Comics A-Z Podcast

H is for Hägar the Horrible - A Very Modern Viking

Among the most recognizable and widely syndicated comic strips of the late twentieth century is Hägar the Horrible, a daily gag strip centered on a bearded Viking warrior, his family, and his clan. Since its debut in 1973, Hägar the Horrible has become an international phenomenon, appearing in thousands of newspapers worldwide and translated into dozens of languages. Its success lies in its ability to combine historical parody with modern domestic humor, allowing readers to see their own anxieties about work, family, and society reflected through the lens of a fictional Viking Age.
Recommended Reading List for this episode:
Hägar the Horrible: The Epic Chronicles by Dik Browne (1988)
Hägar the Horrible: Daily Strips 1973–1975 by Chris Browne (2010)
The History of the Comic Strip, Volume 2 by David Kunzle (1990)
The Funnies: 100 Years of American Comic Strips by Ron Goulart (1995)
Children of the Yellow Kid: The Evolution of the American Comic Strip by RC Harvey (1998)
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic related merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thanks to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2026

G is for Green Lantern - No Evil Shall Escape His Sight

Green Lantern isn’t just one superhero. It’s a legacy. A title. A symbol. And over the last 80-plus years, it’s become one of the most flexible and meaningful concepts in all comic books. From its mystical Golden Age origins in 1940 to its science-fiction reinvention during the Silver Age and its later evolution into one of comics’ most philosophically rich mythologies, Green Lantern has reflected shifting American ideals about heroism, authority, fear, and willpower.
Recommended reading list for this episode:
Gil Kane: Art of the Comics by Gary Groth (2003)
Neal Adams: The DC Comics Art of Neal Adams (2003)
DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World’s Favorite Comic Book Heroes by Les Daniels (1995)
American Comic Book Chronicles: The 1940s by Keith Dallas & John Wells (2019)
Men of Tomorrow by Gerard Jones (2004)
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic related merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thanks to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2026

F is for the Fantastic Four - The First Family of Marvel Comics

When The Fantastic Four #1 debuted, it did not merely add another superhero title to newsstands, it fundamentally altered the direction of American comic books forever. More than a successful comic, The Fantastic Four stands as one of the most influential works in the history of popular culture.
Recommended Reading List for this episode:
Tribute to Comics Legend Jack Kirby in “The Art of Fantastic Four.” by Chalgren & Lind. Dark Horse Comics, 2025.
The Art of Fantastic Four. Edited by John Lind, Penguin Random House / Dark Horse Books, 2025.
Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Fantastic Four. Hydra Comics, 2023.
The History of the Fantastic Four. VANAS, 2024.
Dark Horse celebrates Jack Kirby with “The Art of Fantastic Four.” by David Brooke.  AIPT Comics, 2025.
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic related merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thanks to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2025

E is for Eisner - The Father of the Graphic Novel

Today we will explore Will Eisner’s life, his major works, and the seismic influence he exerted—on the art, business, and cultural perception of comics. His contributions not only changed how comics are made but how they are understood as a medium with unique narrative capacities.
Recommended reading for this episode:
The Best of the Spirit or The Spirit Omnibus
A Contract with God
The Dreamer
Comics and Sequential Art
Graphic Storytelling and Visual Narrative
All are by Will Eisner.
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thank you to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2025

D is for Daredevil - The Man Without Fear

Today we explore Marvel Comic's Daredevil, his creation, evolution, and enduring social significance - especially as a blind superhero, a Catholic hero, and a grounded urban crime-fighter whose stories reflect the complexities of modern American society.
Recommended reading for this episode:
Marvel Comics: The Untold Story by Sean Howe (2012)
Marvel Comics: A History of the Marvel Universe by Scarlett Thomas
Comic Book Nation: The Transformation of Youth Culture in America by Bradford W. Wright
Daredevil: The Man Without Fear (1993) – Frank Miller & John Romita Jr.
Daredevil by Frank Miller & Klaus Janson (1979–1983)
Daredevil: Born Again (1986) – Frank Miller & David Mazzucchelli
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thank you to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2025

C is for Carl Barks - "The Good Duck Artist"

Today C is for Carl Barks, so we examine Barks’s life and creative development, explore his enormous body of work, and analyze his lasting social and cultural significance—from his invention of Scrooge McDuck and Duckburg’s expansive mythology to his influence on generations of cartoonists, writers, economists, filmmakers, and global readers.
Recommended reading:
The Complete Carl Barks Disney Library (Fantagraphics Books)
Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: Lost in the Andes (The Carl Barks Library Vol. 7)
Carl Barks and the Disney Comic Book: Unmasking the Myth of Modernity by Thomas Andrae
Carl Barks: Conversations (edited by Donald Ault)
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thank you to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2025

B is for Batman - The Dark Knight

Since his debut in Detective Comics #27 in 1939, Batman has become more than a comic-book superhero—he is a modern myth, a cultural archetype, and a dynamic reflection of society’s shifting values, fears, and aspirations.
Some Recommended Reading:
Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret Co-Creator of Batman by Marc Tyler Nobleman 
Batman: The Complete History by Les Daniels
Batman The Ultimate Guide by Matthew K. Manning
The Official Batman Batbook by Joel Eisner
The Dark Knight by Frank Miller
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thank you to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2025

A is for Archie - America's Favorite Teenager

Archie Comics is far more than a series of teen humor stories from the mid-20th century; it is a living, evolving cultural landmark. From its 1941 origins in Pep Comics to the global success of Riverdale, the franchise has continually adapted while retaining its essential charm.
Recommended reading for this episode:
Archie: His First 50 Years By Charles Phillips 
Archie: A Celebration of America's Favorite Teenagers - Craig Yoe, Editor
The Best of Archie Comics Book 1 Deluxe Edition from Archie Comics
COMICS A-Z is the podcast that showcases the history of sequential art: comic books, comic strips, the characters, their creators, one letter at a time. Each episode highlights an interesting aspect of the long history of comics, as a creative medium and a growing industry.
Hosted by Kevin Cleary, a former executive with First Comics, Classics Illustrated, and TV Comics. Kevin was an advisor to the Overstreet Price Guide, The Overstreet Premium Ring Guide and a columnist/feature writer for the Comic's Buyers Guide, Overstreet Monthly, and Wizard Magazine. Kevin was also the Purchasing Director for Heroes World Distribution, the 3rd largest comic, card, and toy distributor in the country, and the founder of Quantum Licensing, a company that produced pins, rings, and other licensed comic merchandise. Kevin currently works in Hollywood as a literary manager and occasional producer.
Thank you to our sponsor, the SantaBarbaraMint.com
This podcast is made by humans.
© Kevin Cleary 2025