Back issue podcast ideas.

[Fnord Serious]

Hey guys. I'll throw one more idea out there. I haven't read either but I want to at some point. So, how bout a back issue spotlight on some Howard the Duck or some Godzilla?

I think I've got the Essential Godzilla trade paperback...

While I think this is out of print, I still see copies at the local shops and there are lots of Amazon sellers letting it go for cheap. A back issue spotlight would be a good reason to crack open the copy I picked up a while back.

[BobBretall]

Sounds like there is a demand for MORE back issue spotlight episodes!

If any of you folks suggesting titles would like to guest on an episode you have suggested, e-mail John & I at: theGuys@comicbookpage.com and we'll see about getting something set up.

Some topics may need to be scheduled for months down the line to give John & I time to read up!

[Fnord Serious]

Did either of you read the Comic's Greatest World books by Dark Horse? The Dark Horse books had a lot of good concepts but suffered from lackluster execution. The 16 weekly issues that launched the line plus the weekly miniseries Will To Power were recently released as the Dark Horse Heroes Omnibus and represent some of the best stuff that came from the line. I think they would be interesting to look at as a representation of the time period when every publisher was trying to launch their own superhero universe in the 90's. Also as an example of wasted potential

Defunct universes are a pet obsession of mine and I would be up for a discussion on any of the major 90's efforts: Milestone, Ultraverse, Dark Horse Heroes, Marvel 2099, etc.

[JohnMayo]

I've got all of the Comics' Greatest World comics.

Bob and I have discussed doing Publisher Spotlights in which we'd talk about a line of comics done by a publisher but without going into issue by issue detail like we do in the Back Issue Spotlights. It would be more of a discussion about the line as as whole and what we thought of it as it was coming out.

Going over the Comics' Greatest World line and some of the other defunct super-hero lines in that sort of format could be fun since it would allow us to discuss the entire run of those lines versus just a specific storyline. What do you guys think?

[HassanT]

I've got all of the Comics' Greatest World comics.

Bob and I have discussed doing Publisher Spotlights in which we'd talk about a line of comics done by a publisher but without going into issue by issue detail like we do in the Back Issue Spotlights. It would be more of a discussion about the line as as whole and what we thought of it as it was coming out.

Going over the Comics' Greatest World line and some of the other defunct super-hero lines in that sort of format could be fun since it would allow us to discuss the entire run of those lines versus just a specific storyline. What do you guys think?

I think that would be a great idea. I think some people have forgotten how many defunct super-hero lines that there have been since the mid-80s. It would be interest to here you guys opinions on what worked and what didn't.

I would even consider the First Comics line a "super-hero" line because they crossover with each other a few times.

Hassan

[BobBretall]

I'd be more willing to do this if there were a couple of hard-core fans of any one of those universes to guest on the episode who could bring much more insight into the books being discuss.

I suppose it would be more high-level if we did an entire universe/imprint, so maybe I would not have to re-read everything (e.g. all Comic's Greatest World books), as opposed to when we do a specific storyline or run (Ghost, for instance, or like when we did the 1st Solar story-arc). When you narrow it to a story arc, you'd be discussing specific plot-points, etc. More high-level discussion when doing an examination of a defunct universe.

Some Candidates:
* Comic's Greatest World
* Valiant (though there are already Valiant podcasts, so this is probably covered)
* Ultraverse
* Defiant Comics
* Broadway Comics
* Future Comics
* Milestone (maybe good to do, since it's coming back)

[BobBretall]

ALSO: John did get the Conan TPB v8 @ the Austin books sale, so it looks like a Conan episode will be upcoming.....

[HipHopHead]

I suppose it would be more high-level if we did an entire universe/imprint, so maybe I would not have to re-read everything (e.g. all Comic's Greatest World books), as opposed to when we do a specific storyline or run (Ghost, for instance, or like when we did the 1st Solar story-arc). When you narrow it to a story arc, you'd be discussing specific plot-points, etc. More high-level discussion when doing an examination of a defunct universe.

Some Candidates:
* Comic's Greatest World
* Valiant (though there are already Valiant podcasts, so this is probably covered)
* Ultraverse
* Defiant Comics
* Broadway Comics
* Future Comics
* Milestone (maybe good to do, since it's coming back)

Ultraverse was a Valiant knockoff. I have the Firearm video
Never read Milestone.
Comic's Greates World had two good books: X and Ghost
Defiant & Broadway could be combined into a Jim Shooter Podcast (am I relentless or what)
What about the evolution of Image? Image started out with being the company for artist (primarily) and trying to have a cohesive creator owned universe, that did not work out well.

[Lord Shaper]

You could always talk about the fall of Comico... I don't know much about what happened and all I have been doing is chasing down some of the old Mage issues since I only have the Image reprints and I finally managed to get all of the grendel series tho i still need to find the primer and first 3 that didn't finish.

I just heard on a wordballoon that apparently Comico came back at some point to die off again.

[80sJunkie]

How about doing a review of a laughably bad comic like that one sci fi show does/did. (I forget the name...)

I hear a Secret Wars II is omnibus is coming out....

[80sJunkie]

How about the attempts by DC and Marvel to use forgotten B and C list characters on teams to try some wacky revival of them?

Nextwave and Secret Six were like this.

I felt The Defenders and the ha-ha Justice League were like this too.

DC guys recently seem to do this all the time in mini-series. Marvel, not so much, though there are some examples (Heroes for Hire?).

My favorite example is Nextwave, where they shot for the moon. If it was a misfire, how badly could they damage those characters anyway? But before that title, I looooved Justice League until they overdid it.

Seems like the irreverent takes work pretty well creatively, if not sales-wise. Also does not seem to lead to longevity, but there are some good, cheap reads to be gotten from these kinds of stories.

[80sJunkie]

I was also curious to see if those Harvey reprints are worth getting.

[IanG]

How about a episode on the Star Trek comic book series from Gold Key? It's now collected in to a paperback from Checkered Publishing called the Key Collection Volumes 1 thru 5. The comic books were originally published in the 1960's while the show was still on TV. These oldies but goodies are not just for Trek fans but any fans of Sci-Fi comic books.

My opinion is that it's nice if listeners can get the books from Back Issues Spotlights in TPB or HC. More access equals more people that can share in the back issue goodness.

Here's a link to Vol 1 on InstockTrades: Star Trek: The Key Collection Volume 1

[BobBretall]

How about a episode on the Star Trek comic book series from Gold Key? It's now collected in to a paperback from Checkered Publishing called the Key Collection Volumes 1 thru 5. The comic books were originally published in the 1960's while the show was still on TV. These oldies but goodies are not just for Trek fans but any fans of Sci-Fi comic books.

My opinion is that it's nice if listeners can get the books from Back Issues Spotlights in TPB or HC. More access equals more people that can share in the back issue goodness.

Here's a link to Vol 1 on InstockTrades: Star Trek: The Key Collection Volume 1

I remember the Gold Key Start Trek comics, and I did not like them (back in the day). I recall them as generic "wacky 50s/60s" sci-fi stories with the Trek characters wedged into them.

I'm not likely to be buying the trades of these.

As a side observation, Checker seems to really charge high prices for their reprint collections (~$23 for 8 issues, though discounted at IST). Could be that this is a good deal given the high prices the originals would cost, but I'm not sure how much production goes into prepping these softcover volumes. Are they re-mastering them or just reprinting?

PS: Thanks for the observation that it's better to do BI spotlights on things available in trade. We've heard that from other listeners as well, so are likely to keep that in mind as we make future choices.

[JohnMayo]

How about a episode on the Star Trek comic book series from Gold Key? It's now collected in to a paperback from Checkered Publishing called the Key Collection Volumes 1 thru 5. The comic books were originally published in the 1960's while the show was still on TV. These oldies but goodies are not just for Trek fans but any fans of Sci-Fi comic books.

My opinion is that it's nice if listeners can get the books from Back Issues Spotlights in TPB or HC. More access equals more people that can share in the back issue goodness.

Here's a link to Vol 1 on InstockTrades: Star Trek: The Key Collection Volume 1

I've got the Start Trek Complete Collection DVD-ROM on order. That will open up the options on the Star Trek titles considerably for me.

I think if we do a Back Issue Spotlight on Star Trek, we might do it like we are planning for Star Wars and discuss a shorter storyline and then talk about the overall comic book franchise in general.