In our final episode for 2013, Billy Z, Bryan and Justin are pleased to welcome Ed Catto of Captain Action Enterprises to the show! Captain Action has a special place in history as being the very first super-hero action figure.  Ed takes us through the history of the character and his appearances in comic books past and present, including the current Codename Action mini-series written by Chris Roberson and published by Dynamite Entertainment. Ed is also a partner and co-founder of the Bonfire Agency, a marketing firm centered around helping companies connect directly with genre markets. And since we are close to the holidays, favorite comic-related yuletide gifts work their way into the conversation.

In the second part of the episode, the bear boys go through their favorites of 2013. Uncanny Avengers. Avengers Arena. Forever Evil. Saga. Hawkeye. Batman. The Fifth Beatle. Captain Midnight. All-New X-Men. Jonathan Hickman. Brian Michael Bendis. Charles Soule. Matt Fraction. Chip Zdarsky. Ramon Perez. David Aja. Chris Samnee. Afterlife with Archie. Injustice. Something Terrible. Will any of these be among our favorites? Well, you'll just have to listen in to find out! (And see if you can catch where Bill invents a new word to describe the people who put pencil to paper to draw the pretty pictures.)

Brother Bryan is out celebrating so Billy Z and Justin welcome William Lindus from the Movie Bears Podcast to the CBBears Den to fill the third seat! Will lets us in on his history reading comics then we get into current comics talk.  You'll hear us rap about Saga, Earth 2, Forever Evil, Year Zero, Animal Man, Scooby Doo Team Up, Fearless Defenders, Avengers Arena, Longshot Saves the Marvel Universe (... again), X-Men: Legacy, Hawkeye, Amazing X-Men, Infinity, Inhumanity, The Fifth Beatle, the trailer for The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Gal Gadot cast as Wonder Woman, Alan Moore and Watchmen.  All this plus a huge tangent about lousy haircut and facial hair choices in our collective past, Justin thinks Watchmen is boring and the movie was better, Bill can't pronounce "Moira Queen" to save his life and this episode is probably the only time you will hear Alan Moore being compared to Faye Dunaway.

A word about the sound quality - for some reason when we recorded Bill was way over modulated and Will was a bit under modulated.  We fixed it as best as we could in the mix to mono.  If it is distracting, we still hope you will stick around because we think we get into some quality funny book conversation.

The CBBears are pleased to have special guest Paul Kupperberg on for an interview during the first hour of our latest episode!  Paul is currently the writer of the best selling Life with Archie magazine from Archie Comics.  He also authored the first young adult prose novel featuring Kevin Keller.  Paul has written over 900 stories for Marvel, Charlton, 2000 AD, Bongo and most prominently for DC Comics, where he created Checkmate and Arion, Lord of Atlantis.  We touch on all of these as well as Paul's new novel from Crazy 8 Press, The Same Old Story and other upcoming projects.  Then the boys get into some new comic talk.  Wanna hear what we think about Afterlife with Archie #2, Longshot Saves the Marvel Universe, Green Lantern Corps #25, Harley Quinn #0, Captain Midnight, Triple Helix, X-Men: Gold, Rocket Girl and other recent books? Then listen in. (EXPLICIT WARNING - yeah, we let out a few cuss words here and there, shame on us.)

Collected editions are up first in the episode as Billy Z, Justin and Bryan are joined by former DC Comics collected editions editor Bob Joy! Bob offers up his insights into collected editions and discusses his experiences editing various books during his tenure at DC. Then we shift over to news of DC's move to Burbank and the passing of Nick Cardy.  From there we go into current comic talk, discussing Battle of the Atom, Infinity and Amazing X-Men from Marvel, Sex Criminals and Velvet from Image and DC's Forever Evil. At various points in the cast you will also hear us discuss tranny Jimmy Olsen, Spooky Bear in Provincetown, the Skip Ender's Game events, Greg Rucka, DC Showcase Presents releases, Supergirl as a teen model, the late 70's New Gods revival by Gerry Conway and Don Newton, The Adventures of Superman radio show, Ed McGuinness, Afterlife with Archie and a helluva lot more.

In the mood to play a drinking game as you listen? Then take a shot every time Billy Z says "esoteric".

Billy Z, Bryan and Justin are joined this time by a host of straight guys for a wrap up of New York Comic Con 2013! Lonnie Ruland of New World Manga, The Line it is Drawn and Back Issue magazine contributor John Trumbull and Rob Staeger of The Village Voice join Billy for a rundown of their con experiences.  Then the whole gang joins in, first for a talk about growing up on Saturday morning TV in honor of the passing of Lou Scheimer then they hit the spinner rack for dem funny books! IDW Artists Editions, Code Monkey Saves World, Jules Feiffer, Dan DiDio, Jason of Star Command, Sex Criminals, Green Arrow #24, Jupiter's Legacy, Ark II, Letter 44, Afterlife with Archie all get discussed along with so much more! There's a little bit of football talk - yes Virginia, there are gay men who like football - and ... wait for it ...  Monchhichis!!!

The bear boys welcome author and columnist Charles Baserap.  Charles is a regular contributor to forcesofgeek.com and nerdtopiacast.com and he takes us through some of his interests in comics and topics of recent columns.  After that, the discussion turns to Marvel's Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series and some other genre TV talk, Dean Trippe's Something Terrible, DC Villains Month, the latest Infinity and X-Men goings on at Marvel, Mike Carey and The Unwritten and quick takes on Sex Criminals, Jupiter's Legacy, Sidekick, The Star Wars and Kings Watch.  And this episode is closed out by our uncoolest outro music yet.

In our latest episode the bear boys welcome Rob Kelly, author of the new book HEY KIDS! COMICS, a great collection of contributions from a varied set of essayists discussing how comic books played a significant role in their lives. In addition to the book Rob also discusses ACE KILROY, a webcomic he writes.  And as Rob is the force behind the AQUAMAN SHRINE website, you know Billy Z wasn't going to have Rob guest on the show without some Arthur Curry talk.  After that, Bryan, Justin and Billy Z shift over to current comics with The Young Protectors webcomic, Battle of the Atom, Infinity, DC Villains Month books (including some talk about the hot bears of the New 52), X-Men Legacy, X-O Manowar and Eternal Warrior each getting their time in the spotlight.  You can hear all this plus, for once, the boys somehow do not venture off into Explicit Contentville! 

The Comic Book Bears boys are back with their first episode as part of the Earth 2 Podcast Network! First up, the guys reintroduce themselves then immediately cross over to crossover talk.  Bryan, Justin and Billy Z weigh in on the current big events from the Big 2 - Infinity, Forever Evil, Trinity War and Battle of the Atom.  Captain America, Thor: God of Thunder, Batman Incorporated, JH Williams leaving Batwoman, DC editorial woes, and the Relic and Joker books from Villains Months then get their turn in the spotlight.  Lastly, Justin and Billy Z tell of their experiences at Baltimore Comic Con. There's a lot of spoilers, a little bit of cussing and a whole lot of superhero talk in this one!

Billy Z, Justin and Bryan come back atcha with 90+ minutes about what's going on over in the Big 2's team books these days. The Avengers, Justice League, X-Men, Legion and Green Lantern Corps families of titles each get their time in the spotlight, touching  on the New Universe, Hunger, Constantine, Injustice: Gods Among Us and What If: AVX in the process. After the team talk subsides Thor: God of Thunder, Batman/Superman, Captain America, Batman 66, Satellite Sam and Hawkeye Annual #1 each go under the hirsuite homo microscope. All this plus shout-outs to Earth 2 Podcast, Flame On!, Furgasm, Victor Dandridge's 8-Bit Challenge and Bergen Street Comics.  And ... weight loss discussions?

EXPLICIT CONTENT (Yup, there's one or two cuss words in the mix from these potty mouths.)

Your bear boys Justin, Bryan and Billy Z are back with a new episode! First up, Man of Steel gets the Comic Book Bears once over. After that, our first guest straight bear Lonnie Ruland of the excellent New Jersey shop New World Manga joins the discussion to talk about news from the DC Retailers Roadshow he attended. Lonnie and Bill were both in attendance at the recent AnimeNEXT convention in NJ and they discuss their con experiences.  The con talk continues with Bryan's experiences at HeroesCon which include his moderating a Kicstarter panel. DC Villains Month, Vertigo, digital comics, Neal Adamas, Jim Steranko and the History of Comics, Scooby Doo team-ups, The Carter Family: Don't Forget This Song, the connection between rock and roll and comics, Brian Epstein, Fearless Defenders, The End Times of Bram and Ben, Mind the Gap and Justice League of America's Vibe - they are all in the mix here. Lastly, this episode is dedicated to the memory of Patience Michael Allen.

Justin is back ... and bionic!  What's on the docket with all three of our boys back in the den? Let's see - Bill visits Bryan in Orlando, Beareoke, A Comic Shop, Paul McCartney and seeing acts kick off tours in Florida, Justin under the knife, Uncanny Avengers, Rogue, Wasp (Slutty Jan), Wonder Man, the rest of the current Avengers world, "Pushing Justin Buttons",  Hickman's Fantastic Four and FF, X-Men #1, Green Lantern #20, Robert Venditti, Legion of Super-Heroes, LEGO Batman - The Movie: DC Super Heroes Unite, Superman Unbound, Supergirl #20, Jae Lee, Simonson's run on Fantastic Four, the Harras era Avengers, All-Star Superman, Sandman, Doctor Who, Len Wein's Justice League of America, the Christine Spar Grendel, Fear Itself, classic X-Men Crossovers, Atlantis Attacks, Operation Galactic Storm, Millennium, Day of Judgment, Our Worlds At War, Acts of Vengeance, Crisis on Infinite Earths, Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E., Armageddon 2001, Days of Future Present, Private Eye, Low Concept 3 (and how it can be hazardous to your health), Injustice: Gods Among Us for the iPad, Marvel video games, Daredevil #26, the writers of 52, HeroesCon, Ryan Browne, Deborah Cox (if just to prove we are still gay men), a secret identity reveal on Flame On, Mike's Amazing World of Comics and Bill owns how many DC Comics?

As Brother Justin deals with a rainy ride home, this time around it is only Billy Z and Bryan occupying the bear den. A two hour long gabfest revolving around Bill's time at C2E2, b-one #7 by Bobgar Ornelas, 3-D comics, Steve Bryant, Steed and Mrs. Peel, Captain Britain, digital comics, Marvel Masterworks and Omnibus editions, Mattel Retro-Action figues, Burt Ward and Julie Newmar, Star Wars: Legacy, The Bible 2, Free Comic Book Day, Infinity, Oni's The Strangers, Captain Midnight, The Stuff of Legend, Age of Ultron, Bryan Hitch, Captain America, Cable and X-Force, Daredevil, Iron Man, Superior Spider-Man, Detective Comics #19, Action Comics #19, Animal Man, Parker and Samnee's Adventures of Superman, Batman Incorporated, Jupiter's Legacy, East of West, Lost Vegas, JMS, Movie Bear Podcast, Kickstarters from Jontahan Coulton and I See Dragons, Charlie Harding, Husker Du and the sheer awesomeness of Wendi Freeman and the Double Page Spread Podcast!

Billy Z, Bryan and Justin are back with a convention centered ep with a healthy dose of Star Wars talk!  Justin went to the Tri-State Comic Con in Huntington, West Virginia as Bill headed to Asbury Park Comic Con in his home state of New Jersey and they fill us in on meetings, purchases and going on.  Then Bryan joins in on the current comic talk.  East of West #1, Batgirl #19 and the trans reveal, Billy Tucci, Dia De Los Muertos, All-New X-Men, Ambush Bug, Sam Ita's amazing pop up books, Ace Kilroy, ModHero, Age of Ultron, Superior Spider-Man #6AU, Guardians of the Galaxy #1, Star Wars: Legacy, Injustice, Hawkeye, DC's upcoming villains month, No Gods and Dustin Carson, Karate Kid, Dan DiDio, Brian Wood's Star Wars, Adhouse Books - they're all in there.  Plus, why Batman and Red Robin #19 brought out Grumpy Bill.

Bryan offers up his tales of this year's MeganCon in Orlando with Dean Cain, Neal Adams, Barret Biggs, Charlie Thurston, Benjamin Butler, Rod Roddenberry and (surprise) Ramon Perez working their way into the mix.  Afterwards we discuss the changes to Adventures of Superman #1, get into some X-Men talk (All-New X-Men, Uncanny X-Men, Wolverine, 80's Captain Britain by Alan Davis), Action Comics #18, Nova #2, Rom and the Spaceknights, Marvel events, disagreement on Fearless Defenders, Batman & Robin #18, the original end sequence for Batman Inc. #8, Lost Vegas, Thor: God of Thunder, Manhattan Projects, The Private Eye, Doctor Who comics, Winter Soldier #15, Peter Cannon Thunderbolt #6, the awesomeness of The Rocketeer, Comixology freebies, Asbury Comic Con, It's a Bird It's a Plane It's Superman, the Earth-2 Podcast and a look back at comics from 1993. All that plus Kickstarters (Veronica Mars, Alan White's Power Principle) that we are keeping our eyes on and our dream pieces of original art.

The new episode starts off with a more indie vibe than usual with Billy Z and Bryan covering Prophet, Red Team, Lost Vegas, Sex, Rocketeer: Hollywood Horror, The Shadow:Year One and the wrap up of Grant Morrison and Darick Robertson's Happy.  Then Justin joins in and the boys pull Batman Inc #8, Legion of Super-Heroes #17, the first issues of Justice League of America and Vibe, Hellblazer #300, Nova #1 (and how Jeph Loeb can be irritating) and Guardians of the Galaxy #0.1 off of the spinner rack and discuss.  This episode also marks the first appearance of Drunk Billy on the show!

Orson Scott Card's upcoming story arc on the new Adventures of Superman was all over the news and the Comic Book Bears boys weigh in on the controversy for most of the episode. They still get in some new comics talk and cover Batman #17, New Avengers, a bad bearish hottie in Earth 2, Rotworld, Batman and Robin Annual #1, Wolverine and the X-Men, Secret Avengers #1, Batman Incorporated, Ramon Perez, FF, Green Arrow #17, Uncanny X-Men, Uncanny Avengers, New Avengers, Hawkeye #7, Legion Lost #16, Sword of Sorcery and creative changes in the Green Lantern titles.  They also weigh in with what they think would be great TV shows based on comic properties.  Flame On, Art and Franco and Aw Yeah Comics and our new friends at BearNerd get some love. Plus Bryan offers up some tales of comic shopping while on the road for work and Billy Z and Justin disagree BIG TIME about a nearly two year old anniversary comic.

Our good friend New Mutant rejoins us for a special roundtable.  Bryan, Justin, Billy Z and Alan go over each of their all-time favorite titles and choose their three favorite issues!  Some clues to the choices - Kitty Pryde, Timber Wolf, Apocalypse and The Shade.  Then we serve up some new comics talk with All-New X-Men, New Avengers and the end of Remender's Uncanny X-Force on the menu.  We also talk about Alan's Power Principle, Flame On, Twilight(!), Superman apparel,  cosplay and The World's Strongest Mailman.  And then everyone talks about BillyZ for five minutes. (Sorry, there are a few Skype drop outs on this ep that we couldn’t work around.)

Bryan returns to the den to give us his bests of for 2012, followed by a discussion of our comic related holiday swag, our expectations for 2013 and a quick dive into what we are currently reading.

Hickman. Remender. Bendis. Ramon Perez. Prophet. Deathmatch. Joe Shuster's fetish art. Justice League. Legos. Superman. Batwoman. Thunderbolts. Secret Avengers. The Shade. FF. George Takei in Kevin Keller. Morrison's Happy.  All-New X-Men.  Indestructible Hulk. They're all in there!