Robots From Tomorrow!

Robots From Tomorrow
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A comix podcast coming to you from somewhere in the multiverse. Stay safe and enjoy your funny books.

  1. MAR 27

    Stephen R. Bissette on TYRANT and Comics in Vermont

    Cartoonist / writer / scholar / educator (and now Comics Laureate) Stephen R. Bissette joins Greg for the first part of their two-part talk about all things Tyrant and more as the Kickstarter campaign to bring his long out-of-print series back to life has roared past its funding goal and continues to smash any stretch goal in its path! Bissette goes into why Vermont is such a good place to be a cartoonist, what his plans are for his tenure as the state's sixth Comics Laureate, why repressive eras seem to spur on transcendent works of horror, and how Zap Comix #0 changed his life. He dives deep into his fifteen years as an instructor at James Sturm's Center for Cartoon Studies, including some of the difficulties in teaching the history of the medium when some of the pioneers' work is held in disdain by the current generation. Finally, Bissette details how the 1990s direct-market distribution collapse aborted Tyrant and how today's crowdfunding and print-on-demand landscape—aided by Lighthouse publisher Chris Stevens and advocate/designer Jim Rugg—enabled Tyrant's Kickstarter-fueled revival. [This episode is number 829 in a series.]     CHAPTERS   00:00 - Intro 02:48 - Why Vermont Loves Comics 06:57 - Saying Yes To Laureate 08:30 - Vermont Cartooning Legacy 13:22 - Arts In Regressive Times 17:17 - Underground Comics Awakening 19:04 - Kubert School v CCS 24:25 - Teaching Comics History Debates 28:01 - Never Go Away Philosophy 33:48 - Tyrant Returns And Distribution 38:34 - Print On Demand Revolution 41:57 - Ads Reviews Retailers 42:45 - Direct Market Collapse 43:57 - Crowdfunding Changes Everything 45:46 - Perks Backstock Ceramics 47:40 - Success Fears Next Steps 51:50 - Life In The Zone 01:00:20 - Why Trust Stevens And Rugg 01:04:44 - Past Projects Credibility 01:11:10 - Lighthouse Team Scanning 01:13:31 - Momentum And Final Thoughts

    1h 18m

  2. MAR 6

    Jim Rugg on VEEFRIENDS, TYRANT, WEAPON X, & More!

    Greg welcomes cartoonist/designer Jim Rugg back to the show for the first recorded conversation since 2014! Last time, Jim talked with Greg AND Mike about the return of Street Angel through AdHouse Books, among other things. But for 2026, Jim brings a whole slew of new projects to the discussion: Becoming a Creative Producer at VeeFriends Writing VeeFriends #11 + #12 Writing AND drawing VeeFriends #13 Joining the creator-owned distribution co-op Power Pulp Designing new collections of Stephen Bissette's long-out-of-print Tyrant Writing a monograph for Bloomsbury Publishing on Barry Windsor-Smith's Weapon X Being back on YouTube in various places talking comics. The years may have passed, but Jim continues to be passionate about comics in all shapes & forms and even more passionate about making them. Find out about all of that and more on today's episode! [This episode is number 828 in a series.]     CHAPTERS   00:00 - Intro 02:28 - Twelve Years Later 03:16 - Joining VeeFriends  06:38 - Writing VeeFriends  09:10 - Farm Fights Origins  13:21 - Bullpen Comics Talk  16:51 - Writing For Other Artists  25:14 - Script Style And Process  29:12 - Teaching And New Ideas  31:50 - Power Pulp Explained  34:37 - Distribution Then And Now  39:40 - Power Pulp Interviews  40:54 - Unearthing Leo Derek 43:51 - Sharing Comics Gems  46:58 - Designing Tyrant Editions 51:12 - Working With Steve Bissette  56:01 - Writing About Weapon X  01:05:19 - Research Fuels Creativity 01:10:34 - Outro

    1h 17m

  3. FEB 27 ·  BONUS

    Jim Rugg Talks STREET ANGEL (2014)

    (This interview was originally published in an earlier form on July 21, 2014) From the original episode description: We usually follow up a spotlight episode with either a Previews exploration or a free-for-all. But this week is different because Jim Rugg himself stopped by our center-of-the-earth recording studio to drop some truth about Street Angel and his career. Jim is one of the most flat-out creative talents working in comics and design today, and we couldn't be more thrilled to bring you this wide-ranging conversation. His latest book is a re-release of his first published work: Street Angel. It's available from Ad House Books and finer comic shops everywhere. [This episode is a remastered variant of number 104 in a series.]     CHAPTERS 00:00 - Intro 03:06 - Street Angel Returns 04:42 - AdHouse Reprint Plan 09:20 - Design as Object 11:10 - Paper Stock Deep Dive 15:55 - Street Angel's Influences  20:30 - Lettering and Sound Effects 25:57 - From Mini Comics to Slave Labor 34:13 - Pink Upfront, Homage In The Back 39:20 - Fight Scenes and Page Chaos 44:45 - Scaling Line Weight 45:06 - Gallery Viewing Distance 44:45 - Books vs Wall Pieces 47:23 - Why Make Zines? 50:09 - Zines Inform Everything 51:08 - Work Zine Production 52:47 - Silhouette Zine Aftermath 54:52 - Free Online vs Print Costs 56:47 - Funding Big Ideas 57:38 - Copacetic Archive Book 01:02:04 - Jason Karnes Collection 01:04:01 - Finding New Cartoonists 01:08:03 - Internet Shelf Life 01:11:32 - Locust Moon Nemo Design 01:12:41 - Adventure Time House Style 01:18:28 - Outro

    1h 19m

  4. FEB 19

    Kit Anderson on SECOND SHIFT

    Cartoonist Kit Anderson's first graphic novel Second Shift was first mentioned on the back back in episode 817, where Avery Hill co-publisher Ricky Miller talked about working with her and bringing the book to his London-based company. But today's episode dives into the book with the author herself, which is good news for Greg because he read the book multiple times getting ready for this interview and…he has questions. Second Shift was preceded by a number of short stories and mini-comics, including the Ignatz-nominated "Weeds". "Weeds" and that other work has been collected in the anthology Safer Places, also out from Avery Hill.    She has an MFA from the Center for Cartoon Studies and has, among other things, also worked as the Production Manager for friend of the show Josh O'Neill's BEEHIVE BOOKS. So suffice it to say that Kit Anderson knows her way around a comic book, and that is definitely on display with Second Shift.  (We're not the only ones who think that – the New York Public Library put Second Shift on their list of  50 Best New Comics for Adults in 2025!) [This episode is number 827 in a series.]     CHAPTERS 00:00 - Intro 03:52 - Getting Into Comics 07:17 - CSC Days 09:07 - Finding a Home at Avery Hill Publishing 10:48 - Visual Scripting 20:54 - Refining SECOND SHIFT 23:43 - Ambiguity vs. Missing Pieces 30:40 - The ALIEN In The Room 32:39 - Is SECOND SHIFT a Horror Book? 35:07 - The Bradbury Of It All 37:07 - Birdie's Arc 39:08 - Analog vs. Digital 40:53 - Color 43:14 - Building TerraCorps 47:13 - Ranking the ALIEN Films 51:20 - What's Next 52:54 - Outro

    54 min

  5. FEB 5

    Wes Eastin on SHOPPING FOR SUPERMAN

    Today's guest is on the show to pick up a conversation we started last October when he screened his first feature film, SHOPPING FOR SUPERMAN, at Baltimore Comicon. He is a filmmaker - director / writer / editor / showman / dreamer / and many other things. His nearly 20 years in the film business has produced a CV too extensive to list here, so just take my word for it, this man knows his way around getting things out of the ether and on to the screen.  SHOPPING FOR SUPERMAN, a documentary that took almost a decade to see to fruition, is a love letter to the friendly neighborhood comic store and is both a wonderful reminder for some, and instruction to others, at just how important these places have been for getting comics to this point AND in taking comics into the future we all know they can reach.  The film is available to watch on various streaming platforms and on Blu-Ray from shoppingforsuperman.com, and it goes without saying we highly recommend you do so.  The director is Wes Eastin, and this episode has him sitting down with Greg to talk about the film and its subject matter so near and dear to both their hearts: the local comic book store.  [This episode is number 826 in a series.]     CHAPTERS 00:00 - Preamble 02:16 - Roles in Film Production  05:26 - The Passion Behind the Project  08:13 - Building the Documentary  13:25 - Interviewing Comic Shop Owners  17:14 - Creating a Comic Book Shop Set  23:03 - Challenges and Changes 25:59 - Future Projects and Reflections  36:12 - Remote Filmmaking and Technological Advances  36:54 - Building a Film on a Budget and Friendships  38:16 - Challenges and Experiences of Remote Interviews  41:07 - Incorporating Historical Elements in the Film  47:22 - The Role of Comic Shops in the Industry  55:16 - Personal Comic Shop Experiences  01:10:43 - Future Projects and Reflections 01:15:00 - Outro

    1h 16m
  6. The Greatest Bronze Age Batman Stories, Part 2

    JAN 22

    The Greatest Bronze Age Batman Stories, Part 2

    Greg and the DC3Cast's very own Vince Ostrowski continue their dive into gem after Caped Crusader gem of the best Batman stories of the Seventies to mid-Eighties! Come for the Archie Goodwin goodness, stay to find out more about the artistic evolution of Walt Simonson, which of the two hosts is coolest on Marshall Rogers, the correct length of the Bat-Ears, what happens when the Bruces of two different comic book universes collide, the one-stop-comicbooking-shop that is Jim Aparo, Joe Staton and the Justice Society, just how hard Dick Giordano is to pronounce, and much more. All that, and the man who stalks the most dangerous game alive in today's episode! [This episode is number 825 in a series.]     CHAPTERS 00:00 – Preamble 03:29 – Part 2 Manifesto 10:51 – Goodwin on DETECTIVE COMICS 13:40 – Jim Aparo and The Ears 23:00 – Using Every Tool in the Toolbox 25:20 – A Batman Story vs A Story With Batman In It 32:41 – MANHUNTER and Walt Simonson 48:06 – Englehart & Rogers' DARK DETECTIVE 57:28 – I Now Pronounce You Bat-Mite! 01:00:45 – DEATH STRIKES AT MIDNIGHT AND THREE 01:04:37 – Joe Staton and the Earth-2 Batman/Huntress 01:11:14 – Untold Legends of Byrne and Aparo 01:17:22 – Thompkins, Brennert, Simonson, Giordano 01:27:14 – When Bruces Collide (BATMAN VS THE INCREDIBLE HULK) 01:34:39 – Recap and The DC3Cast 01:43:00 – Outro     AVAILABILITY The specific comics referred to in this episode are: Adventure Comics #461-463 Batman #321 Detective Comics #437-443, 457, 469-476, 478, 482, 500 DC Super-Stars #17 DC Special Series #15 The Untold Legend of Batman #1-3 Batman versus The Incredible Hulk All these are available as individual issues on the DC Universe Infinite service, except for DC Special Series #15 and Batman versus The Incredible Hulk. The two relevant stories from DC Special Series #15 are available in the Batman Arkham: Ra's Al Ghul collection ("I Now Pronounce You Batman and Wife!") and Tales of the Dark Knight: Marshall Rogers collection ("Death Strikes at Midnight and Three"), Batman versus The Incredible Hulk is not available online but was reprinted most recently in the 2025 DC Versus Marvel Omnibus.

    1h 45m
  7. JLU: "For The Man Who Has Everything" (Commentary Only)

    JAN 8 ·  BONUS

    JLU: "For The Man Who Has Everything" (Commentary Only)

    Join Greg and Zach Wilkerson, one-third of the DC3Cast, as they delve deep into the Justice League Unlimited episode 'For the Man Who Has Everything,' adapted from Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' classic Superman Annual #11. How deep you ask? Well, audio commentary-level deep!

    24 min
  8. JLU: "For The Man Who Has Everything"

    JAN 8

    JLU: "For The Man Who Has Everything"

    Join Greg and Zach Wilkerson, one-third of the DC3Cast, as they delve deep into the Justice League Unlimited episode 'For the Man Who Has Everything,' adapted from Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' classic Superman Annual #11. How deep you ask? Well, audio commentary-level deep! The two's discussion topics range from major differences between the episode and the original comic, to continuity within the DCAU, to the story's emotional impact. Was removing Robin for the JLU episode a smart move? What could this story have looked like if it showed up during Justice League, when each story was a 44-minute two-parter instead of a 22-minute bullet train of an animated episode?  Additionally, they take the opportunity to reflect on the DC3Cast's 10-year (and counting) journey, favorite projects, and upcoming plans. **The commentary-only version of this episode can be found here: ** [This episode is number 824 in a series.]     CHAPTERS 00:00 Preamble 00:12 Special Guest Introduction 00:32 Catching Up with Zach 02:14 Discussing DC Three Cast 03:33 Reflecting on Podcasting Journey 16:48 Parenthood and Comics 19:52 Justice League Unlimited Commentary 37:44 The Beginning of the End 38:11 Superman's Perfect World Shattered 39:56 Wonder Woman's Role and Adaptation Choices 42:21 Superman's Emotional Climax 43:46 Batman's Best Day and the Black Mercy 44:50 The Final Battle and Conclusion 56:01 Reflections on Adaptation and Comic Comparisons 01:02:10 The DC3Cast and Future Projects

    1h 2m
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4.7
out of 5
15 Ratings

About

A comix podcast coming to you from somewhere in the multiverse. Stay safe and enjoy your funny books.

Information

  • Creator
    Robots From Tomorrow
  • Years Active
    2013 - 2026
  • Episodes
    825
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Robots From Tomorrow
  • Show Website
    Robots From Tomorrow!

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