Episode 046 “Minty Fresh”

Download | Subscribe | Shop

Happy New Year! It’s the first show of 2012, but this episode is all about 2011. Join us as we honor the best comics, creators, characters and more in the 4th Annual Minty Awards! Hear what Ben, Josh and you the listener picked as the best of 2011. Find out who the biggest winners were. Listen as a favorite title is raised to the rafters of the Minty Hall of Fame. Gaze into the crystal ball with bold predictions for the year ahead.

All this, plus Ben schooling Thomas Vokoun, Josh’s week of movies, the New DC Logo discussed, and the films of P.J. Huot. It’s a fitting send-off for the year that was, and the perfect start to 2012.

Music in this episode by: Mac Miller, Gashammer, The Beatles, Cee Lo, Timbuk 3, Harold Faltermeyer & Steve Stevens, Michael Bublé, Fred Rogers

  

These Cover-of-the-Year Winners were one of several honors bestowed upon Amazing Spider-Man and Venom in the 2011 Minty Awards.

Weekly Hit (and Miss) List 1/9/2012

by Ben Peirce

The Weekly Hit (and Miss) List is a rundown of the best and worst things I read this week regardless of their original publication date. It doesn’t have to be new – just new to me.

Happy New Year everyone and welcome back to the Hit List!  Thanks for letting me take some time off to recharge, record a new episode and read some comics.  It was much-needed, and now I’m back with a vengeance like Johnny Blaze – let’s get to it!

THE HITS

Invincible #86 | Image | Robert Kirkman (w) Cory Walker (a)

If you had to wipe out all of Germany to prevent the Holocaust, could you do it? That’s the ethical dilema facing the newly-appointed leader of the Coalition of Planets, Allen the Alien in Invincible #86. “What would you do” scenarios like this are the makings of great comicbooks and this issue dishes it up in typical Kirkman fashion – with tons of face-punching and loads of gratuitous bloodshed. Original series artist, Cory Walker is pinch-hitting for Ryan Ottley and looking great doing it while Invincible – which could have taken a backseat to all the Walking Dead hoopla – is kicking ass heading into 2012.

Uncanny X-Force #19  | Marvel | Rick Remender (w) Robbi Rodriguez (a)

I know I’m in the minority here, but I’m one of the few people who didn’t love the ending of the 8-part Dark Angel Saga. I think it was a brilliant concept and had some great moments, but the ending was a little too “crushing-your-head-with-mind-bending-science-fiction” for my tastes. That said, issue #19 was an epilogue of sorts that did a nice job of both grounding the story and giving it some context within the rest of the X-Men universe. And if you’re going to follow up Jerome Opeña on art, you better come correct. Robbie Rodriguez is more than up to the the task, and Dean White’s colors kept a consistent feel despite the change in pencils. If I had any qualms about continuing with Uncanny X-Force, this issue put them aside.

Superior #1-6  | Icon | Mark Millar (w) Leinil Yu (a)

If you didn’t listen to the last episode, shame on you. If you did, let me just say “Josh was right” and leave it at that. Can’t wait to see how this Millarworld mini-series wraps up next month!

THE MISSES

Voltron #1 | Dynamite | Brandon Thomas (w) Ariel Padilla (a)

THE GOOD: within the first 2 pages, we get Voltron throwing down against a giant kaiju monster.
THE BAD: pretty much everything else.
There’s a decent amount of action in this first issue but the corporate/political espionage backstory is a total snooze. Artist, Ariel Padilla has clearly attended the Chris Bachalo school of bizarre and confusing camera angles but his lines lack any of the style and soul of Bachalo’s work. The colors are bland and full of overly rendered airbrush effects. Everything looks shiny for no reason and in a lot of cases the work looks unfinished. Overall, this book did nothing to excite me, leaning too heavily on nostalgia to establish the characters which are otherwise sterile and generic. As a final nitpick, some genius decided to match the uniform colors of the “drivers” (they don’t actually “drive” – Voltron now seems to be a remote controlled drone of some sort … I know, don’t get me started) to the colors of the lions, robbing Voltron of the bizarre black-lion-driver-is-red-red-is-blue-and-blue-is-pink-for-some-reason charm that made it one of the most beloved poorly-translated wacky Japanese imports of our childhood.

Agree? Disagree? Read something we all need to know about? Post your comments below or join us on our Facebook Page

The 2011 Minty Awards: CAST YOUR VOTE!

The 4th Minty Awards are just around the corner in which we recap the greatest comics, creators and so forth of the past year.  We’ll be recording the Minty Awards show in mid-late January and we want YOUR input. Ben and Josh will name their own winners for best writer, best ongoing series, ‘oh-shit’ moment of the year and more but we want to hear from the listeners as well Give us your winners in some or all of the categories and we’ll include them in the show.

PLUS, we’ll select one response at random and that person will win a comics prize pack containing autographed comics, packing peanuts and more.  So not only will you contribute to the show and give props to your favorite comics, but you could score yourself some cool swag in the process – what are you waiting for?!

Click Here to cast your ballot for the 2011 Minty Awards … you can also cast your vote (and be a part of the episode) by leaving us a voicemail at 815-31-SNIKT (76458). Make sure we know who you are so you can be eligible for prizes and we’ll play your message during the show.

This year’s categories are:

The Industry
Comic Movie of the Year
Comic TV Show of the Year
Publisher of the Year
Biggest Disappointment of the Year
*Oh-Shit Moment of the Year
*Pleasant Surprise of the Year
*Bold Prediction for 2012

The Characters
Hero of the Year
Villain of the Year
Team of the Year
Non-Superhero Character of the Year

The Creators
Best Artist (or Art Team)
Best Writer

The Books
Best Cover
Best Marvel Title
Best DC Title
Best Creator-Owned Title
Best Graphic Novel and/or Collected Edition
Best Single Issue
Best New Series (Rookie of the Year)
Best Mini-Series
Best Ongoing Series

* new category this year

Episode 045 “Tis the Season”

Download | Subscribe | Shop

It’s Christmas in the Comic Cave. After tensions ran high last episode, Ben and Josh are back with a new episode overflowing with peace, love and good will towards men, mutants and monsters alike.  We open things up with talk of holiday plans and canceling cable before diving into some spirited comics talk.

Josh, reaffirms his love for Moon Knight and fills us in on the all-new, all-different but slightly-the-same Dark Avengers. Ben talks Legion of Monsters, Hellboy and Atomic Robo. We debate the merits of the Hulks and Josh goes space bananas for Mark Millar’s Superior.

Later we preview the upcoming 2011 Minty Awards and open the Near Mint mailbag and answer a laundry list of listener questions.  It’s the last episode of 2012, so thanks to everyone for listening and enjoy the show – yule love it!

Music in this episode by: Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Dr. Elmo, the Decemberists, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, Barenaked Ladies, the Whirling Dervishes

NEAR MINT FLASHBACK: A Merry Comics Christmas!

by Ben Peirce

Well folks, the holidays are upon us, as is one of my semi-annual attempts to read a book without pictures. As a result I haven’t read many comics this week, so I’m going to take a week off from the Weekly Hit (and Miss) List. But rather than leave you with nothing to read this week, I dug into the archives and pulled up this article from 2008 (the first year of the Near Mint Comic Show). Enjoy this trip in the not-so-way-back machine, which hopefully (with the help of some fresh updates) will help you find the perfect something for the comics fan on your holiday gift list!

 

Weekly Hit (and Miss) List 12/5/2011

by Ben Peirce

The Weekly Hit (and Miss) List is a rundown of the best and worst things I read this week regardless of their original publication date. It doesn’t have to be new – just new to me.

THE HITS

The King | Top Shelf | Rich Koslowski (w/a)

Top Shelf Productions is one of my favorite small publishers. They have a knack for finding great talent and getting behind unique projects and I’ve already sung their praises in the March ’11 edition of Comic Book Club when I talked about Rich Koslowski’s B.B. Wolf and the Three LPs. This week I picked up another O.G.N. from Top Shelf and Koslowski called The King. It’s a story of a freelance reporter sent to uncover the truth behind the Vegas phenomenon known as The King. Claiming to be the spirit of Elvis Presley reborn as a God on earth, The King has amassed a huge following of believers. The King is a heartfelt story of faith, skepticism and the power of mystery, beautifully complimented by the art.  A cartoonist in the purist sense of the world, Koslowski’s sparse panel layouts and expressive figures, are a perfect fit for this story that tells us how suggestion can be far more powerful that that which we believe to be true. BUY IT

Episode 044 “Mid-Season Finale”

Download | Subscribe | Shop

Freshly-stuffed following the Thanksgiving holiday, the boys are back with an all-ornery new episode. In the first half of the show, Greg Giorgio joins us in studio to talk about the first half-season of The Walking Dead (all TV talk, no comic spoilers). Conflict takes center stage and opinions differ on the season’s success rate to date.

In the second hour, the comic talk flows like bacon-wrapped scallops. There’s jeers for Fear Itself, waves of praise for Spider-Island, and all things in-between. Both Ben and Josh part ways with FF but have good things to say about Moon Knight, Orchid and Ultimate Spider-Man.

All this, plus comics Josh can’t bring himself to read, congrats for Ben’s new comic-fan-to-be and how a pumpkin spoiled 30+ years of monogamy for Greg. It’s more fun than a barn full o’ walkers.

Music in this episode by: Reid Genauer, Al Butron, Alan Thicke &
Gloria Long, Neil Sedaka, Tom Morello

Weekly Hit (and Miss) List 11/28/2011

by Ben Peirce

The Weekly Hit (and Miss) List is a rundown of the best and worst things I read this week regardless of their original publication date. It doesn’t have to be new – just new to me.

THE HITS

Fear Agent Vol. 3 | Dark Horse | Rick Remender (w), Tony Moore (a)

There are a lot of comics out there.  In fact, there are a lot of very good comics out there. And yet amidst the vast sea of opinions that is the internet, there are only a handful of comics talked about as being the best. Scalped, Fables, The Walking Dead, I’ll even include mainstream books like Batwoman and Amazing Spider-Man – these are titles worthy of discussion when the words “best book on the shelves” come out. With the release last week of it’s 32nd and final issue, we say goodbye to one of these titles in Rick Remender’s Fear Agent. Though plagued by delays late in it’s run, Fear Agent – the story of hard-drinkin’ down-on-his-luck space ranger, Heath Huston – remained one of the most critically-acclaimed books of the last decade. Remender packs each issue with rich world-building, complex characters and an action-packed narrative that never lets you catch your breath. Tony Moore and Jerome Opeña, who trade off art duties with each volume, are two of the best storytellers working today–period. In reading the 3rd volume, which flashes back to tell the story of the Earth’s fall to alien invaders, I was struck by the complexity of the story and how tightly woven the plot points are. Events, which we saw in a previous volume are revealed to have taken place right on the heels of world-altering moments shown now for the first time, making them all the more heart-rending. Sometimes I’ll meet people who have just started watching Lost or havent read up to date in The Walking Dead, and I’m always so jealous of what they still have in store. With 3 volumes yet to explore, I will cherish every page of Fear Agent that I have left.  BUY IT

Weekly Hit (and Miss) List 11/21/2011

by Ben Peirce

The Weekly Hit (and Miss) List is a rundown of the best and worst things I read this week regardless of their original publication date. It doesn’t have to be new – just new to me.

THE HITS

Xombi #1-6 | DC | John Rozum (w), Frazer Irving (a)

This is one of the easiest selections to the Hit List yet, and yet one of the hardest books for me to talk about. The short-lived relaunch of the mid-90′s property, Xombi packed more big concepts and stunning artwork into six issues than some series do in a decade. Xombi is the story of David Kim, who through a lethal combination of science and the supernatural, became an immortal creature created by artificial means … a Xombi. Kim has a Wolverine-like healing factor facilitated by nanomachines that inhabit his body and can transubstantiate matter into any form – hand him a banana and he’ll give you back a padlock. If you think that’s crazy, wait until you meet the superpowered posse of nuns he’s teamed up with. David’s powers make him a “magnet for weirdness” and John Rozum delivers one fantastic fantasy/sci-fi/supernatural element after the next. But while the story is anything but grounded, the storytelling really is. The same grandiose ideas in the hands of, say, Grant Morrisson would likely drift into the existential and get lost in poetic meandering. Rozum sticks to a tight narrative forcing you not to dwell on how or why a being that is rage-incarnate could inhabit the empty half of a schizophrenic who’d killed his other self, but instead grips you with the immediacy of when and where our heroes will defeat it! Superhero comics condition us to stories where the heroes are always one step ahead of the villians. But Xombie is a true adventure tale, where events unfold faster than the protagonists or the reader can keep up with like they might for Indiana Jones or Adèle Blanc-Sec. The story is a fun-filled cosmic thrill ride perfectly packaged in the amazing art of Frazer Irving, whose painterly style and strategic color work marries the whimsy of fantasy to the realism of science fiction. Xombi is one of the unfortunate casulties, thrown out with the bathwater to make room for the New 52, but if you track down these 6 issues you won’t be disappointed. BUY IT

Weekly Hit (and Miss) List: 11/14/2011

by Ben Peirce

The Weekly Hit (and Miss) List is a rundown of the best and worst things I read this week regardless of their original publication date. It doesn’t have to be new – just new to me.

THE HITS

Elephantmen Vol. 3 | Image | Richard Starkings (w), various (a)

At the 2009 Baltimore Comic-Con, I had the pleasure of meeting Richard Starkings who, aside from being one of the nicest and most engaging people you’ll meet at a convention, is a man who knows how to bait the hook. He asked me if I had ever read Elephantment and when I told him that I hadn’t, he pulled out two issues, signed them and handed them to me – gratis. A year later I was back in Baltimore to pick up the first 3 oversized volumes of Starking’s creator-owned epic because 1) I respond well to free stuff and 2) I just plain needed more. If the way Starkings treats his fans is any indication, he must treat his artists even better because he has some amazing talent including Moritat, Ladrönn, Boo Cook and more helping to bring this elaborate future world to life. “Elephantmen” are human-animal hybrids once geneticly-engineered as soldiers and now doing their best to find a place as everyday citizens of Mystery City. Elephantmen is a case study in “show, don’t tell”. It’s a stampede of world-building but it’s done by placing you into the lives of the characters and letting you experience it through their eyes rather than explain it all in a heavy-handed way. This 3rd volume (a 4th was recently released), focuses on some of the beautiful women of Mystery City and their relationships with Hip Flask, Ebony Hide, Obadiah Horn and the rest of the surprisingly-human Elephantmen. Billed as “Pulp Science Fiction”, Elephantmen is a fascinating world filled with amazingly 3-dimensional characters, that continues to reveal itself with each turn of the page. BUY IT