As the journalism industry goes through sweeping changes, the fictional newspapers of Marvel and DC’s superhero universes have transformed to reflect the times. The Daily Bugle has gone through major transitions in ownership and editorial agendas over the years, but with the rising need for good journalism in a time…

Wonder Comics’ Dial H For Hero is a roller coaster ride through comic-book history, using a magic phone dial to pull stylistic influences from the past as characters transform into different superheroes. Written by Sam Humphries with astounding art by Joe Quinones, colorist Jordan Gibson, and letterer Dave Sharpe, Dial…

I’m a 30-year-old bi male. I’ve been with my wife for five years, married nine months. A month into our relationship, I let her know that watching partners with other men has always been something I wanted and that sharing this had caused all my previous relationships to collapse. Her reaction was the opposite of what…

Adolescence can be a frightening period for young gay men, who are suddenly faced with new sexual feelings that can often conflict with social pressures placed on them by family, friends, and the media. Mike Curato explores this tumultuous period in his new Godwin Books graphic novel, Flamer, a semi-autobiographical…

Perhaps one of the medium’s most overlooked gems, Gilbert Gottfried’s Amazing Colossal Podcast is doing great work in keeping alive the legacies of countless performers from Hollywood’s golden age while being utterly profane and riotously funny. Between the eponymous Gottfried and co-host Frank Santopadre, the show is…

Every artist feels the pull of obsession. The act of creation requires a certain level of preoccupation with the art, allowing it to take over the mind in order to craft a song or a painting or a story. If the artist finds widespread success, that obsession can shift from the art to the fame, the need for attention…

There are very few superhero comics with the cool factor of Far Sector, a sleek, sexy, and sophisticated sci-fi story that reinvigorates the Green Lantern concept. Written by N.K. Jemisin with art by Jamal Campbell and letterer Deron Bennett, Far Sector is all about the new, introducing a new Green Lantern and taking…

Empyre is coming to pull Marvel’s heroes back into the cosmic drama between the Kree and Skrull alien races, and Spider-Man is swinging into the action in a big way. Yesterday, Marvel revealed that Spidey and Wolverine would be rejoining the Fantastic Four during the event, and The A.V. Club has the exclusive…

Over the past decade, Tom Muller has emerged as the most exciting designer in comics, giving books their own distinct aesthetics that enrich the stories and make the product pop on stands. Muller recently helped Jonathan Hickman give Marvel’s X-Men line a drastic makeover, and in April, he’s tackling one of the most…

I’m a 26-year-old bisexual woman with a history of self-harm. It hasn’t been much of an issue for the last few years, but my sex life has improved a lot in that time. I realized that I am quite submissive and masochistic, and I have found a wonderful dominant partner who I’ve gotten to explore that kink with in a…

The Vanished Birds opens with a tale about a boy who falls in love with a space captain. She visits his planet every 15 years, though only eight months pass for her between trips. It’s a bittersweet story about growing up and living with regret, and provides a clever way to introduce the book’s protagonist, Captain…

Suicide Squad endures as a superhero concept because it’s built on internal conflict: between members of the titular team and the authority figures forcing them to work together. There are layers upon layers of character dynamics to explore as supervillains butt heads with their ethically dubious handlers bearing…

Animorphs was one of the defining children’s book series of the ’90s, exploring the turbulence of adolescence through a sci-fi war story about a group of teens fighting off an alien invasion by transforming into animals. Written by K.A. Applegate and Michael Grant, Animorphs was fun, intense, and addressed some very…

As a medium unconfined by things like shooting schedules or even studio space, podcasting—especially chatter-based series—often release episodes at a relentless clip. This sheer volume of content naturally rewards fans of the most inconsequential minutiae, made clear by the proliferation of the minute-by-minute…

In our monthly book club, we discuss whatever we happen to be reading and ask everyone in the comments to do the same. This month, we’re highlighting our favorite books that we caught up on last year. What Are You Reading This Month?

Carmen Maria Machado has never written a comic before The Low, Low Woods, but you wouldn’t know after reading the first issue. The National Book Award finalist has taken to the medium exceptionally well in the new series from DC’s Hill House Comics imprint, partnering with artist Dani, colorist Tamra Bonvillain, and…

There are perhaps no podcast subjects more beloved than rich people problems and ripped-from-the-headlines true crime stories. Wondery marries the two in its new scripted drama Blood Ties. Siblings Eleanor and Michael Richland—voiced by Gillian Jacobs and Josh Gad, formidable in their respective departures from…

“The so-called straight person is no safer than I am really,” James Baldwin said in his last known interview. Straight men, he argued, had needs that couldn’t be expressed. “And that is why they need faggots. They’ve created faggots in order to act out a sexual fantasy on the body of another man and not take…

We are only a few weeks into the New Year and an impeached president has already used drone technology to kill a foreign leader and threaten war using a social media platform. This same president was elected with the help of Russian bots and fraudulent accounts on another social media platform, which was also accused…

Runaways has always had a tenuous relationship with its superhero identity. The book has always been best when it downplays superhero elements to focus on the challenges faced by a group of teens and young adults on the run from authority figures, and writer Rainbow Rowell fully understands this strength. But it’s…