Comic Book Bears Podcast

It's another roundtable of recent comics with your hairy heavy funnybook reading homos as we say goodbye to September! Hit play to hear Steve, Caleb and Bill Z opine on new series like Cheetah and Cheshire Rob the Justice League (DC), All-New Spider-Gwen: The Ghost Spider (Marvel) and Speed Racer (Mad Cave!) We also discuss the touching done-in-one Incredible Hulk #27 (Marvel), the immensely consequential Transformers #24 (Image) and we touch base on the latest developments in the long running Something is Killing the Children (Boom Studios!)  

We have reached the end of another month and that means more Comic Book Bears Podcast audio episodes! This time around the principal focus is on the new Batman #1, the relaunch of the title from writer Matt Fraction with superstar artist Jorge Jiménez! Establishing a new status quo for the Caped Crusader and his home city of Gotham, Batman #1 from DC hits the ground running including a supporting cast shakeup and a much more high tech Batman. But that isn't the only new title discussed this time around. Hit play to hear CBB boys Bill Z, Steve and Caleb also discuss The Adventures of Lumen N (Dark Horse), No Saints Nor Poets (Tightrope Press), Hellboy in Love: The Art of Fire (Dark Horse), Everything Dead and Dying (Image) and Jeff Lemire's memoir 10,000 Ink Stains (again, Dark Horse.) 

We have reached the symbolic end of Summer 2025 and the CBB Boys are back with a new audio episode. Caleb, Bill Z and Steve reconvene to discuss a set of new comics and graphic novels as we close out August. We have the Big Two represented by this year's Titans Annual from DC with Donna Troy in the spotlight with a story written and drawn by Phil Jimenez and by a new Captain America #1 from Marvel from the team of Chip Zdarsky and Valerio Schiti. We have Oni's EC Comics revival represented by Catacomb of Torment #1 and Cruel Universe #1. We also have the manga body horror of Brain Damage by Shintaro Kago and the-coming-of-gay-age of Mike Curatoro's Gaysians graphic novel. So hit play and enjoy two hours of funnybook chatter as this summer sunsets.   

The CBB Boys head back to the movies, this time for for The Fantastic Four: First Steps!!! TFF:FS is the 37th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe franschise and the second reboot of the Fantastic Four for the cinema. The film was directed by Matt Shakman and features an ensemble cast including Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, and Joseph Quinn as the family-based super-hero foursome, alongside Julia Garner, Sarah Niles, Mark Gatiss, Natasha Lyonne, Paul Walter Hauser and others. Set in the early 1960s of a retro-futuristic world, the film finds the Fantastic Four desperate to protect Earth from the planet-devouring cosmic force known as Galactus! Steve, Caleb and Bill Z are all on hand to discuss what they thought of the movie and, as is our custom with our movie centered episodes, spend the back half of the show discussing collected editions featuring the Fantastic Four in comic form whuch you might enjoy! So, hit play and Flame On with this group of hairy heavy homos!

This new Comic Book Bears Podcast audio episode is a little bit different. We were down to two bears in the cave this week so we elected to use this time together as a "backdoor pilot" for Steve Mowry's new horror-centered podcast The Bear Cave of Terror. BCOT will be available in its own feeds going forward but with Bill Z as the first of Steve's guest co-hosts, we are thrilled to present you our discussion of the seminal 1975 film Jaws as it celebrates its 50th anniversary this summer! Jaws was the first wide-release summer blockbuster which changed the way films were marketed forever and established its director Steven Spielberg as a major figure in filmmaking! We discuss the book that the film was based on, the cast, the later imitators and (of course) the scares!!! However we still were able to get a little bit of comic book talk in as well, with the first issues of The New History of the DC Universe and Lazarus Fallen by Greg Rucka and Michael Lark from Image Comics getting the CBB chat treatment! So hi

We could not wait to bring you this episode!!!  Superman, the new film, is written and directed by James Gunn and is the kickoff movie for the new DC Universe media franchise! David Corenswet stars as Superman/Clark Kent, alongside Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor along with Edi Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan, Nathan Fillion, Isabela Merced and others. In the film, Superman must prove to a suspect world that he is a protector after billionaire Lex Luthor enacts a plan to turn public opinion against him. Be forewarned, this episode is COMPLETELY spoileriffic! We all weigh in on what we thought of the movie and, as has become customary for our film-centric episodes, we also offer up our suggestions of collected editions starring the characters from the film - in this case The Man of Steel, Superman: Birthright and Superman: Lost - that we hope you might enjoy! So, hit play and ... LOOK UP!    

To finish out Pride Month we have another new Comic Book Bears Podcast audio episode! Bill Z and Steve share their HeroesCon experience in Charlotte in the beginning of the episode. And though Caleb was not with them for the con, he is back with them on the mic to discuss a series of new books! We first cover this year's Pride Month anthology offerings from the Big Two - Marvel United: A Pride Special #1 and DC Pride 2025! The queer anthology talk continues with a discussion of Young Men in Love: New Romance (Wave Blue World), and the new book chat is rounded out by Blood Type #1 (Oni), Whatever Happened to the Crimson Justice #1 (Mad Cave) and the last few issues of Namor (Marvel) - so hit play to enjoy two hours of The Heroes and The Gay!  

New Comic Book Bears Podcast audio episode! On June 19th, CBB boys Steve and Bill Z were actually together in the same place for this mini-episode previewing HeroesCon in Charlotte which ran from June 20th-22nd! Though sadly Caleb-less, hit play to hear what we had planned for the con ... and you won't have to wait too long for the follow-up as our post-convention wrap up episode is following right behind this one tomorrow!  

We move into a new season and the Comic Book Bears are back with this new summer-sized audio episode! Hit play to hear Steve, Caleb and Billy Z talk about a number of new books and graphic novels! From the Big Two we explore the newest iteration of Giant-Size X-Men from Marvel and DC's The Power Company Re-Energized #1. On the independent side of things we dig into The Fairy Godfather by Robert Mailer Anderson and Jon Sack, Muybridge by Guy Delisle, Pure Rubbish by Kayla E. and the first issue of Mad Cave's Vanishing Point by Mark Russell and Juan Doe! (All this plus Caleb gets schooled about New Jersey's Pine Barrens!)    

The CBB boys (Bill Z, Steve and Caleb) say farewell to Spring with the end of the Merry Month of May and look forward to Summer with this new audio episode! After an opening tangent salvo about Diamond's bankruptcy and all that brings, toys and tariffs and ... um ... the 2008 Guns N' Roses album Chinese Democracy, our fellas finally get focused on the funnybooks. Absolute Green Lantern (DC), Resurrection Man: Quantum Karma (DC), The Incredible Hulk (Marvel), Lost Fantasy (Image), I Was A Fashion School Serial Killer (Image) and Sectaurs (Nacelle/Oni) are discussed. It is worth noting that our discussion of the Hulk makes many references to the late, great Peter David (who was also a past guest of ours.) This episode was recorded on 5/21/2025, three days before his unfortunate passing. Rest well, Sir.    

The CBB Boys head back to the movies and discuss Thunderbolts*, the 36th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe on this latest audio episode! The movie is directed by Jake Schreier and stars an (amazing) ensemble cast including Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, Olga Kurylenko, Lewis Pullman, David Harbour, Hannah John-Kamen and Julia Louis-Dreyfus! Thunderbolts* finds the unlikely team of Yelena Belova, Winter Soldier, U.S. Agent, Taskmaster, Ghost, Red Guardian and ... Bob ... brought together by circumstance and conspiracy and discovering just what this collective of anti-heroes are capable of! And as is our tradition, each of us (Steve, Caleb and Billy Z) make recommendations of comic book arcs featuring the film's characters which we think you may enjoy! Afterwards, we go on to discuss some new comics we are enjoying - the newest version of Heavy Metal magazine, DC's Absolute Martain Manhunter and Dynamite's new Herculoids series. We hope you will hit play to join us for some Marvelous Marvel M

It is hard to believe that it has been over four years since our special group of Star Wars fans (Mike Lovins and Craig Lantz joining CBB regulars Steve Mowry and Bill Zanowitz) have been gathered around the mic together, so we are thrilled to bring this Force Sensitive Foursome back on this new audio episode! We very recently saw the second season of Andor begin with the first three episodes released at once. We weigh in on that (in a totally spoilerific fashion), the news from Star Wars: Celebration 2025 from Tokyo and a whole lot more!  So power down your lightsabers, set your blasters on stun, hit play and enjoy our musings on tales from a galaxy far, far away!    

It has been a few years since we had a Comic Book Bears Podcast episode wholly dedicated to manga and figured it was time for a new one! So hit play to join in on 2+ hours of chatter about some great works, old and new, that have come out of Japan! The CBB Boys - Bill Z, Steve and Caleb - have chosen Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, Wild Strawberry, Mach GoGoGo (aka Speed Racer), The Liminal Zone, Astro Baby and Inuyashiki as the subjects for this particular summit!  ショーを楽しんでいただければ幸いです。

Spring has sprung and March is in its "out like a lamb" phase and the CBB Boys (Steve, Caleb and Bill Z) are back with a new audio episode! For a change there is a good deal of comics related news between Diamond's auction completing, the cast roll out for Avengers: Doomsday and the New History of The DC Universe and we cover each of these at the beginning of our show. Then onto the new comic talk with Avengers #21 (with an Avengers vs X-Men baseball game), the X-Men's X-Manhunt event, Zatanna #1, Secret Six #1, the Gargoyles: Winter Special and the Resurgence of the Valiant Universe mini-series all having their moment under our ursine spotlight!

Through new tattoos, foot injuries and holding down the fort at home, Bill Z, Steve and Caleb return with another new Comic Book Bears audio episode! After a little bit of catching up with each other and a little bit of news (a new DC/Marvel crossover planned for the summer, Daredevil: Born Again), the CBB Boys dive into comic talk. And it's a varied grouping this time around - from the latest Green Lantern Corps relaunch (DC) to the Captain America and Volstagg one-shot (Marvel) to Ashes by Àlvaro Ortiz (Top Shelf) to Final Cut by Charles Burns (Pantheon) to some manga with The Marshal King by Boichi (Viz) and wrapping up with the Techno-Noir of Warm Fusion by Scott Hoffman and Alberto Ponticell (DSTLRY)! Hit play for 2+ hours of funnybook talk from some hairy, heavy homos!

It's back to the movies for the Comic Book Bears on this new podcast audio episode! The film this time is Captain America: Brave New World! It is the 35th entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise, directed by Julius Onah starring Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson/Captain America alongside Danny Ramirez, Shira Haas, Carl Lumbly, Xosha Roquemore, Giancarlo Esposito, Liv Tyler, Tim Blake Nelson, and Harrison Ford as President Thaddeus Ross. Caleb, Bill Z and Steve offer up what they thought about the movie (spoiler warning natch) and as is custom in our movie centered episodes they also make suggestions regarding past comic book arcs featuring the film's characters we think you may enjoy. The CBB boys also roundtable a few new books - The Secret of the Garden (from the world of Hellboy), Safer Places by Kit Anderson and the Green Hornet/Miss Fury crossover series - and there a few tangents sprinkled throughout as always. So hit play or download and enjoy our latest comics and movies gabfest!

Time for a new Comic Book Bears Podcast audio episode!  Steve, Caleb and Billy Z reconvene for two hours of four color funnybook talk! On the docket this time are a few news items (Diamond's bankruptcy, Marvel Studios not inviting Rob Liefeld to an afterparty) followed by a half dozen books we wanted to spotlight. Hit play and hear about what we thought of the inaugural issues of a few new series: Aquaman (DC), West Coast Avengers (Marvel), Lawful (Boom!) and The Death of COPRA (Image). We also chat about Tim Bird's autobiographical graphic novel Adrift in a Painted Sea (Avery Hill Publishers) and DC's tabloid reprinting of the 1980 Untold Legend of The Batman mini-series. Also, please note that this episode was recorded at the beginning of the month and as 2/3rds of the team here are huge football fans we offer up what were our Super Bowl LIX predictions. (One of us gets it spectacularly wrong.)  

The Comic Book Bears podcast goes All In this time around in our new audio episode! As much of the US is contending with a January winter freeze, Bill Z, Steve and Caleb once again huddle around the mic. And after a deep dive into recent news (specifically Diamond Comic Distributors filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and the allegations by various women against Neil Gaiman), the CBB boys turn their attention to DC Comics and their All In publishing initiative which finds their entire main comics line enjoying a refresh! Justice League Unlimited, Justice League: The Atom Project, Action Comics, Birds of Prey, New Gods and Metamorpho are the main books discussed. And all you have you have to do is hit the play button to go All In with us!

The CBB Boys are thrilled to bring you the audio version of their 300th episode! And for this anniversary they welcome back to the show a very familiar name and a great friend - writer Richard Rivera! Richard is here to chat about his new Kickstarter for the latest Stabbity Bunny project: a remastered version of Stabbity Ever After #1 which takes Stabbity on a more humorous path through an alternative reality. But this time Richard brings along some friends to the show with their own Kickstarter campaign! Making their CBB debut to discuss it are writers and Insymmetry Creations co-founders Matt Knowles and Steph Cannon! Matt and Steph take us into the world of Heirs of Isildur, a collision of sci-fi, steampunk, heavy metal and graphic storytelling that is on its fourth issue! Heirs of Isildur is not the only project under the Insymmetry Creations banner and we also get to hear about a number of those. And best of all, there is a campaign component where Stabbity and Isildur crossover!!! (Links to the Kickstar

This new Comic Book Bears audio episode is our last episode of 2024 and a loaded one it is! The CBB trio of Caleb, Bill and Steve are all on hand to chat about a whole bunch of things! The teaser trailer for the upcoming Superman film written and directed by James Gunn dropped on December 19th and this turned out to be a very big deal. We opine on it along with the new Creature Commandos animated series on Max which kicks off this new DC Universe for film and TV. In terms of Marvel, in the movie theaters right now is Kraven the Hunter - the new film based on the Spider-Man adversary starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson in the title role, Ariana DeBose and Russell Crowe. 66.6% of the bear crew saw it and provide their viewpoints on it. We also take a few new books off of the virtual spinner rack and discuss JSA by Jeff Lemire and Diego Orlotegui (DC), Arcbound by Tom Hardy, Scott Snyder, Frank Tieri and Ryan Smallman (Dark Horse) and Tender by Beth Hetland from Fantagraphics. Lastly, each of us choose their favorite