Digital Strips Podcast 307 – Year in Review 2012

Beyond the fact we’ve overcome our fear of vacuum cleaners what sets us apart form the animals is the fact that we, as a species, have traditions. Doing the same thing over and over every year just because you did it last year is the opposable thumbs of society.

One of the greatest of these traditions is the year end review show right here on Digital Strips where we take a look back at the year in web comics as it directly relates to us.

This year we discuss how Jason can’t feel the holiday spirit because he’s too busy thinking about Frosty the Snowman’s mental state. We learn that Steve thinkings everthing is a test. We learn Jason doesn’t read the things he’s reading

Horizons Watch notables:
Alpha Flag
Arteest
RuneWriters
Unicorn Soup
Shiver Berueu
Zen Pencils
Monster Kind
Disappointing Monsters
Space Mullet
Rutabaga

Jason’s Pick: Zen Pencils – it makes him feel like crap but he likes the abuse. Maybe all he needs is a little encouragement.

Steve’s Pick: Unicon Soup – It’s just like him, and he likes it because of that. Yeah he’s kinda shallow like that.

Rambletron classic – #1 Steve discusses his hygiene issues and his proud family heritage.

Reviews:
Next Town Over
Anyone for Rhubarb
Blue Yonder
Sakana
Kiwi Blitz
Mohagen
Plume
Rock Manlyfist
Little League
Nightmare Pro wrestling
Lake Nowhere

Steve’s Pick: Anyone for Rhubarb – just as unique as the fruit (vegetable?) it’s named after it brings the funny and actually puts said funny in his RSS feed where he can easily access it at work.

Jason’s Pick: Rock Manlyfist – his a little ashamed of his own pick as well he should be of a comic that involves boning a country to keep your head from exploding.

Rambletron classic – #2 Remember that time Steve’s kid pooped at church? Pepperidge Farm remembers.

Overall
Repitilis Rex
Shortpacked
Battle pug
Minimumble
Fanboys
Ctl-Alt-Del

Steve’s Pick: Bug– Steve loves bug, and he doesn’t care how that sounds

Jason’s Pick: The Trenches – he doesn’t know who draws it but he loves it anyway, go figure art boy.

That’s it for this year, see ya’ll in 2013.

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Digital Strips Podcast 306 – Horizons Watch – Disappointing Monsters and Space Mullet

With the end of the year looming over us like some sort of freaky cartoon owl, we realized we’ve been very negligent of out Horizon Watching responsibilities.

So we’re going out in style with two more brand new comics. Or brand new to us anyway, and hopefully for you too. We start out in the horror comedy end of the spectrum with Disappointing Monsters, a gag-a-rific look at zombies, Chathulu and David Lynch. We then jump into pure sci-fi with Space Mullet, easily my winner for best new comic name of 2012.

We also do what everyone has used the internet since Al gore crapped HTTP out his butt, talked about funny videos we’ve seen. Which leads into the most cultural conversation we’ve had in months. Don’t worry, we end up talking about Rob Schieder pretty soon after so it evens out.

We have another instantly regrettable musical numbers Digital Strips is so famous for.

We talk about what we’ve been reading and how apparently Jason’s been reading every comic he’s ever heard of. We talk about proper attribution and proper not stealing peoples stuff-ness and about how Mark Zuckerberg is responsible for so much evil.

Finally we solve the world’s capcha problem. You’re welcome.

Show Notes:
Animals being dicks 2:45
Next Town Over 6:45
Blue Yonder 7:00
The Trouble and Dangerous 7:15
Broodhollow 8:45
Skull shaped Heart 9:45
I am Arg 24:15
Shiver Bureau 27:00

Music thanks to Zoned

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Digital Strips Podcast 305 – Review – The Petri Dish

I just realized that Digital Strips is basically James Bond. We’re cheesy. We follow the same formula each time. We’ve been around way longer than most people realize. We’ve had several different male sex-symbols take the lead role. We have a license. It isn’t to kill however, it’s to call out Web comics creators on their word bubbles.

This week we’re looking a new school Web comic with an old school feel, The Petri Dish by John Sutton. If you like your gag-a-day full of lots of robots and set up but without all that art or actual science in the way, then this may be the comic for you. I say may be because this is another episode full of arguments. Tune in to get both sides of the story.

We talk about James Bond, horrible people you can run into at the movies, jokes that don’t land and those that do, why people who don’t draw are lazy turds and how to end world guy-hunger. We also learn that on the rare occasions that I bring the pain, it’s because I have to poop. We argue about whether or not I’m saying nice things about this comic.

For the first time ever, we spend more time talking about about a comic’s JavaScript than it’s art.

For our middle music I finally found a song that speaks to me as a rare hick/geek, “Corn-fed Kong” by David Wise.

Not much in the way of show notes, but here’s what we got:

Poorly Drawn Lines
White Ninja
My Cardboard Life
My Milk Toof

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Digital Strips Podcast 303 – Review – Monsieur Charlatan

The world just hasn’t been as mysterious since that great day when Al Gore bent at the waist and farted out the Web. The Internet is a great place for solving the unsolveable. From “How hot of a girl did that nerd in my math class marry?” to, “What happened in those last seasons of the X-Files?”, the Internet can answer just about any question.

In keeping with this tradition, this week we solve the mystery of the worst song you could possibly be forced to tap dance to.

This week we also get all kinds of culture up in here as we head over to Grand Paris for some dark, depressing suicide attempts. And then Jason decides to ruin it with his own personal brand of sexism. Way to go, Jason. Way to go.

Where was I? Oh yeah, the comic. This week it’s Monsieur Charlatan, a tale of murder, mystery and intrigue. It’s also got colorful art and word balloons that make us say colorful things.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Just listen, all will be made clear.

We also talk about the gag-an-update comics that we’ve been reading, enjoy a non-safe-for-children midsection and listen to Steve do a horrible French accent.

All this and more on episode 303 of The Digital Strips Podcast.

Show Notes:
Toon Hole – 6:45
Skadi – 7:15
Just the First Frame – 7:30
Quiddlebee – 8:15
Kurtz’s blog post – 9:00

Music in the middle is White Magic is for Sissies by Knight of the Round

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Digital Strips Uninvited Games Podcast Episode 2

So we are back with the games talk that normally takes up the first 15 minutes we’re on Skype anyway so here it is, for you to listen to.

This week we’re talking about our favorite points in games where you just have to screen. We spoil the crap out of Knights of the Old Republic, Red Dead Redemption and Bioshock. That’s how cutting edge we are.

The music for this show was “Go Balls Deep” by Sixto Sounds.

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Digital Strips Podcast 301 – Review – Kiwi Blitz

You know what’s really awesome? Banana bread. You know what’s even more awesome? Giant robots fighting to the bitter end in the most non-coming-of-age coming-of-age story ever. That sentence may be gramatically unsound, but if you read this week’s comic Kiwi Blitz, I think you’ll find it very accurate where it matters (in its pants).

It seems just about every other week we talk about how much fun it is as a web comics fans to watch creators grow and push themselves in new directions. This week is no exception as a lot of the mean stuff I say about the first part of the comic doesn’t apply to the second part. However, I make my notes as I go, so I have to say that stuff anyway.

This week’s comic deals with a lot of issues a normal teenager faces. Trouble with friends of the opposite gender, not understanding your place in the world, not trusting the robot your father’s underground college buddy sent him for no apparent reason. Despite this totally generic set up, the comic has a lot of guts and a lot of heart and enough anime action tropes to keep us going.

We talk about how much better hurrincanes are when you know someone who might die, how Jason’s wearing skinny jeans almost lead to his daughter’s starvation, why living in a Ninja Turtle world would be completely underwhelming experience, why if you’re in a long running podcast about web comics, when reviewing a comic, why’s its so important to read the about page. And how one wrong telling of a joke can lead to a lifetime of confusion.

Please join us, it’s a fun time.

2D Goggles – 6:00
The Meek – 8:15
Red’s Planet – 8:15
Kate Beaton – 9:15
Doom-mates – 10:00
Meet tha ____ – 11:15
Questionable Content – 31:00

Middle music by AkumajoBelmont and Jason Covenant over at OCR.

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Digital Strips Podcast 298 – Review – Rutabaga

This week we’re heading back in the wide and dangerous of fantasy adventure long form comics. I say wide because, seriously, there is a metric butt-ton of these things out there. And I say dangerous because after every episode we do of one, Jason threatens me with bodily harm should I bring forward another one.

But seriously, what’s he gonna do to me? Screw that guy. Besides, despite the fact that he says he hates them, he seriously loves them, just like all the girls over the years who said they hate me, secretly love me.

This week the potential podcast ender is Rutabaga by Eric Colossal. A whimsical romp full of daring adventures, fantastical creatures and hero who really knows when it’s time to get cooking!

We talk about the art, we compare it to other comics, we even make fun of each other like grown men aren’t supposed to. We do everything that that you expect from an episode of Digital Strips. We even find time to talk about real-life never nudes, Jason’s bumhole book and the proud crest of the Shinney clan. All this and more on the latest episode of Digital Strips.

El Esqueleto – 6:15
Witch And Knight 7:15
Trenches 8:45
Order of the Stick 10:15
Gastrophobia 18:15
Ellie on Planet X 19:30
Skadi 20:15
I think you’re saucsome 23:45

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Digital Strips Podcast 294 – Review – Fredo and Pid’jin

This is going to be another post from me where I point out that I’m posting despite the fact that it’s a holiday over here and expect Internet cookies for my troubles.

Today we’re looking at quite possibly the most vulgar and violent comic starring birds that we’ve ever had the pleasure of bring before you. If you like your comics completely saccharine, you may want to skip this one (don’t skip the show of course, it’s actually one of our funniest ones).

This week, between evidences of Jason’s complete wankerness, we take a look at Fredo and Pid’jin, a comic about, you’ll never guess, Fredo and Pid’jin, two evil birds who just want what we all want sometimes, a little bit of love … followed by a whole lot of ending the world and killing our closest friends.

We also yammer on about deja-vu, the logistics of squirrel boobs, how tough Jason isn’t and what would happen if we both grew wings.

The following sites/comics also warrant mentioning:
Little Minsters 6:45
Shiver Bearua 7:30
Monster Pro Wrestling 8:15
Evil Inc 10:00

The music in the middle over the discovery of Jason’s true nature is ‘A Hint of Blue‘ by Gibs and Mordi.

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Digital Strips Podcast 292 – Review – Little League

Most of my friends and coworkers know that I do this show. Generally they just let me go on living my strange man-child life and leave me be. Once in a while they’re ask for recommendation on what they should read. Once it a great while, they’ll have a recommendation for me. And exactly one time, they’ve suggested something so great that I couldn’t wait to do a show about it.

This is that one time.

This week we’re taking a look at Little League by Yale Steward. While the concept of young superheroes trying to make their way on the playground is nothing new, Jason and I both agree that the concept is handled here with such grace and respect for the source material that it actually feels brand new. And since I spent most of these formidable years running around the big toy pretending to be Batman, it only makes sense that Batman would to (because running around pretending to be me would be lame).

I also indulge on one of my most hate-filled rants, and with the poison still dripping off my maligned tongue, Jason steps in to say the day, like the true wanna be hero he is.

All this and the occult secret to getting free Whoppers, on the latest episode of Digital Strips.

Show Notes:
Prequeal 7:00
Street Figther Comics 9:45
Skull Kickers 10:00
Sailor Twain 10:30
Lovecraft is Missing 10:30
Nightmare Prowestling 10:45
Realm of Atland/Beserkers Daughter 11:15
Rock Manly Fist 12:00
SuperFogeys 19:45
Tiny Titans 23:45

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