David opens the show at his breaking point after a recent issue of Captain America delivers artwork he believes never should have made it to print. John brings the former-editor perspective, breaking down how brutal deadlines, crossover schedules, shifting status quos, disappearing inventory stories, and the loss of veteran inkers can turn a promising monthly book into a full-blown disaster. From there, the guys compare Marvel’s struggles with the steady artistic bench behind Absolute Wonder Woman, celebrate the arrival of ComicPreviews.com, and dig into John Byrne’s decision to create roughly 30 issues of unofficial X-Men comics simply because he wanted to. X-Men: Elsewhen turns out to be a joyful blast of classic superhero storytelling—and John’s decision to leave it at the shop immediately comes back to haunt him. Then the back-issue bin gets weird in the best way, with Jack Kirby’s gloriously unrestrained The Demon and Dark Horse’s adaptation of George Lucas’s original Star Wars draft to comics.

“Man, am I a sucker? I just paid $4.99 for this book, and they didn’t put five dollars’ worth of effort into it.” — David reaching his breaking point with Captain America

“Everything is made under the worst possible conditions the thing can be made under—and sometimes that catches up with you.” — John on the brutal reality behind monthly comics

“Fifteen years later, nobody ever says, ‘Boy, that comic sure was on time.’” — John on deadlines versus finished quality

“Nobody draws 30 issues of a comic book for free if they don’t have a soft spot in their heart for the characters.” — David on John Byrne’s X-Men: Elsewhen

“I set it back down, got to my [home] desk, and found out they were already going for sixty dollars on eBay.” — John realizing he made a terrible comic-shop decision

“Jason Blood is just a regular guy—a regular professional demonologist.” — John explaining the beautifully casual insanity of Jack Kirby’s The Demon

[00:36] – Captain America Goes Airborne: David finds a recent issue so frustrating that he closes it, throws it across the room, and starts questioning the value of monthly comics.

[07:33] – The Inventory Story Is Dead: John explains why fill-in issues became harder to use once collected editions, creator control, and constantly shifting status quos took over.

[11:33] – Made Under Fire: A former Marvel editor reveals how often comics are produced under the worst possible conditions—and how veteran inkers once saved pages headed for disaster.

[16:31] – Where Was the Emergency Button?: David compares Captain America’s artistic chaos with Absolute Wonder Woman’s carefully planned rotation of strong replacement artists.

[24:48] – The Previews Catalog Returns: ComicPreviews.com steps into the void left by Diamond with searchable releases, creators, publishers, categories, and final-order-cutoff listings.

[28:43] – Byrne Does X-Men His Way: John Byrne draws years of unofficial X-Men stories for free, Chris Ryall helps turn them into X-Men: Elsewhen, and the finished book becomes an immediate hit.

[42:08] – The Omnibus That Crushes Children: John attempts to read a 1,500-page Jack Kirby collection before celebrating the magnificent, barely contained madness of The Demon.

[53:04] – Before Star Wars Became Star Wars: David explores The Star Wars, where Han Solo is a green alien, Darth Vader has no powers, and George Lucas is still figuring out which characters belong in the same body.

David Hedgecock (https://funtimego.com) - The Corner Box Co-Host
John Barber (https://www.pugworldwide.com) - The Corner Box Co-Host
The Corner Box (https://www.thecornerbox.club) - Official Website

Chip Zdarsky (https://www.marvel.com/comics/creators/11743/chip_zdarsky) - Writer of the current Captain America series and a central architect behind Marvel’s Road to Armageddon. (⁠Marvel)

Valerio Schiti (https://www.marvel.com/comics/creators/12155/valerio_schiti) - Artist who launched Captain America with Zdarsky and established the book’s original visual identity. (⁠Marvel)

Hayden Sherman (https://www.dc.com/talent/hayden-sherman) - Artist praised for helping make Absolute Wonder Woman feel visually ambitious and carefully planned. (⁠DC)

John Byrne (https://www.abramsbooks.com/contributor/john-byrne_84912274/) - Legendary X-Men creator who wrote and drew X-Men: Elsewhen as a continuation of his classic run. (⁠ABRAMS)

Chris Ryall (https://www.instagram.com/chris_ryall/) - Writer, editor, publisher, and longtime champion of bringing Byrne’s unofficial X-Men continuation into print.

Jack Kirby (https://www.dc.com/talent/jack-kirby) - The creator behind The Demon, OMAC, New Gods, and the wildly imaginative DC work John revisits this week. (⁠DC)

Paul Kupperberg (https://www.paulkupperberg.net/) - Writer of the second Super Powers miniseries drawn by Kirby and one of the creators discussed during John’s omnibus expedition.

Joe Simon (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Simon) - Kirby’s longtime creative partner and co-creator of the 1970s Sandman material included in the omnibus.

Alan Moore (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Moore) - Writer who later brought Etrigan into Swamp Thing with a very different approach from Kirby’s original series.

J.W. Rinzler (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._W._Rinzler) - Writer and Star Wars historian who adapted George Lucas’s original screenplay draft into The Star Wars.

Mike Mayhew (https://www.mikemayhewstudio.com/) - Artist whose realistic, cinematic work makes George Lucas’s abandoned Star Wars concepts feel like images from a lost film.

George Lucas (https://www.starwars.com/databank/george-lucas) - Filmmaker whose rough screenplay became the basis for Dark Horse’s eight-issue The Star Wars miniseries. (⁠StarWars.com)

Ralph McQuarrie (https://www.starwars.com/news/ralph-mcquarrie-the-art-of-star-wars) - Concept artist whose early designs helped guide the visual reconstruction of Lucas’s original Star Wars draft.

Toshiro Mifune (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toshiro_Mifune) - Akira Kurosawa’s legendary leading man, who was considered for the roles of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader. (⁠Wikipedia)

Akira Kurosawa (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akira_Kurosawa) - Filmmaker whose work, particularly The Hidden Fortress and Yojimbo, helped shape Star Wars and generations of Western storytelling.

Captain America (2025–Present) (https://www.marvel.com/comics/series/42747/captain_america_2025_present) - The Zdarsky and Schiti series at the center of David’s argument about artistic consistency, deadlines, and reader value. (⁠Marvel)

Avengers: Armageddon (https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/avengers-armageddon-chip-zdarsky-valerio-schiti) - Marvel event connected to Zdarsky’s Captain America run and the larger publishing schedule discussed in the episode.

Absolute Wonder Woman (https://www.dc.com/comics/absolute-wonder-woman-2024/absolute-wonder-woman-1) - David’s example of a monthly book that maintains its visual standard even when the regular artist needs relief. (⁠DC)

Comic Previews (https://comicpreviews.com/) - Searchable resource for upcoming comics, graphic novels, manga, new releases, and final-order-cutoff titles. (⁠Manage Comics)

X-Men: Elsewhen (https://www.abramsbooks.com/product/x-men-elsewhen-volume-1-of-3_9781419787287/) - Byrne’s continuation of his classic X-Men run, now presented as the first volume of a three-book graphic-novel series. (⁠ABRAMS)

The Demon by Jack Kirby (https://www.dc.com/graphic-novels/the-demon-1972/the-demon-by-jack-kirby) - Complete collection of Kirby’s original 16-issue series featuring Jason Blood and Etrigan. (⁠DC)

Jack Kirby’s Fourth World (https://www.dc.com/graphic-novels/jack-kirbys-fourth-world-omnibus) - Kirby’s massive DC mythology!