The Comics Canon

Content warning: Sexual assault It's finally happened! After 10 years and more than 250 episodes, we finally get around to discussing the elephant (or, rather, the aardvark) in the room: Dave Sim's 300-issue magnum opus, Cerebus! And to help us grapple with the weight of one of the longest-running, most creative and most controversial comics in the history of the medium, we're joined by longtime friend of the show Bryan Stratton of Marvel by the Month! Self-published by Sim's Aardvark-Vanaheim, Cerebus paved the way for many other independent comics creators to self-publish their work. And its ambitious, experimental approach to comics storytelling expanded the artistic possibilities of the medium, as it grew from a parody of swords-and-sorcery comics into a complex, sprawling saga that would take on politics, religion, and other weighty issues. But while there's a lot to recommend Cerebus, there's also a lot to give potential new readers pause—namely, Sim's contentious, divisive views on women, which ultimately begin to exert greater and greater influence over the series itself. As the Will Eisner Comic Awards prepare to induct Sim (among other creators, including Gerry Conway and Rick Veitch) into its Hall of Fame at this year's San Diego Comic-Con, we take the opportunity to dive into this massive work, touching on topics including: What exactly IS Cerebus? Our personal histories with Cerebus The detailed background artwork of Gerhard The "Walking on the Moon" arc and the Cerebus creation myth Would we recommend that you read Cerebus? We also share suggestions for other long-running, impactful series (in comics and otherwise) you might enjoy. For further reading on the subject of Cerebus, we recommend: Tom Ewing's great and insightful blog Aard Labour Curt's 2004 Slate article on the endings of Cerebus and Bone The Onion A.V. Club's notorious 2004 interview with Dave Sim Join us in two weeks as we return to our regular format with a look at Sex Criminals Vol. 1: One Weird Trick, by Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we conclude our two-part look at Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons with a discussion of Books 2 and 3, by Kelly Sue DeConnick, Gene Ha and Nicola Scott, published by DC Black Label! The Amazons accept Hippolyta and other disenfranchised women into their ranks as they continue their mission to hunt down those who abuse and oppress women. But it isn't long before their activities catch the attention of a wrathful Zeus, sparking an all-out war between the Amazons and the gods of Olympus! What is Hera's long game? Why is there a baby made of sand? And will the Amazons prevail and take their rightful place in that League of Their Own known as … The Comics Canon? Also in This Episode: Curt makes a shocking announcement about A.I. Widow's Bay and Margo's Got Money Troubles on Apple TV Age of Bronze Volume 1: A Thousand Ships Join us in two weeks as we take a hard left turn to discuss … Dave Sim's Cerebus! This is not a drill! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

In this episode, we kick off a two-part look at a book we've had our eyes on for some time with a discussion of Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons, Book 1, by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Phil Jiminez, published by DC Black Label! Phil Jiminez makes the artistic statement of his career to date with a visually arresting first issue that explores how and why the Greek goddesses (with the notable exception of Hera, Queen of the Olympians) come to create the Amazons, a race of women sworn to find and rescue women enslaved and mistreated by men. Will Zeus redress the wrongs done to women by men throughout history? (Don't hold your breath.) Will Hippolyta escape a band of brutish brigands determined to cut out her tongue? What happened to that little baby girl she sent down the river? And will these maids of might prevail in that Fight Club known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: Some complete random nonsense Zeus, God of Manspreading Shaq at the Parthenon The Incandescent by Emily Tesh Swamp Thing 1989 #1 Join us in two weeks as we continue our two-parter with Books 2 and 3, featuring art by Gene Ha and Nicola Scott! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

Note: This episode was recorded before the death of Gerry Conway, who wrote two of the stories we talk about. The Punisher is gearing up for a busy summer on the big and small screens (with Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Punisher: One Last Kill, respectively). So what better time to dive into some key early stories charting the evolution of everyone's favorite gun-toting vigilante? We start with a look at the Punisher's pop-culture inspirations, including the Executioner and Dirty Harry, before discussing his first appearance in 1974's Amazing Spider-Man #129, where he joins forces with (wait, this can't be right, can it?) the Jackal to take down your friendly neighborhood wall-crawler! Then it's on to Marvel Preview #2 from that same year, in which we learn the tragic backstory behind his one-man war on crime! Finally, we jump ahead a few years to Daredevil #183-184 and a gritty, street-level take on the character that's closer to the version we're all familiar with. Is our (anti)hero just a poor judge of character? What type of story suits him best? And can our surly sentinel of the streets survive a frontal assault from that Whack Attack known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: What happened to Curt on our April 1 episode? The Spotmaker Punisher War Journal #19 Punisher: Circle of Blood (1986) Daredevil Born Again Season 2 Questions about the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot Join us in two weeks as we delve into the acclaimed three-part series Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons, by Kelly Sue DeConnick, Phil Jiminez, Gene Ha and Nicola Scott! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!

On this episode, we revisit that bygone era when Detective Comics Comics would use any excuse to feature gorillas on its covers with a furry foursome of titanic Silver and Golden Age tales: "The Gorilla Boss of Gotham City" (Batman #75), "Titano the Super-Ape" (Superman #127), "Menace of the Super-Gorilla" (The Flash #107) and "The Brotherhood of Evil" (Doom Patrol #86)! Can DC's greatest (and strangest) heroes prevail against these powerful, petrifying primates? And can these heavy-duty hominids take up residence in that Gorilla City known as … The Comics Canon? In This Episode: The super-timely name on everyone's lips! Curt and Kevin's last meals Superman's foolproof plan Great Scott! It must be … THE GORILLA! Robotman? Total LOSER Turok, Son of Stone Amazing Spider-Man #130 "Betrayed!" and #136 "The Green Goblin Lives Again!" The Flash: The Silver Age Vol. 1 The Doom Patrol #89 "The Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Menace" and #90 "The Enemy Within the Doom Patrol" King Sorrow by Joe Hill Special thanks to Robb Milne of Marvel by the Month for co-hosting on our special April 1st podcast crossover episode. And if you haven't already, check out Curt's crossover appearance on Marvel by the Month alongside Will Hines of Screw It, We're Just Gonna Talk About Comics, and MbtM's Jamie Wenger crossing over on Screw It! Join us in two weeks as we look back at the early days of the Punisher, including his first appearance in Amazing Spider-Man #129 and his origin in Marvel Preview #2! Until then:Please consider donating to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Impress your friends with our Comics Canon merchandise! Rate us on Apple Podcasts! Send us an email! Hit us up on Facebook or Bluesky! And as always, thanks for listening!