Flashback: Ep 21: Identity Crisis
Saturday, January 6, 2007 ;)
WE’RE BAA-AACK! Thank God. After what seemed like forever and a day us guys finally got back together in the store and recorded a new show. We’re recording on Thursdays now between 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. while the store is open. We’ll have an spare microphone set-up during the show. If any of our listeners/customers want to chime in on our topic of discussion you’ll be more than welcome too.
On this episode we talk about one of DC Comics greatest stories ever told, Identity Crisis. Not to be confused with the horrible Infinite Crisis. Identity Crisis was written by Brad Meltzer, penciled by Rags Morales, inked by Michael Bair, colored by Brian Sinclair and lettered by Kenny Lopez.
Runtime: hour minutes seconds
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Reader Comments (16)
Aww man, why all the hate? Just want to hear an even amount of coverage of comic companies, because its a "comic book" show. How can you talk ill of Infinite Crisis?
Huy, you drive me nuts. I may have been a little harsh. Its all in good fun though. Trust me. You know we love you. And we really take all comments to heart. Besides we all loved IC and if it weren't for you we may not have had the idea to express our love. We got more non DC/M stuff coming up soon too, but when the majority of comics come out on DC/M that, unfortunately or not is gonna be what the majority of discussion is about.
Oh, and I have never read Infinite Crisis (and most likely never will) so don't look at me for that one.
Again, Thanks.
It's all good! I know it was all for fun. I was probably a bit peeved because all the hate for Infinite Crisis and JLA's "Crisis of Conscience". I really wanted to join you guys for Identity Crisis. Maybe a talk about KINGDOM COME!
I'm all for a talk on Kingdom Come. I have no idea what "Crisis of Conscience" is. Hey Huy, you like the 52 stuff too don't you? We may be doing a 52 success discussion as well maybe when its over.
Nice work fellas.
Growing up with Marvel and being a Marvel Zombie Identity Crisis helped me get into the DC universe. Infinite Crisis wasn't as bad as you guys make it out to be, it helped keep me in the DC universe to see how things turned out but DC blew it with One Year Later. I'm still with 52 only because I'm a "completist" (is that even a word?) and I would like to see who Supernova is. Guess I'm going to have to read Kingdom Come.
Great discussion! Especially the last 10-15 minute talking about Green Arrow.
I think the 2 things that stood out to me in the book (I read it about 6 months ago, off the shelf sitting in Barnes & Noble during a lunch break - don't tell anyone) were the funeral and the way Ralph Dibney had trouble holding himself together - and that Deathstroke fight scene. It's pretty awesome when you don't have superspeed but can take out the Flash (am I remembering that right?)
Anyway - loved this one...
Dear Will,
You should definitely read Kingdom Come.
love,
Adam
Finally got me some back issues and listened to the first few podcasts (before the Movie ones that got me hooked).
I've got one thing to say:
Awesome stuff!!
I listened to the continuity podcast first, and I think you guys are right on - it's all about good writing. I think it's easy to handle things when they're not in perfect continuity, as long as the writing is great. Unfortunately, most of the time screwing up continuity isn't about good writers taking license to write a good story, it's about sloppy writing.
And the discussion about Stan Lee was hilarious. I'm right there with Flaco - and that's one of the reasons I've always been more into DC. A lot of the Marvel stuff I've picked up over the years has been utter crap. I know that I've probably missed the good stories, and that DC has their share of bad ones, but making Stan Lee a figurehead when he's doing such great stuff as Stripperella and Who Wants To Be a Superhero? just drags down the company (regardless if they're involved with those properties or not) along with the whole medium.
I have to confess that I sat through the whole first season of Superhero and it was garbage. I had to link to this specific podcast though, since I just complained that they're doing a 2nd season, and they're now taking auditions.
The sad thing is that comic books boil down to being a business, and when it becomes about making money (which a business is), that always dilutes the art. When people sit around in a room to discuss the next big project, it's not about "what can we make that will be really great, really high quality, and just attract a lot of people because it's all about good stories?"; it's about "what's going to make a buttload of money?"
Sorry to rant for awhile...I guess that's why I like listening to Flaco so much...it's all about the passion.
Ok, so I discovered your podcast a few weeks ago and just got finished listening to the first 33. Good stuff for sure... but THIS one about Identity Crisis is the absolute best! I think the smaller group dynamic worked really well and having a specific event arc to discuss kept things focused. Great job...
Wow. The first 33? So I'm curious did you start from one and go up or the most recent and go down? Or did you hear a recent one and then go to the beginning and work your way to current. I'm just saying I jump on a lot of podcasts in the middle too and I go back and listen to the earlier stuff, but I don't think I've ever gone that far back. Thanks for listening to them all.
As far as size of the cast goes I think we've got it down to a steady 5(4) with the occasional 6(5)th coming into the mix. You're right about the story arc thing too. That was fun. We have a Kingdom Come in there too, but we haven't done one of those in awhile. I'll look into that in the near future. If you have any ideas for a story arc to cover let us know.
Do people check comments this far back for responses?
Hey Justin,
I remember recording that show and it being lots of fun. I had just read Identity Crisis for the first time and loved it. It totally turned me back on to DC characters. I like to think I'm a bigger Marvel fan now but I'm finding that I'm buying more DC stuff lately.
I appreciate the kind words on small group dynamics. Thanks for listening and you're gonna love the Joker show.
Kris
Adam, well I found the Dollar Bin cast while searching iTunes for comic-related podcasts. This one was pretty highly rated and the comments were good. So I subscribed and I picked a few that looked really interesting from the descriptions. I think the first one I listened too was the one where you guys discussed collecting and Flaco recounted his trip to a con in Savannah with some friends. They all picked up Superman 75 and when they got home, no one wanted to crack the polybag... except Flaco. Classic stuff that had me rollin'. After that I downloaded the first 33 and listened straight through starting from #1 on my morning and evening commutes. Yeah, the Kingdom Come cast was awesome too -- that one was right up there with the Identity Crisis cast for me. Really well done...
Kris, right on man. I hadn't read Identity Crisis either but the podcast was so awesome, it made me seek it out. I'm reading right now and really enjoying it. I've always been way more focused on Marvel too... and Batman.
Identity Crisis is easily one of the worst DC comics ever.
Why?
Because I refuse to believe that the ex wife of the Atom could find out the secret identity of Robin.
How did she do this?
Help from the Calculator?
Because she knew that Bruce Wayne was Batman?
This comic is stupid.
STUPID.
There are just too many stupid things that I refuse to believe in this story.
Like the Silver Age just suddenly pops back into continuity. Bullshit. That alone should have sent everyones head on fire.
From fucking out of nowhere, everyone is calling everyone else by their first name.
Bullshit.
So just cause Batman and Superman aren't at each others throats now doesn't mean the Atoms ex wife knows who Tim Drake is!
See if this doesn't sound completely insane to you.
The Atom's ex-wife sends a gun to Tim Drakes dad, because she's hired the Boomarang thru The Calculator to have them fight.
Ok.
Sure.
Let's just all say we're cool with the DCU suddenly going all Pre Crisis.
And that at one time Batman smiled.
And he allowed other people to know his secret identity.
Ok, let's just say that happened.
But we also have to acknowledge that even if at one point in time Batman was a smiling happy hero, he has become a darker person.
And why is that?
Just what do you think might have made him go from jumping on giant typewriters to sitting alone in a cave obsessing over his dead parents like some pussy emo?
Perhaps Jason Todd getting bludgeoned with a crowbar and blown up?
Now I'm not gonna sit here a type that I've read every Batman comic. Or every issue of Robin. Was Bruce Wayne showing up in the tabloids with Tim Drake? Something that someone who knew that Bruce Wayne was Batman could put together?
Do you really think there is any chance in hell that Jean Loring could find out who Robin is, and find out who his dad is, and where they live?
Sure.
It's seems easy.
When you factor in the other reason why this book is fucking retarded.
The Atom just leaves one of his spare suits in his closet.
Under some old issues of Playboy.
No big deal.
Really?
Come on.....
I refuse to believe that The Atom would tell his wife who all these heroes are.
Even if it's a case of loose lips after sex, don't you think he'd tell everyone else "Hey ya'll, ummm. My wife knows who all you are under those masks." Then maybe they would have had to mind wipe her as well.
I don't buy it.
Even if she did know all this shit.
Even if she found Atoms suit and put it on, and then used it to discover Tim Drakes dads place of residence, and then somehow met the Calculator and set all this up.
Even if all this shit happened just because she wanted to get back with her husband................
because she's crazy.
At any point in time didn't she think, this is gonna piss off Batman.
Even if no one was supposed to die.
Even she know's that Batman is a crazy awesome detective. And could have found out that she did it.
Only one person is crazy enough to fuck with Batman, and last time I checked Jean Lorings hair isn't green.
Even if you buy into all this crazy crap, this book sucks for a different reason all together.
Infinite Crisis was shit.
I remember when the series was like half way over, and it was so gloomy and mean and shitty.
I kept hearing online and in the comic shops that Earth 2 Superman was gonna save the day and the DCU was gonna be on it's way back to having fun comics again. No more bitchy whiny heroes anymore.
But then Superman E2 died.
Then Identity Crisis came out.
And fanboys everywhere shot their load over it.
And dark gloomy sitting in the corner whining for their mommy and daddy comics became the order of the day.
When superheroes stop fighting villains and saving people, and only fight each other and their inner demons, they aren't super heroes any more.
There is nothing heroic about that.
And I stopped buying DC Comics.
Actually...Indentity Crisis was released from June to December of 2004 and Infinite Crisis started in December of 2005 running until the summer of 2006. So while I have no argument that Infinite Crisis was indeed shit that has nothing to do with Identity Crisis.
And this was really a book about the satellite era Justice Leaguers and if you read any of that time period everyone did pretty much know who everyone else was and they acted like a big group of friends who just happened to be super heroes together. So based on that, Atom telling her things that he now wouldn't or her knowing a lot about the identies of some of his coworkers is not far fetched it is actually in continuity. But...I'll give you that she shouldn't have known about Tim Drake's dad as he enters things much later on and that smells more like DC wanting to change things for Robin than things making sense in that story.
Brian said basically what I was going to say. Also I'll toss in that Identity Crisis was one of the first books I read getting back into comics and one of the books that got me back into comics. Based on this fact I will then point out that continuity meant shit to me at the time so it all came out clean in the wash. Maybe I'll give it another shot now that I'm like all jaded and shit.
Good call Brian.
DC has just become one big crappy blur to me now.
Except for the Jonah Hex book.