Opinions May Vary (Comics Movies & Videogames)

Well, here we are.

I toyed with the idea of doing the minimalist "ok, that's it!" and leaving it at that but I feel like that would have been doing the episode a disservice seeing as this one snowballed into a little more than we expected. A few weeks back we released part 1 of the OMV All-Stars and the first half of this episode is going to feature part 2.

Turns out we relied on a lot of All-Stars and despite all the planning, we ran out of episodes. Luckily, with Colin getting us all emotional on 448, some of our 450 material was used up giving us the perfect opportunity to squeeze in conversations with Vicky, Jon, and Charlie.  The episode is still a marathon at almost 3 hours long, but it was worth it and we think you'll agree.

Like I pointed out last time: the search feature on our site works surprisingly well. So if you're looking for any other appearances from Vicky, Jon, and Charlie just pop their names in the search bar and it should pull up everything you're looking for.

With that said, I think it's time to end.

Pretty much everything I wanted to say is included in the episode so there's not much else I can write here besides "thank you." If you've ever tuned in, read these blogs, liked a post, or even asked us "oh you're still doing that?", thank you so much. I had no idea what this was back in 2012 when Justin, Alex, and I all sat down to record episode 1 but I'm so proud of what it became. It's been a wild decade and while I may be stepping away from the microphone and the current OMV format is coming to an end, fear not! I assure you, the show is in good hands.

From both Alex and myself, thank you for tuning in. We hope you enjoy.

-Jr.

 

Music provided by Christina Pepper. 

Direct download: 3.29.2022_Episode_450.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:22pm EDT
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The emotions are starting to hit.

Even just creating the title card for this episode hit me with waves of happy, sad, nostalgia, and relief. There aren't many things I can say I've done consistently for 10 years straight. It turns out a decade is a long-ass time to do anything, especially something like a podcast. But here we are.

Our super official, by-the-books anniversary was technically sometime last week but we still have one episode left to release before we close up shop and if the last few weeks were any indication, it's gonna be a wild ride of feelings for some of us.

But let's not get too ahead of ourselves because this week Alex worked his yearly magic and has assembled one last best-of montage featuring clips and snippets from this past year's episodes. It's hard to say what year was our strongest in terms of guests but I'd say that this last year gave the top spot a run for its money. We talked to some incredible people both long-time friends and new guests alike. It's been said countless times before, but it's doubtful we would have even made it past year 1 without the help everyone who has come on the show. So to be here 10 years later is truly an honor and Alex and I are eternally grateful.

Four hundred forty nine down....one to go.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

 

Audio Credits:

More 8 Bit Drama, Arcade Adventures, The 8 Bit Circus by Eric Matyas

 

Circus Of Freaks by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5740-circus-of-freaks
License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/


Stage 2 from DojoKratos by Sawsquarenoise on Free Music Archive
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/sawsquarenoise/dojokratos/stage-2
Direct download: 3.25.2022_Episode_449.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:22pm EDT
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The closer we get to the end, the harder it gets to write these things. Not because I'm tired or just fed up with it, but because we're talking with so many amazing people and it's difficult to come up with ways of saying how much they mean to us without it becoming repetitive. Like, how many ways can you say "here's another one of our best friends, listen to us thank them for the next two hours."?

I guess this week's episode is a little easier because while we were ready to do exactly that, Colin came on and completely flipped the script on us. We were fully prepared to spend an absurd amount of time telling Colin how rad he his, how much he means to us, and how valuable he's been to the show over the last decade but he was like "nah". And while we did manage to squeeze a few thank yous in here and there, most of the episode was spent fighting back emotions.

That's right, folks. Colin made us feel things.

It was a truly wild ride and what we believe to be a perfect ending to the Colin arc of OMV. He's been a part of practically everything we've done over the years: convention reviews, voice acting, in-depth analysis of the latest "thing", even working our table at shows. We're honored to be able to call him our friend and OMV has only been made better by his presence.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 3.18.2022_Episode_448.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:58pm EDT
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The march to episode 450 continues this week with a multitude of guests who have been featured countless times in the past.

And while "countless" might be an exaggeration because you can literally count the number of times they've been on, it doesn't begin describe their impact and contributions to the show over the years. Doing these last few episodes has really shown Alex and me just how many people we've relied on and how they were always ready and willing to give us a hand whenever we asked. We said it about a million times throughout the course of this 2+ hour episode, but I feel like there's no way we could possibly say "thank you" enough.

For those feeling either curious or nostalgic for all the previous appearances of everyone featured today, the "Search" feature on our website works surprisingly well. Just pop in the name of anyone listed in the title of this episode and it'll pull up pretty much everything you're looking for dating all the way back to the beginning. Some of the topics may be a little dated, but we just see it as a fun and easy way to time-travel. Without all the nasty spacetime continuum consequences, of course.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 3.5.2022_Episode_447.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 1:21pm EDT
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If you pull up any random episode of OMV, there's about a 1 in 10 chance you'll hear Brett Kelley's voice. Given that we're almost 450 episodes deep into this thing, that's a pretty insane statistic and goes to show how much of an asset he has been to Alex and me over the last 10 years.

Whether it helping us come up with ideas for new stuff, covering a show as an official OMV correspondent, or just calling in to hang out and let us record him for an hour; Bret was, quite literally, always there for us. From the very beginning he's been one of our most loyal supporters, always willing to signal-boost our episodes and even donate his artwork on multiple occasions. His impact as both a friend and a contributor can't be overstated.

So when Brett recently launched a Kickstarter for his latest project, we felt having him on to talk about it was the very least we could do to try and pay him back for everything he's done for us over the years. So we did just that. It's a little bittersweet as this is also doubling as his final regular appearance, but we did our best to make it worthwhile.

When the OMV Hall of Fame is eventually erected, Brett's name will be first on the ballot. Full Stop, done deal. He's one of the best friends we've ever had and somehow doing a podcast for the last decade has only strengthened that friendship. It's been an honor sharing the airwaves with him these 40+ times and I think I speak for both Alex and myself when I say I can't wait to see what he creates next. But for now? Go throw money at his Kickstarter and get some rad pins.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.25.2022_Episode_446.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:25pm EDT
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I'm going to preface all of this by saying one thing: maybe bust out the headphones for this one if you haven't already cuz there's some language. You have been warned.

With that said, we have an absolutely phenomenal episode for you this week featuring an all-star cast of guests. Over the last 8ish years we've had the pleasure of getting to know some folks from the Baltimore area who are either currently a part of, or were former members of, a group by the name of Super Art Fight. They're no strangers to this show with each guest on this episode having made an appearance at least once since 2014.  And seeing as they've always been incredibly kind to two guys constantly bothering them for content, we thought having some of them on one last time would be the perfect way to say thanks.

Rather than have 6 people all talking over each other at the same time, we broke this episode up into two sections: The first features Brandon Chalmers and Jamie Noguchi. Two former members of the Art Fight crew, Brandon and Jamie have since split off to form the FDI Cast and are already over 100 episodes deep into their run. What started out as a "30ish minute chat" quickly snowballed into an hour and a half of madness but we do eventually talk about the FDI Cast and what Brandon and Jamie have been creating. We just took a couple extra left turns before getting there.

The second half of this marathon of an episode features two of the longest tenured members of Super Art Fight in Marty Day and Ross Nover. Acting as the hosts and live action commentators for the majority of the Art Fight bouts, Marty and Ross have formed a sort of hive-mind full of random facts and obscure references that can be fired off at a moment's notice all while keeping the crowd focused on what the artists are spewing on the canvas. It's really a thing of beauty and their chemistry is borderline unmatched.

Similar to our chat with Brandon and Jamie, 30 minutes just wasn't enough time and this episode quickly turned into the longest single episode we've ever released (I think). But it was totally worth it because like I mentioned before; these guys have been incredibly kind to us over the years and we can't begin to thank them enough for always coming on and chatting with us. This episode was some of the most fun I've had in a long time; my face hurt from smiling so much and my stomach hurt from laughing. I borderline lost my voice and yet somehow we could have easily gone another 3 hours. I'd like to think that's the sign of good content but after 10 years of doing this I still have no idea.

Either way; check out the episode, listen to the FDI Cast and if you can get to an Art Fight show in the future: do it. Just do it. You never know, you might wind up making some neat new friends in the process.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.17.2022_Episode_445.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:38pm EDT
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Posting this episode feels like a triumph. Like we conquered some sort of mythical beast....completed an epic quest. Not through any fault of our guest or anything....but because it felt like the world didn't want this episode to happen. Between technical difficulties and internet issues it genuinely felt like this episode was cursed for a minute.

But here we are. And I'm mere minutes away from clicking "Publish" so ya'll can listen to a rad chat we had with Eisner nominated artist Joe Eisma and, barring any last second acts of God, the episode will be released. I hope. 

So before I go and knock on all the wood I can find, I might as well tell you about our guest. In case you weren't aware, Joe Eisma is the co-creator and artist of Image Comics' MORNING GLORIES and has also worked for just about every other publisher you could think of. You can find his art on classics like ARCHIE and CHARLIE'S ANGELS as well on books from DC and Valiant. Some of his latest work, the 12 issue run of ENGINEWARD from Vault Comics, is hitting shelves later this month in one collected trade. So for those of you (like me) who missed out on the floppies, now's your chance to snag the whole run!

Huge thanks to Joe not only for coming on and chatting with us, but also for dealing with the technical gremlins haunting our respective computers. Be sure to follow him on the socials for more art and news on his latest work (including the highly anticipated return of MORNING GLORIES....spoiler: not yet) and check out the trade for ENGINEWARD in a few short weeks!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.30.2022_Episode_444.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:29pm EDT
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This is another one of those "goodbye" episodes. We had our first one with Joe a few weeks ago and now we're back with a double-whammy. You probably already read the title of the episode but this week Jason Ginsburg of @FakeThemePark is back so we can bend his ear for a bit about his experience talking about monsters when he was a tour guide for Universal. (We also had some help from our special guest-host Will who, with his expansive knowledge of monsters, was like a kid in a candy shop talking with Jason.)

Talking monsters is fun. Talking with Jason is fun. And we always relish the chance to chat with Will (especially since our usual spooky episode couldn't happen last year). But there's also some serious news to go along with the monster chat. If you've been following Jason or @FakeThemePark you may have already seen the press release or the announcements on the various socials. But without spoiling too much here, Jason came on to give us the 4-1-1 on the future of @FakeThemePark.

Now that the suspense is likely tearing you to pieces, be sure to follow those various socials and check out the fancy new @FakeThemePark merch while you're at it. Who knows how much longer you'll be able to snag some....

With all of that said, Jason deserves a huge thank you from the OMV crew. Though we've only known Jason for a few years, we've always had an absolute blast talking with him. The level of devotion and originality he's shown with @FakeThemePark is unmatched and we can't wait to see what he makes next.

And as for Will? Ever since his first appearance on Episode 14 he's contributed to some of the most entertaining and hilarious moments we've ever recorded. It didn't matter if he was 20 minutes down the road or literally across the country, Will was always willing to sit down and chat with us about spooky stuff, stupid stuff, or the Hulk spilling his soup. We can't thank him enough for all the time, effort, and laughs he's given us over the years. He's another true OMV legend.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.27.2022_Episode_443.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:57pm EDT

So this one was pretty neat.

We've been big fans of Rob Guillory for some time now beginning with his work on the critically acclaimed Image book CHEW and continuing to his latest project Farmhand (also from Image). You probably don't need us to tell you how good Rob is seeing as there's a couple of Eisners, a Harvey Award, and the 2013 "Jayare's End of the Year Award" for best artist to do the talking for us. (That last one is especially important.) He's arguably the most decorated guest we've had on the show and despite all that, he was just as willing to talk about paper stock and wrestling as he was his award winning comics.

So yeah, this one was pretty neat.

Farmhand is back with issue 16 this coming Spring leaving plenty of time for catching up or re-reads. Be sure to check out Rob's website for art and merch and follow him on Instagram for updates on comics, conventions, and just rad art in general.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.14.2021_Episode_441.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:35pm EDT

It would be virtually impossible to properly convey just how important Joe is both to the show and to Alex and me as a friend. He is one of the main people we leaned on the most when we first started out in 2012 and always made time to come on and chat with us whenever we hit him up. Over time, he turned into our unofficial gaming correspondent, providing brilliant write-ups and reviews in addition to vital coverage in the field at shows like PAX East. He gave us suggestions for potential guests, helped us out with interviews, and couldn't be beat when it came to promoting the show at conventions.

We have a bunch of these "final appearance" episodes coming up as we wind down to episode 450 but you'll have to excuse me if I get a little extra sentimental over this one. Yes, Joe has been a staple of the show for a decade now and we've had a ton of fun chatting with him. But as it turns out, Joe is also my oldest friend. We've known each other for well over 20 years now dating back to middle school living two streets over from each other. We shared our first apartment together, met most of our friends while working at the Local Theme Park together, and he helped Alex and me make a silly little podcast over the last 10 years. I could go on at length about the memories we've shared but I'll just leave it at this: he is, without a doubt, one of the best friends I've ever had.

Ok. I got all the sappyness out of my system, I think. So let's get down to business.

Joe is a true OMV legend. And this week we're going to honor him in the best way we know how: By talking about the latest Pokemon game.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 11.29.2021_Episode_440.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 6:49pm EDT

You'd be hard-pressed to find someone who has left a bigger impact on this show in a mere 4 episodes than Rich Woodall. I've said it before but it still holds true today: he's arguably the kindest and most humble creator we've had the pleasure of talking with. He's got talent for days and it seems like he couldn't stop making things even if he tried.

In the past, we've talked at length with Rich about the comics he's made, the people he's worked with, and the projects he Kickstarted. Now, since we last talked with him in 2019, Rich and crew have also launched their own imprint with Scout Comics: Black Caravan. For those looking to get their horror and sci-fi comic book fix, Black Caravan is for you. With titles like The Electric Black, Gods of Brutality, and The Perhapanauts (among many others) there's a little something for everyone. Check out their page for more and hit up your local comic shop for some reading material!

With all that said, we can't thank Rich enough for all the time he's given us over the years whether it was on the show or at a convention. There's no exaggeration when I question if he's the busiest man because the guy just doesn't stop working. So for him to take time out of his schedule to talk to two dummies about his work really means the world to us. If you haven't already, check out his socials, consider supporting him on Patreon, and look him up if he's at a convention near you. Trust us, it's worth it.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 11.18.2021_Episode_439.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:15am EDT

I'm not sure what else to write here as the title of this episode contains everything you need to know.

I guess I can elaborate a bit, though.

This week it's just Alex and me and to top off this year's spooky-sodes we're talking about fear. The things that scare us. The things that make us uncomfortable, that make us squirm, that we've been avoiding for years whether we were aware of it or not. The real good stuff. Good, old-fashioned fear.

We also talked about The Muppets.

Kinda hard to go wrong with The Muppets especially when they're in The Haunted Mansion.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Credit to https://www.FesliyanStudios.com for the background music.

Direct download: 10.28.2021_Episode_438.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:57pm EDT

Ok so it took us a little longer than normal to get to our usual spooky-filled episodes but we promise it was worth the wait because this episode is jam-packed with so many rad things.

This week, we had the absolute pleasure of talking with not one, but TWO contributors of the insanely popular "No Sleep Podcast"! For those unaware, "The No Sleep Podcast" is an award-winning anthology series of original horror stories. They've been making content and releasing episodes since 2011 and are set to begin their 17th season soon!

First up, we were joined by composer Brandon Boone. Brandon has been scoring the show for the past 8 years and has created over 5,000 individual pieces of music in that time with no signs of slowing down. He's a self-taught musician with an immense talent for creating spooky and haunting tunes that perfectly compliment the show. When he's not creating music for NoSleep, he's hard at work writing and producing his own albums, or creating soundtracks for videogames like "Scarlet Hollow".  Check out his website for tons more!

Following our chat with Brandon, we were then joined by voice actor Nichole Goodnight who gave us all the inside info on how she got her start with NoSleep as well as some tips and tricks of the voice acting trade. An avid gamer and Twitch streamer, Nichole is also regularly involved in the bi-annual "Games Done Quick" events acting as both host and speedrunner! You can find her Twitch channel HERE or subscribe to NoSleep for even more of her work!

We can't thank Brandon and Nichole enough for coming on and getting spooky with us. The NoSleep team really seem to have put a great group of people together and if there's anything we're taking away from recording this episode it's this: Shoot your shot. Do the thing. Submit the audition. You never know what might happen!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Audio tracks provided by Brandon Boone.

"Vibrate with Adrenaline" and "Don't Answer The Door" found on his latest album "Night Fall", available now!

Direct download: 10.21.2021_Episode_437.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:42pm EDT

Our guests this week are no strangers to the OMV universe and despite having multiple cumulative appearances under their belts, they've never come on the show at the same time.

Until now.

That's right. We're trying the whole "4 people in 4 separate locations desperately trying to not talk over each other" and this time we're joined by artists Daniel Govar and Tony Moy! Now, it would be fun to just hang and chat with them about what they've been up to over the last few years, but there is a reason as to why they've both come on the show this week:  they've started their own YouTube channel!

Known as "The Paint Bros", Daniel and Tony have started uploading and live streaming videos of their art as well as tutorials and live conversations with chat. Whether you're looking for quick, time-lapse videos or long form, in-depth discussion, Daniel and Tony have you covered all while creating amazing watercolor pieces. Check out their channel, annihilate that subscribe button, and follow the guys on their respective socials for more art, announcements, and convention travels.

We've had a blast talking with Daniel and Tony over the years and they've always been super kind to us and the show. Here's hoping we get to see them in person again sooner rather than later.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.27.2021_Episode_436.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:19am EDT

We got to talk about Tarzan for the better part of an hour with two guys who are about to Kickstart a Tarzan book next month. It was a pretty great Thursday, I'm not going to lie.

Our old friend D.W. Kann is back with us and this time he brought one of his writing partners, Ryan Matta, to talk about the first volume up their upcoming comic Tarzan The Untamed. Rather than re-telling your typical origin story, D.W. and Ryan are adapting a different time in Tarzan's life:

"Book one finds Tarzan and Jane living peacefully in East Africa in 1917 on their secluded Greystoke estate. When their quiet life is suddenly threatened by the encroaching battles of World War I and the machinations of a band of mercenaries, led by the rouge German army officer, Sergeant Schneider, a single minded hunter, determined to find Tarzan. Tarzan must unleash his Savage nature to protect his Ape family, his fellow Englishmen and his true love Jane."

For people like me who didn't realize how much their life was lacking in Tarzan content, this is pretty much a no-brainer. As of now, the Kickstarter campaign for the first volume (of three) is set to launch around October 5th with the other two coming later on. If you're looking for more info, check out the Darkside Media KS page where you'll find all the deets on projects past and present.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.9.2021_Episode_435.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:37am EDT

I was going to leave this super vague and cryptic because this episode contains a major announcement that we cover right off the bat.

But I also feel obligated to tell you that afterwards, there's some tasty SPOILERS for The Suicide Squad. We did our best to point it out in the episode, but for those who might tend to skip around, I wanted to make sure it was known. So yeah. Spoilers ahead!

Now, back to the vague and cryptic.

Check out this week's episode where The Countdown....begins.

-Jr.

Direct download: 8.19.2021_Episode_434.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:56am EDT

We've talked about tattoos from time to time over the last 430+ episodes. In fact, the topic of tattoos can be found as early as episode 16 as part of that week's "The Big Question". For those trying to do the math, that was back in July of 2012 and as you probably could have guessed; Brett Kelley was the guest that week. Because of course he was.

But this week is different.

This week, for the first time ever (we're pretty sure), we had the chance to talk with not just a fan of tattoos but an actual tattoo artist. That artist is Lora Bird. Lora, aka Honestbird, is the owner of the new studio "The Nest Art Collective" out in Colorado and they're set to have their grand opening today, July 31st!  With a focus on trauma informed, inclusive tattooing, Lora and her team have created a safe and clean space for bodies of all shapes and sizes to get their dream piece. 

If you're looking for more info, be sure to check out their Instagram page for updates, finished pieces, and bios on all the different artists and creators working at the studio. With a lot of our audience being in the New England area, we know a shop out in Colorado is a bit of a hike but when you hear Lora talk about the studio with such passion and excitement, you'll understand why we're so pumped for you to check this episode out.

Plus you can hear me absolutely butcher the word "esthetician". It's pretty bad. I added like 4 extra syllables.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.26.2021_Episode_433.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:53pm EDT

This week I learned "squib jackets" are a thing.

Like, I always knew about jackets. And with Alex doing SFX makeup I'm aware of what squibs are. But combining the two was never a concept I had thought of until this week's guest, Paul Drechsler-Martell, casually mentioned wearing one on the set of Daredevil a few years back.

You see, Paul is a stunt performer. He does the dangerous things you might see in a movie or television show that other people either physically or legally can't do. For example, in Daredevil he had to get shot by pretend bullets a bunch of times while literally everything else in the room exploded around him; hence the need for the aforementioned squib jacket. 

We've known Paul for years dating back to our time at the local theme park where we tried to entertain people while not sweating to death. But since then, Paul has been a busy man doing stunts for programs like Gotham, The Blacklist, Mr. Robot and tons more. A quick glance over at his IMDB page will show you the rest but I think you get the idea: he's good at what he does.

So. With all that said, check out our chat with Paul as we dive into his world of stunt performing, his love of martial arts, and what it's been like for someone who works in the film industry over the last 16-ish months of hell.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.20.2021_Episode_432.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 12:18am EDT

If I'm reading our own website correctly, it has been over two years since the last full appearance of our dear, dear friend Brett Kelley. That fact will shock any longtime listener as Brett holds many records within the OMV universe and there was a time when he was making appearances on a weekly basis.

Luckily, recording a podcast with Brett is just like riding the proverbial bike and despite the long hiatus we still managed to stay (mostly) on track and lay down a pretty sweet episode for you all. Especially if you like D&D and getting mad about D&D. And art. We also talked about art and artists and artists on Twitter.

Because art.

If you're new here, this may be your first time experiencing Brett on the show but we can say with confidence that it certainly won't be the last time you'll see him drop by. If you're looking for more of him and his work, check out the socials or just type "Brett" into the search bar on our site and see the literal dozens of episodes he's been featured on.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.5.2021_Episode_431.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:46pm EDT

Jim Calafiore is back!

It's been a while since we've seen him (or anyone) at a con, and even longer since we last got to chat on our show; but Jim is back with us this week and, as expected, we're talking comics.

Specifically, we're talking Ned.

Ned is your average guy. Like the rest of us, he's got his share of problems - relationship troubles, deceased family members, zombie roommates. His father is one of the Lords of Hell.

You know, the usual stuff.

We were first introduced to Ned and his family in the first volume of Ned, Lord of the Pit last year. Now, Jim is Kickstarting the 2nd volume to continue the story of everyone's favorite future hell-lord. Currently, the campaign has a few weeks left before time is up so we thought it would be the perfect time to talk with Jim about the book, his process, and the challenges involved with writing, penciling, inking, and coloring a horror-comedy all by yourself.

Check out www.nedlordofthepit.net for more info or search for it on Kickstarter while you still have the chance!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 6.9.2021_Episode_430.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:21am EDT

I have a dumb brain.

When it comes to symbolism, interpretation, and open-endedness, my brain just does not compute. If something doesn't have a clear meaning or ending, I'm pretty much immediately on Google trying to get other people to explain what I just saw and/or read. It's not for a lack of trying, I genuinely try to figure things out...but this big, dumb brain of mine doesn't like it.

With that said, upon reading some of the Three Panel Crimes comics on Instagram, my dumb-brainness kicked in a couple of times. Each comic is three panels long and has no dialogue. The panels can sometimes be extremely detailed with tons of story told in a single image and if you're not paying attention it can be easy to miss an important clue. Long story short: you gotta use your brain. But once you get your brain going you'll quickly realize how damn good these comics are.

Three Panel Crimes is written by Tony Fabro and over the last few years he and his ever-expanding team of artists and collaborators have put together an amazing archive of "bad deeds in threes" with new comics released every week. In this episode Tony stopped in to talk about the creation of Three Panel Crimes, his process, and alligators with knives embedded in their heads.

For more on Tony and his work, check out Three Panel Crimes on Instagram and Twitter, or visit their website to get on their mailing list.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.24.2021_Episode_429.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:37pm EDT

It appears Spring has officially sprung because my sinuses have been in a constant state of explosion for the last few weeks. It's been a rough allergy season but luckily they gave me a few hours of relief, long enough for us to chat with a comic pro in Jamal Igle!

Jamal has been involved in the comics world in some way, shape, or form since the early 90s. He's worked on books for just about every major publisher whether it's DC, Marvel, Image, etc. You name it, he's probably done some work there. He's a true veteran of the industry and in 2011 he was honored with the Inkpot Award for Achievement in Comic Art.

For those looking to check out Jamal's work but don't have easy access to his runs on Green Lantern, Supergirl or any of the other dozens of books he's worked on, you can check out the new series from Ahoy Comics called The Wrong Earth: Night & Day with issue 5 hitting the stands next month! With Tom Peyer on the script, Jamal has been putting out some fantastic art to a really fun story. Be sure to check out his Instagram for some behind-the-scenes work!

We can't thank Jamal enough for coming on and chatting with us about his career, the books he's worked on, and the current state of the comics world. It's not every day we get to chat with such an experienced and talented artist. Not to mention it's always nice to chat with a fellow AEW fan...

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.19.2021_Episode_428.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:34pm EDT

I got my 2nd Covid vaccine shot today and as of this writing I'm feeling great but, given all that I have read and seen on the internet, that's subject to change within the next few hours. So, I'm writing this the day before posting in the hopes that my planning ahead will work out for the best and all I have to do is click "publish" tomorrow afternoon. And yes, I usually write these posts that no one reads mere minutes before posting the episodes...what can I say? I'm a lifelong procrastinator.

Annnnnnnyway. We have an extra long episode for you this week but it's with good reason: we got to talk with Ben Templesmith.

For those who might be unaware or unfamiliar, Ben is an incredibly talented artist and writer who co-created 30 Days of Night and also created titles such as Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse, Welcome to Hoxford, and he recently started his own Instagram webcomic Urnakk Black Blood.

We cover a pretty wide range of topics in our chat with Ben, but if you're looking for more or want to support him and his artistic endeavors, you can check out his Patreon page, his website, or hopefully in the near future, meet him at a show. Until then, we hope you dig this week's jam; Ben is a great dude to chat with and we can't thank him enough for stopping by.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.23.2021_Episode_427.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 3:10pm EDT

This episode is all about old friends, new friends, and the rad things they make. In this case, it's a graphic novel called The Monuments and, as of this writing, it's currently crushing it over on Kickstarter.

The aforementioned friends? Well longtime listeners of the show will be thrilled to hear that Michael Bracco is making his long-awaited return and this time he's joined by one of his creative partners-in-crime, Mike Isenberg! Michael and Mike along with Oliver Mertz have created an amazing new world and after years of planning and collaboration, they're finally ready to bring the story to life.

Even though the campaign is already more than halfway completed, and even though they've absolutely demolished their goal and subsequent stretch-goals, we still couldn't wait to chat about this book. Gigantic mechs? Unsolved mysteries spanning hundreds of years?  Past/present timelines slowly revealing the truth? Sign me up. Take my money.

Check out our chat with Michael and Mike, learn about The Monuments and, if there's still time, head on over to the Kickstarter and check it out first-hand because hot damn, it looks rad.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.14.2021_Episode_426.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:53pm EDT

So The Snyder Cut happened.

It's been a while since we did the whole "let's ramble about the latest blockbuster movie" so we thought this would be the perfect opportunity to do just that. With this being a discussion about movies, we also thought it would be fun to include our good friend Jared Skolnick in the conversation seeing as he writes, directs, and appreciates movies better than we could ever imagine.

This is probably a good time to mention that Jared has a website and a Vimeo that you can check out (featuring many familiar faces to those lucky few who have seen some of our real human faces).

It should also be noted that, per usual, this discussion contains some tasty, tasty SPOILERS. So if you haven't seen the flick yet and you don't want literally everything ruined, watch it first before listening to our voices. With that said, check out our ramblings as we discuss the characters, the plot, the things we liked and the things that made us question our sanity in the 4+ hour marathon that was The Snyder Cut.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 3.29.2021_Episode_425.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 3:19pm EDT

Another year of casting pods has come and gone and this one, despite the odd circumstances and ongoing global pandemic, was a pretty solid banger. Of course, I'm biased. But after listening to the yearly montage that Alex put together featuring some of the best clips and snippets from the last year, you'll understand where I'm coming from.

This recap is the longest one yet so I'm going to do my best to keep this short. With that said, we talked to some incredible people over the past 23 episodes and per usual, we can't thank them enough for coming on the show. This has been a challenging 12 months but being able to talk with artists, creators, musicians, and everything else in-between made it just a little bit easier. And at the end of the day, if we were able to provide you with some escape and entertainment, then I'd say it was all worth the effort.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Audio Credits:

"Coin-op Worlds"
"Arcade Puzzler"
"Arcade Heroes"
"Arcade Goblins"
 
by Eric Matyas
Direct download: 3.18.2021_Episode_424.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 4:49pm EDT

You're going to want to set yourself a reminder for March 2nd.

I realize that doesn't make any sense at the moment, but bear with me because this week we're talking about a rad little card game called "Doomlings". To put it simply, Doomlings is described as "A delightful card game for the end of the world" and it's coming to Kickstarter soon on, you guessed it, March 2nd!

We're especially psyched about this one because while Doomlings is cute and easy to learn, it's also surprisingly strategic and we had the absolute pleasure of talking with two of the developers, Eric McCoy and Justus Meyer, all about the creation, development, and challenges that went into creating such a neat game about the world ending.

Alex has already posted some videos over on our Instagram showing a quick run-down of the game and some mechanics. But if you wanted to learn more be sure to check out the Doomlings website, subscribe to their newsletter and keep your eyes peeled for the March 2nd Kickstarter launch!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.18.2021_Episode_423.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:05am EDT

With the last episode being such a major departure from what we typically talk about here on OMV, it would probably be a good idea to get back to basics and start talking about comics, movies, and videogames again.

But we didn't. We kinda did. But we mostly didn't.

Have I completely lost you yet? I hope not because this week we got to talk with a super rad guest in musician and YouTuber Christina Pepper! Christina is a professional pianist who has been uploading pieces to YouTube for over a decade now. While that is a feat in and of itself, in 2018 she expanded the channel to include accompaniment tracks with the intent of helping other musicians practice when a pianist isn't readily available.

With the pandemic obliterating everyone's plans for almost all of 2020 and now the beginning of 2021, I don't think anyone would fault Christina for taking it easy and putting her channel on hold for a bit. But she didn't. In fact, according to her video feed she has uploaded almost 20 videos in the last month alone. She has used the pandemic and all this newfound free time as an excuse to help people even more and it's great.

If you haven't already, be sure to check out her channel and various socials. And if you feel like supporting Christina even more, you can donate to her on Ko-Fi and even commission a custom piano accompaniment/karaoke piece!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.11.2021_Episode_422.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:03pm EDT

So, yeah.

This one is a bit of a departure from our normal song-and-dance. Rather than discuss the latest happenings in the comics world, the next neat thing coming to Kickstarter, or bothering one of our friends to come on and talk about Star Wars or something....we took a dive into the world of diamond hands and rocket ships. Hedge funds and short squeezes.

Folks. We're talking about the stock market.

One could make the argument that "hey, it's GameStop! Videogames! OMV talks about videogames all the time!" but it really has almost nothing to do with videogames. But, seeing as it's a massive, game changing moment in history that, to this day, is evolving and yet unresolved we thought we take a stab at talking about it.

One thing to note that's probably pretty obvious but needs to be stated: Neither of us are financial professionals and nothing said in this episode should be taken as advice.

With that said, we hope you enjoy our attempt at explaining this whole thing. At the very least, maybe some of the memes will make a little more sense now.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.28.2021_Episode_421.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 1:25pm EDT

Happy New Year, ya'll!

We're kicking 2021 off with a bang as this week we had the absolute pleasure of chatting with the founder of LionWing Publishing - Bradly Halestorm!

I case you're not familiar, Bradly and his team at LionWing specialize in localizing Eastern tabletop games for gamers in the West. In other words: they specialize in one of the most challenging and meticulous jobs in the industry. One might think it's as simple as asking the Google to translate some words into English and calling it a day. And one would be wrong. So very, very wrong. There's so much more to it than simply translating text verbatim and in this episode Bradly gave us the inside scoop on all the work that goes into localizing Japanese board games.

LionWing Kickstarted three different games in 2020 alone and, despite the ongoing pandemic, they have no plans of slowing down. They're charging full-steam-ahead into 2021 with their first campaign of the year launching next month. Check out the landing page for Embryo Machine to learn more!

Huge thanks to Bradly for taking the time to join us and to his team for doing what they do. Be sure to follow them on the various socials and keep your eyes peeled for future campaigns...you never know what game might be coming next!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.15.2021_Episode_420.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:49am EDT

This pandemic sucks. I think we're all aware of it and we can all agree the last 10 months have just straight up sucked. I could write about 5,000 words just off the top of my head listing off all the sucky things about pandemics but I'm not going to do that. What I'm going to do is hype up our friend Babs because unlike me, she has spent her pandemic time being productive. Specifically, she has spent her pandemic time logging literally hundreds of hours as virtual Dungeon Master in multiple D&D games and is showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, in a way it almost feels like she's just getting started? (Listen to the episode, you'll get what I'm talking about once you hear how good she is at this stuff.)

I have played the role of Dungeon Master one (1) time in my life in a one-shot that lasted maybe 4 hours and it was exhausting, stressful, confusing, ...and an absolute blast. So when I'm casually scrolling through my Twitter feed and I see countless tweets from Babs and what she's been doing with any number of the seven (7!!!) groups she's currently running I can't help but be blown away by not only her work ethic, but also her creativity and stamina. DM'ing can be tough, DM'ing for dozens of people multiple times a week? I'm exhausted just thinking about it.

The ultimate irony? As I work on this episode I'm also preparing to take part in a game she's running later today. That's how fast she works. We recorded this episode on Monday and now today, Saturday, she's got a game set up for me and the usual gang. (I'm playing a paladin named Seraph, how rad is that?) For reference, I think it took me about a month of planning for the one-shot I ran a few years ago. Bonkers.

So yeah. We talked with Babs about D&D this week and I'm psyched with how this episode came out. Be sure to give Babs a follow on the Twitter and do the usual like/share/subscribe if you dug the episode. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a brand new character I made at 11pm on Christmas Day that I have to familiarize myself with.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.20.2020_Episode_419.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:44am EDT

That's right, folks. It's just us and this week we're getting festive.

The holidays have always had a special place in my heart. Growing up, Christmas was always the best day of the year and my parents did everything they could to make sure that me and my two siblings enjoyed every moment of it. Now, many moons and 10 years of holiday retail later......you'd be surprised to learn that not much has changed. I still love the holidays and everything that comes with them and even though this year is going to be a little different, I'm still looking forward to "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year".

With that said, we thought it would be fun to get festive and take a trip down memory lane as we talk about past holidays and the things that meant most to us. Also presents. Mostly presents. It's not that presents mean the most to us, but my initial pitch to Alex was

I guess if we dive deep into my subconscious it was just an excuse to talk about toys. But overall, the episode ended up being about more than just presents. We also dove into the differences between families and how the holidays can mean the world to some people, but not as much to others.

I could ramble endlessly about holiday stuff (hell we didn't even touch on movies) but I'm guessing I've already lost most of the audience already so I'll end it here. Check out the 'sode, like/share/subscribe, and drop a comment if you want to join in on the conversation.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.18.2020_Episode_418.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:47am EDT

Reddit is the ultimate time waster.

I can't begin to count the amount of hours I have spent scrolling on that damn site and for the most part it's full of things that make me smile, laugh, or want to happy cry. There is some garbage there, like any other site (and long time listeners know I've been critical of Reddit in the past) but it's mostly full of things I enjoy seeing.

Now rewind to a little over two years ago. A young and innocent Jayare casually scrolling through his various subreddits suddenly comes across this beautiful barbarian dragonman and it's love at first sight:

You see, for the last couple of years I have been playing my own dragonborn barbarian in an ongoing D&D quest and of all the fan art and commissions that I have seen, this is without a doubt the closest representation of what I've been picturing in my head when it comes to how my guy would look. As it turns out, this piece was a commission for someone and their character named "Krivgar Vuldrear" and it was brought to life by illustrator Peter Lim aka Polygraf.

Now, two years later, through the power of the internet Peter was kind enough to come on our show and chat with us about his beginnings, his experiences in the D&D and fantasy worlds, and how he's been able to adapt and improve his artistic abilities every time he hits a dreaded plateau.

As usual, be sure to check out Peter's work on all his various socials and if you've been looking for someone to bring your favorite original character to life, who knows? You might have just found your guy.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.4.2020_Episode_417.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:48pm EDT

And we're back!

Jumping right into things, I'm going to start off by just saying toys are rad. Yes, I'm in my mid 30s. Yes, I have little-to-no use for toys these days besides displaying them on a shelf. And yes, I'm stuck in the past when it comes to my bias towards certain brands. But toys are rad and talking about toys with someone who designs them for a living is even more rad. And that's where this week's guest comes in.

Len Nicholas is a designer and concept artist who has worked for brands like Fisher Price, Hasbro, Spin Master, Honda, and Toyota to name a few. From GI Joe to Paw Patrol, presentation rendering to mechanical design, Len has seen and done just about everything in his 20+ years in the business. He's also a huge Pokemon and LEGO fan so needless to say he fits right in with the OMV aesthetic.

Check out our chat with Len and browse his Instagram while you're at it (we reference it a bunch so it'll be a handy resource); it's jam-packed with robots, toys, LEGO creations, and Otters. What more could you ask for?

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 11.19.2020_Episode_416.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:48am EDT

Happy Halloween, everyone!

We're closing out the spooky season in style by visiting one of our favorite topics to talk about every year: haunted houses. This one is extra special because we've gathered five (5!!) of our closest haunt friends to discuss the dream scenario: Create the perfect haunted house. Create a reasonable, realistic house. And create the ultimate, no-holds-barred, sky is the limit, dream house.

The combined haunting experience between everyone who took part in this episode probably clocks in at around 75+ cumulative seasons. That's a whole lotta screaming, shocking, scaring, and spooking and all of that experience certainly makes for some amazing haunted house ideas.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 10.28.2020_Episode_415.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:06pm EDT

Well, it's October and the spooky season is here. It goes without saying that this year's season is a little different with there being a massive pandemic and all. But, even though haunted houses are closed and trick or treating is on standby, Alex and I still wanted to bring you your yearly doses of spooky to try and fill the void.

We've practically covered it all over the years: haunted houses, special effects, makeup, cryptozoology, UFOs, videogames, theater. The list goes on and on. But there are a few things we have yet to cover and this week, we're going to do our best to tackle one of them.

That's right, folks.  Buckle up because we're dipping our metaphorical toes into the uncharted waters of true crime.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

 

Sources:

Direct download: 10.16.2020_Episode_414.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:25pm EDT

I learned a lot this week. In addition to learning that I'm hopelessly outnumbered when it comes to the "how to tape your comic bags" debate, I learned that Mike and Nick of the I Read Comic Books podcast are two of the raddest people we've had the pleasure of interviewing. I also learned that being interviewed is a whole different ballgame when it comes to the pressures of recording a show.

You might be questioning that last sentence and we wouldn't blame you. But you'll be surprised to learn this episode is actually just one part of a collaboration between IRCB and OMV and if you take a peek at their latest episode you might see some familiar names and voices associated with it (Hint: It's Alex and me). That's right, sportsfans, not only were Mike and Nick our guests this week but Alex and I were guests on their show as well!

We're thrilled that the IRCB crew was kind enough to have us on their show and it goes without saying that Alex and I had a blast chatting with them about what comics we've been reading, what books we're looking forward to, and how OMV got started. Plus, in our episode we got to dust off a classic and hit them with some Flash Questions before we got the inside scoop on IRCB and how they've assembled such a great crew over the years.

If you haven't already, give them a follow and check out their work. If you're craving pure comic book content week in and week out, IRCB is the way to go.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.27.2020_Episode_413.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:14pm EDT

It's been a minute since we talked comics. So let's talk comics. Specifically with someone who makes comics. Literally takes ideas out of his brain and, with the help of some artists/letterers/editors, brings them to life for others to enjoy on a monthly basis.

That someone is Johnnie Christmas! Johnnie is the #1 New York Times Bestselling artist of Margaret Atwood's Angel Catbird, the writer of ComiXology's Crema and currently he's on writing duties for his new book Tartarus from Image Comics. Check out our chat with him as we take a dive into his world building process and his experiences publishing comics both online and in print.

The first collected volume of Tartarus hits shelves on September 30th (yes, that's next week!) so if you haven't been snagging the floppies over the last few months, now is your chance to hop on board this wild space opera that Johnnie and his team are putting together.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.22.2020_Episode_412.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:35pm EDT

This year has certainly been...a year. I don't think it's unfair to say we've gone through an unprecedented amount of change and adjustment over the last 6 months with little sign of things returning to "normal" any time soon.

There is some light on the metaphorical horizon, though. While PAX West and PAX Aus were both cancelled this year, we are getting something in their place: PAX Online. And even though Alex and I aren't covering the show in any formal capacity, we figured talking with some people involved with it would be a great way to kick off the groundbreaking festivities.

First up is game developer Chris McQuinn! Chris is one half of the creative team behind WashBear Studio and their game "Parkasaurus" has been selected as one of the titles to be featured in this year's PAX Online Indie Showcase! In other words, the PAX team reviewed over 350 indie games on Steam and picked 20 that they considered original and compelling. This year, they decided the WashBear's dinosaur tycoon management sim was worthy to be one of those 20 games. Check out the first portion of the episode as we chat with Chris about the creation of their game, the importance of listening to criticism, and how a game about dinos can seem so simple yet surprise you with its depth.

Our second guest is someone more directly involved with the running of PAX Online. Travis Eriksen is the Executive Director of Child's Play Charity and also dabbles as the Chief Omegeatech at all the various PAX shows. I've rambled at length about how much I enjoy the Omegathon in the past so to get a behind the scenes look is exciting to say the least. In addition to running intense gaming contests, Travis' work with the Child's Play Charity has helped improve the lives of children and teens in over 180 children's hospitals around the world. They're going to have a big presence at PAX Online this year so be sure to check out their schedule and tune in throughout the week!

We can't thank Chris and Travis enough for giving us the opportunity to chat with them right before such a huge and revolutionary show. PAX Online officially kicked off today (depending on when you're reading this) and there's a ton of fun to be had over the next week. It might not be the same as the big show in Seattle, but unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.11.2020_Episode_411.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:04pm EDT

Are you a fan of fine art? How about pins? Mythology? Do you frequent cemeteries? Are you looking for a new tarot card set? Maybe you're fascinated by the Salem Witch Trials?

You might not believe it but if you answered "Yes!" to all of those questions above then I have to tell you: You're in for a treat because in our chat with artist Sara Richard we managed to touch on every single one of those topics in just over an hour's time.

For those not "in the know", Sara is a fine artist and illustrator who has done work for companies like IDW, Marvel, Oni Press and Dynamite Comics to name a few. She was nominated for an Eisner for her work on Kitty & Dino and was nominated for two Ringo Awards last year in the Best Cover Artist and Best Original Graphic Novel categories!

Like I mentioned above: this episode takes a bunch of turns but in the end it was a blast to talk with Sara about her creative process, her style, and her volunteer work that she does alongside her mother with The Graveside Ladies. Check out her website, socials, and Patreon to keep up to date on her latest works, her shop, and future appearances!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 8.28.2020_Episode_410.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:43pm EDT

It's justice.

(You have no idea how excited I am to use that image that Seymour made for us.)

It's just Alex and me this week.

The last 5 months have been rough. You probably don't need me to go into details. But it's been rough. Many of our past "justice" episodes focus on news and various tidbits from around the comic, TV, and gaming world and it would have been real easy to just dive into that format and discuss all the awful things currently going on throughout those mediums.

But we didn't feel like doing that.

We wanted to try and be positive. So we went with a different route. This week Alex and I sat down and went through all the various ways we've been keeping ourselves busy over the past 20-ish weeks. From videogames, to TV shows, to thousands upon thousands of plastic building bricks; we've been doing our best to keep calm, occupied, and most importantly: stay healthy.

This has without a doubt been one of the strangest and most challenging times of our lives with no real end in sight but we've made it this far so I guess the only option is to just keep going. We hope you've been able to stay healthy through all of this and if you've taken up a new hobby or learned a new skill, be sure to let us know in the comments; we're psyched to hear about what you've been up to.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 8.13.2020_Episode_409.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:03pm EDT

It's been a while since we dove into the world of designer toys so why don't we just go careening head first into the deep end and talk with a designer we had the pleasure of meeting at The Five Points Festival?

Sound good?

Good. Because joining us this week is artist and designer Brandon Leach of Motley Miscreations! For those unaware, Brandon is the man behind the 2019 Designer Toy Award finalist "Belfry" and he's currently crowdfunding his latest design "The Kraken" on Kickstarter right this very minute. Despite his humble beginnings in the designer toy world, Brandon showed us that with enough determination and raw talent, wonderful things can happen. Like 12" tall tentacle monsters.

Check out Brandon's Instagram to see what I'm talking about and consider taking a peek at his Kickstarter if there's still time left. If this is your first glimpse into the world of designer toys, you really couldn't have picked a better project. I ramble at length during the episode but I mean it when I say that Brandon really does provide something for everyone.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.25.2020_Episode_408.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:35pm EDT

We went a little longer than usual between episodes but I promise this one was worth the wait because this week we were joined by one of my favorite people in comics: Daniel Warren Johnson!

Daniel is the writer and artist of Image Comics' Extremity and Murder Falcon and currently he's pulling double duty again on DC's Wonder Woman: Dead Earth as a part of their Black Label line of books. I've been a huge fan of Daniel and his work ever since picking up issue one of Extremity a few years ago and after having the chance to chat with him at last year's New York Comic Con, it was clear that not only is he a fantastic writer and artist; but he's also kind and generous to his fans. Needless to say we're thrilled to have had the opportunity to talk with him this week!

Recently, Daniel launched his own YouTube channel and has started giving fans a look behind the scenes at his processes, tools, and thoughts. He's done live Q&A, pencilling & inking sessions, and even tours of his old sketchbooks. It's the perfect blend of informative artistic content mixed with chill, "just come and hang out" drawing videos; check it out and subscribe!

If you haven't had a chance to read Daniel's work, I highly recommend doing so. We get into it a bit during the episode, but his stories are both fun and emotional and the art is fresh and dynamic. As of this episode the 3rd book of Wonder Woman: Dead Earth had recently hit the stands so if you're looking for the latest stuff, now's your chance! (Just please, please wear a mask when you head to your local comic shop!)

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.6.2020_Episode_407.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:14pm EDT

Hey everyone,

Alex here shooting out a quick reminder to please fill out this survey I put together for "The StarWell Foundation". The pilot episodes dropped earlier this year and if you haven't checked them out already, do us a favor and give them a listen. Over a dozen different voice actors lent their talents to this project alongside the countless people who helped with tech support, feedback, and sound/music design. Now that the pilot is out and you've had some time to digest it, I'm looking to you for your feedback so I can plan out the future of "The StarWell Foundation" accordingly.

Check out this quick clip I put together, listen to the pilot episodes of StarWell if you haven't already and let us know what you think by clicking the link below!

https://www.poll-maker.com/QSGYGED

-Alex

Direct download: You_Have_3_Unheard_Messages.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 1:24pm EDT

Sometimes I'll sit here and stare at the screen for what feels like hours just trying to figure out how to word a single sentence so that it doesn't seem like a child wrote it. It usually doesn't end well.

Today, I'm trying to figure out a sophisticated way of saying "Making something for a really long time is actually really hard" but the words aren't coming to me. They're in my brain somewhere, but I can't find them...must be because my vacation is almost over.

Anyway. You might've noticed we just released an episode last week (which was great, btw. Check it out if you haven't already) and we have another episode for you this week. No, we're not going back to the old weekly schedule. But we figured since this episode and last week's were on the shorter side, we'd just say screw it and make 3 episodes this month. Why not?

This week, we have the return of Jason Ginsburg! You might recognize the name from the last time we had Jason on in 2019 or you might just know him as the creator of the amazing @FakeThemePark. We heard through the grapevine that the FakeThemePark is celebrating its 10 year anniversary next month so Jason came back on to tell us all about the festivities he has planned to mark the occasion!

If you're not already following the park, be sure to do so on both Twitter and Facebook. It's pretty much the gold standard for satire (especially if you have theme park experience) and even after 10 years Jason is showing no signs of slowing down.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 6.8.2020_Episode_406.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 7:13pm EDT

Having the desire to create something can be equally as stressful as it is exciting. It's a wild ride of motivation and determination with a bit of self-doubt sprinkled in and the process of creation is almost always going to be riddled with speed bumps. One of the most common bumps is simply having the space or resources to bring your idea to life. Take it from two guys who have spent plenty of time recording out of their respective parents' basements with equipment bought off of Craigslist: having a space to make your thing is important.

That's where people like Ian come in. Ian is the co-owner and marketing director of the newly launched content creation studio in Springfield, Massachusetts: Studio Vibez. Alongside his partners, Ian has created a space for people to come and bring their ideas to life whether it's photography, video, editing, music videos, wedding photos, parties, or events. You name it, they can probably help you create it.

You never know when the next idea to create something might hit. And having a space to act on that idea could mean the difference between having massive regrets or creating the next big thing. If you've got an idea and you need a space to get it going, check out Studio Vibes and see if they're the right place for you.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 6.3.2020_Episode_405.1.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 1:13pm EDT

We got some sad news a few weeks ago when they announced that EVO 2020 had been cancelled and while it was expected, it was still sad nonetheless. Despite being absolute trash at almost every fighting game I've ever attempted, EVO is still one of the best weekends of the year full of tense matches, hype comebacks, and stunning upsets. I've said for years that going to EVO is near the top of my Bucket List but as someone who is painfully afraid of being 30,000 feet in the air for extended periods of time, it's been difficult to commit.

So like most things, I live through my friends and their experiences.

We've talked with our pal Ken's about his past trips to EVO at length before and he's discussed them on his own podcast as well (new episodes!??). So we figured it would be the perfect time for his return so we can recap the news and drama surrounding EVO 2020 and how despite the bleak headlines, there's still a light at the end of the tunnel.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.21.2020_Episode_404.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:36pm EDT

We have an extra long episode for you this week as we get down to business and back to basics with some good, old fashioned disagreements.

Despite the namesake we've chosen to use for the last 8 years, it turns out Alex and I don't disagree on too many things worth talking about (aside from The Last of Us but honestly we'd probably need an entire separate podcast just to chew through everything there). Fortunately, we have friends. And some of those friends have opinions on things that might....vary from our own. See where I'm going with this?

Our very good and spooky friend Kyle of Decimated Designs kicks off the episode with us because it turns out that Kyle isn't a fan of professional wrestling. We've talked a decent amount of wrestling in the past and I'm somewhat of a born-again fan so we figured this might be a good starting point.

After duking it out with Kyle for much longer than expected, we were joined by KT and Babs to talk about the smash hit Canadian sitcom Letterkenny and the potentially problematic portrayals of some of their characters. If you want to skip around or Wrestling isn't quite your thing, you can skip to the Letterkenny portion at around 1:13:24.

Huge thanks as usual to all three of our guests this week. Technical difficulties aside I think they all contributed to a great episode full of thought-provoking yet respectful debate. (Which, if you asked me, isn't always easy. See: The entire internet.) Where do you fall on these issues? Let us know in the comments!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.2.2020_Episode_403.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:46pm EDT

I have been playing tabletop games for a handful of years at most. Despite my limited experience, the impact it has had on my life has been substantial to say the least. It has provided me forms of live entertainment both in person and digital, it has introduced me to people and friends whom I otherwise probably wouldn't have had the opportunity to meet, and it has also provided me an outlet to escape in times of stress and uncertainty. It is safe to say that tabletop gaming has changed my life.

But enough about me and my sappy introductions.

This week we're here to talk about an organization called Game to Grow. For those unfamiliar, Game to Grow is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the use of games of all kinds for therapeutic, educational, and community growth. They can also be found at various conventions throughout the country, most recently at PAX East a few months back where they had a variety of panels as well as a presence within the tabletop area.

We were joined by two representatives of Game to Grow this week: Adam Davis, MA Ed and Jared Kilmer, PhD and they gave us a complete rundown of the history of their organization, the challenges and rewards of the work they do, and how they've had to adapt their processes in these times of social distancing and public safety.

We owe a huge thank you to Adam, Jared, and the rest of Game to Grow not only for giving us the chance to talk with them, but also for the service they provide. If you want to know more or you are interested in trainings and consultations, be sure to visit their website at www.gametogrow.org for more info.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.18.2020_Episode_402.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:40am EDT

The social distancing continues this week and I have to say; recording at home in my pajamas isn't the worst thing in the world. At first, it was giving me a bit of anxiety. Alex and I have been doing the same thing the same way for 8 years with only a few variations here and there when needed. There's a level of comfort involved in doing something a certain way for that long, but it seems that, for the time being, distance is the new normal. And so far it's working out.

With that said, we have a great episode for you today. Mike Norton, the artist of Image Comics' Revival and the creator of the Eisner award winning web comic Battlepug, joined us via the Skype machine. We talked about creating a multi-award winning web comic from the ground up, his experiences in his Chicago studio "Four Star Studios" and why the Revival/Chew crossover wasn't exactly an easy sell for him.

Massive thanks to Mike for giving us the opportunity to talk with him during these strange times. Check out his website along with the Battlepug site for more info on his work and where you can throw some support.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.2.2020_Episode_401.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:03pm EDT

The timing of this episode is one hell of a happy accident. We had no idea our 8 year anniversary would line up with episode 400 back when we decided to switch off our weekly schedule...but here we are: 8 years and 400 episodes later.

Alex had a fun idea this year to celebrate the occasion with the both of us selecting our individual Top 8 episodes of all time. We posted them throughout the last week and a half on our various social mediums and in the end, I think both lists are great representations of what we've tried to accomplish in the years since starting this whole thing. Be sure to go back and check them out if the almighty algorithms hid them from your respective timelines as those episodes are definitely worth a revisit.

As for this episode, being an anniversary 'sode, Alex worked his magic and put together another Best-Of Montage featuring clips from all of the best moments from the past year. Per usual, he killed it. So huge thanks and recognition are in order as those things aren't easy to make and take up a ton of valuable free time.

With all that said, I believe it's customary to say thank you to you, dear listener. We say it a few times in the episode, but without you this show is pretty pointless. Your support is everything and greatly appreciated. In short, you kick ass.

Happy anniversary, ya'll.

-Jr.

 

 
 
Direct download: 3.21.2020_Episode_400.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 1:42pm EDT

I hope you're hungry for some PAX because boy howdy do we have some content for you. Joe is back with us to recap and not only do we have a nearly 2 hour long episode full of game and panel talk, but there's also some photos, plus there was stuff we couldn't fit in the episode that Joe wrote about below. It only took 6 years but I think we're finally learning how to reach peak PAX efficiency.

I'm going to keep this brief as I don't want to take away from Joe's superior words plus all the good things I have to say are in the episode anyway. But I will say that, per usual, PAX was amazing, the people we met were amazing, and the games we played were, for the most part, amazing as well.

Now check out what Joe had to say about a couple of games he got to play: (Note: some of these are brought up in the episode but I couldn't bring myself to hack this to pieces so enjoy it in its entirety.) 

-Jr.

VIDEO GAMES

Shantae and the Seven Sirens

So amazingly enough, it’s been 3 years since the last Shantae game was released.  For those of you who don’t know, the Shantae series has had a tumultuous history, starting with it’s inaugural game being released on the GBC just as the handheld was dying out.  However, the second game in the series got a hold of its roots on the DSi’s downloadable software store, and now the series has a strong reputation as being a quirky and fun platformer.  Shantae and the Seven Sirens was not on my radar at all because I’m old and time passes weirdly, but it’s the 5th overall game in the series and the 2nd in the new HD stylings. Also weirdly enough, despite this game coming out for all major consoles in the spring, it’s already been out on the iOS since Fall of 2019.

I had a great conversation with Christopher Shanley, the Director of Publishing at WayForward.  He shared some of the background considerations when developing the game, including how they merged the animal transformation mechanic from the original two games with the weapon’s system from Pirate’s Curse, and it was a lot of fun!  The game has had a difficulty spike since going into HD, in a very positive and energizing way (the demo gave me infinite health, which I absolutely needed for the challenging boss battle at the end.) Shanley also talked a bit about their history in taking on their own publishing responsibilities, and how empowering it has been for their releases (not just Shantae, but other WayForward games as well like River City Girls.)  

Shovel Knight

The Yacht Club games folks, fresh off of the release of the last game in the core Shovel Knight series (King of Cards), had a surprising showing with two new games in the Shovel Knight series. 

The first one I played is a Shovel Knight puzzle game in the style of Puzzle League games called Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon.  The core mechanic has Shovel Knight wandering around a bunch of falling pieces including enemies, health potions, keys, and treasure chests.  He can attack enemies and set off chains, which is good because fighting them individually will have them hit you back and kill you pretty quickly.  I know this because boy did I die a bunch of times in a row before figuring out that I had health and was being attacked. It seems interesting but outside of aesthetics, it is a very non-Shovel Knight property.  For both of the new games, there is a clear shift from the original design (all of the characters are a little bigger and more detailed.)

The second game was called Shovel Knight Dig, and is extremely similar to Steam World Dig.  If you haven’t played this series before, you play a robot that digs down and collects resources to help aid him in digging even further - it’s weirdly a blast.  SKD follows very similar mechanics, except with the ability to “shovel jump” like in the original game. The feature that really sets it apart is a sense of urgency… after going down just a little bit, there are mechanics such as drills and enemies, that turn it more into a Downwell-style game.  

Both games were fun and interesting, but there was an oddness about both of them.  With the slightly different graphics and completely different genres, they both don’t feel like Shovel Knight and really didn’t need to be. I’m curious if the branding is to help tie their way into new styles of games.

Cyberpunk Bartender Action N1RV Ann-A.

Aesthetically this game feels like a mid-90s Sierra sort of pixel number, and play-wise it was incredibly reminiscent of Phoenix Wright games when you’re doing the walking around and gathering evidence parts.  Jayare, Colin, and I all got to play this bartender simulator where you try to make drinks for different people who come in and navigate conversations with them. Mechanically, it was very straight forward: you get to make drinks and react to what people say, but it had the feeling of a game of discovery. 

Radical Rabbit Stew

A combination of action and puzzle game, RRS immediately reminded me of a Genesis game that no one remembers named Wiz and Liz.  W&L was this odd game where you had to catch rabbits and use magic and I was too young to understand the strategy, but there was something undeniably charming about it.  Radical Rabbit Stew brings that charm in spades. You play a cook that uses various cooking implements to knock rabbits (that have taken over his people or something?) into pots and launch them into space.  The plot doesn’t matter. It was cute and fun and I loved it. Check it out in July.

A Duel Hand Disaster: Trackher

The Nintendo Switch has mainstreamed a feeling I’ve had for years.  I’ve always preferred handheld gaming, starting as a 9 year old that saved his meager earnings to buy a Game Gear, and continuing today to where the Nintendo Switch is my go-to platform by leaps and bounds.  It’s not just the portability: limited power platforms leads to people creating unique games that present fascinating challenges. The full name for A Duel Hand Disaster: Trackher includes the tagline “Split Screen Single Player Twin Stick Risk’em Up”.  On the left side of the screen, you’re playing a mostly invincible ship in a Space Invader-style game, while on the right side, you’re flying around the screen with limited ways to protect yourself and trying to gather resources and end the level. Except you get to choose when to end the level, constantly risking a higher score with losing everything. It’s wacky and weird and genuinely impossible to explain in text.  So go look at this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOGwVsSFsbk.  And you still won’t really get it, but it’s already out and if you like arcade score-racing games, you’ll eat this sucker up.

BOARD GAMES

Kroma: Presented by designer Carol Mertz, published by Breaking Games

Kroma is a 2-3 player game developed by Carol Mertz, Kai Karhu, Francesca Carletto-Leon, and Temitope Olujobi.  Jayare and I had the pleasure of learning how to play this from Mertz herself, who has a storied history of game development.  The concept of Kroma is that you play on a triangular lightboard and place down translucent pieces of primary colors pulled randomly from a bag.  On top of those, you can place a second piece to make a new color (because that’s how colors work.) Each player picks a secondary color (orange, purple, or green), and the key is to have either the most pieces or the most connected area of your chosen color by the end of the game.  Mertz taught us the game in less than 30 seconds, and it was one of those games that it was easy to learn but tough to master the strategy of. They’ll be kickstarting the game later this year, and it looks like a game that both kids and adults would have a blast playing. Mertz and her team were all showing a number of games (both electronic and otherwise) at the show, and I’m excited to see what other projects that team is going to churn out.

Cheer Up!: Presented by designer Chris Rio

Okay, so I like to play any board game I can get my hands on at PAX. There are a lot of misses here, but with board games, it’s almost possible to tell how you’re going to feel about it just by looking at it (books, covers, you get it.)  Cheer Up’s booth is heralded by a ridiculous looking cartoon dog that is apparently the dog of the creator, Chris Rio. It’s a party game akin to Cards Against Humanity where you play cards and hope a judge will pick them. Unlike CAH, there is a mechanic with 3 different “categories” of cards, and before the judge picks, a rule gets thrown it to change it around.  The cutesy dog and standard mechanic completely belies what is a somewhat raunchy and hilarious game. The creator, Chris, reflects this as well… he seemed like a very smiley and nice guy who would just slip in some of the funniest filthiest jokes as we were demo-ing. They currently have a kickstarter (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cheerup/cheer-up-the-big-d-pack-expansion?ref=discovery&term=cheer%20up) for an expansion to the game that runs until April 1 2020, and the core game itself can be picked up in stores.

Set a Watch: Presented by designer Todd Walsh

Early on, as Kevin and I sat down with Todd Walsh to learn how to play Set a Watch, I was looking at the ability cards of my Witch and noticed they had the same art at the top.  He was teaching us the game and also playtesting his prototype of an expansion (coming to Kickstarter later this year), but I was curious if there would be different art for each.  Walsh indicated that it was an intentional design choice to help prevent the “quarterbacking” that is often common in co-operative games like this. This would be the start of my favorite creator conversation of the entire convention. Walsh, a self-proclaimed D&D enthusiast, has created a game with such careful consideration, that it’s hard to find faults that aren’t clearly designed to make the game fair, challenging, and fun.  The concept of the game is that you are a classic D&D quartet that must defend against an onslaught of monsters. Unfortunately, only three of you can tackle the challenges, as your 4th member each round stokes the fire and brings on resources to help you tackle the challenges ahead and recover spent energy. Though the mechanics can be a little challenging, it has been so much fun to play, and chatting with Walsh to see the insights of a developer.  

Colorful: Presented by designer Jordan Draper

Every year since I’ve gone to PAX, my favorite game to bring home is the one I can bust out anywhere and catch people’s attention and interest.  One year it was Visitor, another it was Illimat, but this year, it was Colorful. We talked about Jordan Draper after last year’s PAX (I played Tokyo Coin Laundry with Alex and we had a very unexpected good time.)  Colorful is an adaption by Draper of a Japanese game where you have a hand of 15 colors and try to match with other people you’re playing with based on constantly more challenging categories. If the category is “Smell”, someone can only say a single word (for example, “Citrus”) and everyone will play a color face down. As Draper describes it, it’s a co-op game where you all win by matching, but the moment you lose, it becomes a competition to have the most cards in the majority.  It’s light, fun, easy to teach, and every single one of the 20 people I’ve shown it to since PAX has loved it.  

Also KEVIN, firefighters are red and only a sociopath would play the color yellow damn it. -Joe

Direct download: 3.9.2020_Episode_399.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:40pm EDT

We're back this week with an extra long episode packed with guests. Two guests to be specific....but that's like 200% more than normal so yeah, jam packed.

Next weekend is going to be a busy one as Alex and I are going to be attending two different conventions in two different states 1,000 miles apart...at the same time?!? Well, technically at the same time...just not together. While myself and the usual suspects head up to Boston for PAX East, Alex and his lovely lady are going to be flying out to Chicago for C2E2. Exciting, right?? Twice the opportunity to catch terrifying viruses! And also meet amazing people, play amazing games, and spend amazing amounts of cash. It's gonna be a good time.

Until then, we thought it would be fun to hype up the shows and talk with a couple people that you'd be able to meet if you happen to be in attendance. First up is the owner of Blipsounds: Ryan Stunkel! After successful outings at previous PAX shows, most recently PAX South in January, Ryan is going to be bringing his panel "Sound Design Live: Watch Us Recreate Video Game Sounds" to PAX East to give attendees the scoop on creating and replicating sounds from popular video games. Ryan is going to be bringing years of sound design experience to Boston so if you're at PAX East on Saturday you have an amazing opportunity to check out his panel.

Following our chat with Ryan, we had the absolute pleasure of talking with artist and colorist Addison Duke! A Chicago based artist, Addison's work can be seen in a multitude of comic books including Curse Words, Hack/Slash, and Barbarella/Dejah Thoris to name a few. He's going to be tabling in Artist's Alley at the upcoming C2E2 show so we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to get the inside info on his background, experiences, and what we can expect to see at one of the most talked about conventions in the country.

We can't thank Ryan and Addison enough for giving us time to talk with them, especially with two major shows just around the corner. We hope you enjoy listening to this episode as much as we enjoyed recording it. If you're going to be at PAX or C2E2 be sure to travel safe and pack plenty of hand sanitizer. And say hi to Ryan and Addison; they're great people who make great things.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.21.2020_Episode_398.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:45pm EDT

"The StarWell Foundation" is an audio drama set in a city of Super Heroes. Through the Foundation, children make requests to meet famous athletes, movie stars, or even their favorite heroes. But the kids have started to request something new: they want to meet their favorite villains and it's up to the newly promoted intern Meredith Dare to make their dreams come true.

This is Episode 2 of the pilot season.

Right now this completes the short story arc for Meredith Dare and StarWell. I hope you enjoyed it and if you did let us know.

I’ll be trying to push the season to spread the word, get more listens and eventually gauge interest on making more.


This story was inspired by “The Villain Wrangler”, a tumblr thread with many, many contributors.

Thanks to all our voice actors that lent me their time and voices, Bob for walking me through the set up and lending his expertise, Jayare for saying yes to this idea and thanks to you our listeners that keep coming back even though we deviated from our usual format.


This episode features the voice acting talents of:
Kae Giroux
Brett Kelley
Kristen Blakely Chesler
Michelle Arslan
Steph MacGillivary
Babs Daniels
Mike Davis
Sarah Gherri
Joe Van Allen
Colin Vigneault
Ed Gogulski
Milta Vargas
Alex Squiers


Music clips by Kevin Mason

Additional music and sound effects from:
Freesound.org
BBC Sound Effects bbcsfx.acropolis.org.uk
Incompetech.com


"Take a Chance" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

-Alex.

Direct download: StarWell_Foundation_-_Episode_2_-_Pilot.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 7:39pm EDT

We're back this week with a brief intermission between episodes of the pilot season of The StarWell Foundation to bring you almost two full hours of something you've all been desperately waiting for:

Star Wars opinions!

And who better to join us in the festivities than our main man Colin? Seeing as it's been a minute since he was last on (a minute = about a year in this case) we thought a relaxing night talking Star Wars with pals would be the perfect way to get him back into the swing of things.

Of course, it probably goes without saying that this episode contains some beefy SPOILERS so for those who aren't up to speed on pretty much all of the Star Wars films, you might want to get that taken care of beforehand.

We hope you enjoy our ramblings and be sure to let us know if you agree/disagree/think we're buffoons in the comments. We'll be back in a couple of weeks with the 2nd episode of The StarWell Foundation pilot!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.24.2020_Episode_397.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:57pm EDT

"The StarWell Foundation" is an audio drama set in a city of Super Heroes. Through the Foundation, children make requests to meet famous athletes, movie stars, or even their favorite heroes. But the kids have started to request something new: they want to meet their favorite villains and it's up to the newly promoted intern Meredith Dare to make their dreams come true.  

This is episode 1 of the pilot season.

Our friend and frequent guest host Colin planted the idea in my head a few years ago to produce a radio play and I’ve held onto the idea ever since. It wasn’t until I happened upon this gem of the internet on tumblr titled “The Villain Wrangler” that inspired me to interpret my own world around that terrific and devious concept. Regular OMV listeners know I’ve always been a sucker for a good villain story.

As of right now there will be 2 episodes featuring Meredith Dare and the StarWell Foundation. If all goes well there’s a chance we’ll make more, so please like, share, subscribe and comment.

This episode features the voice acting talents of:
Kae Giroux
Bob Savage
Sarah Gherri
Mike Davis
Joe Van Allen
Steph MacGillivary
Colin Vigneault
Michelle Arslan
Babs Daniels
Kristen Blakely Chesler
Colin Allen
Alex Squiers

Featuring Music clips by Kevin Mason.

Additional sound effects and other music from:
Freesound.org
BBC Sound Effects        http://bbcsfx.acropolis.org.uk
Incompetech.com  -- "Carefree" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

-Alex.

Direct download: Starwell_Foundation_-_Episode_1_-_Pilot.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:17pm EDT

Our guest this week is Derek Rosengrant and he is very good at what he does.

What he does can be seen here. For those too lazy to click the link or if you're reading this somewhere other than our website (www.omvpodcast.com), you're missing out on some of the most insane replica weaponry and costume design you'll ever see. And at only 26(!) years old, for Derek the term "sky is the limit" seems like a real understatement.

Derek got his start working on the special effects team of a few films you may have heard of (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Iron man 2, Iron man 3, and Robocop to name a few) and since then he's split off from his former employers at Legacy Effects and has started his own business alongside his partner Eric Newgard: Aurum Effects.

This week, Derek gave us the inside scoop on how Aurum came to fruition, his experiences working in the movie industry, and what it's like to work side by side with one of the most legendary video game studios on the planet. Check out their website here and keep Aurum on your radar. From the sound of things it seems like Derek and crew have big plans for the future.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.17.2019_Episode_396.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:31pm EDT

The vendor hall of ConnectiCon is easily one of the most unique halls in all the conventions we attend. Being a show that doesn't quite fit into any single genre, it attracts vendors that don't quite fit into any single genre. Example: Rich Longmore and his art over at BogelBear Illustration.

Rich is a freelance artist who, as he so beautifully put it, has been drawing monsters since he could hold a pencil. With roots deep-seated in the D&D and cryptozoology scenes, Rich creates amazing pieces of work that somehow manage to be beautiful, mildly terrifying, and strangely informative all at the same time.

This week, we had the opportunity to speak with Rich in person and get the inside-info on how BogelBear came to be, Rich's experiences in freelance work, and how valuable it can be to have daughters with expansive knowledge of Pokemon.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 12.5.2019_Episode_395.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 7:10pm EDT

If you go to the Vixens En Garde website and check out the "About" tab you'll see the following headline:

"Swordswomen swashbuckling our way through Shakespeare."

If you're not already intrigued about this episode then I'm not sure what else we can do for you because it's going to be hard to beat that. Hopefully we have your attention because we have an insanely fun episode for you all this week featuring Lisa Kopitsky!

When she isn't on stage performing as Athena Albrecht, Lisa acts as the creative director of Vixens En Garde which means in addition to the swordfighting and Shakespeare she also plans out the Vixen's season, decides which cast members perform at which shows, and most recently she has taken over writing new scripts and material for future shows.

In short: shes a swordswoman who swashbuckles her way through Shakespeare while also doing an insane amount of planning and writing so the swashbuckling can continue. Sounds rad, right? Have a listen and you'll get to hear all about it.

If you think Vixens En Garde is something you might be interested in, be sure to visit their website (linked above) and check out their schedule. With any luck they'll be performing your favorite Shakespeare play at a show near you!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 11.18.2019_Episode_394.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:19pm EDT

By: Joe

Title: Mars Power Industries
Developer: 7A Games
Released: 11/15/2019
Price: $3.99

After watching a quick trailer, I wasn’t sure what I was getting into with Mars Power Industries… it had a charming aesthetic (vibes of Advance Wars and tower defense games) and an engaging soundtrack. The first moments of the game, however, throw you into an immersive non-tutorial for what is definitely a puzzle game.

I love a game without an explicit tutorial. The way to learn what works and doesn’t in this game is to try, fail, and try again (I’m reminded of Baba Is You released earlier this year). Your only controls are to move a cursor and place a finite number of towers that have different functions, with the goal of providing power to the locations provided on a map. It would be easy to get quickly frustrated figuring out the rules, except the levels are built to incrementally add in details, and much like Baba, backing out is as easy as pressing the back button however many times you need. After completing the first 10 levels, you have a fairly good idea of what works, and the building blocks of what you’ll need to know to tackle the rest of the worlds. There are new pieces (that you have to place in a certain order) and new obstacles (that can either be modified or worked around depending on how you play), but the mechanics are easy to take on once you get past the first few stages, and you’ll be throwing together power plant systems before you know it.


The trial and error part of the game is part of the fun. It’s not just the tutorial that lacks words… story elements are provided with subtlety and nuance. It’s meant to be experienced rather than over explained. The actual setting of the game (you’re on Mars and you need to provide power to buildings) isn’t important, but it adds a lot of charm to the graphical representation of what is otherwise a straightforward puzzle game. This game is all about mood: a straightforward, relaxing puzzle game that provides a perfect break from Pokémon Sword.


I really enjoyed my time with Mars Power Industries… it’s challenging without being overbearing, and charming without being trite or forgettable. Each puzzle only takes a few minutes to solve, and you’ll find yourself breaking and going back frequently.

Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:24pm EDT

Halloween has come and gone, Alex is no longer a metaphorical ghost to the world, and the sounds of trick-or-treaters have been replaced with the roar of leaf blowers. It's time to get back to business.

This week we had the extreme pleasure of chatting with Jason who also goes by the moniker "Chocolate Ninja Cosplay." He's been cosplaying since 2014 and has over 20 years of martial arts experience to go along with it. With characters such as Doomfist, Grey Worm, Deadshot, and the most amazing Dr. Facilier you'll ever see, Jason has been killing the cosplay game with no signs of slowing down.  He has a relentless work ethic and an attitude that rivals most motivational speakers. Long story short, talking with Jason was an honor and we're pumped to share our conversation with you all.

Check out his Instagram, drop a like on his Facebook, and get to work on that thing you've been putting off. If you happen to need more motivation, maybe listen to the episode a few more times. It should definitely help.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 11.9.2019_Episode_393.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 5:37pm EDT

I'm so excited to post this episode that finding words to write here has turned into a major inconvenience. Like, it's preventing me from doing what I want to do and it's turning me into an impatient 9 year old who has to finish his homework before he can go out and play.

But, I guess I should finish my homework first and maybe write a few things here like about how Kyle from Decimated Designs is back this week! It has been exactly 100 episodes since we last had Kyle in the studio and this week he's here to talk about another side of the spooky world that we haven't touched on in the past: Extreme Haunts. *eerie music intensifies even more* 

If you've been on Facebook or any news site over the past week you might have an idea of what we're talking about. As more and more articles sprout up, everyone seems to be sharing their opinion on why they think places like McKamey Manor are great/terrible and how it's just a matter of time until someone finally finishes/gets seriously injured.  Personally, you'd be hard pressed to get me within a 20 mile radius of an extreme haunt like the ones we talk about in this episode but if it sounds like something you're interested in, maybe do some soul searching then get on the Google machine and see if there's one nearby. 

(Note: This was actually recorded a few weeks ago; it's pure happenstance that Extreme Haunts happen to be in the news the same week we're set to release this episode so reactions to some of the latest stories might need a follow-up episode or something.)

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 10.26.2019_Episode_392.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:50am EDT

The spookiest month of the year is upon us and even though we're only doing half the amount of episodes we've done in the past, that doesn't mean we're going to be any less spooky. In fact, one could argue we're going to be spookier than ever as this week, with the help of our good friend Will, we're diving into a whole new world of spookiness: unidentified flying objects. *eerie music intensifies*

With the amount of time we've been doing this and the number of spooky episodes under our belts, it's hard to believe we haven't touched on UFOs yet but here we are. I like to think everyone has their own UFO story; whether it's something you saw in your backyard gazing at the stars or a an insane glitch in Grand Theft Auto, you can't deny that in some way, shape, or form - UFOs are everywhere.

Now let's talk about them.

So bust out your pumpkins, steal some candy meant for future trick or treaters, and prep yourself for the alien invasion because it's time to get spooky with some UFOs.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 10.17.2019_Episode_391.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:10pm EDT

The weather is getting colder, the days are slowly getting shorter, and there's pumpkin in literally everything. That can only mean one thing:

NYCC is almost here.

And as we get ready for what I believe is either our 9th or 10th trip down to the Javits Center, we thought it would be fun to hype ourselves and you, dear listener, with some pre-NYCC festivities by talking with not one but two(!) artists you'll be able to find in Artist Alley next week.

First up, Christopher Jones. The longtime artist for the Young Justice comic with many other titles to his name, Christopher is going to be making the move out West to California soon as he takes on his new role working even closer with the YJ team....what fun information am I withholding? Guess you'll have to listen to find out! If you're going to be at NYCC next week, stop by Christopher's booth at AA table B-10. Not going to NYCC? No sweat, check out his website here!

Closing out the show is a one-on-one chat between Alex and artist Domo Stanton! This is one of those rare situations where I get to be an audience member for my own show as Alex flew this one solo while I was busy doing boring adult things like "work". Anyway, Domo is a full-time comic artist/designer who has worked on projects such as Sandman: House of Whispers and FX's CHOSEN. Just like Christopher, he's going to be at NYCC this coming week at table E-36 so while you're doing your con prep, be sure to check out his work and stop by his table at the show!

Huge thank you to both Christopher and Domo for taking the time to chat with us this week despite one of the largest conventions in the country lurking just around the corner. If you enjoyed this episode be sure to let us know. Half hour spots with people is just too short sometimes and we're always looking for excuses to have rad guests on for their triumphant return...

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.27.2019_Episode_390.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:42am EDT

I know I'm kind of required to say this but this week's episode is just too choice. With that said, I think it's time we bring back "choice" when describing radical things as it is criminally under-utilized in today's vernacular.

There's a 99% chance I used at least 3 words incorrectly in that last sentence but I'm just going to roll with it. On to the good stuff:

This week we were joined Andrew MacLean! Andrew is the creator/artist/writer of "Head Lopper" (Image Comics) and this week he made a guest appearance on our show to hype the upcoming release of his latest collection: Head Lopper Volume 3: Head Lopper & The Knights of Venora on sale September 18th!

Check out our chat with Andrew as we dive into the creation and style of the man called Norgal and how even lost pallets of comics couldn't keep Head Lopper from becoming Image comics' most beloved bearded viking.

For those on the hunt for merch and/or future appearances and the like, check out Andrew's website as well as Lazer Wolf Attack for even more stuff including hats/pins/patches/posters and prints.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 9.6.2019_Episode_389.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 4:22pm EDT

And we're back!

This feels kind of strange as it's been quite some time since there was a week when I didn't do one of these. But, change is good and exciting and we're kicking off our new bi-weekly format with one hell of a guest.

Our guest this week is one of the most recognizable characters in the cosplay scene and has earned a reputation as being one of the most accurate Jokers in....ever? I know this kind of stuff is very easy to exaggerate and I'm kind of known for my overuse of hyperbole but seriously. Once you see Anthony Misiano aka "Harley's Joker" in action, you'll see what I mean.

An actor/artist based out of New York City, Anthony got his first taste of going viral when he started appearing at conventions dressed up as The Clown Prince and before long, his grinning face was all over the front pages of just about every comic/gaming news website you could think of. We've long been admirers of his work and this week we're going to take some time to learn about the person behind the makeup as we dive into Anthony's world of acting, art, and how "Harley's Joker" came to be.

Be sure to check out his website and his store for your chance to snag a print or poster featuring some of Anthony's most recognizable Joker recreations.

Enjoy!

-Jr

 

Direct download: 8.26.2019_Episode_388.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 7:23pm EDT

In the years we've been doing this show I think we've had a grand total of maybe 3 "text-only" posts and with this one being titled "Significant Announcement" I can imagine some of you might be a bit concerned over what you're about to read. With that in mind, I'm going to come right out and say No. We are not ending the show.

With that out of the way, and as the title suggests, we do have a somewhat significant announcement regarding the future of OMV: Starting this week, we are transitioning to a Bi-Weekly format. We're doing this for a variety of reasons, the main ones being that we think this will give us an opportunity to deliver a higher quality product to our listeners and also provide us with the time to work on some of the more complex projects we've been kicking around.

So. For the (roughly) first time in 387 weeks: There will be no new episode of OMV. We'll be back next week, though. And we'll have new episodes once every two weeks from here on out as well as some new, different content for you to enjoy in the near future.

As always, a massive thank you to those who choose to support us in our quest to shine the spotlight on amazing things and interesting people. This change might take some getting used to but we think it'll be worth it. Thank you so much for your continued support.

-Alex & Jr.

Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 6:44pm EDT

I never knew how fascinated I'd be when discussing science and robots until we had Megan and Ali in the studio this week. To put it bluntly, I wasn't the smartest or most motivated child in the world so things like robots and robotics club were way outside my wheelhouse in terms of interests. Unless it involved video games or playing a guitar, I didn't want much to do with it.

I guess this is one of those "better late than never" situations.

With Ali being a veteran of the robotics world and Megan a promising up-and-comer; Alex and I got a crash course in the design, fabrication, and the culture of competitive robotics. We did our best to keep up, but it turns out there's a lot more to it than simply "build robot, drive robot, beat other robots" and over the next hour and twenty minutes you'll hear exactly what I'm talking about.

If you're just as enthralled as we were with Ali and Megan's world, maybe pull up the Google machine and see if there's any clubs or volunteer opportunities near you that could use your help. Who knows? You could be the next person to design the latest and greatest robot that *probably* won't take over the world.

Probably.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 8.12.2019_Episode_387.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:03pm EDT

I'm quite literally out the door to go table with some of my best pals at TerrifiCon today so this is going to be real brief. But I'd like to think there's a chance you're reading this because you just talked to one of us at the show and are now curious to see what the fuss is about so in that case:

Check out this week's episode where we talk with two of our most favorite people on this planet about their experiences at quite possibly the largest gaming convention in the country: GenCon!

Without giving away too much: They played an insane amount of games, won an award or two, and managed to survive four days at a show that makes most other conventions look like child's play.

Enjoy!

-Jr

Direct download: 8.10.2019_Episode_386.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:18am EDT

SDCC has come and gone and in it's wake it left a massive amount of news, topics, and things to speculate about. A literal gold mine of content ripe for the picking just dying to be dissected and jammed into the faces of eager fans.

So lets talk about Fortnite!

Seriously though. There's a ridiculous amount of news from SDCC and I'm sure we'll get to that later on as things get closer to actual development. For now? We're gonna do a good, old fashioned "talk about random things we feel like talking about and hope you enjoy listening to it".

Sounds like a good recipe for success, right?

Anyway, this week we're talking about all insanity coming out of Twitch, Mixer, Fortnite, and Ninja in addition to a classic rant between two old dudes frustrated with the current and future state of streaming services.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 8.1.2019_Episode_385.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 7:59pm EDT

A few years ago we had the pleasure of talking with writer Todd Dezago at length about the massive project he was producing at the time, The Tellos Tribute books.  It was during this episode that we really got a feel for how much of an impact the late Mike Wieringo had on so many different artists and creators. The outpouring of support and creativity that resulted in those books is a true testament to how much Mike meant to his friends and colleagues.

Just a few months after we talked with Todd, The Baltimore Comic Con hosted the inaugural "Mike Wieringo Comic Book Industry Awards" aka "The Ringo Awards". Known as "an annual celebration of the creativity, skill and fun of comics", The Ringo Awards honor creators with categories that span the entire spectrum of comics both in print and digital format. This year is going to mark the 3rd annual event and the ceremony is set to take place during the 2019 Baltimore Comic Con in October.

Our guest this week, Randy Tischler, is a representative of the Baltimore Comic Con and is a crucial player in the setup and production of The Ringo Awards. He gave us an in-depth look into the history of the ceremony and what it takes to put on an award show where the nomination ballot is determined not only by industry professionals, but by the fans as well!

Nominees will be announced on August 21st and the official ceremony will be held on Saturday, October 19. As of this writing tickets to the awards are still available so if it's something you'd be interested in attending be sure to snag them quick!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.25.2019_Episode_384.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:04pm EDT

If I'm not mistaken, I believe ConnectiCon is the current record holder for "That convention that we've had the pleasure of covering the most times as a media outlet". This year's show makes it the SEVENTH consecutive time we've made the trip down to Hartford and after all the great times we've had in the past, it has some big shoes to fill.

Joining us for this year's recap is a longtime friend of the show and multi-time guest host Jess! Seeing as she's no stranger to helping us recap shows and she's been to almost every version of ConnectiCon that has existed, we figured this would be the perfect opportunity to take full advantage of Jess' knowledge and expertise. Plus, her and her friends put together a baller cosplay group:

So check out this week's jam as we desperately try to recap everything we saw, played, and experienced during one of the most exhausting 10+ hour days of the year. Will year 7 live up to the hype of previous festivities? Was the back breaking 10 minute trip to Hartford really worth it?? Tune in and find out!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.17.2019_Episode_383.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:48pm EDT

It's getting more and more difficult to come up with new ways of saying "our guest this week is a super talented artist and Alex and I are envious of them and their ability to create art, so we asked them to come and chat with us on our podcast". So far I have been able to manage, but I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel if you hadn't already noticed.

So anyway, our guest this week is a super talented cosplayer/designer who specializes in 3D modeling and prop making. He goes by the handle "Rocket Props" and in just a few days he's going to be taking the stage as a panelist at this year's ConnectiCon! After successful panels at previous PAX East and ConnectiCon events, Rocket is headed back to Hartford alongside Vee Cosplay and The Vulgar Seamstress to present their panel: Cosplay 101: Materials for Props, Cosplay, Gaming and more!

Tune in for some cosplay and design talk as well as come pre-ConnectiCon hype as we gear up for another year of anime, videogames, tabletop, and so much more. Be sure to follow Rocket on all his social medias and if you're in the Hartford area this coming weekend for the show you should consider checking out his panel!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.9.2019_Episode_382.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:21pm EDT

We've discussed The Walking Dead quite a bit over the last 380 episodes. So much that you could probably piece together at least a couple of complete episodes consisting only of Walking Dead talk and still have some material left over. Whether it's the latest issue of the comic or the recent crazy event that happened on the TV show, it's one of those things that has consistently merited discussion.

Admittedly, it's been some time since we last did a deep dive into the TV show. Alex still keeps up with the latest bits via Netflix but I dropped off 3 or 4 seasons ago. Turns out not having access to cable can really kill one's motivation to watch something on a consistent basis. It also doesn't help when that person is very lazy. But. The comic still makes an appearance on our show every so often, usually either in passing or because I can't keep my "holy sh!t" moments to myself. And this is where I get sad (and to the point) because after the issue that came out this week, an enormous double sized #193, The Walking Dead comic has come to an end.

Given that we've been talking about this comic/TV show since the very beginning, we found it borderline irresponsible for us to not talk about it. So we talked about it. And, as shocking as it may be, we managed to keep it mostly spoiler free. There may be some spoilery bits in there for those who aren't caught up yet, so it might be best to get up to speed before tuning in. But for the most part we used this week's episode to discuss and pay tribute to one of the most consistent and beloved books of the 21st century.

(Was that lame? That felt lame. But like, it's also kinda true? Whatever. I'm leaving it in.)

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 7.4.2019_Episode_381.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 1:23am EDT

Alright. It has been a few weeks since we've had a new guest. Alex and I have (mostly) recovered from our respective vacations. It's time to get talkin' with rad people again.

This week we had the absolute pleasure of being joined by Eisner winning artist Georges Jeanty! With over 20 years in the industry, Georges' work can been seen in various titles such as Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Season Eight, The American Way, and Serenity: Leaves on the Wind just to name a few. In addition to his previous works, he recently ran his first Kickstarter which was successfully funded not more than 24 hours ago!

We knew right from the start that we were going to have a blast talking with Georges and we hope you enjoy our chat with him. Be sure to check him out at a convention near you, keep an eye out for future Kickstarted works, and give him a follow on the various social medias!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 6.28.2019_Episode_380.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:55pm EDT

It's Saturday Night. Alex and I are both in post-vacation stupors. It's time to talk about a headline or two in the world of comic books. Specifically one that involves someone we've never heard of getting the gig of a lifetime writing Spider-Man at the ripe old age of 20.

When I think back to being 20 my memories just consist of eating lots of Spaghetti-O's while watching an uncomfortable amount of Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law. So yeah, pretty much the same thing as writing comics featuring one of the most recognizable figures in entertainment history.

Now I'm just bummed out.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 6.22.2019_Episode_379.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:34pm EDT

The last week has been one of seclusion and happiness as I was wayyy up in Northern Vermont staying in a cabin on one of my favorite lakes. It was....very needed. My wife and I pulled into our driveway just a few hours ago and the post-vacation blues are hitting me real hard.

But.

We have a rad episode for you this week as Brett Kelley is in the studio for one of those rare back-to-back episode jams. We're taking a dive into the land of YouTube and what currently has our attention on that god forsaken yet sometimes beautiful website. Check it out and drop us some recommendations of your own in the comments below!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 6.3.2019_Episode_378.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 6:27pm EDT

Up until last week I had never been to Brooklyn, I had never been to a designer toy convention, and I had never seen 9 inch resin figures valued in quadruple digits. I had never seen live graffiti competitions, overweight versions of my favorite childhood cereal mascots, nor had I ever eaten a slice of pizza named after Hellboy.

But after attending the 2019 Five Points Festival...I can now say I've done all of those things. And more. So much more.

It had been far too long since we last covered a show with our very best friend Brett Kelley. So the three of us (along with ace photographer Babs Who Takes Pictures) traveled down to Five Points and scoped out the latest in designer toys, craft beers, kaiju figures, and enamel pins. Oh lord the pins. So many pins.

Check out this week's episode with Brett in the guest seat as we recap our experiences and expenditures at what could easily be considered one of the most unique and potentially expensive shows we've ever covered.

Photos can be found HERE.

Enjoy!

-Jr

Direct download: 6.3.2019_Episode_377.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:30pm EDT

Five Points Fest is but mere days away and with it being my first year attending, I think it goes without saying that I'm pretty excited to be completely clueless as to what is going on. I'm still pretty new to the designer toy scene but after Jon and Alex's recap of last year's show, I've been looking to this upcoming weekend for some time now.

While researching and hashtag-jumping in preparation for the show, Alex came across a toy designer by the name of 3D Hero. We were both impressed with his work and seeing as he's going to be tabling front-and-center at the show this weekend, we thought it would be fun to talk with him, learn about his characters and designs, and generate a little hype for Five Points Fest. You can check out his work HERE and HERE plus if you're going to be in Brooklyn over the next 48-60ish hours, you'll be able to see him and his work in-person at the show!

Huge thanks to Hero for making time for us despite his insanely busy pre-con schedule. This year's Five Points Fest is shaping up to be a rad show and I can't wait to spend too much money there.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.30.2019_Episode_376.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:48pm EDT

Our guest this week is fellow podcaster, filmmaker, and documentarian Anthony Desiato. As the owner and founder of Flat Squirrel Productions, Anthony acts as host of the podcast "My Comic Shop History" and has numerous directing credits to his name. His most recent endeavor, the documentary "My Comic Shop Country" had Anthony traveling across the US visiting comic shops in 9 different states to give an in-depth look at the business, fandom, and community of comic book stores across America.

Tune in this week for a behind the scenes look into Anthony's journey and learn about his process, his experiences, and his thoughts on the current state of the American Comic Shop!

As always, be sure to check out his work and give him a follow so you can get updates on "My Comic Shop Country" and where you might be able to see it at a location near you!

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.22.2019_Episode_375.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 3:59pm EDT

We have two returning guests this week; one from a little while ago and one from a littler while ago. Both, however, are most assuredly rad.

First up is author David (D.W.) Kann and he's here to talk about the latest volume in his "Lovecraft P.I." graphic novel series. Currently on Kickstarter, "The Curious Case of ReAnimator" takes another dive into the world of Supernatural Detective Agencies as Detective Ward Lovecraft tries to solve the mystery of a VooDoo cult deep within the infamous Black Swamp...

Spooky, right?

If you're reading this early enough, you might still have some time to check out the Kickstarter. Click the link above for more details!

Closing out the 2nd half of our show this week is Ellie Hillis because good lord did we have a great time talking with her just a few weeks ago. It seems our "Because Comics" topic couldn't be contained by a single hour-ish long episode so we took some extra time this week to put that metaphorical bow on some of the most insane moments in comics history. (For first time listeners, click the link above and check out Ellie's debut from a few episodes ago. It's worth it.)

And that's it for this week. Huge thanks to David and Ellie for being so gracious and making their return appearances. Be sure to give them a follow on the various social mediums and throw some love their way.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.15.2019_Episode_374.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 12:06am EDT

We haven't talked with writer/artist Rich Woodall in quite some time and that's just a travesty. If you were to grab a dictionary and look up "damn that guy is so f**king cool, talented, and insanely humble" you probably wouldn't find anything because that's more than one word. But in the OMV dictionary, you'd see a picture of Rich. Probably holding a raygun or something.

Being a creator of fantastical things, Rich is currently Kickstarting his latest set of books and if you're reading this within the next 20 days or so, you still have time to get your money in. This project is a little special, too because Rich has two separate books he's looking to print and there's a good chance at least one of them might be your brand. Looking for a legendary team-up between a raygun wielding superhero and a Dragon of the Savage variety? Or how about some creepy WWII horror featuring an enlisted werewolf? If any or all of that sounds great, Rich has got you covered. 

Check out our chat with Rich, click the links above for our previous chats and also for some info on his Kickstarter, and be sure to stop by his table if he's ever at a convention in your area. A chat with one of the coolest guys in comics is definitely worth your time.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 5.8.2019_Episode_373.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:35pm EDT

With the annual Free Comic Book Day quite literally upon us (like, it's today. Go out and get your books and support your LCS if you haven't already) we figured it was the perfect opportunity to talk comics. Now, this isn't the standard "Alex and Jayare talk about the same books they've been gushing about for the last 7 years." No, friends. This is much better.

This week we had the pleasure of chatting with Ellie Hillis. A graduate of Smith College, Ellie is a co-editor at Density Media, an essayist, and a comics historian who recently gave a talk at our local Nerd Nite called "That's CAPTAIN to You: The Evolution of Carol Danvers". It was at this talk that Ellie dropped the phrase "because comics" while trying to recap some of the more....problematic story lines of Captain Marvel's past.

And that got us thinking.

What are some other moments that are just so wacky the only way you can describe them is with a "because comics"? With the long and somewhat turbulent history of comics, surely there must be more, right?

So we reached out to Ellie, we put some lists together, and we put some microphones in front of our faces. The end result is an hour and twenty minutes of some of the most insane and inexplicable moments in comic book history. Because comics.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

 

Direct download: 5.2.2019_Episode_372.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:00pm EDT

It's been a minute since we last had the opportunity to cover Anime Boston so when Vicky came to us asking if she could go on assignment and get all the juicy anime details straight out of the heart of New England- It was an easy "hell yes."

After a few hiccups with trains and hotels, Vicky was finally able to make her grand return to the Hynes Convention Center where she joined up with OMV fan favorite Colin for a weekend jam packed with cosplay, panels, and wig styling competitions.

If you're not doing so already: Be sure to give Vicky a follow on all of her various social mediums. Her cosplays are top tier and you'd be hard pressed to find a better person to attend a convention with. Big thanks to her and Colin for representing OMV once again. Maybe someday Alex and I will get our amateur asses out to AB. Until then it's a comfort knowing we're being represented by some of the best people out there.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.27.2019_Episode_371.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:41pm EDT

Last night we got together with some friends and played board games for like, many hours. While exchanging pleasantries over various drinks and snacks, I boasted to Colin that we, and I quote, "recorded a bomb ass episode this week" and proceed to feed him teasers of what we had in store.

Now I can stop teasing my friends because we did, in fact, record a bomb ass episode this week and now we get to release it to the world.

This week we were joined by Jason Langston aka JNL Toys. A veteran of the toy industry, Jason has worked for major toy companies (like Mattel) and and currently provides freelance work for those in need of his expertise. Due to Jason's vast knowledge of toys both new and old, it was just a matter of time until we dove down the rabbit hole of nostalgia and within minutes I was already making plans to rummage through my parent's storage to find my old Ninja Turtles.

Check out this week's episode for insights, stories, and behind the scenes info on Jason's time in the toy industry. We won't blame you if you have to pause the episode a few times so you can rummage through storage yourself. We know how important those old toys can be.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

 

Direct download: 4.18.2019_Episode_370.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 8:27pm EDT

There's just something amazing about talking with people at length regarding the things they love. It can be fascinating when someone has a near encyclopedic knowledge of something. Weather it's Ken with fighting games, Colin with Spider-Man, or Matthew with wrestling; I could truly sit for hours and just fire off question after question while desperately trying to keep up.

Luckily for me, I have a podcast that affords me the ability to do this with these people very frequently. Hopefully they don't catch on to my ruse because I have no plans of stopping any time soon.

So anyways, WrestleMania was last weekend. And WrestleMania just isn't WrestleMania unless we talk with Matthew James about it and what do you know? He just happened to be in our studio this week.

Oh, and if it wasn't clear by now or from past episodes, huuuge WrestleMania spoilers ahead. Beware.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.10.2019_Episode_369.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 12:59am EDT

It has been a full week since we got home from the latest iteration of PAX East and I still don't feel like I have fully recovered yet. I'm not sure if it's because I'm getting old and these shows are taking a greater toll on my mind/body than they used to...or if it's just because we managed to make this one of the most eventful PAX-es in recent memory. Since I'm in the mood to deny I'm getting any older and I'm still as young and spry as I ever was, I'm going to go with the latter.

All joking aside, we did have one hell of a PAX this year. It was a record setting event in terms of both panels and games and we still managed to squeeze it all into a span of two days. Joe is back in the studio with us this time for our annual recap and I'm just going to warn you now: it's a doozy. We managed to jam an insane amount of content into a massive, 2 hour marathon of an episode and we're pumped for you to check it out!

Pictures can be found HERE. (Shoutouts to our man Bob from Dead Henchmen Productions for the camera hookup)

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.3.2019_Episode_368.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:15pm EDT

First off, let us apologize for the late episode. There are a number of excuses we could throw at you such as:

  • We were at PAX?
  • PAX is in Boston. And Boston is far away from our studio?
  • um
  • I'm out of excuses.

So yeah. We're a little late with last week's jam but we're going to make it up to you with another episode later on this week. And then another one next week, and maybe even one more the week after that. Who knows, we might be able to keep that going for 7 years or something.

Anyway. We had some fun recording this episode for you and we hope you have fun listening to it. It's full of stories, tidbits, and histories all related to what some might call "Oh my god I f***ing hate this stupid day I need to just stay off the internet until tomorrow".

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 4.1.2019_Episode_367.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 6:38pm EDT

Another revolution around the Sun. Another 52 episodes in the bank. 7 years later this damn podcast just refuses to quit.

No anniversary episode would be complete unless I get really sappy and say thank you to everyone. To all the guests, listeners, and friends we've made along the way: thank you all so much. I say it every year but this show would absolutely 100% not go on without all of you. You're the best and we hope we're able to find new people and things to talk to/about for years to come.

Per usual, Alex spent the last few weeks throwing together another amazing montage of our "best-of" moments from the last year and after getting to hear it a few hours ago I'm excited to say he killed it yet again. I don't deserve this man.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Song Credits:

Exit the Premises Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Getting it Done Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

"Mechanical Steed" by Steampianist

Direct download: 3.23.2019_Episode_366.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:28pm EDT

This week's episode is the direct result of a simple conversation at a convention almost 7 years ago.

Flash back to 2012 to the Hynes Convention Center at a show formerly known as "The Boston Comic Con". While wandering around looking for excuses to spend money I didn't have, I noticed Alex chatting with an artist and decided I'd go over and partake in some not-so-subtle eavesdropping. About 30 minutes later we walked away from this table, both with pages of original art in our hands and both of our wallets a little bit lighter. And both with huge smiles on our faces. 

We didn't quite know it at the time, but the two of us had just experienced one of the most memorable moments we'd ever have at a convention. And it was all because of this week's guest: the incredibly talented Jim Calafiore.

For those unaware, Jim is an artist who has worked on books like Leaving Megalopolis/Surviving Megalopolis, Secret Six, Red Lanterns, Exiles, and many more. A true veteran of the industry, Jim is as humble as he is talented and is always a welcome sight whenever we spot him and his ever-growing splatter-print collection at conventions.

Be sure to check out his website HERE and stop by his table sometime if you see him at a show. With convention season gearing up there's a very good chance you'll have your own opportunity to create some memorable moments you'll recall for years to come.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 3.15.2019_Episode_365.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 12:29pm EDT

After working in the book business for a decade people are sometimes shocked to hear I wasn't much of a reader growing up. I had my handful of favorite books: Hatchet, Maniac Magee, and Where The Red Fern Grows to name a few. But aside from the classics I really couldn't be bothered to read unless it was forced on me. That didn't stop my parents from buying me books now and then, especially during the Goosebumps craze of the early 90's. I had probably 6-10 different R.L. Stine titles including one unique one called Escape From the Carnival of Horrors. Unique, meaning it wasn't just your standard spooky story...it had a twist. As part of the "Give Yourself Goosebumps" series, it was advertised to have "over 20 different scary endings" and as the reader, you got to choose where you wanted to go next (usually ending in your untimely demise).

Admittedly, I never really "finished" Carnival of Horrors. I remember finding the end of a few stories but I can't say I ever completed every scary ending. We can probably blame my brother's Super Nintendo for that.

All of this rambling has a point, and I promise I'm getting to it. See, whether you were an avid reader or not, it's very likely that you've come across those "choose your own adventure" style of books at some point in your life. And for those currently nodding in agreement and longing for the days of your youth...we have something neat to show you.

Enter Ben Bishop. A comic artist and writer, Ben is the creator of the groundbreaking comic series The Aggregate. Billed as "A post-apocalyptic graphic novel with giant robots, organically engineered terrorists and spider-cats", The Aggregate is a split decision comic, meaning at certain points in the story you're going to be forced to make some decisions on where the story is going to go next. And it's rad.

Currently, Ben is Kickstarting volume 2 and within days he's already smashed his goal. Check out our chat as we learn more about these spider cats and the subtle art of wallpapering your house with comic art pages.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

 

Direct download: 3.8.2019_Episode_364.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:56pm EDT

The internet is full of terrible things. Let's be real here, it can be a horrible place sometimes. But every now and then you can stumble upon something that makes the internet a better place. Something that you didn't know you needed, but now that you've found it you wondered how you went so long without it. This week we're talking about one of those things.

Alex and I have over 20 years of theme park experience between the two of us (Yes. Alex accounts for around 18 of those years but the numbers don't lie). And after 20 years in the business it's fair to say we (Alex) have seen and done most everything you could imagine. So when we stumbled upon @FakeThemePark and the hilarious yet painfully accurate satire contained within, it was love at first sight.

Created by former Universal Studios tour guide Jason Ginsburg, @FakeThemePark "is a fictional, unnamed park that combines all the best – and all the very worst – of Disneyland, Universal Studios, SeaWorld, and Six Flags. Its Twitter and Facebook accounts contain daily posts about the bizarre happenings in the park, from ride accidents to employee issues, parking problems to construction delays, holiday events to overcrowding, all in the cheerful tone of your average mega-park."

In other words, it's great. It's just great. And it's something that anyone can appreciate regardless of whether they've got 20 years of experience under their belt or haven't worked a single day in a theme park. You can follow the along with the daily happenings of @FakeThemePark by following them on Twitter and Facebook plus you can even purchase an e-book containing the craziest tweets and Facebook posts with all-new material, including a timeline of park history and the first-ever interview with all the Park Princesses by clicking HERE.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 3.1.2019_Episode_363.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:52am EDT

This week is about the little guys. The ones who spent their entire lives training and rising through the ranks of elite tactical outfits only to get destroyed in seconds by a literal god. The ones who have to clean up the messes when the superheroes have finished their business. The ones who don't have cool names, outfits, or superpowers. The ones who spend most of their days standing around guarding a door or playing Galaga on a tiny computer screen. The real heroes.

This one is for you, fellas.

We also talked about TV seeing as it's in our logo, on our business card, and tagged in every episode. So we figured it would be good to touch on some recent shows with our good pal and longtime friend of the show Mike D. And it was good.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.23.2019_Episode_362.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:21pm EDT

It's been a minute since we last talked about anything resembling RPG/tabletop gameplay. So we thought it would be a good idea to absolutely flood you with an hour of RPG/tabletop gameplay featuring two different guests running two different crowdfunding campaigns for their two different, but amazing projects.

First up is someone who may sound a little familiar as we had the honor of speaking to him a couple of years ago when we learned about the art of hand carved wood pressings. But now Drew Meger is back and he's here to give us the inside info on his new project "What Happened at Wyvern Rock?" and how he's managed to surpass his goal by over 200% in just a couple of weeks.

Following Drew and his High Strangeness Zine is a new friend and designer of his own wildly successful campaign. Tanner Yarrow of Yarro Studios launched his first Kickstarter just a few days ago but has already raised over $200,000 for his book of Immersive Battle Maps and he's showing no sign of slowing down.

As of this writing both of these campaigns have just about 2ish weeks left to go so if Drew and Tanner convinced you these are things you might need, you still have some time to throw some cash their way. Be sure to check out the links above and show some love to some rad and passionate creators.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.14.2019_Episode_361.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 4:27pm EDT

This is one of those episodes that was spawned purely off of a conversation that happened 2 hours prior to recording it. That's how you know it's going to be a good one.

While driving home from our pal Brett's art show at Comics N' More this afternoon, Alex and I had some time to reflect on some casual comic shop talk we had participated in. The premise was simple: some people think Cyclops is cool. Other people think Cyclops is not cool. Many valid points and verbal jabs later the joke was made: "Oh, well you're Cyclops apologist anyways."

Which got us thinking.

What characters within the multiple comic book universes are we apologists for? Also, what the hell does apologist mean?

The answers might shock you.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.9.2019_Episode_360.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 9:32pm EDT

Long ago, Zach was our guest when the news of "Batfleck" first broke. Three(ish) movies and multiple "Rotten" scores later, the Ben Affleck Batman-era has come to an end. It wasn't all bad. And it definitely wasn't all good. But it happened and now it's time to talk about it.

-Jr.

Direct download: 2.2.2019_Episode_359.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:02pm EDT

Ok. So I made it to Texas and back without dying which feels like a win. Despite all of the things my brain was telling me in the weeks leading up to the trip, not one of the four planes I had to take off and land in crashed. So it seems everything is coming up Jayare these days.

With that out of the way we're back with our regularly scheduled programming. Joining us this week are two incredibly talented women who are currently making their mark in the YouTube world with their amazing makeup tutorial channels. Kae and Lauren aka "Killa Kae" and "Glamorous Massacre" are two artists who regularly work with Alex during the haunt season making people look beautiful and dead. Added bonus? They're also seasoned YouTube creators with dozens of tutorial and transformation videos under their respective belts.

Take a peek at their channels and maybe toss a like or two their way if you dig what you see. Maybe even subscribe if you'd want to see more? I'm not quite sure how YouTube works but from what everyone else says at the end of their videos it seems like subscribing is a good thing. So maybe do that, too.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.26.2019_Episode_358.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 7:24pm EDT

Friends,

I'm dropping part two of our Spider-Man extravaganza a little earlier than usual as I'm due to be on a plane to Texas in about 6 hours. I'd like to think this is a welcome thing as I'm hoping you're all eagerly awaiting the finale of our Spider-Talk, but if you haven't had a chance to finish up part 1 yet, don't worry. This will be here waiting for you once you're ready.

As expected, Colin is back with us and the SPOILERS for all things Spider-Man both past and present are pretty heavy this week. We hope you enjoyed our Spider-Themed two-parter as much as we did. Going back and reminiscing about all the old memories and growing up with the wall-crawler was a blast. Plus it gave me a good excuse to dig out this ancient hoodie from my early high school days. I mean, seriously. Check this thing out:

*thwip*

No one can say I didn't have amazing taste when I was 16.

Anyways, I need to get some sleep so I can have enough energy make it to the airport in a few hours.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.12.2019_Episode_357.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 11:11pm EDT

It's time to talk about Spider-Man.

We hope you're ready to listen to us talk about Spider-Man because apparently we had a lot to say. So much that we needed two episodes to contain it all hence the whole "Part 1" thing. Be on the lookout for part 2 later on.

We spent the majority of Part 1 discussing the recent, Golden Globe-winning "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" film and it probably goes without saying that this episode contains MAJOR SPOILERS. If you haven't seen it just take our recommendation and see the damn thing; then come back and listen to us. Even if you don't plan on coming back to listen just see the movie. You owe it to yourself.

Also, it wouldn't have felt right to have intense, in-depth Spider-Man discussion without Colin in the studio. As long as I've known the man he's been a constant supporter of the web-head and you'd be hard pressed to find someone able to speak as passionately about the character.

So yeah, it's time to talk about Spider-Man. Tune in next week for part 2 where the discussion continues and we expand into other Spider-Universes, both print and screen, old and new.

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.12.2019_Episode_356.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 12:38pm EDT

This week Alex and I decided it would be fun to welcome our dear listeners into the new year with a nice round of "Wait, that was this year??" because for whatever reason 2018 was just one of those instances where everything felt like it actually happened 3 years ago.

And in a break from all the other "Best of" lists that you're probably being flooded with, we took a different approach and discussed the things we finally got around to in 2018. Everyone has those one or five or ten things they've been meaning to do/experience and Alex and I were no exception. Did Alex finally check out that TV show he's had in his queue for the last 4 years? Was I finally able to sit down long enough to watch that 3 hour movie everyone always raves about? Tune in to find out!

Anyway, 2018 is over. 2019 is here. Let's have some fun on 52 more episodes, shall we?

Enjoy!

-Jr.

Direct download: 1.5.2019_Episode_355.mp3
Category:Comics Movies & Videogames -- posted at: 10:14pm EDT