The Goadkicker Podcast: Recent Episodes
Carl Smith
All New! All Different! The Goadkicker is now comic and book talk, plus the usual flavor of prairie philosophy, just like mom used to make! Now with 87% more co-host! Join Carl D Smith, co-host Tim Benson, and who knows who else might appear for the fun!
Sometimes you can pick up a book and just tell it's by a particular writer, from a specific era, or by a certain publisher. Has Valiant ever had its own flavor? Has it changed? Does Alien have one yet? What mission statements exist at our favorite companies, how do our expectations factorvin, and what happens when our palate and the flavor no longer match?
in 2018 DMG-led Valiant was trying with shelf presence, specifically offering larger, chronically ordered collections to consumers increasingly enamored with shelf candy and the siren song of "all in one" omnibus editions.
We'll look at both the appeal and value of this Valiant compendium, a line that did not continue beyond this volume, and the attitude towards shelf editions on general.
Let's look at the role of Kickstarter in comic publishing, and discuss the pros and cons.
Short "filler" episode due to holiday week. Midway through the RtR and I have a new perspective on what's going on with these books, and it gives me a little hope that once September arrives, we'll be having more fun. Also, Ninjak was good.
Valiant launched in 1991 but I had no idea. I was still feeling drunk from Batman 89 and Turtlemania. I discovered Warhammer 40k. I saw Apocalypse Now for the first time. Now in 2024, I get to read Magnus 1-8 and Solar 1-5, the entirety of Valiant's first year. I'm here to tell you, these are top shelf comic books. 5 stars overall.
I read two new Alien titles by first reading the runs that immediately preceded them. Spoiler alert: It did not help sell Rai's new series to me at all. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
I'm sick, no episode expected this week. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
My first show dedicated to the Valiant books releasing currently. It's a mixed bag. I remain cautious in my optimism but there does seem to be unity in editorial, and sparks of intrigue. Find out which book I recommend as the best buy for new or lapsed fans of this bunch, and which you can ignore unless you're a Valiant loyalist, like myself. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
It's the crossover they never said would happen! The republishing rights are sure to be tied up in legality, so listen now while you can! I sit down with Jason Sacks of Jason and the Movienauts to chat about both of Valiant Comics' screen adaptations. Trigger warning for hot takes and rose colored glasses. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
Overselling it? Maybe. But this 2019 four part mini series featuring the Geomancer, Eternal Warrior, Doctor Mirage, and a host of new villains was setting up what SHOULD have been an incredible chapter in Valiant history. Then came COVID.--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
In the 1990's, Dark Horse grabbed the Predator license and set out to crossover that monster with other established characters. After facing Batman, the space hunter aliens set their sights on the Valiant Universe. What resulted? Also, how to use comics to meet and influence people. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
Failure is such a huge part of our lives and yet we turn our nose up at discussing it or wearing it. Sometimes failure is how you gain superpowers. Sometimes failure and it's lessons are what brings you success. Failure played heavily into the creation of Valiant and the adventures of Solar both. What can we appreciate from this? --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
In 2013 Valiant published a digital only comic that promoted both the upcoming Unity book as well as their 8 bit video game variant covers. It truly represents the spirit of the publisher at that moment in time.--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/goadkicker/message
It's no small endeavor to preserve naturally occurring wetland. It used to be abundant until we developed and spoiled the environment around it. Now we have hard decisions and harder work just to maintain and protect it. So too, dear friends, our adult lives and future contentment. Also, why do ebooks seem reasonable but digital action figures make eyes roll?
We look at the now-cyclical refresh of the Valiant Comics line, and how I believe Alien is going to do this right. Also, we chat briefly on perspectives, on being 50 and loving 40 year old toy commercials too much.
Just a light hearted episode where I discuss how a Doctor Strange comic from the year I was born reminded me why I prefer older comics, and also I talk about my slow descent back into buying a few baseball cards.
What happens when a company tries to feed the runaway train of short attention spanned nostalgia gluttons that dwell in every nook of fandom? You end up burying $30 million worth of plastic in a landfill to make room for the Next Big Thing (tm). As much as I loathe Funko Pops for what they represent in the pop culture world, I take no joy in the news story floating around.
Nerds, it is time we elevate the ethical topic of ecology in regards to our compulsive consumption.
This week we look at three different approached to getting limited edition materials into the hoards of fire breathing nerds. Each item has a very different mission statement.
Bad Idea Comics - intends to limit access as part of the schtick
Future Press - Publishes niche content to appease expected audience but does not reprint material
Holmgard Press - Trying to serve niche audience and new audience but is limited due to scope and cashflow
All three create items that are sold on secondary market for mark up, and all three have ravenous fans and collectors. What approach seems just, which appeals to you, which seems rotten? Or are you a laissez-faire nerd? I have an opinion, and a preference, but ultimately no one is forcing consumers to consume. The problem is the perhaps the creation of a market that is an attractive nuisance for those of us in the hobby.
Lastly, Pyrate Queen by Bad Idea is a 5 Star book! 4 issues, outstanding art and story... and not only will it not be collected in a tpb for wider enjoyment, exposure, and distribution, but it is forever limited to those with access to the chosen few BI comic shops (or secondary market). I feel this is a crime. The rest of the material I read by BI felt as if it was made with the joy of creation but the knowledge that the project wasn't missing anything on a wider market. Pyrate Queen does not. Bad Idea has created a format that will prevent breakout hits. What do you think about this?
One of the worst parts of being a nerd is how almost every corner of your life is consumed with sedentary pursuits. Mix this with a lifestyle of acquisition for dopamine hits and instant gratification, and you have a health time bomb. Let's encourage each other to find a way to introduce a balance into our nerd communities and be active. Not cross fit, mind you. Listen to the show and see what I mean. Also, go Cubbies.
RIP Dave of De La Soul
We talk briefly about compensation for your artistic works thanks to a viewer question.
We talk so little as the nerd community about our faith, whatever it may be, and how our media affects/reflects it.
So I ask "Does imaginative fiction challenge your faith, introduce doubt to your faith, or celebrate your faith?" Is the ability to weave dense worlds with intricate relationships and cosmologies a sign that maybe we did the same when the world's religions were created, or does it maybe show that humans are blessed with talents reflective of their creator? Have we just evolved into storytellers that want to make sense of the unknown? Does imaginative fiction make you want to look deeper into your faith or does it sour you to it?
In this lightly attended episode, Carl talks about the nature of us as individuals and wonders how much, and if, we can truly change OR if we can only become aware of change and need to continually work to overcome our default settings. Thanks nature and nurture! Also, mycomicshop better stop raising the prices on the Valiant back issues or I swear by Pete there will be hell to pay.
Change is a process and once resolve dissolves, we need each other's help to hold us accountable and encouraged to stick to our plan. Also, Barnes and Noble looks different than it did 15 years ago. Manga is fun but very different than the Big 2 comics I usually ingest. And you all should buy Glen Cook's The Black Company, out now in a new Tor Essentials edition, even if the cover looks like a donkey's butt.
Using digital media too much can lead to a situation where you forget how to sit and enjoy an LP or paperback. Comic fans are naturally resilient to this for a few reasons, which I discuss. Also a brief talk about how well meaning attention and sudden success can drown a person.
Do you like Japan? I mean, do you REALLY like Japan? Oh yeah? Name one waifu? When is the last time you build a Gunpla and what was it? Can you tell the difference between sushi and sashimi? Do you sleep on a tatami mat? How many Pocky can you eat?
These are the sort of questions that might be a red flag for a Western Japanophile that see Japan as a magical, wonderland ala Pandora or Oz, and not an actual culture with crime, families, industry, classes, debt, and hopes and aspirations. We focus so much on manga and anime and Godzilla and Power Rangers that we forget that for the majority of the country, life is still about survival and finding contentment against outside pressures.
This episode I talk briefly about my enjoyment of sumo, manga, and anime and how in my long exposure to things Japanese I have learned to be cautious about crossing that invisible line from anthropology to appropriation.
PLEASE NOTE: The first part of this episode's stream was not recorded for audio distribution. If you wish to see the stream in its entirety, be sure to check it out on replay at Twitch (carlsmithgames) or on my YouTube channel. I'm 1 for 4 with recording it properly, and for that I apologize.
What do you consider success? Are you successful? Are you approaching success, or is it forever pulling away from you? Do you think of yourself as a failure?
On this episode we talk about adulthood and success and how we measure it, and how we can retool our expectations and gift ourselves back a little peace of mind. We also talk about Valiant Comics, and how to deal with cruel situations where you do everything right and success still eludes you.
Join me live every Wednesday night on Twitch (https://twitch.tv/carlsmithgames) or watch the reply on Twitch or my YouTube channel, @carlsmith5256
follow me on twitter at @carlsmithwriter or on Instagram @carlsmithwrites
Are you resilient? Or do you have perseverance? What do those words mean and what happens when you find the limit of your store of them? Also we talk about the theater experience in 2023, and what movies are slated to come out... and that they mean for the movie industry.
*note - for the second week in a row I flubbed Audacity, but all you miss is the intro. 3 minutes up top is definitely better than losing the entire back half of an episode. I call these streams dress rehearsals for a reason.
Join me live every Wednesday night on Twitch (https://twitch.tv/carlsmithgames) or watch the reply on Twitch or my YouTube channel, @carlsmith5256
follow me on twitter at @carlsmithwriter or on Instagram @carlsmithwrites
The first ever live Goadkicker episode, broadcast on Twitch over on my new home https://www.twitch.tv/carlsmithgames
Topics: Marauders comic, Harm Reduction and Fentanyl
Goadkicker will be broadcast live each Wednesday night at 8:30 PM Central, then recorded and reposted here for the usual suspects.
PLEASE NOTE: Part 2 was lost as I did not restart recording at the midway break. You can watch the remainder of the stream, as well as this part, over on my Twitch channel. Please follow me there and join me live, where we can chat and interact in a way we were never able to in the past!
Carl falls down the nostalgia rabbit hole of 90s Playstation. In this episode he talks about what has inspired him to podcast about it.
Today Carl looks at his favorite comic book of all time... today, and it is Tarzan! Thrill as two brave American astronauts spalshdown only to find themselves in the inexplicably prehistoric world of Tarzan. Chill as dangerous predators lurk around every corner. Spills as the astronauts show themselves completely worthless, and never fire their sidearms once, instead relying on Tarzan and Barkak the Ape to do the dirty work while they cower and cry. Also, Bullwinkle shills for Cheerios and Gold Key gives us a wonderful ape-English dictionary. Reach me at carlsmithwriter@gmail.com and follow us at @goadkicker on Twitter.
Tim Benson (of OmahaBound) and Carl D Smith (Moleb the Giant, More Than Rust) continue to read through as many Hickman-era X-titles chronologically as they can before losing faith in everything they hold dear.
In this Episode, the guys read 25 comics, the contents of Dawn of X volumes 3-6 PLUS New Mutants 7, to finish out the first arc. What was Marvel thinking? A mutant beheaded, another cut in half, and one drowned! And that doesn't even count Apocalypse, or ::[A}::, the mutant formerly known as Apocalypse. Also, Storm stabs a man in the eye with a Wakandan dagger! Sunspot goes full Wonder Years! Fallen Angels mercifully ends!
Send your emails, tweets, audio files, comments, and praise to us on Twitter @goadkicer, via email to carlsmithwriter@gmail.com or on the Goadkicker Podcast page on Facebook. Be sure to check out Escape Pod Comics on both platforms as well, and also at Tik Tok and Instagram... Menachem might just help you find your next favorite read!
Tim Benson (of OmahaBound) and Carl D Smith (Moleb the Giant, More Than Rust) continue to read through as many Hickman-era X-titles chronologically as they can, or die trying.
In this Episode, the guys open 8 X-Men themed back issue grab bags from show sponsor and spirit animal, Escape Pod Comics. They then discuss the 12 comics contained within the Dawn of X Vol 1 and Vol 2 TPB. They argue about which series is the second best. A fight ensues. A fragile alliance is fractured. Will they find common ground? Will they unite again to fight a common enemy (Fallen Angels)? Find out in this here episode, dummies. Like we would give it away in the show notes!
Send emails, tweets, audio files, comments, and praise to us on Twitter @goadkicer, via email to carlsmithwriter@gmail.com or on the Goadkicker Podcast page on Facebook. Be sure to check out Escape Pod Comics on both platforms as well, and also at Tik Tok and Instagram... Menachem might just help you find your next favorite read!
Goadkicker finally adds a co-host. Welcome Tim Benson (of OmahaBound fame) as he joins Carl (of, er, Goadkicker fame) to read through as many Hickman-era X-titles chronologically as we can, until something shiny distracts us.
Thrill as Carl fails to recognize cameos! Chill as Tim forgives Hickman for the ultimate sin. Spills as Carl decides to finally use Audacity like every other podcast.
In this Episode, we kick off the All New, All Different Era of Goadkicker by reading the HoX/PoX trade, which collects all of 2019's House of X (1-6) and Powers of X (1-6). Tim gives us the elevator pitch, if the elevator is in the Sears Tower, and Carl finds a way to drag his weird flavor of prairie philosophizing into it all. Join us won't you?
Send emails, tweets, audio files, comments, and praise to us at carlsmithwriter@gmail.com or @carlsmithwriter on Twitter. If you use the Facebook, as the kids say, look up our Marvel fandom group Marvel Appreciation Society: Warts and All. We'd love to have you.
What's in store for the new season of Goadkicker?! And no, it's not "all nude, all different" you reprobates.
Carl reflects on use of data regarding nerd marketing, the Jet Li film Once Upon a Time in China, and Marvel's Star Trek #5. Plus, the first bonus Koala beat to close the show. Reach me at carlsmithwriter@gmail.com with your feedback!