part one of our three-part celebration of the great comics historian Bill Schelly, Bill's close friends Gary Groth of Fantagraphics Books and John Lustig of Last Kiss join Jason to reminisce about Bill, sharing stories about Bill's interesting life and happy late career. We discuss Bill's outstanding writing, his strong motivations to do his work, his unique life and approach to the world, and...

Editor and writer Gideon Marcus joins Jason to talk about two fascinating science fiction projects: Rediscovery , his new collection of science fiction by women, and Galactic Journey , a website which explores the world of pop culture from 55 years ago. Jason is an excited contributor to Galactic Journey and reader of Rediscovery , and enjoys talking about these passion projects with him. It's a f...