Hey Kids, Comics! #356 - Rogueish I's III: Flash Mob - Running Hot and Cold

How can you go wrong in discussing the villains of the Flash than in talking about two of the hero’s greatest enemies…both of whom rely on unique pistol-based tech? Join Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston in the conclusion of Rogueish I’s III with an in-depth look at Captain Cold and Heat Wave.

Join your hosts as they go all “McDLT” and keep the hot hot and the cool cool with a look at some DC Comics gunslingers that have made fighting the Flash their life’s work. From pyro to cryo to “antique controversy”, the oddest school field trip ever, and how Flash’s Rogues Gallery are influenced by the hero himself.

Hey Kids, Comics! #355 - Rogueish I's III: Flash Mob - Sights and Sounds

Was all of this Grodd’s fault? Are Atkinson’s Peanut Butter Bars an inspiration? Is there a connection with Flash villains and condominium sales pitches? These and other questions are explored as Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston discuss five different Flash foes from the past that endure to the present!

Discover the unique history of some of Flash’s oddest villains and their insane technology. Mirror Master, Pied Piper, Trickster, Golden Glider, and Rainbow Raider all get their day in the sun during the penultimate chapter of Rogueish I’s III: Flash Mob!

Hey Kids, Comics! #354 - Rogueish I's III: Flash Mob - Groddyssey

Yes! We at HKC! know that gorillas are not monkeys, they are in fact great apes. Don’t bother us with particulars! This of course based on the original working title of this issue, “Monkey Shines”.

Welcome to the middle chapter of “Flash Mob” which features the much anticipated arrival of the mega primate Flash enemy, Gorilla Grodd! Hailing from Gorilla City where he ran afoul of King Solivar, this talking gorilla left Africa for Central City to become a major thorn in the side of DC Comics’ super speedster!

Perhaps the most famous of the intelligent apes outside of “Planet of the Apes”, Grodd utilizes his intelligence and psionic powers to rise above his simple primate associations and associate himself with most if not all of the Flash’s villains. While not technically a member of the Rogues Gallery proper, he has been a part of their capers and tremendous hatred of the Scarlet Speedster. So be prepared for some serious ape action with Andy and Cole and a seriously long-winded story title from the distant past!

Hey Kids, Comics! #353 - Rogueish I's III: Flash Mob - Toy Fare

Welcome to the second issue of the latest incarnation of Rogueish I’s (the villainous story arc), this time featuring the foes of the Flash. This week your hosts Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston explore a couple of the more unusual Rogues Gallery members, Captain Boomerang and the Top!

Given the nature of both of these super-villains’ theme, which are often associated with playthings, they seemed an appropriate pairing. From the whirlwind known as the Top and his oddball costume to the long-running (pun intended) Flash nemesis known as Captain Boomerang, two unlikely successes in criminal enterprises move to the fore. Enjoy in-depth coverage of these Flash favorites and an unexpected connection to “Hee-Haw!” No, really.

Hey Kids, Comics! #352 - Rougeish I's III: Flash Mob - Unseasonal

A “Hey Kids, Comics!” tradition returns with a brand new arc exploring the Rogues Gallery of a specific super-hero! Originally recorded in 2020, the first issue of this Flash-based arc is now finally seeing the light of day. Ironic since the Flash is far quicker than JediCole has been on recovering his site from the Covid-19 doldrums.

When it comes to super-heroes and their personal collection of villains, Flash truly defined the idea of the Rogues Gallery to the point that his arch-nemeses took up that mantle collectively! So it is that Flash’s Rogues Gallery is finally getting the Rogueish I’s treatment, beginning with the meteorological baddie known as Weather Wizard!

Discover not only the master of rainy days and more, but also the concept of the Rogues Gallery and what they stand for as a group. Who would have thought they play by their own set of rules when it comes to being super-criminals in the DC Universe. So prepare to get wet or cold or hot or breezy as Andy and Cole take on the Weather Wizard, but nearly as well as Barry Allen!

Hey Kids, Comics! SDCC 2020 Special Edition - No Comic Con? No Problem!

Hey Kids, Comics! has long had annual issues that covered San Diego Comic Con exclusives that were often unobtainable, even for those in attendance. 2020 marked the loss of the actual physical show under the specter of Covid-19. So your hosts had to adapt just like the convention and everyone else in the world.

Unlike in prior years, the infamous SDCC exclusivity of toys and collectibles was absent in this unusual year. So your hosts talk up what they could find at the time that was upcoming from various online and physical retail outlets. Not the usual rant, but no less, coverage of the convention that was disappeared for a year.

Hey Kids, Comics! #351 - Odds and Monsters

Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston jump into the middle of a new topic for the show without the slightest research in advance. The challenge is thrown down and JCU’s finest fill an hour discussing some of the craziest, goofiest, and downright silliest characters ever to hit the mainstream of comics!

With only an hour at their disposal, your hosts rattle off the backgrounds of some pretty odd and monstrous comic creations from many decades past. Marvel (and DC) at their choices be they loved or reviled.

Hey Kids, Comics #350 - A Little Bit of History Repeating Itself

In a move that rang like a return of 1995’s Marvelution, DC Comics announced in June 2020 that they would be ending the 25 year relationship (post the aforementioned Marvel Comics fiasco) with Diamond Comic Distributors. Ripples of outrage ran through the fan and professional community alike as corporate America flexed its muscles without consulting its brain yet again. Time will tell what the outcome will be, but Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston certainly had enough to say on the subject at the time to bump other issues of the show a week to air their opinions here.

Hey Kids, Comics! #349 - The Bad News Books

Welcome to a special issue of the show that revolves around some of the worst comics ever published. This is not to say terrible indy comics, though so many are from independent publishers. No, this discussion revolves more around comics that perhaps should never have been published…by anyone!

Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston take a look at such titles as “The Maximortal”, “Tarot, Witch of the Black Rose”, and “Boiled Angel” to name a few. Enter the bubbling cauldron of comics that the industry may have had a better reputation in the day had their creators taken a different track.

Hey Kids, Comics! #348 - Looking Back (Issues) at HKC!

Hey Kids Comics! turned nine in 2021 and just shy of that milestone JediCole took on the monumental task of listening to the entire catalog of back issues of this very show! At over 70 issues and annuals in, he sat down with Andrew Farmer for a look back at the history of nearly 350 issues of this very show!

With more issues ahead than behind, a random look at various past issues and their contents are examined. Get nostalgic with your hosts as certain elements like running jokes, references to pop culture, and recurring characters are discussed and recalled.

Hey Kids, Comics! #347 - Toying Around

Welcome to another fine HKC! that concentrates on toys. Specifically the New York Toy Fair 2020. Granted, by the time JediCole got around to getting this on the JCU site, most of this stuff has already come out! But it is a fun look back at some amazing toys your hosts Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston were excited to report about months ago.

Forgiving the dated nature of this issue, enjoy how your hosts gushed about some toys they now have and some that will, ideally, hit stores very soon!

Hey Kids, Comics! #346 - Isosceles Cupid

Hey Kids, Comics! returns at last to the JCU!

Months have passed since new issues were published here as a result of a crazy 2020. But before the year slips away at full, JediCole has got himself back in the saddle and begun to catch up on the 20 issues or so that had fallen on the wayside (though all were published on PodBean and other sites.

This outing is all about a popular trope in comics, the love triangle! Nothing is quite so common in the pages of our favorite comics than the inevitable change of heart in affairs of the heart. So much so that some characters are involved in multiple love triangles over the many decades of their existence at their respective publisher!

Join hosts Andrew Farmer and “JediCole” Houston for a fascinating exploration of the geometry of love…in comics. From Scott Summers’ and Peter Parkers’ all-too-frequent such relationships to a few surprises that pop up over the decades since heroes and non-heroes alike started pairing off…or more.

Bonus Alternate Cover!

Hey Kids, Comics! #345 - Legends on Their Own Minds

Catching up at last! Just one more issue to follow this (late arriving) one before the February/March hiatus. Hey Kids, Comics! will return to normal weekly posting in late March after All-Con.

Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston return to Toylandia with a discussion of Marvel Legends action figures that they would love to see in the future. Many are the characters as yet unproduced and explored within the Hasbro line that began at Toy Biz way back in 2002. What characters from the House of Ideas do your hosts want the most? Tune in to find out!

Hey Kids, Comics! #344 - Out of Style or: (Return of the Cash Grab)

Just when you thought that the comic industry had turned its back on gimmicks and enhancements, the old fashioned cash grab is back. But in a whole new way! Exclusives, multiple covers, and major (if not long-lived) events help draw in readers…more accurately investors…that keep the cash flowing.

Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston bravely delve into the mire that is the modern comic sales frenzy, fueled by variations on covers in numbers far exceeding what seemed ridiculous twenty-five years ago. The big publishers are again baiting the hook and fandom appears to be feasting.

Hey Kids, Comics! #343 - Mirror, Mirror

The catch-up on publishing continues with a great issue in which holds a mirror up to the Justice League of America. Literally.

Hailing from 1964’s Justice League of America #29, the Crime Syndicate were the opposite numbers of five core JLA members. Their extra-dimensional world, Earth-C, has captivated JediCole for decades and he’s taking Andrew Farmer along for the ride!

These despotic doppelgangers, seemingly destroyed in the 80s, have proved to be the bad pennies they are by recurring well into the 2010s! Your hosts explore the storied history of their ranks and the curious choice of headdress that was abandoned by one of their number in this curious new issue of the show.

Hey Kids, Comics! #342 - Guided Tours

Hey gang…JediCole here. Life got in the way in a huge way and I am finally getting caught up on the posting of prior issues of “Hey Kids, Comics!” While available on Podbean for some time, they have not shown up here until now. Sorry for the delay.

In the halcyon days of comic book publishing of the 80s, Marvel and DC both had an inspiration…a guide book to their respective universes. Or at least a means to publish the stats of their burgeoning catalogs of characters.

Who’s Who Batcave entry featuring HKC!’s favorite snaggle-toothed hunchback.

Thus were Who’s Who and The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe born! And now Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston are going to tell you all about the editorial groundwork that led to these best-selling comics that were not of the traditional narrative variety.

The “Big Two” were not the only players in this game. Over the years a few indy publishers jumped on the bandwagon. And both DC and Marvel even published guidebooks to popular licensed titles that were in the same format as the titles that would chronicle the obvious and the obscure in each universe.

Hey KIds, Comics! #341 - Declaration of Independents: Critical Akklaim or: (Valiantly Seeking Acclaim)

“Declaration of Independents” concludes with Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston being joined by the scholarly Weldon Adams and a look at what happens when a video game company dives into the world of comics!

This week’s guest brings a wealth of knowledge from both his fan credentials and from having been a field representative for Akklaim during the heyday of the its publishing run.

So without further fanfare, the tale of an idea that could have been something huge…until it was not.

Hey Kids, Comics! #340 - Declaration of Independents: I Say Cah-Mik-Oh and You Say Coh-Mee-Coh

New year, old arc. Well, not THAT old! Welcome to the latest chapter of “Declaration of Indpendents”. Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston are back with one of the more successful big indy’s of the 90s, Comico.

How does a comic company rise from origins in the realm of collegiate newspapers to one of the most popular publishers of its day? It was all about creating comics that comic readers craved…until a tragic misstep.

Chock full of nostalgia, this exploration of Comico’s publications and history is sure to entertain and inform.

Hey Kids, Comics! #339 - Declaration of Independents: Defiant Behavior

Please Note: The holidays have wrought havoc on the scheduling and posting of the weekly issues of Hey Kids, Comics! As a result the show will take a one week hiatus with no new show on Friday, December 27, 2019. Apologies for the break in the schedule and for the late posting of #338 and #339. - JediCole

Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston have reached the middle chapter of the arc with a the curious tale of comic book legend Jim Shooter and Defiant Comics.

Discover how single-minded ambition and a catalog of titles don’t necessarily spell success. Herein lies yet another cautionary tale in the history of comics and how winning the war doesn’t mean you’ve won the battle!

Hey Kids, Comics! #338 - Declaration of Independents - Malibu Kin

Apologies for the late arrival (over a week late) of this issue of the show. And the one that follows, only not quite at late. The holidays took their toll and a hiatus is planned. We hope you enjoy the latest two episodes in our latest story arc. - JediCole

Welcome to another chapter of the latest story arc that seeks to shed light on an oft forgotten period in comic book history - the age of the “big indy”!

This week Andrew Farmer and Cole Houston discuss the meteoric rise of Malibu Comics! From humble beginnings with a handful of imprints to a burgeoning force in the industry that attracted Hollywood…and Marvel Comics, this was the little big indy that could.

Discover what went wrong for this shining star in the world of publishing…or went so right and at once so wrong…