Skybound's Brand Manager - Editorial Morgan Perry joins the podcast to chat about her path in comics, her current role, and the world of promoting comics. Perry discusses her role at Skybound, the complexity of comics marketing, the broader Skybound ecosystem, her first comic, accessibility, working at Earth 2 Comics, manga and comics, her time at BOOM!, its rise, managing fanbases, the Energon Universe, the big takeaway from its reception, what's missing from comic marketing, building hype,...

Cartoonist Juni Ba joins the podcast to chat about his two new graphic novels, Mobilis and The Unlikely Story of Felix and Macabber. Ba discusses looking back on already finished projects, the origin of Mobilis, the similarities between his two latest books, project sequencing, the evolution of his storytelling, his sketchbooks, the appeal of Captain Nemo, the book's lead, the nature of its ending, character designs, Mobilis' oversized nature, the roots of Felix and Macabber, working with...

Writer Rick Remender joins the podcast to talk about his life, career, and work at his imprint at Image Comics, Giant Generator. Remender discusses New York Comic Con, collaborators, the evolution of cons, what he loves about comics, his art brain, learning from projects, what writing is for him, evolving the work, idea generation, his artist lean, signing an Image exclusive, what Giant Generator is, this creator-owned moment, following the story, why he's leaning into comics right now, and...

Writer Christopher Yost joins the podcast to talk about his career and his upcoming series at Vault, Unnatural Order. Yost discusses his comic origins, how other mediums drove him to comics, the idea of making comics, his early days at Marvel, his interview process, the X-Men, X-23's place in his career, writing in different mediums, trusting collaborators, Unnatural Order's origin, idea generation, understandable villains, fantasy as a genre, Unnatural Order #1's free plan, the changing...

Artist Erica Henderson returns to the podcast to talk about her new graphic novel, Parasocial, and how she's approaching her art and career. Henderson discusses the interview experience, the origins of Parasocial, its appeal, the intimate nature of Parasocial, the freedom comics, small moments, celebrity photos, distinguishing projects visually, collaborating with Alex de Campi, Rogue Nebula influences, conventions, the importance of color, figuring out what's next, writing and drawing,...

Writer Joshua Williamson returns to the podcast to talk about his extensive dance card right now and the current environment for creators in comics. Williamson discusses his current workload, event comics, writing back to back events, non-writing time, his project mix, alternative paths, his current focus, workshopping ideas, the art side of DC, the positioning of superhero titles, Skybound as a fit, Duke's art team, the Energon Universe, the current direct market environment, the cyclical...

Retailer and ComicsPRO President Jenn Haines joins the show to talk about the current state of things for her shops, The Dragon in Guelph, Ontario, and comics retail as a whole. Haines discusses The Dragon's 25th anniversary, welcoming families, Guelph Comics Jam, the year for her shops, the generally strange nature of this time, variance in her shops, what's working, single issues versus trades, the single issue space, price points, balancing her two roles, the direct market environment, a...

Writer/artist Declan Shalvey joins the podcast to talk about his current Kickstarter for Old Dog: Dossier and the rest of his busy workload. Shalvey discusses his different roles, finding time to tell more stories, the origins of Old Dog: Dossier, Kickstarter stress levels, the social media situation, what Old Dog: Dossier includes, the other roles in a creator's job, managing a shifting environment, Time Before Time's graybeard nature, foundational projects, the current environment, Joe...

Writer Jed MacKay joins the podcast to talk about his path to comics and current titles in The Avengers, Doctor Strange, and Moon Knight. MacKay discusses problem solving, what guides his schedule, his earliest comics, his approach as a storyteller, following a big run, Steve McNiven's Moon Knight covers, learning comics on the job, Nick Lowe's impact, Black Cat #1's area of effect, his starting points for a title, his approach to Moon Knight, the space he got on Doctor Strange, writing a...

Writer Nadia Shammas joins the show to talk about their career to date and the upcoming graphic novel, Confetti Realms. Shammas discusses the weird year, Confetti Realms, Barnes & Noble origins, manga's influence, the Marvel internship experience, the CORPUS anthology, the power of anthologies, collaboration, putting yourself in stories, their project mix, the roots of Confetti Realms, the cast and art of the book, the current state of comics, celebrating your work, and more.

Comics critic Oliver Sava returns to the show for the sixth annual Superhero State of the Union. Sava discusses the mini-series gap between the Big Two, Dawn of DC, DC's castings, the Knight Terrors bump, event comics, price points, Big Two cohesion, continuity, Marvel's current state, Al Ewing and the upcoming Immortal Thor, the X-Men line, Marvel's messiness, Doctor Strange: Fall Sunrise, the Energon Universe, Daredevil, our most desired turns for the Big Two, and more.

Cartoonist Emily Carroll joins the show to talk about her career, craft, and upcoming graphic novel, A Guest in the House. Carroll discusses early influences, their lasting impact, storytelling flow, having fun in the work, experimentation, how she views her webcomics, her process, lettering and coloring, domestic life, A Guest in the House's lead, horror endings, age specificity (or the lack thereof), the long shadow of Through the Woods, pushing herself as a storyteller, and more.

Cartoonist Daniel Warren Johnson returns to the show to talk about his career and the upcoming The Transformers. Johnson discusses the San Diego Comic Con experience, how the con experience has evolved for him, a recent, giant commission, maintaining his passion, how The Transformers came together, the intensity of creator-owned, drawing for himself, figuring out how to draw The Transformers, Skybound's pitch, working with Hasbro, the version of the characters he's working with, the vibe he's...

Retailer Eitan Manhoff joins the show to talk about his now Eisner Award-winning shop in Oakland, Cape & Cowl Comics, and what he's been seeing this year. Manhoff discusses that Eisner win, what went into it, Cape & Cowl's origin story, building his shop, accessibility, the selling secret, how the year is going in his shop, uneasy feelings, what's working, his online store, the impact of pre-orders, the Eisner bump, what isn't working, Marvel's troubles, how consumers have changed...

Cartoonist Chris Schweizer joins the show to talk about his life, career, and collaborations with Kyle Starks. Schweizer discusses his Assassin Nation self, how his background shaped his path as an artist, comic strips, how he decided to make comics, his wide variety of jobs, finding new ways to tell comic stories, his middle-grade comic work, collaborating with Starks, problem solving, his coloring work, the underrated nature of Mars Attacks, his goals as a creator, and more.

Writer Kelly Sue DeConnick joins the show to talk about Wonder Woman Historia: The Amazons and her approach to telling stories in comics and beyond. DeConnick discusses the life of a creator, the value of shutting our brains down, collaboration, artistic interpretations, controlling pace, letting go of the work, where comics are right now, her progression as a comic writer, Wonder Woman Historia's place in her career, growing as a storyteller, building communities, making panels fun, the...

François Hercouet, the Editor-in-Chief of France's Urban Comics (the publisher of DC Comics and assorted Image, Dark Horse, and BOOM! titles in the country), joins the show to talk about the French comic market and his work at Urban. Hercouet discusses connecting American comics with French readers, the essence of Urban Comics, emphasizing creators, production value, the France comic market, his path to running Urban, making superhero comics easier to read, working with retailers, curating a...

Cartoonist Scott Kurtz joins the show to talk about the past, present, and future of webcomics and his career on comics like PVP and Table Titans. Kurtz discusses his earliest comics and main influences, the earliest comics he made, making his way into comics, the early days of webcomics, what success looks like, webcomics and community, what fueled the changes in webcomics, how they're changing, crowdfunding's role, his new career path, what's next for webcomics, and more.

Writer Ed Brubaker joins the show to talk about his latest graphic novel with artist Sean Phillips, Night Fever. Brubaker discusses the picket line experience, the insanity of Night Fever, his expectations for the response, the personal nature of the book, why it was the right idea right now, Refn vibes, section breaks, his artistic collaborators, Sean Phillips' working with bigger pages, the book's international feel, wanting to be someone else, the cover change of the book, how their sales...

Writer/artist Kyle Starks returns to the show to talk about his work in I Hate This Place, Where Monsters Lie, Peacemaker Tries Hard!, and more. Starks discusses his updated business card, the inescapable humor label, the impact of the Eisner Awards, where he's at now creatively, new challenges, comics as business cards, the James Gunn vibe, the origins of Peacemaker Tries Hard!, Steve Pugh's greatness, tonal balance, Black Label freedoms, his recurring use of dogs, condensing the conclusion...

Webtoon's VP of Content, David S. Lee, joins the show to chat about the world of Webtoon and its comics. Lee discusses his own comic story, his unexpected background, his recent promotion, how they find creators and comics, working with creators, Canvas vs. Originals, the impact of adaptations, creative vs. business, managing creator concerns, metrics vs. instincts, the power of accessibility, serving underserved audiences, discoverability, managing growth, and more.

Writer Kelly Thompson joins the show to talk about her creator-owned work and her overall approach to writing. Thompson discusses the superstar that is Jeff the Landshark, , the power of cute things, the glory of Stefano Caselli and Gurihiru, Jeff's appeal, the origins of Black Cloak, Meredith McClaren's gifts, collaboration, Black Cloak's cover design, world-building, handling mysteries, Substack's impact, the difficulty of creator-owned, Black Cloak's shape, narrative escape hatches, The...

Writer Ram V returns to the show to talk about his approach to writing on titles like The Vigil, Detective Comics, and more. Ram discusses a sneak attack reveal, the Paris Fan Festival experience, balancing his workload, idea creation, his pursuit of the new, the idea of success, the origins of Rare Flavours, his Detective Comics run, Evan Cagle's covers, the artists he works with, contrasting Batman stories, the hook of The Vigil, the value of the big swing, the appeal of DSTLRY, what has...

It's Off Panel #400, and to make this anniversary episode of Off Panel special, it's the first ever call-in show, as listeners of the show ask the questions and I have the answers. That's right. I'm the guest, as I answer questions about the future of my theoretical comic shop, what my Stilt-Man series would be about, what takes me out of the reading experience, French museums, the responsibilities of the job, comic revisits, cat dad thoughts, favorite writers/artists, comic price points,...

The Beat's Heidi MacDonald returns to Off Panel to talk about the past month or so of crazy news in the world of comics. MacDonald discusses the merits of Free Comic Book Day, the onslaught of news, building up The Beat's staff, Ike Perlmutter's departure, how Marvel looks post changes, the impact of this move, IDW's layoffs and reorganization, IDW's identity, where things went wrong, where IDW is headed, our DSTLRY thoughts, Substack and Zestworld, what makes DSTLRY work (conceptually), the...