Latest / 22 Panels - A Comic Book Podcast / 22 Panels Episode #223 - The Nobody

Transcript

22 Panels Episode #223 - The Nobody · 22 Panels - A Comic Book Podcast

0:00
Tyler Johnson: Maybe.
0:01
Tyler Johnson: Hey everybody, welcome back to 22 Panels. This is the podcast that aims to examine, explore, and elevate the medium of comics. I am Tyler, and across the interwebs.
0:14
Tyler Johnson: from me are Tad and Phil. Hey guys, I have to do the thwips louder and louder as my beard gets bigger. I love it. Yeah, because my AirPods are back here, behind my beard, you see. Right, right. And so, yeah, so the thwips don't come through as easy.
0:31
Phil: I mean, I've noticed a distinct increase in THWEP volume, over the past, like, 3 weeks. Yeah, man, you clearly are practicing now.
0:39
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
0:39
Phil: Well, yeah, that or the Beard Acoustics are helping.
0:42
Tad Eggleston: Probably some cakes.
0:43
Tyler Johnson: Okay, okay, cool. I'm in a different room, this is, yeah.
0:47
Tad Eggleston: So do either of you… I know we've already established that none of us are… well, actually, Tyler has to watch the Super Bowl today, but none of us care about the Super Bowl today.
0:59
Tyler Johnson: Oh, I don't have to. No, but we're watching it here.
1:03
Tad Eggleston: His wife politely asked him to watch with her. In my world, that equals has to.
1:11
Phil: Yeah, no, I understand that, I understand.
1:14
Tad Eggleston: Hell yeah.
1:14
Tyler Johnson: Cad.
1:15
Tyler Johnson: Yes.
1:16
Phil: This is why I say I love my wife, because she has never asked me to watch a game of sports, ever, and .
1:21
Tyler Johnson: Because you…
1:22
Phil: You know.
1:22
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, I can't help it. My wife is a… is a sports… fan.
1:29
Tyler Johnson: She's married to…
1:30
Phil: Jock, Tyler?
1:31
Tad Eggleston: Yeah. So I will, I will, I will ask, though, is,
1:36
Tad Eggleston: Are either of you following the Olympics? Because we do have breaking Olympic news.
1:42
Phil: Are they… or are they breaking Olympic booze?
1:48
Tad Eggleston: I mean, that was… awesome.
1:51
Tyler Johnson: Yeah. Oh, man.
1:53
Phil: Before…
1:54
Tyler Johnson: Poor JD!
1:56
Phil: No, no.
1:57
Tad Eggleston: No, no, no, he earned every…
1:59
Tyler Johnson: I know.
2:00
Tad Eggleston: A little bit more. If anything, we need more. But she could leave him.
2:04
Phil: Exactly, she needs, like, honestly, yes.
2:06
Tyler Johnson: Okay, what? What'd you say, Chad? I missed that. What?
2:08
Tad Eggleston: I said a little bit for Usha, but she could leave him. She… yeah, she's making the choice to stay. Right. Yeah. And for that matter, she's pregnant, so unless it turns out it's somebody else's baby, she's, like, not only, like…
2:25
Tad Eggleston: Making the choice to stay, but she's not making him resume his relationship with the couch.
2:35
Tyler Johnson: But anyway.
2:36
Tad Eggleston: Anyway, our quick, timely news is the U.S. just won the gold in team figure skating.
2:44
Tyler Johnson: I was watching a little bit of that, just a little bit.
2:47
Tad Eggleston: So…
2:48
Tad Eggleston: So yeah, that was… that was just the… the little, the little thing. In comic news this week, Distillery has put their production on pause. They emphasize that it's pause.
3:01
Tad Eggleston: They're… they're intending to regroup and bring everything…
3:06
Tad Eggleston: back online, they don't want to have any of the series wind up unfinished, etc, but
3:15
Tad Eggleston: They also don't want to continue saying that things are gonna come out, and then not having them come out.
3:21
Tad Eggleston: And they've been in kind of disarray since the…
3:26
Tad Eggleston: the Diamond Bankruptcy, they were actually the last company to sign an exclusively with Diamond, and they did so after a number of companies had bailed out, so I don't know whether I'm… I mean, at the time, I went…
3:41
Tad Eggleston: This is either the…
3:42
Tyler Johnson: Okay.
3:43
Tad Eggleston: thing ever, or the nicest thing ever, you know?
3:45
Tyler Johnson: Yes.
3:46
Tad Eggleston: Are they trying… are they trying to help bail out the guppies?
3:51
Tad Eggleston: And so, like.
3:54
Tad Eggleston: seeing as it turned into, like, a not-so-smart thing, I… I hope it wasn't because… I hope it was because it just didn't work, rather than as it seems that there were a number of other companies who were… that they were misled in terms of
4:12
Tad Eggleston: Diamond's ability to fulfill their side of the agreements. Haven't heard a lot, don't really expect to hear a lot, particularly because the distillery guys also own Neon Itchibond, so, like, they're doing…
4:27
Tad Eggleston: okay, they just need to kind of regroup on the print side.
4:33
Phil: To…
4:34
Tad Eggleston: move forward.
4:36
Phil: affecting me personally, this is the second time that, Mischief of Magpies has been delayed, so I am, you know, just chomping at the bit for that one, really.
4:45
Tad Eggleston: I understand.
4:47
Phil: Doesn't get, you know. I understand.
4:49
Tad Eggleston: Because the, the, the ash can was so, so good.
4:52
Phil: I bet. Have you… have you… I mean, yeah, I love all of their work, but, yeah, I mean, it's… it's, yeah, I… I really hope this is a… a smart business move that leads to more common.
5:03
Tad Eggleston: I mean, the guys at Distillery have been around for a long time, they were the Comixology guys, they…
5:10
Tad Eggleston: you know, I mean, this is their first strict foray into…
5:15
Tad Eggleston: print in terms of the money side guys, but, like, the team they put together is top-notch, not just creative, but editorial, production, etc, you know? So, I gotta believe that it's…
5:30
Tad Eggleston: they weren't as prepared… as many. Many, many.
5:36
Tad Eggleston: Companies where they just weren't as prepared as they could have been for the demise of Diamond.
5:44
Tad Eggleston: In… more publisher news.
5:50
Tad Eggleston: Oni has announced that it will go exclusive to PRH beginning in August.
5:58
Tad Eggleston: Which is one of the… The first that we've seen, Jump.
6:05
Tad Eggleston: distributors, and I'm kinda… I mean, it's, it's,
6:15
Tad Eggleston: I like any… I mean, Oni's been doing a lot of stuff, so I assume that this is gonna be good for their business. It's time to go along with their distribution of Archie comics, which I'm also looking forward to.
6:31
Tad Eggleston: I wish we had less exclusive deals, I think, I think…
6:37
Tad Eggleston: It works out better when, when…
6:40
Tad Eggleston: Companies can distribute through multiple other companies rather than.
6:47
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
6:48
Tad Eggleston: And aligning themselves with just one.
6:51
Tad Eggleston: But then, you know, depending on the wording of the contract and how easy it is to get out of
6:57
Tad Eggleston: because it's not necessarily… I don't think it's necessary either that…
7:05
Phil: that companies DO distribute through multiple distributors, I just…
7:11
Tad Eggleston: kind of how Diamond became so monolithic was they got the big distributor, or the big…
7:18
Tad Eggleston: Exclusive deals and just squeezed everybody else out because they… they couldn't… Compete to get…
7:27
Tad Eggleston: So yeah, just like, I like capitalism that's actually capitalism, where there's legit
7:37
Tad Eggleston: competition, and in that sense, it bothers me too, because it's an exclusive deal with PRH, which is the MUCH bigger of the two when you take into account
7:47
Tad Eggleston: Their entire…
7:48
Tyler Johnson: Let's go.
7:49
Tad Eggleston: distribution network, rather than just the comics. So, we'll see. Probably not…
7:56
Tad Eggleston: a big thing either way, other than, like, people like Tyler and me will need to be looking at a different catalog for our Oni stuff come August.
8:04
Tyler Johnson: I know, you know, I… I, you know, I scour both of them, head, you know, front to back, you know, but…
8:10
Tad Eggleston: Oh, yeah. So, so it doesn't actually make a huge difference.
8:13
Tyler Johnson: Thinking of…
8:14
Tad Eggleston: I'm tracking down who… who… Distributes other stuff, you know?
8:18
Tyler Johnson: This week, I was getting the list of what Macmillan puts out, and the list of…
8:24
Tad Eggleston: what…
8:25
Tyler Johnson: Harpercollins puts out… Hey, don't be afraid to share that list with me.
8:30
Tad Eggleston: Oh, I can do that.
8:31
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, here's the other thing. I need to put in my order today. I usually do it on Sundays,
8:39
Tyler Johnson: And so I'm a little behind.
8:41
Tyler Johnson: it should.
8:41
Tad Eggleston: Well, it's Sunday.
8:42
Tyler Johnson: I know, but after we get done with this, I gotta… I mean, I get to watch football.
8:48
Tad Eggleston: You take the laptop with you.
8:50
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, I will.
8:54
Tad Eggleston: What kind of week has it been? We could get into it,
9:00
Tad Eggleston: all sorts of ways, but instead, I am gonna… Pass it off to…
9:09
Tad Eggleston: words in an email exchange that I had with Tucker Stone, the PR guy at Fanographics, who's,
9:18
Tad Eggleston: located in the Minneapolis area.
9:22
Tyler Johnson: And, I was checking in on him, and he wrote.
9:25
Tad Eggleston: I will say that seeing mutual aid in action, and seeing people look at…
9:31
Tad Eggleston: after each other. That's been beautiful.
9:35
Tad Eggleston: I'm proud to have a whistle and be a part of something, but yes, it's awful.
9:41
Tad Eggleston: One thing I'm trying to remember is that it is not something I need to try and feel better about it. It is wrong and horrible, and I'm supposed to feel scared and angry.
9:52
Tad Eggleston: That means I'm still a normal person.
9:54
Tad Eggleston: is when I start to not care, or go back to thinking, at least I'm okay.
10:01
Tad Eggleston: that I think I need to worry.
10:06
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, I mean, I was very proud to see Minneapolis getting, nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize as a city, as a whole.
10:14
Tad Eggleston: Oh, I didn't even see that. That's fantastic.
10:17
Tyler Johnson: Okay, that just came out. Yeah, as a city, like, going to what Tucker… Oh, how much would that piss off the Orange Man? Oh, it is already, yeah, it's just… it was just announced, maybe yesterday, but.
10:30
Tad Eggleston: Oh my god.
10:33
Tad Eggleston: Talk about trees.
10:34
Tyler Johnson: The city as a whole, which is the first time that's ever happened, is being nominated for Nobel Peace Prize.
10:41
Tad Eggleston: I… I… I love it.
10:45
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, there you go. Nobel Peace Prize.
10:53
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
10:56
Tyler Johnson: You see it on Fox News, even.
11:01
Tad Eggleston: I love it.
11:02
Tyler Johnson: Yeah. So, I mean, I'm very proud of Minnesota, I'm very proud of Minneapolis, and I… the people that live up there are that… it's up there for me, but live there, they're going through a lot, and it's gotta be tough.
11:15
Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
11:16
Tad Eggleston: So, so my, my hearts, our hearts go to them.
11:22
Tad Eggleston: Look for ways that you can help.
11:24
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
11:24
Tad Eggleston: I, I know…
11:26
Tad Eggleston: Actually, look for ways that you can help in Minneapolis, look for ways that you can help in…
11:31
Tad Eggleston: Springfield, Ohio, is already starting to…
11:37
Tad Eggleston: prepare. They expect to be next.
11:40
Tad Eggleston: Oh.
11:41
Phil: Wow.
11:41
Tad Eggleston: as protected status gets removed from their Haitian population.
11:46
Tyler Johnson: Oh…
11:47
Tad Eggleston: And remember, they were already targeted during the campaign, because they were…
11:51
Tad Eggleston: Eating the cats, and eating the dogs. No, they weren't.
11:55
Tad Eggleston: For those of you who couldn't.
11:56
Tyler Johnson: Oh, that's, that, that's, that's, that's Springfield, okay.
12:01
Phil: Yeah, it's messed up.
12:02
Tad Eggleston: One of the heartening things that I've seen is that A.
12:08
Tad Eggleston: conservative.
12:10
Tad Eggleston: Megachurch.
12:12
Tad Eggleston: In Springfield, Ohio.
12:14
Tad Eggleston: Has already started having… Workshops.
12:25
Tad Eggleston: For people on how to… record protests… Protect their neighbors.
12:35
Tad Eggleston: when ICE arrives.
12:39
Tad Eggleston: And apparently, like, their first workshop, they had, like, 20 people, and by the end of the week, they were having 200 people at every workshop. Wow.
12:47
Tyler Johnson: Wow.
12:48
Tad Eggleston: So there are already thousands of people in… Springfield.
12:55
Tad Eggleston: Who just, on the… Whisper that they're next.
13:01
Tad Eggleston: Have organized and prepared to.
13:06
Tad Eggleston: behave as Minneapolis has. Yeah. So that's… that's really, really heartwarming. I mean, horrible that they need to do it, heartwarming that they are.
13:19
Phil: Yeah.
13:20
Tad Eggleston: So, that's all the energy I have for that today, if that's okay with you guys. I'm certain we'll get more into it when we get to animal pounds, so I'm keeping the powder dry.
13:31
Tyler Johnson: Oh, man, we're still on animal pound? No, I'm just kidding.
13:36
Tad Eggleston: So, let's…
13:37
Tyler Johnson: Not last week!
13:38
Tad Eggleston: Yeah, but Phil hadn't read it yet.
13:41
Tyler Johnson: I forgot! And then I looked at it just now and went, come on, Phil!
13:46
Phil: Pf.
13:47
Tyler Johnson: I'm just kidding. I could go.
13:50
Tad Eggleston: The new to order this month, initial orders are due on February 26th.
13:57
Tyler Johnson: Yup.
13:58
Tad Eggleston: Action! The 50th Anniversary Special. Before 2000 AD, There was action.
14:06
Tad Eggleston: Action was always ahead of the curve, and sometimes pushed its luck just a bit too far. Celebrating…
14:12
Tad Eggleston: since the first issue of the original series, which inspired readers across the country, we're publishing an all-new, oversized special, which brings back all the shock and awe of the original series, featuring a powerhouse lineup of writers and artists, including Garth Ennis, Rob Williams, John Higgins, Staz Johnson, and more.
14:30
Tad Eggleston: Action presents a brutal lineup of its heaviest hitters.
14:34
Tyler Johnson: Runaways?
14:34
Tad Eggleston: Cook Jaw the Killer Shark.
14:37
Tad Eggleston: Takes on a gang of international drug dealers, no-nonsense cop Dredger seeks vengeance against the men who killed his partner, and footballer Kenny Lefty Lampton has a memorable meeting with the King of England. Action is back, and more controversial than ever.
14:56
Tad Eggleston: Final order cutoff is March 2nd in stores on May 13th.
15:04
Tyler Johnson: That's awesome. Alright.
15:07
Phil: Next up, there's Hidden Springs, number 1, from Rob Williams and Neil Vendrell over at Dark Horse.
15:15
Phil: While on a retirement community field trip, a group of aging ex-Hollywood stars encounter a baby kaiju on the run from military agents. Bonding quickly with the creature, the cantankerous cadre of former celebrities have to somehow get the kaiju to safety before it causes the end of the world. From Rob Williams, and I already said that, and Neil Vendrell, over at Dark Horse Comics, gonna have a final order cut off
15:41
Phil: April 6th, in stores, May 13th.
15:47
Tyler Johnson: All right. Hair shape! I just loved the, the, title of this. This is from Nick Thorbum.
15:53
Tyler Johnson: A good old-fashioned underground comic for our current times, a heady volubase of humor, philosophy, profanity, absurdism, and existentialism. From the pen of multi-talented indie musician and cartoonist Nick Thorburn comes this perfect object of the comic book form, a 64-page color, one-shot magazine of interconnected comic strips.
16:17
Tyler Johnson: that smartly channels the tradition of underground comics. Find out why those smarty pants at the Believer Magazine say that Thorburn makes sharp social commentary through a series of dark humor vignettes that revolve around macabre body horror.
16:32
Tyler Johnson: disadiances of the absurd, and the social-political intricacies of human existence. This is the final order cutoff of March 2nd, will be in shots April 8th. This is out from Phanographics, underground.
16:48
Tad Eggleston: I gotta say, it has a much more realistic blood splatter than you normally see in in…
16:57
Tad Eggleston: cartoon characters that look more like Bird and Ernie than, like, actual… They too, yep.
17:02
Tyler Johnson: Yup, it's a lot.
17:06
Tyler Johnson: I love it.
17:06
Tad Eggleston: Like, when you saw somebody in half, at least if they're alive, and it kind of looks like this guy was when they started, the blood's really gonna go all over the place, and I think he captured that well on this cover.
17:20
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, I do.
17:20
Tad Eggleston: But not, like, all over the place, like, Quentin Tarantino, like…
17:24
Tad Eggleston: Water fountains of blood. That's excessive. Cool!
17:27
Tyler Johnson: I mean, kind of.
17:29
Tad Eggleston: This is…
17:30
Tyler Johnson: Look at that, that kitchen table is full of blood. Those walls are everywhere, yeah.
17:34
Tad Eggleston: Yeah, no, this is just splatter. It's like, when you're moving the saw back and forth, you're gonna have flex of blood go everywhere.
17:43
Tad Eggleston: Why do you think that when they… when they do a hit in an apartment, they… they cover the entire room in plastic wrap? They don't just cover a portion of it.
17:58
Tyler Johnson: This bladder is legit, man!
18:03
Tyler Johnson: Funny. It looks gross. I like it, though.
18:07
Tad Eggleston: Some graphic novels! They're actually… we were just commenting before the show that this'll wrap up our graphic novel recommendations for the month, because,
18:18
Tad Eggleston: There were only…
18:20
Tyler Johnson: 10, 12, 13.
18:23
Tad Eggleston: 220.
18:25
Tyler Johnson: 15.
18:26
Tad Eggleston: 15. 15.
18:28
Tyler Johnson: I'm just reading random numbers.
18:31
Tad Eggleston: You came close! 15 this month that caught our eye. Or I guess my eye. You guys don't follow after me. You're allowed to, you know? If you guys want to look at the catalogs and go, hey, you skipped this, that's allowed. I will not stop you.
18:48
Tyler Johnson: I will tell you, I do go over what you put on there, and go, yep, that's everything I was hoping would be on there.
18:54
Tad Eggleston: I do know that.
18:55
Tyler Johnson: I do look at it, but, I never add stuff, you're right.
19:00
Tad Eggleston: Chernobyl Life and Other Disasters, a graphic memoir from Yevgenia Neyberg.
19:07
Tad Eggleston: At Candlewook's… Neil?
19:11
Tad Eggleston: quarter books. Strong-willed Genya sets her mind to attending art school in 1980s Ukraine amidst the turmoil of Soviet control, the Cold War, and the unfolding
19:25
Tad Eggleston: Chernobyl?
19:26
Tad Eggleston: nuclear disaster. Genya, the nickname of the book's author and story's protagonist, Yevgenya.
19:33
Tad Eggleston: knows from age 5 that she wants to be an artist. When she turns 11, she'll apply to the same prestigious art school that her mother attended, but making the cut.
19:42
Tad Eggleston: Won't be easy, especially with the school's open secret.
19:46
Tad Eggleston: rule that no more than 1% of the student body can be Jewish.
19:52
Tad Eggleston: The years before Genia's 11th birthday bring plenty to distract her. Nothing in Soviet Ukraine is quite as it seems.
20:00
Tad Eggleston: Adults mock the government, but only in private. And her classmates are terrified of American bomb strikes, and that's all before April 26, 1986, when Genia's police officer neighborhood gets called to an emergency in a town she's never heard of.
20:16
Tad Eggleston: Chernobyl.
20:17
Tad Eggleston: A graphic memoir account of creator Yelgeny Neyberg's childhood Chernobyl life and other disasters is both deeply personal and a glimpse into broader Soviet intelligentsia experiences. Young readers curious about life elsewhere, particularly in the face of disaster, will find ample details to devour, while those dreaming of a creative life will take inspiration from Genya's perseverance.
20:41
Tad Eggleston: Salient, and yet often slyly funny, this is a must-read for any graphic memoir fan. The…
20:52
Tad Eggleston: Final order cutoff is March 16th, and it's on… Sale, April 14th.
21:04
Phil: Alright, here we have Barry Paines by Lola Lorente.
21:09
Phil: Mary Payne's hit rock bottom with nothing left to lose, but she's also absolutely free. Mary Payne might just be the patron saint of second chances. Unemployed and all out of options, she buys a one-way bus ticket to the dead-end town she grew up in, where time stands still.
21:25
Phil: Everyone sharing the same old gossip she's been running from for ages. Back in her childhood home, she needs to find a way to save the house from foreclosure, care for her ailing grandfather, and make peace with her mother's ghost, whose telephone calls still come in on the old kitchen landline. Not that it keeps her down. She picks up men for midnight trysts in the park and remains open to deepening connections with childhood friends, new lovers.
21:50
Phil: Ed.
21:51
Phil: precious.
21:52
Tad Eggleston: Precocious.
21:53
Phil: Precocious altar boys. Lola Lorente's slick black inkwork feels sophisticated and voluptuous, and her rendering of idiosyncratic townsfolk and their customs is a sensorial delight, translated from Spanish by Andrea Rosenberg. It's going to be final order cutoff of March 9th, in stores May 13th from Drawn and Quarterly.
22:18
Tyler Johnson: Alright, let me jump back over here, I'm on two different things. Narrow rooms. Seungmin Choi is the writer and artist.
22:28
Tyler Johnson: A romantic thriller exploring the dark corners of human desire and isolation with quiet eeriness. For fans of Moto Haggio and Nick Orns? Ornasso?
22:40
Tad Eggleston: NASA.
22:40
Phil: Nassau.
22:41
Tyler Johnson: Choi Seungmin's Narrow Rooms follows a young woman who leaves her rural hometown to study in Seoul and seeks self-improvement. But once there, she quickly becomes the target of unwanted attention from her teacher, and the whispers of other students only deep in her alienation.
22:58
Tyler Johnson: Living in a cramped, poorly soundproofed room, the suffocating atmosphere begins to further distort her boundaries and perception. Longing for escape, she fixates on a handsome new neighbor.
23:10
Tyler Johnson: Her fascination spiraling into obsession, she secretly rummages through his mailbox, collects his discarded cigarette butts and tea bags.
23:20
Tyler Johnson: Ann hoards his trash.
23:21
Tyler Johnson: But when she discovers something unsavory about the object of her desire, will she be forced to confront her the morals of her own behavior? Translated from the Korean by Janet Hong, the final order cutoff will be March 23rd, in stores May 20th.
23:39
Tyler Johnson: And… I am not sure who is this…
23:42
Tad Eggleston: running quarterly.
23:43
Tyler Johnson: Drawn and quarterly. Thank you.
23:44
Tad Eggleston: Yep.
23:45
Tad Eggleston: Alright, some collections…
23:51
Tyler Johnson: I ain't Batman.
23:53
Tyler Johnson: Volume 1, this is Matt Fraction. A new day dawn… and Jorge Jimenez… A new day dawns in Gotham City as Eisner Award-winning writer Matt Fraction joins forces with superstar artist Jorge Jimenez.
24:06
Tyler Johnson: For a timeless superhero-forward take on the Caped Crusader, loaded with a new costume, a new Batmobile, new gadgets, new aliens… or new allies. Allies. Allies!
24:18
Tad Eggleston: I mean, maybe new aliens, you never know.
24:20
Tyler Johnson: Between Killer Croc's escape from Arkham Towers, the increasingly criminal machinations of Police Commissioner Vandal Savage, the assassin known as Lady Death Man on the Pro… Lady Death.
24:34
Tad Eggleston: Lady Deathman.
24:35
Tyler Johnson: Thank you. On the prowl, and organized crime in Gotham reaching astonishing new heights of power. The status quo has never been more deadly for the Dark Knight.
24:44
Tyler Johnson: As the Minotaur, the masked man behind a massive criminal conspiracy, emerges from the shadows.
24:51
Tyler Johnson: of the Infernal Labyrinth to claim Gotham as his prize. Both Batman and Bruce Wayne will be tested like never before. Final order cut off, March 9th, and will be in shops June 2nd from DC.
25:08
Tad Eggleston: Yeah, Fraction and Jimenez have been killing it on Batman. Just… Killing it.
25:18
Tad Eggleston: I pulled up the wrong Godzilla.
25:22
Tad Eggleston: Dun dun.
25:23
Tad Eggleston: Let's get the right Godzilla.
25:26
Phil: I mean, on some level, there is no wrong Godzilla, but this is.
25:29
Tad Eggleston: Well, yeah, but in terms of, in terms of.
25:34
Phil: Stuff coming out when in the time frame we're talking about, you're right, Nan.
25:38
Tad Eggleston: Right, you know.
25:42
Tad Eggleston: And of course… and it might be because I… I didn't… I didn't actually properly bookmark.
25:48
Tad Eggleston: Godzilla vs. America.
25:56
Tad Eggleston: There we go.
25:58
Tad Eggleston: Godzilla vs. America, Boston, Chicago, Kansas City, Los Angeles.
26:04
Tad Eggleston: From Tim Seeley, Carolyn Cash, Gabriel Hardman, Dave Baker, Jesse Lonergan, and more, get ready for Godzilla… Godzilla wreaking havoc on different American cities in the graphic novel that has a story for every fan.
26:19
Tad Eggleston: Godzilla's Destructive Tour of America, all in one book, from Chicago to Boston to Los Angeles to Kansas City, which is kind of a weird route to take.
26:34
Tad Eggleston: The King of Monsters is taking on the land of the free. Join a superstar team of comics creators for 16 incredible stories, all set in these cities across the map. E pluribus… -Oh…
26:48
Tad Eggleston: Collects the entire anthology series, Godzilla vs. America.
26:52
Tad Eggleston: Boston with Steve Orlando, Matt Emmons, Hannah Cha, Jesse Lonergan, and Hayden Sherman, Chicago from Mike Costa, Ryan Brown, Ezra Clayton Daniels, Tim Seeley, and Carolyn Cash, Kansas from Buster Modi, Freddie E. Williams II, Kyle Strom, Baltimore Rivas, and Jake Smith, and Los Angeles from Gabriel Hardman, Dave Baker, Jordan
27:16
Tad Eggleston: Morris, Nicole Goo, and John Jay Gonzo. This was so…
27:23
Tad Eggleston: These are just so good. So good. And now we get them all, and that cover is fucking great. Because it's got, like, the big Godzilla walking across the nation, but then it's got, like, little things on the map.
27:41
Tad Eggleston: For him to… to step on, including a big alligator in Florida.
27:49
Tad Eggleston: that initially looked like a little Godzilla, until he went, nope, that's an alligator, because it's in Florida.
27:56
Tad Eggleston: But, yeah. I like it. I loved the stories, I liked the cover. Hardcover, which is always better. Everybody loves a good hardcover. It is a hardcover, isn't it? I didn't… I didn't just call it a hardcover when it's not that, oh, fuck, it's a paperback. It should be a hardcover!
28:13
Phil: It's Godzilla, why isn't it a hardcover? Come on.
28:15
Tad Eggleston: Exactly!
28:17
Tad Eggleston: I'll buy it anyway. Final order cutoff is March 2nd, in stores on April 7th.
28:24
Tyler Johnson: That's funny.
28:26
Tad Eggleston: This story has been amazing.
28:27
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
28:28
Phil: And last up, we have Temporal by Stephanie Williams, Isaiah Fullmore, and Taryn Clark. Once upon a time, Savannah and Marcus were the most skilled temporal thieves in the business, slipping through history to acquire rare artifacts. That was before they settled down, had a son, and built a quiet life together.
28:45
Phil: Ten years later, their son Harper celebrates his birthday. Savannah questions whether suburban bliss is enough. When Harper's disappointment
28:53
Phil: Over a replica gaming console triggers memories of her former life, Savannah makes a decision that could jeopardize everything she and Marcus have built. Against her husband's knowledge and her best friend's warning, Savannah steps back into the portal for one last job. A simple mission to retrieve an original gaming console from the past, but nothing stays simple for long in a business where time is money.
29:16
Phil: That's gonna be a final order cutoff of March 16th in stores April 8th from Mad Cave.
29:23
Tad Eggleston: Yeah, I've been totally digging this. Stephanie Williams is awesome.
29:29
Tad Eggleston: Final order cutoff this week for February 16th. We have 51 No. 1 from Kurt Pires in Jock at Mad Cave, out on March 11th.
29:41
Tad Eggleston: We have the collection of Benjamin!
29:44
Tad Eggleston: From Ben H. Winters and Leo Max at ONI, also on March 11th.
29:48
Tad Eggleston: Creased Comics from Brad Neely at New York Review Comics in stores on April 14th. Electric Chair No. 1 from Adam Phelp at Strangers in stores March 25th. Lights of Nittaroy from Marcelo Quintinia.
30:03
Tad Eggleston: Infant Graphics in stores on April 1st, The Shadower from Maria Hoey and Peter Hoey at Top Shelf IDW in stores March 24th, and Tigress Island No. 1 from Patrick Kindland
30:18
Tad Eggleston: at EPHK, and EPHK at Image in stores on March 11th, and I knew I hadn't
30:27
Tad Eggleston: done everything that I needed to do.
30:30
Tad Eggleston: So we'll have to do something on the fly in a second as we get into crowdfunding. Growing Up on the Spectrum from Tess Langston at Oneschi Press is on Kickstarter until February 12th. You can listen to the interview with Tess Langston on 22 panels right now.
30:45
Tad Eggleston: Sink Your Teeth In, number one from Zoe Tunnell, Lauren Knight, J.P. Jordan, Jodi Troutman, and Deathline Comics on Kickstarter through February 19th.
30:55
Tad Eggleston: 100 FAQ on making comics from Shelley and Philip Bond and Off-Registered Press on Kickstarter through February 22nd. You can listen to the interview with Shelley and Philip Bond on 22 panels.
31:10
Tad Eggleston: right now. And finally, Slay slash the girlfriend…
31:18
Phil: survives.
31:19
Tad Eggleston: Survives from Jeremy Whitley, and Alex Smith, and Luca and Naka?
31:28
Tad Eggleston: Nakashoji, a double first issue flipbook, is on…
31:34
Phil: Soup? Soup?
31:36
Tad Eggleston: Through…
31:38
Phil: Today's the 8th.
31:40
Tad Eggleston: until, like, March.
31:41
Phil: 3rd, maybe?
31:42
Tad Eggleston: March 5th.
31:43
Phil: March 5th, okay.
31:44
Tad Eggleston: March 5th.
31:45
Tad Eggleston: On Zoom till March 5th, and we will be talking to Jeremy Whitley on 22 Panels Before our next…
31:53
Tad Eggleston: weekly episode.
31:58
Tad Eggleston: Still on Humble Bundle, extended for a week, we have the Dynamite Character Crossover comics for, $18, you can get 57 items, which is…
32:10
Tad Eggleston: Lots and lots and lots of stuff, because some of those items are omnibuses. Some of those items are single issues. It's weird. But it's all to support the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, and like I said, it's been extended till February 11th. Nbm?
32:26
Tad Eggleston: 50th Anniversary Collection, $18 for 40 graphic novels to support the Starlight Children's Foundation is
32:35
Tad Eggleston: through February 11th as well.
32:40
Tad Eggleston: So, 3… Amazing books this week.
32:46
Tyler Johnson: Oh, man, year number 2 was awesome, so when we get to that… Both of them.
32:51
Tad Eggleston: Both of them were. Yeah, yeah.
32:53
Tyler Johnson: Or.
32:54
Tad Eggleston: remembers.
32:54
Tyler Johnson: I'm sorry, you're number three, sorry. You're number two, yeah, I've read that one as well, I've got that here too. Anyway, go on.
33:00
Tad Eggleston: Yeah, yeah, yeah, like…
33:04
Tad Eggleston: And I got to read it ahead of time, but I got my physical copy and love it even more. Ezra Clayton Daniels, Camilla Sucre, Mama Came Calling.
33:15
Tad Eggleston: Soooooo… so good.
33:20
Tyler Johnson: I need to check it out.
33:21
Tad Eggleston: Everything Ezra Clayton Daniels does, and this was not a disappointment.
33:31
Tad Eggleston: Similarly, I love everything Matt Kent does, and I love everything David Lapham does, which is why it's not at all shocking that I love Night City No. 1.
33:42
Tad Eggleston: I also love everything Matt Kitt does, and everything David Rubin does, which is why it's not shocking that I loved the final issue of Space Scouts number 3. What is amazing is that with those two coming out together, Matt Kent still came in second for my three amazing books this week, because that's how good Mama Came Calling is.
34:02
Tad Eggleston: Yum.
34:03
Tyler Johnson: Well, Space Scouts is awesome. I recommended that to so many people this, this last week.
34:07
Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
34:08
Tad Eggleston: And, diorc?
34:11
Tad Eggleston: Yep, or dork, as I call it. Add image?
34:16
Tyler Johnson: Boom.
34:17
Tyler Johnson: Oh.
34:18
Tad Eggleston: I, I…
34:19
Tyler Johnson: I, I, I, I blame… Yeah.
34:22
Tad Eggleston: I blame Barbarian, but, like, in the best possible way, we are in a golden or golden age of sword and sorcery combat
34:31
Tad Eggleston: Involving smartass, hilarious, talking, weaponry of some sort. Yeah. This time a shield. With an eyeball.
34:43
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, it's super funny. But yeah, he's, like, half… he's half dwarf, half orc, and is, you know, Portman 2 of.
34:53
Tad Eggleston: Half light dwarf, and half dark orc.
35:00
Tyler Johnson: Yup.
35:00
Tad Eggleston: So he's, like, on opposite… yeah, just…
35:04
Tyler Johnson: It's stylized as Diorke, but I think it's meant.
35:08
Tad Eggleston: I like to pronounce it D York.
35:10
Tyler Johnson: It's… it's dork. And it's funny.
35:14
Tad Eggleston: Well, I think of it like Frankenstein.
35:19
Tyler Johnson: Yes, of Frankenstein.
35:21
Tad Eggleston: I'm just waiting for the scene where somebody's like…
35:26
Tad Eggleston: Hey, dork! And he's like, it's Dior York!
35:30
Tyler Johnson: Yeah. Just chopped off the head, yup.
35:34
Phil: Tyler, you got a third book to pick?
35:37
Tyler Johnson: What's that?
35:37
Phil: I'd say you got a third book to pick? That's two!
35:40
Tyler Johnson: I did…
35:41
Phil: Stupid, you know?
35:42
Tyler Johnson: I did read a couple books this week. What else came out? I can't think of what else was out.
35:49
Phil: Get you back in the swing of things, you know?
35:51
Tyler Johnson: I am getting towards it, I just cannot be counted on… I cannot be relied upon to read consistently. I've become much more of a trade waiter.
36:01
Tad Eggleston: This is where we go back to, like… $20 an hour!
36:09
Tyler Johnson: I know, I know, I know! It's just… Yeah.
36:12
Tad Eggleston: You can spend that time reading books.
36:16
Tyler Johnson: Spend a ton of time reading books, but… .
36:20
Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
36:21
Tad Eggleston: Alright, Phil, take a walk.
36:23
Phil: Oh, I'm surprised.
36:25
Tyler Johnson: here, Phil, take a walk, yoks.
36:26
Phil: I'm sorry, this is, this is the walk portion of the podcast. I didn't hear, didn't hear it was Tyler Take a walk time? But, you know, we can, we can add that segment, you know, so… That'd be funny. That'd be funny. I've read, High Strangest Book 4, 2001, by Noah, or Daniel Noah, Cecil Keselucci, and…
36:46
Phil: Chloe Stoskey.
36:48
Phil: Francesco Segala over at Oni. Oh, and Becca Carey on Letters. That was really good. Having not read the rest of this miniseries, I was heavily intrigued, so I might have to go and,
37:00
Tad Eggleston: Oh, they're all fantastic, but they're also standalone, so…
37:04
Phil: Yeah, so I… I wasn't confused enough, that's for sure. And really, really intrigued by the essay in the back, talking about out-of-body experiences and astral projection, and the guy being like, yeah, so… so he went to a retreat and he did it, you know? So it's…
37:21
Phil: It's wild, it's exactly my kind of weird, where it's like, oh, you know, if only… if only you had some more detailed instructions, good sir, you know?
37:29
Phil: And then, you know, I've… this is technically from comics, but not comics directly, I got caught up on new episodes of Freer in Season 2.
37:38
Tad Eggleston: Which is very exciting. So you're not reading it, you're…
37:42
Phil: Well, technically I am, because it's in subtitles, so I'm reading something.
37:46
Tad Eggleston: You know, half counts. But, but, but, like, so that's why it doesn't get to be part of your manga.
37:53
Tad Eggleston: Exactly, yeah, yeah. …is, is, is that, that you're not…
37:57
Phil: Physically…
37:58
Tad Eggleston: reading news.
38:00
Phil: I'm not turning pages.
38:02
Phil: It's still, it's still…
38:04
Tad Eggleston: I see.
38:05
Phil: I see. And you doing the whole…
38:08
Tad Eggleston: anime thing.
38:10
Phil: What's, what's wrong with anime?
38:12
Phil: It's like, you know… It's the… it's probably the closest thing to comics on, on TV.
38:19
Tad Eggleston: Well, yeah, but, like… You could let your wife watch what she wants, and you could read comics.
38:28
Phil: I mean, I do that too.
38:30
Phil: But yeah, but it's also, like, you know, it's inspiration to check out the manga as well, you know, my…
38:39
Phil: wrangle… well, I gotta keep finding material to bounce to for… for this One Piece race, cause, cause how's that going?
38:46
Tad Eggleston: Oh! I'm still…
38:48
Tyler Johnson: It's going swim… swimmingly. It's going… it's going great.
38:51
Tad Eggleston: I'm still… I'm still becalmed.
38:54
Tyler Johnson: I am on a, part of a, a sabbatical from… from One Piece.
39:01
Tad Eggleston: I'm still stuck at 626 chapters.
39:06
Tyler Johnson: I… I am in the 4 500s, maybe?
39:09
Tad Eggleston: That sounds right.
39:10
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
39:11
Phil: Well, I… so the… the book that… that I… I recommended for… for trade weighting, it was on Volume 4, and you guys, oh, have you read that yet? I went out, and I… I went to the library, and I picked them up, and I read them, and…
39:23
Tad Eggleston: We finally read the beginning of Volume 1.
39:27
Phil: No, because they are super… they're, like, 50 or more page chapters, so I read 3 volumes.
39:35
Tad Eggleston: Oh, wow!
39:37
Phil: 10 chapters was actually 3… that's how good it was!
39:39
Tad Eggleston: What's a picture?
39:40
Phil: This is absolutely fantastic. I might… I'm actually very heavily tempted, since it's only on Volume 4, just came out, to start picking this up in physical, because it's been a long time since I've been current with a manga, but this… this is… So damn good.
39:55
Phil: Awesome. Incredible landscapes, it… seriously, from page 1, you get dropped in the deep end of lore and just take off with a rocket on this adventure. It is incredible.
40:08
Tyler Johnson: That's awesome.
40:10
Tad Eggleston: That works. That works. I'll have to add it to my ever-growing pile.
40:17
Tad Eggleston: If you…
40:17
Phil: If you ever… if you ever… well, I mean, that's… once you're caught up with one piece, that's… that's the… that's the challenge.
40:22
Tad Eggleston: Well, and also the challenge is, like, the upside of…
40:28
Tad Eggleston: like, having more and more connections with the various publisher PR people is, like, I get more comics to read for free, and the downside of
40:42
Tad Eggleston: Having…
40:43
Phil: Less time to.
40:43
Tad Eggleston: green is… Improve relations with, with the,
40:48
Tad Eggleston: the comics PR people from all of the different publishers is I get more comics to read for free. Yep.
41:01
Tyler Johnson: That's true.
41:03
Phil: And that's… that turns into your, well, if I don't read these, it's like… You know, it's like a…
41:07
Tyler Johnson: I'm hurt… I'm hurt in the industry.
41:09
Phil: Yes!
41:09
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
41:10
Phil: You know, but…
41:11
Tad Eggleston: Beautiful.
41:13
Tad Eggleston: And just in general, like, it's exponentially…
41:19
Tad Eggleston: increase the number of comics that I have at my fingertips.
41:23
Tad Eggleston: Among the stuff that's coming out soon, or recently.
41:27
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
41:27
Tad Eggleston: Or whatever.
41:29
Phil: On the cutting edge.
41:32
Tad Eggleston: And we already knew about how many comics I read versus how many hours there are in a day, and how…
41:40
Tad Eggleston: how I've constantly been falling behind, rather than moving ahead, in terms of taking my mountain and making it smaller.
41:51
Tad Eggleston: But, I mean, these are very first world problems.
41:57
Tad Eggleston: Very first world problems.
41:59
Tad Eggleston: So, Bill…
42:01
Phil: Yeah.
42:02
Tad Eggleston: Great responsibility, Sean.
42:05
Tad Eggleston: Did you read it, or did you just take it out from the library? No, no.
42:10
Phil: I was gonna say, while I have been known to check out books and not read them, and then return them.
42:17
Tad Eggleston: I mean, cause you…
42:17
Phil: I just want that thrill.
42:18
Tad Eggleston: You did read a lot of tower dungeon this week.
42:21
Phil: I did. And you know.
42:23
Tad Eggleston: I was needing to make certain that you didn't get, like, distracted and forget the actual homework.
42:29
Phil: Right, yeah, no, it was… it was a deliberation. I was like, alright, do I want… well, I think I read chapter 1 of Animal Pound on… around Monday or so, and then
42:37
Phil: Tower Dungeon, then went back to it. But I… part of… part of why I wanted to emphasize all the various things I was into and the tone is just that… that I… I quickly surmised… Animal Town was not really my cup of tea.
42:50
Phil: You know, it was not really, I didn't find it enjoyable, which says a lot.
42:55
Tad Eggleston: Well, I don't know if it's supposed to be enjoyable.
42:57
Phil: That's fair, that's a fair point.
43:00
Tyler Johnson: Right, but you're, but you… it's…
43:02
Tyler Johnson: Did you struggle to get through it? Like, you're just like, oh, come on.
43:06
Phil: Actually, no. I struggled to get started with it, and then I was frustrated with how it ended, but I felt the middle was actually pretty decent. And, you know, while reading it, I kind of thought, if you had told me, hey, would you want to read a talking animal political thriller? I would say yes.
43:24
Phil: You know, and then if you ask me, hey, would you want to read a, you know.
43:31
Phil: Americanized version of Animal Farm. I'd say, yeah, sure, maybe I'd be interested in that, but I just…
43:38
Tyler Johnson: You don't think he hit the mark?
43:39
Phil: I… yeah, it's so… that's… that's one of those things where…
43:43
Tad Eggleston: See, here's my big question, Phil, just because… because this is… this is… this is…
43:51
Tad Eggleston: I know it's a place where I… am an anomaly.
43:59
Tad Eggleston: Do you think he missed the mark, or did you… do you think he hit it too hard, and therefore, the ending was not satisfactory, because…
44:08
Tad Eggleston: It's not over here yet, and where it leaves off is still a little bit in our future, but not the positive version of our future.
44:19
Phil: Yeah, and I mean, I know that the ending is also a direct reference homage to how Animal Farm itself ends.
44:26
Tad Eggleston: it is.
44:27
Phil: You know, but I guess I also mean…
44:30
Phil: I mean, the whole last issue with the ending, you know, not just literally the last page, but kind of the…
44:36
Tad Eggleston: Oh, I understand.
44:37
Phil: lead up to it, and… and I guess where… where things start falling apart for me… is…
44:45
Phil: first of all, you know, the multiple angles to consider from. First and foremost, the biggest problem is that I think it is extremely, extremely difficult to satirize Trump.
44:56
Phil: As a person, as a figure, in a meaningful way.
45:02
Phil: And, like… I don't know what that looks like in a way I can…
45:10
Phil: gain something from, you know? Just because I find him to be such a despicable figure that looking.
45:14
Tad Eggleston: Well, and this is… this is where… I mean, my question is, is Piggy a satire, or just a…
45:24
Phil: That's tough.
45:25
Tad Eggleston: Portrayal.
45:26
Phil: And that's…
45:27
Tyler Johnson: portrayal, that's what I was just about to say. I'm like, it's not satire, that's just…
45:32
Tad Eggleston: I mean, because it's an animal version, we expect it to be satire, but I don't think it is, and I don't think it was intended to be.
45:40
Phil: Well, when I say satire, I guess it's… It… that's still what it…
45:47
Tyler Johnson: Trump himself.
45:48
Phil: Officer.
45:49
Tyler Johnson: You can't satire as stupid as he is.
45:51
Phil: I mean… I don't think… I don't think he is satirical. I think he's goofy and, ridiculous in… in a way that… Yeah.
46:01
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, that was the right.
46:02
Phil: You know.
46:02
Tyler Johnson: word, for sure, but it's hard to satire somebody.
46:05
Phil: Yeah.
46:05
Tyler Johnson: That's so ridiculous already, in actuality.
46:08
Phil: the… the typical, the typical method for satirizing people before Trump was to rely on hyperbole and, you know, shock.
46:17
Tad Eggleston: Caricature.
46:18
Phil: character.
46:18
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
46:19
Phil: Exactly. But since he already lives in a land of reality TV, which is defined by hyperbole and caricature, then he… he… it falls flat, because any attempt… any prior attempts at satirization just felt like things that could have happened.
46:36
Phil: And in the same way that, yes, I do think that
46:40
Phil: I do think that it's an accurate portrayal of him.
46:45
Phil: But I guess that's not something that I feel the need to ingest.
46:53
Tad Eggleston: I think, for me anyway,
46:59
Tad Eggleston: Portrayals that are much more… interesting.
47:04
Tad Eggleston: R.
47:05
Tad Eggleston: those of…
47:08
Phil: Beefy and Titan.
47:10
Tad Eggleston: Right.
47:11
Phil: Yeah.
47:12
Tad Eggleston: I agree.
47:13
Phil: It's, it's almost like…
47:14
Tad Eggleston: Because they represent the two sides of…
47:21
Tad Eggleston: status quo isn't even quite the right word. They represent the two sides of…
47:30
Tad Eggleston: the heritage.
47:32
Phil: Sure. You know, they represent the ideals of…
47:40
Tad Eggleston: And I mean the legit ideals of both sides of…
47:46
Tad Eggleston: Of the… the aisle, and… and… and therefore, it, it, it both shows that…
47:54
Tad Eggleston: you know, where Animal Farm shows how An attempt at communism can… become… totalitarian.
48:06
Tad Eggleston: This shows… how… a more… democratic… Free market can also become
48:21
Tad Eggleston: totalitarian. But beyond that, it shows that… The system itself is… predicated on…
48:39
Tad Eggleston: People playing by a shared set of rules, and not trying to game the system.
48:46
Tad Eggleston: And by voters, Paying enough attention to know when they are.
48:55
Phil: So… and that's… that's kind of where things start to fall apart for me, where initially I do think that the… the pound system, is a good analogy for the electoral College.
49:10
Phil: I think that, honestly, if anything, the closest to, like, a literary thesis that I could get behind for this book
49:21
Phil: is that in the presence of an allegory for the development of America.
49:28
Phil: Trump is such a destructive force as to reveal the game of it all.
49:35
Phil: And to completely dissolve the allegory itself.
49:39
Phil: Because… So…
49:40
Tad Eggleston: So, wait a minute, you thought that the pound system
49:44
Tad Eggleston: I mean, I guess… I guess it includes the Electoral College, but I hadn't even thought of it as… I thought much more of the Three-Fifths Compromise and the… and the way that…
50:00
Phil: I mean, I think the…
50:01
Tad Eggleston: Unbridled capitalism leads to…
50:08
Tad Eggleston: Money making a massive difference, particularly when you reach the point where the dogs are eating
50:15
Tad Eggleston: the rabbits and the cats are having to think about the fact that, oh wait, this isn't just a problem that we're losing rabbits to team up with. The dogs are getting heavier before it. I thought the pound system was much more about the marriage of
50:34
Tad Eggleston: Democracy and capitalism than it is… about…
50:40
Tad Eggleston: the Electoral College. I think the Electoral College is just one of the…
50:44
Phil: Well…
50:44
Tad Eggleston: Offshoots of the marriage of democracy and capitalism.
50:49
Phil: And I guess the problem with that is that there's an additional
50:54
Phil: Layer of capitalism happening in the story with, like, the… the… the kitty can.
51:00
Phil: You know, so that's where I saw that as a representation of economic systems, and thought that, you know, there's a vast difference between that, because that represents America's rise in the foray of,
51:16
Phil: Becoming, you know, our soft power and our media is our main export.
51:21
Phil: you know, because that's the other problem that I had with it, is that it seems like, you know, when Titan is set up to be this George Washington figure, that it's like you have this early American analogy of, okay, the series of presidents
51:37
Phil: And then you start getting elements of the American Civil War, and then there's kind of a fast-forward through the 20th century to Peggy getting elected, and continually getting elected.
51:49
Tad Eggleston: Well, but, I mean…
51:51
Tad Eggleston: No, not really a fast-forward, because, like, the time from the Revolution to the Civil War
51:58
Tad Eggleston: is similar to the Civil War to Johnson.
52:04
Tad Eggleston: And Piggy doesn't just represent Trump.
52:08
Tad Eggleston: Piggy, I think, represents Reagan on.
52:13
Phil: Hmm.
52:16
Phil: Interesting.
52:17
Tad Eggleston: And honestly, the television era off, because politics changed dramatically in 1960.
52:27
Tad Eggleston: When you didn't just have to…
52:30
Tad Eggleston: look good in the newspaper and sound good on radio, but suddenly you had to look good on TV.
52:39
Tyler Johnson: So, I don't know what you guys read, but I read a book about dogs and cats. What's happening here? No.
52:50
Tad Eggleston: And bunny rabbits, don't.
52:51
Tyler Johnson: Get the bunny rabbits. And bunny rabbits.
52:53
Phil: And that's kind of… and that's… that's, I guess, another element. So… so… The way… and that was…
52:59
Phil: the way I interpreted the cats and dogs through at least a modern lens is the dogs being Republican and the cats being
53:07
Phil: Democrat.
53:09
Tyler Johnson: That's how I got it, too.
53:10
Phil: Which, which then…
53:12
Tad Eggleston: Well, but it's not nearly as clearly that…
53:15
Tad Eggleston: No. Unless you're also thinking of a historic lens from the early on, you know, because Titan, and certainly some of the… that followed Titan.
53:26
Tad Eggleston: felt much more like Lincoln or Eisenhower Republicans.
53:31
Phil: Which one was like…
53:32
Tad Eggleston: Reagan, Trump, I'd have to… I didn't read it again this week.
53:37
Phil: Oh, okay, sorry.
53:39
Tad Eggleston: bomb.
53:40
Tad Eggleston: But I would say, I would say, I would say the one that took over as the Civil War was breaking out.
53:46
Tad Eggleston: And put ending the war first and foremost.
53:50
Tad Eggleston: Including putting the dogs in line to make it happen.
53:57
Tad Eggleston: You know, which is why it didn't last long, because, like, nobody was really happy.
54:03
Tad Eggleston: But it's like, no, we need to stop… Fighting each other.
54:08
Tad Eggleston: Until we stop fighting each other, none of this matters.
54:11
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
54:12
Phil: Yeah.
54:13
Tad Eggleston: I mean, and yeah, like…
54:19
Tad Eggleston: I think it stuck to the parts of the history books that… that get handled the most in… in…
54:30
Tad Eggleston: high school history classes. I don't think it dug…
54:34
Tad Eggleston: deep, deep into American history, in terms of, let me teach you about this era that gets overlooked.
54:42
Phil: Well, that was where the… what struck me was that the… the third…
54:47
Phil: elected dog seemed almost like Thomas Jefferson, and then the fourth a little bit like James Madison. So that was where I thought it seemed like… but that's the thing, is that there's not…
54:58
Phil: quite enough… time before… But I also think… I also think that, like, it was supposed to…
55:10
Tad Eggleston: it was supposed… in my mind, as I read it, like, I felt like it was supposed to conjure…
55:17
Tad Eggleston: images of U.S. history without necessarily being directly in order or whatnot, but really to lay out how there isn't a perfect way.
55:27
Phil: Right.
55:30
Tad Eggleston: That, that often the problems come from Either the people in power, Deciding that All disagreement should be…
55:43
Tad Eggleston: Ignored, or worse, punished.
55:45
Tad Eggleston: Or the people out of power.
55:49
Tad Eggleston: thinking that the people in power are ONLY evil, And…
55:57
Tad Eggleston: Therefore, they just need to be defeated, not…
56:00
Phil: Yeah, I think…
56:01
Tad Eggleston: Etc, and how that leads to a point where eventually, they are only evil.
56:07
Phil: Yeah.
56:10
Tad Eggleston: But it's not the first time people start acting like it is.
56:18
Tad Eggleston: Does that make sense?
56:20
Phil: I feel like I zoned out between when I said yeah and when you asked if that made sense.
56:26
Tad Eggleston: So…
56:27
Phil: So…
56:27
Tyler Johnson: At least you're honest. Yeah. Yeah.
56:30
Phil: Yeah, no, not anymore. It went away.
56:33
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
56:34
Phil: Yeah, and that's…
56:36
Tyler Johnson: I guess, and that's… No, it's fine. You hate Tom King, it's fine.
56:39
Phil: I hate other people more, but, I wouldn't…
56:44
Phil: I wouldn't even necessarily say I hated this book, because there were parts of it I enjoyed, and it's just, I would rather describe it as probably my least favorite talking animal book that I've.
56:53
Tyler Johnson: Oh!
56:54
Phil: You know.
56:55
Phil: Just because I like a lot of different Talking Animal books.
56:59
Tad Eggleston: Oh, I guarantee I could find Talking Animal books that you would like less.
57:03
Tyler Johnson: Please do! I'll get less shot. Whoa!
57:07
Phil: Give it a shot! Challenge accepted.
57:10
Tyler Johnson: You know.
57:12
Tad Eggleston: We're not gonna talk about ones that you'd like less on the air, so… No, no, okay.
57:16
Phil: Okay, that's…
57:17
Tad Eggleston: So it will only be a challenge between us, because, like, I don't… I'm willing to talk about things that, like, there's debate about, and one of us maybe doesn't like as much as the other, that sort of thing, but if there's not somebody in the room that likes it, then we don't need to talk about it.
57:36
Phil: That's absolutely fair, you know, I mean.
57:38
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, then it's just bashing something, you know?
57:41
Phil: where I come back to, I mean, I… Kettleblock Blues is a hell of a talking animal book. It's absolutely not as deep as this one, but it actually does have quite a bit of pathos to it, and is much more entertaining. There's songs! I think you'd actually like the book, Cad.
57:59
Tad Eggleston: I'm certain that I'd like the book. I never doubted that I liked the book. But, like, what you're describing right now wouldn't have been the right thing to pair with this book for the discussion that was worth
58:10
Tad Eggleston: That was what I wanted to have in this moment.
58:13
Phil: That's fair. That's fair.
58:14
Tad Eggleston: Y, you know.
58:16
Phil: when the… when the connections are only the surface level of prison and animals, because… Right. Yeah, yeah, certainly.
58:24
Tad Eggleston: I mean, based on what you've described, you know, Kennel Block Blues might go well with Kaiju Max? Yeah, I can see that.
58:32
Tad Eggleston: But, but… But again, right now, I can only get the fourth issue on Hoopla.
58:38
Phil: That is still bizarre to me, but… so, like…
58:43
Phil: And I guess… I guess the other… another big piece that sort of…
58:47
Phil: a sticking point for me is… is how do you… so how do you interpret the rabbits? If… if you see the,
58:55
Phil: The cats and dogs as, like, the pulling forces of,
59:02
Tad Eggleston: you know… The rabbits are your independent slash non-voters. They're the vast majority of Americans who feel like they don't have control over the situation at all, and don't feel like either party represents them.
59:20
Phil: I see.
59:21
Tad Eggleston: I mean, like, one of the things that I find really, really frustrating with my own side of the aisle…
59:28
Phil: Huh.
59:29
Tad Eggleston: is the number of times that people are upset about, like, people who don't vote, or voted for Trump, or voted for a third party, or whatever.
59:42
Tad Eggleston: Because clearly that's worse than what we offered. It's like, yeah, except that we didn't actually offer them anything, so what is clearly worse about it?
59:54
Phil: Damn.
59:55
Tad Eggleston: You know, like… Michigan probably…
1:00:04
Tad Eggleston: was lost based on Muslim, and particularly, Palestinian refugee voters.
1:00:10
Phil: Yep.
1:00:12
Tad Eggleston: or Palestinian-American voters, rather, because just being a… I mean, you have to have citizenship to get the… to… to get the franchise.
1:00:23
Tad Eggleston: like… there is an argument that the Democrats lost the election because they continued to arm a genocide.
1:00:36
Phil: Right.
1:00:38
Tad Eggleston: Anybody who sits here saying that…
1:00:42
Tad Eggleston: oh, they should have voted for Kamala because it was gonna be better than Trump.
1:00:47
Phil: Ugh.
1:00:48
Tad Eggleston: Okay, but how much better?
1:00:51
Phil: I mean, it…
1:00:52
Tad Eggleston: And how do they know that, being that their family members are dying from our hardware right now?
1:01:01
Phil: Exactly, yeah. It's one of those where there's actually probably not much of a difference for Palestinians,
1:01:09
Phil: I mean, it's, it's the… Do you want them primed efficiently or inefficiently, you know? Yeah, it's, it's…
1:01:18
Tad Eggleston: So, like… And for that matter, you know, I mean… Particularly among those who are…
1:01:28
Phil: I guess… High-informed, politically…
1:01:31
Tad Eggleston: inclined, I know, among my Black friends, you know, when they see the stuff in Minnesota and whatnot, it's like, oh, great, now that it's a white person, you've noticed. You understand that police officers have been doing this to Black people since the beginning, right?
1:01:48
Tyler Johnson: Oh, yeah.
1:01:48
Tad Eggleston: Yep. Yep. All you white people who don't complain about…
1:01:54
Phil: That's why it's why it's abolished.
1:01:56
Tad Eggleston: about prisoners not having a vote, or even about ex-cons not having the vote, and also don't seem to realize that black people get arrested and convicted way more often than white people.
1:02:11
Phil: Oh, yeah.
1:02:12
Tad Eggleston: Because the laws are written to make that so.
1:02:17
Phil: Yep.
1:02:18
Tad Eggleston: an employee…
1:02:18
Phil: And, historically.
1:02:19
Tad Eggleston: Because it's a way to strip them of the vote.
1:02:22
Phil: Yeah, exactly.
1:02:24
Phil: Yeah.
1:02:27
Tad Eggleston: So, yeah, no, I mean, I appreciate the rabbits a lot in this, because there seem to be a lot of times where one side or the other is making an argument that it's like…
1:02:39
Tad Eggleston: Oh yeah, I would… they would totally get excited about that if I was a rabbit.
1:02:50
Tyler Johnson: You know… I mean, for that matter… I mean, again…
1:02:55
Tad Eggleston: Yeah.
1:02:56
Phil: The sun's going down. Goes down pretty.
1:02:58
Tad Eggleston: Even… even… even with the cats as the… as the stand-in for Democrats now, they were… they were not… they not only…
1:03:05
Tad Eggleston: back on the number of rabbits that they provide safe harbor for. There seemed to be actual conversation about whether they, too, should be eating rabbits.
1:03:15
Phil: Right, and that's… that was one of those things I'm like, okay, yeah, that's a pretty solid depiction of things that actually happened in a horrifying way.
1:03:25
Tad Eggleston: Brad.
1:03:26
Phil: It's… and I guess… I guess it's that I… the… the situation…
1:03:35
Phil: the real-life situation that this allegory is portraying is so complicated that I… I wanted this book to be… I would have read this book if it was 300 pages. You know, if it was a 300-page.
1:03:46
Tad Eggleston: Oh, it would have been wonderful if it was 300 pages, but this is… I'm sure. This is where I'll also toss out,
1:03:53
Tad Eggleston: like, multiple readings will show you how involved Peter Gross is.
1:04:00
Phil: Oh, yeah, no, I.
1:04:01
Tad Eggleston: law, A lot of this stuff in there.
1:04:03
Phil: He was doing quite a bit, that's for sure.
1:04:06
Tad Eggleston: That isn't, like, explicitly in the words.
1:04:10
Phil: I guess that's another thing, is that the… I felt the narration was not very connected with the art. I felt like it was kind of acting on its own independent track, and it felt like a prose short story that had a lot of pictures to go with it, more than
1:04:29
Phil: a comic that has sequential storytelling.
1:04:32
Tad Eggleston: That's funny, because I thought of the narration as the… Pr spin?
1:04:40
Tad Eggleston: And… the… The illustration as what was going on.
1:04:49
Phil: Hmm.
1:04:53
Tad Eggleston: Where, like, the narration would certainly have elements of what was going on, and therefore match up.
1:05:03
Tad Eggleston: But it would always be very much skewed to whoever was narrating, or whoever was talking.
1:05:09
Tad Eggleston: whereas, I think Gross was trying to show us as, as…
1:05:16
Tad Eggleston: As directly as possible, like, what actually was.
1:05:22
Phil: Well, and that's… that's kind of my issue, is that…
1:05:26
Phil: The moments that needed to be specifically depicted were kind of few and far between.
1:05:32
Phil: That most of the book was just general images of animals looking at each other.
1:05:38
Phil: And then… and that's kind of where, to me, for a comic, I feel like it needs to be more visually engaging than that, you know? If you're gonna do the medium like this, then you need to have those visual elements and
1:05:53
Phil: you know, it's… it's in the same way that, you know, a few weeks ago, Ryan… no, was it Ryan in Minnesota? Ryan Carey. Yeah, yeah. He was saying that, oh, so many of these books just look like TV shows.
1:06:08
Phil: this felt… or so many comics feel like TV shows, this felt like a comic that was trying to be a pro story. And it's like, at the end of the day, no, you're still a comic, you need to do
1:06:18
Phil: You need to do comic things.
1:06:21
Phil: E to earn it.
1:06:24
Tyler Johnson: Correct.
1:06:26
Tad Eggleston: As you fade into the.
1:06:29
Tyler Johnson: The black.
1:06:30
Tad Eggleston: this…
1:06:31
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, it's so dark by you!
1:06:33
Phil: Clay…
1:06:34
Tyler Johnson: Funny!
1:06:34
Phil: Reclaimed by the dark.
1:06:36
Tyler Johnson: It's so…
1:06:37
Tad Eggleston: We got it.
1:06:38
Tyler Johnson: We're.
1:06:38
Tad Eggleston: It's like a lantern, man, so at least.
1:06:40
Phil: She's like the leprechaun.
1:06:42
Phil: So I… I tried that outside, and it just… but I also like to say this, so I also like recording in the mornings, and I'm, you know, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for y'all.
1:06:50
Tyler Johnson: I, yeah, I gotta get my wife to quit inviting me to church, then we can do more.
1:06:57
Phil: Tell her that, comic books, we'll, we'll, start calling recording a podcast about comics at your church. There we go. I'm sure we can…
1:07:04
Tyler Johnson: Patton Sunday School.
1:07:06
Tad Eggleston: There's some, there are some decent Bible comics. We, we, you know, like, like, if we, if we covered Bible comics, would she.
1:07:13
Phil: I read R. Crumbs Bible comics.
1:07:15
Tyler Johnson: I, that would be fun.
1:07:19
Tad Eggleston: Mark… Mark Millar.
1:07:21
Tyler Johnson: Oh, God.
1:07:22
Tad Eggleston: Mark Millar. Mark Millar's Bible. Well, Mark Millar's Bible… Jesus comics are interesting, but Mark Millar.
1:07:28
Tyler Johnson: Not his.
1:07:29
Tad Eggleston: I met… and I feel so bad, because I met Mark Russell, and Lamar came out of my mouth.
1:07:36
Phil: I was gonna say, I was about to say, I'm like, I know we were just talking about Peter Gross, but, you know, I would 100% also read Second Coming. I haven't read that one.
1:07:45
Tad Eggleston: Michael Gumming's fantastic.
1:07:46
Phil: It looks absolutely delightful.
1:07:49
Tad Eggleston: It's a trilogy now, too.
1:07:51
Tyler Johnson: This Saturday, though, fellas, I am taking a break from my store for Valentine's Day, so…
1:07:57
Phil: Boom!
1:07:58
Tyler Johnson: I will, be available for recording in the morning that day.
1:08:03
Tad Eggleston: Okay.
1:08:04
Phil: I will have to see… I'm gonna be… I'm gonna… we're taking a trip for… because…
1:08:10
Phil: Our anniversary of our first date was… was the 12th, so we're doing a… we're going on a… on a trip this year,
1:08:17
Tyler Johnson: How many years since your first date?
1:08:20
Phil: 7, so it's, yeah, 7 years in 2019 we met.
1:08:25
Phil: You know.
1:08:26
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
1:08:26
Phil: But yeah, so, so I'll have to see what the setup is, is wherever we are.
1:08:31
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, sure. But I would love… Saturday morning will hopefully work well.
1:08:35
Tad Eggleston: Yeah. Well, let us… Let us transition, then, to, books, we hope.
1:08:43
Tyler Johnson: We hope you…
1:08:44
Tad Eggleston: spectacular.
1:08:46
Tad Eggleston: I'm gonna lead off with… I've managed to read three… I actually have a handful of more that I just haven't gotten to yet, but
1:08:55
Tad Eggleston: Babs, the Black Road, Number 2, from Garth Ennis and Jason Burroughs. Oh my god.
1:09:02
Tad Eggleston: Like, th-this is… This is what I was talking about with the golden age of… of…
1:09:08
Tad Eggleston: Talking weapon, sword, and sorcery comics.
1:09:13
Tad Eggleston: Like, as much as I like New York, I think I still like Babs more.
1:09:20
Tad Eggleston: And I was glad that I got to read it ahead of time, because it was a tough week to choose my favorite books, too. We also have Hank Howard, Pizza Detective, the two Hollywoods, number two, from Robert Vendini and David Lapham at…
1:09:32
Tad Eggleston: Bad idea, and just brutal, number one from Dennis Hopeless and Bram Revel at Ignition Press.
1:09:41
Tad Eggleston: Dennis will be on the show sometime this week, and I got to read the first…
1:09:46
Tad Eggleston: 3 issues, I think? Yeah, they're 3 or 4 issues of Just Brutal, and it's… Fantastic.
1:09:54
Tyler Johnson: On your… on your list, your number one. I have just read it, and it's great. I have it on my desk.
1:10:00
Tad Eggleston: Of course it is. Dennis Camp and Stepin Morian, teaming up again for Bleeding Hearts number one. I am so jealous that you've read it already. I gotta work on managing it.
1:10:13
Tyler Johnson: I…
1:10:13
Phil: We're.
1:10:13
Tyler Johnson: I get mine on Fridays, so…
1:10:15
Tad Eggleston: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
1:10:17
Tyler Johnson: And then, and then your number 2, I haven't got… I forgot to order.
1:10:22
Tad Eggleston: Oh, okay.
1:10:22
Tyler Johnson: I don't even know…
1:10:23
Tad Eggleston: But the first issue was so good. I'm already a John Le Carre fan, and I'm a Matt Kint fan, and I'm an Ibrahim Mustafa fan.
1:10:32
Tyler Johnson: So it's good all around, and you like Dark Horse, so…
1:10:34
Tad Eggleston: Well, and the thing is, actually, and I remember emailing Ibrahim right after the first issue came out, LeCare is…
1:10:47
Tad Eggleston: He writes spy books that are, like, spy books.
1:10:52
Tad Eggleston: They deal with tradecraft, not gadgets. They… they deal with, like…
1:10:59
Phil: Reviewing documents.
1:11:01
Tad Eggleston: Reviewing documents and problem solving, not… not.
1:11:07
Tad Eggleston: Sleeping around and running and having gunfights.
1:11:12
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, no, it's more espionage, yeah.
1:11:14
Tad Eggleston: So I was very, very… concerned.
1:11:19
Tad Eggleston: I didn't think the Le Carre state would allow something that got too action-y, and, like, if there was a team of people that I thought could do it, Matt Kint and Ibrahim Mustafa are, like, it.
1:11:32
Tad Eggleston: But I was still worried.
1:11:34
Tad Eggleston: that it wouldn't feel right with the first issue. And my…
1:11:40
Tad Eggleston: God, did they knock it out of the park.
1:11:44
Tad Eggleston: Again, if you're expecting James Bond, that's not what this is.
1:11:50
Tad Eggleston: But if you like a thoughtful.
1:11:56
Tyler Johnson: Thriller.
1:11:57
Tyler Johnson: I, I think, I…
1:11:59
Tad Eggleston: Slow burn thriller?
1:12:01
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, it's a good way of putting it, yep.
1:12:04
Tad Eggleston: then this, this book is definitely… did you read issue 1? Did you get an opportunity to…
1:12:10
Tyler Johnson: No, but I'm familiar with LeCary's, work, you know.
1:12:14
Tad Eggleston: His other work, yeah. Yeah, yeah.
1:12:16
Tyler Johnson: Hmm.
1:12:17
Tad Eggleston: And anybody who's not should become familiar with his work. You should read at least his George Smiley books, and if you're not… if you're not a reader, there are fantastic.
1:12:27
Tad Eggleston: BBC audio plays of them, and if you're not.
1:12:34
Tad Eggleston: an audio play guy, I really recommend tracking down the… the Tinkertailer Soldier Spy, and…
1:12:44
Tad Eggleston: Smiley's People miniseries starring Alec Guinness, and if you're not willing to spend 15 hours with it, then… then go watch the Ticker Taylor Soldier Spy movie with Gary Oldman. Hopefully, if you… if you touch any of these things, it will
1:13:04
Tad Eggleston: suck you into more, because he's just a brilliant, brilliant writer, and so much so that I haven't even actually seen any bad adaptations yet.
1:13:17
Phil: I was just cutting in to say, if you're neither a reader nor an enjoyer of audio plays, why are you listening to this podcast?
1:13:23
Tyler Johnson: Why are you here? I mean, yeah…
1:13:25
Tad Eggleston: How did you…
1:13:25
Phil: Okay, let me refreshed.
1:13:28
Tad Eggleston: If you're not willing to take the big risk to make that sort of commitment until you find out more what you're looking at.
1:13:39
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
1:13:40
Tyler Johnson: Funny. That's cool.
1:13:42
Tad Eggleston: And also, where does the rainbow end?
1:13:44
Tyler Johnson: Yes.
1:13:45
Tad Eggleston: That's Francesca Pireillo, Stefano Cardicelli. I… Mad Cave has put out a number of series now from Francesco.
1:13:54
Tad Eggleston: Carrillo and Stefano Cardicelli, and I love every fucking one of them. And the first issue of this was just…
1:14:01
Tad Eggleston: outstanding.
1:14:03
Tyler Johnson: It was good. I loved it. I love the artwork. The covers are great. The cover for number 2 is just super detailed, right? That kind of, like…
1:14:12
Tyler Johnson: it's, you know, a cartooning style, but it's almost hyper-detailed in the way that they use stippling for the shading in that kind of artwork. I just really like that.
1:14:22
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
1:14:23
Phil: stippling.
1:14:24
Tyler Johnson: I am.
1:14:26
Tyler Johnson: I did a whole series of drawings shading only using stippling and not hatching.
1:14:33
Phil: That's amazing.
1:14:35
Tyler Johnson: I am, thank you. But… Anyway, Tad.
1:14:43
Tad Eggleston: Are you looking forward to anything else? Or…
1:14:47
Tyler Johnson: I just had my list in front of me,
1:14:51
Tyler Johnson: from, Lunar, but I can't remember any other titles. Those pretty much cover the good stuff.
1:14:57
Tad Eggleston: Okay.
1:14:59
Tyler Johnson: and…
1:14:59
Phil: Yep, my…
1:15:01
Phil: My, giant trade waiter graph novel pick is to say that if you haven't picked up an edition of The Nobody by Jeff Lemire, Dark Horse is putting out a new one next week. So, you know, pick that up. It's a good one.
1:15:15
Tyler Johnson: I mean, my hard… my hardcover is really cool, but I wouldn't mind getting a new one, too.
1:15:20
Phil: Yeah, you know, I mean, I'm sure it's, you know, probably affordable and, fresh new paper, all that jazz.
1:15:26
Tyler Johnson: You know what I am looking forward to, Ted, I just realized this, is the collections that you've got on there is groupies.
1:15:32
Tad Eggleston: Oh, it's so good.
1:15:33
Tyler Johnson: And Tula Lote. I'm… I have it, again, sitting on my table, ready to be, purchased by me, because it looks awesome.
1:15:44
Tad Eggleston: It's so good.
1:15:45
Phil: How do you…
1:15:45
Tad Eggleston: And go back and listen to my conversation with Helen Milan from…
1:15:49
Tyler Johnson: What did you say, Phil?
1:15:50
Tad Eggleston: first came out.
1:15:51
Phil: I said, how do you purchase things for yourself?
1:15:54
Tyler Johnson: So, my store, I pre-ordered them, so they're already paid for. So, when I open on Wednesday, I literally just rig myself up for them, even though they never actually make it to my store, because I do my inventory here.
1:16:07
Tyler Johnson: So I do my inventory… I do my inventory here, and then… and I just leave them in my pile and read them, and then when I go to work on Wednesday.
1:16:15
Tyler Johnson: I charge myself for them.
1:16:19
Tad Eggleston: What discount do you give yourself? I buy them at cost, it's my shop. Yeah, I was about to say it!
1:16:25
Tyler Johnson: No, I hate to say I'm doing that, but I'm doing that.
1:16:28
Phil: You know, imagine…
1:16:30
Tad Eggleston: I get costs now, too. I love it.
1:16:32
Tyler Johnson: Yo.
1:16:33
Phil: Imagine you taking money out of your wallet, putting it in the register, and then eventually taking it out of the register and putting it back in your wallet, you know?
1:16:40
Tyler Johnson: I don't… I don't pay myself at the shop.
1:16:42
Phil: -Oh, there you go.
1:16:43
Tyler Johnson: we're not making any… enough money. I mean, we're up, like, from… towards our 20 grand that's been totally invested so far, we're up, like, 6 or 7 towards that. So, no, nobody's collected any money. But,
1:16:58
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, I pay for…
1:17:00
Tad Eggleston: Well, but, I mean, you opened in…
1:17:03
Tyler Johnson: October.
1:17:04
Tad Eggleston: November? October?
1:17:05
Tyler Johnson: October, October 25th.
1:17:06
Tad Eggleston: And you're already… a third of the way, almost? Yeah.
1:17:13
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
1:17:13
Tad Eggleston: To recouin your initial investment, that's actually pretty good.
1:17:17
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, it's been… it's been a lot of fun. And I'm… I'm just swamped, though, and it's… it's tough, because I'm a real… I got this really funny sticker from someone, and it says, introverted, but willing to talk about books.
1:17:32
Tad Eggleston: I love it. I want one.
1:17:34
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, and that's me, like, everyone in town has been super receptive to the store, and, it's kind of become a clique, a hangout for, my friends that I have in town, my theater friends and things like that. We've kind of made it our headquarters. There you go.
1:17:53
Tyler Johnson: So… Nice. Yeah, it's…
1:17:57
Tyler Johnson: It's doing… it's doing really well. I'm on the verge of, having to, hire more help because of,
1:18:08
Tyler Johnson: my need… I'm needed in other areas. I want us to get more involved in community things, cons, I want us to, you know, do that kind of stuff. And I'm noticing I need someone to man the till so I can get other stuff done.
1:18:24
Tad Eggleston: Wow.
1:18:25
Tyler Johnson: Yeah.
1:18:27
Tyler Johnson: So, I got a couple volunteer high school kids that they volunteer… they volunteer for Pokemon cards.
1:18:33
Phil: Nice.
1:18:34
Tad Eggleston: Nice.
1:18:34
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, so…
1:18:36
Phil: We could payment product, that's, that's not bad.
1:18:38
Tyler Johnson: They like it.
1:18:40
Tyler Johnson: But, okay, we can get out of here.
1:18:42
Phil: books.
1:18:43
Tyler Johnson: Yeah. But Groupies looks awesome. Peacemaker tries harder, I've got it on my pile, but I don't know if I'm gonna… I'm not a really big fan of Peacemaker, but.
1:18:54
Tad Eggleston: I mean, I haven't actually watched the show yet.
1:18:56
Tyler Johnson: No.
1:18:56
Tad Eggleston: You love me some Kyle Starks.
1:18:58
Tyler Johnson: It's Carl Starks, yep.
1:19:01
Tyler Johnson: And people…
1:19:01
Tad Eggleston: People have told me the show is great.
1:19:04
Tyler Johnson: Yeah, and the nobody, Phil, is amazing, so I… I like that. I have to check out.
1:19:10
Tad Eggleston: Well, and that was actually one of the first books we talked about reading for 22 panels, and it was out of print, so maybe we should actually…
1:19:21
Tad Eggleston: read the nobody, now that it's…
1:19:23
Tyler Johnson: It'll give me a chance to bust out my old one.
1:19:26
Tad Eggleston: Hmm?
1:19:27
Phil: Dan?
1:19:28
Tyler Johnson: Alright, guys, well… Anything else for the good of the order?
1:19:32
Tad Eggleston: I don't think so.
1:19:34
Phil: Shaking my head in the darkness.
1:19:36
Tyler Johnson: I can see your eyes a little bit, catch some light. You know, your glasses are catching a little bit of light, but other than that, it's pitch black. But, as you can see in the room behind me, it is getting dark here in Minnesota as well.
1:19:47
Tyler Johnson: So, we will bid you guys adieu, and catch you guys after the next page.
1:19:55
Tyler Johnson: Later!