Digital Strips Podcast 318 – Book Club – Gunnerkrigg Court, Third Edition

Today I think I ate my yearly allotment of jelly beans so I really need to lay down, so I’ll keep the write up short and my apologies for it even shorter.

This week it’s round three of Digital Strips Book Club vs Gunnerkrigg Court. So far I think we’re winning.

We come up with a new way to fantasize about Jason, talk about Scott Kurtz doing Scott Kurtzy things, Jason finds his new calling in life and new a rival in Wolf Blitzer. After a brief chat on how expensive microphones are, we talk about what Jason hasn’t been reading and what Steve has been, even though it sounds like Jason will soon be reading it too. We talk about the death of Google Reader and what it means to Web comics (spoiler alert, bupkiss). All this and Jason’s best worst attempt at creating an alternate universe.

After slash during that, we talk about the last 200 pages of Gunnerkrigg Court, if you’re not reading along with us, now is a great time to join in, because I think thinks are really warming up and starting to point at something happening.

But hey, what do I know?

Show notes.

Fleen
Octopus Pie (Merideth Gran)
Scenes from the Multiverse (John Rosenburg)
Gutters (Ryan Sohmer)
Girls with Slingshots (Danneille Corrseto)
Botched Spot
Over like Olav
Nightmare Pro Wrestling
Middle Music
Middle of the End Music

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Digital Strips Podcast 317 – Review – Loading Artist

loading-artist-img1Happy Digital Strips Day, Digital Strippers! It’s time for that Digital Strippiest of Digital Strips podcasts, Digital Strips! If everybody else is claiming days left and right, who’s to say we can’t do the same? After all, we are the oldest, currently updating webcomics podcast in the world (come at us, bro!).

Do you like webcomics? Good, because we talked about some!

We come back with more comics after the break, but not until I present to you “Jason Sigler, Electronics A-hole.” As always, a sweet video game tune backs our inane chatter. This time, it’s “Spelunking in Space” from Kirby Super Star (15:30), remixed by Hylian Lemon (man, the crew who do music on Overclocked Remix have the raddest names).

As promised, we bring the volume with mentions surrounding this week’s great find:

A slew of mentioned comics does not a bad comic make. Evidence to the contrary is of ample supply in this case, as Loading Artist is a great comic in its own right.

Further inane chatter: Jason takes what he can get, Happy Star Wars Day from Steve’s mom, we put the word “nerd” in front of every possible state of mind and/or being and coming soon to the Digital Strips Podcast Network: Audio Gigolo.

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Digital Strips Podcast 316 – Review – The Line

Sorry for the later post. Daylightsavings has been kicking my butt.

This week is another episode that I couldn’t stop smiling about during the editing process. We had a lot of fun as we discuss The Line, by the very prolific Kevin Church. It’s the story of a high pressure kitchen in a fancy resturaunt and the lives it ruins.

We talk about our favorite “sim” games and how one in particular ruined both of our lives and made Steve super competive with bugs. We then delve into a deep round of things that make us feel good and start with the letter B. Then Jason gets up on his soupbox about how people release their games and Steve gets on his about how people should seek to be entertained reliably.

In “Whatca been readin’ Jason” we talk about The Night by B. Sabo and talk about how horror is in so manythings now that we expect it. I even had some horror in my miniwheats yesterday.

A breif detour into what we like in an about page leads us to the second thing Jason’s been reading, a 24 comic that we both agreed was well done and fun. Maybe even well fun.

Steve on the over hand has been reading Samurai’s Blood, another print comic going web serial, this time with Samurai.

We talk about Strip Search again, which still isn’t as sexy as it sounds like it should be.

During the music we talk about how not having an xBox makes everything worse.

We get down in dirty with the horrible culinary experices that have been Jason’s life. And how ketchup and ham played into it, which leds us well into the food centric comic.

We talk about artist writer combonations where the two sides form more than their parts. And then promptly become unable to think of examples of this.

We wrap up and Steve forgets that there’s not more UPN. It was important at the time

Links:
The Night
Rutabaga
Eric Colossel’s day
Samurai’s Blood
Skullkickers
The Rack
Lydia
Lonliest Astronauts

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Digital Strips Podcast 315 – Horizons Watch – Broodhollow and Muscles Diablo

You know when we talk about both reality TV and Dr. Strangelove in the same episode that we have the makings of something discordant and chaotic. Luckily, we agree on the things that matter. The others, not so important (if you don’t know which is which in that scenario, then I feel sorry for you).

dr_strangelove

Should this feel dirty? Because it feels dirty.

Speaking of disagreeing, it’s time once again for Horizons Watch! We pick two fresh-ish comics and bring them before our two-man tribunal (hush) for judging, mockery and entertainment. Before we get to those more in-depth looks, we have other comics that have crossed our paths recently:

(5:39) The Sundays
(7:26) Rocket Robinson and the Pharaoh’s Fortune

The big news this (past) week was the launch of Penny Arcade’s much-anticipated reality competition series …

(9:10) Strip Search

While Steve has long since sworn off shows like this that don’t involve sweaty dudes rolling around together and 30 Rock parodies, I watched the first episode and came away feeling like it was a show that was produced by a production company (Bionic Trousers Media). More thoughts can be found in the podcast proper. During our discussion, we couldn’t help but pick out one contestant who we’ve previously talked about and reviewed on the show:

(11:03) Skadi

I read an article recently about the purpose of video game reviews in the modern gaming culture, specifically with regards to setting discourse. Many reviewers find themselves tasked with establishing the faults and/or strengths of a particular property and leaving it for the audience to judge whether they are right or wrong. While it can debated whether or not this should be the goal of a critic, it is certainly true that I have set the discourse for this series and the remainder of its episodes will have to work to change that. For me, at least, I hope you will tell us if your experience was different.

One of our featured comics has the word “diablo” in the title, so naturally I picked something from the game series of the same name for our midshow chat.

(15:30) ‘Wet Grass Inspired’ by AmIEvil

Two great comics come over our Horizons this time, both wildly different, and showing how things should be done in comics while also displaying some missteps in their lives on the Web. First up, Kris Straub’s newest comic confection:

(19:34) Broodhollow

If you want a comic that looks like Starslip (a previous, now completed Straub creation) but has a sinister undertone, Broodhollow has what you’re looking for. Protagonist Wadsworth Zane represents the everyman while also possessing demons, both figurative and (possibly) literal. It makes for a fun read that offers just enough mystery to keep you coming back for more.

Our second pick:

(28:02) Muscles Diablo

In the fun and nothing but category, Muscles Diablo stands second to none. Muscles is, as described by creator Pat N. Lewis, “a tough guy with a shady past who punches a lot of things”. No mystery there! The only question we had is why would you host such a great comic on such a terrible template for Tumblr (re-reading comics is a chore, though this may not affect non-reviewing types). We’ve encountered this problem before, and speaking of that, here are the comics that naturally came up in our conversations:

(24:51) Lovecraft is Missing
(24:56) Sin Titulo
(27:39) Epicsplosion (still no idea if this currently has a home on the Web, if you find it, please let us know!)
(30:41) Little League (now JL8?)

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Digital Strips Podcast 314 – Book Club – Gunnerkrigg Court, Second Edition

Here I go again on my own. Posting on the only blog I’m podcastin’ on. Like a vampire, I was born to walk alone.

Not alone in the podcast though, that would be terrible. Trust me, 30 minutes of me saying “ummm….” and “I’m lonely” is not good talk radio on the Internet.

This week we’re gathering our books and pressing our uniforms for another semester at Gunnerkrigg Court. We cover pages 201 through 396, going over what happens in each chapter, how we feel about what happens in each chapter and how much I wish Jason had never read Harry Potter.

We also talk about such vitally important topics as Carly Rae Jepsen, hot Asian ladies dancing in offices, murder, responsive web design, girl Hooters (it’s not what you think), how to teach kids to swear and most interestingly, Jason’s butt cheeks.

So join us won’t you. I van’t promise you won’t regret it, but I can promise you won’t regret it for very long. And that’s still a pretty good deal.

Thanks, Obama.

Show Notes:

Brood Hollow
Briar Hollow
Chainsaw Suit
BrentalFloss the comic
Muscles Diable
SkullKickers
Table Titans

Music in the middle is so awesome it took three guys to make it: Brothersynthe, The Duke and Trenthian.

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Digital Strips Podcast 313 – Review – Dead Duck

It’s time for Episode 313 of The Digital Strips Podcast, where we review the comic, Dead Duck, and I have more comics to talk about than Steve. What.

I’d also like to extend a hearty, warm welcome to Steve’s wife, who has now had her first Digital Strips experience. Unfortunately, it was probably also her last due to copious amounts of weiner talk. Whoops.

On the webcomics front, we’ve got a full docket of news and opinions. If you want to catch up with us on we’ve been reading, you should check out these comics:

We also have a news item, that of Kazu Kibuishi being chosen as the artist to do new covers for the 15th anniversary of Harry Potter (9:14). Even with all Kazu has accomplished in his illustrious career, that is pretty cool news. Congrats, Kazu!

On more of a downer note, our final, pre-review mentions come courtesy of a couple of creators who have gotten out of their creative rhythm. Sure, this happens all the time, but when I see two higher-profile people laying out their woes for all to see, it feels like something to talk about. Their comics are:

If you’re a fan of either creator and have a moment, why not drop them a line and remind them how much you love their stuff? For that matter, why not take a moment and write your favorite creator, regardless of medium, and tell them you like their work? If there’s one thing creative people need more than money, it’s validation. Also cupcakes.

The midshow break/chat is complimented by a mix from Super Mario Galaxy by Guifrog called “Little Glockenspiel”. I chose it because I love that game. We talked about urinary infections because that’s what we do.

Our reviews system is based on finding smaller, off-the-beaten-path gems that might otherwise go overlooked in this massive comics ecosystem we inhabit. Steve can take credit this week for finding a true diamond in the rough.

  • (18:47) Dead Duck

I’ll go on record as saying this didn’t impress me much from the get-go. Actually, Steve will  as well. But by the time the final, archived strip is finished, you come to root for this band of underdogs and their tattered, broken relationships. That creator Jay P. Fosgitt can drive us to have emotional reactions to these cartoonish heroes is a credit to his abilities. Some other comics that came to mind in our discussion:

I won this one, so I’m going to go savor the flavor of this victory and come back again next week to defend my title. Later!

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Digital Strips Podcast 312 – Review – All New Issues

We have a new rival here at Digital Strips and we don’t even know their names. We found a podcast older than us and we just don’t like them.

This week, Jason brings to the table All New Issues, a comic that strikes a little too close to home in some ways and not at all in others. We talk about how much it reminds us of other comics and how in this case, that’s a good thing.

We also talk about our mysterious patron, little ways you at home can change the world by hugging garbage, why litter is horrible, why Gallager is not as horrible as you may think, why Jason can’t pronouce the name of this show, Steve gives tax advice and Jason turns around and gives career advice to Pat Bennatar.

Play at home game: count how many euthinism Steve has (Note – I’m editing this post for typos and I can’t figure out what Steve meant here, so “euthinism” stands – Jason).

Always remember: We’re a podcast. People don’t listen to me, we’re in trouble.

Show Notes, I’ll have links up later in the day.
Table Titans
Trenches
Kiwi Blitz
Order of the Stick
Sidekick Quests
The Untold Tales of Bigfoot
The Abomiable Charles Christopher
Monster Pulse
Girls with Slingshots
Looking for Group
The Rack

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Digital Strips Podcast 311 – Horizons Watch – Civilian and Sidekick Quests

The Webcomic Beacon featuring Steve and Jason from Digital StripsSHAMELESS PLUG: Fes of The Webcomic Beacon was kind enough to feature both Steve and I on his show, which you can listen to here. Show some love to a fellow comic podcaster and give it a spin or something.

In an effort to be true in our resolution to bring you more Horizons Watches in 2013 than we did in the year prior (by our count, five, four and a half if you don’t fully count the unprecedented episode where I failed to bring one to the table), we bring you the first one of the year. With our first effort posted just before the 1st of February, that chance is alive and well. But before I get carried away, the bits that come before that are just as compelling.

In Whatcha Been Readin’, I found an entire site that houses not one, not two, not three but four different comics, all by the same creator. Visit Scott Ferguson’s sites (this link will take you to one of them, from which you can get to the other three) and enjoy what appears to be high-quality work in a variety of genres (6:08). Steve, on the other hand, presents us with a comic that he admits may not be able to wholly support some otherwise good writing. Check out The Monkey and the Mouse (7:43) and decide for yourself.

Never one to leave the public spotlight too soon, Ryan Estrada doles out the updates on his Kickstarter for The Whole Story (9:53) in a nearly daily fashion. The latest news informed us that this collection has been so popular, Estrada has decided to make The Whole Story a year-’round entity, housing some of the biggest and brightest names in comics today. So go get your pick from this selection and then wait for more to come, apparently very soon and very frequently.

Want to hear about the oddest take on Pac-Man in that game’s illustrious, storied history? How about a hauntingly minimalistic take on the admittedly simple theme of that game? Then our chatter, backed by Israfel’s “Glass Cage” (14:00), should be right up your pellet-filled alley.

Civilian by Dustin Parker (19:22) and Sidekick Quests by James Stowe (27:44) are both comics which stand on their own as early, yet promising comics with hopefully bright futures. Each has their challenges to mount in the future, but the solid foundations they share in various fundamentals bring them that much closer to realizing their potential.

Man, that makes a good summation for the intention behind our Horizons Watch feature. Summarizing other, less focused elements of the podcast, we talk about They Might Be Giants by way of Tiny Toon Adventures, why it’s important to remember that everything good has already been done before, and why I’m worried that Steve had a little birdhouse put in his soul when he was young. Forget about the fact that comics have “other thinged” his body parts in the past. If you want the incredibly loose context, you’ll have to listen in!

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Digital Strips Podcast 310 – Book Club – Gunnerkrigg Court, First Edition

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: First Edition

It’s January and Winter has finally come to Virginia! Sure, it was barely enough to cover the cars and bring down a tree into a power line here and there, but it came just the same. The first month of a new year also means it’s time to start another Book Club! Or something. Really, it all boils down to me (that’s Jason, so there’s no confusion) picking a comic that, while of a good quality (namely The Rack), did not lend itself well to the task of reading a couple hundred pages at a time in an effort to go through the back issues. So Steve is up this time with a pick he says will do the name Book Club proud. We’ll see.

First up, however, we must tell you what we’ve been reading! And my picks are those sent to us by the infinitely talented, always available Ryan Estrada, straight from his latest pay-what-you-want graphic novel collection, The Whole Story (6:14). If you haven’t already contributed to this wildly successful Kickstarter, then I can tell you that two of the stories chosen for the collection proper, The Dog’s Sins by KC Green, and Plagued by Ryan Estrada, are worth the price of admission alone (but you still get at least two other books on top these already high-quality stories!). Both are on the shorter side but offer wildly different and highly entertaining experiences for your eyes and mind to enjoy.

Steve, on the other hand, has been engulfed in the frivolity and whimsy that makes up Bearmageddon (9:02). It’s from one of the minds that brought us the soon-to-be-a-TV-series Axe Cop (9:45) and the title should be a dead giveaway as to the mindless fun you’re going to have with this one. Seriously, bears. It’s in the title.

In our first segment chatter, we also mention another of KC Green’s projects, the currently-running Gun Show (7:45). It’s thought-provoking, random, and at times randomly thought-provoking. Rarely not hilarious, too. Check it.

Ok, so normally I mention where you can find our midshow music so you can check it out for yourself. But this week, I urge, nay, demand, that you clicky the link and download all of “Dirty Coins” by bLiNd (Jordan Aguirre) from Overclocked Remix (11:07). I’m rocking to it right now as I write this post because I CAN’T GET IT OUT OF MY SYSTEM. AND I LOVE IT FOR THAT. Oh, and we talk about the Glee/Jonathan Coulton situation during the break as well. Women’s lib gets a nod as well, I think. Just listen.

We are going to get through this comic, come Hell or high water, but we encourage you, the listener, to participate with us and read along. We’ll be sending out Tweets and Facebook posts when we’re gearing up for the next edition, so keep an eye out and join us in this first (only?) Book Club of 2013. For our first edition with Harry Potter and the Illuminated Bridge … er, Gunnerkrigg Court, we dissect each chapter, page by page, and come to a consensus that, while incredibly derivative in a number of ways, this is a comic worth reading in its entirety. We read the first 200 pages (11 chapters, if you want to count that way) this time around, so catch up and let us know what you think! With Book Club, your thoughts are just as important as ours. Probably more so, since we’re tired of hearing ourselves speak/think.

For those into tangents, our Rambletron chokes on the following: Why are snow plows such dicks to people who live on side streets, the useless superpower that is pre-cognitive professional wrestling color commentary, Steve reminding us of his cockamamie Axe Cop conspiracy theory, science brooms, basil vs. basil, whether or not “artificial habitat” can be considered dirty, and the threat of death in Candy Land. Join us?

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Digital Strips Podcast 309 – Review – Judecca

I’m going to be honest. I’m a little worried about how this day in going to go. I have a doctor’s appointment today and I’m old enough that even though I’m not going for anything butt-related, there’s a decent chance I’m going to get the finger.

I hate that stupid finger.

But anyway, that won’t stop me from posting our latest episode of Digital Strips.

This week we’re looking at Judecca, the weirdest, most surreal strip that I have ever presented on this show. If it had been Jason’s pick, it still would be in the top five. We then talk about the comic, about it’s use of color and it’s art jump. We theorize about what it all means and where it is going. Then we stop and tell Pictionary stories.

We talk about Jason’s fantasy racism, Steve’s unwritten rules of character creation, Jason’s new gamertag, where Jason likes to record this show, Steve defends his right to not love things and then forgets what medium this show is about, Jason thinks everything looks like Final Fantasy, a quick warning for Feedburner users and Jason becomes very concerned about whether he is suppose to bring the noise, the funk or a vegetable tray.

It was a lot of fun, but it won’t mean a thing if you don’t join us.

Show Notes
Not Invented Here
Super Fogeys
Twilight Monk
Rutabaga
Chainsaw Suit
Dog eat Doug

Music for this episode was “One Hit KO” by WillRock.

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