My podcast debut: The Fire and Water Podcast!

[Earth 2 Chris]

Our pal and fellow Mego-Head, the incredibly talented Rob Kelly, was kind enough to ask me to guest-co-host the Fire and Water podcast this week while Shag (his usual partner-in-crime) was away. When Shag is out, Rob discusses Power Records, and he took me up on my offer to discuss "Robin Meets Man-Bat". I had a blast talking to Rob about this childhood treasure, and our other selection, "The Man from Krypton". It's a fun show, if you can get past my hill-jack accent and incessant "you knows".

If you've never listened to the Fire and Water podcast, you should give it a try. Rob and Shag run one of THE best geek-related podcasts going. Even if you aren't a huge Aquaman or Firestorm fan, there is plenty of great discussion for everyone, and they keep it fun, and never too heavy-handed, even when the are talking about things they don't like. Their monthly Who's Who podcast, covering the original 1985 series issue by issue is a favorite of mine in particular. I never miss it!

Check it out!

http://www.aquamanshrine.com/

Chris

[MIB41]

Great episode. Well done Chris! I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's amazing how the vocal artists pretty much interchanged characters for each book. I think the guy who did Batman also did Mr. Fantastic and Conan in other books. To me the book and records were our early version of VHS tapes when we were kids. Another exercise for our imaginations. I never knew Neal Adams re-drew scenes for the book. That is a wild revelation. I also agree Neal Adams was at the top of his game back then, compared to current days. I'm not sure how aritsts lose that eye for their work. But it clearly happens. I think my favorite book/record was Conan. I think it was such a unique tale to see as a kid. I remember holding my Mego Conan while I read (and listened) to it. Good times.

[Earth 2 Chris]

Thanks Tom! I like the analogy to VHS tapes, and I agree. I actually found my old Scooby-Doo book and record set from Peter Pan and played it for my 5-year old daughter yesterday. She really enjoyed listening to the "CD" as she read along. Even in the day of tablets and smart phones, these things still pack a punch.

I think you are right on the same voice actor being Conan. Rob actually ran that one a while back. Here's a link:

http://www.namtab.com/aquablog/Fire%20and%20Water%20Podcast%20Episode%2054.mp3

Adams redrew panels in each of the "Batman Illustrated by Neal Adams", and I wish he hadn't. I've yet to see an example of this improving the artwork. Greedo shot first and all...

Chris

[MIB41]

^^^ Nice! Thanks Chris. I listened to that up through the Conan segment and really agree with everything he said about it. This one had a cinematic flavor to it that was unlike any of the others. And that vocal performance was PERFECT for Conan. I loved it. To me, THAT was what Conan sounded like in my head. Combine that with the unique score that played throughout and it had an entirely different feel from the other records. Still does. And you know the funny thing? I never owned any of the Batman or Spiderman book and records! I didn't! And it's not because I didn't love what I was seeing. But vocally I already had voices for those characters. Batman and Robin were pretty much from the Superfriends and Spidey was the voice from my beloved '67 series. So anything outside that messed me up. So I ventured into ones where I didn't have an immediate reference like Hulk, FF, and Conan. The appeal for me was hearing what they sounded like. Then I could play that voice when I read the comics. I just thought about something too that I never considered. When I sit down to illustrate, I always like to play soundtrack scores. And I always play scores that reflect the mood of what I'm drawing. I now wonder if alot of that came from listening to those records? In some way I think that tapped into my process for imagining things and flows out when I'm creating. Hmmm. Gives me something to think about.

[Earth 2 Chris]

^Interesting. I understand what you mean by having voices that you associate with the characters. When I read my kids Spider-Man comics or stories, I STILL use the voice from the 60s cartoon, despite all the versions that followed. Kevin Conroy super-ceded all versions of Batman for me, though.

I'm a "soundtrack drawer" myself. I like having appropriate music for what I'm working on too. For instance I wore the crap out of my Flash Gordon soundtrack while working on the Buster Crabbe package for Cast-A-Way. It may indeed stem from Power Records' "Theater of the Mind" experience being so integral to our childhoods.

Chris

[Mego MkIV]

Nice work Chris the podcast was great I had 2 of these sets as a kid,Superman-Alien Creatures and Spiderman-The Mark Of The Man-Wolf.I still have the 45s but unfortunately the comics didn't make it.

[Earth 2 Chris]

^Thanks! I find it odd that most of the Marvel comic/record sets were reprints, while the DC stuff was all original. Or in the case of Man-Bat, mostly original!

Chris

[Mego MkIV]

I never knew that the Marvel stories were reprints and the DC were Original,interesting.

[Earth 2 Chris]

^Well, MOST Marvel stories were reprints. The "Mark of the Man-Wolf" one for instance. There are a few exceptions, like the one with Spider-Man and the Dragon Men. That was new. The DC book and record sets were all new stories and art (minus the Adams art lifted from early Man-Bat stories in Detective).

Chris

[palitoy]

Been meaning to check out the show, this seems like as good as time as any.

[Earth 2 Chris]

^Let me know what you think. Again, I'm not a reader of the current New 52 stuff, and I even enjoy the shows where they cover those books. But they've done some really fun special episodes, including two where they cover the Super Powers toyline and all other aspects of the franchise.

The Who's Who episodes are particularly fun for anyone who was ever a DC fan.

Chris