Matt Summo, James Ferguson, Mario Candelaria, and Phil Butehorn talk Slice(s) of Life

[00:00:00] Your ears do not deceive you. You've just entered the cryptid creator corner brought to you by your friends at Comic Book Yeti.

[00:00:07] So without further ado, let's get on to the interview.

[00:00:11] Hey Yeti, what's shaking?

[00:00:12] Of course I do.

[00:00:14] Yeah, boy.

[00:00:15] Yeah, boy.

[00:00:16] Yeah, boy.

[00:00:17] Yeah, boy.

[00:00:18] Yeah, I did see that Mecha-Tel was crown-filling on Kickstarter now. I love that book.

[00:00:23] I was in back here for the single issues myself. That whole creative cover is awesome. He's doing Spider-Man stuff now. Did you just really say Fuyo? You gotta get off TikTok, man. Hello and welcome to comic book yeti's cryptic creator corner. I am one of your host Jimmy Gisbaro and wow I am I am my cup runneth over with guests tonight.

[00:02:45] I think I saw some art that was posted on Twitter.

[00:02:50] So what kind of was like the beginnings of this,

[00:02:53] of this comic?

[00:02:57] I could take this one. It came from just dumb shit of us talking about it.

[00:03:01] I realized I said that without asking

[00:03:02] if I can curse on this thing.

[00:03:04] You can, it's fine.

[00:03:05] We'll allow it, James.

[00:03:07] All right, cool.

[00:03:07] Yeah, cover your ears, kids. where each one of you in terms of the four of you are writing, like, kind of the story and then are they all going, are those four stories going to be connected in some fashion? Yeah. So we each have an independent story. So that while independently you could read them out by themselves, the only kind of connecting tissue without anything else is that they're all set in the same world where pizza's been

[00:04:22] outlawed.

[00:04:23] Essentially, the president was seeing eating working with? Roberto Deque is a Canadian based Jenny O'Dio, where I worked with on Tales from the Pandemic. Awesome, incredible artist. Super psyched. So in terms of like, you have this idea in the group chat and you're gonna put it together.

[00:07:02] Were there any like rules that you kind of gave yourselves

[00:07:04] in terms of like genre or theme

[00:07:07] or other than it being set in the world fights at the local pizza ray if somebody puts pineapple on it or New York makes the best pizza Chicago deep dish isn't really pizza. Oh, is there? Oh, I'm sorry. What was that? So Chicago deep. This is that's a key at that point. That's not a real pizza. Oh, so so there definitely are some strong pizza opinions.

[00:08:25] Yeah, I think I think that like it mine is probably the most serious and the most personal. It's kind of based on my own life. I don't want to give too, too much away, but essentially it was about my experience

[00:09:40] having to leave Connecticut and move back to New York

[00:09:42] and kind of what would happen if, So how do you feel about pizza in Philadelphia? I don't really get it. I mean, I get pizza from around here, but usually I just get a chicken parm or something. I don't mind that. I'm also from Long Island. And just like, you know, Matt says, Long Island pizza is the best. We recently, Dave Portnoy for a varsity sports really just hates long

[00:11:04] Island pizza and talks about new Haven pizza being the greatest.

[00:11:07] I don't get it.

[00:12:06] that does that. And maybe because pizza is so prevalent, at least, you know, all throughout the US. But I'm more I'm more impressed to think of another food that kind of does that that I've seen,

[00:12:12] you know, friends get into like screaming matches over like rules for pizza, or which place has the

[00:12:17] best pizza. You don't do that over tacos or anything else. Like there's there pizza is just that

[00:12:22] universal it's like it's a crowd pleasing food, manager? Do you guys all work fairly well together?

[00:13:44] I mean, I've been just kind of talking to people. I don't know, pizza, speak easy or something like that. Like we touch upon a lot of those things between the mob and speak easy and underground services. Like, wherever your mind goes to first, we've probably covered that in some shape or fashion. And then there's all these other ideas that it's like, there's a lot more we could explore on this certainly.

[00:15:01] Yeah, I mentioned it to my kids,

[00:15:02] but right when we were sitting down for dinner,

[00:15:04] I said, oh, the podcast that I'm recording tonight,

[00:15:06] it's, I'm talking to four different creators yourself to see how many boxes he can build in like 20 seconds. So that's pretty much my story about this goat who is on the climb when it comes to being the quickest pizza box maker. And he meets his Mr. Miyagi and learns to love pizza and how he

[00:16:22] can use the skills of making pizza to be the greatest pizza boxer maker again.

[00:17:25] So I don't remember what year it was. And I don't remember who it was.

[00:17:28] But so Mario, Matt, and I were up and coming writers.

[00:17:34] James was a reviewer.

[00:17:35] History was also becoming a comic writer.

[00:17:38] And I think I messaged him and said,

[00:17:39] Hey, why would I just create?

[00:17:40] And I don't know if it was me,

[00:17:42] but one of us messaged somebody and said,

[00:17:43] Hey, what if we create a group of us just talking in shop

[00:17:46] and just, you know, using each you do today, holding me accountable for it to kind of like get in there and start writing because like I was on the press side forever and I wanted to do something but like well I could, I could review this other comic book over and over and over and all these other books because there's like a million of them that come out every week or I could try to like challenge myself and write more and I felt like well I could just, it was easier to do this, it was easier to do this and I never got out of it but they'll

[00:19:04] help me break out of it and this book and this group helped me do that so. Alright, and build up a network, create your writing family. Alright, let's take a quick break. What, in the Sam Hill is happening right now? What is that? No, what is wrong? You like Bart? No, what is wrong? Oh, you like Band of Bart. It's not my fault you mupple. Oh, no. I mean, how does everyone feel about where things are right now with like the indie comic scene? I mean, I was like a big question, so, you know, nobody has to jump in and have a profound answer, but just kind of as somebody who, you know, reads comics and talks to folks about it, I'm always curious how everyone like,

[00:21:43] who's actually making the books, you know, feels. And on that, I see month. It's really encouraging to see. I think it's, again, the easiest it's ever been to do it. Yeah. It really is. It feels like a golden age. Especially as a fan. I've said it a million

[00:23:02] times on the podcast. Listeners have heard me people get wrapped up in comics and like, oh, it's all, they think all superheroes, but there's so much stuff out there. Like you could read romance, you could read sci-fi, you could read, or you could read anything else that doesn't have a superhero in it. Doesn't have Batman or something, but still pretty cool. So there's a lot of great stuff.

[00:24:20] Obviously like, like we're preaching to the choir here.

[00:24:21] We're like, we all love this stuff.

[00:24:23] Yeah.

[00:24:24] Yeah.

[00:24:24] And I mean, it's true, but I,ers, ribs, sushi. All right. Yeah. The multiverse, the multiverse foods. I mean, I don't know. Like I literally was asked by someone when I was talking about this project once, like, if you do another one, can I get in? So like, there's, there's

[00:25:40] interest of like, there's a lot more we could do with this. So let's, let's get this one

[00:25:43] funded and then we can see what we could do. just about pizza because like I love talking about food. That's like my second favorite topic to comics is food. So does anybody have like a particular place or like a pizza memory where you're like hands down? That was one of the best pizzas I ever had. I'll start while you guys compose your thoughts. There used to be a the weird kid growing up that didn't like pizza. And I don't know why because as an adult, I love it, but I actually incorporated it into my story. And the first page is literally a shot of me, but as the character sitting at a birthday party, because again, think if you go to a kid's birthday party,

[00:28:20] they're not giving you other food.

[00:28:22] Everyone's getting a slice of pizza.

[00:28:23] And I was the weird kid that was like,

[00:28:25] oh, everyone's getting a pizza.

[00:28:26] Then here's a good one, Bill. I like that. Matt, Mary, I don't have to...

[00:29:42] Yeah, mine isn't that sentimental.

[00:29:44] Mine's college. I remember freshman year, this kid who in Amityville, New York, and you park outside, they text you, like, hey, are you here? What does your car look like? You give them all this detail, they come out, they bring the pizza to you, and you pay them in cash, they don't take cards, and it's the most incredible places that had the cheese first and then the sauce on the top. And we love that. I think in a sense, either changed hands and then I think it closed at some point during the pandemic. But that was like a special treat.

[00:32:28] Was not very expensive. It looked like it was operated out of a place that was falling art? The main book is, well, we have one cover and it's drawn by the phenomenal P Collins. This man is, I mean, he did Bardic versus he did a variant cover for Slobernock or one. He's got to do the variant covers for the rest of that series because he takes a concept and he just

[00:34:41] This is so good. So yeah, that's what's on the book.

[00:34:43] But the digital copy, the physical copy, it's that.

[00:34:47] It's just, I love it.

[00:34:49] I can't, like it brings me such joy every time I see it.

[00:34:52] And again, like, again, describing this book is one thing,

[00:34:55] but when you show them Pete's cover and like, what?

[00:34:58] It's so good.

[00:35:02] It just compounds on just the fun that we're having

[00:35:05] at this whole thing.

[00:35:05] Yeah.

[00:35:06] So in Pete's a guy that might be another path to go through. Oh, that sounds pretty cool. I like that. Um, that's fantastic. Uh, you just, while I have you all here, um, so what is there anything else that anybody wants to talk about that they have come in out or that are they're working on that they

[00:36:20] would like listeners, you know, to, uh, to check out?

[00:36:24] I'll plug all your stuff for you there that I the immortals So yes, we're gonna plan to launch on around then Dan's got the script is completely written and Dan's working through the designs and everything and there's some nice twists and Some redesigns that I'm really looking forward to seeing what he comes out with for that So that's that's what's coming down the line for us

[00:37:42] But Matt when is a bardic versus hitting common

[00:37:46] segue

[00:38:41] Nothing. Nothing at all. No, I have a lot of anthology.

[00:38:42] You're done, but you know, just waiting for that stuff to come in.

[00:38:45] But you know, just taking it.

[00:38:47] I don't know, man.

[00:38:48] I feel like you're always cooking, though.

[00:38:51] No, I watching a lot of TV lately, you know, doing chores.

[00:38:57] So I'm going back to the gym, you know, I'm enjoying every time now.

[00:39:00] OK, all right.

[00:39:01] Well, that's fine.

[00:39:05] But I'll say if anyone hasn't yet.

[00:40:02] Oh, yeah, that's awesome. I can't wait to see it all finished.

[00:40:05] Thank you.

[00:40:08] One more note on the pizza book. I just I want to give Mario a shout out because I love the title of his story because it's no toppings for old men and it just like it's just it's it's beautiful. It's lovely.

[00:40:19] Yeah, I

[00:40:21] That's fantastic. That's a great title. I love it.

[00:41:23] that you want to point folks to in terms of comics. Everyone want to go around

[00:41:24] and anything they want to shout out.

[00:41:26] You know what?

[00:41:27] Curtis Wightby, when I first started getting

[00:41:30] into writing comics, I actually picked up his green wig image.

[00:41:35] Just Pure Horror and Honest,

[00:41:37] it's one of the most underrated books.

[00:41:39] He just started a new comic.

[00:41:42] More like a medium publisher.

[00:41:43] I think it's comics, they're doing other types of mediums

[00:41:47] for his company. read these books. I don't care how old you are, read Mayor Goodboy. It's just such a fun, fun, fun story. And Dave is another lover of pizza. So like, you know, please check out his stuff too. And I think it's volume three is that Mayor Goodboy goes bad? It was bad, yes. So there's a whole nice twist and, you know, more backstory on Mayor Goodboy,

[00:43:00] but like, oh my gosh, like, again, like hysterical, there's the other comic that he had just went right out of my head, but I think he crowdfunded two issues of that hollow. Yeah. How and that was really good. I really liked that. So yeah, one shot looks pretty good. I hope that they, um, uh, able to make their goal because that looks like it's a lot of fun.

[00:44:20] So.

[00:44:21] All right.

[00:44:22] Um, well, uh, I, I can't thank you guys enough for coming on the podcast and talking

[00:44:27] about slice is of life. appreciate you taking the time on a Thursday evening to spend it with this old man. So thank you very much. Thanks for having us. That's a lot. All right. And oh, I almost forgot to shout out to my brother Bobby. I do that every episode. He's the Crypticreator Corner's number one most dedicated fan. He listens to all my episodes. And we just found I found out recording an episode

[00:45:42] last week that we're actually going to be. You can put a fact on your head and say you're scarecrow too from Batman's gang. He has a lot of pretty good, threatening roles. Yeah, pick one. You'll get a good one. Yeah, I think so.

[00:47:00] I'll land on something good.

[00:47:01] I'll workshop it.

[00:47:02] You know, we got, I got a month.

[00:47:04] So we'll get there.