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Roll out the red carpet, break out the bow ties and pull on some Prada – it’s Minty Awards time! In the 5th Annual Minty Awards, we look back at the best comics, creators, characters and industry happenings of 2012.

It’s been a while since Ben & Josh stepped up to the mic so there’s lots of catching up to do before the awards get handed out. Skip ahead to the 32-minute mark to get right to the Mintys, but if you do you’ll miss our opening ramble in which we talk Oscar movies, academia, craft beer and giant monsters. With the initial pleasantries out of the way we open up the envelopes and dish out more comic talk than you can shake a fiddlestick at.

Minty Awards are given by each of our illustrious co-hosts in 23 categories across all areas of comicdom. Industry happenings, characters, creators and comics all get their dues but what who will be the big winners? Listen as we pack a year’s worth of shocks, surprises and spider powers into three awesome hours. If you only attend one fake awards show this year, the Minty Awards should be it!

Best Cover honors are just the beginning for Amazing Spider-Man and Saga in the 5th Annual Minty Awards.

Music in this episode by: The Who, Rage Against the Machine, Assembly of Dust, Lady Gaga

PLUS, we’ll select one response at random and that person will win a comics prize pack containing 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 2012 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.

Check out this year’s categories after the jump

Catch all the red carpet action at the 5th Annual Minty Awards

THIS YEAR’S CATEGORIES ARE:

Industry Awards
Comic Movie of the Year
Comic TV Show of the Year
Comic-Related Non-Comic Item of the Year*
Disappointment of the Year
Pleasant Surprise of the Year
“Oh-Shit” or “Awwww Shiiiit” Moment of the Year^

Character Awards
Hero of the Year
Villain of the Year
Team of the Year

Creator Awards
Best Publisher
Best Artist (or Art Team)
Best Writer

Comic Awards
Best Cover
Best Single Issue
Best Story Arc*
Best “New-to-You” Comic*
(something that came out before 2012, but that you read this year)
Best Graphic Novel and/or Collected Edition
Best Mini-Series
Best New Comic / Rookie of the Year
Best Marvel Comic
Best DC Comic
Best Non-Big-2 Comic˚
BEST COMIC of 2012†

* new category
^ formerly “Oh-Shit Moment of the Year”
˚ formerly “Best Creator-Owned Comic”
† formerly “Best Ongoing Series”

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2013 is upon us and we’re kicking off the new year with one of our biggest guests to date. Bill Willingham is the Eisner Award-winning creator of Fables and he joined us for an in-depth conversation about the series and it’s ever-growing universe.

Willingham reveals his secret origin as an MP before breaking into comics as a penciler. Then, we discuss the latest Fables collection (vol. 18, “Cubs in Toyland”) and why you might need an english lit lesson before you read it. We also talk about the spinoff series, Fairest and the recent original graphic novel, Werewolves of the Heartland, and find out what character he couldn’t bear to turn over to another writer.

Later in the conversation we learn about Fabletown and Beyond, a 3-day convention coming to Minnesota, March 22-24 to celebrate Fables and other comics from the “mythic fiction” genre. Willingham gives his perspective on the departure of longtime Vertigo editor, Karen Berger and what it means for the future of the imprint. Finally, we wrap things up with a preview of the 2012 Minty Awards. What is Bill Willingham’s “Oh shit” Moment to the Year? Listen and find out.

Music in this episode by: Sara Bareilles

Orchid, which earned a Minty Award last year for best new series, concludes with Issue #12 (on shelves January 30th). We’ve been big fans of this book from day one and if you ignored our previous recommendations, you can catch up with the first two trade paperbacks (also on sale). Throughout the 12 issue series, we’re brought into a world ravaged by cataclysmic floods, genetic mutation and the rise of a tyrant autocracy. Generations have lived in the throws of dystopia, inspired only by a small band of rebels and legends of their supernatural champion, General China. Just as things seem at their bleakest, the fledgling rebellion is given new hope in the form of a former slave girl named Orchid.

The inspired creativity of Tom Morello is well-documented. So it comes as no surprise that Orchid is a rich fantasy tale with big concepts and elaborate world-building. Guitarist-turned-writer, Morello (The Night Watchman, Rage Against the Machine), made a career pushing the boundaries of sound, emanating from an electric guitar. His work on Orchid isn’t quite as revolutionary, but it’s no less inventive. What is surprising, is the degree to which Morello asserts himself as a comic writer over the course of the series. In my early reviews, I criticized this book of being overly-verbose – a common flaw of writers from outside the world of comics. But by the end of the series, he’s able to find a good balance of show and tell, allowing Scott Hepburn to carry the storytelling with his expressive, kinetic line.

Orchid is a mature readers title. The bloody revolution strewn across its pages is a far cry from the civil disobedience championed by Dr. King. But as an entertaining dystopian epic, as a revenge fantasy, as a tale of heroism and rising against oppression – it hits all the right notes. Pre-order issue #12 from your local comic shop and enjoy the uprising.

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Rising from the ashes in the wake of human tragedy, we offer up a pre-Christmas episode filled with peace, love and good will towards mankind… that, and game shows.

In the holiday spirit, we open things up by announcing a new charitable endeavor. before launching in the the comics-related task at hand. Spilling over from last episode, we take up Matchmaking in Minnesota’s challenge to play the Newlywed Game geek-culture-style. Dark secrets are revealed as we find out how much Ben and Josh really know about each other.

After that, we launch into some comic talk with The Walking Dead, Venom, B.P.R.D and a thorough post-mortem on Bendis’ run on the Avengers. There’s Spider-Man talk, of course, as we hurtle towards the dramatic conclusion of Amazing Spider-Man. Marvel NOW! talk continues, fueled by our exclusive info-graphic tracking the origins of Marvel’s new titles.

Finally, it’s back to the Game Show set for a high-stakes game of way-too-difficult Marvel trivia, with the loser forced to read a book of the winner’s choosing for all of 2013. There’s twists, turns, surprises and a musical gift to all our listeners to close out the show!

Music in this episode by:
Al Green & Annie Lennox, Elvis Presley, The Shins, Tom Petty, Ben Peirce

We’ve done a little research and provided you with this handy infographic to help sort things out.

(click to enlarge)

As of this writing (and based on the December 2012 edition of Marvel previews), there are 12 “Marvel Then” titles whose fate is yet to be determined. Those titles include:

• Age of Apocalypse
• Astonishing X-Men
• Avenging Spider-Man
• Captain Marvel
• Daredevil
• Gambit
• Hawkeye
• Scarlet Spider
• Venom
• Winter Soldier
• X-Factor
• Xtreme X-Men

So what do you think? What Marvel NOW! titles do you pick up or will pick up?

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Need something to be thankful for this November? How about 2+ hours of Near Mint action to keep you company as over the river and through the woods to grandmother’s house you go!

The appetizer is a very Josh-centric opening, as he recaps European travels, NASCAR and new academic endeavors. Then we dish up a Superman-sized portion of comic talk including Batman, Liberty Annual 2012, Uncanny Avengers, The Walking Dead TV series, The Dark Knight Returns animated movie and more. Plus, we get into a healthy conversation about the newly-minted Marvel NOW!

After that, it’s time to open up the Near Mint mailbag and answer some listener questions which take us down a dark and winding road beset by wardrobe interventions, disembodied voices and fight scenes, setting the stage for an exiting and high-stakes next episode.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone – DIG IN!

Music in this episode by: The Rolling Stones, Wiz Khalifa, Public Enemy, El Cuarteto De Nos, The Marvelettes

(click to enlarge)

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Don’t call it a comeback – we’ve been here for years! Despite all self-perpetuated rumors to the contrary, Ben and Josh are back for a 51st episode and doing so in championship style!

This one is all about comics, baby! No movie talk, no industry speculation, no random tangents …well, almost no random tangents). In the obligatory Catchin’ Up segment, we hear about Josh’s upcoming world travels and the digital release of Ben’s new film at pilotgroove.com. Then the boys take a brief interlude to see the Stanley Cup. But after THAT it’s all comics!

In the first half of the show, we count down our top 5 comic stories of all time and dive into what makes each one desert-island-worthy. To see Ben’s top 50, click here. After that, we get current with Marvel NOW! and a tour of the 616, through the lens of Josh Nason. Then, Ben takes us on a tour of the comics world outside the big 2, including the Rocketeer, Saga, Dark Horse horror and more.

If you’ve been waiting 50 episodes for us to actually talk about comics, this will be our finest hour… or two!

Music in this episode by: Pilotgroove, Queen, Tyler Trautmen,
Reel Big Fish, Eminem

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This is the one you’ve all been waiting for. Recorded four years to the day from our first episode, we celebrate our silken anniversary with the much-anticipated, giant-sized, earth-shattering EPISODE 50!

Packed inside this overstuffed audio gift box is our in-depth analysis of all three comic book summer blockbusters – The Avengers, The Amazing Spider Man and The Dark Knight Rises. Ben defends the honor of the Boy Wonder, Josh get’s soft on Supes and we display our dismay over the recent “Marvel Now!” announcements.

There’s comic talk of course, including Tale of Sand, new books from Millarworld, The Court of Owls and and a double-shot of Darwyn Cooke. Along the way, Ben & Josh count down some of their top 5 favorite things in the world of entertainment. Gifts are bestowed, emotions run high and announcements are made that will shake you to your very core!