Welcome to Geektown Interviews: Darick Robertson (Part 2)

In part two of this three-part interview, we mostly focus on The New Warriors run that was Darick’s first regular gig at Marvel, and then move into more of his creator-owned work, as well as discussing the differences between collaborating vs writing and drawing all on his own.

As mentioned in the pre-show introduction, please visit somanyofus.com to understand further why I felt it necessary to preface our discussion of his work with Warren Ellis.

The opening image I mention near the beginning of the interview.

Artwork from that same issue used in the original Marvel logo before the 2001 Spider-Man (among others).

From my personal collection, an image commissioned for me by Darick back in 1999, coincidentally combining the two main books we discuss in this episode.

Welcome to Geektown Interviews: Darick Robertson (Part 1)

In this first part of my interview with legendary artist Darick Robertson, we cover his early love of comics and drawing, how he got his first creator-owned comic book, Space Beaver, published, and how that led into his first bit of work for Marvel and DC.

The guest of honor, Darick, joining me in a Zoom meeting.

Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez. Young Darick had good taste.

Fortunately, “Ten-Buck Comics” was just the company’s name.

Episode 196: Why-Men (Lesser-Known X-Men; Lady Mastermind & Omega Sentinel)

After an illness-driven break, I return with a new installment in the “Lesser-Known X-Men” series. Rogue (herself a former villain) recruited two villainous ladies (plus Sabretooth) to her team in 2006: Lady Mastermind and Omega Sentinel.  How did that end up working out? Take a listen and find out!

Lady Mastermind is a true believer in double-sided tape.

Omega Sentinel in her early “big hair” period.

And in her more recent “No hair” period.

Episode 195: Why-Men (Lesser-Known X-Men; Husk and Warpath)

Returning again to the “Lesser Known X-Men” feature (or “Why-Men” as I’m affectionately referring to it), we hit the mid-2000s with a pair of siblings, not to each other, but each one to a previously covered X-Man in this series. If you haven’t already done so, meet Husk and Warpath!

Is skin recyclable?

Again I will point out…the woman walking away: Paige’s mom. Inappropriate to say the least…

He joined the X-Men in the 2000s, but there’s a lot of 90s to Warpath…

Episode 185: Why-Men (Lesser-Known X-Men; Stacy X, Lifeguard, Slipstream, and Northstar)

Continuing to work towards completing the “Lesser Known X-Men” feature, we cover four characters this time; three short-term members, and one who is possibly well-known enough to not qualify, but is important enough to merit inclusion to make sure as many learn about him as possible.

That’s Iceman she’s talking to, before he came out of the closet.

Her New Warriors look.

Lifeguard as her powers originally manifested.

And her look after the Shi’ar DNA kicked in.

And this is how her brother reacted when he saw the “difference.” Um, overreact much?

Northstar in his John Byrne-y goodness.

Can you guess in what decade this issue came out (pun intended)?

Congrats, guys! You only get the wraparound cover for very special occasions!

Episode 184: Why-Men (Lesser Known X-Men; Xorn, Zorn, and Chamber)

Returning to my Lesser Known X-Men feature (affectionately dubbed the “Why-Men”), we break from chronological joining to cover twins who were recruited at different times, but are so close that they may as well be one character, as well as a mutant mentioned briefly in the “New Warriors Vol 4” episode of the show.

“Make me one with everything…”

As someone reading the books at the time, this was a big twist!

Zorn, as opposed to Xorn. (Babylon 5 fans, insert “Zathras” joke here)

Does he have to get his shirts custom made, or do they just do that when he puts them on?

So, apparently the lines on the face are built into Apocalypse’s DNA.

Jono as Decibel. Although at the volume he could produce, he probably should have been called Bel.

Episode 181: Why-Men (Lesser Known X-Men; Thunderbird, Mirage, and Sage)

Continuing once again with the Lesser Known X-Men feature, we’ve reached the “aughts” or the first decade of the 2000s, where we find an Indian with a Native American codename, a Native American who gets tangled up with Norse Mythology, and a spy with a computer for a brain that wants to be a superhero.

There’s not even any bird symbology to his powers. I just don’t get it.

Mirage in one of her earliest appearances.

When she became a Valkyrie, she grew up!

An early Tessa appearance (yes, all the women in the Hellfire Club basically dressed like that).

Sage as the “Woman in the Chair” mode. (Did Jubilee say it was okay to borrow her jacket?)

Episode 180: LGBT Characters in Marvel (with JennytheGeek)

Back in Episode 89, we discussed LGBT characters in DC with JennytheGeek.  Well, after three years, she’s back to discuss LGBT characters in Marvel.  From Northstar’s coming out story to the recent “Pride” issues, we touch on some of the characters we feel the most strongly about, and what Marvel is getting right and wrong in their representation.

So…much…crosshatching! Yes, this came out in the 90s.

Ah yes, waving your arms around. The universal symbol for “You’re gay.”

Deadpool and his Valentine (no really, their name is Valentine)

No subtext allowed. (And yes, there’s a reason Nightcrawler is in a modified Spider-Man costume, but you have to read the story for that explanation…)

Episode 179: Why-Men (Lesser Known X-Men; Joseph, Cecilia Reyes, Maggott and Marrow)

Wrapping up the 90s era of “Lesser Known X-Men,” we have the clone, the doctor, the sentient slugs, and the bone-wielding Morlock all joining the team, though few of them stay on the team for too long. What happened to them after? I discuss that and many other details of their lives in this episode.

You can tell he’s not the real Magneto. Erik would never look that surprised.

Welcome to the X-Men. Hope you…ow! Ow! Stop hitting me!

He’s eating for three. Actually, two are eating for him…

A little taste of Maggott’s South African accent.

Marrow’s first appearance.

And a more recent appearance. You can tell she’s the same, right?

Episode 178: Why-Men (Lesser Known X-Men; Bishop, Kwannon & Cannonball)

The 1990s was one of the best-selling eras for the X-Men comics.  But, if you didn’t read them, you might not know who Bishop, Kwannon, or Cannonball are.  Take a listen here to find out what makes each of those characters unique and what they brought to the team.

I think you might be overstating it there…A lot will be the same, trust me.

It’s not Betsy, I swear!

Revanche is a dish best served…confusingly.

Little Sam Guthrie. Not his best look…

Good idea. Cover the forehead with goggles.

Episode 176: Why-Men (Lesser Known X-Men; Dazzler and Forge)

Continuing our focus on the “Almost Famous” members of the X-Men, we wrap up the members who joined in the 80s with the Disco Queen known as Dazzler, and the Indigenous American inventor who goes by Forge.  But, before that, an important announcement about the future of the show.

Oh yeah, and she’s an expert roller skater. Just in case she wasn’t “Disco” enough for you.

Her first (but nowhere near her last) costume change.

Forge working on some Krakoan tech, showing off his cybernetic leg.

Episode 175: Who Are The New Warriors? (Volume 4)

For the sixth anniversary of Welcome to Geektown, Kurt continues looking at the history of the New Warriors.  However, this is the only incarnation of the team that does not have his favorite superhero, Speedball, as a member. Who are these new kids, and where do they get off taking the team’s name?

The team being on a different page from Night Thrasher was a common theme…

Donyell. And yes, that “…with…” is doing a lot of heavy lifting there.

If you don’t know who this is, then you should definitely be writing in with questions more…

Jubilee as a vampire (it was only a phase…)

The only member of the team who felt the need to be labeled.

Stacy X. And yes, that “blown” is doing a lot of heavy lifting there…

Chamber in his mutant form, although he got his face back when he was resurrected later.

No, you’re not (at least not yet for two of you). That’s Redneck, Radian and Tattoo in positions 1, 2, and 5 going from left to right.

Episode 174: Why-Men (Lesser Known X-Men; Rachel Summers, Longshot, Psylocke)

Our fourth in a recurring series on the less famous members of the X-Men roster, we reach the 80s, with a alternate future child, a mullet-wearing alien clone, and a body swapped telepathic ninja.  Yes, the X-Men are weird.  Take a listen to find out exactly how weird it can get!

Rachel’s had a few different looks over the years, as she went from Hound to just Rachel, to Phoenix, to Marvel Girl, to Prestige to Askani. See if you can guess which costumes apply to which code name.

Business in the front, party in the back, pouches on the belt (a trendsetter both in hair and superhero costumes).

Betsy’s also gone through many looks. I’m grateful for the cover that shows them all in one image.

Episode 160: Neurodivergent Superheroes

Based on his portrayal in the recent movie bearing his name, a listener is curious about The Flash ever having been shown on the autism spectrum before this, as well as the presence of other neurodivergent characters in the superhero realm, which is what we discuss this episode.

Link to the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network for more information on autism and other neurodiverse conditions.

Yeah, I can see it…

Oh, Reed, no…

Yes, we’ve had white suit…but what about second white suit? And third…and fourth…

He is the one that delivers…

Sniff any hair lately, Ed? (Listen to Gothamites, you’ll get it…)

Episode 154: Secret Invasion Deep Dive (Ep 1)

Who Can You Trust? Find out (or at least theorize) in this first episode of our Deep Dive into the Secret Invasion show on Disney+. Is Nick Fury really as washed up as everyone says he is, or is that just another one of his spy tricks? Special guest TrekNexus from the Beyond Trek podcast joins me as we debate that and other details from the show.

If you watch this after watching Episode 1, you’ll notice some new things you didn’t see the first time.

I say the chances of seeing something like this in the show are just about nil, but that’s okay, because this never was something that actually happened in the comics either.

No soda sipping for the original Talos…

As I say in the episode, I believe this is Gravik’s closest comic counterpart.

Episode 152: Unusual Superhero Vehicles (1 of 2) - The Spider-Mobile

For the next two episodes, we’ll look at a couple of unusual vehicles driven by famous superheroes.  We skip over the Batmobile, the Invisible Jet, and other well-known vehicles and go straight to the bizarre, starting with the wall-crawler’s ill-fated car, the Spider-Mobile.

A display with a few iterations of the Batmobile inspired our listener’s missive.

I feel like the “Spidey” license plate is redundant. And also probably not an actual NY license plate.

…with a vengance!

You can’t get rid of it that easily, Spidey!

It will haunt you forever…

The Spider-Verse is a little nuts.

Episode 149: The Why-Men (Lesser-Known X-Men; Banshee, Sunfire, & Thunderbird)

Continuing our look at some of the less-famous X-Men roster, we’ve reached the Giant-Sized issue that reinvented the team, and the three members who never quite reached the fame of their compatriots like Nightcrawler, Colossus, Storm, and Wolverine.

Only one of the three we discuss even makes the cover. That’s got to hurt.

Banshee in one of his early villainous appearances.

…and what he looks like after joining the good guys. Amazing how much more attractive heroes are.

Sean in his “Horseman of Death” aspect.

And now as “Vox Ignis.”

Welcome to the team!

Well, that was quick…

The always pleasant to be around John Proudstar…

Welcome to the X-Men, John! Hope you survive the…Oh. Never mind.

45 years later…finally back!

Episode 145: Who is Kang? (aka Rama-Tut, aka Immortus, aka…)

Kang the Conqueror makes his first full appearance in the MCU with Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quantumania, which came out earlier this weekend. But who is Kang, and what makes him so threatening that he’ll be the next Big Bad after Thanos? Learn his comic book history, including his many aliases by listening to this episode.

Damn, early 60s Janet is thirsty! Also, thank you Marvel Studios for adapting the Kang Lounge Chair.

Narrator voice: No, he is not.

Why you hittin’ yourself? Why you hittin’ yourself?

Okay. Maybe early 60s Janet had a point…

Just a few of the Avengers seen in “Avengers Forever.” Go read it!

Episode 140: S.H.I.E.L.D., H.A.M.M.E.R., S.W.O.R.D., and Other Marvel Acronym Agencies

Sure, S.W.O.R.D. and S.H.I.E.L.D. make sense together.  But, where did H.A.M.M.E.R. come from?  S.T.R.I.K.E.? W.A.N.D.? And what the heck does U.L.T.I.M.A.T.U.M. stand for? This episode, we go through various groups in the Marvel Universe that use acronyms and go through some of their history.

Total Recall totally ripped the “gun in the x-ray” off!

SHIELD’s first Director after 40 years of Fury…Maria Hill.

Tony doing his best to get in on that sweet Bond action.

Norman Osborn was going through a bit of a “What if I was played by Tommy Lee Jones” phase.

Until they gave her the gauntlets, I had a hard time telling Daisy and Maria apart. How about you?

If by “markedly different,” you mean “treasonous,” then you’re spot on!

Abigail Brand, Director of SWORD. With her sometime boyfriend Beast behind her (to her right, our left).

Episode 127: She-Hulk - A Deep Dive (Episode 1)

As should be obvious by now, I love the character of She-Hulk, so I’m going to be diving into her “fun lawyer show” on Disney+, along with guest Andy Wilson from the Kiss Your Franchise Goodbye podcast.  In this first episode, we get Jen’s super heroic origin story, and we learn more about Captain America than we may have wanted…