Tag Archives: Frank Miller

Comic Timing Episode 212 – Reading Some Balzac

Ian reconvenes the Comic Timing crew, this time consisting of Brent, Kris, Donovan and Brandon, to catch up on the last few months of comics, while also discussing some more recent goings-on. This includes the shocking death Marvel decided to reveal two weeks ahead of schedule in Amazing Spider-Man #26 (spoilers abound from 5:58-46:17), the discourse behind Frank Miller’s most recent  variant covers for Wolverine and other Marvel titles, our collective thoughts on James Gunn’s slate of DC movies and Shazam: Fury of the Gods (also spoilers from 1:31:31-1:47:27), Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (slight spoilers as we start at about 1:47:28), and a very in-depth and spoilery convo about Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 (1:57:06-2:48:30). Then some recent reads to wrap us up! Also the title of this episode will make more sense once you listen, we swear.

You can support future releases of Comic Timing and get in on the occasional early releases of the show at http://www.patreon.com/ComicTiming.

Follow Ian on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/i_am_scifi, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi; Brent is on Twitter at http://twitter.com/kossinab, and he posts regularly to YouTube on his channel, BK’s Bullets; Kris is on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/lampbane and http://www.twitter.com/KrisNaudus for the professional Tweets, and you can check out her various other works at http://linktr.ee/krisnaudus. Brandon is at http://www.twitter.com/TheDabbaDon. And finally, Donovan is at https://twitter.com/donoDMG1 and check out his podcast “Questions: We Don’t Have Answers”.

Thanks for listening as always, and we will catch you all next time, whenever that may be!

Comic Timing – Episode 173: Comic Book Video Games

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Round 173: FIGHT! This episode, Jim Efantis is called up from BKs Bullets to the main show, as Jim, Brandon Christopher, Ian and Brent talk Comic Book Video Games. We run the gambit of titles and systems, from Atari to N64 to XBox 360 to current-gen consoles and back again. The group also discusses where comic book video games have been and where they’re headed, the best and the worst of the bunch, what it would take to make a successful Superman game, what characters we’d like to see games made for, and a whole lot more. This episode’s been a long time coming, so savor it in all its glory!

The show then concludes with some general comic talk, including Daredevil: The Man Without Fear, Fun Home, Secret Wars and Batman. And who do you think Mads Mikkelsen will play in Doctor Strange? Decisions, decisions, decisions!

As always – we are sponsored by the newly redesigned DCBS! That’s right! Discount Comic Book Service! All comics from major publishers like Marvel, DC, Image and Dark Horse are 40% off or more. And hardcovers and trade paperbacks from Marvel and DC are at least 50% off! Plus, be sure to check out their Comixology digital storefront for even further savings!

You can e-mail the show at comictiming@gmail.com and be sure to Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming. Thanks, and we’ll catch you next time!

Comic Timing – Episode 154

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Let’s go, bub! This episode of Comic Timing is dedicated entirely to the X-Men! Sean Whelan and Jim Segulin of the Raging Bullets Podcast join Ian as they discuss their early introductions to the franchise, some of their favorite runs and creators, X-Men: The Animated Series, the evolution of Wolverine as a character, the X-Men movie franchise leading up to Days of Future Past, Days of Future Past the storyline, The Phoenix Saga and how it has been presented across multiple mediums, and more! Yup, the entire X-Men franchise in under two hours. Now THAT’S what I call a Memorial Day weekend!

As always – we are sponsored by DCBS! That’s right! Discount Comic Book Service! All comics from major publishers like Marvel, DC, Image and Dark Horse are 40% off or more. And hardcovers and trade paperbacks from Marvel and DC are at least 50% off! Plus, be sure to check out their Comixology digital storefront for even further savings!

You can e-mail the show at comictiming@gmail.com and be sure to Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming. Thanks, and we’ll catch you next time!

BK’s Bullets: Comics and Video Games

Brent is no longer solo as his buddy Jim Efantis joins him on this special edition of BK’s Bullets! Jim is relatively new to comics, so Brent discusses his likes and dislikes with what he has been reading recently.  Jim is also an avid video gamer, so they discuss the new Microsoft Store, upcoming games, digital exclusives, cross-play on Playstation and much much more!

If you like what Brent and Jim have to say on Comics OR Video Games, let us know on Facebook! And we will do more!

Triple Daredevil Review… Yellow, Father, and the Man Without Fear

I’ve been on a Daredevil kick for the last few weeks, so having read 3 six issue arcs, I’d figured I’d review them here, from worst to best. What’s weird is that in some way, all of these stories have to do with Daredevil’s origin and his father, Jack Murdock.

Daredevil: Father
Writer and Artist: Joe Quesada

Ever remember people saying that Joe Quesada had forgotten how to draw at one point? After reading this abysmal story, I now believe them. Joe Quesada’s Daredevil here is a bulky, grimacing beast, unlike the one he had drawn with Kevin Smith 10 years back, and every other interpretation of the character. The story here is that there is a serial killer going out and cutting out people’s eyes, while Daredevil does nothing, and in the end, it’s all his fault. Well, partially anyway. Quesada introduces some new super-team called the Santerias who do nothing but fight with Daredevil in the two issues they appear in, and their inclusion in the story has nothing to do with the ongoing plot. There are some asides to a young, media-mogul, who has daddy-issues too, and he funds the Santerias and asks Daredevil to look into this serial killer. Daredevil refuses because the killer is not striking inside Hell’s Kitchen, so it’s not his problem, that is until he finds out that all of the victims are his former clients, and that the killer is someone he knows. All of these plots converge in issues 5 and 6 of this mini, showing me that issues 1-4 were pretty unnecessary and that you could’ve picked up issue 5, read the recap page and finished the mini. That’s not good for a story. Quesada seems like he’s reaching out in every direction here, which leads to a sloppy plot, and an even sloppier finish, leaving me to close the last issue with disgust. I went into this thinking it was going to be a story that hearkened back to Matt’s Father, Quesada tried to do this, but got so wrapped up with everyone else’s daddy-issues that he forgot that Jack Murdock was supposed to be the centerpiece of the story. It’s because of this that the story gets lost. If Quesada had kept everything in check, this might have been a mediocre story, instead of an abysmal one. Quesada is trying to do too much here, and it all gets lost in the shuffle. As for the art, People weren’t kidding that his “One More Day” stuff was his best in awhile, because the stuff here looks more cartoony and less detailed than any of his previous work or his new stuff, and that’s bad for an artist who is known for a dynamic, detailed style. I don’t know if Quesada was so loose to try and get a nostalgic feel in the art, or because his Editor-In-Chief job at Marvel got in the way of the quality. Richard Isanove does the colors here, with his digital painting style, and I almost wish he didn’t. Every panel has some wierd color filter. Flashbacks are all yellowed, like on old paper, Daredevil scenes are bathed in red, and the Matt Murdock scenes have a blue hue. This doesn’t work well across the board, because it makes the book look monotone. There is nothing to keep me looking at the page, since, because of the coloring, it all looks the same. I want the coloring to make me stop and smell the roses, this stuff didn’t. All in all, don’t spend your money on this book because you’re wondering what the hassle was all about with the delays way back when, grab it in a bookstore, take 20 minutes and skim through it. You won’t be thoroughly impressed to buy it after that. D

Daredevil: Yellow
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Artist: Tim Sale

One of many “Color” books by Loeb and Sale, this one focuses on Dardevil and his time at the beginning of his career, in his Yellow costume. A majority of the book focuses on his origin, slightly altering it more than I’ve ever seen. In this book, Jack Murdock is killed while Matt Murdock is studying in Law School. Everywhere else, Jack Murdock is killed while Matt is a young boy. It doesn’t do much to serve the story, other than place it within the first year of Daredevil’s first appearance. Anyway, Matt fights some gangsters, it’s all pretty standard stuff. The real star of the book is Tim Sale, who’s work is phenomenal in whatever form it appears, whether for DC, Marvel, or on the Heroes TV show. If you’re looking for a book that cover’s Dardevil’s origin without feeling dated or tying into any continuity, this is the book for you. If you’re looking to introduce someone to Daredevil, this might be the book to do it. A solid comic story with some fantastic art. C

Daredevil: The Man Without Fear
Writer: Frank Miller
Artist: John Romita JR

Out of all the Dardevil stories I’ve read, which really is limited to these three, plus Kevin Smith and Brubaker’s first arc, this was the best. Like Daredevil: Yellow, this is an origin story, though it ties in the origin everything Loeb left out, mainly Stick and Elektra. Elektra has been trained by the Hand and is addicted to killing people, but must start confrontations to with thugs to do so. Stick, here is a mysterious janitor who trains Matt in his dad’s gym at night. It’s not clear why he trains Matt, what is clear is that he’s disappointed in Matt when he uses his skills to fight crime, though his black-silhouetted boss is not. This is like Batman: Year One, but for Daredevil. I think it might not be as revered as that, because, essentially, Miller is applying his Year One formula to Batman. It introduces a young boy, his dad dies, he trains, meets a female villain, and fights crime. The Kingpin also makes his first appearance here, and his rise to power is quickly established in a few, pages, and that’s all we need to know, we can fill in the blanks ourselves. That might be what makes this story so great, is that we’re able to fill in the blanks ourselves, with whatever we want the blanks to be, or whatever continuity we know and love. This is pre-Goddamn Batman Miller, so it must be good, right? Fear not, it is. John Romita JR, does a formidable job on art here. I’m not quite sure whether it’s because of his love for the character, or because the acrobatic Daredevil is slightly similar to the lanky and acrobatic Spider-Man, which he so greatly draws. And, it’s not heavily inked by Klaus Janson, so there is no muddiness to the art, like on that last issue of World War Hulk. This is good quality Miller and Romita JR, and should not be missed for any comic fan, even if the Daredevil costume never appears in the actual story. A

Comic Timing – Episode 35: 300 Review

Comic Timing reviews the smash hit adaptation of the Frank Miller graphic novel, 300! Brent Kossina of BKs Bullets, and Raph and Juan from Geeks Unite! join in on the discussion, and there are 300 tangents along the way. Good times!

As always, you can e-mail the show at comictiming@gmail.com, and please vote for us on Podcast Alley and Digg us over at Digg.com

Plenty of great stuff lined up for the next few episodes, so I hope you guys enjoy it, and thanks as always for downloading!