This week on We Love Comics, award-winning cartoonist Ethan Young joins us to dig into Dave Cooper's Ripple: A Predilection for Tina, a strange, unsettling, unforgettable story of an artist, his model, and an obsession that turns into something far more dangerous. We break down what makes Cooper's book so hypnotic and so uncomfortable, then widen the lens to the books and films of the same ilk: stories of desire, fixation, and exploration of taboos & fantasies. What makes this kind of work so great... or so dangerous?

Ethan also talks about his own path: how he broke into comics by self-publishing his work, the firsthand feedback and professional he got from the legendary Jim Lee, and how learning to accept criticism has helped make him the creative force he is today.

Ethan is the creator of Nanjing: The Burning City, winner of the 2016 Reuben Award for Best Graphic Novel and an Eisner and Harvey nominee. His other books include The Dragon Path, Space Bear, Life Between Panels, and The Battles of Bridget Lee. He's a prolific cover artist for DC, Marvel, Image, IDW, Dark Horse, and more. He's also a character designer on Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man for Marvel Studios, and his creator-owned action-horror series Demon Run is currently sold on his website

⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains discussion of sexual content, obsession, controlling and possessive relationships, and psychological manipulation. It also includes discussion of Lolita, a novel involving child sexual abuse. These works are examined critically. Listener discretion is advised; intended for adult audiences.

Want to go deeper? Kyle has compiled links to the information and material he discovered while preparing for this episode. Check the links below and keep reading!

About — ethan young

Dave Graphics – The Artwork of Dave CooperWizard #61: Dave Cooper – Palmer’s Picks – Suckle Crumple RippleDave Cooper | du9, l'autre bande dessinée

The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.: Ripple: A Predilection for Tina by Dave Cooper

Before superhero comics went dark and gritty, there was a four-issue fever dream that got there first. In this episode of We Love Comics, we crack open The Last American — the Marvel Epic imprint miniseries from John Wagner, Alan Grant, and Mike McMahon — a bleak, unflinching vision of a lone soldier waking up in a post-nuclear America, with brief moments of dark humor that never undercut its weight. Is it satire? Prophecy? Both?

Joining us is guest Doug Wagner, a comic book writer himself, who brings his own perspective on the industry to the conversation. Beyond breaking down The Last American, Doug talks candidly about the ups and downs of writing comics for a living — the creative highs and the grind — and shares his experience working with publishers along the way.

Thirty years before prestige TV got obsessed with the apocalypse, this book already knew there was nothing prestige about it.

WARNING

This episode contains discussion of sensitive material, including extreme violence, sexual violence against women, cannibalism, death, mental illness, in addition to other difficult subjects. Listener discretion is advised.

Want to go deeper? Kyle has compiled the articles, interviews, and essays he used to prepare for this conversation. Check the links below and keep reading.

The John Wagner and Alan Grant Interview - The Comics Journal

The John Wagner Interview: Part One (Listen to all three parts!)

The Last American (novel) — Grokipedia

George M. Cohan Biography: The Man Who Owned Broadway

I'd Rather Be in Philadelphia - Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia

Einstein's Last Message Was a Dire Warning | RealClearScience

On Episode 4 of We Love Comics, host Kyle McNeal sits down with Victor Santos — the acclaimed Spanish cartoonist behind Polar and an Eisner and Harvey Award nominee — for a wide-ranging conversation that spans one of comics' most influential noir works and the career it helped inspire.

Their touchstone: Sin City: The Hard Goodbye (Frank Miller, 1991-92) — the story that launched Miller's stark, high-contrast crime saga and redefined what noir could look like on the comics page.

And who better to explore it with than Victor Santos, whose own Polar — later adapted by Netflix — has been called Sin City's spiritual successor for its black-and-white, blood-and-orange visual language? Victor opens up about that influence, his own creative process, and the passions behind a body of work.

It's the kind of conversation We Love Comics was made for: two people who love this art form, talking seriously about what makes it great.

WARNING

This episode contains discussion of sensitive material, including extreme violence, sexual violence against women, cannibalism, death, and torture, in addition to other difficult subjects. Listener discretion is advised.

Want to go deeper? Kyle has compiled the articles, interviews, and essays he used to prepare for this conversation. Check the links below and keep reading.

A Trip to Sin City | Sequart Organization

A Place for Bold: Understanding Frank Miller | Sequart Organization

When Macho Angst Turns into Violence: Frank Miller’s Sin City – PopMeC research blogProblematic Faves: Sin City

The One Movie Blog: Dark Streets, Dangerous Women and Knights in Dirty Armor: Frank Miller’s “Sin City” and the Conventions of NoirSin City | Literature and Writing | Research Starters | EBSCO Research