Sidebar Forever

Episode 16: Suited and Booted - The Best and Worst Superhero Costumes

We call this episode 'Suited and Booted', the best and worst superhero costumes as judged by us. All in good fun, of course.
 
The three of us chop it up about costume designs dating back to the golden age of the 1930s and 1940s and bring it up to modern day. We cover some trends, shout out some cool shit, call out some design faux pas, as well as some plain old design missteps.
 
We also touch on how the box office success of comic book movies has affected how characters are portrayed on the comic book page. 
 
Thanks for listening and if you aren't subscribing to the show, please do so wherever you get your podcasts.
 
SIDEBAR FOREVER ©2020 Dwight Clark, Swain Hunt and Adrian Johnson

Sidebar Classic - Iain McCaig

Originally broadcast in 2010, here is a classic interview from our 'Barchives' with lauded illustrator/concept artist/storyteller Iain McCaig.
 
McCaig is an inspirational pillar of the fantasy art & illustration community with a career spanning over four decades. He was honored for his efforts with the Spectrum Grand Master award in 2014. 
 
He is perhaps best known for his design of the characters Padme Amidala and Darth Maul for the 'Star Wars' film franchise. In addition, McCaig's film credits include work on 'Terminator 2', 'Hook', 'Marvel's The Avengers', 'Interview With The Vampire', 'Guardians of the Galaxy' and 'The Jungle Book'.
 
Our chat with McCaig was a blast with him revealing his start in illustration, how he came up with the designs for Amidala and Darth Maul and a humorous encounter with famed artist Drew Struzan.
 
And be sure to stay until the end for a revelatory game of 'Either, Or, Choose One, No More' in which Iain actually turns the tables on us(!).
 
This bonus 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! 

Episode 15: The Greatest Movie One-Liners of All Time

Who doesn’t love a good one-liner? The three of us absolutely do.
 
And on today's episode, we throw out some of the greatest and most memorable one-liners in cinematic history.
Bits of dialog fly like shrapnel as we quote the 'King of One-Liners', Arnold Schwarzenegger, as well as Samuel Jackson, Michael Douglas, Prince, Clancy Brown, and even Whoopie Goldberg. Plus, you know Dwight loves him some Star Wars.
 
We won’t spoil the conversation here, but needless to say, a good time was had by all.
 
Two quick disclaimers: As fate would have it, we ended up misquoting a few of our picks (hey, don’t roast us too hard). Also, this episode was off the rails pretty much from the rip. No formal intro to speak of, so strap in, thanks for listening and -- "hasta la vista, baby!"

Sidebar Classic - Arthur Adams

Originally broadcast in 2012, here is a classic episode from our 'Barchives' with legendary comic book artist Arthur Adams.
Adams is a fan-favorite renowned for his crisp, detail-oriented style on books such as the Uncanny X-Men Annuals 9 and 10, New Mutants Special Edition, Batman 400, Longshot and his creator-owned 'Monkeyman and O'Brien'.
Our conversation spans Adams' career; covering his formative love for comics, garnering early success in the industry and even the story behind his art for the ubiquitous Wolverine cardboard standee that graced many comic book stores throughout the late 1980s and 1990s.
Starting with this bonus episode, we'll be re-presenting more 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! 

Episode 14: Cyberpunk - Hacking Into The Genre

Cyberpunk's roots trace back to the science fiction writers of the 1960s and '70s. Over five decades later, the genre remains a go-to for modern storytellers.
 
On today's episode, we discuss the key elements of cyberpunk (dystopian futures, high tech worlds, hacker culture, and isolated loners), as well as films, TV, animation, video games, and comic books that fall squarely within the genre (Blade Runner, Strange Days, Mr. Robot, Akira, Final Fantasy, and Judge Dredd).
 
We also ask a few questions.
 
Cyberpunk is often a bleak look at a possible future. Is there hope to be found in cyberpunk stories or are they mostly cautionary tales?
 
And as our world begins to mirror the world portrayed in cyberpunk, will the genre eventually lose its relevancy?

Episode 13: Protest & Activism In Comics

As much of the world is still marching and protesting the untimely death of George Floyd, we thought this was an opportune moment to discuss protest and activism in one of our favorite mediums: comics.
 
On today’s episode, we recall our earliest memories of comic book stories that were meant to do more than simply entertain: Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams’ run on Green Lantern/Green Arrow in the 1970s, Captain America‘s lost period as 'Nomad' and a secret history of Captain America revealed in the story 'Truth' with the character Isaiah Bradley.
 
We also get into the inherent "conservative" nature of superheroes, as well as how social media has become the main platform where many of us show our activism.
 
Sidebar Forever offers its condolences to the families and friends of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery. All three recently lost their lives; two of them at the hands of the police.
 
Also, the comics community said goodbye to writer Denny O'Neil who passed away on June 11, 2020. He was 81 years old. Rest in peace, sir.

Episode 12: Father's Day

June 21, 2020 is Father’s Day! And what better way to celebrate dads than with a lively discussion on the best and worst fathers in pop culture?
 
On the 'Best Dads' list, we have Darth Vader (huh?), Furious Styles from the 1991 film 'Boyz N The Hood' and Rick Grimes of The Walking Dead fame.
 
Holding down the 'Worst Dads' of all time are Palpatine from the Star Wars series, Detective Jimmy McNulty from HBO's "The Wire," and bounty hunter Clownface from the 1996 comic book series 'Body Bags' by Jason Pearson.
 
Even though we chose this topic because it was lighthearted and fun, we do touch on what it takes to be a good dad, and really, a good parent overall.
 
Thanks for listening and Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there! 

Episode 11: The Need For Authenticity

"Keepin' it real" is a phrase born out of hip-hop in the 1990s, but it still resonates today.
In modern pop culture, we've come to expect our creators to be the characters they portray and to have lived the stories they tell. But is that fair?
And more importantly, does that expectation make for inherently better art? Is a song less moving if the person performing it didn't write it? Are black stories more authentic only when told by black creators? Should Hollywood ignore identity politics and cast actors in any role regardless of race, gender, sexual identity or background?
On today’s episode, we ask these questions.

Episode 10: The Rise of Skywalker

On this episode, we conclude our celebration of 'Star Wars' month with a discussion on 'The Rise of Skywalker'.
Directed by J.J. Abrams, this ninth and final chapter in the Star Wars saga does its best to tie things up neatly while leaving a few doors open for future spin-offs.
As big fans ourselves, we do our best to discuss the film (with spoilers) while illuminating the challenges that Abrams faced in taking on this herculean task.
 

Episode 9 - Disney's The Mandolorian

On this episode, we celebrate 'Star Wars' month with a review of Disney's 'The Mandolorian'! This spin-off created by Jon Favreau stars Pedro Pascal, Nick Nolte, Gina Carrano, and Carl Weathers.
You may also notice this episode, there are only hosts Dwight and Swain instead of the usual three. Alas, sometimes, that is the way.