Comics Syllabus

Our Thursday Throwback is the early years of Peanuts, here represented by the IDW Schulz Peanuts Artist's Edition. But the discussion from @TwoPlai ranges from the Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa, California, to the Fantagraphics Complete Peanuts collection, and from David Michaelis's 2007 biography to the response from Monte Schulz and others in the Comics Journal shortly thereafter. Mostly, @TwoPlai talks too long about one of his favorite subjects. That blockhead.

On this Wide World of Comics Wednesday, @TwoPlai can't resist talking about an American book, from cultural ambassador and DNC speaker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (I think he was also a basketball player...) writing 'Mycroft' 1 from Titan Comics along with Obstfeld and Cassara. @TwoPlai ponders the prospect of childhood hero Kareem sky-hooking a Victorian steam-punky genius adventurer comic. Also, the Paul List Pull List discusses new comics out today (Wednesday) in shops that @TwoPlai will be picking up, noting that the wide spectrum of comics is a glorious thing to witness.

For our Tuesday Trade, @TwoPlai rectified his trade-waiting for 'Shutter' by Joe Keatinge, Leila Del Duca, Owen Gieni, and John Workman, and picked up issues 18-22 for this upcoming collection. If you haven't been reading Shutter, enjoy the first 25 minutes of @TwoPlai talking you into this book, despite his frustrations with it at one point. And if you've read through vol 4: All Roads, stick around for his thoughts on the arc as a whole. Let's dig deep!

On our Monday Marvel (TWO days early!), @TwoPlai talks up 'Totally Awesome Hulk 9' by Greg Pak and Mike Del Mundo from Marvel. @TwoPlai reflects on being Asian American, the complexities of challenging stereotype, and hulking out defiantly against racial essentializing... maybe? Long, rant-y, and from the heart about Totally Awesome Hulk.

On our Sunday Small(er) Press analysis (a day early again), @TwoPlai offers thoughts on 'The Opportunity' by Will Volley published by Myriad Editions. Available from myriadeditions.com or the Sequential app on iPad, 'The Opportunity' is a haunting graphic novel about the relentless striving of a contemporary 'Death of a Salesman' figure.

On this Saturday Superfriend ep (released a day early), @TwoPlai talks about Batgirl 1, written by Hope Larson and drawn by Rafael Albuquerque with colors by Dave McCaig. @TwoPlai sees Barbara Gordon hitting the road for an Asian backpacking journey as a welcome relief for a character who deserves lighter baggage and a fleet-footed journey of self discovery.

Friday's Family Graphic Novel is Norm Feuti's 'The King of Kazoo' from Graphix. @TwoPlai describes the reading experience of Feuti's approaching and appealing story of a haplessly narcissistic King and his courageous and creative daughter Bing.

Today's Thursday Throwback is 'Jack Davis: MAD Original Idiots' collection from MAD Comics. @TwoPlai tries to pay homage to the brilliant cartoonist Jack Davis, who passed away Wednesday, and rolls in a discussion of Carol Tilley's 'Seducing the Innocent' about Wertham and facts.

On this Wide World of Comics Wednesday, @TwoPlai looks at 'Little Robot' by Ben Hatke from First Second, as well as reviewing the winners of the Eisner Awards (and seeing where my picks from last week were right or wrong), and finally, runs through his New Comic Book Day pull list.

Our Tuesday Trade Paperback this week is 'Wild's End vol 2: The Enemy Within' by Dan Abnett and INJ Culbard from Boom Studios. @TwoPlai discusses the dialogue and dialect and its correspondence with the remix of tropes that make the story new and fresh.

In the Marvel that's making up for Monday's missed mepisode, @TwoPlai talks about the art of Chris Samnee in Black Widow 5 (co-written by Waid and colored by Wilson), applying the artistic analysis and advice of Jesse Hamm at patreon.com/jessehamm and the principle of "Burn and Bury." Tomorrow TwoPlai plans to play catch up to present the Tuesday Trade and the Wednesday Wide World of Comics books, but for now, enjoy another over-long analysis from 'The Paul List.'

Even though it's Monday, to make up for the missing Saturday Superfriend and Sunday Scholar, @TwoPlai discusses 'Wonder Woman' Rebirth, 1, and 2, by Greg Rucka, Nicola Scott, Liam Sharp, Matthew Clark, and others. But first, he spends time on Jill Lepore's 'The Secret History of Wonder Woman' from Vintage. Tons of speculation, unfinished thoughts, unmade connections, and a general invitation to give some feedback and offer your take. Tweet @twoplai, email at gmail, rate and review on podcast platform, and we'll come back to this topic in months to come. Keep reading!

Paul List 2016-07-23 Black Hammer 1 Lemire Ormston Dark Horse by Paul Lai

Thursday Throwback: Jeff Lemire's 'Collected Essex County' (Top Shelf/IDW). Comics poetry.

In this Extrasode, @TwoPlai fakes like he's going to talk about Essex County (fear not, that's coming up in a separate ep), but instead goes over-long with his Eisner picks. The Eisners, comics' Oscars, will be announced on Friday at SDCC, so @TwoPlai makes a prognosticatin' fool of himself, guessing blindly at what the voters will have selected and pontificating ignorantly about what he would pick.

In an unusual Wednesday Wide World of Comics, @TwoPlai continues a spotlight on Jeff Lemire by discussing a pair of interviews on Paste Magazine between Lemire and his friend and collaborator Matt Kindt. (see https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/02/jeff-lemire-interviews-matt-kindt-on-his-upcoming.html )... But only after discussing the books on his Pull List for this New Comic Book Day. Hope you enjoy, and if you do, drop a line to TwoPlai, rate and review on your podcasting platform, and keep reading!

Our Jeff Lemire week continues as we read Plutona, out from Image Comics this week in Trade Paperback and Hardcover, written by Lemire and drawn by Emi Lenox with colors by Jordie Bellaire. @TwoPlai talks about adolescence, longing, and superheroes in the unique sensibility of Jeff Lemire, indie-and-mainstream comic writer extraordinaire. Keep on reading!

Monday's Marvel is 'Old Man Logan 8' by Jeff Lemire, Andrea Sorrentino, and Marcelo Maiolo from Marvel. @TwoPlai discusses the Old Man Logan character's history and present (and future?), and a single-issue story that touches on trauma and relationships. @TwoPlai is recording late at night, so apologies that he sounds so sleepy and slow. But this is just the start of a week focused on works of Jeff Lemire. Let's dig deep!

This Sunday's Scholarship is 'Contemporary Comics Storytelling' by Karin Kukkonen, from University of Nebraska Press. Listen to @TwoPlai stumble around trying to explain the relevance of (a very relevant!) academic discipline to comics-- a cognitive analysis approach. The Paul List will take a brief hiatus but be back soon.

The Saturday Superfriend is 'New Super-Man' 1 by Gene Luen Yang and Viktor Bogdanovich, inked by Friend, colors by Hi-Fi, letters by Sharpe, from DC Comics. @TwoPlai tries to break down how an origin story, first issue, new setting, micro- version of the macro-trajectory (maybe) is accomplished by an accomplished writer like Yang.