Comics Are Great! 97 – What’s so Great about Batman?

You may have heard that 2014 is the 75th anniversary of the first appearance of Batman. So for this episode of the Comics Are Great! show we had a roundtable discussion on why the Caped Crusader remains such an enduring character.

I’m joined by Dean Trippe, author of the powerful comic Something Terrible, and Kohl Glass, film maker behind Orc Wars, and Rachel Polk, cartoonist behind Melvin the Fat Bird, who help us explore how Batman became such an iconic character whose appeal spans generations.
Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

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Comics Are Great! 96 – The Positive Pro is Pro-Positive, with Jim Lujan

Talking about independent animation, working with what you got, and keeping on!

In CAG 92 I talked with Ben Hatke about the importance of giving our heroes a reason to quit. Why? Because it’s so, so satisfying to see them not quit when all evidence suggests that quitting is the sensible solution. Why is that satisfying? Because creative people encounter this on a regular basis. You sacrifice time, money, and relationships in order to pursue your craft, and you’re not even sure if it’s any good at first. Often when you’re starting out you don’t have the resources or the skill to create work at the quality level you hope to. So how do you overcome these reasons to quit?

I’m glad to be joined by Jim Lujan, the creator of many, many animated films, and the writer/animator of the new animated feature Kounterclockwise in Forever-Land. Jim is very nearly the living embodiment of the hero who looks those “reasons to quit” in the eye and answers it by pushing on and making wonderful things. Together we’ll discuss how he worked with what he had to leverage a career for himself as an award-winning independent animator.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

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Comics Are Great! 95 – Puzzling out Your Comic’s Destiny, with Jason Shiga

Find a publisher, POD, Webcomic, or all three? Figuring out your comic’s destiny!

Whether your hope to get your comic published in the Direct Market or by one of the major book publishers, or self-publish through a Kickstarter or print-on-demand service like Ka-Blam, or publish directly to the web (as either a webcomic or a series of ebooks), you have to decide which choice is the best for your story. How do you decide what destiny is best for your beloved comic?

This episode we’re joined by Jason Shiga, the cartoonist behind the celebrated multi-path comic Meanwhile, Empire State, and the recently launched webcomic Demon. Together we’ll look at his career, spanning from Xeric Grant-funded comics to working with publishers like Abrams ComicArts to updating his own webcomic, and explore how a cartoonist navigates what method works best for your comic.

We’re also joined by David Carter of the University of Michigan Video Game Archive to talk briefly about this year’s Mini-Comics Day in Ann Arbor, which happened Saturday, March 22!

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

Comics and book recommendations:

Comics Are Great! 100 – Getting Your Comic Into Libraries

It’s the 100th episode of the Comics Are Great show, recorded live before a studio audience at the 2014 Kids Read Comics Celebration!

I’m joined by guest co-host Gregg Schigiel of the Stuff Said Show, librarian Laura Given, and librarian Erin Helmrich. Together we discuss the growing importance of libraries in the world of comics, and how cartoonists can better connect with libraries to promote the medium.

We also spend a bit of time talking about Gregg’s new comic, PIX: ONE WEIRDEST WEEKEND, which is available for pre-order in Previews now! Item #DEC141546

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Comics Are Great! 94 – Make Your Comic Like a Movie, with Kohl Glass, Donald Harrison, and Sharad Patel

Comics and film share a lot of DNA, though their strengths and weaknesses greatly differ. In the end they’re trying to do the same thing–convey ideas and explore narratives visually. So what might cartoonists learn about their own craft by studying the approaches and workflow of fimmakers?

I’ll be joined by three independent filmmakers to discover how they find their narratives and ultimately express them in their visual mediums. Kohl Glass is the Emmy-award winning creator behind such films as Der Ostwind and Orc Wars. Donald Harrison is the former director of the Ann Arbor Film Festival and creator of films such as Limited Aesthetic. Sharad Patel is a one-man production studio and has written, acted, and directed his own films.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

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Comics Are Great! 93 – The Hero who Refuses to Fight, with Kevin Coppa

What’s the appeal of action heroes who use violence as a last resort? I’m joined by Kevin Coppa of The Puppetbenders for a discussion on how our hearts can sometimes be captured by an action hero who knows when not to fight.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

Comics Are Great! 91 – Comics for the Holidays!

The final CAG of 2013! I’m joined by Dave Roman, Raina Telgemeier, and Sharon Iverson for a list of our favorite comics and graphic novels of 2013 and which ones would make a great gift for that loved one who doesn’t consider themselves a comics reader.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

Comics Are Great! 88 – Make Your Story as Awesome as a Game, with Eli Neiburger and Dave Carter

How might our approach to storytelling change when we study a good gaming experience? I’ve talked with a game designer about this on the Lean Into Art Cast, but this time I’m joined by David Carter, Librarian at the University of Michigan’s Computer and Video Game Archive, and Eli Neiburger, Associate Director of IT and Production at the Ann Arbor District Library and author of Gamers… In the LIBRARY?. Together we’ll explore how storytellers might steal from games to give their readers that “epic win face.”

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

Comics and Book Recommendations:

Comics Are Great! 87 – What Makes a Story Scary? With Eric Orchard and Jon David Guerra

How do you make a horror story in a static medium like comics? What are the tricks to building dread and suspense? And how does visual style contribute to creating images that are unsettling or frightening?

I’m joined by cartoonists Jon David Guerra and Eric Orchard, who help us uncover some of the dark secrets of haunting your readers with your story.

We close with another round of book recommendations with Rachel Moir of the Ann Arbor District Library.

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

Comics and Book Recommendations:

Comics Are Great! 85 – Your Compositions Tell The Story with Nicolas Bannister

What are the secrets to designing a world that your readers will believe in? How do you compose panels that communicate tone, tension, blocking, and character? If the “camera” in comics can be anywhere, how do you navigate the nearly infinite choices to create moments that tell the story?

I’m joined by Nicolas Bannister, artist of many amazing comics including The Elsewhere Chronicles and Tib & Tumtum, for a discussion on the narrative power of choosing the right angles in your panels.

Later we’re joined by Sharon Iverson of the Ann Arbor District Library for another round of book recommendations!

Links mentioned in this episode (thanks to Eric Klooster for collecting the links!):

Book Recommendations:

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