October 2, 2018 by arlowiley

Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 354, “Daredevil: Born Again (feat. Chance Mazzia)”

Art from ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ by David Mazzucchelli & Christie Scheele.

Gobbledygeek episode 354, “Daredevil: Born Again (feat. Chance Mazzia),” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Sight-impaired Jesus freak Matt Murdock finds himself in the crosshairs of rotund businessman Wilson Fisk in that most celebrated of Daredevil stories, Born Again. Paul and Arlo’s pal Chance Mazzia joins them for another superheroic Four-Color Flashback installment to discuss the Frank Miller/David Mazzucchelli classic. The gang discusses the tale’s obvious religious symbolism; Mazzucchelli’s fluid, detailed art; Miller’s Murdock-style descent into belligerent paranoia; and how Miller’s triple threat of Born Again, The Dark Knight Returns, and Batman: Year One changed superhero comics for better and worse. Plus, Cary Joji Fukanaga goes cuckoo with Netflix’s Maniac, and the gang pays their respects to late Batman artist Norm Breyfogle.

Next: at long last, Gobbledyween returns. The festival of terror kicks off with Robert Eggers’ new cult classic, 2015’s The Witch.

(Show notes for “Daredevil: Born Again.”)

March 23, 2016 by Arlo J. Wiley

Listen to ‘Gobbledygeek’ Episode 270, “Grendel: Part 1 – Devil by the Deed”

Art from ‘Grendel Omnibus: Volume One – Hunter Rose’ by Matt Wagner and Rich Rankin.

Gobbledygeek episode 270, “Grendel: Part 1 – Devil by the Deed,” is available for listening or download right here and on iTunes here.

Spring has sprung, which means it’s time for another Four-Color Flashback! In years past, Paul and Arlo have explored the dream worlds of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman and the cartoonish fantasy of Jeff Smith’s Bone. They’ll be devoting 2016 to Matt Wagner’s magnum opus Grendel. There’s a wealth of material out there, but the boys will attempt to stick to the original series, which has been collected in various formats. For this introductory episode, they turn to the first Grendel story, “Devil by the Deed,” which can be found in Grendel Omnibus: Volume One – Hunter Rose, pp. 7-45. What’s it about? Good question! You see, there’s this wealthy playboy named Hunter Rose who writes bestselling novels while also masquerading as Grendel, who seeks control of the mob underworld. In his downtime, he fights an Algonquin werewolf called Argent. Paul recalls what initially drew him to Grendel, while first-time reader Arlo finds it…interesting. The boys discuss Wagner’s manga-meets-Art Deco style, his experimental storytelling, and how he inverts the whole hero/villain thing. Plus, there’s talk of Daredevil season 2.

Next: after a week off, it’s Paul v Arlo: Dawn of Kenn.

(Show notes for “Grendel: Part 1 – Devil by the Deed.”)

April 25, 2015 by Arlo J. Wiley

Listen to Our ‘Daredevil’ Bonus Episode, “The Devil Went Down to Hell’s Kitchen”

The Gobbledygeek bonus episode “The Devil Went Down to Hell’s Kitchen” is available for listening or download right here, and on iTunes here.

Netflix has unveiled the first of four original series from the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Daredevil, starring the most Catholic of all blind superheroes. Executive producers Drew Goddard and Steven DeKnight bring Matt Murdock to the small screen, played by Boardwalk Empire‘s Charlie Cox. The result is, well, it’s surprisingly good, even by Marvel standards. Paul and AJ discuss the parallel structure that brings Wilson Fisk into sharp relief, the shocking deviation the show takes from the source material, the series’ beautifully brutal fight scenes, and where things are headed next. Plus, because they’re masochists, the boys also revisit the 2003 DD film starring Batman.

(Show notes for “The Devil Went Down to Hell’s Kitchen.”)

January 17, 2013 by Arlo J. Wiley

Paul & AJ’s Top 10 Comics of 2012

We’ve already listed our favorite TV shows and movies of last year, and we’ve got a couple more lists just before the new season begins. Here are our favorite comic books of 2012; check back tomorrow for our favorite albums (though, considering our extensively detailed history of not knowing how to talk about music, with YouTube clips instead of commentary).

PAUL: 10. THOR: GOD OF THUNDER (Marvel)

There was a period of time when Thor was my favorite character in comics. The golden Walt Simonson era was for me the height of otherworldly sword and sorcery super heroics. And while its been quite some time since the character has achieved anything close to that level of wonder, in recent years he’s enjoyed something of a renaissance. From his “death,” to his literal return to Earth under the guidance of J. Michael Straczynski, to his big screen debut, the petulant son of Asgard is kind of back in a big way.

Thor: God of Thunder is the newest incarnation of the title, with the unlikely writer Jason Aaron giving us a triptych of thunder gods, a tale of an alien butcher seeking to torture and destroy all deities told across three different periods of Thor’s life. We see young, arrogant Thor (pre-Mjolnir) and his first meeting with Gorr the God Butcher; modern-day Avenger Thor going full CSI trying to solve the mystery of who or what Gorr is; and far-future Thor, old and broken, sitting on the throne of an empty Asgard, the last surviving god, waiting for Gorr to finish him. It’s a brutal, bloody, and fascinating premise, though I do wish Gorr was slightly more imposing-looking rather than just being a Voldemort rip-off. Aaron creates a genuine mystery and sense of danger with real stakes for our hero, and the painterly art of Esad Ribic suits the romantic epic nature of the story. It’s not quite Simonson-level Mighty Thor (there’s thus far no Beta Ray Bill here), but Thor: God of Thunder is the best the character has been in a long time.

AJ: 10. ANGEL & FAITH (Dark Horse)

I know Whedon fandom is crazy, but I might just be the biggest Buffy fan on the planet. That’s a huge claim, and while I haven’t tattooed James Marsters’ face on my ass or anything (yet), it really is difficult to describe how much Joss Whedon’s world means to me. Without Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I wouldn’t be here today. You wouldn’t be reading these words and I would have even less of an idea of what I want to do with my life. So it pains me greatly to say that the canonical Season 8 and Season 9 comics, though they have certainly had their moments, are largely disposable and occasionally worse. But then there’s Angel & Faith, which has done the impossible, making a monthly comic book series feel like the weekly television shows we fell in love with all those years ago. Christos Gage knows these characters inside and out, both their voices and their motivations. It’s never a question of if the comic will tie back into the shows’ stated mythology, but when and how spine-tingling those connections will be. These are the characters I have loved for a good deal of my life in a story that’s being brilliantly told by Gage and brought to life with wonderful clarity by artist Rebekah Isaacs. If you’re skeptical about Buffyverse comics, you have every right to be, but this one should be a priority.

Continue reading →

December 4, 2012 by Arlo J. Wiley

Listen to Episode 122, “Gobbledygeek Gift Guide 2012”

Art by Michael Cho.

Gobbledygeek episode 122, “Gobbledygeek Gift Guide 2012,” is available for listening or download right here.

The season of giving is once more upon us. Ever helpful, Paul and AJ list a number of Christmas gift options for that special geek in your life: from movies (like In the Mood for Love on Criterion Collection Blu-ray) to TV (the complete series of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!), comics (Saga: Vol. 1) to books (Alan Sepinwall’s The Revolution Was Televised), toys (cute lil’ Funko Pop figures) to games (Dishonored), and more. Don’t forget to thank us for rescuing your Christmas.

Next: the holiday gets twisted with The Nightmare Before Christmas.

NOTE: Links to every single item we mention in the episode can be found in the show notes.

(Show notes for “Gobbledygeek Gift Guide 2012.”)

November 22, 2011 by Arlo J. Wiley

Last Month’s Comics: ‘Uncanny X-Men’ Ends (Until the Next Issue), ‘Spaceman’ Lifts Off

Welcome to Last Month’s Comics, in which I discuss, uh, last month’s comics. I get my comics in bi-monthly shipments from Discount Comic Book Service, and as such, I can be a little behind. So here we are.

This column is later than usual, as I was a little preoccupied earlier this month, but for all those still madly wondering about what October 2011’s comics had to offer, here we go…

BEST #1

Spaceman #1
Writer: Brian Azzarello
Art: Eduardo Risso
Publisher: Vertigo

I’ve read only a fraction of Azzarello and Risso’s acclaimed 100 Bullets, which ran for ten years from 1999 to 2009, but one needs no familiarity with their past work to be immediately sucked in by the opening chapter of Spaceman, their new nine-issue mini-series from Vertigo. It takes place in a weird, sad future, just a few monsters and flying cars away from the one in Joss Whedon’s Fray. Our protagonist is Orson, a monkey-ish man genetically engineered to travel to Mars, a trip the human race never got to make. Orson and his low-class friends speak in bizarre, disjointed slang; “okee” is how they say okay, and they actually say “LOL LOL LOL” instead of laughing. In this first issue, Orson has ominous spaceman dreams and becomes involved in the kidnapping of the adopted child of reality TV stars. Eduardo Risso’s art is terrific, Brian Azzarello’s storytelling immediately compelling. Choice line, as Orson’s alarm chirps “New day, new day, new day” while he opens the door on a bleak, cloudless future: “Why, you lyin machine…it’s the same fuck old day it always is.” (Plus: $1!)

Continue reading →

October 11, 2011 by Arlo J. Wiley

Last Month’s Comics: ‘Ultimate Spider-Man’ Swings In and DC’s New 52 Roll Out

So, September 2011, what kind of havoc did you wreak? Let’s find out…

BEST RETURN TO FORM

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9 #1
Writer: Joss Whedon
Art: Georges Jeanty (pencils), Dexter Vines (inks), Michelle Madsen (colors)
Publisher: Dark Horse

To say that I was pleased upon finishing the first issue of the new “season” of Buffy is an understatement. Season 8 started off very well, with Buffy leading an army of 500 Slayers and trying to unmask the mysterious foe Twilight. And to tell the truth, it was great for much of its run, with an occasional stumble (vampires being outed to the public wasn’t handled with much finesse). But the last story arc, with the reveal of Angel as Twilight, cosmic sex, and general batshit insanity, was so damaging that even someone who considers Buffy the Vampire Slayer to be the greatest piece of entertainment ever given us by man had come to the conclusion that it might be for the best if Ms. Summers was finally laid to rest. The final issue of Season 8, though, was a dramatic 180 from the pace and structure of the last few issues leading up to it, and the Season 9 premiere continues in that vein. With Giles gone and magic vanquished, Buffy is depressed and adrift, working as a waitress and getting blackout drunk. It’s all done with Whedon’s razor-sharp wit and keen sense of twenty-something angst. The final “shock twist” is so humdrum and everyday it’s hilarious. In many ways, the metaphorical “party” is over for our Scoobies; now what? I can’t wait to find out.

Continue reading →

July 26, 2011 by Arlo J. Wiley

Four-Color Flashback: Chris Claremont & John Byrne’s ‘Uncanny X-Men’ #136-143

Welcome to the final week in our analysis of Chris Claremont and John Byrne’s run on Uncanny X-Men. The first four weeks can be found here, here, here, and here.

Fearless readers, we have come to the end of Claremont/Byrne’s classic run on Uncanny X-Men. There are some very emotional points in these issues, but on the whole, this doesn’t feel like an ending so much as it does yet another springboard for future storylines. And that’s what it is: after all, Uncanny X-Men is still going 30 years later, and even with Byrne’s departure, Claremont had another ten years left on the title. What’s more, Claremont and Byrne had things planned out for a further seven issues until Byrne decided to leave. But more on that later. For now, we’ll dive headfirst into the final eight issues of their run together.

When last we left our merry mutants, Dark Phoenix was preparing to return to Earth, her appetite for destruction not sated by consuming a whole star. In advance of her return, Lilandra’s Grand Council plans her demise, President Carter (for whom Claremont brings back his regrettable dialects) tells Jarvis to assemble the Avengers, and Beast devises a “mnemonic scrambler” which the X-Men can place on Phoenix to limit her powers. The first place Jean goes upon re-entering Earth’s atmosphere is her family’s home in Annandale-on-Hudson. Claremont’s captions say that “[t]his is Jean Grey’s home, not Dark Phoenix’s,” “[y]et Jean Grey is Dark Phoenix.” Her parents, and her sister, are woken from their beds in the middle of the night, their minds now an open book for Jean to unwillingly read. She senses their fear of her, and lashes out, turning a potted plant to crystal as an example of her terrible power. And she would have done more were it not for an unnatural fog produced by Storm that draws Jean out of the house, allowing Kurt to slap the mnemonic scrambler on her.

Continue reading →

March 21, 2011 by Paul Smith

David Slade Sets DAREDEVIL Record Straight

Slow your roll, Internet. Apparently rumors about the nature of the new Daredevil film have been… well, less than accurate. I know, right? Shocking. Director-to-be David Slade says:

Forgot to look at the internet for a few weeks and it’s a litany of false (and no so far off) rumours. So without breaking confidentiality, yes Daredevil, we have a great outline for a very strong character driven take on Mr. Matt Murdock. It will bare no relation to the previous Daredevil movie in any way. We are at early planning stages and have not yet discussed any cast.

So. Not a sequel. No Ben Affleck. I’m assuming no Bradley Cooper. But possibly still adapted from the Miller/Mazzucchelli storyline Born Again?