September 1, 2013

ABCP: Update, Plea and News

Heeeeyyyyyy.

So here's the deal. We apparently haven't released an episode of Awesomed By Comics in six months, which I didn't even realize until I came on here to write this post. There is no one single reason for it, and it certainly isn't because we don't love comics and you. Now that May is almost two (!), the "new parents" thing is only an excuse in that it was like the first move in messing with a rubik's cube and then all the rest of it got fucked up--we finally got one side all green and the almost-completed blue side went to hell. So here is a full update on our status, a confession and earnest plea for advice to help us get back on the wagon, and some big news (no, not another goddam baby):

1) When we first started having trouble getting episodes recorded, it was because May wouldn't give us any uninterrupted time--we often would read a bunch of books and prepare for the show, and then couldn't get through it. Now, later in her life than is probably healthy, she finally has her own room, a bedtime, and we can conceivably make this happen more often. Now here's the confession: WE HAVE NOT BEEN READING COMICS. We got off track earlier in the spring, and got so far behind that it's like when you go on a diet and blow it once and then are like "oh well, that's fucked, might as well eat only cupcakes for the rest of the week." Getting caught up has been too daunting, and the most we have done is slowly pulled up to speed on Nova and Guardians of the Galaxy. We don't even know where we left off on the Unwritten. This is how bad things are. So here's where we desperately need your help:

2) TWELVE MONTHLY BOOKS. TELL US WHAT THEY SHOULD BE. We used to pull in something like 12-15 books per week. There is no way we are keeping up with that shit. But we can still get back into our favorite hobby and put out a quality show every few weeks if we read 3-4 titles a week. You know us. You know what we like. We can guess what we'd like, but we barely know what's still being published. We will choose 12 monthly titles, based on your suggestions, and jump in cold. Think about it and let us know in the comments, the sooner the better.

3) Finally, here's the big news: The next time you hear an ABCP, it may very well start "Live from Oakland," because WE ARE MOVING TO CALIFORNIA. Aaron got a new job based in Berkeley, so we are hauling our shit and our cats and our kid to the East Bay on November 1st. Needless to say we are up to our skulls in crap to deal with right now, but the move is as good a chance as ever to turn over a new leaf on the things we love, like the podcast.

So there you have it. We have not been trying to let you down easy, we're just a mess. Help us clean up our act.

xoxoxo Evie

35 comments:

Evie said...

BTW I don't know why I wrote "Live" from Oakland. Clearly it's not live, and we've never said that. See I don't even remember the damn script.

Ard Collier said...

Titles that have already started/ are ongoing: Saga, Hawkeye, Young Avengers, All-New X-Men, The Massive, Itty Bitty Hellboy, Mighty Avengers, Lazarus, Captain Marvel. None of those should be too bad to catch up on overall, and Itty Bitty Hellboy is a nice, easy, brightly-colored snack of a book that your kid might like too. Brubaker's Fatale just started a new arc.

Atomic Robo might work for you because it's only released by the arc, which gives you a break between series. Manhattan Projects, maybe, although if you're coming in now there's a lot of backstabbing and subplotting that's been going on over the last year and change. Hickman's other Image book, Secret, is just now getting on its monthly-schedule feet (number three came out this last week), so that might work better for you; you could catch up and then by the time you were settled in the Bay, it'd be coming out regularly.

Titles that have yet to start but will soon: Sex Criminals, Southern Bastards (the Jasons Aaron and LaTour doing a crime comic), Pretty Deadly (full disclosure: my SO is a contractor on that book).

Rob said...

Congrats on the move you guys and on the new job Aaron!

As for suggestions for series, here are mine:

1) Young Avengers
2) Saga
3) Hawkeye
4) Daredevil
5) Captain Marvel
6) Wonder Woman
7) FF / Fantastic Four
8) Lazarus (the new Rucka / Lark book)
9) Ultimate Comics Spider-Man
10)Thor God of Thunder
11)Batman
12)East of West

And maybe a special mention to Avengers Arena, because you'll need something for crap of the week.

DRC said...

Congratulations on the new job and the move, and very much looking forward to new episodes. You both would certainly love
1) Saga
2) Young Avengers
3) Hawkeye
4) Thor: God of Thunder
5) Daredevil

All-New X-Men is very, very Bendisy: it's good, but there are issues where basically nothing happens. It doesn't seem too bad, as it comes out every other week, but if I were picking a few titles to read, it wouldn't be one of them. And as much as I love Unwritten (mostly from your recommendations), it's currently gone completely off the rails in a crossover with Fables. Maybe in a few months when it's over?
A couple people here have also mentioned FF. It's fantastic - Allred art over fun Fraction - but Fraction just left, so who knows if it'll be any good in the future.
You'd also certainly like

6) Bandette

Though it's only available via Comixology, and doesn't really count as it comes out every other month and only costs 99 cents.

So, how about

7) Superior Foes of Spider-Man

Which is a heist comic about a a bunch of villains that are such losers that they're led by Boomerang. Very funny.
There's a bunch of Runaways characters featured in the very good

8) Avengers Arena

(Which is doing it's best to both be and subvert Everyone is Dying! Exploitation)

That's a lot of Marvel. Over at Image, I'd recommend (in addition to Saga)

9) Revival

A supernatural rural thing with a strong female lead, and

10) Satellite Sam

A Fraction/Good Chaykin piece set in a 1950s TV studio. Fraction channeling Aaron Sorkin

and the upcoming

11) Sex Criminals (I've seen some of the pages - looks amazing)

I feel like I should recommend something from DC, but most of it is pretty bad. The best right now is probably Greg Pak's Batman/Superman, but Jae Lee is being replaced by Bret Booth on that, so, maybe not so much. I do think you'd like

12) Archer and Armstrong

Which is Fred Van Lente basically doing Hercules again. Very funny action political satire.

DrWorm said...

Great news. I there's been a little hole in my podcast listening schedule.

Here's my recommended list (in no particular order)
Hawkeye
Daredevil
Wonder Woman
Batman
Captain Marvel
East of West
Wolverine and the X-Men
Saga
Thor God of Thunder
Ultimate Spider-Man
Fantastic Four
FF
Guardians of the Galaxy

I would normally put X-Factor here, but sadly there is only one issue left.

Frankly, I'm shocked at how few DC titles are in there. I used to read some much more, but have been hugely disappointed by the new 52.

Unknown said...

Marvel is absolutely killing it right now. It's hard to describe these as fantastic, although all of these are.
Daredevil is still great.
Indestructible Hulk
Thor God of Thunder
Superior Spider-Man
Wolverine and the X-Men
Uncanny X-Men
All New X-Men
Fantastic Four
FF- You guys will love Tong! You know, one of them Moloids...
Avengers
New Avengers

And so this isn't an all Marvel list...
The Mysterious Strangers from ONI is good too. And only 3 issues have come out so far.

e said...

I think you guys would really like Hawkeye and whatever follows Avengers Arena (it will be ending soon, but it is the continuation of Avengers Academy). If you guys are looking at the Avengers books, Avengers and New Avengers are great if you enjoy Jonathon Hickman. If not, it might not be the book for you.

There aren't many DC books I'd think you and Aaron would like. Gail Simon is leaving Batgirl, so that could go either way depending on who takes over. I'm really enjoying Wonder Woman right now. Justice League or Suicide Squad would provide you guys with ample Crap of the Week fodder.

No matter what you're reading, it would be great to hear ABC again.

Nick Jones said...

You're alive! It's a Labor Day miracle!

Books I'd recommend for you kids:

1) Saga
2) The Massive
3) Rachel Rising
4) Chew
5) The Unwritten
6) Atomic Robo
7) Skullkickers
8) Revival
9) Lazarus
10) Hawkeye
11) Daredevil

...and while I could list a slew of trades, I can't think of a twelfth book that's published in a periodical format. So:

12) We Can Fix It! A Time Travel Memoir

(It's an OGN, but it's very good.)

Ian Craig said...

Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga Saga

Oh, and Young Avengers.

Eric Lyden said...

Saga
Hawkeye
Daredevil
FF
Fantastic Four
Lazarus
Astro City
Mind Mgmt
Batman '66
Archer & Armstrong
Quantum & Woody
Trillium

I tried to pick either books that just started and should be easy to catch up with or ones that are fairly self contained from issue to issue that you'll want to catch up on. A few don't fall into either category, but I just like 'em. Honestly, HAWKEYE, DAREDEVIL, & SAGA are so far above the rest that I only included the other ones out of obligation. They're all good, but those are the top three, no question.

Ziah Grace said...

The return! Just in time to make sure WRA doesn't lap your show record! Hooray!

Here's some titles I like:
1. X-Men Legacy is one of my favorites coming out right now, with clever writing, distinct art, and a Doom Patrol-y hook of a character solving problems before they happen without just punching them.
2. Daredevil- Still great.
3. Young Avengers-Really good
4. Chew- Also still really good
5.Prophet- Some of the best art and alien depictions on the stands.
6. Hawkeye- Still really great.
7. Mighty Avengers- Amazing writer Al Ewing teamed up with your pal and mine, Greg (No Man Is An Island) Land, with a bunch of great characters? (It should get better by issue 5 once Land is off)
8. East of West- Really interesting series with good Hickman writing and AMAZING art by Nick Dragotta and Frank Martin.
9. The Manhattan Projects- Same as above, except Hickman's had more time to impress with his writing, and Nick Pitarra and Jordie Bellaire's got a great color scheme.
10.Superior Foes of Spider-Man- Return to good Nick Spencer writing, when we all thought he was gonna be the next big thing, with some really great Steve Lieber art.
11. Lazarus
12. Pretty Deadly

Bob Hodges said...

I'm glad you guys might be coming back.

My 12 current favorite or most anticipated comics:
Bandette
Chew
Lazarus
The Manhattan Projects
The Massive
Mind MGMT
Pretty Deadly
Revival
Saga
Satellite Sam
Southern Bastards
Velvet

Ethan said...

I've been reading very few comics as well, but I'd recommend FF and Fantastic Four. You'd probably like FF more, and they start out interlinked, but aren't really connected any more.

J Mann said...

Congratulations on the move, all the best for your new life in the West Coast.
It's a great time for comics. I'd recommend:

1. Thor: The Mighty Avenger (best thig out of Marvel)
2. Hawkeye
3. Avengers Arena (for the Runaways fix)
4. Young Avengers (McKelvie! Kid Loki! Ms America Chavez!)
5. Uncanny X Men
6. Wonder Woman (the best out of the new 52)
7. The Unwritten (will relaunch soon)
8. Astro City
9. Saga
10. Manhattan Projects
11. East of West
12. Lazarus
13. Sixth Gun
14. Pretty Deadly (to get in on the ground floor of a new series.
15. Sex Criminals (also coming out soon)


Tyler Ralph Ward said...

1. Saga- the best
2. Daredevil- the best superhero book
3. Hawkeye- the second best superhero book
4. Wonder Woman- my favorite run on the character in years
5. Sixth Gun- Don't remember if you were readers before, but it's been one of my favorites since grabbing the first trade
6. FF- cause Fraction/Allred. Fraction's leaving soon, but Allred's finishing the original story plotted by Fraction, so more pretty.
7. Young Avengers- Cause Gillen/McKelvie
8. The Unwritten- just catch up, it's been good
9. Batman- Snyder's long arcs have been a little hit and miss, but Year Zero is surprisingly good and Capullo's art is great
10. Astro City- haven't read the new stuff yet, but I hear good things and would like your opinion.
11. Archer and Armstrong- A fun Van Lente book that fills an adventure/humor gap that's been missing since Herc ended
12. Captain Marvel- Really enjoyable character study, but lacking in artist consistency like other Marvel Now books

I'd also suggest doing a sampling of some digital comics each issue- Monkeybrain titles are cheap and a lot of webcomics are free and all usually require less "catching up" than the big two superhero universes (Even DC's digital first stuff has been better and easier to jump into than most of their traditionally published line)

Marina L. said...

Congratulations on the move!
I'm so glad you're planning to pick up the podcast!
I kind of left comics for a while, because money, and, you know, duh-nuh-nuh-nuh duh-nu-nuuuuuh... new 52.
Now I can't think of a better way to go back again.
Most of all, it's great to hear from the best damn comics podcasters in the business! Glad to find you three well.

Kevin Walker said...

Congratulations & good luck for the move! It's great to hear you're starting the podcast back up.

For recommendations:
1. Saga
2. Daredevil
3. Hawkeye
4. Thor God of Thunder
5. Young Avengers
6. Astro City
7. Pretty Deadly
8. East of West
9. Indestructible Hulk
10. Archer & Armstrong
11. ... maybe something from DC? I don't know, I hear they're still in business.
12. Cheating on the format to suggest a few non-monthlies if you get the chance: Bandette, Atomic Robo & Atomic Robo: Real Science Adventures, and The Wake (limited series).

Anonymous said...

1. young avengers. (Its better than journey into mystery by aaron)
2. saga of course
3. FF (now I know its the back of series but its still too cute)
4. Private eye (Vaughan, pay as much as you want really good what more can I say)

Unknown said...

These are books that are fun as Regularly Published Books, as opposed to titles that are fun to read in collections (like Fatale or East of West):

Saga
Thor
Daredevil
Wonder Woman
Young Avengers
All-New X-Men
Avengers Arena
Batman/Superman
Private Eye
Hawkeye
Batman '66
Adventure Time

Good luck with the move.

Matthew said...

Glad to hear you're looking to come back. The books I'd like to hear you talk about are:
1. Saga
2. Young Avengers
3. Daredevil
4. Chew
5. Archer and Armstrong
6. Indestructible Hulk
7. Captain Marvel
8. Wonder Woman
9. Bandette
10. Batman 66
11. Copra
12. Some sort of wild card book

ferris said...

Welcome back! I'd go with:

1. Saga
2. Superior Spider-Man
3. Wonder Woman
4. Avengers Academy
5. Avengers
6. Hawkeye
7. Daredevil
8. All New X-Men
9. Ultimate Spider-Man
10. Young Avengers
11. Wolverine & The X-Men
12. This is a weird suggestion, but Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye. I didn't grow up on the property at all, but someone made me read this and it's just a brilliant comic.

Unwritten's still great, but I think you should figure out where you left off and catch up in your own time, not jump in.

ferris said...

annnnnd I meant Arena not Academy.

Bryant said...

Good luck with the move - many have already mentioned mine - so will just second Young Avengers and Saga. I would also suggest, if you read comics on tablets, Masks and Mobsters, Edison Rex, Bandette, and Detecto-Bot from Monkey Brain. All very entertaining.

I am enjoying Hickman's Avengers titles and Infinity (so far, although I look forward to the bit where in lieu of a proper ending we get the spring board to whatever the next event is) but there are lot of issues so far. I also like All New X-Men which has been some of Bendis's better work (although it is inconsistent and issues you think they would have dealt with in issue one take many issues to deal with).

Good luck with everything

Unknown said...

I don't have 12, but I just wanted to add to all the people recommending Daredevil and Hawkeye. These seem to be consistently the most entertaining conventional superhero books. FF/Fantastic Four have been pretty great, but I guess Hickman is going to stop writing them, so who knows what will happen there.

All Marvel --- DC seems to be hellbent on descending into suckitutde, so now that Morrison isn't writing Batman and Superman, there really si lettle point in even thinking about them, with all the great independent and smaller -company stuff around.

Ryan said...

1. Either Batman or Superman Unchained (Batman is better, but you should be reading one of Snyder's current comics zeitgeist titles)
2. Wonder Woman
3. Daredevil
4. Hawkeye
5. Either Saga or Private Eye (just so you have a Vaughan comic)
6. The X-titles are really good right now, so I'd recommend one or two of the following: All-New X-Men, X-Men, X-Men Legacy, Wolverine and the X-Men or Uncanny X-Men
7. Lazarus
8. Subatomic Party Girls
9. Batman/Superman
10. Animal Man, Trillium or the forthcoming Justice League Canada (get some Lemire goodness)
11-12. You already said you're reading Nova and GotG, so if you like those, keep at them.

Anonymous said...

1.) Chew
2.) Saga
3.) Manhattan Projects
4.) Avengers Arena
5.) Unwritten
6.) Invincible
7.) Archer and Armstrong
8.) Young Avengers
9.) Wolverine and the X-men
10.) East of West
11.) Ghosted
12.) Rachel Rising

Chris Topher said...

The good news is that Saga was on hiatus about the same time as you guys. Shouldn't be hard to get caught up.

Here is what I'm totally digging right now:

Saga
Red Sonja (the Gail Simone one)
Hawkeye
FBP (formerly Collider)
THOR G.o.T.
Superior Spider-Man
FF
Sheltered

Hope this helps and welcome to Cali!


discord8 said...

I don't have any recs other than those that have been repeated over and over above, but I just wanted to add "Welcome to California!" I'm in Sacramento with my own almost-2-year-old and his older sisters, and have also lived in the Bay Area. If you find yourselves with some time after your move and want to check out the Capitol region or the Gold Country, we could show you around.

David said...

Whoo hoo! Oakland. (I sure miss listening to you guys. I've gotten my podcast fix from WarRockAjax, and it's a good fix, but it just isn't the same. You know the first time you ever listened to a comics podcast...well, you guys were my first, and still favorite despite the delays.)

On that note I'm not going to give you a list of comics. I vote for "biting the bullet" and just pick up (with NO backreading) right now whatever comics you want to. "Starting" cold turkey. In two months no one will be any the wiser and you can pick up the back issues whenever. Us listeners are picky...well, we are, but just because we love something doesn't mean you will.

I'm on the Pennisula, so it's rockin' that you're going to be at the East Bay! Just sayin' you're going to love the weather and the Bay Area vibe. I've spent my years in NYC, so it's a nice contrast.

Good luck, keep safe and...

Saga, of course!
(couldn't help it...it's got you guys written all over it; heck, the three main characters could be your family...kinda)

Cheers,
--amphion27

Lebeau2501 said...

Listen, I don't care if your reviews sound like; "I read this comic and didn't know what the fuck was going on because I missed the last 12 issues." Just get on the mic and talk about whatever the hell is the happenings in the Awesomed household. If they have to do with anything comics related, then awesome, but your devoted fans give less shit about comics than they do about hanging out with you guys. Hell, get on and talk about Power Horse for 50 minutes for all I care. All I know is that we, the ABCP Teen Horse Squad or whatever, just love you guys and hope to hear more of you.

Lebeau2501 said...

Tell ya what...my wife and I have been caring for our very own Power Baby for the last 3.5 months and we know how crazy things can get. It's easy to fall off the tracks with certain things because other things...precious, drooling, pooping things, take up an unbelievable amount of your time. I'm trying to illustrate a children's book for a family member while wondering when the next time I can work on some Horse Power will arrive. I, for one, will jump back aboard when the time comes for more ABCP. If you guys want some picks of our offspring, I can send you some if emails are the same. I hope that's not weird.

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alberto de jesus said...

Just saw this update on the blog. Hope my two month late comment is useful.

Congrats on the new job Aaron. I hope the move went well and you're all enjoying the new place.

A few suggestions of the books to read are:

Thor God of Thunder
Wolverine and the X-men
All New X-men
Saga
Iron Man
Young Avengers
Hawkeye
Batman '66

MartynEm said...

Fantastic news. I'd love to hear what you guys think of Brandon Graham's Prophet.

Anonymous said...

You know you are a tease right.