Podcast
Comics Syllabus
Hosted by paul lai · EN
A comics and graphic novels appreciation podcast, where literacy educator Paul Lai (@twoplai) reads widely and digs deep in search of the socio-cultural, literary, and artistic significance of comic books, including superhero media, graphic novels, all-ages comics, and comic shop single issues. For comics fans, teachers, librarians and parents, and young readers alike.
comicssyllabus.substack.com
comicssyllabus.substack.com
12episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Infinite Unlimited 12.07.2025. Aaron for the Win! Abso-Supes, Turtles, and Miles ahead...
Dec 800:38:15Tap to summarizeFrom DC Universe Infinite, Paul catches up with Gotham Academy: First Year, DCKO: Knightfight, Harley and Ivy, and Absolute Superman.From Marvel Unlimited, Paul checks out some Imperial War minis, Jeff the Land Shark, Runaways, the Mortal Thor, and Miles Morales Spider-Man. Who will win this week’s contest of DC and Marvel champions??Also, Paul reacts to the IDW Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reboot’s first year, now on GlobalComix. Subscribe and find video episodes at comicssyllabus.substack.com and find @TwoPlai on social media. Let’s keep reading! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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Infinite Unlimited 11.30.2025. What makes eXceptional X-Men? And DC KOs again...
Nov 3000:31:24Tap to summarizeSummaryIn this episode of Infinite Unlimited, Paul Lai (twoplai at BlueSky and Insta) returns to discuss the latest comic book releases from Marvel Unlimited and DC Universe Infinite Ultra. From MU, we dive into notable titles such as Black Cat, Spider Gwen, and most of all, Exceptional X-Men #12 by Eve Ewing and Federica Mancin. On DC Universe Infinite, we glance same-day DC KO #2 and the special 2025 anthology issue of Superman: Red and Blue. Super issues include Batman and Robin: Year One #12 and Absolute Batman Annual #1.The episode wraps up with a comparison of Marvel and DC's offerings this week and a mention of GlobalComix carrying (most of) Void Rivals.Subscribe and find us at comicssyllabus.substack.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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Comics Syllabus 4TKI: STRANGE ACADEMY!
Oct 9, 202200:42:16Tap to summarizeOn this week’s Comics Syllabus for Kids, Teens, and In-Betweens, Teacher Dad and Cohost Kid matriculate in “Strange Academy,” the 18-issue (with more to come!) Marvel series written by Skottie Young and drawn by Humberto Ramos and Edgar Delgado. Listen to find out what makes this is great comic for young readers, who our favorite characters (or “Brorsons”) are, and why we loved the series! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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EVERYDAY HERO MACHINE BOY Creators Irma Kniivila and Tri Vuong interviewed!
Sep 25, 202200:48:03Tap to summarizeOn this week’s Comics Syllabus, we’re proud to share this interview with Irma Kniivila and Tri Vuong, the creators of the new EVERYDAY HERO MACHINE BOY (Image Comics)!We’re totally in love with this action-packed, hilarious, heart-warming comic about an alien robot, Machine Boy, who finds identity, love, and friendship among earthlings like Grandma Karate, Mr. Hound, and a charming (and nefarious?!?) boyband known as “Orphan Universe”! It’s hands-down one of the best comics I’ve read this year. The wildly fun graphic novel is the brainchild of collaborators Vuong and Kniivila. We bring you the full conversation with them about Machine Boy’s origins, their influences, and how these two cartoonists and studio mates reined in their creative chaos to make this magical book. Irma and Tri are wonderful and inspiring to listen to! Some of our conversation was printed at our home at Multiversitycomics.com but we’re pleased to present the whole enchilada (or maybe… bowl of spaghetti?) here at the Comics Syllabus podcast. Check out “Everday Hero Machine Boy” from Image/Skybound, and you can also find Tri Vuong on the super-fun Lego Ninja Garmadon (Image) and Irma Kniivila’s very lovable Year of the Dog. Let’s dig deep! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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Captain Marvel! by Kelly Thompson and Carmen Carnero and other artists
Sep 11, 202200:30:45Tap to summarizeThis week on Comics Syllabus 4 Kids, Teens, and In-Betweens, Teacher Dad and Cohost Kid chat about the “Captain Marvel” current run written by Kelly Thompson with art by the likes of Carmen Carnero, Lee Garbett, Takeshi Miyakawa, and various others. We also chat about “It’s Jeff!” the Landshark, Central Park on Apple TV, and some of the MCU announcements from D23. Here we gooooooooo…. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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She-Hulk... the show AND the current comic!
Aug 27, 202200:35:38Tap to summarizeOn this episode of Comics Syllabus for Kids, Teens, and Big Green Machines… SHE-HULK! Teacher Dad and Cohost Kid chat about the MCU TV show She-Hulk: Attorney-at-Law (after episode 1) and the current “She-Hulk” run from Marvel Comics written by Rainbow Rowell, with art by Rogé Antônio and Luca Maresca. Super cool comics run! We talk Jack of Hearts, Titania fights, and much more! Thanks for tuning in to the Comics Syllabus for Kids, Teens, and In-betweens! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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SQUIRREL GIRL Novels by Shannon Hale & Dean Hale and INVISIBLE by Christina Diaz Gonzalez & Gabriela Epstein
Aug 14, 202200:48:58Tap to summarizeOn this very first REAL REAL episode of Comics Syllabus for Kids, Teens, and In-Betweens… We kick things off with SQUIRREL GIRL: SQUIRREL MEETS WORLD and SQUIRREL GIRL: 2 FUZZY, 2 FURIOUS (Marvel/Disney/Hyperion) by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale, two novels featuring the pre-comics background story of Doreen Green. Listen to Cohost Kid and Teacher Dad go nuts over these fun adaptations into prose of our favorite Marvel character (#SquirrelGirlBoopsTheMCU). Then, we uncover INVISIBLE, an awesome new graphic novel from author Christina Diaz Gonzalez and creator Gabriela Epstein (Scholastic/Graphix), a very cool new young readers graphic novel about friendship, community, and diversity. A group of Latine/Latinx/Latino/a students at a middle school are thrown into community service at the school cafeteria, when they find a chance to help neighbors in need… and find out a lot about each other. Super cool graphic novel for all ages, and we dig into our “YAYS!” and our “meh…s” about INVISIBLE. Thanks for listening! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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Announcement: Cohost Kid Joins as Regular Cohost with Teacher Dad
Aug 14, 202200:13:22Tap to summarizeANNOUNCEMENT! For a loooong time, Paul (aka “Teacher Dad”) has been hosting the Comics Syllabus podcast mostly solo, reading widely and digging deep into comics and graphic novels. …But NOW, the day has come for COHOST KID to join EVERY EPISODE OF “Comics Syllabus for Kids, Teens, and In-Betweens.” This is our special announcement pod. (Sorry for the re-duplication— this audio is also attached to the Comics Syllabus main feed podcast combined with audio of the first INFINITE UNLIMITED episode of this era! But if you’re only subscribing to the new Comics Syllabus 4 Kids, Teens, and Inbetweens -only feed here, this will be the first episode that appears.)Every other week, Teacher Dad and Cohost Kid will brave the wide world of graphic novels and comics for all ages, wherever our curiosity and optimism take us. Join us! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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Comics Syllabus Pod: The Infinite Unlimited and Cohost Kid Announcement!
Aug 14, 202200:38:42Tap to summarizeOkay, this is a bit awkward for now… You don’t hear from Comics Syllabus for a while, and then suddenly THE MESSAGES COME POURING INTO YOUR INBOX! Allow me to explain… This episode combines the AUDIO for THE INFINITE UNLIMITED as well as the audio announcement for COMICS SYLLABUS 4 KIDS, TEENS, AND IN-BETWEENS featuring me and the delightful COHOST KID! Yay!So here’s the deal:EVERY TWO WEEKS the “COMICS SYLLABUS for Kids, Teens, and Inbetweens” Podcast will feature Paul (aka “Teacher Dad”) and Cohost Kid talking about comics, graphic novels, and assorted media, aimed at young readers and those who support them. If that’s the only content you’re here for, you can also sign up JUST FOR THAT SPECIAL FEED HERE! https://comicssyllabus.substack.com/s/comics-syllabusAND every week, Paul will talk about new releases on Marvel Unlimited, DCUniverse Infinite, Hoopla, and Substack at “THE INFINITE UNLIMITED” video podcast, which you can subscribe to specifically here: https://comicssyllabus.substack.com/s/the-infinite-unlimitedAND periodically, Paul will write posts about learning comics arts, from storytelling to drawing, from fandom to comics studies. You can find that on the main Substack feed at comicssyllabus.substack.com Join us here or there or wherever you are! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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What I’ve Been Reading and Watching
Jul 23, 202200:47:21Tap to summarizeHi Comics Syllabus friends! SOME of the stuff I mention in this laundry-list episode of what I’ve been reading and watching… The Comics Pull List: Saga, Fire Power, Mind MGMT: Bootleg, She-Hulk, Shang-Chi and the Ten Rings, Batman/Superman World’s Finest, Daredevil, Batman, Swamp Thing, Monkey Prince, Immortal X-Men, Barnstormers and Dudley Datson, and more... Graphic Novels on the Proverbial Nightstand: “Lightfall: The Girl and the Galdurian” and “Lightfall: Shadow of the Bird” by Tim Probert, “Himawari House” by Harmony Becker, “Our Colors” by Gengoroh Tagame. Comics Substacks Shouted Out: Rodney Barnes’s “Dark Apocrypha,” Jeff Lemire’s “Tales from the Farm,” 3 Worlds/3 Moons… and more report cards from Substack Comics Year 1 to come.Other media mentioned: Severance and Slow Horses on Apple TV, The Good Place, Winning Time (HBO), The Sea Beast (Netflix)And sorry! I recorded this with NO mention of the Eisner Award winners just announced or for that matter San Diego ComiCon etc etc… I can chat about that in the next installment of… The Comics Syllabus Poooodddcasssst This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit comicssyllabus.substack.com
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