The Corner Box S1Ep25 - Top 5 of 2023 with Special Guest Dave Baker!

02/13/24 • 63 min

Episode Summary

It's our 25th issue! And that means a special, over-sized edition! On this episode of The Corner Box, Eisner-nominated Dave Baker, returns to join hosts John Barber and David Hedgecock to talk about their Top 5 comics from 2023, featuring In Summer, Roaming, Deadpool Badder Blood, Every Love Story is a Ghost Story, Monica, Spider-Boy, Dwellings, Death of Power, Acting Class, Halloween Boy, Ax-Wielder Jon, Blood of the Virgin, and Kaiju No.8.

Timestamp Segments

· [02:11] Dave’s Number 5: In Summer, by Seong Ryul.

· [07:13] John’s Number 5: Roaming, by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki.

· [08:48] Dave’s thoughts on Roaming.

· [11:36] David’s Number 5: Deadpool Better Blood by Rob Liefeld and Various.

· [14:56] Dave’s Number 4: Every Love Story is a Ghost Story, by D.T. Max.

· [21:54] John’s Number 4: Monica, by Daniel Clowes.

· [23:47] Did Dan Clowes loosen up?

· [25:34] David’s Number 4: Spider Boy by Dan Slott, Paco Medina, and Various.

· [27:53] Dave’s Number 3: Roaming, by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki.

· [29:15] John’s Number 3: Dwellings, by Jay Stephens.

· [31:07] Dave’s thoughts on Dwellings.

· [32:06] David’s Number 3: Death of Power, by Kurt Burdick.

· [34:48] Thoughts on Death of Power.

· [36:16] Dave’s Number 2: Acting Class, by Nick Drnaso.

· [39:38] John’s Number 2: Halloween Boy, by Dave Baker.

· [42:51] David’s Number 2: Ax-Wielder Jon, by Nick Pitarra.

· [45:43] Thoughts on Nick Pitarra.

· [51:32] Dave’s Number 1: Blood of the Virgin, by Sammy Harkham.

· [54:28] John’s Number 1: Blood of the Virgin, by Sammy Harkham.

· [59:08] David’s Number 1: Kaiju No.8, by Naoya Matsumoto.

· [60:53] Top 5 Recap.

Notable Quotes

· “I think Jillian Tamaki is the greatest living illustrator.”

· “Zoop rhymes with poop.”

· “This year seems to be the year of Kaiju.”

· “There’s certainly a lot of great work being produced right now.”

Relevant Links

Death of Power Review
Join the launch for David's new graphic novella:
Super Kaiju Rock n Roller Derby Fun Time Go!
Check out John's latest work:
PugWorldWide.com
www.heydavebaker.com
www.thecornerbox.club

Episode Summary

Timestamp Segments

· [02:11] Dave’s Number 5: In Summer, by Seong Ryul.

· [07:13] John’s Number 5: Roaming, by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki.

· [08:48] Dave’s thoughts on Roaming.

· [11:36] David’s Number 5: Deadpool Better Blood by Rob Liefeld and Various.

· [14:56] Dave’s Number 4: Every Love Story is a Ghost Story, by D.T. Max.

· [21:54] John’s Number 4: Monica, by Daniel Clowes.

· [23:47] Did Dan Clowes loosen up?

· [25:34] David’s Number 4: Spider Boy by Dan Slott, Paco Medina, and Various.

· [27:53] Dave’s Number 3: Roaming, by Jillian and Mariko Tamaki.

· [29:15] John’s Number 3: Dwellings, by Jay Stephens.

· [31:07] Dave’s thoughts on Dwellings.

· [32:06] David’s Number 3: Death of Power, by Kurt Burdick.

· [34:48] Thoughts on Death of Power.

· [36:16] Dave’s Number 2: Acting Class, by Nick Drnaso.

· [39:38] John’s Number 2: Halloween Boy, by Dave Baker.

· [42:51] David’s Number 2: Ax-Wielder Jon, by Nick Pitarra.

· [45:43] Thoughts on Nick Pitarra.

· [51:32] Dave’s Number 1: Blood of the Virgin, by Sammy Harkham.

· [54:28] John’s Number 1: Blood of the Virgin, by Sammy Harkham.

· [59:08] David’s Number 1: Kaiju No.8, by Naoya Matsumoto.

· [60:53] Top 5 Recap.

Notable Quotes

· “I think Jillian Tamaki is the greatest living illustrator.”

· “Zoop rhymes with poop.”

· “This year seems to be the year of Kaiju.”

· “There’s certainly a lot of great work being produced right now.”

Relevant Links

Previous Episode

The Corner Box S1Ep24 - The Michael Kelly Interview: A True King of Hasbro Comics

Episode Summary

On this episode of The Corner Box, former VP of Global Publishing at Hasbro, Michael Kelly, joins hosts John Barber and David Hedgecock talk about how Michael helped Hasbro get deep into original comic book content creation, the great success of My Little Pony, the truth about working with licensors, why GI Joe and Transformers were moved to Skybound, and the heartwarming story of when Michael started reading comic books.

Timestamp Segments

· [03:26] Michael’s comic-less origin story.

· [05:31] Hasbro’s publishing business.

· [07:53] Getting into original content.

· [09:12] Early successes.

· [11:26] Successful comics.

· [14:06] Working with licensors.

· [24:47] My Little Pony.

· [30:53] Moving GI Joe and Transformers.

· [38:42] Michael started reading comic books.

Notable Quotes

· “There’s no point in hiring licensees if you’re not going to use their core competencies.”

· “Brands don’t get tired. People get tired.”

· “The goal is to make sure that people are interested, and that the audience is growing, not shrinking.”

Relevant Links

Michael Kelly
Check out John's latest work:
PugWorldWide.com
Join the launch for David's new graphic novella:
Super Kaiju Rock n Roller Derby Fun Time Go!
www.thecornerbox.club

Next Episode

The Corner Box S1Ep26 - The Paul Kupperberg Interview: Comic Creativity

Episode Summary

On this episode of The Corner Box, comic book legend, Paul Kupperberg, joins hosts John Barber and David Hedgecock to talk about worthless original art, how Paul got into DC offices at the age of 16, his books Direct Comments, Direct Conversations, and Direct Creativity, his encounters with Neal Adams, how the industry has evolved during Paul’s 50-year career, why Vigilante ended the way it did, why John looks older than he really is, and David’s rollercoaster of emotions.

Timestamp Segments

· [01:46] Who/what inspired Paul?

· [07:38] Paul’s fanzines.

· [10:07] The value of original art.

· [11:50] Getting into DC.

· [17:41] The business in New York.

· [20:31] Transitioning from fanzines.

· [23:01] Starting in comics.

· [30:36] Paul’s first big breakout.

· [33:43] Neal Adams stories.

· [36:34] Direct Comments.

· [41:26] Direct Conversations.

· [45:06] The World of Krypton.

· [49:37] The ending of Vigilante.

· [54:01] Paul vs John: Who is in better shape?

· [55:23] Direct Creativity.

Notable Quotes

· “Original art, until the last few years, was worthless.”

· “A lifetime of corporate comics, man, that’s brutal.”

· “The character made me do it.”

Relevant Links

Join the launch for David's new graphic novella:
Super Kaiju Rock n Roller Derby Fun Time Go!
Check out John's latest work:
PugWorldWide.com
Learn more about Paul Kupperberg:
www.paulkupperberg.net
Paul Kupperberg's Comic Creativity Kickstarter
www.thecornerbox.club

The Corner Box - The Corner Box S1Ep25 - Top 5 of 2023 with Special Guest Dave Baker!

Transcript

[00:00] Intro: Welcome to The Corner Box, where we talk about comics as an industry and an art form. You never know where the discussion will go or who will show up to join host David Hedgecock and John Barber. Between them, they've spent decades writing, drawing, lettering, coloring, editing, editor-in-chiefing, and publishing comics. If you want to know the behind-the-scenes secrets, the highs and lows, the ins and outs of the best artistic medium in the world, then listen i