Superhuman Registration Podcast: Recent Episodes
Stephen Bradford
Stephen, John, and Aldo read (and rank!) the best comics Marvel Unlimited has to offer. And the rest of the comics, too!
It’s moving day for Aldo, so John and Stephen fill in the schedule with a fun little game: robbery!
We draft expert criminals, petty crooks, and the most obnoxious characters from movies, TV, and comics to see who can rob a fictional bank.
Crime is bad. Don’t crime.
The Blade of the Moon Princess develops its world. The stakes rise, the cast expands, and the boys of the Make Mine Manga podcast find themselves questioning: do we even LIKE these people?
Meanwhile, Bakuman continues to be good, in case you were wondering.
It’s a tale of two Kaguyas on the latest installment of Make Mine Manga! The Legend of the Bamboo Cutter gets a sci-fi glow-up in The Blade of the Moon Princess, and a more earthly Kaguya tries hard not to fall in love in Love is War. Also: vehicular manslaughter in Yu-Yu-Hakusho!
Only one of these stories will be our next deep dive. Tune in to find out which!
This week, we say goodbye to Sakamoto Days after Stephen reads a chapter that actually moves his little heart. We also continue to flex our creative muscles by reading a book about creativity, which is almost the same as making stuff, right?
Neither technical difficulties nor the sniffoos will stop the men of Make Mine Manga from delivering a discussion on Bakuman and Sakamoto Days! The stakes are getting higher in both stories , the worlds are getting more expansive, and us? We’re in 100%.
And also getting more expansive, but we’re making some lifestyle changes and hoping to get things back under control.
A day late, but we still have a quality podcast for you! After a successful audition, the boys of Bakuman have a new audience to impress: the fellows of the “Make Mine Manga!” podcast. How does Bakuman stack up against the other title were reading, the assassin slice-of-life comedy Sakamoto Days?
In another round of auditions, the boys accidentally read the entirety of Tite Kubo’s Burn the Witch! That narrows the competition for the next round of reading quite a bit. Will the boys stick with Yu-Gi-Oh or Bakuman?
Between heartfelt conversations about parenting (or the aversion thereto) and which real life celebrities had cartoons about them, the boys manage to finish reading The Emperor and I and tackle the next leg of Sakamoto Days.
For the upcoming “holiday,” Stephen and Aldo continue their pressure campaign to get John to waste… just so much money. This week, the apple of temptation is the introduction of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to Magic: The Gathering.
The boys’ adventure through Shonen Jump’s offerings continue. We manage to drum up quite a bit of excitement for the ending of The Emperor and I, and Sakamoto Days continues to delight and baffle. In between all the non-sequitors, there’s some good discussion to be had here.
We’re reviewing another batch of three of the best stories Shonen Jump has to offer. Which will win: the story of the reformed hitman who teams up with a psychic, the story of the active hitman who teams up with a psychic, or the story of a… one-hit man? Is there a psychic? Probably in future chapters.
It’s Sakamoto Days, One-Punch Man, and Spy x Family on Make Mine Manga!
We close the book (for now) on Death Note - the manga so good we keep calling it One Piece for no apparent reason. As Light and L’s rivalry comes to an end, how are the boys feeling? And is The Emperor and I an adequate palate cleanser?
That’s a series wrap on All You Need is Kill - a first for this podcast adventure. Which, considering the length of the popular shonen manga series, isn’t all that surprising.
We talk about AYNIK - the good, the bad, and how it compares to the Yotsuba arc of Death Note.
Join us for an hour where the boys editorialize about current events, sexiness in comics, and the relative strengths and weaknesses of black and white vs. color art. Also, we talk about Death Note and All You Need Is Kill in there, too.
Well, the boys have committed to Death Note for the long haul, but it’s time to commit to a new series as well. There stories are on the ballot: The Emperor and Me, All You Need is Kill, and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. Can a cute penguin stand up against the ultraviolence of an alien invasion or a violent social climber?
After meeting Usopp and getting into… a whole lot of discourse, we say goodbye to One Piece (for now?). But we can’t quite bring ourselves to quit Death Note yet, especially now that things are getting so… interesting.
Aaaaaaand cue Ryuk eating an apple.
Well, poor Aldo came down ill over the Thanksgiving holiday, so John and Stephen take a moment to reminisce over their history with the current hottest pastime: tabletop roleplaying games!
In episode 3, we continue our exploration of One Piece and Death Note. We continue to marvel at the surprises and moral complexities of the latter, and we laugh as the former shows us how one man can kick another in the sensitives in new and exciting ways. Also, we try to avoid getting flagged by the DOJ. If there’s an episode 4, you’ll know we succeeded.
We continue our journeys through the worlds of One Piece and Death Note. We contemplate the morality of murder and the practicality of holding a sword in your mouth. You know, deep philosophical stuff.
I’d like to say we workshopped a better title than this, but we clearly didn’t.
John, Aldo, and Stephen embark on a new journey into the world of manga! This week: we trial three chapters of four different stories to get a feel for the landscape, and we select two to stick with for an additional seven chapters apiece. The readings are:
One Piece
Death Note
Cipher Academy
Dragon Ball
All good things…
In light of the highly disappointing (and frankly cowardly) behavior of Marvel’s parent company Disney in the face of government pressure, we’re… done? After this episode, no more Marvel comics. We’ll be back next month, twice monthly reviewing manga instead.
But before we go, we’ve got one last round of ranking, including the ragtag Legion of Monsters and the… anticapitalist(?) Iron Man(?!?).
What a way to end!
Well, the boys must be feeling angry. I’m sure there’s no reason identifiable in, say, literally any current events, so… it’s the Hulk this week! Three different brief Hulk stories, including the marriage of Bruce Banner, as well as the Hulk’s first true love!
…no, we certainly are still very angry, I’m sure.
The Superhuman Registration Podcast celebrates back to school season with another visit to Strange Academy, followed by a field trip to Avengers Academy. Magic! Mayhem! Teen drama and angst! The stuff dreams are made of.
I mean, the kind of dreams where you aren’t wearing pants and forgot to study for the test today, but still.
The Age of Apocalypse has ended, and we’ve turned our sights away from anything mutant related to focus instead on the new Ultimate universe (well, new-ish) and the Donny Cates run on Thor. After spending so much time with Marvel’s mutants, will we have anything to talk about now that we’ve moved on?
(Hint: look at the episode length.)
And we’ve finally arrived - the end of the Age of Apocalypse. We read the final stories making up the mega event, and we finally, FINALLY rank the the story on the official superhuman registry. How does the event rank?
Boy, we’ve been wandering through this dark alternate universe for what feels like months now. Will we ever find our way through this endless Age of Apocalypse?
Well, almost. The conclusion will be next time, but for this week we have to tackle X-Man and Amazing X-Men. And we will talk about them… after a few detours about professional wrestling, how to improve the Marvel Unlimited app, and which special effects movies from twenty years ago still hold up.
Our tour of the Age of Apocalypse continues! This time, we look through the mirror darkly at Factor X, X-Calibre, and Generation Next. As we do, we ask ourselves the question: is this all TOO dark?
But only briefly, cuz we still weirdly seems to be having a good time of things.
Almost since the beginning of this podcast, Stephen has looked for a way to have the boys review the classic 90s event comic, the Age of Apocalypse. Finally, we decided to rip the Band-Aid off and just dive in. We start this week with Legionquest, and we’ll make our way through one book at a time over the course of the next several weeks.
Since John’s away, Stephen decided to break out an old issue of Wizard magazine - that giant of pop-culture reporting back in the early 2000s - to spark a conversation with Aldo over who the best villains of all time are. How well do these takes from 2006 age?
No, it isn’t a crossover between malefic monkeys King Kong and Mojo Jojo. Rather, we’re exploring some curious side stories featuring everyone’s favorite villains. Kang! Kingpin! Mojo!
…well, Stephen likes Mojo.
Two thirds of our little group have never played Marvel Rivals. Will the comic adaptation (tie-in? advertisement?) convince them to join the bandwagon? We’ll find out right after we check in with where we left the Runaways last time in Miami.
Look, there’s no real theme connecting these two books. Not everything has to be connected. Life is chaotic. Let that be fun!
The Marvel Mangaverse is one of the weirder artifacts of early-2000s comicsdom. Is it a back-issue bizarrerie, or a buried gem?
Also, Iron Fist was one of the stars of the post-Civil War Marvel universe. How does this Fraction/Brubaker hold up today?
It’s the joke that won’t die! When Medusa appears in the replacement roster for the FF, of COURSE we see it as an opportunity to dunk on our favorite weird superhero name.
Also… Star Wars! You know Star Wars, right? But do you know Star Wars comics? Even if they are just the movie again? It’s the manga adaptation of Return of the Jedi on the Superhuman Registration Podcast!
With the others out of commission, Stephen takes the bold stand of declaring that some of the MCU films aren’t very good, while others are pretty great. Yes, we’re still talking about this in 2025. Come for the bad takes, stay for the regrettable takes.
Well, none of us are feeling particularly patriotic at the moment. Luckily, neither is Cap, which makes Ta-Nehesi Coates’s “Captain of Nothing” an appropriate read for the moment.
”Cosmic Cooties,” featuring both Moon Girl AND Devil Dinosaur, is less timely but still satisfying. Join us for the evening, won’t you?
With the earth looking so bleak these days, we turn our eyes to the stars… only to see the Annihilation Wave headed for us? What the crap, stars?!!?
It’s Annihilation: Scourge and the origin of Spider-Woman on this week’s Superhuman Registration Podcast!
Way back in 2014, the Superior Fors of Spider-Man took the world by storm.
[checks notes]
Excuse me… I’m reading here that they got up to a lot of mischief and… peed themselves a lot.
[clears throat] Awkward.
Anyway, how do their adventures hold up in 2025? Let’s sit down and give it a read.
We continue to slowly make our way through a pair of critically-acclaimed series: The Mighty Thor and The Immortal Hulk. Both arcs today deal with themes of superheroic theology, which excites the heck out of Stephen. But are the stories any good? Let’s rank them and see!
For the holidays, we each picked someone out and gave them a single issue story that we thought they would like/find interesting to discuss. Then, of course, we all met up to talk about them! Happy holidays! See you in 2025!
After a 2014 publication revealed some significant gaps in our Marvel readings, we plugged a couple of them in a double-feature, including Daredevil: Born Again and Days of Future Past. Bottom line: these are good books. But to find out just how good, you’ll have to listen!
There’s nothing to fear but fear itself, the saying goes. But is Fear Itself even worthy of fear? That’s the question the boys have to face tonight as they read the main event and the tie-in, Hulk Vs. Dracula. Don’t miss it!
Poor Aldo’s taken a sick day, so Stephen and John provide a bit of banter over the best Marvel stories as chosen by Marvel readers… in 2014. How has their selection of best Marvel stories aged? And why is ours better?
Happy Halloween!
And, like every Halloween, we’re bringing you a factory sealed and packaged treat full of Marvel Zombies and other spooky stories. No razorblades here - we promise!
This season, in addition to tackling Marvel Zombies Supreme, we’ve got the recent Darkhold Saga - a Twilight Zone-esque look at darker timelines for your favorite superheroes. And also Black Bolt.
[Stephen: I actually like Black Bolt…]
When John’s away, Aldo and Stephen will play. And the game they play is “Which Marvel characters would make good guest stars in classic anime?” John’s presence never really deters the weabiness from coming forth, but be warned: this episode is just a LOT of anime.
After we continue our journey through Superior Spider-Man, we realize that we’ve hit a real milestone. It’s our 300th story… with a twist so devilish you’d think we were reading One More Day again! Alas, it’s not to be… It’s potentially worse? Really? That can’t be right.
After all, how bad could Trouble be?
It’s a bit of a lighter read this week, but a good one. The boys tackle Johnathan Hickman’s Doom one-shot… well, Hickman was the writer, but the real draw (no pun intended) was Sanford Green’s amazing art.
From there, things get EVEN MORE SERIOUS with the grim event comic that is Shadowland! Can Luke Cage and Iron Fist save Daredevil from his darkest demons?
We’re feeling a touch romantic this week. No particular reason. We just love you!
Three of Marvel’s biggest wedding stories are in the spotlight this week: Reed and Sue, Spidey and MJ, and Northstar and Kyle. How will the books fare on the great Superhuman Registration Podcast list?
Nostalgia is a strong spice, but does it accent the quality of John’s first comic (the 1992 New Warriors event “The Hero Killers”), or is it simply so much pepper to mask the stink of something rotten?
Also… Venom! It’s not the 90s anymore as of Donny Cates’s 2018 run. Why does that relic of the most extreme decade feel better today than it did then?
Aldo spent our usual recording time at Evo, so John and Stephen were left to their own devices. So they did what any parents would do when their kid leaves town: brainstorm which Marvel characters would make for the best musicals! Featuring Chris, who is perhaps most famous (at least in our circles) for… being John’s brother-in-law.
Today’s hero double-feature is… less heroic. First, we’ve got the slightly monstrous Immortal Hulk. Then, we’ve got the wonderful She-Hulk, who’s very heroic in deed, but her personal life is kinda trash. Between the continued descent into horror we see in Bruce Banner and the offbeat comedy and heart in “Single Green Female,” I think we can conclude we’re all Hulk fans now.
It’s Patriot Season in the US, which means the boys are reading some more Captain America stories. Will the Star-Spangled avenger help our boys overcome their current nationalist-fatigue? Or will they walk away cold?
(You get it? Cuz… cuz the stories we read are “Winter in America” and “Cold War”?)
(Guess I should have explained that first.)
The X-Men and Captain Britain are, perhaps, the two most convoluted corners of the Marvel universe… and when they intersect in Betsy Braddock, you know there are gonna be shenanigans! Can our curious kiddos keep their craniums above the convoluted current of continuity long enough to dive deep into the Peach Momoko epic that is Demon Wars? Why not give this episode a listen and find out!
Join us for another episode where the boys valiantly strive - and fail - to stay on topic. The topic: Iron Man “Armor Wars” and Ms. Marvel… mutant?
The tangents? Hololive, the Flash’s Rogue’s Gallery, and Whoopie cushions. The usual.
The boys get back to that far, far away galaxy for another crack at Marvel’s Star Wars.
First, we check in with that lovable scamp Dr. Aphra to see where her adventures have gone.
Then, we tackle an unconventional (manga) adaptation of… possibly the greatest sequel ever? It’s The Empire Strikes Back, and boy does the anime aesthetic add… something.
A bit late this week, but this discussion is worth it. We cover all things Sins of Sinister, including:
- The extreme stylishness of Sinister himself
- The horror of a teleporting baby
- The return of the gun fired in the first act
- How to make cool characters by copying other cool characters
All this, plus a spider attack and more!
An odd double-feature this week, covering issues of Mockingbird and Hulk. What do the characters have in common? How about deep psychological themes? Folks are into that sort of introspective storytelling nowadays, right?
This week, it’s the Merc with the Mouth facing off against America’s Founding Fathers (and more) in Dead Presidents - a story which feels maybe more timely now than it did when published in… oh. Oh dear. How old we all are now.
Let’s try to recapture some of that fleeting youth by also visiting a new spin on a classic character. Can Rise of Ultraman help us feel young again?
For decades, scholars have wondered about Darkhawk. Who is he? Are his books any good? Can he introduce me to Wolverine? How good, exactly, was the Kyle Higgins-penned miniseries from a few years back. We aim to resolve these disputes today.
Also: dads. What are they? Is Reed Richards a good one? Why not, exactly? Fantastic Four: Life Story paints a compelling picture of Marvel’s first family that had us talking for HOURS.
This podcast is edited for brevity. You’re welcome.
After a couple of real bummer weeks, the boys tackle some stories guaranteed to lighten hearts and tickle sides:
A series of delightful super heists starring Marvel’s own Catwoma… I mean, Black Cat!
A reality (and fourth-wall) shattering adventure featuring everyone’s favorite anthropomorphic animal sendup of an established big-name superhero, Spider-Ham!
The X-Men are known for fun, world- and universe-hopping adventures with incredible dialogue and deep, interpersonal relationships. They are also known for being… just REALLY heavy. We’re here to talk about a couple of stories from the latter category, so… get ready for some bummers, I guess.
Theyre good stories, though: God Loves, Man Kills, and Worst X-Man Ever.
Rumors spread about the return of the Ultimates universe… but how did it begin in the first place? Well, with Spider-Man, but we’re not reading that one this time. Join us for a look at the early days of Ultimate Marvel Classic (TM) with Ultimate Iron Man and Ultimate Fantastic Four!
Personal obligations again keep the boys apart, but never fear! John is here, and he brought his sisters Erin, Christina, and Lauren along for a very fun pub quiz. Does watching the movie give you enough information to pass the book report? Let’s find out!
Whenever we need some easy reading, we remind ourselves that comics are a serialized medium and look for single issue stories. Are any of these stories (about Cloak and Dagger, Spider-Man, and Daredevil) buried treasures!
Yes! But which one?
What better way to pass your post-holiday food coma than by listening to a couple of knowledgeable blokes discuss the life and death of the most important literary figure in history?
Comics history, that is. And the assertion is that Wolverine is the most important. Discuss.
Planet Hulk is empirically one of the best Marvel comics ever made… but what about the stories that came next? The boys tackle World War Hulk and Banner’s vengeful rampage. Then we turn our attention to Hulk’s companions in Aftersmash: Warbound, and find ourselves surprisingly moved by the relationship between a couple of rocky bros.
This year, we’re thankful for… comics! But are we thankful for THESE comics? Give the episode a listen and find out what we thought of Photon and Love Unlimited featuring Ms. Marvel and Red Dagger.
As long as it’s still seasonally appropriate to watch Over the Garden Wall, it’s still seasonally appropriate to have a Halloween episode. Our annual return to Marvel Zombies brought some surprises in the form of Marvel Zombies 5, and our nostalgia buttons were definitely pressed when we read the RL Stine-penned Man-Thing. Did we actually like the stories? Listen to the episode and find out!
Once again, the demands of the real world have preempted out usual schedule, but never fear! John is here to reminisce about a series of short stories he holds in high regard: the frequent Marvel collaborations between Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale.
Legacy superheroes often star in compelling stories. How do the children of Wolverine fare in Orphans of X?
Plus, the boys take a look at the future past (or is the the past future) of a galaxy far, far away in Star Wars: Legacy. Now a Legends title!
The Masters of Evil may take center stage on this week’s discussion of Avengers: Under Siege and Thunderbolts, but you won’t believe how much Burn Notice we can manage to talk about at the same time.
The real world has been a beast lately, so the boys are taking a week off from the grind of… reading… comics.
To help pass the time, though, Stephen is here with three recommendations for favorite comics books.
That’s “books about comics,” not “comic books.” Here’s a good opportunity to practice those language comprehension skills that may have been left fallow for a while!
Personal drama is getting in the way of getting an episode out on time, but hopefully a surprise drop helps your hump day along!
We’re continuing our read through two fantastic Dan Slott runs: Silver Surfer and Superior Spider-Man. Grab your trades and follow along!
Episode is a bit late this week, but we think it’ll be worth the wait. The boys take a look at the career of the late, great John Romita Sr. through some of the amazing comics he left behind. We always love the chance to flex our art critic muscles, and we enjoyed seeing the way JRSR influenced the industry. We hope you enjoy the conversation.
The High Evolutionary - star of the big screen and of this week’s episode, where the boys take a look at 1989’s Evolutionary War saga. The landscape of Marvel events looks dramatically different now from 25-ish years ago. How well does this event hold up?
New babies mean the boys are taking a break this week, but that didn’t stop Aldo from doing a deep dive into the career of one of our favorite art teams: the incomparable Gurihiru!
The comics Star Wars universe keeps getting bigger, and we continue to poke around out there with another installment of the Doctor Aphra series!
Plus, the tendrils of Marvel/Disney have been grabbing different properties for years. We take a look at a more obscure offering in Mystic, an old Crossgen property with a fresh coat of paint.
IT’s JEFF!!!
…no, seriously. It’s just Jeff. We did a whole episode about Jeff the land shark and the Infinity Comic dedicated to his adorable antics.
If we had the chance, we’d do it again.
This week, we tackle a pair of character-defining stories (or at least character-illuminating): Daredevil’s “The Devil in Cell Block D” and Captain Marvel’s “Enemy Within.” Read along and enjoy the show!
The Marvel era of Star Wars is a curious one, that brings opportunities to explore the cast of the original trilogy in a way that’s never been done before*. This week, the boys dip into a few issues of the Age of the Rebellion event to see what more can be done with Luke, Han, Leia, and Vader.
*E.U.? What’s that?
Our two stories this week take us to the edge of the universe… and beyond!
A review of 2012’s X-treme X-Men prompts a discussion of what makes a good alternate universe story, while the landmark 2006 event Annihilation has us questioning how the Guardians of the Galaxy even came to exist.
Spider-Man, Spider-Man,
Does whatever a spider can!
…which, this week, includes DIE. It’s the Death of [Ultimate] Spider-man, this week on the Superhuman Registration Podcast.
WITH some bonus Miles Morales.
This week, we take a look into the deep back catalog for some stories that completely passed us by. Is the 2004 Starjammer’s series secretly one of the best stories ever written? What about 2017’s Nick Fury miniseries? We gambled - did we strike gold?
It’s time for the sequel nobody asked for except for some branding genius at Disney: Civil War II!
In reviewing the first Civil War event, the boys decided that the best stuff in this massive crossover occurred in the tie-in issues. Will the same hold true here? Is Civil War II: Kingpin somehow better than the main event? And is the main event itself any good? Let’s find out together!
Lots of folks are curious about Black Knight after his appearance in the MCU (spoilers: Stephen hasn’t seen it yet), so the boys at the podcast decided to visit the character’s very early origins.
We also dip our toes back into the waters of early 2000s Fantastic Four comics and the work of creative wizard Grant Morrison. Is 1 2 3 4 as rough a read as we’ve heard?
Out there, there are infinite universes, and yet in all of them, Tony Stark is a jerk. We head back to the Ultimates universe for a second stint with that world’s premier superhero team. It’s Ultimates 2! The first one!
The podcast’s trend to track down stories about under-the-radar characters continues this week with a double feature, starring the most obscure X-Man, Wolverine!
[checks notes]
The boys read the Gambit team-up sorry, Victims, and follow that up with a Jason Aaron-penned team up with that other most underrated character, Spider-Man!
[checks notes again]
Yeah, I’ve never heard of any of these folks.
We’re getting a real two-for-one this week, as the boys read Aero, an adaptation of a Chinese manhua which introduces Stephen to his favorite Marvel Snap card. As a treat, this series also has a backup featuring Wave, a Marvel Snap character Stephen has yet to unlock. A single twelve-issue series that gives us BOTH our stories to rank? What a bargain!
The folks at the Superhuman Registration Podcast appear to be mining Marvel Snap for their story ideas, as they are reading primarily stories focused on their favorite cards from the game. In this week’s installment, they tackle a Blade-centric story in 2004’s Tomb of Dracula. After that, it’s a return to Ironheart when the character gets her own ongoing series in 2019. How does the character’s solo story hold up now that she’s out of Iron Man’s shadow? Give it a listen and find out!
We kick off the new year by visiting the Star Wars side of Marvel with a couple of weirdly Empire-specific tie-ins.
First, we look at the alternate-timeline series Star Wars Infinities, where the story of the original Empire Strikes Back plays out after Luke escapes the wampa on Hoth and… dies. Huh.
The second story is a modern take on some of the events bridging Empire and Return of the Jedi, where the worst eBay bidding war takes place over the body of Han Solo. Also, some bounty hunters fight. It’s War of the Bounty Hunters.
We’re back from sick leave with our technically holiday episode! There’s not much to celebrate when the King in Black comes around, except for maybe we like Venom now? Also, we visited the world of Marvel’s Champions, because what says Christmas more than teen heroes?
Well, the plague has come to the Superhuman Registration Podcast, and none are spared. So we’re skipping our usual episode format this week, and instead Stephen is taking a closer look at the career of letterer extraordinaire Chris Eliopoulos!
We take a break from the tights and flights this week to discuss some classic literature. We look first at the Marvel adaptation of Pride and Prejudice (no zombies - October was last month), and then we review The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (no music - comics are a visual medium).
We took a break from playing Marvel Snap to try something a little different. We still read a bunch of comics (in this case, Giant Size Dracula #2, The New Mutants Special Edition #1, and The Chris Claremont Anniversary Special), but this time we chose to focus on the career of one individual. There’s a clue to who the topic of our exploration this week was in one of the issue titles. Can you figure it out?
The spookiest season of ‘22 concludes with the traditional observation of All Hallow’s Eve: trick or treating, singing the Monster Mash around a trash fire… and, of course, the annual reading of Marvel Zombies. This year, we tackle Marvel Zombies Return, and we follow that up with a little Halloween cheesecake in the form of 2001’s Bloodstone.
Welcome to the last* episode of the Superhuman Registration Podcast! We go out with a bang. A big one, like the bang of a backfiring motorcycle from hell. We’ve got a double-feature of Ghost Rider this week, specifically focusing on Robbie Reyes, both as a soloist and an Avenger.
*not actually the last, even though John is wrong about soup.
We got another threefer - this one, a trip through the history! We start at the beginning, with the creation of a (counter) Earth in Marvel Premiere #1. From there, we move to the birth of modern mutant storytelling with Giant Size X-Men #1. Lastly, we conclude with a jaunt to an alternate history in Spider-Man Life Story Annual.
It’s been a while coming: this week, the gang tackles John’s Holy Grail, his White Whale, the conclusion to the Hope Summers trilogy of X-events: Second Coming.
And then Stephen and Aldo put it at the bottom of the list JUST KIDDING!
…or am I?
Heists and hijinks dominate this week’s discussion of two tales from very different corners of the Marvel universe… with one unexpected overlap*!
Tune in for our discussion of MODOK’s 11 and the opening arc of Mark Waid’s Daredevil!
*It’s the Spot, of all things.
The rise of a certain Atlantean to the big screen prompts the boys of the Superhuman Registration Podcast to explore the life and times of Namor the Sub-Mariner!
…or, at least, the life and that one time he invaded New York in Fantastic Four Annual #1.
We follow that up with Secret Invasion, a Marvel event unlike any other event comic, in that it might be the most 2008 comic we’ve ever read.
From the depths of the jungle to the far reaches of space where only the best ice cream may be found, the Superhuman Registration Podcast leaves no corner of the Marvel Universe unexplored. Join us this week for a look at Shanna the She-Devil and a return to the cosmic adventures of Doctor Wh- I mean, Silver Surfer.
In this episode, the Merc with the Mouth faces off against the Man who Never Misses… it’s Deadpool: Bullseye!!!
That’s the shot, and here’s the chaser: Peach Momoko takes on the Marvel Universe in a delightful fantasy tale that can only be called Demon Days!
You love to see it.
A triple-threat this week!
…by which I mean, three different short stories.
We visit the FF with “Childhood’s End” and ask ourselves, “What IS feminism, really?”
The New Mutants graphic novel confirms our pre-established bias that Professor X is, in fact, a jerk.
And then, we totally fell for the thirst trap that is Mary Jane & Black Cat Beyond… finding out it actually isn’t a thirst trap at all. Well played.
In an unfortunate bit of timing, we read Daredevil: Yellow, and got to share our praise of the late, great Tim Sale. We won’t bury the lede: he was a fantastic artist, and this is some of his best work. He’ll be missed.
We also read the first part of 2014’s Magneto series. I’m not really in the mood for jokes in this summary, but we make some in the episode, so you can listen to it and have a laugh there.
This week’s two stories were historic, but for entirely different reasons.
First up, we have an adaptation of the first draft of a little-known movie called Star Wars. I think the story we read here is pretty interesting, though I’m not sure it’ll lead to anything.
Next up: in memory of George Perez, we tackled the first appearance of a powerful Hulk antagonist, the Maestro!
Sony’s continued attempts to turn Spider-Man villains into solo movies led us to give a chance to El Muerto in a two-part Spider-Man story called “Masks”!
Meanwhile, recent losses in the comics community turned our attention to the legend Neil Adams and his contribution to the early Marvel event, the Kree-Skrull War!
This week, we take a deep dive into history… in more ways than one!
First, we go to the classic Stan and Jack X-Men stories to meet, for the very first time, the Sentinels!
We follow that up with a more recent story that takes its OWN jaunt into the past. It’s time travel shenanigans with Squirrel Girl!
This week, the boys dive back into a pair of series we’ve visited in the past to see how things progress. We tackle the second arc of Superior Spider-Man and lose ourselves in an epic mind fight! Plus, we learn more of the mystery of Mjolnir in the second arc of Jane Foster’s Thor tenure.
It’s a Marvelous 2 for 1 this week (please don’t sue us for that, Disney). First, we cover a cute two-issue story where Captain Marvel gets to know her “cat” a little better.
Then… Kamala Khan gets a BOOOOYFRIIEEEND!!!
It is the beginning of the end…
…or, at least, that’s how it feels when the fellas of the Superhuman Registration Podcast tackle this week’s reading. Just how divisive is 2002’s Ultimates?
Well, it’s not that divisive. But still, it threatens to tear the podcast apart.
A couple of short mini-series provokes a lengthy conversation about patriotism, medical ethics, and indigenous representation. Is this still a comic book podcast?
Yes it is. Join us for a discussion of United States of Captain America and Doctor Strange: The Oath.
Today, we look at the stories of two heroes who have brushes with the pure evil inside their souls. Join us as we look at the story of Illyana Rasputin and her sojourn in Limbo in Magik.
We also take a look at Superior Iron Man, where Tony Stark doesn’t even have to go to hell to be evil.
This week’s episode features drama on both sides of the pond: vampires in the UK and family trouble in Washington Heights.
…”Vampires in the UK” sounds like a Clash song.
Anyway, it’s “Captain Britain and MI13” and “America Chavez” on the new episode of the Superhuman Registration Podcast.
The Superhuman Registration Podcast had to take a bit of a break to recover from the sniffles, so we’re taking a break to focus a bit on the artistic career of Art Spiegelman.
…wait, he’s not a Marvel comics creator, is he? What’s going on?
This week, we drop into the middle of a Jason Aaron run on Hulk that really ticks me off. I could settle down, but I think instead I’m gonna… “Stay Angry.”
…
…nothing?
Fine. We also read X-Force for the introduction of the X-Statix team.
No labored jokes there. Are you happy?
We delved deep into the secret recesses of the Marvel comics archive and came up with a peculiar story where Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Wolverine… aren’t. It’s a look at Powerless. Couple that with a discussion of The Rise of Skywalker predecessor Dark Empire, and we’re in for a curious discussion.
Getting ready to ring in the new year by reading a trio of stories featuring favorite Marvel characters for the very first time! She-Hulk! Dr. Doom! And last but not least… Spider-Gwen!
…or is it Ghost Spider? Spider-Woman? Whatever, she’s great!
It’s time for the holidays once again, which means we had to track down some more one-shot holiday specials! Will this be the batch that proves quality Christmas comics exist?
…no? Are you sure?
Featuring Moon Knight, the Punisher, and the Winter Soldier!
Just so you know… our podcast is changing. We are now the SUPERIORhuman Registration podcast, and we’re kicking things off with the first arc or Superior Spider-Man, followed by the introduction of Daredevil villain Typhoid Mary.
And if it sounds to you like we didn’t actually change anything, wait until you meet our “celebrity” “guest” “host.”
Few things shake the fabric of the Marvel universe - or its readers’ sanity - like an X-Men crossover event. Today, the gang tackles one of the most 90s-est of all such events - the X-Cutioner’s Song!
Marvel unlimited recently launched a new initiative with digital-only offerings, and this week the Superhuman Registration Podcast gives them a look. What did we think of Shang-Chi and Captain America? Let’s find out together, shall we?
We’ve all had a rough year, so we scaled back on the spooky. But we couldn’t leave you completely spookless, so we still brought you Marvel Zombies part 4. Balanced that out with a lighter story in Old Man Logan…
…actually, maybe we should go back to the spooky.
What do today’s stories have in common?
We… uh… have a lot to say about them both?
The new hotness (Heroes Reborn 2021) goes up against a legendary disaster (X-Men’s ‘The Draco”). Will our cuddly hosts be able to make it through?
Some technical issues got in the way today, but we still squeezed in a pretty good discussion of The Eternals Saga from Thor! Plus: what do the boys of the Superhuman Registration Podcast have to say about What If…?
Original Sin is here to ask what secrets the heroes of the Marvel universe are keeping. The Superhuman Registration Podcast is here to ask if the secrets matter?
This week, the crew tackles a couple of cult team books, starting with the recent Agents of Atlas revival, and then following it up with a Runaways story from… we’ll go with “noteworthy” creator Joss Whedon.
Welcome to the inaugural episode of the Doyle Dormammu podcast - the podcast dedicated to all things Doyle Dormammu and Strange Academy. Or, you know, at least the first six issues.
Before we make that transition, though, we’ve got a Fantastic Four story to get through: a Walt Simonson joint featuring the TVA - as seen on TV!
It’s another three-for-one: three single-issue stories for your enjoyment! The Sandman and the Thing find they have more in common than their geologies in Marvel 2-in-1. Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker clash over podracing in Star Wars Annual #4. Finally, the most unforgettable X-Man ever makes his unforgettable debut in X-Men Legacy #300. And his name is… umm… I forget.
Summertime shenanigans are afoot, and we weren’t able to stick to our usual recording schedule. Luckily, Aldo has stepped in to provide us with a look at the career of artist Humberto Ramos. Give it a listen!
It’s a very special episode of the Superhuman Registration Podcast... inasmuch as they are all special! We return to Battleworld to check in with Robbie Reyes and the Ghost Racers, and then it’s back to the main Marvel universe to check in with Shang Chi.
Will there be tangents? YOU BET THERE WILL BE.
The most unlikely of double-features gives the crew the chance to talk about their favorite Disney rides along with the usual Spider-Man stuff. It’s time for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Absolute Carnage!
Today the boys tackle one of the more bizarre denizens of the Marvel universe: that mischievous denizen of the margins, Doop! Also, as time moves on, new faces assume the mantle of hero, which gives us the opportunity to meet the new, unstoppable Wasp!
Today’s double-feature is unlike any other! We’ve got Silver Surfer! Galactus! Mephisto! A dolphin in combat armor! And more*!
Join us for a discussion of some deep Marvel lore with Brute Force and Silver Surfer!
*more animals in combat armor.
The circle is now complete... after three years, we go back to (one of) our very first episodes and finish up our review of Hawkeye by Fraction and Aja. Does it hold up now that we are so much older and more jaded?
Yes, obviously. But how WELL?
It’s our three-year anniversary!
...sort of...
...okay, not really, but everyone is tired and stressed out so we’re reading some Spider-Man, okay?
It’s Civil War and Cadaverous on this week’s Superhuman Registration Podcast!
The podcast today tackles a truly daunting task of continuity janitorial work: the Young Avengers’ Children’s Crusade! There’s love in the air - some exciting, some contentious, and some just baffling (Doom and Wanda? It’ll never work).
Plus: Genndy Tartakovsky comes to Marvel and tackles Luke Cage! How does that go? Is it as pretty as it sounds like it’ll be?
The gang’s all here to discuss Kang in his seminal appearance, The Kang Dynasty. Our leading villain makes quite the impression... but how does the rest of the story land?
It’s time for Planet Hulk, and the Superhuman Registration Podcast gang is here for it. Hulk smashes - a lot - and it’s a wild ride.
Plus: we share our thoughts on WandaVision.
Who are the Guardians of the Galaxy? Where did they come from? Where are they now? We explore a pair of Guardians stories - from the distant past and the near-past - to see if we can answer those questions.
We... we can’t.
Love is in the air... and in the pages of Marvel comics. Whether in a galaxy far, far away, or in the distant future, or in Queens, our heroes are feeling the sting of Cupid’s arrows. Get ready for some smooches with the Marvel Valentine’s Special, a Han/Leia Star Wars misadventure, and the most romantic Marvel character of them all: the Punisher.
Things may be looking a little more hopeful in the real world, but the boys at the Superhuman Registration Podcast are still a bit stuck in the darkness on this week’s episode. Between the ultra violent Messiah War and the unbelievable atrocities of Unthinkable, you’d think they’d give up all hope. How do they manage to keep their morale up?
Butt jokes. Lots and lots of butt jokes.
We kick off the new year right with a pair of surprisingly interesting stories. Taskmaster takes center stage in his own miniseries, and then we take a look at this new Spider-Man everybody is talking about...
Oh, wait. Miles Morales debuted in 2011?
Anybody else feel old?
We ring in the new year with a celebration of Marvel’s history, from the very beginning (Marvel Comics #1) to its most recent milestone (Marvel Comics #1000). This winds up being about five million different stories, so don’t say we never did nothin’ for you!
Happy holidays, no matter which holidays you are observing this season. Christmas! Hanukkah! ...Pantsgiving?
We’re looking at some of Marvel’s merriest holiday specials, featuring Wolverine, the X-Men, and Gwenpool.
While most of the world is getting ready for Christmas, the boys at the Superhuman Registration Podcast are still working off that turkey. We looked at a trio of Thanksgiving comics and are excited to share them with you.
We got a strange double-feature this week, from the dense and esoteric Riot at Xavier’s to the... uh... “distinctive” Galacta, Daughter of Galactus. It’s probably worth a listen.
Our third annual spooky celebration kicks off - as is just and proper - with Marvel Zombies 3. We follow up with a surprisingly fun Spirits of Vengeance crossover from 2017. If you want to hold onto the spoopiness of Halloween into the Thanksgiving season, we’ve got a podcast for you!
This week, we explore both an ending and a beginning: the end of the remarkable Waid/Samnee run on Daredevil, and the (re)birth of Bucky Barnes in The Winter Soldier.
Come visit with us the origin of everyone’s favorite spider-themed hero, first appearing in the pages of Amazing Fantasy. It’s... Araña!
...Was that mean? Felt kinda mean.
Anyway, we also read some Silver Surfer. Good mix of comics all around.
This week, we visit a nostalgia bomb - one of John’s first comics! Wolverine and Jubilee face a self-aware Sentinel in Wolverine 72-74.
Then, we try to vent some frustration with racists by exploring a scuffle between Black Panther and the Klan. It’s... “The Panther Vs. the Klan.”
The Phoenix Force returns to Earth. Avengers and X-Men clash. The Marvel Universe will never be the same!
Also... Avengers vs. X-Men hits the Superhuman Registration Podcast. Some of us liked it, and some of us didn’t. The podcast will (also) never be the same!
We explore the psyches of some of Marvel’s most infamous by seeing how they react at their lowest points. It’s “Demon in a Bottle” and “Triumph and Torment” on the Superhuman Registration Podcast.
I think Doctor Doom literally going to hell counts as a low point, right?
It’s a very special episode of the podcast today: three stories in one, and the discussion is full of life lessons. Come join us to learn all about exercise, voting, and... uh... how bad a dude Thanos is.
Reading Earth X, the boys face an existential question:
Where do you come down on child murder?
The answers may* surprise you!
*but they probably won’t.
Come dive in to the increasingly complicated IP soup that is Marvel comics, as we explore a couple of Marvel’s more peculiar recent acquisitions: Doctor Aphra from Star Wars and Angela, formerly of Image Comics. Lots to unpack on today’s episode. Angels and valkyries! Droids and Jedi! Way too much Hamilton talk!
Sneakily, we found a way to sneak in three stories this week:
1-Damage Control’s Acts of Vengeance tie in.
2-The 2016 return of Power Man and Iron Fist.
3-Stephen’s Bachelor fan fiction.
It’s all good! Or... well, at least it all... exists.
Forget it, Jake. It’s the SHR Podcast. We take a look at some noir-inspired takes on Spider-Man and the X-Men, and it’s a wild ride. Take a look, see!
That... that was my gangster voice. It’s the best I can do.
The world is literally on fire! This is NOT fine! And yet... comics are still a thing, and we’re still reading them. We had a surprisingly robust conversation stemming from Ahmed and Ward’s Black Bolt. Come join in!
After a couple of wild events, we get back to a sense of normalcy... as far as that gets us in the Marvel universe. Today’s episode features Marvel samurai in 5 Ronin, a fearsome deicidal monster in Thor: God Butcher, and a surprise appearance by France’s own Le Super Homme.
Your favorite armchair comics critics are completely overwhelmed by the scope and magnitude of Marvel’s X-Men storytelling... and that’s before they get to House of X and Powers of X. The mega mutant event of 2019 is here in the timeliest review ever in Superhuman Registration Podcast History.
It’s been two years... No, not the Coronavirus crisis (although it certainly feels like it), but the Superhuman Registration Podcast! We celebrate by chatting a bit about some great comfort reads, and, for the main event... Secret Wars 1984! Don’t miss it!
Everybody’s under lockdown, but we’ve all still got steady access to our comics. So on with the podcast!
While reading Daredevil: Man Without Fear and Spider-Man: Life Story, Stephen finds himself struggling with the concept of his own mortality. Meanwhile, Aldo discusses his new normal (it involves Oreos and The White Stripes) and John forgets how books work.
Aldo, Stephen, and John mine the deep history of comics writers for a few high-profile women’s writers. First up to bat is Nnedi Okorafor and her much-anticipated Shuri series. Following that, Stephen persuades the team to read Ann Nocenti’s Longshot - with mixed results.
Whew, boy! We felt out of our depth with this one, but we did our best. You can’t be punished for good intentions, right? Right?
cough
Truth is, we liked Truth: Red White and Black. And Big Hero 6 was also... well, we read that one, too.
It’s one of THOSE episodes... Technically, we talk about Spider-Island and the 2018 return of the Fantastic Four, but we ALSO get into John’s Wiki-quoting failures and Aldo’s weird anime worship.
Be sure to share your vote on who the biggest buzzkill is!
(It’s Stephen)
With spouses getting sick, John steps up to the mic to soliloquize one of the most prominent writers in the game, Brian Michael Bendis!
Content warning: sexual assault.
Yeah, it’s one of those episodes. But what do you expect when The Purple Man is in town? This episode, we cover Jessica Jones: Purple Daughter.
Also, a discussion of the New Mutants’ Demon Bear Saga leads to some uncomfortable conversations, like how to pronounce “Saoirse.”
The usual tangents emerge - Aldo talks about Naruto, Stephen thinks the movie you liked sucks, and John describes some Hulu thing nobody’s seen. Amidst all that, we find time to review both Howard the Duck and The Unbelievable Gwenpool. Check it out!
The Christmas season has come to Superhuman Registration Land, and the boys are celebrating with a gift exchange of Christmas comics. Or, rather, they just read a bunch of comics and argued about what counts as a dog. So the usual.
In honor of the last great pop cinema highlight of the year (other than Cats), we take a look at two Star Wars comics from the Dark Horse era. First, the Star Wars: A New Hope manga by Hisao Tamaki, followed by a “What-if?” style story from Star Wars: Infinities. Come kill 90 minutes with us while you wait for Episode 9!
The SHRP crew has a good time reading the suburban nightmare that is King and Walta’s The Vision series... well, maybe not a “good time,” but definitely a worthwhile time.
...that kinda undersells it. Times were had, and they were probably positive, but to find out exactly how so, you’ll need to listen to the episode!
It’s gotta be Halloween somewhere, right?
...Well, for those who are still in the holiday spirit, we’ve got a delightful duo of spooky stories to sate your horrible hunger. We blanch and wilt at the prospect of another decade’s worth of Marvel Zombies content as we read the second installment. Also, we experience the timeless, watermark event Rise of the Midnight Sons, which led to beloved fan-favorite books like Nightstalkers and Darkhold: Pages from the Book of Sins.
Y’all remember Darkhold, right? Anybody?
Come crack a cold one open with the boys... the boys in this case being The Incredible Hercules and Amadeus Cho, caught smack dab in the middle between “Love and War.” Also, things get slightly supernatural with The Immortal Hulk.
Well, sometimes life happens and you can’t record a full episode of your podcast. Luckily, the industry is full of interesting figures to discuss, so we’re taking a minute to talk about Sana Amanat, Marvel comics editor.
Was that... was that really the best title we could come up with for this episode? Are we sure? Okay...
We got some serious courtroom drama in She-Hulk #8-10. Captain America is on trial! We’ve also got the debut of another brand-new character in Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. Let’s see how they fare on the list!
Well, we DO read comics this week. Pretty good comics, actually: Kraven’s Last Hunt from Spider-Man and Blind Spot from Jessica Jones. But we also talk about John’s odd obsession with body pillows, Stephen’s failure to be funny, and Aldo’s substance use.
Also butts. Lots of butts.
It’s one of John’s favorite stories on the block tonight! You might say it’s given him a bit of a... “Messiah Complex”? Get it? It’s because they all read Messiah Complex, right?
Oh, whatever. The boys had fun talking about it, and you’ll have fun listening in. We guarantee.
This week, John discovers the magical world of body pillows, Stephen gets way too excited over the Cats trailer, and Aldo voices some controversial Pokémon opinions. Plus, nobody likes Hank Pym. We take a look at Domino (2018) and Ultron Unlimited (1999).
Our Phase 4 celebration episode doesn’t have enough Shang-Chi. But we still get a good luck at some other peripheral Marvel characters in Heroes for Hire and The Eternals. Plus, we’ve got our usual free-range nonsense.
We’re jumping in the middle of a couple of stories this week - from the galaxy-spanning War Of Kings to the Jane Foster era of Mighty Thor. Come for the literary mash-ups, stay for the awkward anatomy lessons.
It’s a Hollywood director special here at the Superhuman Registration Podcast, where we read and rank notable stories from both Joss Whedon and Kevin Smith. So... trigger warning for sexual assault, I guess?
Man, this episode gets heavy.
Paternity leaves are over, which means it’s time for another episode of the Superhuman Registration Podcast! We take a look at the birth of the MCU’s Tony Stark as we tackle the Extremis story arc. Plus, Moon Knight! Who is he? What does he want? No, seriously, who the crap is he?
John’s taking the time to get to know his new family, so Stephen’s filling in with a quick spotlight on the late, great Justin Ponsor.
Alternative title: Mansplainin’ Feminism. It’s a giant-sized episode as we tackle the granddaddy of all X-Men stories, the Dark Phoenix Saga! And it turns out there’s a movie coming out this week! What a crazy coincidence, right?
Then, we tackle a one-shot What If? story featuring everyone’s favorite Russian demon child, Magik. It’s a surprisingly good read, but just how good? And just how surprising?
A couple of lower-profile stories crossed our desk this time, and boy were they surprising! First up we have Warren Ellis’s Karnak series, a “lighthearted” “romp” through “cynicism” and “psychological trauma” (what do you mean I’m using scare quotes wrong?). Then, we have the 2005 miniseries The New Warriors, which provokes an interesting discussion on just how funny monkeys actually are.
We’re celebrating our one-year anniversary of ranking comics by taking a BREAK from ranking comics and heading to the movies. Avengers: Endgame is out, we’ve all seen it, and we want to talk about it! We also take some time to talk to each other and find out more about our comics history, which... well, it just confirms exactly how much we all love Spider-Man.
Getting back into the swing of things, the crew spends some time exploring Walt Simonson’s run on Thor, where they meet Odin, Volstagg, the Lady Sif, and everybody’s favorite new character... Skuttlebutt!
Also some magical space horse, I guess.
Then, attention turns to Nova (2013), which prompts a pretty lengthy discussion that swerves from Loeb’s famous Batman stories to superhero costume underwear.
Stephen’s slacking on the job, so it falls this time to John to offer up a few brief thoughts on a prominent Marvel comics creator. He comes at the king - Jack “King” Kirby - and he don’t miss! We’ll be back in two weeks with a full episode, but for now, enjoy this fill-in issue!
As Stephen gets ready for his inevitable nuptials (“inevitable” is the word I want, right?), the gang does an edit-free read of “Maximum Carnage”! Who will win in the war between good and evil? And what’s the difference at the end of the day?
Also, we debrief over the Captain Marvel movie. Boy, do we have thoughts!
In a belated celebration of Black History Month, we took a peek at the opening arc of the groundbreaking Black Panther series by Christopher Priest! Also, we read a little something from then prospective, now current box office smash Captain Marvel. And boy, do we have thoughts about all this stuff!
sniff sniff Anyone else smell that love in the air? We got a couple of great stories about love both simple (Mary Jane: Homecoming) and complicated (Rogue and Gambit). Cuddle with your sweetheart and come talk romance with us.
We had to skip our usual recording session this week because Stephen’s router literally exploded. The promised Valentine’s Day episode will go up next week. In the meantime, Aldo takes us on a quick tour of the illustration ouvre of one of his favorite art teams: Terry and Rachel Dodson. Enjoy!
Let’s hop in the Xtreme Machine for another trip back to the Nifty Nineties (no, that doesn’t work) and a thrilling Captain America adventure. Then get your wards and sigils ready for Doctor Strange and “The Last Days of Magic.”
Come join in for a lengthy discussion about Teen Titans Go!, Dave Bautista, and the appropriate pronunciation of Jake Gillenhall’s last name.
Don’t worry, we also did the reading. We managed to squeeze in some Ironheart and Drax talk, too.
It’s an exciting time here at the Superhuman Registration Podcast. At the same time Hawkeye goes for the throne, mysterious strangers with an every connection to Spider-Man’s past seek to kick the bottom out of the barrel. You don’t want to miss it!
Remember, remember the 25th of December... We take a look at three Christmas specials, during which we discuss the finer points of the male gaze and Yuletide child murder. We also have an extended discussion about Into the Spiderverse... which Aldo still hasn’t seen, the jerk!
We take a brief look back at the career of the late, inimitable Stan Lee and review a pair of exceptional stories that demonstrate the mighty Marvel method in action. Dare we say that this is an episode of... GALACTIC import? Also, John gets dumped on by the democratic process, but what else is new?
After sixteen episodes and over thirty stories, it’s finally 90s time! The boys debate the dubious merits and wonder of the X-Men’s 30th anniversary event, Fatal Attractions. Then they started to feel bad about the excess and decide to cleanse their palates with some good old fashioned Marvels!
We’ve got two events on the docket today, and boy howdy does Stephen have opinions! Things get Elizabetha-riffic as we work our way through Gaiman and Kubert’s 1602, and John gets to express his love for Marvel’s Merry Mutants during House Of M. Don’t miss it!
Happy Halloween! This week we’ve tackled a pair of monster comics. First up, we’ve got a showdown between Frankenstein’s monster and the lord of the vampires, Dracula! After that, we tackle the zombie craze of 2005 with a miniseries that can only be described with one word: Eugh!
We’re talking Avenging Spider-Man and Captain Marvel as a... let’s call it a “trailer” for some upcoming movie. Then, with that out of the way, we take an in-depth dive into the world-shattering (literally) events of 2015’s Secret Wars.
Our first foray into the world of Marvel parody comics yields some less-than-satisfying results (although Stephen doesn’t seem to mind). The gang also learns about summoning Satan for fun and profit, and a discussion of the first Spider-Man story leads to some really unfortunate sassy talk.
This week, we take a look at two lady-led action books: 2009’s Psylocke story “Kill Matsu’o,” and “The Finely Woven Thread” from 2014’s Black Widow. This episode has it all: scary Russian priests, questionable anatomy, and a lengthy discussion of the new PS4 Spider-Man game.
The boys tackle the grim and gritty side of Marvel comics with a Defenders-themed episode, and they bring all the grim seriousness they can muster... which isn’t a whole lot. Come for the Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Punisher talk, and stay for the lengthy discussions about Captain America’s panty lines.
We’ve got a good one this week. Can Squirrel Girl beat Galactus? Of course - she’s unbeatable! And how to sum up the guys’ discussion of Ms. Marvel? Simple: Aldo cries, and then he dies.
In memory of Steve Ditko, we take a look at “If This Be My Destiny” from Amazing Spider-Man #31-33 and a story we’re calling “The Search for Eternity” from Strange Tales #130-146. There’s action! Adventure! Excitement! Hamilton references! And, in a surprising turn of events, a new #1 is crowned!
We’ll be back in two weeks to discuss Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (vol. 1) #1-4 and Ms. Marvel (vol. 3) #1-5, a fact we mention here only because we don’t mention the issue numbers in the episode itself.
Star Wars and Spider-Man! Together at last! John, Stephen, and Aldo welcome Star Wars to the list with Vader: Down. Then, prepare to get a little choked up at the meeting of two Spider-Men in... um... Spider-Men.
Aldo, John, and Stephen take a minute to read up on the Exiles in the story “A World Apart.” Our heroes, a group of realist-hopping mutants, get in punchups with the likes of Captain America, Galactus, and... Strong Guy. Also, hear about the guy’s first trip into the Ultimates universe with Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk, a book that... makes words difficult to say.
John, Aldo, and Stephen finally reach the milestone. In this episode, we rank our tenth story! Of course, this leaves us with One More Dayin the top ten, so we probably shouldn’t call it quits just yet.
Plus, Stephen gets a little too real talking about Deadpool(2015) #20, John shakes his fists at those darn kids and their hip-hop music during Eminem/Punisher, and all three have a good laugh playing Where’s Waldo?while reading A-Babies Vs. X-Babies.
(Trigger warning: suicide)
He’s the best at what he does, and what he does is stream simul-dubs straight from Japan. John, Aldo, and Stephen discuss the Wolverine mini-series from 1982 and try to determine exactly how weeby our pal Logan actually is. Turns out everyone has Frank Miller opinions.
Also: who’s your favorite Thor? Is it Ultimate Thor, Mighty Thor, Thor the Unworthy, Throg the Frog Thor, Thrr the... wolf? Badger? There are a lot of these Thors, aren’t there? It’s the Secret War tie-in, Thors!
Due to some last-minute schedule shenanigans, we’re skipping our usual episode format this week. We’ll be back to the rankings next week; in the meantime, Stephen takes us on a brief tour of the professional life of one Stuart Immonen, a noteworthy Marvel creator who announced his retirement last week.
Noteworthy interviews:
http://sktchd.com/art-feature/visual-chameleon-talking-art-and-empress-with-stuart-immonen/
http://www.sequentialtart.com/archive/may00/immonen.shtml
http://comicsalliance.com/stuart-immonen-deadpool-birds-uncanny-x-men-variant-cover/
What do you do when you can’t trust the adults in your life? Why, you run away, of course! This week, Aldo, John, and Stephen take a look at Runaways, the 2003 series from Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona.
Marvel at our inability to keep anything secret for more than half an hour or so. Also, listen to three thirtysomethings show off their unparalleled knowledge of teen slang. So authentic!
The gang faces its most divisive discussion yet... and it’s only their second episode! Friend turns against friend, lovers are torn apart, and John gets defensive, as Civil War looms!
Also, unlike Avengers: Infinity War, we got some Hawkeye for you! See what we thought about Hawkeye (2012) #4-5: The Tape.