Convention Report, Podcast

Comic Timing Episode 244 – Toy Fair 2025 in Review

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For the first time since 2023, the Toy Association put together their usually annual Toy Fair! For 2025, the show is back in its native slot of February, and Kris and Ian attended to share their thoughts on the show. Companies discussed include Mattel, Spin Masters, LEGO, Hasbro, Playmates, Bandai Namco, Funko, Super7, and tons more. Learn about the themes of the year, including foods that you can’t eat (aka snacks that are actually plushies), a large increase of toys and plushies that either have butts, fart, or both (because toys and plushies be classy), miniature worlds, making toys for “kidults” willing to spend money on nostalgia. Plus an easier way to get into Dungeons and Dragons for beginners, Barbie and Play-Doh unite, advances in plush technology (yes, we’re being serious), Toy Story toys mid-pose are creepy as heck, is the bag holding multiple plushies sentient according to Toy Story rules, pinball games for Dungeons & Dragons and Uncanny X-Men, Brooklyn people will find Brooklyn people anywhere they go and will then reminisce for fifteen minutes, and if you’re at the show long enough into the day, you can luck out and get free donuts!

And here’s the video version of this episode:

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. You can also follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@comictimingpodcast and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners! Finally, you can join in on the conversation at our Comic Timing Fans group on Facebook, which is a great place to hang out and talk comics.

Follow Ian on Bluesky, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi. Kris is lampbane on Bluesky, and you can check out her various other works at http://linktr.ee/krisnaudus. And here’s the quickie What Funko? game Kris created, since there’s a Funko of literally everything.

Thanks for listening, we’ll catch you next time, and as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:51:57 — 109.3MB)

Podcast

Comic Timing Episode 243 – Chatting with Jeremy Adams

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This one was a long time coming, but man did it feel good. Not only is our guest this week the current writer of Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, and Aquaman, but he’s also now officially a DC exclusive writer. That’s right, Ian sits down to chat with the one and only Jeremy Adams! Get to know Jeremy that much better as they go through his beginnings and getting into comics, sci-fi and fantasy as a kid, how he got his foot in the door at DC, Jeremy’s time on The Flash and our mutual love of Wally West, what it feels like to unintentionally be mirroring the career of Geoff Johns, getting to know Hal Jordan on Earth before venturing out to the stars, the idea behind the Fractal Lanterns, what’s to come in Green Lantern Corps, working in fantasy elements to Aquaman and what it takes to run an entire kingdom, what it’s like to work with some of the best artists in the industry, collaborating with veteran writers and artists on backup stories, and so much more. Plus, some convo on Flash Gordon to finish us out!

Be sure to check out Green Lantern Corps #1 which is available digitally and at comic shops now, and coming soon to DC Universe Infinite; Aquaman #1 is also out currently and available everywhere! And thanks once again to Jeremy for joining us, it was a great time all around. And you can go ahead and follow Jeremy on Bluesky and on Instagram!

And here’s the video version of the episode:

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. You can also follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@comictimingpodcast and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners! Finally, you can join in on the conversation at our Comic Timing Fans group on Facebook, which is a great place to hang out and talk comics.

Follow Ian on Bluesky, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi. Brent is on Bluesky, and he posts regularly to YouTube on his channel, BK’s Bullets.

Thanks for listening, we’ll catch you next time, and as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:00:58 — 38.1MB)

Podcast, Previews

Comic Timing Episode 242 – February 2025 Previews

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Just in the nick of time, February’s Previews episode is out! And this one…took some doing. For one thing, for the first time, we made the executive decision to skip Diamond’s Previews catalog (with the exception of two Dynamite entries at the end of the episode). And how did Murd and Ian manage to still put out a nearly three-hour episode without the Diamond catalog? THEY FOUND A WAY. That way includes the Lunar Distribution catalog, and Penguin Random House’s offering, along with the usual Image, DC and Marvel catalogs. Here’s a link to where Ian grabs the catalogs monthly, and here’s a link to Penguin Random House’s offerings as well. Highlights include Dan Slott’s first Superman issue as the Summer of Superman begins, six Silent Interlude issues of G.I. Joe, Golden Rage: Mother Knows Best, Godzilla versus friggin Spider-Man AND the latest Amazing Spider-Man relaunch, Craig Thompson’s Ginseng Roots, and so much more. And please, Penguin Random House, start separating your catalog into individual publishers rather than single issues and then collections, that’d be great, thanks.

Here’s the video version for you all:

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. You can also follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@comictimingpodcast and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners! Finally, you can join in on the conversation at our Comic Timing Fans group on Facebook, which is a great place to hang out and talk comics.

Follow Ian on Bluesky, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi. Brent is on Bluesky, and he posts regularly to YouTube on his channel, BK’s Bullets.

Thanks for listening, we’ll catch you next time, and as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:48:13 — 120.0MB)

Podcast

Comic Timing Episode 241 – Who Is Driving? Brent is Driving? How Can This Be?!?

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While Ian is busy adulting, Brent takes the wheel and drives this episode of Comic Timing in the host chair! He’s joined by Kris and Brandon as they discuss Kris’ non-spoiler thoughts on Captain America: Brave New World and the Alamo Drafthouse experience, Kris Krisplains Anime™ to Brent and talks some Dandadan in the process, and there’s some related convo on Invincible Season Three and the comparison to the comics. Then Ian joins in on the backhalf and Brandon touches a bit on his personal Diamond woes at the comic shop, the Thunderbolts* Superbowl trailer, recent reads such as Alice in Borderland and how the live action might be better than the manga, The Bronx Nobody Knows, Brent’s read Radiant Black Vol 1 and 2 after our Review Corner episode inspired him, One Hand and Six Fingers by Ram V, Ian gives his take on Kite-Man: Hell Yeah! and more.

And here’s the video version:

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. You can also follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@comictimingpodcast and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners! Finally, you can join in on the conversation at our Comic Timing Fans group on Facebook, which is a great place to hang out and talk comics.

Follow Ian on Bluesky, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi. Brent is on Bluesky, and he posts regularly to YouTube on his channel, BK’s Bullets; Brandon is at https://bsky.app/profile/thedabbadon.bsky.social and https://www.twitch.tv/thedabbadon. Kris is lampbane on Bluesky, and you can check out her various other works at http://linktr.ee/krisnaudus.

Thanks for listening, we’ll catch you next time, and as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:56:36 — 69.5MB)

Podcast

Comic Timing Episode 240 – Diamond’s Looking…Rough

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There’s a whole lot of serious stuff to discuss this episode, as Ian is joined by Kris and Jamal at start, then Raph and Donovan shortly thereafter. Topics include updates on Diamond’s bankruptcy and some decisions that have been made since, including Massive Publishing and Mad Cave joining up with Lunar Valiant halting their relaunch entirely until a new distribution solution emerges, Boom heading to Penguin Random House, and Two Morrows looking for alternatives. We also discuss what could have potentially been done to avoid this fate, if there’s a way out for Diamond, and what might come next for distribution.

Then, we go into the allegations against Neil Gaiman, DC’s response, Sandman ending after Season Two, and how we as fans can discuss things like this seriously while divorcing ourselves from the author’s works. Much less seriously, we talk Batman: Caped Crusader, our reactions to James Gunn’s Superman trailer and Marvel’s Fantastic Four: First Steps, Creature Commandos, Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, some recent reads and more.

Time stamps:

Diamond woes: 00:02:49

Neil Gaiman (trigger warning): 00:49:38

Rob Liefeld’s Marvel Divorce: 01:20:36

Batman: Caped Crusader: 01:25:52

Superman and Fantastic Four: First Steps trailers: 01:42:40

Creature Commandos: 02:06:15

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man: 02:18:11

Recent reads: 02:24:03

And here’s the YouTube video version:

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. You can also follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners! Finally, you can join in on the conversation at our Comic Timing Fans group on Facebook, which is a great place to hang out and talk comics.

Follow Ian on Bluesky, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi. Brent posts regularly to YouTube on his channel, BK’s Bullets; Raph is on Twitch at RaphDoesStuff, Instagram, and Bluesky. Kris is lampbane on Bluesky, here’s the article Kris wrote about the comic book industry in 2020, and you can check out her various other works at http://linktr.ee/krisnaudus. Donovan is on Bluesky, writes for DC’s blog and The Batman Universe, and check out his podcast, Questions: We Don’t Have Answers. And finally, Jamal is https://bsky.app/profile/jamaligle.bsky.social, https://www.instagram.com/jamaliglecomics/ and of course https://jamaligle.com/; his latest collection, The Wrong Earth: Dead Ringers is out next week!

Thanks for listening, we’ll catch you next time, and as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:47:46 — 104.4MB)

Podcast, Review Corner

Comic Timing Episode 239 – Review Corner: Radiant Black, Volume 1

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A long-awaited episode from the before-times finally makes its way from deep space and into your ear holes! And with it, a return to the long-dormant Review Corner format of Comic Timing episodes. The foursome of Ian, Chris Eberle, Adam Murdough and Shane Kelly get their hands on Kyle Higgins and Marcelo Costa’s epic introduction to the Massive-verse, Radiant Black! This first volume covers the first six issues of the book, as Nathan moves back home just in time to accidentally come across a Radiant, granting him ever-growing gravity abilities. With the assistance of his best friend Marshall, he tries to figure this all out, while also figuring himself out. And if you think that’s the whole of the story, there’s a lot more where that came from! For instance, who is Radiant Red? And what villains are trying to track these new heroes (?) down and make their power their own? So much to uncover, so much to learn, and we are ready to dive right in!

And here is the video version of the podcast:

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. Video versions of the show, as well as occasional shorts and other goodies are available at https://www.youtube.com/@comictimingpodcast.

Follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@comictimingpodcast and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners!

Finally, we have a Facebook Group that is thriving nicely. If you’d like to join, do so!

Follow Ian on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/i_am_scifi, on Bluesky, Threads, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi.

Thanks for listening as always, we hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season, and we will catch you all next time! And as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:06:23 — 45.5MB)

Podcast, Previews

Comic Timing Episode 238 – January 2025 Previews

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Our first episode of the New Year is officially here! Chris Eberle, Adam Murdough and Ian are here to go through this month’s various Previews catalogs, Image Catalog Issue 3, DC Connect issue 56, Marvel Previews Vol 6 issue 40, and Diamond Previews issue 436, with books mainly set for March 2025 release. Before the trio get into the books at hand, listen for a full discussion of the news that broke this week that may very well affect future editions of this very show: Diamond Distributors has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. We discuss the potential ramifications of the news (since we recorded Image is now officially going Lunar-only after this month’s order cutoff date), is there is a way out of this for Diamond post-filing, and we are of course incredibly happy to have a former shop owner in Mr. Eberle to help sort through it all.

Then, as we pivot to the catalogs, highlights include Robert Kirkman’s return to the Invincible Universe with Battle Beast, Hush 2 at DC, Assorted Crisis Events make Murd and Ian quite happy, Godzilla vs Fantastic Four, David F. Walker’s return to Bitter Root, new Mouse Guard from David Petersen, the first Solomon Kane series in 15 years by Titan, and so much more!

Time stamps:

Diamond bankruptcy conversation: 02:41

Image Comics: 16:28

Boom Studios: 43:05

Dynamite: 48:03

Titan Comics: 54:34

DC: 1:02:04

Marvel: 1:29:58

Back of the Book: 2:04:01

And here’s the video version of the episode:

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. Video versions of the show, as well as occasional shorts and other goodies are available at https://www.youtube.com/@comictimingpodcast.

Follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@comictimingpodcast and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners!

Finally, we have a Facebook Group that is thriving nicely. If you’d like to join, do so!

Follow Ian on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/i_am_scifi, on Bluesky, Threads, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi.

Thanks for listening as always, we hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season, and we will catch you all next time! And as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:55:27 — 123.3MB)

Podcast, Syndicated Episodes

Comic Timing Presents: Back to the Bins Episode 603

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As 2025 begins, here’s an episode from 2024 you may have missed! Paul Spataro, host of Back to the Bins, invited Ian, Chris Eberle, Adam Murdough and Shane Kelly on to discuss four books from comics past in full detail. These books are Captain Atom issue 83, aka the first appearance of Blue Beetle, DC’s Blue Beetle issue 1, The Flash issue 42 (Mark Waid’s first Wally West issue), and Daredevil issue 181. Fellowship!

and here’s the video version:

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. You can also follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners! Finally, you can join in on the conversation at our Comic Timing Fans group on Facebook, which is a great place to hang out and talk comics.

Follow Ian on Bluesky, 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.

Thanks for listening, we’ll catch you next time, and as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:04:13 — 69.7MB)

Extra Point, Podcast

Comic Timing Extra Point 19 – Kris’ Haikyu!! Review

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We’re off this week for Christmas, so here’s an Extra Point that was previously exclusive to the Patreon for your listening pleasure. Here, Kris goes solo and reviews the volley ball manga, Haikyu!! She also touches a bit on the Anime and how it differs from the manga, her thoughts on series ending on time jumps, and more. Give it a listen, and let us know what you think!

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. You can also follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners! Finally, you can join in on the conversation at our Comic Timing Fans group on Facebook, which is a great place to hang out and talk comics.

Follow Ian on Bluesky, 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 lampbane on Bluesky, and you can check out her various other works at http://linktr.ee/krisnaudus.

Thanks for listening, we’ll catch you next time, and as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 11:55 — 7.5MB)

Podcast, Previews

Episode 237 – December 2024 Previews

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‘Tis the season for more Previews, falalala lalalala! And this month it’s a foursome tackling the books, as Chris Eberle steps in to join Ian, Murd and Raph to end the year right. The books in question are Image Catalog Issue 2 (they finally went back to numbering these), DC Connect issue 55, Marvel Previews Vol 6 issue 39, and Diamond Previews issue 435, with books mainly set for February 2025 release. Highlights include Jason Aaron and Mahmud Asrar’s sendup to the 80’s toy commercial animated series with Bug Wars, One World Over DOOM at Marvel, a new Zatanna miniseries, tons of new Godzilla out of IDW, Rick and Morty enter the wrestling ring with Ricklemania, Powerpuff Girls Mwah Mwah Kissyface Valentine’s Special, the Smurfs get a proper linear collection in English FOR THE FIRST TIME, the main batch of FCBD books to come in May, and so much more!

Time stamps:

Image Comics: 05:18

FCBD Suggestions: 21:50

Boom Studios: 27:56

Dynamite: 33:00

Titan Comics: 38:40

DC: 46:37

Marvel: 1:16:00

Back of the Book: 1:42:35

and here’s the video version:

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. Video versions of the show, as well as occasional shorts and other goodies are available at https://www.youtube.com/@comictimingpodcast.

Follow Comic Timing on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/comictiming.bsky.social, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ComicTiming/, on Threads at https://www.threads.net/@comictimingpodcast and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/comictimingpodcast. And please, if you can, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts; it helps attract new listeners!

Finally, we have a Facebook Group that is thriving nicely. If you’d like to join, do so!

Follow Ian on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/i_am_scifi, on Bluesky, and on Instagram at http://instagram.com/i_am_scifi. And Raph is on Twitch at RaphDoesStuff, as well as Instagram, Twitter and Bluesky.

Thanks for listening as always, we hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season, and we will catch you all next time! And as always, there’s always time for comics!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:50:12 — 113.1MB)

Join Ian, Brent, and a rotating panel of guests as we discuss one of our favorite things: comics! Because there's always time for comics.