graphic novels

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 496 – “FCF: Boxers & Saints”

Art from Boxers & Saints (2013) by Gene Luen Yang & Lark Pien

Gobbledygeek episode 496, “FCF: Boxers & Saints,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

For this month’s Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo tackle a blindspot from one of their favorite writers. Gene Luen Yang, author of Gobbledyfaves like American Born Chinese and Avatar: The Last Airbender, tells the brutal story of the Boxer Rebellion in Boxers & Saints. The graphic novel duology delves into complex subjects like faith, spirituality, nationalism, and fascism; we cover ‘em all, hopefully in something resembling depth. Plus, Arlo returns to the city of Metropolis for more Superman comics, including mega-event The Death and Return of Superman and Grant Morrison & Mark Waid’s JLA run. 

NEXT: we find our inner Greenwich Village folksters with a Geek Challenge featuring Noah Kahan’s Stick Season and Bob Dylan’s Blood on the Tracks.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:30  –  Intro / Arlo’s Adventures of Superman
  • 00:36:45  –  Boxers & Saints
  • 02:20:14  –  Outro / Next

MUSIC

  • “The Boxer” by Simon & Garfunkle, Bridge Over Troubled Water (1970)
  • “It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City” by Bruce Springsteen, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. (1973)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 493 – “RRR”

Ram Charan and N.T. Rama Rao Jr. in RRR (2022), directed by S.S. Rajamouli

Gobbledygeek episode 493, “RRR,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

Time to rise, roar, and revolt as Paul and Arlo engage in some extreme piggybacking with S.S. Rajamouli’s RRR. This alt-history epic is the rare Indian film to make a splash in the Western world, and our boys approach it as only two ignorant white guys can: with almost no knowledge of Indian culture or film! Nevertheless, they are in love with the movie, which reimagines Indian revolutionary figures Komaram Bheem and Alluri Sitarama Raju as superheroes who can outrun tigers, shoot a British bastard from a mile away, and stop motorcycles with their bare hands. The boys praise stars N.T. Rama Rao Jr. and Ram Charan, admire Rajamouli’s craft, and weep in awe at the insane shit happening in every single scene. Plus, there’s a trailer for The Flash and Arlo has finally gone back to reading old Superman comics.

NEXT: TBD.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:44  –  Intro / Guest
  • 00:18:04  –  Main Topic
  • 02:03:24  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Dosti” by Amit Trivedi, RRR (Original Soundtrack) (2022)
  • “Naacho Naacho” by Vishal Mishra & Rahul Sipligunj, RRR (Original Soundtrack) (2022)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 492 – “FCF: We Only Find Them When They’re Dead”

We Only Find Them When They’re Dead – Art by Simone Di Meo & Mariasara Miotti

Gobbledygeek episode 492, “FCF: We Only Find Them When They’re Dead,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

Got a hankerin’ for god meat? Well, pull out your giant lightsaber knife and feast on a new Four-Color Flashback! For the first FCF of 2023, Paul and Arlo set out at warp speed to seek enlightenment with Al Ewing and Simone Di Meo’s We Only Find Them When They’re Dead. The BOOM! Studios series, whose 15-issue run wrapped in December, is set hundreds of years from now, when the primary industry is extracting proteins, enzymes, and minerals from the corpses of massive deities. Evocative title and crazy premise aside, the book is chock full of theosophical enigmas that our boys try to solve. Beyond the elusive quest for concrete answers, though, this comic certainly makes them feel a whole lot. Dig in. Plus, some bellyaching about the new slate of DC movies.

NEXT: a discussion of S.S. Rajamouli’s action epic RRR, which presumably concerns reading, writing, and arithmetic.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:30  –  Intro / Banter
  • 00:21:25  –  We Only Find Them When They’re Dead
  • 01:58:36  –  Outro / Next

MUSIC

  • “For Whom the Bell Tolls” by Metallica, Ride the Lightning (1984)
  • “Mystery Jack” by King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Float Along – Fill Your Lungs (2013)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 482 – “FCF: Oblivion Song”

Art from Oblivion Song (2018-22) by Lorenzo De Felici & Annalisa Leoni

Gobbledygeek episode 482, “FCF: Oblivion Song,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

Sing, sing a song; sing of oblivion, it’s 36 issues long! For this month’s first (?) Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo are harmonizing about Robert Kirkman and Lorenzo De Felici’s 2018-22 Image series Oblivion Song. It’s an alien invasion saga that questions the very concepts of “alien” and “invasion,” regarding its human and Kuthaal characters with equal levels of empathy and complexity. The boys discuss how Kirkman overcomes The Walking Dead’s biggest flaws, De Felici’s otherworldly artwork, Annalisa Leoni’s eerily beautiful colors, and so much more. Plus, Arlo made a return trip to Austin, TX.

NEXT: Nope? Yup.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:01:00  –  Intro / Arlo’s Austin Adventures
  • 00:27:17  –  Oblivion Song
  • 02:00:00  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Fungal Jungle (Remix)” by Psilovibin’ (2019)
  • “Bungle in the Jungle” by Jethro Tull, War Child (1974)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 478 – “FCF: Thor by Jason Aaron”

Art from Thor: God of Thunder (2011) by Esad Ribić

Gobbledygeek episode 478, “FCF: Thor by Jason Aaron,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

Listener, we would have words with thee! As the Odinson and the Mighty Thor swing their hammers onto the big screen in Thor: Love and Thunder, Paul and Arlo revisit some of the film’s influences for this month’s Four-Color Flashback. The boys dig deep into the early part of Jason Aaron’s run on the golden-haired Avenger, with Thor: God of Thunder #1-25 and Thor (2014) #1-8. Topics of discussion include the dynamite art of Esad Ribić and Russell Dauterman, Thor’s crisis of faith, why Jane Foster wielding Mjolnir makes for such a great reinvention of the character, and more.

NEXT: anything is possible.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:32  –  Intro / Banter
  • 00:04:55  –  Main Topic
  • 00:11:54  –  INTERLUDE: Giving Arlo $#!&
  • 00:14:01  –  Back to the Main Topic!
  • 01:55:21  –  Outro / Next

MUSIC

  • “Divine Hammer” by The Breeders, Last Splash (1993)
  • “Sweet Jane” by Cowboy Junkies, The Trinity Sessions (1988)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Episode 475 – “GC: Everything Everywhere All at Once vs. The One”

Top: Michelle Yeoh in Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022), directed by Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert / Bottom: Jet Li in The One (2001), directed by James Wong

Gobbledygeek episode 475, “GC: Everything Everywhere All at Once vs. The One,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

In a multiverse without limitations…you have chosen to listen to Gobbledygeek. Let that sink in. While you do, you’ll also get to hear Paul and Arlo’s latest Geek Challenge! Arlo sort-of challenges Paul to The Daniels’ Everything Everywhere All at Once, the year’s big breakout movie, starring Michelle Yeoh as infinite versions of herself; and Paul in turn challenges Arlo to James Wong’s 2001 action flick The One, featuring Jet Li vs. Jet Li in a dystopian future. The boys discuss The Daniels’ hyper-maximalist approach to filmmaking, how Everything Everywhere earns its zaniness with real emotion, the shocking amount of hair Jason Statham sports in The One, and that film’s perfect time capsule of a soundtrack.

NEXT: Die! The Kieron Gillen and Stephanie Hans comic book, that is. Eric Sipple joins us for this month’s Four-Color Flashback.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:29  –  Intro / RIP Tim Sale
  • 00:09:55  –  Everything Everywhere All at Once
  • 01:09:30  –  The One
  • 01:36:49  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “Googly Eyes” by Caspar Babypants, This is Fun! (2011)
  • “Down With the Sickness” by Disturbed, The Sickness (2000)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 472 – “FCF: Smile”

Art from Smile (2010) by Raina Telgemeier.

Gobbledygeek episode 472, “FCF: Smile,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

Sit back and say ‘Aaaahhhh!’ For this month’s Four-Color Flashback, Paul and Arlo take a trip to the dentist with Raina Telgemeier’s 2010 autobiographic novel Smile. Raina looks back on how her orthodontic woes served as a marker for her adolescence, from the loss of her two front teeth in 6th grade circa 1989 through finally ditching those braces in freshman year ‘92. This prompts Paul and Arlo to recount their own dental dramas in dramatic (traumatic?) detail before praising Telgemeier’s skillful cartooning, her incisive rendering of middle school social mores, the way historical events are set against the backdrop of teen life, and more. Plus, the boys have thoughts on the This Is Us series finale.

NEXT: more drama, more trauma.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:23  –  Intro / This is Us
  • 00:35:17  –  Smile
  • 01:35:33  –  Outro / Next

MUSIC

  • “Dentist!” by Steve Martin, Michelle Weeks, Tichina Arnold & Tisha Campbell, Little Shop of Horrors (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (1986)
  • “Braces” by Robbo, A Kid’s Life (2000)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 470 – “The Mighty Marvel Movie Catch-Up”

Tom Holland, Andrew Garfield, and Tobey Maguire performing a meme

Gobbledygeek episode 470, “The Mighty Marvel Movie Catch-Up,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

And you run, you run to catch up with the sun, but it’s sinking…well, before it sets, Paul and Arlo have a few MCU movies they need to discuss. Due to that pesky pandemic, we’ve gotten behind on the Marvel Cinematic Universe here at Gobbledygeek, but fear not! In this special, super-sized episode, Paul and Arlo discuss three mighty Marvel movies: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which brings Chinese mythology to the MCU; Eternals, which brings a race of immortal god-beings to the MCU; and Spider-Man: No Way Home, which brings a whole bunch of Spider-Men to the MCU. The boys rave about Tony Leung, have a friendly (?) debate about the merits of Eternals, can’t get enough of Andrew Garfield, and so very much more.

NEXT: he is vengeance, he is the night, he is Kenn Edwards! Everybody’s favorite podcaster/guitarist joins us for a look at Matt Reeves’ The Batman.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:01:47  –  Intro / Banter
  • 00:03:53  –  Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
  • 00:46:42  –  Eternals
  • 01:45:50  –  Spider-Man: No Way Home
  • 02:37:50  –  Outro / Next

MUSIC

  • “Time” by Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
  • “Three is a Magic Number” by Bob Dorough, Schoolhouse Rock! (1973)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 469 – “FCF: The Many Deaths of Laila Starr”

Art from The Many Deaths of Laila Starr (2021) by Filipe Andrade & Inês Amaro

Gobbledygeek episode 469, “FCF: The Many Deaths of Laila Starr,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

What happens when a child is born who will invent immortality? According to Ram V and Filipe Andrade’s The Many Deaths of Laila Starr, Death is fired from her job, is cast into a mortal body, and attempts to find and murder this child. Oh, she also dies a lot. On this month’s Four-Color Flashback, Paul & Arlo discuss the book’s unique approach to Indian mythology, Andrade’s beautifully distorted figures, V’s ability to be self-serious without being pretentious, and more. Plus, Paul gets into Severance, the boys aren’t feeling This Is Us‘ final season, and Arlo reads more Superman.

NEXT: it’s an MCU catch-up session. The boys will discuss the trifecta of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Eternals, and Spider-Man: No Way Home.

BREAKDOWN

  • 00:00:34  –  Intro / Banter
  • 00:27:39  –  The Many Deaths of Laila Starr
  • 01:32:20  –  Selecting the next FCF
  • 01:36:03  –  Outro / Next

LINKS

MUSIC

  • “(I Just) Died in Your Arms Tonight” by Cutting Crew, Broadcast (1986)
  • “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” by Blue Oyster Cult, Agents of Fortune (1976)

GOBBLEDYCARES

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Listen to Gobbledygeek Episode 467 – “Whatever Happened to the Geeks of Tomorrow?”

Art from Superman #176 (1965) by Curt Swan, George Klein & Mort Weisinger. Dialogue by Leo Dorfman.

Gobbledygeek episode 467, “Whatever Happened to the Geeks of Tomorrow?,” is available for listening or download right here, on Spotify, and on Apple Podcasts.

For Paul and Arlo, existential crises and comic books often go hand-in-hand. Such is the case for this week’s freestyle, wherein Paul’s rumination on the erosion of his teenage self-confidence leads into a discussion of superhero mags. Paul tells Goblin punks to fuck off as he rocks out to Cody Ziglar and Justin Mason’s Spider-Punk, goes undercover with Kelly Thompson and Elena Casagrande’s recently wrapped run on Black Widow, and cloaks himself in Jed MacKay and Alessandro Cappuccio’s Moon Knight. Meanwhile, Arlo rides on horseback through more goofy Silver Age Superman.

NEXT: we will continue to spiral.

MUSIC

  • “I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times” by The Beach Boys, Pet Sounds (1966)
  • “Running Water” by Daniel Johnston, Hi, How Are You (1983)
  • “A Horse with No Name” by America, America (1971)

GOBBLEDYCARES