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Comics Rot Your Brain!

Comics Rot Your Brain!

Steven Bagatourian & Christopher Derrick

COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comics (plus a few notable exceptions). In this weekly podcast, screenwriters Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) & Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) discuss favorite books, runs, and creators.
The Bronze Age is — for us — the greatest era in comics history. This time period was defined by a weird rift in the fabric of spacetime that allowed an industry in flux to reimagine what was possible. We all remember the eye-popping results: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, WATCHMEN, CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS, LOVE & ROCKETS, MAUS, etc.
...But what of the lesser-known gems of this era: THRILLER, GRIMJACK, NEXUS, CONCRETE, MR. MONSTER, SCOUT, STRAY TOASTERS, and so many others!? These comics and their creators blazed radical new trails that changed the course of comics forever but often are left out of today’s discourse.
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! exists to celebrate and reckon with the extraordinary legacy of 1980s American comics — all of it.
Join us!

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Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Comics Rot Your Brain! episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Comics Rot Your Brain! for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Comics Rot Your Brain! episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

In this “one-shot” episode, Steven offers a solo examination of Trevor Von Eeden's mind-expanding artwork from issues 305 & 307 of DC’s long-running Superman and Batman team-up series, WORLD'S FINEST COMICS.

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Chris and Steven explore the first few issues of Don McGregor and Paul Gulacy's groundbreaking series, SABRE — a surreal, post-apocalyptic spectacle.
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comics (plus a few notable exceptions). In this weekly podcast, screenwriters Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) and Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age.
SHOW NOTES:
00:52 - Some background info on the storyline for SABRE — the first “graphic album” for the direct market — a sci-fi story set in the “distant future of 2,018” LOL
4:40 - Don McGregor’s delightfully ornery introductory essay to the Image reprint of SABRE.
14:55 - The “throw you in the deep end”-style storytelling of SABRE — in media res, wildly expository and dense dialogue, the art of melodrama — all of it in service of casting a rather immersive spell.
18:33 - Soliloquies in Shakespeare and SABRE — “thought balloons” spoken aloud, and the eternal battle to believe in a smart audience that wants to be challenged.
23:14 - “Pure comics!” A post-apocalyptic ghost of an amusement park and the bizarre evildoer known as Grouse — a rapscallion refugee from an animated film/Nazi cat-rat... The high weirdness of stories built specifically for comics.
25:34 - The gloriously purple prose of Don McGregor and how Paul Gulacy’s stunning artwork is at risk of being drowned under a roaring river of words.
41:35 - Paul Gulacy in 1978 was merely 25 years old, and yet creating impressively lovely, Steranko-influenced art with a bizarre plasticine rigidity all its own.
43:14 - Paul Gulacy never read “How To Draw Comics the Marvel Way” ...and that’s absolutely not a problem!
47:13 - Don McGregor making life Hell for Paul Gulacy — “Draw me a giant train crash and a massive gun battle with dozens of characters... on horseback!”
57:56 - Lord help us, we attempt to describe the psychedelic visual world of SABRE and its wild cast of characters.
1:06:14 - The inconcievable notion of releasing a comic book as narratively dense as SABRE in the ADD world of today.
1:12:53 - SABRE: THE EARLY FUTURE YEARS - a SABRE relaunch from Don McGregor ...and Trevor Von Eeden?!! The Kickstarter that almost was....
01:19:26 - SABRE is a story about battling conformity and this also appeared to be one of Don McGregor’s chief battles in life.
1:23:52 - The British Invasion in comics — and their florid, evocative prose stylings — owe a debt to Don McGregor’s poetic voice in his vast ouevre (BLACK PANTHER, KILLRAVEN, NATHANIEL DUSK, DETECTIVES INC, and, of course, SABRE), with a detour into how impossible it was to ink the amazing Gene Colan.
1:26:45 - McGregor’s impassioned, provocative text piece in SABRE #2, pushing back on the regressive culture

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Comics Rot Your Brain! - Murderous Madman Merrily Massacres Merciless Monsters
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02/26/24 • 125 min

In this episode, Steven and Chris venture into the bizarre and harrowing — yet entirely compelling — world of Michael T. Gilbert's legendary monster hunter, MR. MONSTER (1988).
Comics Rot Your Brain! is a deep dive into ‘80s comics (plus a few noteworthy exceptions). Screenwriters Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) and Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age.
⏱ TIME STAMPS
00:00 - CRYB! Intro Music
0:28 - The unique history of Mr. Monster
03:40 - Early days of Dark Horse Comics
06:44 - Pop culture context of the time
11:06 - The revival and revamping of Doc Stearn A.K.A. Mr. Monster
00:46 - The history of MR. MONSTER
18:38 - “The Mr. Monster Mantle” — the tradition of “legacy heroes” — Zorro, The Phantom... and Mr. Monster
26:08 - The uniquely charming, joyful art style of Michael T. Gilbert, full of raw gestural energy and dripping with love for this book (and this character)
35:56- The gorgeous hand lettering of the legendary Ken Bruzenak on MR. MONSTER
49:28 - Questioning the logic of the evil monsters’ plan to take out Mr. Monster
55:47- The extraordinary density of the compressed storytelling in MR. MONSTER, plus text pages and a letter column! 30+ minutes of entertainment per issue! How comparatively lacking modern comics are in regard to entertainment value & the immersive nature of older comics
57:50 - More early days of Dark Horse Comics: BORIS THE BEAR and WACKY SQUIRREL
1:01:15 - GROO THE WANDERER, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, FISH POLICE, LONE WOLF & CUB, AKIRA
1:06:05- Giving Michael T. Gilbert his due as a very compelling writer — especially considering the extreme switch-up on the tone of story he is telling here in MR. MONSTER: ORIGINS, as compared to his earlier MR. MONSTER stories

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Comics Rot Your Brain! - Introducing… COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN!
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01/21/24 • 1 min

They say the fabled history of American comic books is divided into four distinct ages — the Golden Age, the Silver Age, the Bronze Age, and the Modern Age. In this weekly podcast, screenwriters Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) and Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators (mostly) from the Bronze Age.
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! invites you to take a deep dive into ‘80s comics (with a few notable exceptions). The podcast explores your hosts’ deep passion for and quirky takes on pivotal or semi-obscure comic series from their youth — groundbreaking and once-lauded titles that laid the foundation for their lifelong love affairs with the graphic storytelling medium. Tune in each week to hear Steven and Chris discuss extraordinary comic books that you forgot about or ones that you never knew existed.
...THRILLER, GRIMJACK, NEXUS, CONCRETE, MR. MONSTER, SCOUT, STRAY TOASTERS, and so many others — these comics and their creators blazed radical new trails that changed the course of comics forever but are often left out of today’s discourse.
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! exists to celebrate and reckon with the extraordinary legacy of 1980s American comics — all of it.
In the debut episode (Zero Episode), the guys talk about why the hell they’re actually doing this! Don’t leave them alone in their fandom and fanaticism. Join in on all the ensuing mayhem!

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Steven and Chris obsess over issues one through seven of Comico’s ongoing GRENDEL series (1986), the “Devil’s Legacy” story arc, pondering the lasting resonance of Matt Wagner’s extraordinary exploration of evil.
SHOW NOTES:
00:32 - Intro to GRENDEL. Move over, Batman! The Dark Knight isn’t the only violent vigilante in town! Cue a valiant attempt to summarize the fascinatingly unique, complex concept of GRENDEL
03:12 - “DEVIL’S LEGACY” ...Christine Spar dons the mask of the fiend. SHE is GRENDEL!
20:39 - The amazing Pander Brothers! ...and the inking of their highly stylized work — touching on ‘80s fashion art, Aeon Flux, and Patrick Nagel. The Pander Bros = style AND substance, plus “They draw some of the best hands in comics!”
29:10 - The eye-popping sales of the first issue of GRENDEL — 68,000 copies!
30:54 - How to pronounce “Comico”
37:22 - DC Comics’ amazing BLUE DEVIL by Paris Cullins, Dan Mishkin & Gary Cohn
38:42 - The cleverly titled TEMPUS FUGITIVE by Ken Steacy; NOW Comics, ASTRO BOY, SPEED RACER
40:17 - THE SACRED & THE PROFANE by Dean Motter & Ken Steacy
41:14 - The bizarre & mostly unnoticed WAR BEARS from Dark Horse Comics by Margaret Atwood (!) & Ken Steacy
42:38 - Our conjecture re: why Matt Wagner brought in other artists on GRENDEL and why modern comics artists are no longer able to do long-ass runs on a series
48:15 - The looser, more gestural art of Hayden Sherman and Ashley Wood — drawing awesome comics with styles built for speed
50:57 - The super dense verbiage of Matt Wagner’s writing in this run of GRENDEL
55:06 - “THE DEVIL’S LAIR,” the GRENDEL letter column — Diana Schutz responds to a critical letter about Matt’s “wordy” approach, defending his “intentionally complex” writing choices
1:01:15 - GRENDEL: WARCHILD, Grendel Prime, the exquisite art of Simon Bisley
1:04:33 - Great unfinished stories in comic books — THE AERIALIST, TYRANT, BIG NUMBERS
1:08:51 - Edvin Biukovic & Darko Macan, the brilliant Croatian artist/writer team that created GRENDEL TALES: DEVILS AND DEATHS
1:12:33 - The progressive, multicultural, racial dynamics in this run of GRENDEL
1:13:33 - “...There’s so much greatness in the idea of GRENDEL...”
1:37:57 - The similarities between the mask designs for GRENDEL and SPAWN

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Chris and Steven swoop in to the Downside of Thanagar to squawk about Tim Truman’s bold and impassioned re-imagining of Hawkman's origin story in HAWKWORLD (DC Comics, 1989). Is this Katar Hol’s BATMAN: YEAR ONE? ...Or his DARK KNIGHT RETURNS? ...Or both?
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comic books (plus a few notable exceptions) in a weekly podcast format. Screenwriters Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) & Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age.
SHOW NOTES:
00:36 - Introduction to HAWKWORLD
6:30 - The singular career of visionary artist/writer Tim Truman — SCOUT, GRIMJACK, WILDERNESS and, of course, HAWKWORLD
13:36 - The ahead-of-its-time themes of HAWKWORLD: imperialism, subjugation, and cultural appropriation
27:16 - The dirty, lived in, alien worlds of Tim Truman — touching on Joe Kubert and the Kubert School
36:46 - STIG’S INFERNO + KELVIN MACE by Ty Templeton and Klaus Schonefeld
39:35 - NIGHT FORCE by Gene Colan & Marv Wolfman
42:55 - “The haunted, super sad feeling” of HAWKWORLD
45:30 - Tim Truman on the genesis of HAWKWORLD
1:00:01 - Tim Truman’s unique artwork and speculation on his chief influences
1:10:42 - How the success of WATCHMEN, THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, and MAUS encouraged ambitious big swings from comic book artists in the late ‘80s
1:11:33 - Katar Hol’s exile on the island and the unrelenting, unapologetic brutality of HAWKWORLD
1:15:20 - The prescient nature of certain science fiction stories (including MINORITY REPORT)
1:17:07 - Metaphorical commentary embedded within HAWKWORLD: the outsourcing of American labor and industry
1:32:24 - Katar Hol leaves behind the lies he has been taught about Thanagar’s history, confronting the horrific reality of the actual history
1:40:37 - Tom King; THE SHERRIFF OF BABYLON, BATMAN
1:54:19 - COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! exists for this reason

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Steven and Chris take a psychedelic voyage through time via the crackerjack indie comics team of Doug Moench, Mike Hernandez, Dan Day, and Nestor Redondo in AZTEC ACE (published by Eclipse Comics in 1984). The hallucinatory hijinx and trippy time-travel scifi-of-it-all leave their heads spinning!
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comics (plus a few notable exceptions). In this weekly podcast, screenwriters Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) and Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age.
SHOW NOTES:
1:17 - Attempting to describe AZTEC ACE in a nutshell
6:17 - A story so weird it could only ever exist as a comic book (touching on THE ADVENTURES OF LUTHER ARKWRIGHT)
7:44 - A more expansive attempt at discussing the sprawling, non-linear time travel narrative of AZTEC ACE (touching on QUANTUM LEAP, DOCTOR WHO, APOCALYPTO, and noir private-eye stories)
15:08 - The shockingly dense prose poetry of Doug Moench
22:45 - Wait, AZTEC ACE is actually... a love story?!
32:20 - The immensely text-heavy density of AZTEC ACE; wildly overwritten or wildly immersive?
33:39 - Giving it up for the book’s trio of super impressive artists: Michael Hernandez a.k.a. Michael Bair, Dan Day, and Nestor Redondo
56:19 - Walt Simonson, THOR, and Beta Ray Bill
1:12:29 - Howard Chaykin and AMERICAN FLAGG!
1:18:09 - “The level of mystery of what was happening kept drawing me in...” The intriguingly puzzle-like nature of AZTEC ACE
1:33:19 - THE INVISIBLES by Grant Morrison
1:46:37 - The changing nature of what we expect from comic books; why the “velocity of ideas” in ‘80s comics was so intoxicating -- “batshit wild imagination exploding on the page... on a deadline!”
#alanmoore #80scomics #scificomics #doctorwho #sciencefiction #grantmorrison

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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In this episode, Steve and Chris discuss the serialized story, GENERATION ZERO, from Marvel Comics' defunct Epic Comics flagship book, Epic Illustrated. A sci-fi story written by long-time comic industry luminary Archie Goodwin with painted art by the famed Spanish cartoonist, Pepe Moreno.
Check out more of Pepe Moreno's art at https://pepemorenostudio.com/
Support Our Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/c/ComicsRotYourBrain
Check out our website, www.comicsrotyourbrain.com
0:00:00 - Music & Intro
0:02:55 - Primer on Generation Zero
0:07:26 - Contextualizing Contemporary Pop Culture
0:17:35 - Moreno on his love of America
0:20:46 - Praise of Archie Goodwin as Editor and Writer
0:24:09 - Discussing Chapter One (Epic Illustrated 17)
0:47:38 - The issues of Epic Illustrated that contain Generation Zero
0:48:10 - Irony of the collected version by DC Comics
0:50:00 - Obscure nature of Generation Zero
0:52:08 - Discussing Chapter Two (Epic Illustrated 18)
1:05:18 - Discussing Chapter Three, "Desert Hunt" (Epic Illustrated 19)
1:17:21 - Moreno's penchant of Suspect Page Design Readability
1:24:40 - Discussion Chapter Four, "The Rat's Nest" (Epic Illustrated 20)
1:27:00 - The Lived-In Detail to Moreno's Incredible Casablanca
1:30:00 - Inexplicable Cybernetic Arm Non-continuity
1:50:18 - Discussing Chapter Five, "Jungle Trail" (Epic Illustrated 21)
1:55:48 - Yonomani Tribe makes an appearance?
2:12:16 - Discussing Chapter Six, "Terror In Paradise" (Epic Illustrated 22)
2:25:50 - Shock at the giant story reveal!
2:26:55 - Discussing Chapter Seven, "The Last Battle" (Epic Illustrated 23)
2:29:22 - Odd letdown of exposing the lingering mystery of Juan's father
2:54:47 - Discussing Chapter Eight, "Face To Face" (Epic Illustrated 24)
2:55:00 - The inappropriate nature of the cover art
3:19:00 - Steve's Theory that there were supposed to a follow-up series
3:27:00 - Talk about what made Epic Comics line so special
Copyright © 2024 Comics Rot Your Brain

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Steven and Chris take a roadtrip back in time, eventually arriving on the pothole-riddled streets of Hub City, and man do they have a lot to say -- almost 4 hours' worth of comic book chatter! Steve Ditko's urban vigilante, The Question, is boldly re-imagined by Denny O'Neil and Denys Cowan as a Zen crimefighter for the ages. Check it out; here we cover issues #1-#8 of THE QUESTION (DC Comics, 1987).
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comic books (plus a few notable exceptions) in a weekly podcast format. Screenwriters Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) and Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) & discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age.
SHOW NOTES:

00:30 - Intro to Vic Sage a.k.a. The Question (covering SteveDitko and Ayn Rand, Denny O’Neil and Denys Cowan)
02:57 - THE QUESTION & SWAMP THING as “Proof of Concept” for Vertigo Comics
24:14 - Vic Sage’s relationship with “Tot” a.k.a. Aristotle Rodor
35:53 - Denys Cowan’s smart, efficient page compositions
1:27:30 - An urban vigilante story written by... a metaphysically minded, left-leaning zenned-out hippie?!
1:34:17 - Drawing Black characters in comic books
1:47:24 - Cowan’s skill at conjuring real-looking people who don’t all fit into cookie cutter, visual molds 
2:08:18 - Giving Denny O’Neil his flowers as a writer and noticing his evolution on THE QUESTION vs. GREEN LANTERN/GREEN ARROW; an exsmination of his intricate, multi-character storylines
2:40:05 - Cowan’s lively, kinetic, uniquely gestural linework
2:55:55 - The “generosity of content” of ‘80s comic books -- more story pages, denser stories, letter columns, editorials, etc.

...

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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Chris and Steven testify before you all, spilling their guts on how DC Comics’ OG Superheroes were laid low by the spectre of McCarthyism in “The Red Scare” era of post-WWII USA. This is their battle to rise again in THE GOLDEN AGE (1993), written by James Robinson, drawn by Paul Smith, colored by Richard Ory, and lettered by John Costanza. Will our motley gang of “dirty commies!” triumph in this Elseworlds tale? Featuring OG Hawkman, OG Green Lantern, OG Starman, OG Flash, OG Sandman, Robotman, OG version of The Atom, Hourman, Liberty Bell, The Tarantula, etc.
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comic books (plus a few notable exceptions) in a weekly podcast format. Screenwriters Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) and Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) & discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age.
SHOW NOTES
02:01 - Introducing the creative team, explaning the concept behind DC Comics’ Elseworlds stories, and summarizing THE GOLDEN AGE
10:03 - Hot take alert! Chris makes the bold claim that THE GOLDEN AGE is “as good or better than WATCHMEN” ...and, in fact, HE likes GA better!
39:44 - Richard Ory’s exquisite coloring in THE GOLDEN AGE — how the heck did he do it? Chris has the scoop, straight from the horse’s mouth — a CRYB! exclusive
43:27 - Paul Smith’s artistic influences, plus what exactly is his peak period?
57:35 - The rarely used literary device of “Second Person Narration,” deployed expertly by James Robinson here in THE GOLDEN AGE
1:04:10 - The art and design for Paul Smith’s classic covers
1:12:21 - THE GOLDEN AGE’s surprisingly disturbing hallucinatory imagery — rats, eagles, and folks’ faces being chewed off!
1:16:18 - Chris declares that when it comes to being a wordsmith, the Tarantula ain’t no Fitzgerald; we read some of the prose aloud, just to be sure
1:26:00 - Circling back on the comparison to Moore & Gibbons’ WATCHMEN with a detour through Lindelof/HBO’s WATCHMEN, expanding into a discussion of the built-in dramatic weight afforded one when telling stories with iconic characters
1:44:36 - The ability to make extreme choices in storytelling with non-mainstream characters, evolving into some ruminations on DC Comics’ Elseworlds line
1:49:43 - The “Eisners Situation” with THE GOLDEN AGE
1:57:24 - Rob Liefeld, Youngblood, Image Comics, Neal Adams, creators’ rights, and big personalities with big dreams
2:07:26 - Terminal City, Dean Motter, Michael Lark, Mister X, Vortex Comics
2:27:00 - More gushing about the amazing art of Paul Smith
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #dcuniverse #justicesocietyofamerica #comicbooks #new #content #explained

Drop us a line!

+ Check out our YouTube channel to get a look at some of the fantastic art featured in our episodes. Visit ComicsRotYourBrain.com to sign up for our newsletter, Letter Column. You can also find us wherever you stream your favorite podcasts.
+ We appreciate your support of the show via Patreon: ComicsRotYourBrain
+ For even more cool shit, read Chris's Substack (cinema, comics, and culture) - THIN ICE
©2024 Comics Rot Your Brain!
#dccomics #vertigocomics #alanmoore #comicbooks #new #content #80scomics #explained #indiecomics #scificomics #marvelcomics #horrorstories #spaceopera #scifi

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FAQ

How many episodes does Comics Rot Your Brain! have?

Comics Rot Your Brain! currently has 19 episodes available.

What topics does Comics Rot Your Brain! cover?

The podcast is about Marvel Comics, Leisure, Fiction, Comics, Comic Books, Podcasts, Comic Book and Dc Comics.

What is the most popular episode on Comics Rot Your Brain!?

The episode title 'Introducing… COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN!' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Comics Rot Your Brain!?

The average episode length on Comics Rot Your Brain! is 124 minutes.

How often are episodes of Comics Rot Your Brain! released?

Episodes of Comics Rot Your Brain! are typically released every 13 days, 21 hours.

When was the first episode of Comics Rot Your Brain!?

The first episode of Comics Rot Your Brain! was released on Jan 21, 2024.

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