The 2013 Minty Awards: CAST YOUR VOTE!

The 6th Annual Minty Awards are almost here, in which we recap the greatest comics, creators and stuff of 2013. And once again, we’re looking for YOUR VOTE. Ben and Josh will each name winners each category – but we want to hear from you listeners as well! Give us your winners in some or all of the categories and have your fandom heard.

PLUS, we’ll select one response at random and that person will win a comics prize pack containing comics, artwork, things that don’t fit on our desks anymore… and more.  So not only will you contribute to the show and give props to your favorite comics, but you, yourself could be a winner. What are you waiting for – stand up and be counted!

Click Here to see all the categories and pick YOUR winners. 

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.

Catch all the red carpet action at the 6th Annual Minty Awards

The 2012 Minty Awards: CAST YOUR VOTE!

The 5th Annual Minty Awards are almost here, in which we recap the greatest comics, creators and stuff of 2012. We’ll be recording the Minty Awards show in late February and once again, 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 you 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 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

Dark Horse’s Dystopian Epic Wraps w/ Issue #12

It’s Inauguration day in the U.S. – this year coinciding with the celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, leaving many Americans home from work and looking for a good read to turn to inbetwixt politically-rousing TV. Dark Horse Comics’ Orchid, by Tom Morello and Scott Hepburn, offers up just the right amount of social criticism to be fitting of this civic holiday, while packing in all the action set-pieces and mutant creatures you look for in a day off work.

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.

Dark Horse releases definitive Hellboy timeline

For those fans (us included) who may have had a hard time wrapping their head around Hellboy, Dark Horse has published a definitive chronology of the life and times of Hellboy. Check out the image below or click here to download a .pdf – be befuddled no more!

(click to enlarge)

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

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!

 

Newly-minted features at nearmintcomicshow.com

Since you’re all comics fans, we know that you have a finely-tuned internal alarm clock that starts buzzing whenever your monthly fix is a few weeks late. And yes, we know we’re overdue to release an episode of everyone’s favorite comicbook podcast. Fear not, true believers! Ben and josh will be back “in studio” on Tuesday and a new episode will be headed your way by week’s end. And while we have taken a longer-than-usual break between episodes, we haven’t been resting on our laurels.  In fact, we’ve been hard at work on some exciting new features here on nearmintcomicshow.com.

Here’s what’s new…

Podcast Archive
We’ve completely overhauled the podcast page which now features a complete archive of past episodes including a link to the original blog post, a link to purchase books mentioned in each episode and best of all, a convenient embedded audio player so you can listen to each show without leaving the page. Want to hear the first Newbie Book Report? Wondering who Josh’s 2008 villain of the year was? Looking for our interview with Frank Quitely? It’s all collected in one place and easily accessible!

Help support the Near Mint Comic Show when you shop online

Amazon Store
Do you like stuff? Do you like saving money? Do you want to help us cover some of the costs that keep this site up and running? Of course you do. You may have noticed the “buy it” links popping up in articles or the “shop” link in the new episode archive or the not-so-subtle “shop our Amazon store” button on the side of the page. All of those links will take you to our Amazon store where you can get great deals on all the stuff you buy online and a portion of your purchase will go to support the Near Mint Comic Show.  Podcasting ain’t free, folks – and while we’re not planning a pledge drive anytime soon, we don’t mind a little help covering our operating costs. We’ll be populating the store with books we mention on the show or in articles and we may even throw out a great deal on our Facebook page from time to time. But we’ve also made it so you can search the entirety of Amazon.com through our storefront. So whether you’re looking to save a few bucks on the latest Walking Dead trade, or you’re shopping for a new washer and dryer, do us a favor and click our store link first.  You’ll get the same below-retail prices you always find on Amazon, and you’ll be supporting the show in the process. It’s a win-win!

Art Gallery & Video Page
If you take a look at the navigation menu at the top of the page, you’ll notice a couple changes. Gone is the Art Gallery, which we’ve moved to Facebook, where it’s easier for us and you to add convention sketches, pieces of original art etc. If you’ve picked up something awesome or done something yourself, stop by and post it – we’d love to see the gallery grow.  In it’s place on our website, we’ve added a Video page, where we’ve embedded a few of our best video features and a link to more on Vimeo.

Weekly Hit (and Miss) List
Since we know you visit the site religiously and read everything we post, hopefully you’ve been enjoying the Weekly Hit (and Miss) List columns … Ed Brubaker has! Each week, Ben reviews some of the best (and less-than-best) comics he read that week. This feature will continue weekly and may feature some guest columnists from time to time. If you’re interested in being a guest columnist, email us and as always, feel free to comment on the books you’re liking and not liking on our Facebook page.

Episode 034 “Maceindaface!″

Listen | Subscribe (iTunes)

Near Mint! Comic Show! Party Time! Excellent! In the first half this Herculean episode, we take a trip to the Windy City for a very Marvel-centric rundown of all the announcements coming out of C2E2.   We talk Fear Itself, X-Men, Avengers and Bendis quips until we’re blue in the face, and then we talk some more.  After the convention coverage, its back to the Comic Cave, where Josh mourns the cancellation of The Cape, Ben gives comic recommendations for each of the Oscar-nominated films, and we count down the top 15 sound effects from Assault on New Olympus. Listen, or you will be BREVOOOORTED!

Music in this episode by: Phish, the Beatles, Queen

A’hem, waiter? There’s real life in my comics!

by Ben Peirce

I shouldn’t be writing this right now.  There are about a hundred and one things I should be doing tonight rather than writing this article.  But whenever life presents me with a a to-do list the size of  a gun in a Rob Liefeld book, I usually like to blow off everything and read some comics.  So you can imagine my befuddlement with tonight’s reading, X-Men: Magneto Testament, by Greg Pak and Carmine Di Giandomenico. Not only did this book pour gasoline on my procrastination fire by being so good I had to come here and write about it, but it also doused my hopes of mindless escapism with a healthy dose of the real world.

Near Mint Comic Show Announces New Podcast: The Comic Book Club

Josh and Ben at GraniteCon 2010

So the fans have spoken with downloads, emails, letters and even skywriters.

A monthly podcast isn’t enough, so the minds behind the Near Mint Comic Show have added a new free agent to their roster: The Comic Book Club at Double Midnight Comics.

What is it?

CBC will be a monthly audio show with a rotating panel of guests, recorded live and in person at our friendly neighborhood comic shop: Double Midnight Comics in Manchester, NH. The guys have been great to work with so far and we’re happy to have them along for the ride.

The format is very simple. A rotating roundtable of comic experts and creators will discuss one thing they individually read (old or new, single issue or trade) and one thing that everyone will read – both in separate segments. Each show is expected to run about an hour, perfect for a drive into work, the gym or shopping in your favorite comic book store.

As always, reader suggestions are encouraged for what the group should check out next and you never know…you could be asked to join the group to discuss it as part of a future roundtable!

Does this mean the NMCS is going away?

Don’t be sad, Petey. The mighty Near Mint Comic Show isn’t going anywhere and will still be recorded every 4-6 weeks.

So when’s the first show?

The first edition of CBC will be recorded this week with a release expected shortly after that. Listen to the first show and let us know what you think!

Because of your support (and honestly, Ben’s drive), the addition of a second show is possible. Thank you for your love of the NMCS in 2010 and expect more in 2011!

And for the love of Peter Parker, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, will ya?