Best Patrick McDonnell Podcasts (2026)

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The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 (Part Two) 1:58:10

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5d ago1:58:10

1:58:10

Welcome back, friend. Our end-of-the-year celebration concludes with The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 (Part Two). If you missed the Part One party, click here, and discover the comics we considered the saddest of 2025, the most stylish, the most genre-bendy, etc, etc. For this week’s second half award show ceremony, we’re tackling the more traditi…

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The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 (Part One) 1:41:49

7d ago1:41:49

1:41:49

Friends, let’s celebrate. We’ve made it through another year, and no matter how you felt about the world outside your local comic book shop, you certainly read some great comics. Welcome to our annual award show, The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025. Part One. Every year is a good year for comics. You just have to go out and read them. That’s the secr…

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Jock on Absolute Batman 15 - Oh, that Joker 1:05:29

15d ago1:05:29

1:05:29

With the release of Absolute Batman #15 and the big reveal of Absolute Joker, we’re excited to welcome artist Jockonto the show for the first time. We would consider this comic an event even without the gnarly origin story at its center. This is also a big reunion for the artist and his writer collaborator, Scott Snyder. They’ve been delivering kil…

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Patrick McDonnell on The Gift of Everything 1:12:05

1M ago1:12:05

1:12:05

Sorry to inform you, friends, but it’s December already. The gift-giving season is here, and with it, if you’re at all like us, a month filled with tremendous anxiety. We may love putting together a Comic Book Holiday Gift Guide, but we stress profusely over the actual process of selecting and distributing gifts to our friends and family. Thankfull…

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Adam Rose Talks Big Noir Energy and a Huge Detective 50:35

29d ago50:35

50:35

There are big swings, and then there are huge swings. Writer Adam Rose and artist Magenta King go for the fences with Huge Detective, a genre mashup mystery where giants roam the Earth and wind up dead like any other sacks of meat. The series was recently collected in a pretty trade paperback from Titan Comics, and it immediately had us craving seq…

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Tribute to a Father 1:42:42

30d ago1:42:42

1:42:42

Two weeks ago, Lisa lost her father. In August, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and the last three months have been some of the most harrowing days we’ve ever experienced. While we’ve hovered around this topic in recent episodes, we’ve avoided discussing it outright. Today, we were compelled to put it into record. We’re not sure how much y…

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Grant Morrison on Batman/Deadpool 58:30

1M ago58:30

58:30

Toward the end of our last conversation with Grant Morrison, they mentioned how they would soon be returning to comics, writing a new Batman story. We were ecstatic to hear, but we could not have possibly imagined that the new Batman story would actually be a DC/Marvel Comics crossover featuring the Hollywood darling Deadpool. Even better, it’s a r…

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Live from New York Comic Con: The Massive Comic Book Podcast Crossover Event 1:05:30

1M ago1:05:30

1:05:30

A podcast doesn’t last without the support of its friends. We’re beyond grateful to fellow comic book maniacs like Badr Milligan of The Short Box, Chris Hacker and Aaron Knowles of The Oblivion Bar, and David Harper of Off Panel. Hopefully, you already subscribe to these shows, and if not, after this week’s episode, you will. In October, we assembl…

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NYCC '25 Dispatch: Michael Walsh and Tristan Jones 1:03:00

2M ago1:03:00

1:03:00

Every October, New York Comic Con (NYCC) rolls around. Normally, they don’t acknowledge their proximity to the spooky season, but this year, as crowds reached pre-pandemic sizes, they embraced Halloween. Cosplay took on a more deliciously grisly vibe, and we found ourselves feeling more ghoulish than usual, too. The conversations we sought ventured…

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Exclusive: Daniel Warren Johnson on Absolute Batman Annual 1:20:13

2M ago1:20:13

1:20:13

There’s zero doubt, Absolute Batman Annual #1 will be one of the year’s most talked-about comics. Featuring three stories by Daniel Warren Johnson, Mike Spicer, James Harren, Dave Stewart, Meredith McClaren, and Clayton Cowles, this hefty comic centers on the early Absolute Universe adventures of Bruce Wayne, revealing how that chonky Batmobile cam…

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Kelley Jones and Matt Wagner Make a Feast Out of Dracula 1:10:35

2M ago1:10:35

1:10:35

We all crave a good meal. The challenge is savoring it once it's placed before you. Kelley Jones and Matt Wagner have wickedly, and delightfully, discovered a way to make Bram Stoker’s Dracula not one good dish, but three...and possibly four and five. For the last several years, they’ve transformed the classic vampire novel into a feast impossible …

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Alex Firer and Fred C. Stresing Cook a Tasty Doughboys Soup 1:01:46

2M ago1:01:46

1:01:46

Transplanting the Doughboys from one medium to another demands collaborators with a firm grasp on both worlds. Podcasters Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger know their realm, but require a few comic book maniacs to hurl them confidently into the sequential playground. Enter writer Alex Firer and artist Fred C. Stressing (also, colorist Meg Casey). Not on…

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Cults Are Bad. The Doughboys Are Good. An interview with Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger 1:05:39

2M ago1:05:39

1:05:39

The podcast crossover event no one was expecting is here. The Doughboys, Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger, arrive on Comic Book Couples Counseling ready to examine their feelings and suss out why they’ve propelled their podcast life into comic book form. Collaborating with writer Alex Firer, artist Fred C. Stresing, and colorist Meg Casey, Mitch and Wi…

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Zack Quaintance and Anna Readman on Macabre Valley 1:01:07

3M ago1:01:07

1:01:07

Weeks ago, we told you to keep an eye glued to the Macabre Valley #1 Kickstarter from writer Zack Quaintance and artist Anna Readman. Now, you have only one week left to back the project and secure yourself a copy of this fiendishly fun comic. Based on Quaintance’s own experiences reporting along the American/Mexican border, Macabre Valley tells a …

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Jacob Phillips and Chris Ryall: Making Megalopolis with Francis Ford Coppola 1:14:30

3M ago1:14:30

1:14:30

When Francis Ford Coppola shoots you an email asking you to transform his new movie into a comic book, you say yes and worry about the details later. Chris Ryall got the email. Once he got over the shock ot it, he immediately knew who to contact next: Comic Book Couples Counseling regular, Jacob Phillips. They couldn’t have possibly understood what…

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Chip Kidd in the Veracity Trap 1:03:45

3M ago1:03:45

1:03:45

Not again! Chip Kidd and Michael Cho are the latest comic book creators to find their way, literally, into comics. The Avengers in the Veracity Trap, published as part of the Marvel Arts imprint of Abrams ComicArts, propels the titular superheroes from their dimension into ours, revealing that Kidd and Cho control their free will. The oversized ori…

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Can David Harper Survive on Comics Journalism? 1:22:45

4M ago1:22:45

1:22:45

Every few months, the discourse turns to comics journalism. What is it? What’s its value? Does it even exist anymore? Of course, if you read SKTCHD or listen to Off Panel every week, these questions are easy to answer. For years, David Harper has been our go-to source for what’s happening within the comics industry, and due to recent events in his …

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Jesse Lonergan on Drome 1:30:36

4M ago1:30:36

1:30:36

Toward the end of this week’s episode, Jesse Lonergan says, “With Drome, it feels like I’ve done...something.” Since he arrived on the scene, the cartoonist has bashed upon the medium, seeing if he’d be the one to break comics. The art form didn’t shatter; it became stronger under Lonergan’s pressure. Books like Hedra, Faster, Planet Paradise, and …

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Christian Ward on Event Horizon: Dark Descent 1:29:44

4M ago1:29:44

1:29:44

“Do you see?” We never imagined discussing an Event Horizon comic on the podcast, but the moment the notion was floated, we were enthralled. The original 1997 movie, directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, struck a chord back in the day, but it was also a movie that was obviously jumbled about and fumbled in the editing room. And since the story relied on …

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Tillie Walden on Clementine: Book Three (The Walking Dead) 1:02:19

4M ago1:02:19

1:02:19

Early on in Tillie Walden’s Clementine: Book Three, which represents the concluding chapter in her The Walking Dead trilogy, an expectant mother grabs our hero’s arm and gasps through the pain, “It’ll never end.” She’s so right, and we should all take those words to heart. Pain is never done with you. Run if you care to, but the worst life has to o…

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Matt Fraction on Batman 58:40

5M ago58:40

58:40

Toward the end of our conversation with Matt Fraction, he mentions how his upcoming Batman book with Jorge Jiménez represents where his Hawkeye series would have gone if he and David Aja had continued. What does that mean, exactly? It’s complicated, and you’ll just have to listen to this week’s podcast to fully understand. And that’s what we call i…

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Tate Brombal and Jacob Phillips on Everything Dead and Dying 59:50

5M ago59:50

59:50

The great thing about the zombie sub-genre is that every time you think it’s played out, a new creative team arrives to inject some fresh life into it. Everything Dead and Dying, the new Image Comics series by Tate Brombal and Jacob Phillips, imagines the last living farmer on the planet, sitting satisfied on his homestead, surrounded by his dead a…

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Gene Luen Yang and Andrew Joustra: A New Era of Turtle Power 1:28:35

5M ago1:28:35

1:28:35

For the past year, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise has been as exciting and essential as DC’s Absolute Universe or Skybound’s Energon Universe. Writer Jason Aaron and artist Juan Ferreyra have built an unmissable monthly comic, not to forget the numerous other splinter titles and crossover minis. Shortly before San Diego Comic-Con Intern…

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Daniel Warren Johnson Live at Now or Never Comics 1:00:37

5M ago1:00:37

1:00:37

As reported by The Beat, the Eisner-winning comics journalism website (hell yeah), Comic Book Couples Counselingkinda kicked off San Diego Comic-Con International this year with our Live Podcast Recording at Now or Never Comics in Downtown San Diego. On Tuesday, July 22nd, we invited superstar cartoonist Daniel Warren Johnson to chat with us after …

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Zdarsky Comic News, and Only Zdarsky Comic News 53:19

5M ago53:19

53:19

Should Chip Zdarsky’s promotional magazine, Zdarsky Comic News, win an Eisner at this weekend’s San Diego Comic-Con International ceremony? We brought the question to him directly, and as you’ll hear, he rejected the whole notion of a nomination extremely quickly. Zdarsky is having a ball working on his free periodical every month. He puts tremendo…

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How to Win SDCC with Oni Press: Hunter Gorinson and Sierra Hahn 46:27

6M ago46:27

46:27

You don’t need to be told this: San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic convention unlike any other in the world. As yearly attendees, it’s our favorite time of the year at our favorite place on the planet, but what does such a colossal gathering of geekdoms truly mean for a publisher, and how can a company raise its voice above a million othe…

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Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing on Thunderbolts 1:20:53

6M ago1:20:53

1:20:53

If you’ve read comics from the Hivemind, aka Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing, then you know their specialty. Everyone goes to therapy! Whether you’re Peter Quill, Bucky Barnes, or Brad and Lisa Gullickson, if you’re in a Hivemind comic, or reading a Hivemind comic, you’re entering some kind of therapeutic discussion. Kelly and Lanzing put their ch…

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Alex Segura on Star Wars 1:12:55

6M ago1:12:55

1:12:55

Today, we begin our mission to bring San Diego Comic-Con International to you. That means four episodes in your podcast feed this week! First up is writer Alex Segura. He’s been handed the keys to the Star Wars kingdom, working on the new Marvel Comics ongoing series alongside artist Phil Noto and letterer Clayton Cowles. The new series fills the g…

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Eric Powell and Harold Schechter on Dr. Werthless 1:19:09

6M ago1:19:09

1:19:09

If you’re a comic book reader like we are, around the same time you learn about Batman and Robin, you’re introduced to the medium’s scariest boogeyman, Dr. Fredric Wertham. The publication of his Seduction of the Innocent in 1954 thrust Wertham into the popular consciousness, sparking hysteria and moral panic, hindering the medium’s growth, and sig…

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Taki Soma and Michael Avon Oeming on Alienated 1:03:55

6M ago1:03:55

1:03:55

Not too long ago, the United States Government confirmed the existence of UFOs, but we had too much going on to care at the time. Maybe we needed more concrete evidence. What if ET arrived on our doorstep? But he was already dead? That's the premise of Alienated, the new Comixology Original written, colored, and lettered by Taki Soma, with art by J…

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Welcome to The Stacks: David Brothers and Chip Zdarsky 27:44

6M ago27:44

27:44

A new phase of Comic Book Couples Counseling begins today with The Stacks, our new YouTube series where we trap comic book creators inside Third Eye Comics in Annapolis, Maryland, and force them to discuss their all-time favorite comic books. Time Watis collaborators and Mangasplaining co-hosts David Brothers and Chip Zdarsky launch the series. As …

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Berkowitz Bros on The Writer, Their Aggressively Middle-Aged Hero 1:03:28

6M ago1:03:28

1:03:28

We love a good comic book explosion. The Writer smashes superheroes, comic book history, Jewish Folklore, Indiana Jones, The Princess Bride, Mike Mignola, and a little Looney Tunes existential dread. It's born from a unique sibling collaboration between the Berkowitz Bros., Max and Ben, as well as actor Josh Gad, master illustrator Ariel Olivetti, …

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Breaking News from the Fallout with Chris Condon and Jeffrey Alan Love 59:08

6M ago59:08

59:08

Once again, fear and dread shroud the world outside our window. Chris Condon and Jeffrey Alan Love offer assistance with their terrifyingly relatable News from the Fallout, a zombie story that chews on the military-industrial complex, belief in apocalyptic certainty, and humanity's stumbling response. You can read their series as a scary, thrilling…

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Fell Hound, Finally 52:12

7M ago52:12

52:12

It's really not right that Fell Hound has taken this long to find their way onto the podcast, but we're grateful they're here now, and we get to discuss with them such an exciting bit of comic book action romance like S.I.R. While the delay is entirely our fault, Fell Hound has been busy occupying our imaginations with comics like Commander Rao, an…

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Episode 300 - George Takei 47:28

7M ago47:28

47:28

Two hundred and ninety-nine episodes ago, we could not have possibly imagined George Takei appearing on the podcast. Some version of the actor has hung in our imaginations for most of our lives, and we spent many days of our early marriage obsessing over Star Trek, the original series, and its subsequent films. Thankfully, through this beautiful me…

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Denis Kitchen on His Oddly Compelling Life 1:05:51

7M ago1:05:51

1:05:51

When you love comics, you become comics. Denis Kitchen began as a self-published underground cartoonist in 1969, but he quickly sprang into other roles, all serving the medium that first called to him. A year later, he launched Kitchen Sink Press, which would house numerous pioneers from the industry (R. Crumb, Howard Cruse, Art Spiegelman, Trina R…

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Patrick Horvath on Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees - Rite of Spring 1:05:33

7M ago1:05:33

1:05:33

It's always a sunny day when Patrick Horvath wanders into our Love Nest. Two years after his first appearance on the podcast, he's back with another first issue, and this time, it's the sequel to the comic that made him a sensation. Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring takes us back to Woodbrook, years after the events of the origina…

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CBCC Book Club: Rick Quinn and Dave Chisholm on Spectrum 6 1:24:35

7M ago1:24:35

1:24:35

After half a year, our Spectrum Book Club podcast series with collaborators Rick Quinn and Dave Chisholm finds its ending. It's bittersweet but equally exhilarating. The sixth issue in the Mad Cave Studios series lands the thesis, connecting every reader to every creator and revealing their powers in the process. You. Yeah, you. You're probably a m…

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Scott Snyder/Nick Dragotta: Absolute Batman vs. Bane 1:40:40

8M ago1:40:40

1:40:40

Everyone has a Batman opinion. Inside your imagination is a definitive Batman: a Batman who should behave this way, and a Batman who should not behave that way. Your tight grip on your Batman is why Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta's carefully considered Absolute Batman works so damn well. They fully understand and appreciate how the character has co…

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Michael Schwartz on Armored 1:10:04

8M ago1:10:04

1:10:04

Kids can take it. You can coddle them. You can protect them with everything you have, but life is not simply coming for them; it already has them. Last year, Armored, the spectacularly spooky adventure story from writer Michael Schwartz and artist Ismael Hernandez, struck a deep emotional chord in us. The series seemingly came out of nowhere and wa…

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Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley on Battle Beast 54:05

8M ago54:05

54:05

With the Invincible animated series propelling more and more fans to the comic books, now is the perfect time for Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley to reteam on a new series. In a universe populated with numerous rich, wild characters, they could have revamped an infinite number of ideas. They chose Battle Beast, the white lion-like humanoid cursed wi…

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CBCC Book Club: Rick Quinn and Dave Chisholm on Spectrum 5 1:15:10

8M ago1:15:10

1:15:10

First issues are hard. Last issues are hard. Second-to-last issues are hard. Maybe...all issues are hard? Book Club is back in session with creators Rick Quinn and Dave Chisholm, discussing Spectrum #5, the penultimate issue in their brilliant Mad Cave Studios series. With the end just around the corner (the final issue arrives in shops on May 21st…

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Christopher Cantwell and Tyler Crook on Out of Alcatraz 1:15:20

9M ago1:15:20

1:15:20

June. 1962. Two men do the impossible: break Out of Alcatraz. The legendary escape almost immediately caught the public's imagination, becoming fodder for TV, film, and prose. Maybe you've encountered a few of these stories; maybe you haven't. Whatever the case, you certainly have not read an interpretation like the Oni Press comic from Christopher…

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Grant Morrison on All-Star Superman 1:19:12

9M ago1:19:12

1:19:12

Surprise, friends. Grant Morrison joins the show for Superman Day! As the writer behind the seminal All-Star Superman, which observes its 20th anniversary this November, we cannot think of a better person to help us celebrate the Last Son of Krypton on his 87th birthday. Action Comics #1, featuring the first appearance of Superman by Jerry Siegel a…

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Aubrey Sitterson on Free Planet 1:16:57

9M ago1:16:57

1:16:57

If you listen to comic book podcasts beyond Comic Book Couples Counseling, you've probably already encountered Aubrey Sitterson. The writer has been making the rounds, discussing his radical new science fiction series Free Planet, made in collaboration with artist Jed Dougherty, colorist Vittorio Astone, letterer Taylor Esposito, and designer Mark …

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CBCC Book Club: Rick Quinn and Dave Chisholm on Spectrum 4 1:24:12

9M ago1:24:12

1:24:12

There are not many opportunities like this one. Every month, we devour the latest Spectrum comic and then jump on the phone with creators Rick Quinn and Dave Chisholm. It's an intimate, super nerdy book club, and you're all invited. But you gotta bring your own wine. With issue four, we're more than halfway through the series, but we're just gettin…

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Scott Morse on This Ink Runs Cold 1:28:50

9M ago1:28:50

1:28:50

A year ago, Scott Morse found himself adrift, severed from a stable income and a defined creative path. Panic was an option. So was fear. Instead, he chose collaboration and creation. This Ink Runs Cold: Short Stories from the Space-Crime Continuum smashes two of his favorite genres between its pages. It's an anthology of one-page pulp stories writ…

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Juni Ba on Monkey Meat: The Summer Batch 1:08:00

10M ago1:08:00

1:08:00

If you're not reading Juni Ba comics, you're missing out on a living legend pushing the form to its extreme potential. Since Djeliya, we haven't missed a panel from the cartoonist, and we've watched him develop into an undeniable talent, producing one essential comic after another. Just when we think he can't possibly top himself (seriously, did yo…

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Matthew Rosenberg on We're Taking Everyone Down With Us 1:18:41

10M ago1:18:41

1:18:41

It's not about the plot. That's why Matthew Rosenberg was not worried about spoiling it all in the solicits for We're Taking Everyone Down With Us, his new Image Comics series done in collaboration with artist Stefano Landini, colorists Roman Titov and Jason Wordie, letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, and designer Becca Carey. For the writer, the comic…

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Stan Sakai on Usagi Yojimbo: Ten Thousand Plums and Beyond 1:00:00

10M ago1:00:00

1:00:00

With Usagi Yojimbo: Ten Thousand Plums, Stan Sakai enters his forty-first year as the rabbit ronin's chronicler. Each decade represents about a year in the title character's life, which you can track if you're paying attention to the seasons surrounding Usagi's adventures. If you're paying even closer attention, you can map his footsteps across six…