Latest / 22 Panels - A Comic Book Podcast / 22 Panels Episode #210 - Season 5 Opener - Wally Wood “Superduperman!”

Transcript

22 Panels Episode #210 - Season 5 Opener - Wally Wood “Superduperman!” · 22 Panels - A Comic Book Podcast

• 0:03
  Tad Eggleston: Good morning, everybody. Welcome back to 22 Panels!
• 0:08
  Tad Eggleston: The debut episode of Season 5… Wow.
• 0:18
  Tad Eggleston: Season 5, Episode 210. Across the interwebs from me!
• 0:25
  Tad Eggleston: Spencer a wall.
• 0:27
  Phil: Yammering, it's coming out.
• 0:29
  Tad Eggleston: I caught him off guard. Caught him off guard.
• 0:35
  Phil: Nope.
• 0:35
  Phil: I… I will also mention, we are… we are the podcast aims to examine, explore, and elevate the medium of comics.
• 0:42
  Tad Eggleston: Stealing my fucking lines. Well, you're… you're doing them out of order! Hey, that's Tyler's order.
• 0:50
  Phil: Tyler's order, I see. I just didn't want people to be confused about what kind of podcast we are.
• 0:57
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, if they're confused, is that really on me?
• 1:02
  Phil: That's a good question. That's a good question.
• 1:05
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, we don't have enough responsibility in this world, Phil.
• 1:10
  Phil: Oh, enough for sponsors.
• 1:12
  Tad Eggleston: Get off my lawn!
• 1:13
  Phil: Are you saying we, you, and me don't have enough responsibility? That we need… we need to take on more responsibility from that troubled world?
• 1:20
  Tad Eggleston: No comment.
• 1:24
  Phil: Yeah, no, that's a… that's a… that's a… that's a pile of trouble that… that I do not want to… to find myself knee-deep in.
• 1:32
  Tad Eggleston: So, yeah, how's your week been, Phil?
• 1:34
  Phil: Oh, it was a blur. It, it, it…
• 1:37
  Phil: I don't even know. Me too. Yeah, I, I, yeah, it, it…
• 1:43
  Phil: it really… for the first time in a while, feels like this week went by entirely too fast, whereas in the past, they feel like they've been taking… taking entirely too long. So, yeah, time… time.
• 1:56
  Tad Eggleston: Mine was fast, fast, crash with a day of being…
• 1:59
  Tad Eggleston: Horribly sick, and then fast, fast, fast again.
• 2:02
  Phil: Oof. Well, I'm glad you bounced back from that.
• 2:05
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, bounce back is a relative term.
• 2:08
  Phil: Always. Always.
• 2:10
  Tad Eggleston: Anyway, some news and note, have you been following the, the Anga Lem drama?
• 2:18
  Phil: I have not. I, I, the, the…
• 2:23
  Phil: I was more aware of Thought Bubble happening this weekend than Uncle Lemon.
• 2:27
  Tad Eggleston: Thought Bubble is happening, I mean, that's one of the key words. Thought Bubble is happening this weekend. Right now, the existence of Anglem is…
• 2:40
  Tad Eggleston: in… Jeopardy.
• 2:45
  Phil: -Oh.
• 2:46
  Tad Eggleston: The, the… The group that has been running it for… for… the… non-profit…
• 3:01
  Tad Eggleston: the, I think, nonprofit. The group that has been running it for, for the, the foundation that,
• 3:11
  Tad Eggleston: founded it, not only has had… Shady business-type stuff with…
• 3:25
  Phil: Hmm.
• 3:27
  Tad Eggleston: That's affected artists and whatnot, but on top of all of that, apparently fired a contractor after she reported, sexual assault at last year's.
• 3:38
  Phil: Additionally.
• 3:38
  Tad Eggleston: Well, that's fucked up. So, so, like, the last few months have been filled with…
• 3:45
  Tad Eggleston: Creators and eventually even, most of the major publishers that are involved .
• 3:58
  Phil: pain, so…
• 3:58
  Tad Eggleston: Well, saying that they would boycott the event if… if… If, the specific…
• 4:07
  Tad Eggleston: the specific operator boss, Frank Bondo.
• 4:11
  Tad Eggleston: And his group 9E Art+.
• 4:15
  Tad Eggleston: were involved.
• 4:18
  Tad Eggleston: There was a… there was a thing where supposedly it was thrown open for…
• 4:23
  Tad Eggleston: for, people to present and try to win the contract, but 9ER was allowed to be in the running, and then go figure, they won, and that pissed people off more.
• 4:41
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, that doesn't sit right.
• 4:44
  Tad Eggleston: The town is starting to get upset, so it's actually become an issue in the upcoming mayoral election.
• 4:52
  Phil: Wow.
• 4:54
  Phil: The second mayoral election influenced by a cartoonist.
• 4:58
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 4:59
  Phil: Sorry.
• 5:00
  Phil: Terrible joke. Terrible joke.
• 5:03
  Tad Eggleston: The… the daughter of one of the original founders, who's…
• 5:11
  Tad Eggleston: currently still the head of association FIBD.
• 5:16
  Tad Eggleston: At this point,
• 5:19
  Tad Eggleston: She's been so slow to act, and… and… and… and… and so that, that, like…
• 5:27
  Tad Eggleston: It's not clear that she can stay in her role.
• 5:31
  Phil: Hmm.
• 5:32
  Tad Eggleston: still have people stay… you know, I mean, it's… It's the Anglehem… Association FIBD, the Anglem…
• 5:41
  Tad Eggleston: Festival and association, which controls all copyrights related to the event, was founded by Francis Gru, Jean Martikian, and Claude Molaterni in 1974. Both Mardik…
• 5:54
  Tad Eggleston: Kian and Mullaterni are deceased, while France is now in his 90s. Had his daughter, Delphine,
• 6:01
  Tad Eggleston: take his place as the role of President of the Association in 2016.
• 6:06
  Tad Eggleston: But again, her judgment is no longer… Trusted.
• 6:15
  Phil: Hmm.
• 6:15
  Tad Eggleston: When you've got, like, last year's Grand Prix winner, Who normally there's a big…
• 6:24
  Tad Eggleston: Exhibit of their work at the following year is refusing to exhibit.
• 6:29
  Tad Eggleston: Wow.
• 6:31
  Phil: Yeah, so… Yeah, that's huge.
• 6:34
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, one of the… the… the most…
• 6:44
  Tad Eggleston: World-renowned comic festivals is not only in…
• 6:49
  Tad Eggleston: danger for, like, this upcoming year, but it's, like, in danger…
• 6:57
  Tad Eggleston: Period. Dean Simmons… or Dean Simons at The Beat has been on top of this. I encourage anybody who cares to, check out his work. I, I don't get…
• 7:11
  Tad Eggleston: I kind of jumped in late and didn't read all the earlier stuff, so I don't have a full grasp on everything except that, like.
• 7:20
  Tad Eggleston: Particularly when they're unionized, as they are in.
• 7:26
  Tad Eggleston: I tend towards, being on the side of the creators.
• 7:32
  Phil: Yeah, oh yeah. And I mean, dude, this one, too, the fact that it's.
• 7:35
  Tad Eggleston: Creators and the publishers at this point.
• 7:38
  Phil: Yeah.
• 7:39
  Tad Eggleston: Is… is pretty damning, and, and, like…
• 7:45
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, it feels like there's… there's a lot of shadiness going on that's been coming to light, and people are… and this is, like, again, one of the world-renowned festivals, like, this is… this is on my bucket list of things to go to.
• 7:57
  Phil: Safe, yeah.
• 7:58
  Tad Eggleston: don't want it to go away before I can do that.
• 8:01
  Phil: I mean, not only that, but for such a prestigious and, again, like you said, world-renowned comics festival is that, you know, we want to make sure that that's run by good people, and not people abusing their power.
• 8:13
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, we have… A, a… Da-da-da…
• 8:26
  Tad Eggleston: Right now, a, a, I want to say winner of the Grand Prix.
• 8:32
  Phil: Hmm.
• 8:34
  Tad Eggleston: Coming up.
• 8:35
  Tad Eggleston: So… if she's comfortable talking about it, because this is definitely not something that I would ever say, I'm gonna, like…
• 8:45
  Tad Eggleston: You must tell me all about this.
• 8:49
  Phil: Right? Oof.
• 8:50
  Tad Eggleston: But, oh, she had the… got the 2020 Audience Favorite Prize at Uncle Lim.
• 9:01
  Phil: Oh, okay.
• 9:05
  Phil: And I imagine it's the kind of festival that… I mean, I hope issues like these haven't been going on for a long time, you know?
• 9:13
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, I mean… It sounds like, at least the financial… Stuff isn't necessarily new.
• 9:29
  Phil: Yeah, I… the joke that came to me too late was, well, of course it's non-profit, Ted, it's comics.
• 9:34
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 9:36
  Tad Eggleston: Alright, so, you were laughing because you saw the back and forth I gave with you.
• 9:43
  Phil: Yes.
• 9:44
  Tad Eggleston: After you said that this is too weird. Dictionary.com's Word of the year.
• 9:50
  Tad Eggleston: 6-7.
• 9:52
  Phil: Yeah, but…
• 9:53
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, shut up.
• 9:55
  Phil: I just got…
• 9:56
  Tad Eggleston: Shut up!
• 9:57
  Phil: You know, usually we use space.
• 9:58
  Tad Eggleston: Shut up, shut up is also two words, but, like, it's used as one word.
• 10:05
  Phil: Yeah?
• 10:06
  Tad Eggleston: Shut an up.
• 10:09
  Tad Eggleston: only mean…
• 10:11
  Tad Eggleston: shut up when together. They're separate words with completely different… you put the two words together, and you use their original meanings, and it doesn't mean the same thing.
• 10:23
  Phil: Yeah?
• 10:24
  Phil: But…
• 10:25
  Tad Eggleston: Words for dictionary senses have to do with meaning.
• 10:29
  Phil: Sure.
• 10:30
  Tad Eggleston: You're talking grammar, not definitional. Shut up.
• 10:34
  Tad Eggleston: Anyway… 6-7, dictionary.com word of the year.
• 10:40
  Tad Eggleston: Great write-up in the New Yorker, I think… I think that,
• 10:46
  Tad Eggleston: the piece of it that I liked the most and will highlight before telling people, just go check out the piece in the New Yorker. Or, at the very least,
• 10:57
  Tad Eggleston: maybe think harder before just bashing it. It says…
• 11:03
  Tad Eggleston: the paragraph that stuck out to me the most, and there were a lot of good paragraphs. There are reasons, though, to think that 6-7 is not actually brain rot. One striking fact is that despite its online origins, the phrase isn't used online.
• 11:18
  Tad Eggleston: No one types it into a group chat hoping that others will type it back. There'd be no point. 6-7 is something you say in person, out loud, in a group, in unison. It has physicality. It's not content to be consumed. It's a song and dance.
• 11:36
  Tad Eggleston: In other words, in this… this… this… increasingly online…
• 11:44
  Tad Eggleston: disconnected culture. Somehow, 6-7 has become a physical… Ritual.
• 11:56
  Phil: Okay.
• 11:57
  Tad Eggleston: It's about togetherness rather than…
• 12:01
  Tad Eggleston: anything else. And yes, it's silly, but the other great thing that I like to point out is,
• 12:12
  Tad Eggleston: The problem of meeting in prevalent languages, the anthropologist.
• 12:16
  Tad Eggleston: Branislaw Walinowski observed that whenever people get together, they talk about a whole lot of nothing. As much among savage tribes as in a European drawing room, he wrote, social life involves a lot of conversations in which meaning is almost completely irrelevant.
• 12:35
  Tad Eggleston: Inquiries about health, comments on weather, affirmations of some supremely obvious state of things, all such are exchanged not in order to inform, and certainly not in order to express any thought, but just to create ties of union.
• 12:53
  Phil: That's a nice sentiment. That's a really nice sentiment. This is, unfortunately, it also feels like a party that I not only wasn't invited to, but… but am not sure exists.
• 13:07
  Tad Eggleston: Well…
• 13:09
  Tad Eggleston: You know, that possibly is part of the point.
• 13:12
  Phil: It might be, and that's okay, I'm okay.
• 13:14
  Tad Eggleston: Okay, so, like.
• 13:15
  Phil: Out of the joke.
• 13:16
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, well, no, I don't think… I don't think… because it deals with that later, too. It's like, oh, you know, some people have posited that it could be,
• 13:25
  Tad Eggleston: It could be, like, their way of sticking it to older adults or whatnot, but then they're like…
• 13:33
  Tad Eggleston: But really, is a… is a bus full of elementary school kids that shout 6-7 between the 6th and 7th stops on the route?
• 13:43
  Phil: I gotta take something to the.
• 13:44
  Tad Eggleston: Bus driver, or are they just…
• 13:47
  Phil: No, they're making noise. They're having a good time. And that's okay!
• 13:50
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 13:50
  Phil: That's okay.
• 13:51
  Tad Eggleston: I will express confusion… So what I'll say… and marvel at my own oldness. What I'll say is just embrace it.
• 14:00
  Phil: Yeah, no, I'm okay with.
• 14:01
  Tad Eggleston: Somebody say 6'7", go 6-7!
• 14:06
  Tad Eggleston: You see, you see a kid that just seems shy or whatnot?
• 14:11
  Phil: Go.
• 14:12
  Tad Eggleston: 6.
• 14:13
  Tad Eggleston: Seven, huh?
• 14:15
  Phil: That's actually… I like that. That's a good strategy. That's fun, you know?
• 14:18
  Tad Eggleston: I'm just saying.
• 14:20
  Phil: Yeah.
• 14:20
  Tad Eggleston: Just.
• 14:21
  Phil: Something to say when you don't know what to say.
• 14:23
  Tad Eggleston: So, anyway, what kind of week has it been? So…
• 14:28
  Tad Eggleston: We haven't talked about this at all. What'd you feel about the Dems?
• 14:34
  Tad Eggleston: Well, the message on Sunday was certainly that they caved. How do you feel? And I would be willing to bet, knowing you, that you were furious as hell at them.
• 14:44
  Phil: I mean…
• 14:44
  Tad Eggleston: I was, I was… How do you feel right now?
• 14:47
  Phil: I was equal parts, how do you say, unsurprised and unenthused. Now, I mean, like, you know, yeah, that's… I can see why they wanted to reopen the government.
• 15:01
  Phil: you know, I can see… I can see the… the… they're like, hey, we need this. And… honestly…
• 15:11
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, I'll just jump in really quick, because I wrote it at the time to a couple of people. It's like, am I happy that this is the way it went down? No, but we're the party out of power.
• 15:22
  Tad Eggleston: We were almost certainly never gonna get
• 15:28
  Tad Eggleston: the ACA subsidies, at least now, and hey, we signed, er, we approved a really short CR,
• 15:37
  Tad Eggleston: So we get to try again in January.
• 15:41
  Tad Eggleston: And in terms of it hurting, like, SNAP payments are due.
• 15:48
  Phil: Yeah.
• 15:48
  Tad Eggleston: how long do people have to go hungry and have expensive health insurance? Yeah, it's, because if you think those are different people, you're deluding yourself.
• 15:56
  Phil: No, no.
• 15:57
  Tad Eggleston: And they're not the people making the decisions or the people getting upset because… the Democrats caved.
• 16:04
  Phil: I mean, so the way… I guess the way I'm kind of landing on it here in the moment a week… a week later is, do… do I kind of realize that continuing the shutdown probably would have continued hurting more people.
• 16:18
  Tad Eggleston: Well, and also, what's not getting enough play is two things. In fact, one of the things that's got in play is the concession they made that allowed senators that had their phone records
• 16:31
  Tad Eggleston: Subpoenaed as part of the January 6th
• 16:36
  Tad Eggleston: to sue for almost 5… or sue for up to $500,000.
• 16:43
  Tad Eggleston: which I'm certain was only a concession to make certain that…
• 16:49
  Tad Eggleston: A, they got the two things that they added that are important, which are SNAP benefits are now guaranteed through the end of fiscal year 2026. So even if we shut down again in January, by law.
• 17:03
  Tad Eggleston: And by allocated funding, it doesn't affect SNAP.
• 17:08
  Phil: Okay.
• 17:09
  Tad Eggleston: Same with… Furloughs. Furloughs have to be paid for, and they can't lay people off.
• 17:16
  Tad Eggleston: This is, this is now codified, so, so, like…
• 17:19
  Tad Eggleston: We know that this administration is completely happy to break laws and whatnot, so whatever happens could still happen, but, like, they will be clearly breaking the law if they do those things in January.
• 17:31
  Tad Eggleston: No real wiggle room.
• 17:34
  Tad Eggleston: Sure, they… they put the thing in saying they could sue for their phone records, but let's be…
• 17:41
  Tad Eggleston: honest, How well would that lawsuit play publicly?
• 17:47
  Phil: So, just to clarify things, who would be suing whom in this.
• 17:51
  Tad Eggleston: The idea is, like, like, like…
• 17:54
  Tad Eggleston: Jim Jordan's phone records were… were…
• 17:58
  Tad Eggleston: subpoenaed regarding January 6th. Not, like, transcripts or anything, just who he called during those hours on the Capitol. He could sue for whatever for up to $500,000 now.
• 18:12
  Phil: Again, that's an incredible.
• 18:14
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 18:14
  Phil: Yeah.
• 18:15
  Tad Eggleston: Well, but again, I'd love the discovery in that case.
• 18:19
  Phil: Yeah, yeah, that's interesting, that's interesting.
• 18:22
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, it would be worth half a million dollars for the Discovery in that case.
• 18:28
  Phil: I can also imagine, hopefully, we can hope that any attempts at those lawsuits would not go the way of the people enacting them, but, you know…
• 18:35
  Tad Eggleston: That's entirely possible, too.
• 18:37
  Phil: Pear.
• 18:38
  Phil: I, I guess…
• 18:39
  Tad Eggleston: But so, I mean, but here's the most important thing that a few people saw even Sunday night.
• 18:46
  Tad Eggleston: because they didn't quite pass just the House bill. They passed something that was slightly different, even if not in a lot of major ways, and not the way that we had publicly said we required. It was different, which meant the House had to vote on it. The House having to vote on it
• 19:08
  Tad Eggleston: meant that the House had to come back into session. The House coming back into session meant that they had to swear in the congresswoman from the.
• 19:19
  Phil: Arizona.
• 19:19
  Tad Eggleston: Arizona. Swearing in the comments, Congresswoman from Arizona, put the last signature on the discharge petition to release the Epstein file. So that vote will be next week, and yeah, that has to go through
• 19:32
  Tad Eggleston: Through…
• 19:33
  Tad Eggleston: the Senate, too, which may or may not be easy, and after that, it has to be signed by the President. But, as we've seen already, just getting to that point.
• 19:45
  Tad Eggleston: First had the House Democrats, Release some juicy bits… bits from… from…
• 19:52
  Tad Eggleston: the subpoenaed stuff from the Epstein estate, and then the House Republicans, in the most clear example of.
• 20:02
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, God, we don't have anything good to trickle out, so we are just gonna make you guys dive through it all in the hopes that you'll find something.
• 20:11
  Phil: Nothing…
• 20:12
  Tad Eggleston: Other than our boss to go after, released it all.
• 20:18
  Phil: So, so they, they effectively…
• 20:19
  Tad Eggleston: FBI files, but the 26,000 emails that they got from
• 20:27
  Tad Eggleston: the Epstein estate. So, we know things like, as early as 2011.
• 20:34
  Phil: Huh.
• 20:35
  Tad Eggleston: Epstein and Maxwell were talking about how Trump hadn't talked yet, and he could.
• 20:41
  Phil: Wow.
• 20:42
  Tad Eggleston: And in 2018, in 2018, after the time where, like, he wasn't supposed to be talking to any, he was talking about the things he knew, and would it be better to…
• 20:56
  Tad Eggleston: like, refute Trump and prevent him from… or… or is it, is it, is it worth, you know, keep silent and have a favor? Or, or, you know, there's evidence that he,
• 21:10
  Tad Eggleston: told the Russians, hey, I've got some things that you might want to know. Wow.
• 21:16
  Phil: Yeah.
• 21:17
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, like, I've heard bits and pieces, and it's all crazy.
• 21:21
  Tad Eggleston: Zateo had a really great write-up where they went through 26,000 documents and found the good stuff.
• 21:29
  Phil: Wow.
• 21:30
  Tad Eggleston: But it's getting reported a lot of places, not as the… as the,
• 21:37
  Tad Eggleston: White House would have you think MORE Than the shutdown is.
• 21:43
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah. But it's also not being ignored, and it shouldn't be, and it's pretty damning. It should be pointed out that it's not necessarily good for Bill Clinton either, it's certainly not necessarily good for Larry Summers, who was an economic advisor under…
• 22:01
  Tad Eggleston: Obama, you know, it's not all one-sided.
• 22:06
  Phil: Yeah.
• 22:06
  Tad Eggleston: That's, you know what.
• 22:07
  Phil: And my, my… There is… you know what? They did… they did bad things, they need to go.
• 22:12
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, I agree with that too, but it's also another thing that I put on the Biden list of, like, why are we having this conversation?
• 22:22
  Tad Eggleston: For 4 years, the Biden administration could have released the Epstein files.
• 22:27
  Phil: Yeah, that's a bit of a… that's a bit of a… an eye-opener there, for sure.
• 22:33
  Phil: Yeah. And that's kind of… that's kind of where I come down to. So where I fall, you know, this week on Democrats is basically, did reopening the government seem like it did a good thing? Yes. Do… would I still like a different Senate leader than.
• 22:48
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, absolutely.
• 22:49
  Phil: Very, yes.
• 22:50
  Tad Eggleston: I would, I would still happily,
• 22:54
  Tad Eggleston: I will still happily prom… primary half the Democrats in government.
• 22:59
  Phil: Oh yeah, yeah.
• 23:00
  Tad Eggleston: But you know what? That was true while the government was shut down, too.
• 23:06
  Phil: Absolutely, absolutely, exactly.
• 23:08
  Phil: So, I guess what I'm thinking… what I'm trying to think in terms of is that we're in a tough spot, to put it mildly, and there are going to be a lot of bad choices that are going to need to be made. Choices where, in the short term, it might seem like a bad thing that is a stupid idea to do, but in the long term is what needs to happen, and that's…
• 23:27
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 23:28
  Phil: I try to take.
• 23:29
  Tad Eggleston: But I'm still a big, big, big believer in, like.
• 23:34
  Tad Eggleston: Doing bad things that affect you and making the decision to do bad things that affect you is one thing.
• 23:40
  Phil: Yes.
• 23:40
  Tad Eggleston: Starving children during…
• 23:43
  Phil: Agreed, yeah.
• 23:44
  Tad Eggleston: The holidays?
• 23:45
  Phil: Fucked. Completely fucked.
• 23:47
  Tad Eggleston: And, like, that was another thing that I don't think there was enough talk about, is that, like, as much as we talk about, like, the Republicans have no conscience, and the difference between Republicans and Democrats is Democrats have empathy, blah blah blah blah blah, the people who were really upset that the Democrats
• 24:06
  Tad Eggleston: quote-unquote caved, are essentially arguing that they needed to not have empathy.
• 24:12
  Phil: Heh, yeah.
• 24:13
  Tad Eggleston: for their constituents who were about to go hungry during the holidays, who were about to not have food while they also didn't have heating subsidies, who were about to not have food while they also didn't have healthcare.
• 24:25
  Phil: I definitely think that they could have done their messaging better in saying, hey, we want to help who we can while we can. The government being shut down helps nobody, and not say things like, we tried to stand up to Trump and it didn't work, you know?
• 24:38
  Tad Eggleston: But that was Angus King. Angus King is an independent.
• 24:43
  Phil: Yeah, that's, that's, that's also… I… again, this shows my general uninformedness.
• 24:48
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 24:48
  Tad Eggleston: Right. So, anyway, the Trump administration's major, major,
• 24:55
  Tad Eggleston: response is that there's a carrier group outside of Venezuela, because we got a…
• 25:02
  Tad Eggleston: We gotta take care of those narco-terrorists.
• 25:08
  Phil: Oh, they, you, you're saying, you're saying they, they shot missiles at another boat?
• 25:12
  Tad Eggleston: Well, I mean, yes, they've done plenty of that, but they also have the largest carrier group.
• 25:18
  Tad Eggleston: outside of Venezuela. They have in place what you would expect to be in place if they were going to
• 25:25
  Tad Eggleston: Attack on the ground.
• 25:27
  Phil: Okay, that's what you mean by… by carrier group. I wasn't totally sure of that term.
• 25:32
  Tad Eggleston: Carrier Group.
• 25:33
  Phil: Troop Carrier Group.
• 25:34
  Tad Eggleston: Well, no, the troop carrier starts with a aircraft carrier.
• 25:39
  Tad Eggleston: But it also, also has all of the… accoutrements, etc.
• 25:44
  Phil: I see, I see what you said.
• 25:45
  Tad Eggleston: You need an aircraft carrier to shoot some fishing boats.
• 25:49
  Phil: No, you don't. I see what you're saying. Yeah, the carriers, and especially multiple carriers, yeah, that's a big…
• 25:55
  Tad Eggleston: Well, it's… I think it's actually one carrier, though it's one of our largest, but a carrier group includes, like, destroyers.
• 26:05
  Phil: Oh, okay, yeah.
• 26:06
  Tad Eggleston: you know, there's all the things to protect the carrier, both offensively and defensively, etc. I'm not enough a naval guy to be able to say specifically, but, like, it's a big deal when.
• 26:20
  Phil: It is.
• 26:21
  Tad Eggleston: It gets sent somewhere.
• 26:22
  Phil: Yeah, no.
• 26:23
  Tad Eggleston: And now, now…
• 26:23
  Phil: Now that I… now that I know what you meant, because I was… when you say carrier group, part of me, for some reason, was like.
• 26:28
  Phil: I'm like, is this… I'm like, is this about cell phone plans?
• 26:32
  Tad Eggleston: I mean… no, it's not couches for JD, either. Nope. Nope.
• 26:39
  Phil: Unfortunately.
• 26:40
  Tad Eggleston: Though, though… I don't… is South Park.
• 26:45
  Tad Eggleston: South Park managed to… to rip…
• 26:48
  Tad Eggleston: Trump and JD and, and, the new Sora video AI all together.
• 26:56
  Tad Eggleston: Cause… the, the, the…
• 26:58
  Tad Eggleston: that the two… the two running themes in this week's episode were the kids were having, like, an AI battle, which, of course, the police were just treating as real, so it's like, it started with… with, somebody made a video of, like, butters having sex with…
• 27:17
  Tad Eggleston: with, my neighbor Totoro, and so, so, so the police are then looking for, for Totoro.
• 27:26
  Tad Eggleston: It just goes back… That's amazing. The police are searching for all of these cartoon pedophiles.
• 27:31
  Phil: Wow. Wow.
• 27:32
  Tad Eggleston: And eventually go undercover as Rocky and Bullwinkle.
• 27:36
  Phil: That's pretty cool. Because none of the kids will talk. Wow.
• 27:40
  Phil: Wow, that's.
• 27:42
  Tad Eggleston: Meanwhile, Trump and Vance get, get intimate, and, and when, when
• 27:52
  Tad Eggleston: out because of the security camera in the Lincoln bedroom, and Maga is upset that he cheated on Satan.
• 28:02
  Phil: Naturally.
• 28:02
  Tad Eggleston: He blames it on Sora. That didn't happen. That was just…
• 28:08
  Phil: Wow.
• 28:11
  Tad Eggleston: Welcome to South Park in 2025.
• 28:16
  Phil: Yeah, that's,
• 28:18
  Phil: That's a heck of a… it's a lot. It's a lot to take in. I, you know…
• 28:23
  Tad Eggleston: fun!
• 28:24
  Phil: I… I just… I just want to say, if I could… if I could stop imagining Donald in sexual situations for the rest of my life starting now, that would be great.
• 28:32
  Tad Eggleston: I mean… I get it, but, like… It's like, there's and JD make a nice couple.
• 28:42
  Phil: The only… I mean, I… oh, God, I just… again, the contribution I want to make here is… is does he dress
• 28:49
  Phil: Ouch.
• 28:50
  Tad Eggleston: They're very tender.
• 28:51
  Phil: cost?
• 28:51
  Tad Eggleston: They're very tender together. That's fine. I don't know if they've gotten that far yet. Oh, boy. Maybe that's the next episode, where JD… JD starts to not show… and Trey and Matt…
• 29:04
  Tad Eggleston: if you're listening, I give you this… I give you this idea for free. You know, JD starts being, not as,
• 29:14
  Tad Eggleston: not as… as full… full-on all-over Donald, you know? He starts to cool in his emotions, so… so Donald could dress up like a couch to…
• 29:26
  Tad Eggleston: rekindle the fires of their relationship. I like where you're thinking, Phil.
• 29:31
  Phil: It's, you know, I, I, I, oh, I, I wish I didn't have these thoughts.
• 29:36
  Tad Eggleston: Alright, by the time we air, this will have happened, but it's worth bringing up anyway. Anyone Comics in Brooklyn, which is definitely a store that I enjoy, is having a hands-off NYC zine and poster.
• 29:55
  Tad Eggleston: event this afternoon, 1 to 4 p.m. Again, this afternoon means Saturday. You're listening to this on Sunday or later. But people,
• 30:06
  Phil: Tell us how cool it was!
• 30:07
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, yeah, I mean, yeah, anybody who goes, definitely, definitely, let me know.
• 30:13
  Tad Eggleston: But yeah, the… organize in collaboration with Hands Off NYC, they'll have local artists, etc, there to help,
• 30:26
  Tad Eggleston: The event's description is, join New York City, er, New York comic creators to fold zines and make posters to push back against ice in our city. Stay to fold and color a while, or just swing by to pick up zines and posters to distribute in your neighborhood. Creators include Spencer Ackerman, Julio Anta.
• 30:44
  Tad Eggleston: Joe Illich, Ben Kahn, Fred Van Lenti, Greg Peck, and Wendy Zhu, along with the Anyone Comics owner, Demetriosis.
• 30:53
  Tad Eggleston: Crack?
• 30:55
  Tad Eggleston: Bragascatos. So yeah, that actually includes
• 31:00
  Tad Eggleston: Four 22 panelists guests, and Demetrios is on my shortlist of people that I'd like to talk to. So, maybe I will even just reach out and say, hey!
• 31:13
  Tad Eggleston: Can we… can we chat about this? Particularly because, I did see an alert recently that Charlotte could be…
• 31:23
  Tad Eggleston: The next major city… targeted by ICE? And seeing as… Charlotte.
• 31:34
  Tad Eggleston: is also a BigCom account.
• 31:36
  Phil: Heroes aren't hard to find.
• 31:38
  Tad Eggleston: It would be interesting to know if…
• 31:42
  Tad Eggleston: The comic shops will start trading, trading ideas with each other, etc.
• 31:47
  Tad Eggleston: So, yeah, it's…
• 31:51
  Tad Eggleston: Can we stop living in a goddamn interesting time? I wanna live in a boring time.
• 31:55
  Phil: Oh yeah, yeah, it's, it's, time's, time's more interesting than we can handle.
• 32:02
  Tad Eggleston: Boring time, Phil, I want a boring time.
• 32:04
  Phil: Yes, please. I long for boredom.
• 32:07
  Tad Eggleston: Let's talk some new-to-order comics.
• 32:09
  Phil: Oh yeah, first up, we've got Bloodland from B. Claymore and Mac Chatter. This is the United States is collapsing. You don't say! And then there are vampires.
• 32:22
  Phil: President Andrew Cross is deep into an unconstitutional extended term, seized and shielded by executive orders, martial law, and a stacked Supreme Court, with support.
• 32:31
  Tad Eggleston: Splinter…
• 32:32
  Phil: Yeah, right? It's unimaginable!
• 32:35
  Phil: With support splintering, Cross forges an alliance with a cabal of ancient European vampires. As the White Cell's influence expands, the administration's pursuit of power and blood purity transforms the landscape into a battleground between embroiled loyalists, aspiring.
• 32:49
  Tad Eggleston: Gold End.
• 32:50
  Phil: Embolden loyalists, aspiring demagogues, and colorful factions of dissenters. Against it all, Army veteran Heather Brooks is a lone wolf on a warpath to find and avenge her newborn son, who's been sacrificed to the state. And…
• 33:03
  Phil: And retired probe quarterback Son Cassidy rallies an idealistic resistance. As their courses collide, the two leaders will tilt the odds and change the shape of a cross-country war for the soul of a nation. Sounds, sounds, you know, like it's got a lot going on.
• 33:18
  Tad Eggleston: too, too real?
• 33:19
  Phil: Yeah, yeah, well, hopefully, hopefully too real in a good way.
• 33:23
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, the Vampire Cabal would explain a lot.
• 33:25
  Phil: And of course, when they, when they said the, the, the white blood or the white cells, that, that was, that was, they're white supremacist vampires, this is all, this has all come together, it's…
• 33:34
  Tad Eggleston: Right. Painting a picture.
• 33:35
  Phil: from Ignition Press, in stores, January 14th.
• 33:40
  Tad Eggleston: Alright.
• 33:42
  Tad Eggleston: Hannah and the Hells vs. the Beatles.
• 33:46
  Tad Eggleston: When all-woman punk band Hannah and the Hells set out to perform the perfect gig, Satan himself couldn't stand in their way, even if the Hells' ambitions include heisting a gently weeping guitar from
• 34:00
  Tad Eggleston: The Beatles. It's anarchy in the UK as Hannah, Razor, Trash, and Fetish come together to twist and shout the Fab Four into submission, with John Paul, George, and Ringo needing more than love to make it out alive. God save him. Writer Sam
• 34:16
  Tad Eggleston: Ashurst is a cartoonist, screenwriter, and filmmaker based in Portland, Oregon. Artist Tony M. Clark is a 70s punk rocker turned 80s psychotronic bootlegger based in London, England.
• 34:30
  Tad Eggleston: Heck yeah. This is from Floating World Comics, on sale.
• 34:35
  Tad Eggleston: February 11th.
• 34:39
  Phil: Very cool. Next up, we've got Holy Brawl from Athila Fabio.
• 34:45
  Phil: When a fearless priest is summoned to perform an exorcism at Lily's house in Germany, he brings along some very unconventional methods and a dark past that's about to catch up with him. An ancient enemy awaits, and what follows is a battle of fists and pure chaos. Get ready for an explosive mix of action, horror, comedy, and killer artwork in Holy Brawl, a supernatural showdown for all ages.
• 35:08
  Phil: From Keen Spot in stores, January 14th.
• 35:14
  Tad Eggleston: Rogue number one from Erika Schultz, and Luigi Zagaria.
• 35:18
  Tad Eggleston: You can't.
• 35:19
  Tad Eggleston: Outrun the past. Rogue has an idyllic life with her sweet Remy Lebeau, but there are still skeletons in her closet. One that comes out when she least expects it.
• 35:30
  Tad Eggleston: Rogue has worked so hard to leave her villainous past behind, unfortunately, the past doesn't stay in the past. What happens when it slams you right in the face? What past sin would Rogue leave Haven House?
• 35:43
  Tad Eggleston: Or would make Rogue leave Haven House? And do Mystique and Destiny hold the answer? This is from Marvel Comics, on sale January 21st. I love Erica Schultz's work, so, like…
• 35:54
  Phil: Yeah.
• 35:55
  Tad Eggleston: I also know that Rogue's another one of her favorite characters, so, like, when Erika Schultz gets to work on things that she's geeky about.
• 36:04
  Tad Eggleston: All over it.
• 36:06
  Tad Eggleston: Well, and, like.
• 36:07
  Phil: I feel like Rogue is a group… you know, I've been observing… I always tend to observe superheroes from afar, and I see that the X-Men line is going with a lot more solo series these days. Rogue is one that actually makes sense, you know? She had kind of one before, and yeah, that sounds great. Rogue's cool.
• 36:24
  Tad Eggleston: How about some graphic novels, Phil?
• 36:26
  Phil: Oh yeah, first up we've got Blood Honey from IDW, and by author Sean Peacock.
• 36:35
  Phil: young love always feels like life or death, and at this high school, it is in the ex… and at this high school, it is in this exciting graphic novel. In this Burton-esque macabre world, young lovers Vanessa de la Moore and Edgar St. Clair are at the top of the food chain at…
• 36:54
  Phil: Manderly Prep… Preparatory high school.
• 36:58
  Phil: They should be focusing on their upcoming crowning as homecoming king, queen and king, but lately the duo have grown weary and resentful of each other. While breaking up seems like the easy solution, they've both independently decided that all their problems will be solved if the other was, well, dead. Join up-and-coming writer-artist Sean Peacock in this exciting cat-and-cat game as two teens try to murder each other in increasingly elaborate fashion.
• 37:23
  Phil: Again, that is from IDW Dark, in stores, February 3rd.
• 37:28
  Tad Eggleston: Brief History of a Long War, Ukraine's Fight Against Russian Domination by Marion Nahum, illustrated by Yulia Wuss and
• 37:39
  Tad Eggleston: Ivan, Kipabita from 10 Speed Graphic.
• 37:44
  Tad Eggleston: The conflict between Russia and Ukraine began long before 2014 war that led to the Russian invasion in 2022. The Ukrainian people have been subjected to systemic persecution and mass atrocities by Russian and Soviet authorities across centuries.
• 37:59
  Tad Eggleston: from the linguist side of the Ukrainian language and censorship of literature in the 1860s to the Holomador famine of the 1930s and more. In A Brief History of a Long War, distinguished Ukrainian scholar, activist, and journalist Mariam Nahum presents a panoramic view of the major moments in this long-standing conflict.
• 38:21
  Tad Eggleston: Alongside gripping accounts of the historical foundation of the modern Ukrainian state.
• 38:27
  Tad Eggleston: As we know it today, NAM seamlessly incorporates current narratives about the harrowing realities of war and the length citizens must go to survive.
• 38:37
  Tad Eggleston: This is in stores on January 27th.
• 38:42
  Phil: I just had to write down the word linguicide, that is way too cool. Next up, we have I Can Sell You a Body by Ryan Farrier, and illustrated by George Cambodias.
• 38:54
  Phil: A down-on-his-luck TV medium finds himself on the run from the cops, the mob, the Vatican, and the legion of ghosts looking for available bodies. This graphic novel crime comedy adventure.
• 39:06
  Phil: Denny Little is a former TV psychic turned clairvoyant for hire turned supernatural real estate agent. Since discovering he can perform reverse exorcisms, transferring spirits into living bodies, he's become LA's most in-demand realtor, giving the dead a new lease on life. But when Denny falls in love with a new property, the family of the prospective tenant, a former mob boss, will get their money and revenge over our hapless hero's dead body.
• 39:31
  Phil: This one is coming from another IDW Dark in stores January 27th. Sounds really fun.
• 39:40
  Tad Eggleston: does.
• 39:41
  Tad Eggleston: The Pass by Patriona Chapman. In her early 30s, Claudia is fast becoming a sensation on the culinary scene. In the midst of putting her chic London restaurant, Allie, on the map, she decides to enter the upcoming Chef of the Year competition.
• 39:57
  Tad Eggleston: All this is she is also attempting to make a name for herself beyond the shadows of her famous chef father. As the day of the competition nears, tensions simmer as the pressures of ambition, business, family, and friendship threaten to throw her world ary.
• 40:15
  Tad Eggleston: In the past.
• 40:16
  Tad Eggleston: New York Times-reviewed British comic artist Catriona Chapman brings to life the fast-paced, high-pressure atmosphere of restaurant life with a lived-in cast of characters, including Chef Claudia, her best friend, and sous chef Lisa, and barman Ben. Chapman delves into themes of identity, the pains of expectation and success, and the allure of running from the life you've built.
• 40:39
  Tad Eggleston: A sensitive and affecting slice-of-life rendering in soft digital coloring. In stores from Fanagraphics on…
• 40:47
  Tad Eggleston: December… or, I'm sorry, January 21st.
• 40:51
  Phil: That sounds absolutely fantastic.
• 40:53
  Tad Eggleston: It does. Yeah. Couple of collections.
• 40:56
  Phil: Oh yeah, first up is Cemetery Kids Don't Die, Volume 2, Run Rabid, from Zach Thompson and Daniel Irizard.
• 41:04
  Phil: One year ago, four friends escaped the unrelenting terror of the video game called Nightmare Cemetery. After spending endless hours locked in the innovative Dreamwave, the first gaming console played entirely while you sleep, in order to save one of their own from the game's all-too-real consequences, they survived. Barely.
• 41:21
  Phil: But after their harrowing rescue, they've decided they've had enough of Nightmare Cemetery, an enigmatic final boss, the King of Sleep.
• 41:28
  Phil: That is, until the newest DLC, The Blighted Sprawl, suddenly appears online with a promise to reveal the truth of what actually lurks at the heart of Nightmare Cemetery's digital darkness, and why its effects are now bleeding out from the real world in an army of bizarre and disturbing new ways. From writers Zach Thompson and illustrator Daniel Irzari comes the next chilling chapter of cybernetic horror with Cemetery Kids Run Rabid.
• 41:51
  Phil: In stores May 13th.
• 41:53
  Phil: From Oni Press.
• 41:57
  Tad Eggleston: And finally, the Legend Testers.
• 42:00
  Phil: Cool.
• 42:01
  Tad Eggleston: 3900 AD, Rollo Stones and Danny Charters
• 42:05
  Tad Eggleston: are the Legend Testers, employees of the Central Knowledge Museum, tasked with taking exhibits back through time to see if they are genuine or not. Using the world's only time machine called the Time Chamber, Rollo and Danny throw themselves into peril, seeking out the truth behind myths and legends. From werewolves to Greek gods, the Legend Testers are ready to face any supernatural challenge. This collection includes the entire run of
• 42:29
  Tad Eggleston: the Legend Tester strip from Smash.
• 42:32
  Tad Eggleston: All beautifully illustrated by Spanish art superstar Jordi Bernet, written by Graham Baker, and this is out from Rebellion on…
• 42:43
  Tad Eggleston: January 5th.
• 42:45
  Tad Eggleston: So…
• 42:46
  Phil: That also sounds incredible. And the art looks very gnarly.
• 42:49
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, Geordi Bernay is amazing.
• 42:53
  Phil: Yeah, this is the first I've heard of, I assume, him, but, yeah, it looks so, so good.
• 43:01
  Tad Eggleston: Anyway.
• 43:02
  Phil: Yeah.
• 43:03
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, yeah. Jordy Brene's fantastic. I recommend highly.
• 43:09
  Tad Eggleston: Final order cutoffs for the week
• 43:12
  Tad Eggleston: due by Monday, November 24th.
• 43:15
  Tad Eggleston: We have the Blood Brothers Mother Collected Edition from Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Riso at Distillery, in stores on January 20th. Carmen Redclaw, Belly of the Beast number 1 from Ray Allen and Mike Mignola.
• 43:32
  Tad Eggleston: Dark Horse Comics on January 7th. The Collected The Last Boy from Dan Panozian and Alessio Avalone at Boom Comics on February 24th.
• 43:43
  Tad Eggleston: And The War from Garth Ennis and Becky Cloonan at Boom, also on February 24th. Still crowdfunding, we had Tom the Dancing Bug from Ruben Bowling at Clover Press.
• 43:55
  Tad Eggleston: on Kickstarter through November 20th, and How to Draw 2026 from Terry Moore at Abstract Studio on Kickstarter through November 28th. Check out my recent conversations with both of them.
• 44:09
  Tad Eggleston: Three amazing books this week. I didn't even read all the books that I wanted to read this week, I didn't even come close to reading all the books that I wanted to read this week, and it was still a tough call, because Comfortless was really good. Check out my discussion with Miguel Vila.
• 44:28
  Tad Eggleston: Kai is always good.
• 44:30
  Tad Eggleston: I didn't even manage to wrap up Batman Dark Patterns, but that's been amazing. Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees Rites of Spring was amazing.
• 44:39
  Tad Eggleston: Really, really enjoyed the, the, the conclusion of…
• 44:47
  Tad Eggleston: We're taking everyone down with us, and I even managed to get a copy of Die.
• 44:52
  Phil: You didn't?
• 44:53
  Tad Eggleston: I didn't. I neglected to order it from my old shop.
• 44:57
  Phil: Oh…
• 44:59
  Tad Eggleston: It's not digital yet.
• 45:01
  Phil: Oh, no! I haven't read it yet, so soon. Okay. I'm certain I'll read it. Lips are zipped.
• 45:07
  Tad Eggleston: But honestly, I don't completely mind, because A I knew you'd talk about it, and B, it would have made it even more difficult for me to decide my top book, because.
• 45:18
  Phil: Right?
• 45:19
  Tad Eggleston: Number one with a bullet, Is they finally collected
• 45:23
  Tad Eggleston: Paul Pope's legendary THB, and now I get to know why it's legendary, because his… Really freaking good.
• 45:32
  Phil: Yep.
• 45:33
  Tad Eggleston: Volume 1 is out right now. This is… this is, like, his… not quite his earliest work, but, like, this was his, like, oh…
• 45:43
  Tad Eggleston: there are people self-publishing and it's working, I'm gonna do that too.
• 45:49
  Tad Eggleston: Book from, like, the late 80s or early 90s?
• 45:55
  Tad Eggleston: And it's a sci-fi thing set on Mars with…
• 46:00
  Tad Eggleston: robots and kids, and I don't even know how to describe it, except that it's beautiful and fun and…
• 46:09
  Tad Eggleston: And I'm certain that the deeper into it I get, the more it will… also become…
• 46:18
  Tad Eggleston: like, layered and brilliant. I can see it already, but I'm not deep enough
• 46:24
  Tad Eggleston: I'm, like, two-thirds through the first volume of what will be three, and I feel like things are still kind of being…
• 46:33
  Tad Eggleston: set up. We know that the characters…
• 46:40
  Tad Eggleston: under attack. We don't know enough about her or her family or the world to know the whys and wherefores and…
• 46:48
  Tad Eggleston: whatnot.
• 46:50
  Tad Eggleston: And it has some cool sci-fi stuff to boot.
• 46:56
  Tad Eggleston: Including THB, the character itself, being essentially a…
• 47:02
  Tad Eggleston: A bouncy ball that, when you get it wet, turns into a big, spongy… Protector.
• 47:10
  Phil: Wow.
• 47:10
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 47:11
  Phil: That does sound fun.
• 47:12
  Tad Eggleston: With a sense of humor.
• 47:14
  Phil: Heh, of course.
• 47:16
  Tad Eggleston: American Caper 1, Dan Hauser, Laszlo, David Lapham from Dark Horse. I'm so looking forward to talking to this team on Monday night.
• 47:27
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, mormon Hitman… America at its best.
• 47:35
  Phil: a Mormon hitman?
• 47:36
  Tad Eggleston: I did.
• 47:37
  Phil: Wow.
• 47:40
  Tad Eggleston: Sitting Beneath Her Feet, number 2, from James Tinian and Elsa Chardier at Distillery. I mean, A, I just love Elsa. I love Elsa's work so much. But, Tynion does some pretty good work himself, and this is essentially, like.
• 47:56
  Tad Eggleston: a love story between a writer and a… we're gonna… we've got a theme here, a secret hitman.
• 48:09
  Phil: Interesting.
• 48:10
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, yeah, those, those 3 books are absolutely amazing. Tyler, one, or not Tyler, Phil.
• 48:19
  Phil: Yeah.
• 48:20
  Tad Eggleston: No.
• 48:20
  Phil: Yeah, you don't even really look like Tyler, you've got way too much hair. I was just about to say, I'm like.
• 48:25
  Tad Eggleston: Way too much hair. Let's take a walk.
• 48:29
  Phil: Oh, yeah, it's walking time. You know, this was… this was a big week for me, comics-wise, being… being, two of my favorite series coming out on the same day. First up, The Power Fantasy No. 13 from Gillen Wingard, Coles, and Hughes.
• 48:45
  Tad Eggleston: Hey, hey!
• 48:46
  Phil: Yeah, I'm working on… I'm working… you know, I just want to show that I'm capable of learning. That's… that's… that's one of those… it's just one of those things that's important to me, you know?
• 48:54
  Tad Eggleston: You know, on the 8th or 9th try, most people get there.
• 48:58
  Phil: Yeah, yeah, you know what?
• 49:00
  Tad Eggleston: Phil, it only took 12.
• 49:02
  Tad Eggleston: Better late than never, you know?
• 49:04
  Phil: We'll see how long I can keep this streak of correctly pronouncing people's names, who I've read for years. Read this name for years, but The Power of Fantasy, it… it was… it was great, it was a great issue. It… the book continues its rollercoaster, unveiling of… of…
• 49:23
  Phil: every issue twist.
• 49:25
  Phil: It is… it is a book where…
• 49:28
  Phil: It is simultaneously on and off the rails at the same time. It's doing the impossible. It's a tightrope back.
• 49:33
  Phil: It also has me thinking about the nature of power quite a bit, and…
• 49:39
  Phil: You know, this idea of… Who are the people that have power?
• 49:45
  Phil: And then even amongst those that have it, who are the ones that are actually using it, and what are they using it for? You know, that's always… that's always a question.
• 49:55
  Phil: And then, of course, the other big book for this week is the start of Die Loaded. Die Loaded No. 1, the, simultaneously a, a new series and a sequel series. It, it, again, does the impossible of, hey, this is a follow-up.
• 50:12
  Phil: But it is also going in its own directions and doing its own things.
• 50:17
  Phil: the… the first moment that I… I…
• 50:21
  Phil: you know, got a glimpse of what those other things were. It was actually the back of the series, where instead of an unfurled D20, like the design on the front, it was… it was a D12.
• 50:34
  Phil: It was a D12 back there, so that immediately had me thinking.
• 50:39
  Phil: oh, shit, this is a different beast. And it really is. And that's…
• 50:44
  Phil: also got me thinking about the nature of fantasy, and because Ted hasn't read it, I won't… I won't spoil him the thing that, you know, because I also, as much as I love the series, I avoided any hints of what the details to the plot were, simply because I like being surprised. And so…
• 51:02
  Tad Eggleston: I don't care as much about being surprised, but you know.
• 51:04
  Phil: That's okay, yeah, you know, but it was, it was a good time. I'm so excited for where this series is going. You know,
• 51:12
  Phil: if… if you haven't read the original, now's a great time, but also jump in, see what you… see if you like it, you know? It's absolutely stupendous. Ted, how's One Piece been?
• 51:25
  Phil: I read no one piece of stuff. For the first time, for the first time since I've joined the… the… what is…
• 51:32
  Tad Eggleston: No, it's at least the second time.
• 51:33
  Phil: No, I meant the first time.
• 51:35
  Tad Eggleston: Second time.
• 51:35
  Phil: the first time that I've… I've read more chapters of manga than you.
• 51:38
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, oh, okay.
• 51:40
  Phil: Before, before, when you haven't read any, I probably haven't read any, too.
• 51:43
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, not read any, okay.
• 51:45
  Phil: But I actually did manage… it was just this morning, before, you know…
• 51:47
  Tad Eggleston: a chapter of Mob Psycho.
• 51:49
  Phil: Yeah, yeah. I mean, well, so I was… I need to… I need to do a full count, because I'm… I'm through Chapter 4, so somehow…
• 51:56
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, wow.
• 51:57
  Phil: So it was one of those…
• 51:58
  Tad Eggleston: So you did one and a half chapters before, and you read two and a half more.
• 52:01
  Phil: Yeah, so I'm gonna, I'm gonna turn that, starting next week, I'm gonna turn that into the full tally of what chapter I'm on, of Mob Psycho 100. Similar to, similar to,
• 52:12
  Phil: to how you're tracking One Piece. And of course, the extremely pertinent quote from those chapters of, we gotta seize the day and do nothing while we still can.
• 52:21
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, 6'7", baby.
• 52:23
  Phil: Yes, the characters of Mob Psycho 100 are absolutely 6-7ing their little hearts out.
• 52:30
  Tad Eggleston: Okay…
• 52:33
  Phil: So…
• 52:34
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, let us get into great responsibility. We decided…
• 52:39
  Phil: Heck yeah.
• 52:39
  Tad Eggleston: I decided that I was gonna do it literally as a table read. I didn't read it.
• 52:46
  Tad Eggleston: Reread it this week.
• 52:47
  Phil: Okay.
• 52:49
  Phil: Yeah, it was.
• 52:50
  Tad Eggleston: and…
• 52:51
  Phil: Something for him.
• 52:52
  Tad Eggleston: But it's the beginning of our fifth season, and it's… it's… It's one of the… the… Great, great.
• 53:01
  Tad Eggleston: stories of our namesake, Wally Wood. And on top of that, I mean, just on this first page, I see…
• 53:12
  Tad Eggleston: I see 4 of the 22 panels.
• 53:15
  Phil: Really? All four of the panels are…
• 53:19
  Phil: Holy… I mean, this… this goes to show my… I am not as fully familiar with the… the 22 panels, as you are, because that was a thought I had as I was reading, of, oh, I wonder… I wonder how many of those, those aforementioned 22 are…
• 53:33
  Tad Eggleston: Let me see if I have it… Easy to pull up.
• 53:36
  Phil: Yeah, because it's also one of those things where, I mean, This…
• 53:42
  Phil: I mean, this strip, this little story, was…
• 53:48
  Phil: honestly, a little surreal to read, because it's… it's something that I'd… I'd heard of… I'd heard of quite a bit from having been a fan of Alan Moore's, and…
• 53:57
  Tad Eggleston: Alright, so… Around comics, okay.
• 53:59
  Tad Eggleston: So…
• 54:00
  Phil: Well, okay, so just because there's a big head in a panel doesn't mean it's… it's the big head panel, okay? I just…
• 54:07
  Tad Eggleston: Well, I'm gonna say… no, no, no.
• 54:11
  Tad Eggleston: The, the first panel…
• 54:13
  Phil: Huh.
• 54:15
  Tad Eggleston: is… I want with the bigger one.
• 54:18
  Phil: It's funny, because I've got, I've got them side by side, so…
• 54:23
  Tad Eggleston: The first panel, I would actually say, is… A full-figure open panel.
• 54:31
  Tad Eggleston: with a background in.
• 54:33
  Phil: This might be a stretch. Might be a stretch.
• 54:39
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, it is and it isn't, because, like, these are, these are, like…
• 54:45
  Tad Eggleston: basis, and because it's a splash panel, like.
• 54:51
  Tad Eggleston: the background is just something that needs to be there, and it's a set of gags, and it almost looks like the Superman was just laid over it.
• 54:58
  Phil: It really does. It really, really does.
• 55:01
  Tad Eggleston: Okay.
• 55:01
  Phil: Which is pretty damn funny. The second panel…
• 55:05
  Phil: Sorry, that's a legally distinct Super Duperman.
• 55:08
  Tad Eggleston: Right. Right, right, right. Yeah.
• 55:12
  Tad Eggleston: The second panel is… a variation on… the car.
• 55:19
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah. Or the newspaper.
• 55:23
  Phil: You just…
• 55:23
  Tad Eggleston: Drawing something and putting the stuff there.
• 55:26
  Tad Eggleston: The third panel is literally the frame.
• 55:29
  Phil: Yes, third panels, I can see that, that's the frame. Yeah, he's doing it through the open window.
• 55:33
  Tad Eggleston: And the fourth panel is the…
• 55:41
  Tad Eggleston: Downshot.
• 55:43
  Phil: Downtown? Or the full…
• 55:45
  Phil: but there's no shadow, so I don't think it's a downshadow. I think that's the full figure…
• 55:50
  Phil: Open… well, it's not an open panel, but yeah.
• 55:52
  Tad Eggleston: my frame.
• 55:53
  Phil: Yeah.
• 55:55
  Tad Eggleston: But again, like, the point is, this is the cheat sheet. Yes. You're gonna be mixing and matching some.
• 56:02
  Phil: Right. And, and it's, it's… I think, I think those are more,
• 56:07
  Phil: I do think that, yes, the third panel there, framed, that's obviously there. That's a reference to it. I think even the second one, I'm not… I think maybe the… the… where it says Small Fig Bende?
• 56:20
  Tad Eggleston: Well, but, and this is where…
• 56:22
  Tad Eggleston: Some interesting ways to get some variety into those boring panels where some dumb writer has a bunch of lame characters sitting around and talking for page after page.
• 56:30
  Phil: Right, right.
• 56:31
  Tad Eggleston: So… I mean… Even when it's not directly, directly, the…
• 56:41
  Tad Eggleston: the thing. What it is, is it's like, oh, we can start with this.
• 56:46
  Phil: And you're.
• 56:48
  Tad Eggleston: As you have time, If you feel like it.
• 56:53
  Tad Eggleston: You add other shit.
• 56:54
  Phil: Oh yeah, yeah. And it is interesting to see that, okay, you've got, you know, your big cityscape full of gags with, you know, a punch in the middle, and then the three panels are a building, a window, and what's inside the window.
• 57:10
  Tad Eggleston: Right. And that… that progression, I mean, that's… that's… that's a…
• 57:15
  Phil: an opposite…
• 57:17
  Phil: I mean, the fact that this strip opens up with, let's look at a skyscraper and go into the window and see who's in the skyscraper, and then Watchmen opens with someone being thrown out the window of a skyscraper, is like…
• 57:29
  Phil: It's… It's wild. This… this thing is like a… it's like a damn Rosetta Stone.
• 57:35
  Phil: You know?
• 57:37
  Phil: to where… and I mean, and what I mean by that is… is not… I don't mean that in a disparaging way, I mean that.
• 57:43
  Tad Eggleston: No, I mean, this is why I push back anytime somebody makes a joke about, like, you know, 22 panels that are always boring, or whatever, it's like, it's that, A, you're missing the point, and B,
• 57:58
  Tad Eggleston: It's more about the lexicon than about…
• 58:02
  Phil: Yes, absolutely.
• 58:03
  Tad Eggleston: simplifying.
• 58:05
  Phil: Oh yeah, yeah.
• 58:06
  Tad Eggleston: You know, I do also love the fact that, that, that Clark Bent.
• 58:15
  Tad Eggleston: Is… is the assistant to the copy boy.
• 58:19
  Phil: That's… I'm like, holy shit, I'm like, the office is pulling… is pulling a joke from this strip?
• 58:25
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 58:26
  Phil: Like, wow, that was, that was another thing, of just, holy shit.
• 58:30
  Tad Eggleston: And wood does… I mean, you can tell… I mean, the ones that definitely aren't…
• 58:38
  Tad Eggleston: From those panels, or when he can start doing motion.
• 58:41
  Phil: Yes. I mean… The slapstick.
• 58:43
  Tad Eggleston: The way he does slapstick, the way he does sound effects, the way he does…
• 58:50
  Tad Eggleston: The bulging eyes when he goes past the… the room… yeah.
• 58:56
  Phil: Yeah, the implication of x-ray vision on the ladies' room, yeah. Right.
• 59:01
  Phil: It's… and I guess what's also sort of startling about this to me, because that… in all the talks about SuperDuperman, I… I think… I think Clark Bent being as,
• 59:13
  Phil: big and obvious creep as he is was… was the piece that was most missing. And it's interesting how… wow, so people have been… so first of all, let's establish a little bit of context. When did this strip come out? When… when was this…
• 59:26
  Phil: This would have been…
• 59:30
  Phil: It says MAD number 4. I'm looking at the NDC now, it says.
• 59:34
  Phil: April, or May… yeah, April, May 1953. Volume 1, Number 4. So, even back in 1953, right after the… oh, wait, no, this is right.
• 59:45
  Tad Eggleston: And if it's listed as… if it's… if it's listed as April, May.
• 59:52
  Tad Eggleston: At the time, that means it actually came out in January.
• 59:55
  Phil: Okay, okay.
• 59:56
  Tad Eggleston: Because for a long time, the date was, like, was kind of… it was kind of like…
• 1:00:02
  Phil: Those are the points.
• 1:00:03
  Tad Eggleston: come off the shelf.
• 1:00:05
  Phil: Right.
• 1:00:05
  Tad Eggleston: When it came on the show.
• 1:00:07
  Phil: Okay, so that was… this was now 3 years before the… the Silver Age began, with, you know, Barry Allen and, the reboots of DC. So…
• 1:00:20
  Phil: This strip is even at…
• 1:00:23
  Phil: A very interesting point in time of… it's… it's making fun of superheroes when they're arguably at their lowest.
• 1:00:31
  Phil: And it's… it's not just making fun of the superheroes themselves, but it's making fun of the people who are still fans of them.
• 1:00:37
  Phil: After all these years, you know?
• 1:00:40
  Phil: Of pointing out that, wow, these are people who are, you know.
• 1:00:48
  Phil: the sloven, detestable dregs of society, but they see themselves as the heroes.
• 1:00:56
  Phil: You know, and to imagine that thought that feels like a defining aspect of comic books and comic book fandom.
• 1:01:07
  Phil: Throughout the 20th century.
• 1:01:09
  Phil: Started in 53, before… before the industry even looked, like, remotely how we imagine it today.
• 1:01:18
  Tad Eggleston: Well, because the… I mean… I think just as… Important is that… When we're the Wortham hearings.
• 1:01:32
  Phil: Oh, I think they would have been before this, so let's look that.
• 1:01:35
  Tad Eggleston: I'm not certain, actually.
• 1:01:37
  Phil: Well, because they… that… the… the… let's look him up, Frederick Warzone… Because this…
• 1:01:42
  Tad Eggleston: Because this is when Mad was still a comic, rather than… a… a… Magazine. Yeah. So 1954.
• 1:01:55
  Phil: Oh, okay.
• 1:01:58
  Phil: Wow, that's… that's correcting the timeline for me a little bit. So this… this was a year before seduction of the innocent.
• 1:02:05
  Tad Eggleston: I don't know if it was before Seduction of the Innocent, because I think Seduction of the Innocent got…
• 1:02:11
  Phil: Well, it says it's.
• 1:02:13
  Tad Eggleston: pulled up… for the hearings, so, I mean, that's how they felt.
• 1:02:18
  Phil: It's not worth them.
• 1:02:20
  Phil: Yeah, but it… I mean, at least Seduction of the Innocent has a publication date of April 19th, 1954.
• 1:02:26
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, okay, then strike that.
• 1:02:28
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:02:29
  Tad Eggleston: I thought the book might have been earlier, and… but yeah.
• 1:02:32
  Phil: Yeah, so that's… okay, so… yeah, it was 1954 comic book hearing, so it's really… it really was one year… wow, okay, so this is fascinating to me. So…
• 1:02:42
  Phil: Superheroes were already dead.
• 1:02:44
  Phil: Superheroes are already dead and gone, and the comic book hearings happened a year after this.
• 1:02:51
  Tad Eggleston: They essentially brought back superheroes because they're the only way that, that, that, like…
• 1:02:58
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, first of all, they… they… they volunteered and wrote the… the… Comics Code.
• 1:03:08
  Tad Eggleston: in a way that was deliberately designed to just destroy EC Comics.
• 1:03:13
  Phil: Yes, fully, 100%.
• 1:03:14
  Tad Eggleston: But it kind of left them with nothing that they could do but superhero comics.
• 1:03:20
  Phil: Yeah, absolutely.
• 1:03:21
  Tad Eggleston: Superhero comics and, like, duck comics.
• 1:03:25
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:03:25
  Phil: the talking animals.
• 1:03:27
  Tad Eggleston: For 10 years, you know, DC floundered with, like, some basic superhero stuff. It was probably the heyday of…
• 1:03:37
  Tad Eggleston: Talking Animal comics.
• 1:03:40
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:03:40
  Tad Eggleston: And then… Stan figured out a way to do superheroes In, a meaningful way…
• 1:03:52
  Tad Eggleston: That was still just barely inside the code.
• 1:03:56
  Phil: Yeah, and so it… it really does look like…
• 1:03:59
  Phil: you know, the DC… DC Silver Age had its day in the Sun from 1955, when Barry Allen Flash appeared, to, you know, 61, when the Fantastic Four started to show up. So that… that's… that is absolutely fascinating to think of, of the progression of the
• 1:04:19
  Phil: Culture and society, and these concepts.
• 1:04:23
  Tad Eggleston: But, I mean, we're also…
• 1:04:26
  Tad Eggleston: You could argue that this is taking a shot at… .
• 1:04:33
  Phil: Superman?
• 1:04:33
  Tad Eggleston: whether it's… whether it's Stan in particular, or just a lot of people in the business, because… who's the…
• 1:04:42
  Tad Eggleston: Who's the guy in charge?
• 1:04:45
  Phil: Oh, wait, wait, wait, the guy in charge of.
• 1:04:48
  Tad Eggleston: kid.
• 1:04:50
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:04:52
  Tad Eggleston: The guy in charge is, is, is the… the son of…
• 1:04:58
  Tad Eggleston: You know, I tell you why I called you, old man, it's payroll.
• 1:05:02
  Phil: Huh.
• 1:05:06
  Phil: So the copy boy? Oh, I'm sorry, I saw the old man. Oh, is he the copy boy?
• 1:05:13
  Phil: Yeah, that's the copy boy.
• 1:05:14
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, it, okay.
• 1:05:15
  Tad Eggleston: But even so, like, you get that feeling, I mean, so often the money men, particularly in comics, were these kids that were…
• 1:05:26
  Tad Eggleston: like, you know, I mean, Stanley was a kid, but he was, like… The… the publisher's nephew.
• 1:05:35
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:05:36
  Tad Eggleston: Or cousin, or whatever, right?
• 1:05:38
  Phil: Yeah, it was related to him somehow.
• 1:05:40
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:05:42
  Tad Eggleston: And not in a way that the… you know, Goodman didn't actually care. I mean, when Lee got pushed out, it was when Goodman's own son needed a job.
• 1:05:49
  Phil: Oh, yeah. Yeah.
• 1:05:53
  Tad Eggleston: At that point, Lee wasn't really family.
• 1:06:00
  Phil: Yeah, it's… I guess, again, I would… you know who I really wish we could get the opinion of on this right now is, One Howard Chaikin.
• 1:06:11
  Phil: To get the, the sort of names, names behind the drawings, and…
• 1:06:15
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 1:06:16
  Phil: The interpersonal relationships between the people who are doing all these things.
• 1:06:20
  Tad Eggleston: But yeah, no, I mean, again, just going back to the comic at hand, like… Panel structures.
• 1:06:31
  Phil: Gosh, the way he crawls.
• 1:06:33
  Tad Eggleston: Kyle.
• 1:06:33
  Phil: of a trash can.
• 1:06:35
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:06:37
  Tad Eggleston: You know, there's just so much comics language.
• 1:06:42
  Tad Eggleston: Crammed into this one… story.
• 1:06:47
  Tad Eggleston: Then he's replaced by Captain Marbles.
• 1:06:50
  Phil: Yep. Captain Marvel's.
• 1:06:51
  Tad Eggleston: design.
• 1:06:52
  Phil: Big money marbles.
• 1:06:54
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:06:55
  Phil: Oh, yeah.
• 1:06:58
  Tad Eggleston: Shazoom, strength, health, aptitude, Zeal, ox, power of…
• 1:07:03
  Phil: Ox, power of another month.
• 1:07:05
  Tad Eggleston: power or another, and money. Yeah.
• 1:07:07
  Phil: Yeah. No, that was pretty good, too. And I do love how… how Superman's S symbol is constantly changing throughout this. Right, right. I wonder how much his S symbol had changed already in this… in these 10 years. Almost every artist had…
• 1:07:22
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, they didn't have the same style code.
• 1:07:25
  Phil: Yeah. Because things hadn't been…
• 1:07:28
  Tad Eggleston: And, and, like, not 10, 15. Superman was, like, 38.
• 1:07:33
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:07:34
  Phil: Right, right.
• 1:07:35
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 1:07:35
  Phil: So that was a good, a good while.
• 1:07:41
  Tad Eggleston: But yeah, no, Wally Wood's humor, I mean, I love the tickling here, under the armpit.
• 1:07:46
  Phil: Oh, yeah, yeah.
• 1:07:48
  Phil: That's quite funny.
• 1:07:50
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, this… this establishes… establishes, like.
• 1:07:57
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, not that it hadn't been established from issue one, but this is, like, a great… a great example to show people of just how great Mad Magazine…
• 1:08:07
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:08:09
  Tad Eggleston: is…
• 1:08:10
  Phil: And again, this… this supposedly heroic figure that is… that is, just mocking and jumping around like an idiot, and of course, doesn't actually do anything, but just gets the other guy to punch himself in the face.
• 1:08:25
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:08:26
  Phil: Again, I can't help but feel like that's some kind of metaphor for the industry.
• 1:08:32
  Tad Eggleston: And of course, and of course, Shazoom is the copy boy.
• 1:08:38
  Phil: Oh, he is?
• 1:08:39
  Tad Eggleston: Looks like it.
• 1:08:40
  Phil: No, no, no, that was a different guy. That was, that was the, he was a boy reporter.
• 1:08:45
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, okay.
• 1:08:46
  Phil: Yeah, he was, like, the photographer or something like that, but .
• 1:08:49
  Tad Eggleston: But it's another, like, little…
• 1:08:51
  Phil: Yeah, it is another kit. That's the other funny thing.
• 1:08:53
  Phil: So many, like, children or small people around here.
• 1:08:57
  Tad Eggleston: Which is probably some sort of mild statement about how all of these comics are just talking down to them.
• 1:09:04
  Tad Eggleston: when they don't need that.
• 1:09:07
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:09:08
  Phil: That's for sure.
• 1:09:09
  Tad Eggleston: they…
• 1:09:12
  Tad Eggleston: you know, I mean, just… I'm not even reading half the words here, I'm just looking at the pictures, man.
• 1:09:17
  Phil: Yeah, same, same.
• 1:09:19
  Tad Eggleston: like…
• 1:09:21
  Phil: So many of these illustrations are incredible. The one of SuperDuperman lifting up the building to tip it over on Captain Marvel's. That sentence in and of itself is astounding, but just the visual of it is wild.
• 1:09:34
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:09:35
  Tad Eggleston: But, but, like, to just… I mean, this is kind of like, it's worth going through…
• 1:09:43
  Tad Eggleston: that first Spider-Man story every once in a while, because it's a.
• 1:09:45
  Phil: Yeah. Amazing.
• 1:09:46
  Tad Eggleston: They did in 11 pages.
• 1:09:48
  Phil: Yeah. Like, this is… Like, I know I've read it at one point in my.
• 1:09:51
  Tad Eggleston: Right. This is an 8-page story, and it's like…
• 1:09:55
  Phil: crammed.
• 1:09:56
  Phil: Absolutely true.
• 1:09:57
  Tad Eggleston: But beyond that, it… even while it's satiring it, it's… It's also, like…
• 1:10:05
  Phil: Doing what they do better.
• 1:10:07
  Tad Eggleston: A crash course on how to make a good superhero comic.
• 1:10:11
  Phil: Yup, it really is. It really is.
• 1:10:13
  Tad Eggleston: Crash Course on how to make a good funny comic?
• 1:10:16
  Phil: Huh.
• 1:10:17
  Tad Eggleston: To a certain extent, Crash Course on making a comic, period.
• 1:10:19
  Phil: Yeah?
• 1:10:21
  Tad Eggleston: But… but, like…
• 1:10:23
  Phil: I think… let's see how many.
• 1:10:24
  Tad Eggleston: The way… the way you can follow this story without reading it…
• 1:10:28
  Phil: Huh.
• 1:10:30
  Tad Eggleston: The way that it's… Funny, the way that there are little jokes hidden in the back.
• 1:10:37
  Phil: Yes.
• 1:10:37
  Tad Eggleston: They're super snooper, and you got, like, A kid with a pipe?
• 1:10:43
  Phil: It's just, it's also incredible how the first page is 4 panels, and then every page after that is 7.
• 1:10:49
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 1:10:49
  Tad Eggleston: Well, and… and they're actually mostly… The same 7.
• 1:10:59
  Phil: Yeah, it's… it's… they do… they do have 3 strips, 2 twos and a 3, so yeah, they just kind of reposition that.
• 1:11:06
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:11:06
  Phil: over and over. And again, I love how they end on…
• 1:11:09
  Tad Eggleston: The only page that really… break… like, seriously breaks the form is… is page 4.
• 1:11:18
  Tad Eggleston: Where it's the…
• 1:11:19
  Phil: It's actually 8.
• 1:11:19
  Tad Eggleston: panels on top.
• 1:11:22
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, it is 8.
• 1:11:24
  Tad Eggleston: But also, like, rather the, the, the…
• 1:11:28
  Tad Eggleston: The second 3-panel line, they're not equal panels.
• 1:11:32
  Phil: Right, right.
• 1:11:34
  Tad Eggleston: But you also have the SuperDuperman!
• 1:11:38
  Phil: Huh.
• 1:11:39
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, the coming out of the phone booth, and I love the stack of clothes. Yep, yep.
• 1:11:45
  Phil: Pretty good.
• 1:11:48
  Phil: And I do love the idea that even at the time, people were pointing out, this is a guy who regularly gets naked in phone booths. This is… this is a weirdo.
• 1:11:59
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 1:12:01
  Phil: Oh.
• 1:12:03
  Tad Eggleston: Well, and going into the phone booth with the woman in it…
• 1:12:08
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, it's just, like, again, it… Bonk, bonk, bonk, crunch.
• 1:12:14
  Phil: Yup, crunch.
• 1:12:16
  Phil: Yeah, it's the… the… The sound effects are a little overboard in a fun way.
• 1:12:23
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, yes, and I don't even know if I agree that they're overboard. They're… I mean, seriously, when Superman is jumping…
• 1:12:29
  Phil: Do you really think he does that silently?
• 1:12:33
  Phil: No, but, but…
• 1:12:34
  Tad Eggleston: And when he hits… when he hits the wood floor, rather than the… I guess…
• 1:12:39
  Phil: I more of mean… I more of mean, like, you know, in modern comics, I don't… I tend to…
• 1:12:46
  Phil: lean away from the sound effects, and this one is going all in on them.
• 1:12:51
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 1:12:51
  Tad Eggleston: I, but I actually, I mean, the two things that, like…
• 1:12:56
  Tad Eggleston: Yes, there were times that were overused, but I don't think that that should have led to them being not used at all. The two things that I think that about are sound effects and thought bubbles.
• 1:13:13
  Phil: Yeah, I… see, and that's the thing, is that sound effects… so my absolute favorite sound effects ever
• 1:13:20
  Phil: are, ones that are… that are embedded in the art, like the way Frank Quitely does them in, All Star Batman Robin, and I think All-Star Superman, they do it that way, too. But those kind of sound effects, I think, are absolutely incredible.
• 1:13:36
  Phil: Thought Bubbles? Yeah, I agree. It's one of… I haven't found…
• 1:13:40
  Tad Eggleston: Thought Bubbles… thought bubbles shouldn't be used for exposition.
• 1:13:44
  Phil: Yeah, agreed. Agreed.
• 1:13:46
  Tad Eggleston: But that doesn't mean that they don't have a massive purpose, and, like, taking them out of your toolbox is just not…
• 1:13:53
  Phil: Also agreed, yeah. It's… they are a little antiquated, I think, but I think they're about.
• 1:13:58
  Tad Eggleston: What I say is I realize that there are no thought bubbles in this.
• 1:14:01
  Phil: But…
• 1:14:03
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, that could have everything to do with, like.
• 1:14:07
  Tad Eggleston: There arguably being no thoughts occurring.
• 1:14:10
  Phil: Brunch.
• 1:14:11
  Tad Eggleston: But yeah, no, I agree with that. I think thought bubbles do need a renaissance of sorts, and .
• 1:14:19
  Phil: You know, it's… it's interesting, because in…
• 1:14:23
  Phil: manga, I feel like they have… they're not thought bubbles, but they have interior thoughts of characters. They do. And multiple characters, a lot.
• 1:14:31
  Phil: more readily available and expected. So…
• 1:14:34
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, I'm still… I'm still, accustomed, and I feel like there's a… Book coming soon.
• 1:14:43
  Phil: I mean.
• 1:14:44
  Tad Eggleston: I can taste.
• 1:14:44
  Phil: They've perfected the art of a bubble from someone speaking off panel, and the fact that American comics haven't caught up with that is a minor travesty, in my opinion.
• 1:14:56
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, just like there's… there's the… the… and I need… I need to get this book, The Lexicon of Kamakana.
• 1:15:05
  Tad Eggleston: by… by Mort Walker.
• 1:15:07
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah. I feel like there's a book coming soon.
• 1:15:11
  Phil: Well, there's… I know there's, an online, like, glossary of common terms that I've looked up a few times, but I don't quite remember…
• 1:15:19
  Phil: The website name, or who put it together, but it's good stuff.
• 1:15:23
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, no, there's a number of them. I just felt like there was a book coming soon that had kind of the…
• 1:15:33
  Tad Eggleston: The lexicon of… See, they need this book, The Lexicon of Comicana.
• 1:15:46
  Tad Eggleston: Which has the… Grolics is.
• 1:15:50
  Tad Eggleston: technology, and… potentially cross-hatching.
• 1:15:59
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
• 1:16:00
  Tad Eggleston: But I feel like there's one coming up that I saw.
• 1:16:07
  Tad Eggleston: for manga.
• 1:16:10
  Phil: Oh, wow.
• 1:16:12
  Tad Eggleston: That… that… is also… Like, fascinating to me to be able to… to possibly… Have a book that really…
• 1:16:23
  Tad Eggleston: Breaks down the lexicon.
• 1:16:27
  Tad Eggleston: of manga. Not on our list of…
• 1:16:34
  Phil: I, I think…
• 1:16:34
  Tad Eggleston: collections.
• 1:16:35
  Phil: I would love to hear someone try to articulate the way they differentiate between the times where
• 1:16:42
  Phil: Your panel flow is more horizontal versus more vertical.
• 1:16:45
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:16:46
  Phil: And, I mean, that's one of those things that… you know.
• 1:16:51
  Phil: the fact that a page can start with two different possible reading directions, and again, they do it much more frequently than you see in American comics or European comics, anything like that. And so the fact that they have that
• 1:17:06
  Phil: modularity on the page is amazing to me. And I think they can probably get away with it more because…
• 1:17:16
  Phil: It's more culturally widespread, you know, everybody… everybody reads some kind of comics, and…
• 1:17:22
  Tad Eggleston: That's what?
• 1:17:23
  Phil: when you have that, you can start expanding the techniques that you use, and, you know, because people are used to it, you know. I still remember…
• 1:17:33
  Phil: Back in college, I took one comic class because I was… I went to college in a time where, comics weren't really being…
• 1:17:41
  Phil: talked about in universities too much, or at least if they were, it was in super specialized departments and programs, and…
• 1:17:47
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:17:48
  Phil: it wasn't… it wasn't at the forefront. And… and so it was an English class about comics, and I still remember we read Blankets, and I mean, I loved it.
• 1:17:56
  Phil: I really enjoyed it at the time, but, you know, talking about it in class, I still remember there was someone who… every page was questioning, like, why did they drop the panels there? Why did they do, you know, basically, like, every single image, they were questioning, why did they draw like this? Why did they draw like this? And I felt like I had an explanation of, like, well, that's supposed to emphasize, like, the openness.
• 1:18:16
  Phil: And it was just one of those things of, like, realizing, like, wow, you're looking at every single panel
• 1:18:20
  Phil: like… like a newborn. Like, you have no idea what intentions could be behind this, and I'm looking at this like, well, that's just…
• 1:18:28
  Phil: that's just the… the way it goes. That's how it is. And it's about the feelings it evokes more than what is literally being said. And it felt like, you know, English people who had mostly read books and had read comics were being flabbergasted and…
• 1:18:45
  Phil: Didn't know how to interpret, non-word lines.
• 1:18:51
  Tad Eggleston: Right.
• 1:18:52
  Tad Eggleston: Right?
• 1:18:55
  Tad Eggleston: So…
• 1:18:56
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, everybody should treat themselves to, Mad Magazine number 4, either physically or digitally, if for no other reason than to read Super Duperman.
• 1:19:05
  Phil: Oh, yeah. I will say that I love the scanned version, where you can see, like, the deterioration of the physical page over the digitized, perfect color version, just because sometimes those look a little bit… a little bit surreal to me.
• 1:19:22
  Tad Eggleston: fun.
• 1:19:22
  Phil: Yeah. Oh, yeah. And I love, I love that.
• 1:19:26
  Tad Eggleston: That's fun.
• 1:19:26
  Phil: That aspect of comic collecting.
• 1:19:29
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, this is… this is definitely one that I want a physical copy of at some point. I'm afraid to find out how much they cost.
• 1:19:35
  Phil: I was about to say, when you have a personal vault as part of your comic collection.
• 1:19:42
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, I actually am willing to bet that it's not as expensive as…
• 1:19:46
  Phil: Oh, yeah.
• 1:19:47
  Tad Eggleston: It should be.
• 1:19:48
  Phil: Ha! That's funny. That's funny.
• 1:19:50
  Tad Eggleston: I mean, that's just not how comics work, haven't you noticed that?
• 1:19:54
  Phil: Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
• 1:19:56
  Tad Eggleston: So, according to… Go collect.
• 1:20:09
  Tad Eggleston: Oh, they… A 9.6.
• 1:20:13
  Phil: Huh.
• 1:20:14
  Tad Eggleston: Resold for $8,500.
• 1:20:17
  Phil: Yeah, I was just… I saw… I don't know if that widget on the side of this website is, like, a graph of the price of this issue over time, but if it.
• 1:20:25
  Tad Eggleston: It's…
• 1:20:26
  Phil: hilarious.
• 1:20:27
  Tad Eggleston: That's all graded, and who gives a fuck about a graded one? Because, like, you want to be able to read it.
• 1:20:34
  Phil: The only reason you'd buy a slab comic is so you can set it free.
• 1:20:38
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah, but then you gotta overpay for a slab car.
• 1:20:42
  Phil: Exactly, exactly. You're basically… you're doing rescue work there.
• 1:20:47
  Phil: Oh, that's funny that Valhalla Mad is coming up in the search results. I read that book, that was pretty fun. I think that was Dan McDade and Joe Casey?
• 1:20:56
  Phil: Pretty sure?
• 1:20:57
  Phil: Oh, no, Art Paul Mayberry, my apologies. I knew it was someone that had worked on, Catalyst Comics with Casey.
• 1:21:07
  Tad Eggleston: It looks like you can get…
• 1:21:10
  Tad Eggleston: unslabbed one for 102.
• 1:21:14
  Phil: That's it, it's not that bad.
• 1:21:16
  Tad Eggleston: from… You know?
• 1:21:17
  Phil: See, now that is…
• 1:21:18
  Tad Eggleston: Well, except that this is, what discount are you, so I don't even know if that's a real…
• 1:21:24
  Phil: That's fair!
• 1:21:26
  Phil: Oh, here we go. Google Bang.
• 1:21:30
  Phil: Our trustworth… are trustworthy.
• 1:21:31
  Tad Eggleston: is a good place. Except that is the wrong mad number 4. That's the 2018 Mad Number 4.
• 1:21:38
  Phil: That's a 2018 Mad No. 4, and they're making a Shining reference?
• 1:21:43
  Tad Eggleston: Well, they're mostly doing, reprint-type stuff.
• 1:21:48
  Phil: Oh…
• 1:21:49
  Tad Eggleston: in the new…
• 1:21:50
  Phil: I see.
• 1:21:55
  Phil: By the way, you mentioned you wanted to be tight this episode.
• 1:21:58
  Phil: Yes, yes, yes. This is our… this is us at our tightest, dear listeners.
• 1:22:04
  Tad Eggleston: So, anyway, I'm not finding a good price on it at the moment, but… well, actually.
• 1:22:13
  Phil: I mean, a hundred bucks for a beat-up copy didn't seem like the worst.
• 1:22:17
  Tad Eggleston: Well, no, how about this? Yeah.
• 1:22:21
  Tad Eggleston: Buy it now.
• 1:22:23
  Tad Eggleston: 15…
• 1:22:27
  Tad Eggleston: issues of mad. The cover to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16, and 18. All of them…
• 1:22:37
  Phil: Yeah. You can buy it now for $2,000, or the low bid with 2 hours left is at $1,250.
• 1:22:44
  Tad Eggleston: So…
• 1:22:45
  Phil: Man.
• 1:22:45
  Tad Eggleston: That puts it at about $100.
• 1:22:48
  Phil: Yeah, ish, give or take, you know?
• 1:22:51
  Tad Eggleston: Which is actually, a little bit higher than I expected, but, like, not… But it makes me happy.
• 1:22:59
  Phil: Yeah. And here's a selection with 3, 4…
• 1:23:03
  Tad Eggleston: 5, 8, and 14.
• 1:23:06
  Tad Eggleston: For a thousand.
• 1:23:08
  Phil: Okay.
• 1:23:10
  Tad Eggleston: So… yeah.
• 1:23:12
  Phil: Yeah, it's, you know, it's…
• 1:23:14
  Tad Eggleston: That means that there is enough appreciation that it's… that it's not cheap.
• 1:23:19
  Tad Eggleston: But still, because it doesn't have the first appearance of whoever.
• 1:23:23
  Phil: Sure.
• 1:23:25
  Tad Eggleston: is… is… Not expensive, expensive for a 1950s comic.
• 1:23:36
  Phil: Yeah.
• 1:23:37
  Phil: Yeah, I was gonna say.
• 1:23:39
  Tad Eggleston: And that's part of… that's part of what we should think about. This is… this is a comic that's, like, 70 years old.
• 1:23:45
  Phil: Holy shit, yeah.
• 1:23:45
  Tad Eggleston: And you can get it for 100 bucks.
• 1:23:47
  Phil: Wow.
• 1:23:48
  Tad Eggleston: So, anyway…
• 1:23:51
  Tad Eggleston: Let's talk what we hope will be spectacular next week. Dracula Book 2, The Brides from Matt Wagner and Kelly Jones, comes out. I've read it. It is spectacular.
• 1:24:02
  Tad Eggleston: I also encourage people to pick up, Absolute Martian Manhunter Volume 1, Black Hammer Vol. 9, Spiral City, and Monstrous Volume 10.
• 1:24:13
  Tad Eggleston: I've read two of those, and the third I am anxiously awaiting.
• 1:24:18
  Tad Eggleston: But my picks… and this is another… so hard, I can't… I mean, I left off John LeCare…
• 1:24:29
  Tad Eggleston: John LeCare's The Circus, so, so, like, smiley-type books.
• 1:24:34
  Tad Eggleston: being written by Matt Kent and drawn by Ibrahim Mustafa didn't make my top 3.
• 1:24:42
  Tad Eggleston: Wonder Woman didn't make my top 3. Powers 25, number 3, didn't make my top 3.
• 1:24:50
  Phil: Wow.
• 1:24:51
  Tad Eggleston: Because my top 3, lazarus Fallen number 6… Lazarus Fallen's just… it gets… it gets my top spot almost automatically right now.
• 1:24:59
  Phil: Yeah…
• 1:25:01
  Tad Eggleston: Good is Dead number 3 from David and Maria Lapham, and Chris Condon and Jeffrey Allen Love are wrapping up news from the fallout.
• 1:25:10
  Phil: Here we go.
• 1:25:12
  Tad Eggleston: So, yeah.
• 1:25:14
  Tad Eggleston: That's, that's my, my 3.
• 1:25:16
  Phil: Indeed, and of course, I am also very, very excited for Lazarus Fallen number 6, as that series has been spectacular.
• 1:25:25
  Phil: astounding, what have you, yeah, I…
• 1:25:28
  Phil: it was funny, the one week I didn't read it the day it came out, and you were like, what the fuck is wrong with you? And then I read it immediately after this issue, and I was like, you're right, what the fuck is wrong with me? That's how good this book is. Of course, Monsters Volume 10, I am also…
• 1:25:41
  Phil: excited for, as we will be talking about it shortly. So I've got some catching up to do, and of course, I noticed they are putting out a trade paperback of Enzuelo from Emma Rios, which I have the hardcover, it's fantastic. I'm a little stunned at the… the Volume 1,
• 1:25:57
  Phil: That they've put on both the hardcover and the…
• 1:25:59
  Phil: Yeah. The trip back here, and I'm like.
• 1:26:01
  Tad Eggleston: I don't… I don't think that… I think that's just because they.
• 1:26:04
  Phil: Awful, dude.
• 1:26:04
  Tad Eggleston: that…
• 1:26:05
  Phil: That's probably some… some auto-filled…
• 1:26:07
  Tad Eggleston: uniformity in…
• 1:26:08
  Phil: Right.
• 1:26:10
  Tad Eggleston: So…
• 1:26:11
  Phil: But it's great. Some of the best drawings of water you will ever see.
• 1:26:16
  Tad Eggleston: Yeah? Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
• 1:26:17
  Tad Eggleston: Alright, that's another one in the books, the beginning of Season 5, Wally Wood and SuperDuperman, and
• 1:26:28
  Tad Eggleston: 6-7, so we'll, see you after the next page.
• 1:26:34
  Phil: But is it 6 or 7?
• 1:26:40
  Phil: You're not funny, Phil.
• 1:26:49
  Tad Eggleston: You're not funny. Let me try that again. For 22 panels, we will see you after the next page.