Best Matt Lazorwitz Podcasts (2025)

1
Episode 209: Eternally Yours, Robin 1:26:58

Play Pause

6d ago1:26:58

1:26:58

For you out there, it has only been one week since our last episode. But we took a week off recording so we could really pack in the comics. This week, we're covering the entire, 26 issue run of Batman & Robin Eternal, the weekly series that ran at the end of the New 52 era. It sees the return of some Bat characters lost in the rest of that era, ha…

1
Episode 208: You're a Damn Good Cop, Jim Gordon 1:10:56

12d ago1:10:56

1:10:56

Jim Gordon made his first appearance in Detective Comics #27. You know, the same comic that Batman made his first appearance. So, you can imagine the number of stories that Gordon has been featured in. But especially since Frank Miller made "Batman: Year One" as much about Gordon as it is about Batman, that number has exploded, and the history of t…

1
Episode 207: One of the Oldest Jokes 1:08:37

19d ago1:08:37

1:08:37

We're back following the three runs we've been reading in order for a while now. No Man's Land reaches its midpoint as the Bat family comes home to Gotham and the identity of the new Batgirl is revealed. Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne face their ultimate challenge as they are trapped between Dr. Hurt and the Joker in the final arc of Grant Morrison'…

1
Episode 206: Youth of Gotham Unite 1:13:46

26d ago1:13:46

1:13:46

Gotham Academy returns to comic shops this week with a new prequel series, so we're reading three stories about teens in Gotham. Tim Drake faces a major challenge with his first confrontation with the man who killed the previous Robin, the Joker. Duke Thomas is recruited into the We Are Robin movement in a Gotham with a very different Batman. And t…

1
Episode 205: Batman Begins At 20 1:06:54

1M ago1:06:54

1:06:54

Time moves ever forward. I can't believe that Batman Begins is 20 years old this year. As I question my mortality and life choices, this week we read three stories from the Batman Begins trade, including the movie adaptation, a retelling of Batman's origin by Denny O'Neil and a one off by Greg Rucka.Batman Begins: The Official Movie AdaptationThe M…

1
Episode 204: The Marvel-ous Adventures of Batman 1:10:02

1M ago1:10:02

1:10:02

This week, Deadpool/Batman will be released, the first Marvel/DC crossover in well over a decade. And as anyone who knows how comics work, the biggest characters are the ones who get crossed over, and no one at DC is bigger than Batman. So to tie in, we're reading three Batman/Marvel team-ups. These are some fun books, and we have a good time. Plus…

1
Episode 203: Damian Wayne Was Horrible (w/ Sam Hopper) 1:20:17

2M ago1:20:17

1:20:17

We're joined by first time guest and long time Patreon backer Sam Hopper to read some Damian Wayne stories from earlier in the character's life. Back when Damian was a truly insufferable brat. I know, for many of his haters he still is, but man, in these stories he is really something else. We read his first encounter with a member of the Superman …

1
Episode 202: Welcome to the Ice Age (w/ John Wickham) 1:17:09

2M ago1:17:09

1:17:09

There are periods where certain characters have more of a spotlight than others. Sure, there are always a lot of Batman stories, Joker stories. But then there are pockets of time when we get lots of stories focused on Jim Gordon or the Riddler. Between 2003 and 2006, Mr. Freeze had his day. He appeared in major stories like "Under the Hood" and "Ci…

1
Episode 201: The Deadliest Woman in the World (w/ Josh Weil 1:32:42

2M ago1:32:42

1:32:42

Lady Shiva walks through the world, leaving a trail of bodies behind her. Not a hero, but often not quite a villain, Shiva has developed relationships with many members of the Bat Family: trainer to Tim Drake, rival and sometimes member of the Birds of Prey, mother to Cassandra Cain. Josh Weill joins the show to take on three of these stories. One …

1
Episode 200: Time Travel Hypnosis (w/ Dan Grote) 1:43:37

2M ago1:43:37

1:43:37

It's a very special week on BatChat. We have now recorded 200 episodes. 600 stories. It's a whole lot. And to celebrate, Matt and Will are together in one room, face to face, along with our first fan, our first Patreon backer, Matt's bestest pal in the whole world, Dan Grote, to read a milestone Batman story, Grant Morrison's The Return of Bruce Wa…

1
Episode 199: Peacemaker- Do You Really Wanna Taste It? 1:02:21

2M ago1:02:21

1:02:21

Next week, the second season of the HBO Max series Peacemaker drops. The first season featured some seriously obscure DC characters, and this week, to tie in with the release of the new season, we're reading three stories featuring three of those characters: Peacemaker, Vigilante and Judomaster. Now, we're stretching the definition of featured here…

1
Episode 198: Titanic Team-Ups (w/Matt McThorn) 1:18:46

3M ago1:18:46

1:18:46

The Teen Titans have always been linked to the Bat Family. There are very few iterations of the Titans that don't include a former or current Robin in their ranks. So most Titans stories fit within the remit of this podcast. Patreon backer and friend of the show Matt McThorn specifically wanted to talk about a couple late 90s/early 00s stories feat…

1
Episode197: The Batman of Many Nations 1:00:04

3M ago1:00:04

1:00:04

Batman is not just popular here in the USA. As our listeners know, as you are from many countries, people outside America love Batman too. And sometimes we get stories reprinted here in the States that feature Batman that were created in other countries. We're reading three of those today, one from France, one from Italy and one from Japan.Batman: …

1
Episode 196: Wak, Wak Said the Villain 1:21:50

3M ago1:21:50

1:21:50

Somehow, as we near 200 episodes, we still stumble across holes in our coverage. He's appeared in a lot of stories we've covered, but we have never done an episode purely focused on Penguin stories. So this week, we remedy that. We're reading Penguin's first appearance, the story that changed him from supervillain to mobster and the start of his re…

1
Episode 195: Elements, Guys, and Chessboards. Oh, My! 1:02:56

3M ago1:02:56

1:02:56

Superman was pretty great, huh? We wanted to keep the good times rolling this week with an episode featuring characters other than the big guy who appeared in the movie. I really wanted to do a Batman/Mr. Terrific team up, but outside team settings, there aren't really any, so we instead went with a classic Bob Haney Metamorpho story, a Batman/Guy …

1
Episode 194: The Requisite Superman Tie-in 1:15:29

4M ago1:15:29

1:15:29

The birth of the new DC Cinematic Universe... DC Extended Universe... DC... ah whatever the hell they're calling it, kicks off on the big screens this week with the debut of James Gunn's Superman film, so we're obviously tying in because SEO is a powerful thing. We have three more stories of the World's Finest heroes with a delightful Bronze Age od…

1
Episode 193: Joker Behind Bars 1:13:09

4M ago1:13:09

1:13:09

The revolving doors of any prison or mental health facility in Gotham City are running jokes, and rightly so; they can't keep a D-lister like Ratcatcher locked up, let alone someone like the Joker. But they do keep winding up back in custody, so there has to be story potential there, right? This week's episode looks at three times Joker wound up lo…

1
Episode 192: Seven Assassins and a Predator 1:02:27

4M ago1:02:27

1:02:27

Doug Moench wrote Batman stories for about a decade over the course of his runs on the character. And while his Bat work is probably best associated with his collaboration with Kelley Jones, generally his best known collaborator is penciller Paul Gulacy, with whom he defined Shang-Chi over at Marvel. That isn't to say he didn't work wit Gulacy on B…

1
Episode 191: A Pride Tribute to Kevin Conroy 1:09:38

4M ago1:09:38

1:09:38

The evolution of representation of queer characters in mainstream superhero comics is something that entire books can, and should, be written about. So I'm not going to wax rhapsodic about all the changes here, but it's June and thus Pride Month, and so we're back with queer Bat characters. First we wrap up Greg Rucka's run on Batwoman, next we see…

1
Episode 190: Three Podcasters, Three Jokers (w/ John Wickham) 1:39:16

5M ago1:39:16

1:39:16

We're getting near 200 episodes of this show, and many of those episodes have been experiences where we discover fun, fascinating comics. And then there is this week. Patreon backer and friend (?) of the show John Wickham made his pick for his return, and he decided to pick three stories related to the Joker and Joker related characters that could …

1
Episode 189: Three Batmans, One Mystery 1:15:21

5M ago1:15:21

1:15:21

We're back to our three runs we're following in order. In No Man's Land, we meet a new character who will be an important part of the Bat Family moving forward. In the Morrison run, we get some side stories in the run up to The Return of Bruce Wayne. And in Injustice, Renee Montoya hits Superman with the Washington Monument.Mark of Cain (Batman V.1…

1
Episode 188: Batman Vs. Charles E Cheese (w/ Josh Weil) 1:21:34

5M ago1:21:34

1:21:34

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight was a title like no other at the time, with its rotating creative teams of big name creators. As the series progressed, some of the creative teams featured less well known creators, but the series always tried to do something different, even if some themes came up over and over. Patreon backer and friend of the sh…

1
Episode 187: Everyday? Or Every Day? (w/ Matt McThorn) 1:12:12

5M ago1:12:12

1:12:12

Y'know, sometimes you get an episode request, and you wind up with stories better than you could have expected. Patreon backer and friend of the show Matt McThorn specifically wanted to talk about the Batman annual with the origin of Clownhunter and art by James Stokoe. So we decided, what better theme than more annuals. And not to spoil too much, …

1
Episode 186: When Batman '66 Met the Comics 1:11:30

6M ago1:11:30

1:11:30

Patreon backer Sam Hopper wanted to give us a nice, fun week, and we appreciate that. He requested three stories that inspired episodes of Batman '66. There are surprisingly few episodes of that show that were adaptations, but definitely enough or an episode. But these are really short stories, so we wanted to add a little something. So on top of r…

1
Episode 185: Spoiler's Costume Corner (w/ Abigale Heartbalm) 1:28:00

6M ago1:28:00

1:28:00

We're back with two of our favorite ladies this week: Patreon backer (and Will's wife) Abigale Heartbalm and Stephanie Brown. Abigale wanted to read three stories featuring Stephanie, and we wanted to go with something similar as the first time we did a Stephanie episode where we touch on different eras of the character, but we kinda wanted to avoi…

1
Episode 184: Batman Goes Ape 1:07:17

6M ago1:07:17

1:07:17

People love Batman. People love Apes. So when you combine them, you're bound yo get some fun comics, right? Well, sometimes. Patreon backer Dan Grote asked us to read some Batman and apes stories, and we read a delightful Golden/Silver Age story, a 90s story that had it's fun moments and a story that is proof that the New 52 could suck the joy out …

1
Episode 183: The Tales of the Tales of Batman 1:02:05

6M ago1:02:05

1:02:05

This whole episode came about when Matt was looking for something else entirely, and he stumbled across an issue of Batman: Gotham Adventures, the animated series tie-in, written by Ed Brubaker. As he didn't remember that at all, he decided he had to read it, and since he has minimal time to read for pleasure, the best solution was to work it into …

1
Episode 182: Batman and the Last Crusade 1:11:49

6M ago1:11:49

1:11:49

We're back to the bookshelf Will keeps of random Batman trades he has picked up over the years (a shelf that for Matt is something he just calls his house). We start off as ever with a volume of Batman '66, follow that up with Batman meets The Da Vinci Code meets Last Crusade and wrap up with a mini-series that led into Final Crisis that is actuall…

1
Episode 181: Because No One Demanded It- Deathstroke 1:22:52

7M ago1:22:52

1:22:52

There are very few characters in comics that I, Matt, truly dislike. One of them is, sadly, a character with significant ties to the Bat family: Deathstroke the Terminator. A villain turned anti-hero who I don't feel like ever should have been, I decided it was time to bit the bullet and cover three stories featuring Deathstroke. We have his first …

1
Episode 180: The Forgotten Sidekicks of the 2010s 1:21:53

7M ago1:21:53

1:21:53

The Bat family has grown considerably over the years. What started out as Batman and Robin now contains what seems to be a dozen or more characters. And recent years have seen many attempts to add characters who would be big hits and draw massive popularity. And while this has created some good characters, none of the characters created in period o…

1
Episode 179: A Tragic Lack of Women Writers 1:06:07

7M ago1:06:07

1:06:07

Mainstream superhero comics have been a boys' club since their invention, and while things have gotten better in recent years, it is telling how few Batman comics have women writers, outside the works of Devin Grayson and Mariko Tamaki. For the last week of March, of Women's History Month, we're reading three stories by other women who have written…

1
Episode 178: Villain War! (w/ John Wickham) 1:16:40

7M ago1:16:40

1:16:40

Gotham villains seem to spend so much time fighting each other, it's a wonder they have any time to fight Batman. Friend of the show and Patreon backer John Wickham returns for three instances of villain on villain violence, with Blackgate Vs. Arkham during the Forever Evil crossover, Hush Vs. Talia in the run up to Infinite Crisis and The War of J…

1
Episode 177: Stay Golden (w/ Josh Weil) 1:15:54

8M ago1:15:54

1:15:54

Friend of the show and Patreon backer Josh Weil is a busy guy these days. Josh is running in a special election as the Democratic nominee to be the new Representative for Florida's 6th District. But Josh is such a dedicated fan that he took some time off from his busy schedule to join us and talk about three Batman stories from the Golden Age of Co…

1
Episode 176: Raining Wildcats and Dogs 1:15:09

8M ago1:15:09

1:15:09

I have a soft spot for Wildcat, the Golden Age hero, member of the JSA, and trainer of heroes. And he has a connection to the Bat family, having trained more than one member. So this week we're reading a perfectly whacky issue of Brave and the Bold as only Bob Haney could write it, and two mini-series by Chuck Dixon that feature Bat characters team…

1
Episode 175: From Zero to Freeze 1:06:10

8M ago1:06:10

1:06:10

I sit and write this introduction on a February morning where it is in the mid 40s and going up to the low 50s today, but it's still winter, and so we were thinking about the snow and cold when coming up with episodes, and when you think of cold and Gotham, who else do you think about but Mr. Freeze? We feature his first appearance this week, when …

1
Episode 174: An Odyssey Into Madness (w/ Matt McThorn) 1:28:37

8M ago1:28:37

1:28:37

I usually try to put something witty or informative here. But this week, Patreon backer Matt McThorn is back, and he asked us to read Neal Adams's mad dream, Batman: Odyssey. He didn't know what he was getting himself or us into, so we have forgiven him, but this one feels like an all-timer. We also read two Denny O'Neil/Neal Adams stories from the…

1
Episode 173: Carrying the Idiot Ball 1:08:50

9M ago1:08:50

1:08:50

Lightning can strike twice. But not often. The original Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight series was a collection of classic creators doing amazing stories. DC has tried to recapture that magic multiple times, and that lightning has never quite hit again. Legends of the DC Universe was another attempt to get that magic, but this time for the entir…

1
Episode 172: More Paul Dini=More Zatanna 1:03:31

9M ago1:03:31

1:03:31

Will wanted to talk about Paul Dini and Alex Ross's graphic album, Batman: War On Crime, so the logical episode theme was more Paul Dini stories, so this is not Matt 100% forcing more Dini on Will. And while Matt didn't do it intentionally, well, he did wind up picking a story with Zatanna, because there are so many of them. But he also picked a st…

1
Episode 171: There's Something Funny About Him 1:15:19

9M ago1:15:19

1:15:19

It's always a good time for us to return to the runs that we're following in order. This time, things go from bad to worse in No Man's Land, Dick Grayson investigates Wayne Manor for clues to Bruce Wayne's whereabouts while Damian has a strange encounter with Oberon Sexton, and the magical war in the Injustice world reaches its epic conclusion.Clai…

1
Episode 170: Farewell, Darwyn Cooke 1:14:35

9M ago1:14:35

1:14:35

Over the past 169 episodes, we have covered work from a lot of creators. And I can't think of one that we have unanimously and consistently lauded than the late Darwyn Cooke. A writer artist like few others, Cooke passed away at a tragically young age, leaving a body of work that would have only grown. This week, we are covering the last comic Cook…

1
Episode 169: A Rags to Ragman Story 1:07:02

9M ago1:07:02

1:07:02

While nearly all of Gotham's vigilantes are affiliated in some way with Batman and his family, there are a few who stand on their own. One of those few is Ragman, one of the few canonically Jewish heroes in the DC Universe. Rory Reagan wears the suit of souls, a collection of patches that are made up of the souls of criminals. And even though he is…

1
Episode 168: The World's Vilest Team! 1:19:06

10M ago1:19:06

1:19:06

Batman has teamed up with pretty much every hero in the DC Universe because he's, well, Batman. He's also teamed up with many a villain. We've read stories where he worked with Lex Luthor, Ra's al Ghul and Bane. But Patreon backer Ross Holmes very specifically wanted us to read a story where he teams up with the most unlikely of villains: The Joker…

1
Episode 167: For Want of a Nail, the Podcast Was Lost 1:10:56

10M ago1:10:56

1:10:56

It's the New Year's week, and if you've been listening to the podcast, you know what that means: New Year, New Batman. That's right, it's three more Elseworlds. We have Nosferatu (which is strangely more an adaptation of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari than Nosferatu), The Nail (which is more a Marvel-style What If? than most Elseworlds) and I, Joker, …

1
Episode 166: A Happy Holiday Anthology (w/ John Wickham) 1:16:04

10M ago1:16:04

1:16:04

Happy holidays, BatChat listeners. It's the week of Christmas and Chanukah this year, so we're celebrating the holiday in the BatChat style. Patreon backer and friend of the show John Wickham is joining us to discuss three of Dc's modern holiday anthologies. Have yourself a merry everyone!DC Infinite Holiday Special # 1DC Rebirth Holiday Special # …

1
Episode 165: They Used to Be Friends (w/Josh Weil) 1:20:10

10M ago1:20:10

1:20:10

There was a time in the pre-Crisis days when Batman and Superman were the best of friends. But then the Crisis, and Frank Miller, came along, and things changed. For most of a decade, Batman and Superman's relationship ranged from confrontational to cordial. Patreon backer Josh Weil returns this week to trace the evolution of that relationship back…

1
Episode 164: A Black & White Episode 1:15:14

11M ago1:15:14

1:15:14

Last week was three random books from Will's collection. This week is three stories that Matt has wanted to cover that don't easily fit in with any themes he has come up with yet. We read some more black and white stories, the sequel to a highly ranked sorry by a late, great writer and an annual from some legendary creators.Batman: Black and White-…

1
Episode 163: Cacophony Means Clashing Sounds. It Fits. 1:12:50

11M ago1:12:50

1:12:50

We're back picking through random volumes of mostly weird stuff from Will's bookshelf that he hasn't read before. We return to the wonder that is the Batman '66 follow up series, a sequel to a classic Batman story that may not be as classic and some more Kevin Smith Batman that is something else.Trigger Warning: This episode was recorded on Novembe…

1
Episode 162: All Ages Thanksgiving 2024 1:07:37

11M ago1:07:37

1:07:37

Our annual all ages Thanksgiving episode is back, with a new volume of Wayne Family Adventures. the sequel to the charming Batman & Robin & Howard and a one off crime story from the animated universe.Wayne Family Adventures Vol. 2 (Wayne Family Adventures #26-51)Batman & Robin & Howard: Summer Breakdown OGNHow This World Goes? (Batman: Gotham Adven…

1
Episode 161: Catman, Catman, Burning Bright 1:19:09

11M ago1:19:09

1:19:09

Batman rogues have some seriously strange evolutions. Some, like the Joker, have a path you can easily follow. Others, like Mr. Freeze, have just become completely different over the years. Another like that is Catman, created in the mid-Silver Age as yet another anti-Bat before becoming a joke character, and then evolving into a morally grey anti-…

1
Episode 160: The Proper Pronunciation of Constantine 1:18:44

12M ago1:18:44

1:18:44

It's been a while, but we're returning to the three runs that we're following in order. In No Man's Land, we take a break from big story revelations for an anthology month of four of shots. In Grant Morrison's run, Dick Grayson brings Batman's corpse to England to a Lazarus Pit and learns something unexpected (by everyone but Tim Drake, because he'…