Sidebar Forever

Originally broadcast in November 2010, here is a classic interview from our 'Barchives' with comic artist/illustrator, the late John Paul Leon (1972 - 2021).
Leon’s immense talent and thoughtfulness towards the craft of black and white picture-making was universally respected by peers and fans alike. Among his comics output, he was known for his work on Milestone’s ‘Static’ and ‘Shadow Cabinet’ titles, Marvel’s ‘Earth X’ and WildStorm’s ‘The Winter Men’. In addition, he embellished countless comic book covers with his art and contributed to style guides for Hollywood films such as ‘Superman Returns’, ‘Batman Begins’ and ‘The Dark Knight’. 
 
This episode continues our re-presentation of classic interviews and roundtables from our previous incarnation as SiDEBAR: The Pop Culture Podcast into our podcast feed. We hope that our listeners, both new and old, will enjoy these vintage back episodes and follow us here for new episodes of Sidebar Forever!

Today’s podcast is a Playback review of the 2013 climate-fiction film ‘Snowpiercer’. Written and directed by Bong Joon-Ho, and starring Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Song Kang-Ho and Ed Harris, ‘Snowpiercer’ is a post-apocalyptic tale about a second ice age where the last remaining humans and animals live on board a futuristic supertrain. However, if the train stops, everyone freezes to death and humanity is lost forever. The film also explores deeper themes of class, privilege, inequality, and ultimately, survival.

The hashtag says it all! 
On today's episode, we chop up writer and Winter Soldier co-creator Ed Brubaker's recent comments on the Fatman Beyond podcast. Ed spoke candidly about his unease at seeing the character's success and popularity in the MCU and now, streaming online. 
We also discuss other well known comic book creators who haven't **really** been shown the money like Marv Wolfman, Bill Mantlo, Dave Cockrum and the late Len Wein.

Swain offers a few words in remembrance of comics artist John Paul Leon (Static, The Winter Men, Earth X), who passed away on May 1, 2021.
He was an immense talent whose mastery of black and white picture-making was truly respected by his peers and fans alike. In addition, Leon was a former guest and friend of our podcast.
(Photo by Luigi Novi)
 

The unlikely duo of Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes are back, only this time as ‘The Falcon and The Winter Soldier’, streaming right now on Disney+. The Marvel Studios series made its dynamic debut in March 2021 and took off (no pun intended)!
Plenty of action, plenty of buddy cop chemistry between Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan, and lots of new characters who weren't introduced in the films such as Karli Morganthau and the Flag Smashers, Isaiah Bradley, and John Walker as, um, the new Captain America.
A few familiar faces from the MCU proper do show up in the series like former SHIELD agent Sharon Carter, the Dora Milajie's Ayo from ‘Black Panther’, and the nefarious Baron Zemo. 
We unpack all six episodes including the spectacular series finale!

On today's podcast, we attempt to figure out whatever happened to the writer-artist in mainstream comics. 
 
In the 1970s and 1980s, artists like Jack Kirby, Jim Starlin, John Byrne, and Frank Miller wrote and drew mainstream books featuring flagship characters. Be it a miniseries like Miller’s ‘The Dark Knight Returns’, Byrne’s five-year run on ‘The Fantastic Four’ or even Walt Simonson's incredible three years on ‘The Mighty Thor’ — fans ate it up to tremendous sales and acclaim. 
However, we see a different version of the writer-artist working in contemporary mainstream comics. 
Why?

Who remembers the old Dell, Gold Key and Charlton comics? Weird, offbeat characters like Magnus: Robot Fighter, Doctor Solar, Turok, and the original Blue Beetle? How about Archie Comics with its never-ending soap opera about a group of teenagers living in the fictional town of Riverdale? 
 
Today, we discuss those publishers, their titles, and even some of the creators who worked for them on this episode we're calling — ‘Forgotten Comics’.

Our review of the mesmerizing 1999 crime thriller ‘The Limey’. Directed by Steven Soderbergh and starring Terence Stamp, Luis Guzmán, Leslie Ann Warren, and the late Peter Fonda, the movie is about an estranged father's journey for revenge, forgiveness, and ultimately, redemption. ‘The Limey’ is considered by many fans to be one of Soderbergh's best films.

“I smell a rat!” 
On today’s podcast, we interrogate a murderers’ row of classic L.A. crime movies like The Big Sleep, Chinatown, True Romance, Reservoir Dogs, Heat, Jackie Brown, and L.A. Confidential. For years, audiences have been captivated by the seedy underbelly of the ‘City of Angels’ depicted on film. We go deep undercover to find out why.

Today's episode is a deep dive into Vietnam War movies. We did our best to cover all of the big ones (The Deer Hunter, Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket) and even a few that often get overlooked (Dead Presidents, The Siege of Firebase Gloria, Rescue Dawn). Lastly, we discuss some of the tropes and overused storylines in these films, as well as how patriotic filmmaking can easily turn into jingoistic wish fulfillment.