The Comic Book Pick of the Week plus Comic Book Creator Interviews and Reviews
It’s the 21st annual iFanboy All Media Year End Roundup! Conor Kilpatrick, Josh Flanagan, and special guest Ron Richards discuss some of what they enjoyed in media in this, the year that was 2025. Movies, television, music, podcasts, books, and comics — it’s all here!
Note: Timecodes are subject to change depending on dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
Running Time: 02:54:30
Movies:
00:02:35 – The Year in Movies
00:06:19 – Sinners
00:09:45 – One Battle After Another
00:12:30 – Superman
00:14:43 – Hamnet
00:16:39 – Caught Stealing
00:19:24 – The Naked Gun
00:22:46 – Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery
00:26:03 – Lurker
00:27:24 – Mickey 17
00:28:37 – Train Dreams
00:31:26 – Jay Kelly
00:34:02 – Blue Moon
00:37:36 – Nouvelle Vague
00:40:48 – Nuremberg
00:44:58 – Weapons
Television:
00:47:45 – The Year in Television
00:49:07 – The Pitt
00:50:31 – The Gilded Age
00:54:25 – Slow Horses
00:57:16 – The Lowdown
01:00:28 – The Beast in Me
01:03:22 – English Teacher
01:05:13 – Andor: A Star Wars Story
01:07:32 – Alien: Earth
01:11:16 – Paradise
01:12:56 – Death By Lightning
01:19:47 – The Residence
01:21:38 – The Studio
01:23:05 – Dept. Q
01:25:59 – Dying For Sex
01:28:49 – The Conners
Music:
01:32:54 – “Who Is the Sky?” by David Byrne
01:33:34 – Who is the Sky? Tour by David Byrne at Radio City Music Hall in New York, New York
01:34:30 – Hamilton: An American Musical at Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York, New York
01:38:22 – Suffs The Musical at Hollywood Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles, California
01:39:35 – Pulp Live 2025 by Pulp at Queens Forest Hills Stadium in Forest Hills, New York
01:41:51 – “God Save The Gun” by Militarie Gun
01:43:08 – “Antidepressants” by Suede
01:44:28 – “Alive in the Catacombs” by Queens of the Stone Age
01:45:45 – The Catacombs Tour by Queens of the Stone Age at Boch Center Wang Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts
01:49:05 – Oasis: Live ’25 by Oasis at The Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California
01:50:14 – “Yell at Cloud” by PLOSIVS
Books:
01:51:49 – The Year in Books
01:52:20 – “Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live” by Susan Morrison
01:55:20 – “Lollapalooza: The Uncensored Story of Alternative Rock’s Wildest Festival” by Richard Bienstock & Tom Beaujour
01:58:41 – “All Systems Red: The Murderbot Diaries” By Martha Wells
02:00:10 – “Gai-Jin: The Epic Novel of the Birth of Modern Japan” by James Clavell
02:03:30 – “Perfidia: A Novel” by James Ellroy
02:05:16 – “The Ship Beneath the Ice: The Discovery of Shackleton’s Endurance” by Mensun Bound
02:09:42 – “To Kill a Troubadour: A Mystery of the French Countryside” by Martin Walker
02:10:34 – “The Name of This Band is R.E.M.: A Biography” by Peter Ames Carlin
02:14:21 – “The Impossible Fortune: A Thursday Murder Club Mystery” by Richard Osman
02:15:22 – The Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro Series by Dennis Lehane
Podcasts:
02:18:34 – “The Town” with Matt Belloni
02:20:48 – “Blank Check” with Griffin Newman & David Sims
02:23:29 – “The Rest is Entertainment” with Marina Hyde & Richard Osman
02:24:54 – “Gone South” with Jed Lipinski
02:27:44 – “Mike & Tom Eat Snacks” with Michael Ian Black & Tom Cavanagh
02:30:21 – “Fly on the Wall” with Dana Carvey & David Spade
02:31:46 – “Nudgecast: The Official Podcast of Nudge Magazine” with Ian Jacoby & Shane Told
Comics:
02:38:16 – Batman & Robin: Year One
02:39:11 – Wonder Woman
02:40:29 – Absolute Wonder Woman
02:41:19 – Assorted Crisis Events
02:43:04 – Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell
02:43:43 – Usagi Yojimbo
02:44:31 – Fantastic Four
02:45:39 – Uncanny Valley
02:46:41 – Redcoat
02:47:40 – Supergirl
More From Ron Richards:
• Listen to Android Faithful!
• If you’re into pinball, check out Scorbit!
Brought To You By:
Music:
“Mele Kalikimaka [feat. Shannon McGill]”
Slowey and The Boats
LISTEN TO THE IFANBOY 2025 ALL MEDIA YEAR END PLAYLIST!
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Thanks to our awesome Patrons, we’re proud to present another Booksplode!
This month, Conor Kilpatrick, Josh Flanagan and special guest Dr. Ryan Haupt take a look at…
The Private Eye by Brian K. Vaughan, Marcos Martin, & Muntsa Vicente!
Running Time: 00:44:58
What’s a Booksplode? It’s a bi-monthly special edition show in which we take a look at a single graphic novel or collected edition, something we really just don’t have time to do on the regular show.
Music:
“California Christmas”
Switchfoot
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It’s iFanboy 20/25 — 20 years of podcasting and 25 years of iFanboy!
It’s the final Pick of the Week of the year, and while it might not have been one of the best weeks of books in recent memory, Conor Kilpatrick and Josh Flanagan close out 2025 on a high note with comics talk, show stats, a college story, and live tech support! We’ll see you in 2026!
Note: Time codes are estimates due to dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
Running Time: 01:08:18
Pick of the Week:
00:02:41 – Nova: Centurion #2
Comics:
00:12:23 – Absolute Batman #15
00:21:18 – Assorted Crisis Events #7
00:27:03 – Marvel Knights: The Punisher #3
00:31:59 – Supergirl #8
00:34:28 – The Amazing Spider-Man #981 (17)
00:42:12 – Aquaman #12
00:43:31 – Geiger #19
Patron Pick:
00:45:56 – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #13
Patron Thanks:
00:52:24 – Keith Robinson
Looking Back at 2025:
00:54:19 – Picks of the Week: By The Numbers
Brought To You By:
Music:
“Ribbons & Bows”
Kacey Musgraves
Watch The iFanboy After Show for Pick of the Week #1007!
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron on their other show Goodfellas Minute.
Listen to Conor and Ron reminisce about Goodfellas Minute on Sporadicast: An Oral History of Movies by Minutes.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss Blade (1998) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Fargo on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Listen to Conor discuss Swingers on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Watch Ron talk about pinball technology on the Daily Tech News Show.
Listen to Conor discuss Ghostbusters on Movie of the Year: 1984.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss The Crow (1994) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Jaws 4: The Revenge (1987) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) on Cradle to the Grave.
Watch Josh and Conor talk about how to start a podcast on OpenWater.
Listen to Ron talk about The Phantom Menace minute 80 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about Return of the Jedi minute 124 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Conor talk about Return of the Jedi minute 104 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about The Empire Strikes Back minute 115 on Star Wars Minute.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It’s iFanboy 20/25 — 20 years of podcasting and 25 years of iFanboy!
It's the penultimate Pick of iFanboy 20/25. We've got key parties, unacceptable drawstring pants, the mysteries of both Captain Atom and Cobra Commander, plus more!
Note: Time codes are estimates due to dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
Running Time: 01:07:37
Pick of the Week:
00:01:52 - Giant-Size Criminal #1
Comics:
00:10:54 - Trigger Warning: A Strangers in Paradise Story
00:18:57 - Batman #4
00:24:17 - DC K.O.: Superman vs. Captain Atom #1
00:29:00 - G.I. Joe #15
00:34:35 - Birds of Prey #28
00:42:04 - Fantastic Four #732 (6)
Patron Pick:
00:44:19 - Hulk: Smash Everything #1
Patron Thanks:
00:50:54 - Malcolm Eller
Listener Mail:
00:52:33 - Arashikage / Storm Shadow update!
00:55:22 - Jonathan B. from Baltimore, Maryland is thinking about comics in the shared bathroom.
Brought To You By:
Music:
“All I Want for Christmas is You”
Spike and the Gimme Gimmes
Watch The iFanboy After Show for Pick of the Week #1006!
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron on their other show Goodfellas Minute.
Listen to Conor and Ron reminisce about Goodfellas Minute on Sporadicast: An Oral History of Movies by Minutes.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss Blade (1998) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Fargo on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Listen to Conor discuss Swingers on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Watch Ron talk about pinball technology on the Daily Tech News Show.
Listen to Conor discuss Ghostbusters on Movie of the Year: 1984.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss The Crow (1994) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Jaws 4: The Revenge (1987) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) on Cradle to the Grave.
Watch Josh and Conor talk about how to start a podcast on OpenWater.
Listen to Ron talk about The Phantom Menace minute 80 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about Return of the Jedi minute 124 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Conor talk about Return of the Jedi minute 104 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about The Empire Strikes Back minute 115 on Star Wars Minute.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
iFanboy celebrated its landmark 1000th episode with a quadruple-sized extravaganza! Josh Flanagan, Conor Kilpatrick, and Ron Richards were joined by special guests Gordon the Intern, Dr. Ryan Haupt, Jim Viscardi, Tom King, Chris Eliopoulos, Mike Norton, and Brian Michael Bendis… and thus, they didn’t answer as many emails as they normally would have. So they’re back to answer more!
Running Time: 02:00:47
Audience Questions:
00:02:26 – The tradition continues as iFanboy fields questions from the loyal iFanbase!
Music:
“The Magic Bullet Theory”
Texas is the Reason
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It’s iFanboy 20/25 — 20 years of podcasting and 25 years of iFanboy!
It’s dog-eat-dog in the pages of this week’s comics when Conor Kilpatrick is joined by Dr. Ryan Haupt (and trusty pup Clementine) to cover this week’s comics in a tryptophan-induced haze.
Note: Time codes are estimates due to dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
Running Time: 01:00:45
Pick of the Week:
00:01:48- Escape #4
Comics:
00:09:49 – Detective Comics #1103
00:17:08 – DC K.O. #2
00:20:47 – Justice League Unlimited #13
00:24:30 – Green Lantern #596 (29)
00:26:16 – Devil On My Shoulder #1
00:32:28 – DC’s I Saw Ma Hunkel Kissing Santa Claus #1
Patron Pick:
00:36:03 – Batman/Green Arrow/The Question: Arcadia, Book One
Patron Thanks:
00:42:47 – Drew Gatcum
Listener Mail:
00:45:12 – Greg M. from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania wants to know what gives certain characters their staying power and popularity over the decades relatively to others, a question apparently solicited by the Jamokes. Thank you, Greg, for completing the assignment.
Brought To You By:
Music:
“Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)”
Darlene Love
Watch The iFanboy After Show for Pick of the Week #1005!
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron on their other show Goodfellas Minute.
Listen to Conor and Ron reminisce about Goodfellas Minute on Sporadicast: An Oral History of Movies by Minutes.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss Blade (1998) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Fargo on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Listen to Conor discuss Swingers on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Watch Ron talk about pinball technology on the Daily Tech News Show.
Listen to Conor discuss Ghostbusters on Movie of the Year: 1984.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss The Crow (1994) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Jaws 4: The Revenge (1987) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) on Cradle to the Grave.
Watch Josh and Conor talk about how to start a podcast on OpenWater.
Listen to Ron talk about The Phantom Menace minute 80 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about Return of the Jedi minute 124 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Conor talk about Return of the Jedi minute 104 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about The Empire Strikes Back minute 115 on Star Wars Minute.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It’s iFanboy 20/25 — 20 years of podcasting and 25 years of iFanboy!
As we near the end of this anniversary year, the Jamokes might be starting to break down in mind, spirit, and body, but that’s nothing that a great week of comics can’t solve.
Note: Time codes are estimates due to dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
Running Time: 01:05:59
Pick of the Week:
00:02:18 – Spider-Man: Holiday Spectacular #1
Comics:
00:13:59 – One World Under Doom #9
00:20:50 – Wonder Woman #827 (27)
00:26:50 – Predator Kills the Marvel Universe #4
00:29:47 – Godzilla Destroys the Marvel Universe #5
00:35:31 – DC/Marvel: Batman/Deadpool #1
00:41:18 – Powers 25 #3
00:43:42 – Nova: Centurion #1
Patron Pick:
00:47:47 – Nocturnals: The Sinister Path #3
Patron Thanks:
00:55:09 – Josh
Listener Mail:
00:56:48 – Miguel C. from Duvall, Washington has a fun fact about G.I. Joe and some book recommendations for Josh.
Brought To You By:
Music:
“Getaways Turned Holidays”
Meg & Dia
Watch The iFanboy After Show for Pick of the Week #1004!
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron on their other show Goodfellas Minute.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss Blade (1998) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Fargo on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Listen to Conor discuss Swingers on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Watch Ron talk about pinball technology on the Daily Tech News Show.
Listen to Conor discuss Ghostbusters on Movie of the Year: 1984.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss The Crow (1994) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Jaws 4: The Revenge (1987) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) on Cradle to the Grave.
Watch Josh and Conor talk about how to start a podcast on OpenWater.
Listen to Ron talk about The Phantom Menace minute 80 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about Return of the Jedi minute 124 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Conor talk about Return of the Jedi minute 104 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about The Empire Strikes Back minute 115 on Star Wars Minute.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Thanks to iFanboy Patrons, it's Talksplode time.
Known to many as the man behind Marvel's lettering for many many years, and known to even more as the illustrator of the Ordinary People Change the World children's book series, along with writer, Brad Meltzer (Talksplode #86), we know Chris Eliopoulos as a long time friend of the show. Way back when, we spent some time with him for our video show. But since it's been a while, and Chris came up with a whole new career, it was time for a check in. If you're going to break into comics and then stay in comics, it's probably going to take a herculean effort, and Chris can attest to that. Then a new opportunity came along, and he and Brad, again, made the most of it. We've got stories aplenty from back in the Marvel bullpen days, and yes, deep dive lettering talk. It's got everything!
Total Running Time: 01:33:53
Music:
“Gonna See My Friend"
Pearl Jam
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's iFanboy 20/25 -- 20 years of podcasting and 25 years of iFanboy!
Jamokes tried to concentrate. And at times, there was concentration. There were also many alleys and tributaries best not taken, but taken they were. So wrap a ribbon on your luxury car, and enjoy all the parts, both on target and off.
Note: Time codes are estimates due to dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
Running Time: 01:19:26
Pick of the Week:
00:01:38 - Supergirl #7
Comics:
00:12:29 - Transformers #26
00:17:56 - 1776 #1
00:25:00 - Marvel/DC Thor/Shazam! Infinity Comic #1
00:30:48 - Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: The Ghost Ships of Labrador #1
00:34:25 - Strange Tales #2
00:42:45 - Fantastic Four #731 (5)
00:46:13 - Redcoat #15
Patron Pick:
00:49:32 - American Caper #1
Patron Thanks:
00:57:34 - Matt Mendoz
Listener Mail:
01:01:28 - Deezer I. wonders if Matteo Scalera has finally stopped it, and who else needs to cut it out.
01:07:10 - Philip R. asks the tough question. What's worse: Rats or Rebar?
Brought To You By:
Music:
“Weird Fishes & Symphony No. 25 in G Minor”
Rodrigo y Gabriela
Watch The iFanboy After Show for Pick of the Week #1003!
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron on their other show Goodfellas Minute.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss Blade (1998) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Fargo on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Listen to Conor discuss Swingers on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Watch Ron talk about pinball technology on the Daily Tech News Show.
Listen to Conor discuss Ghostbusters on Movie of the Year: 1984.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss The Crow (1994) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Jaws 4: The Revenge (1987) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) on Cradle to the Grave.
Watch Josh and Conor talk about how to start a podcast on OpenWater.
Listen to Ron talk about The Phantom Menace minute 80 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about Return of the Jedi minute 124 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Conor talk about Return of the Jedi minute 104 on Star Wars Minute.
Listen to Ron talk about The Empire Strikes Back minute 115 on Star Wars Minute.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Josh Flanagan embarks on a campaign of adventure with his trusty ward, Dr. Ryan Haupt. What race and class would be best for discussing this week in comics? Tune in to find out!
Note: Time codes are estimates due to dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
Running Time: 01:18:05
Pick of the Week:
00:02:54 - Assorted Crisis Events #6
Comics:
00:13:45 - DC K.O. Knightfight #1
00:19:35 - Alien vs. Captain America #1
00:24:15 - Planet She-Hulk #1
00:28:42 - Huck: Big Bad World #6
00:31:16 - The Amazing Spider-Man #979 (15)
Star Wars Corner:
00:40:22 - Star Wars: Legacy of Vader #10
Patron Pick:
00:43:22 - JSA #13
Patron Thanks:
00:52:24 - A Bunny VTuber
Listener Mail:
00:56:39 - Patrick K. from North Carolina wants to know what characters the DC trinity would play in a Dungeons & Dragons campaign? Fortunately Ryan has done his homework...
01:06:16 - Eric P. from Alexandria, Virginia wants to know what "evil" organization we'd sign up to work for if living in the world of comics.
Brought To You By:
Music:
“Time & Confusion”
Anberlin
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss Blade (1998) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Fargo on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Listen to Conor discuss Swingers on Movie of the Year: 1996.
Watch Ron talk about pinball technology on the Daily Tech News Show.
Listen to Conor discuss Ghostbusters on Movie of the Year: 1984.
Listen to Conor, Josh, and Ron discuss The Crow (1994) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Jaws 4: The Revenge (1987) on Cradle to the Grave.
Listen to Josh discuss Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) on Cradle to the Grave.
Watch Josh and Conor talk about how to start a podcast on OpenWater.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Thanks to our awesome Patrons, we're proud to present another episode of Mediasplode!
What's a Mediasplode? It's a monthly special edition show in which we talk about what we are enjoying in media outside of the realm of comic books. It's like our All Media Year End Round-Up but in a shorter, monthly format.
Note: Time codes are estimates due to dynamic ad insertion by the distributor.
SPOILERS BELOW!
Running Time: 01:06:23
This month, Josh Flanagan and Conor Kilpatrick are joined by their original Pick of the Week co-host Ron Richards to discuss...
What We've Been Enjoying:
00:03:15 - Josh loved Downey Wrote That on Peacock but didn't really love Smoke on AppleTV+
00:15:25 - Conor (and Ron) loved the latest season of Only Murders in the Building on Hulu and salutes the end of WTF with Marc Maron
00:22:04 - Ron (and Conor) are loving The Lowdown on Hulu and he got to the theaters to see Guillermo Del Toro's Frankenstein
Year-End Mailbag!:
00:30:52 - Patrick K. from North Carolina asks if any movies we saw as kids shocked us that we were allowed to see?
00:34:02 - Dan C. from New Jersey wants to know what IP could be translated to opera?
00:37:27 - Woulter L. asks a great question about the impact of removing the Beatles or another media creator from the timeline and what the impact would be
00:43:22 - Pete wants to know if we listen to college radio?
00:50:55 - Zak H. from Milwaukee is looking for (hypothetical) book recommendations about the mafia (which doesn't exist).
00:53:11 - Doug M. wants to know more movies that are "bad" but also "good"?
00:58:28 - Stephen H. from Wrexham, Wales, United Kingdom wants to know if anyone in our families shame us for our interests?
01:01:02 - Jacob asks a fantastic question about G.I. Joe vs. Predator that breaks our brains.
Music:
"B A D I D E A"
Militarie Gun
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices