The Panthers are back in The Lair, with a lengthy discussion about drawing political satire cartoons. Plus, we run down the list of 2012′s upcoming Nerd Movie Releases, and talk about what looks exciting and what doesn’t. The Hunger Games? Seriously, it’s a movie about kids fighting each other to the death, and people can’t wait for it to arrive? And what about that Hobbit. Plus: Mike went to see Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked, and got into an altercation with a livery cab driver. And lots more!!

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Andy Finkle! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

The Holidays are behind us, so Alex and Mike creep groggily back into The Lair to catch up and discuss the things that happened over Hannukah, Christmas and New Years. Warning: the first ten minutes or so are particularly rusty, as the Panthers shake off all the egg-nog and candy-canes and struggle to get their heads back into the game. Hear about Alex’s Ukelele, Mike’s Cello and Superior Singing Voice, and an account of a visit to the Metropolitan Opera. Also: a listener call is answered, and Alex poses an ethical conundrum for us to ponder. Happy 2012 everyone!

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Aaron F. Gonzalez! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

Troop 142 got a nice shout-out on an NPR Best of 2011 blog yesterday, which did actually translate into some book sales, I believe. I don’t know what amazon sales rankings really mean, but I know that I jumped into the top 100 for Graphic Novels for the first time ever. Again, I don’t know what these numbers really mean, but it was all very exciting nonetheless.

(I actually suspect a lot of sales came from friends who’d forgotten that I’d recently published a book until I posted about the NPR list on Facebook. A couple folks responded that “ah, yes, they really oughta finally buy that thing off of amazon…”)

In other news, I’m not sure that I’m going to be posting anything new on this blog for the remainder of 2011, as there’ll be no The Ink Panthers Show! episode next week, and then before you know it, it’ll be 2012 already.

Also, I am not sure yet when I’m going to resume posting actual comics up on this blog again. I have to admit, keeping the work offline for the past couple months has probably been creatively beneficial. I’m happy to report that I’m knee-deep in a new story and I’m feeling generally very positive about it. A couple days “staycation” this past week, where I just holed myself away and just drew and drew, really did wonders for my feelings of momentum and progress. I’m excited about the work, and am thinking maybe I’ll have something I feel good about showing sometime soon.

Here’s a video of me lettering a word-balloon, to tide everyone over.

Next year, I don’t have a ton planned. I’m going to be attending the big Angouleme Festival in France at the end of January, and will be doing some signings in Paris following that. My wife will come join me out there after all the comics business is done, and we’ll have a little mini-vacation to celebrate ten-years of being together.

In terms of other conventions, I am not sure what I’m attending or not. I imagine I’ll still make it down to SPX in the Fall, and am hoping that TCAF in Toronto is a possibility.

Nothing is changing with The Ink Panthers Show! I think this past year was really great for the show. We had some wonderful guests, and I think really had some strong episodes with just The Panthers (Tony “The Desert Panther” Consiglio is included in that. We should change his name to The Honorary Panther). TIPS is continually a work-in-progress, and Alex and I are always trying to figure out what is the best balance of solo-Panthers shows vs. Special Guest episodes. I think it’s probably best we keep aiming for that pleasant mix of both.

TCJ Talkies will return in January. It’s probable that those are going to be coming out at a slightly slower pace. The biweekly schedule really began to catch up to me at the end of this year, and listeners may have noticed a bit of a slowdown. My plan is to roll them out at a more relaxed rate, but we’ll see. I’ve found that I feel worn out before I record an episode, but once it’s done I get all excited and motivated again. I think I just really like talking about comics!

Happy New Year everyone!!

It’s the final Ink Panthers of the year, and iFanboy’s Josh Flanagan joins us in The Lair to give us the rundown on the best movie, tv show, book, comic, music, and Death of a Major Evil Foe of America, of the year! It’s quite a list, so have a pen ready – lots of recommendations coming your way. Plus: some followup on the recent discussion about The World’s Most Famous Little Person Actor, The Falkland Islands War, Stephen King’s On Writing, and lots and lots of Holiday Cheer.

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Nathan Bulmer! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

Back by popular demand, The Desert Panther, Tony Consiglio invades The Lair to tell us all about his recent studies of animal behavior. We talk about How to Escape a Pit-Bull Attack, What Kinds of Animals at the Zoo are the Best, Which Immense Creatures trigger our Lizard Brain Fight or Flight Mechanisms, and a lengthy discussion about Cattle Breeding, which also explores the differences between a Cow, a Bull, and a Steer. Also in this episode, Second Life, and Christmas Card round-robins that spark outrage.

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Shawn Brook Williams! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

An explosive episode! The Ticking and H Day creator, cartoonist Renee French creeps into the Lair for a very mature conversation about some important things. Such as, how everything would be better if instead of twitter, we had I Am Legend zombies swarming the planet. Yes, the zombies are unpleasant, but at least they aren’t barraging you with minutiae about mundane things all day and night. They are nice and quiet, and don’t feel the need to overshare. Then some grown-up discussion about bodily fluids, and then some even more grown-up discussion about man-nipples, and then probably some even more conversation about bodily fluids again. We can’t get enough of it!

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Peter D’Retalia! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

This episode is either super-fun or super-irritating, depending on your familiarity with all of the worst songs of the 1980′s and 1990′s and your patience for Mike and Alex’s poor recall of pop-culture facts. First up a discussion about the recent passing of one of the last surviving Munchkins from The Wizard of Oz, and some questions about how casually famous people have extended stays at one another’s houses. Then, we make our way through the Worst Songs list, and decide which picks are fair (The Macarena), and which are not (“What’s Going On” by 4 Non-Blondes. C’mon! Leave 4 Non-Blondes alone!!!). Also, buried at the back of the episode is a small item where Mike mentions telling his daughter that the full name of Ariel from The Little Mermaid is “Ariel Brownwater”, and her Dad is called “Triton Brownwater”. It would be appreciated if all parents of pre-schoolers who listen to the show could help propagate this piece of misinformation.

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Ian Anderson! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

Mike and Alex are alone in The Lair and they have a number of important things to discuss. First up, a revisit to Mike’s failed and now-it-turns-out backfiring raw food diet. He should just stick to his regular diet of locally produced cheeses and salted breads. Then, does anyone want to be told that they are a bad driver? Is it just one of those things that everyone just assumes that they are good at? After that, Alex has a spirited defense of our nation’s 39th President, Jimmy Carter. This one’s got it all!

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Rio Aubry Taylor! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

Reliable cartoonist, David King, (Lemon Styles, Danny Dutch) calls into the Lair from his home in San Diego to talk “stud tails” and Ugg Boots. Mike tells everyone about his visit to the Occupy Wall Street protests, and smugly points out that he is a cyclist, thus putting himself in a higher category of human being than Alex and David. Alex discusses provocative in-your-face Fine Art, and then it’s time for a Public Service Announcement from the Ink Panthers about the dangers of sitting on one piece of furniture for too long.

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Sam Henderson! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

It’s a very masculine musky Lair the Panthers are creeping back into after a week off. Mike is worried about turning into a straight-laced, uptight Dad, so does his best to make the conversation “raw”. This means mostly talking about “grundles” and other man-things. Other Slush Pile topics include: Having the same name as an unpopular video game protagonist, impressing strangers on a subway by bragging about your regenerative powers, getting people fired by lacing their food with drugs, and a Ruling on Twitter-Spoiler-ering. Then, we slow things WAAAAAAYYY down with a dry discussion/debate about the causes of World War II and the Holocaust, but don’t worry, we pick things back up again by the end when we determine whether we would or would not go back in time and brutally murder Infant Hitler.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Feeding Ground’s own Mike Lapinski joins us in The Panther’s Crypt for a frightfully frightful episode! We’ll discuss the rules of Lycanthropy versus the rules of Draculas. Ghost tours, costumes, and Gentlemen Frankensteins. Twilight and The Amityville Horror. It’s a GHOULish good time, only slightly brought down in the middle when the topic of our nation’s shameful 300-year history of slavery is discussed at length.

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Alexander Robinson! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

The Slinkiest Panther, John “The Wiggly Reader” Kerschbaum pads his way back into The Panther’s Lair to make his triumphant return to the show. We talk about a number of important topics, such as A Citizen’s Duty to Take Jury Duty Seriously, because plainly a Trial by Jury is a better system than the Medieval Trial by Ordeal, and clearly those are the only two choices. Plus: Mike gets RAW. And a weak stomach. And, of course, our Third Annual Halloween Episode is just around the corner, so the Dads talk at length about the costumes they are making for their daughters, which is just plain adorable.

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Michael Jonathan! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

It’s a special episode this week, as Mike finds himself on the PRO T.I.P.S. couch, talking to Alex about his new graphic novel, Troop 142. After Mike overcomes some initial un-comfortableness about answering questions, the Panthers settle into a rhythm, and have a pretty good chat about the origins of the book, Boy Scouts, drug use, autobiography, and male friendship. And remember, Troop 142 ships to finer comic stores everywhere on Wednesday, so keep an eye out for it, won’t you?

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Mike is back from APE, the Alternative Press Expo, and has all the updates you’d expect. What was it like renting someone else’s apartment for the weekend? Was he able to sleep there alone? Then, Alex has some complaining to do about Public Displays of Affection (PDA), and Mike talks about the most extreme example he can remember seeing. THEN, The Desert Panther, Tony Consiglio creeps into The Lair to tell us a story about how he bought a new mattress. That sounds boring, yes. But trust us, this is a good one.

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by David King! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

Things have been real busy with me since returning from the Small Press Expo earlier this month, as I set off on a whirlwind tour of my ancestral homeland (Scotland) with my family, which had me “off the grid” for quite some time. The pic above was taken on the Isle of Skye. See how healthy and not-chained-to-the-internet my daughter and I look. You can practically smell the crisp air and savory outdoors-ness. It was seriously great.

I didn’t do any drawing or writing or anything while I was gone, but that was OK, as I think I needed to just recharge my batteries a bit anyhow. I am not sure if they’re totally back at full power yet – I still haven’t had a chance to sit down at the drawing table since my return – so we’ll see. I have a pretty good idea of what I want to do next (I think) and I’m starting to feel amped once again.

But enough chit-chat, on with the announcements: This weekend I will be at the Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco. I’ll be representing Secret Acres, and will have all their fine books on hand, as well as copies of Troop 142 and old Heroclix figurines, of course. Here’s what the floor plan looks like:

On Saturday I’ll be appearing on this panel:

2:00 The Comix Claptrap . . . LIVE! – Co-hosts Rina Ayuyang and Thien Pham record an episode of their enlightening, riotous, and controversial podcast, The Comix Claptrap LIVE at APE! For four seasons, Rina and Thien have interviewed comics artists in the indie comics scene about their work, creative processes, and experiences in the industry. Each show has included New Comics Wednesday beat reportage from fellow cartoonist Josh Frankel, and new favorite segment, The Comix Cranktrap, where they crank-call a well-known cartoonist listed in their Rolodex. Also featured on the panel: Mike Dawson, Scott Campbell, Levon Jihanian, and Esther Pearl Watson. This panel promises to be total mayhem!

I’m looking forward to this. As everyone knows, I am a generally nice fellow, considered quite genial by many. However, for some reason this upstart podcast called The Comix Claptrap has historically been (what some might consider) unfriendly towards me and my own podcasts. In their most recent episode they call the incredibly talented Laura Park to task for the offense of appearing on The Ink Panthers instead of their show, as if TIPS wasn’t up-to-snuff enough for her to come on. Not nice guys, not nice at all…

So, perhaps some of that will come up, but hopefully we’ll talk about Troop 142 as well.

Anyway, hope to see some of you there!

Mike returns from his tour of Scotland to fill Alex in on all the news. First up: what is the ruling on regaling friends on all of the pleasant things that happened on a perfectly nice vacation? Yea or Nay? Also: Mike saw the movie CARS, and is outraged. Speaking of outrage, Alex is feeling it himself at New York 1′s lousy coverage of the Occupy Wall Street protests, and seriously considers heading downtown himself to throw some support to those kids in their Phish t-shirts with their hacky-sacks and Idealism.

One note: anyone in the San Francisco area this weekend should come see Mike at the Alternative Press Expo and get themselves a signed copy of Troop 142. Mike will also be appearing on a live recording of rival comics podcast, The Comix Claptrap. Come say hello, won’t you?

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Matt Emery! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

No real episode this week, as the Panthers are just back from the Small Press Expo, and Mike is scrambling to get ready to leave again, this time for Sunny Scotland. But, because we didn’t want to post absolutely nothing, here’s a mini SPX recap, and a couple other things. T.I.P.S! will be back sometime during the week of September 27th, and don’t forget if you’re in The Bay Area, you can come see Mike at the Alternative Press Expo on October 1st and 2nd, and get him to sign your copy of Troop 142.

Talk to you soon!

Subscribe in iTunes

Lots of great stuff in this episode: Alex returns from a trip to Las Vegas with a veritable ton of topics, thanks to all the oxygen they pump into the casinos and non-stop five-hour energy drinks. He’s on fire! A Beach Boy concert, vomit-bags on airplanes, celebrity-sightings, this trip had it all, and we discuss it at length.

And, a reminder: Alex and Mike will both be at the Small Press Expo in Maryland this coming weekend. Mike will be debuting his new book, and Alex will be headlining a spotlight panel. Come say hello, won’t you?

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Danno Klonowski! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

Mike and Alex crawled into The Panther’s Lair late Sunday evening, shortly after Hurricane Irene made her slow interminable crawl across New York City, and after two or three days of anxiety ridden anticipation, the Panthers were tired! But, ever reliable, they do their best to rally and get it up for a good show. And there’s lots to discuss: Natural Disasters, The Small Press Expo, Book Release Parties and Spotlight Panels. Mike and Alex reveal that they will be presenting one of the awards at the Prestigious Ignatz Gala at SPX, and brainstorm some ideas for comedic content.

Then! Just as the Panthers start to fall asleep, they welcome Gaz “Gary” Gretsky back into The Lair to settle some business. Astute listeners may recall last episode, where Mike confessed that he’d promised to ink a comic for his friend Gary, and had never followed through on that. Gary gets the opportunity to discuss the matter from his point of view. Plus: what is the worst Beatles song of all time, (Answer: Octopus’s Garden) and would you ever eat a bug? And not some halfway palatable bug, like a grasshopper, but some really nasty thing like a house “Eyebrow”.

Then things devolve into an argument about Novelty song, but the Panthers should be excused. We had two natural disasters in New York City last week!

Comments welcome!

This week’s illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Noah Van Sciver! Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

Alex and Mike creep into The Lair to discuss a number of things. There’s a whole lot of comics talk up at the front of the show: SPX, The Ignatzes, Alex’s spotlight panel, and Mike’s upcoming Book Release Party. But, once all that’s finally out of the way, the Panthers talk about more regular everyday life-type things, such as strip clubs and pole dancing, and the likelihood that civilization will eventually collapse not through weapons built by man, but by microscopic germs that will give us all Super-Colds, and we’ll just sneeze and look clammy until we all eventually die.

Comments welcome!

Illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Tim Hamilton. Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

We’re joined by incredibly talented MOME contributor and cartoonist Laura Park this week, and she tells us all about her recent trip to Wizard World Chicago. Hear about the celebrities spotted and the cosplay witnessed. Laura also lets us know about The Civil War, and comes down hard on the choice between Underwater and Outer Space. Additionally, the Panthers spend a good ten minutes or so in the beginning of the episode ranting about recent online discussions about Kickstarter. Sure to cause controversy!

Comments welcome!

Illustration of Inky the Domesticated Panther supplied by Rio Aubry Taylor. Submit your own illustration of Inky to inkpanthers@gmail.com

Subscribe in iTunes

This week it’s just Alex and Mike in The Panther’s Lair, discussing that new Rise of the Planet of the Apes movie (or, RotPotA) and how great it is. This leads us back into a familiar discussion about Animal Rights, and how all animals have them (except scallops). Then, a conversation about Parents and Comics, some interesting new announcements, and Alex calls out an cartoonist who Has Wronged Him, and asks for advice.

Accompanying illustration of Alex and Mike riding Inky, the domesticated Panther, by Daniel Spottswood.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

We made it! Not counting two part episodes, special episodes, PRO T.I.P.S’s, and more, we’ve finally arrived at our milestone ONE HUNDREDTH EPISODE.

The Ink Panthers Show has been weekly for over two years now, and boasts a guest list that includes such comics luminaries as Jim Rugg, Dustin Harbin, Julia Wertz, Domitille Collardey, Box Brown, Liz Baillie, Matt Kindt, Raina Telgemeier, Matt Fraction, Dylan Horrocks, Rob Ullman, Robin McConnell, Tim Kreider, Jon Kovalic, Sarah Glidden, John Kerschbaum, Josh Flanagan, Andy Runton, Jamie Tanner, Noah Van Sciver, Daniel Spottswood, Mike Lapinski, Frank Santoro, GB Tran, Gabby Schulz, Vanessa Davis, and MORE!!

Who will be our special guest for episode 100? Have a listen and find out… Plus: listener phonecalls, special announcements, food challenges, and the sort of regular everyday chit-chat you’ve come to expect. It’s all here!

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Cartoonist, Publisher, and Rapture Ready Radio correspondent, Box Brown creeps into The Lair this week to explain about the upcoming apocalypse and the New World Order/One World Government. Get ready to take notes – we’ve got plenty of Survival tips, such as, keep a hammer in your apartment, in case a dystopian Mad-max future suddenly arrives, and you need to fight your neighbor for a can of beans.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

The Famous Panther, Josh Flanagan of iFanBoy, creeps back into The Lair to fill us in on his recent relocation to the State of New Hampshire, land of fireworks. Then the conversation gets controversial, as we get into a heated debate about X-Men; First Class. Mike holds the perfectly reasonable position that yes, it’s perfectly understandable for humans to fear and hate the mutants, but Alex and Josh strenuously disagree.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

After their Summer Hiatus, the Panthers are reunited back in The Lair! And they’ve got lots to discuss. There’s a panel about Alex’s book at S’Dukck (SDCC), Mike is contemplating cos-play to promote his new book. Both guys talk about their recent trips to other parts of the United States and the locals they encountered. A lively discussion about how one’s placement in a wax museum reflects on one’s relative fame in the world, and then it’s the return of The Ink Panthers Book Nook (TM). In keeping with the theme of the episode, we’re talking about Reunion by Pascal Girard, and whether or not it matters if seemingly true stories are actually definitely true.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

The Desert Panther, Tony Consiglio, joins us to welcome Summer in our special Season 2 Finale episode. Gaming, bicycles, Cherry Danishes, and men riddled with bullets. It’s quite an episode to go out on (and also somewhat NSFW). It’s been a good year, but it’s time for a short break. We oughta be back in The Lair sometime in the middle of July to kick off “Season 3″.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Warning: Parental Advisory. The Panthers are back from their break, and ready to discuss the oldest profession of them all: prostituion. Mike and Alex spend an unusual amount of time discussing a comic book, Chester Brown’s Payin’ For It, and then go on to discuss their own encounters with the bewitching Ladies of the Night. After that, they get into a frank discussion about technological advancements in the field of lifelife sentient sexbots, and eventually predict that one day in the not-too-distant-future, someone will write a graphic novel about their own choice only to date sexy animatronic robots, and make the case that society would be a better place if we all followed suit.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

This was an ambitious episode! The Panthers received a listener email, asking what kinds of comics would be good for a Dad to recommend to his teenage daughter. So we thought, why not ask the artists of Pizza Island to weigh in, as they were all teenage girls once too. Lest that sound too nice and heartwarming, fear not, Mike and Alex totally destroyed any good vibes by also forcing the Pizza Island cartoonists to gossip about one another, and give us all the inside dirt on the social hierarchy at their famous studio. Listen in, as we speak with Kate Beaton, Lisa Hanawalt, Julia Wertz, and Domitille Collardey.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

It’s Slush Pile time! One of those special episodes where Mike & Alex cover a potpourri of different items, such as: Mike is witness to a mugging; Alex makes a bold stand against Survivor; Shouldn’t Paul McCartney call it a day already?; Why do guys ball-bust each other, and do women do the same thing; how should you remove a kayak from a river after you’ve capsized; and more!!

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Aviary creator and inventor of Kickstarter, Jamie Tanner, creeps into the Lair this week for a sitdown discussion about many important topics: Why be a cartoonist when you can be in a band? What is the right amount of time to pass before you can start getting mad at a Kickstarter project where you haven’t received your rewards yet? Shouldn’t Jamie call his art studio The Draweriary? And More!!

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

It’s been a big week for news, and the Panthers can’t help but discuss what’s been going on!

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Blammo creator, Noah Van Sciver, calls into the Panther’s Lair from an undisclosed location out of the streets of Denver, Colorado, providing a heightened sense of tension for the entire episode, as we worry he may be struck by a speeding car at any moment. Speaking of cars, Mike’s just been to the International Car Show, and marveled at the new line of 2012 Fords and Chevys. Also, we respond to a listener question about whether we have pop-culture rules for our significant others. For example, could any of us really be with a lady who doesn’t like Peter Jackson’s Lord of The Rings? Is that a deal-breaker?

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

A while back, Alex was wondering if there was room in the show for a recurring “Star Wars Minute” feature. This week we find out the answer: NO. Any attempt to talk about Star Wars for one minute, clearly devolves into a half-hour segment about the quality of the prequels; the quality of Return of the Jedi; the quality of the action figures, and on and on… We can’t afford to do this every week! So, here’s the one and only Star Wars minute. But, don’t fret, non Star Wars fans, we’ve got The Desert Panther in the house, and before we get to arguing about nerd minutia, we have a follow-up on The Sexy Human chair story from episode 87, and a lively discussion about gift-giving.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Daniel Spottswood, John Kerschbaum, and Mike Lapinski joined us in the Mobile Panther Lair as we recorded a live episode of the podcast. Seeing’s as we were recording at the MoCCA Arts Festival, we made a conscious attempt to keep things comics-focused. Topics include: Conventions. What is the Point of Them?; Biggest Professional Regrets; Best Convention Celebrity Encounters; and more! Thanks again to Daniel, John, and Mike for joining us, and thanks to everyone who came out to see the show.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

I was happy to welcome Two-Time Ink Panthers Show guest Dustin Harbin into the Professional Panther’s Lounge for a chat about his comics career. Since getting to know Dustin, just a few short years ago, he’s made the transition from Comics-Dabbler, to Full-Time This-Is-How-I-Make-My-Living Cartoonist, and this was a nice opportunity to check in and see how that’s going. Spoiler Alert: Dustin reveals pretty early on that it’s not been great for the bank-balance, but towards the end of our chat he also reveals he’s been tapped to host the Ignatz Awards at this year’s SPX Festival, so it’s not all doom and gloom. Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Coming up: Sunday, April 10th, 3:30PM, at the MoCCA Arts Festival, we’ll be recording a Live Ink Panthers Show. Special guests include John Kerschbaum, Daniel Spottswood, and Danielle Corsetto. Planned topics include What Is the Point of Conventions, and What Are Your Biggest Professional Regrets. Lots of laffs, guaranteed!!

The Desert Panther, Tony Consiglio, joins us in The Lair to discuss a number of hot topics: First, Mike is now American, and we find out if his fellow Panthers really do consider him an equal now. Second: the strange case of the sexy man who turned into a chair. Third: Tony has to explain a complicated lovemaking position to his mother. Fourth: Why is it OK to laugh about Italian stereotypes? Tony doesn’t see the humor in it, but Mike and Alex are all like, aaaah, shaddap you face!

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Alex and Mike answer a call from the Fanther hotline and other listener questions, only one of which has to do with The Thing’s thing. Alex wonders about the most ethical way to raise a child, which leads to a chat about bullies and bullying in this internet-age.

And don’t forget about the Live Ink Panthers Show, scheduled to take place at the MoCCA Arts Festival on April 10th, at 3:30PM. Come join us, won’t you?

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

I know every week we promise a jam-packed show, but this week we really have got a show literally packed with jam. First, some follow-up on last week’s discussion with standup comedian Adam Conover, including the audio of him performing Mike’s soon-to-be-classic “The Thing’s Thing” joke. Then, like a bird-of-prey, Owly cartoonist Andy Runton, swoops back into The Panther’s Lair to talk craft and what’s meaningful to him as a creator. After that, Alex has some news about sandwiches, and Mike asks the tough-questions when it comes to picking out the perfect song to sing at a Karaoke outing. What song could he possibly choose that would make it tough to look him in the eye the next day? Find out here.

And if all that wasn’t enough, there’s the announcement of a new Live Ink Panthers Show, scheduled to take place at the MoCCA Arts Festival on April 10th. So, tune in to hear some early details about that.

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

We’ve got something a little different this week: aspiring stand-up comedian, Adam Conover, creeps into The Lair to give us a little insight into what it’s like breaking into that world. Is it something Mike could realistically do as a casual just-for-fun fall-back career, or is it more likely something you have to work at and work at for little or no reward, just like everything else in this miserable life? I know which answer Mike is hoping to hear…

Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Step right up and enter The Panther’s Lair to experience The Greatest Show on Earth! Alex has been to Austin, Texas for the STAPLE convention, so he tells us all about it; then Mike has been to the circus and he’s got lots to say about that – mostly stuff along the lines of “Do the Elephants really enjoy standing on a ball and being made to sit in a seat?” It’s sure to be Fun for the Whole Family!! Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Comics Comics contributor, Frank Santoro creeps into The Professional Panthers Lounge for a freewheeling discussion about his comics, career, and collaboration. We talk Day Jobs, Auteurs, and the general State of the Industry (things are better in France!). Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

A tale as old as time… come listen to Mike and Alex inside The Panther’s Lair, discussing a potpourri of Hot Topics, including: the announcement that Alex will be a Special Guest at this year’s MoCCA Festival; the movie Beastly, which Alex has not seen; the TV Show Luther, which Alex also has not seen, and the movie The Running Man, which Alex saw, but can’t really remember all that well. Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Ouch! The skin on my elbows is sore… I think I’ve been RUGG BURNED again!!

Yes, respected comics-craftsman and formalist, Jim Rugg, slinks into the Professional Panther Lounge for a sit-down chat all about his working process, all in this brand new episode of PRO-T.I.P.S! Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Esteemed Cartoonist, Raconteur, and Opinion-ator, Tim Kreider, slinks into the Panther’s Lair this week to tell us all about his new book, Twilight of the A**holes, and how much more he prefers promoting his writing than writing his writing. Tim also informs us of his recent appointment to the Supreme Court of A**holedom, and even hears a case from Alex*. Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

*Disclaimer: It’s not an official ruling, but an off-the-cuff legal opinion.

Alright! Trying this again… joining Mike in The Professional Panther Lounge is cartoonist GB Tran, who’s first full-length graphic-memoir VIETNAMERICA has just been published by Villard. Check it out. Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

What do you do when you’re called by a Panther? Don’t Anther!!

What do you do if you’re called by a Fanther? Well, in that case, you give long-winded, not-always-totally-on-topic answers, and that’s exactly what we’ve been doing this week.

Yes, it’s a special Panther Hotline episode, where Mike and Alex respond to listener questions. What song would we have liked to have written? What would we do with the mighty powers of The Thing? Will we be at Wondercon? And lots more! Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

Are you ready to be entertained??! We’ve got a jam-packed episode on tap. After some catchup chit-chat, Alex tells a new Douche Chills tale, and then we turn our attention to the upcoming Oscar awards. What are the Best Pictures which stand the test of time? Which ones are the ones you’ve forgotten about?And what about those ones where you go “oh, that won a Best Picture award?” The Panthers discuss them all! Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes

We were very pleased to welcome Fart Party and Drinking at the Movies cartoonist Julia Wertz to The Lair this week. We discuss books, television, and pets, and we all agree that somehow cats can get away with being mean and aggressive in a way that dogs never could. Comments welcome!

Subscribe in iTunes