iFanboy Video Podcast

iFanboy #97 – Mike Allred

Show Notes

There are only a few comic book creators out there whose work is instantly recognizable, but Mike Allred is definitely one of them. While you can spot his unique art style a mile away, you can never guess what his next project will be.

From breaking down traditions and barriers on his Madman series, to exploring the history of rock music in Red Rocket 7, to fan favorite work on Fables and X-Statix, all the way to his work on the Golden Plates project, Mike Allred has boundless ambition and limitless imagination. Before a signing at Neon Monster in San Francisco, Ron and iFanboy staff writer Sonia Harris have no trouble getting Allred to open up and tell us about how he makes comics.

Also, learn about the one thing Superman must never do.

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Comments

  1. As a HUGE Allred fan, I’m really looking forward to watching this one.

  2. hahaha, love that you put that Superman next to a swing set!!!  Hilarious.

    But now I am scared to die 🙁  Wow…blew me the fuck away.  Now I really want to pick up both Madman and Red Rocket 7.

    Also, great to put a face to Sonia’s voice and articles!!  I liked your boots too

  3. Anally retentive fanboy here.  http://tinyurl.com/5px553 

  4. Don’t tell Mike!

  5. That was a very interesting interview. Sonia was excellent for her first shot at the video podcast! Really knew her stuff.

  6. Wow that was a really interesting interview. Also, how have I never heard of Red Rocket 7? It looks right up my alley.

  7. Great work, Ron and Sonia!  It was cool to go beyond the usual talking points to hear about a creator’s philosophy.  Gotta respect Mike for his desire to experiment and try new techniques.  I’ve only ever read the all splash page Mad Man, but I loved it.  I’ll be checking out more of his work after seeing this.  

  8. That certainly was a really interesting interview.  I know it’s been said before, but it is pretty amazing the level of access we have to creators these days. And the iFanboys (proper nomenclature?) have a part in that, so thanks fellas…

     

    That said, you know whether you agree or disagree with what Mike Allred has to say about the book of mormon or (real or not) sweet hereafter…does his saying it affect how you feel about his work?  Is it harder to appreciate a creator’s work, when you don’t appreciate who the creator is as a person? 

  9. I would also like to point out that I got no beef with Allred’s thoughts on life and am not trying to conjure up any ill will towards a creator, that I really love. I just wanted to generate a discussion out of curiosity.  

  10. The thing is, it’s Mike’s call whether to share that about himself or now.  I thought it was really interesting how he’s got his thing, but made a point to talk about his live and let live philosophy.  Personally, I am much more interested in a creator who has a point of view behind his work, and if it’s something you don’t normally go for, but you dig the work, then it’s a learning and growing experience for every one.  I love the challenging aspect of that.

  11. great interview Ron.

     

    i can see the improvement in your interview technique, along with Josh and Conor also, this particular episode was really well done. Keep up the good work, sunshine 

  12. I bet this will skyrocket Sonia’s fame as an iFan… girl! More Sonia! More Sonia! More Sonia! (chant)

  13. Great interview! Yay Sonia! Great job!

  14. Sigh… stuff like this just makes me sad at how Madman has really become a pretentious shadow of it’s former glory.   Bought nearly everything Madman when it first started a billion years ago…. I dropped it a few months back.  It’s just not the same book anymore….and that in itself is a good thing that it’s evolved and changed as it’s gotten older.  I just don’t like what it has become I guess.

  15. Thanks for talking colors!

  16. @ Josh, that’s a very good point, well struck sir. When I have that first reaction of ‘hey, I dig this.’ there’s this almost almost immediate impulse that starts digging deeper. Now whether that means drawing tons and tons of Spider-Men on the back of my notebooks in grade school (trying to figure out how to get that webbing just write) or seeking out or stumbling upon great interviews with the creators, like this one…

    …..it’s a really great interview, Rob and Sonia. 

     With that said…..Has anyone heard the Gears album or seen that independent movie he mentioned?  

  17. Well, he sort of had to talk about the Mormon thing. What with the book being an illustrated version of The Book of Mormon.

     

  18. mike allred is the man. i’m not going to pretend that i’ve always been a fan, but i’ve become one of his with this new madman series. and as far as him talking about what he believes, good for him. (although Ron looked a little unsettled. that was pretty funny to watch) it takes way more balls to express yourself and tell people about this thing that you think about and believe that to sit idlly by and never do a thing about it. in a sense, move backwards. its nice to see that the dude can do that and not get blasted for it… on this forum at least. good interview guys.

  19. Thank you for the comments folks. I’m VERY excited that I was able to interview Laura Allred too.

  20. Somewhere… somewhere, I have a VHS cassette of Mike Allred’s little indie movie, "Astroesque." I don’t recall being stunned by the quality or anything (and I was a pretty big Allred fan at the time), but… well, I don’t even have a VCR anymore, so I can’t even go back and try to watch it again. 🙁

    Dunno, just wanted to share that. I bought Red Rocket 7 when it originally came out, but the new volume looks pretty nice. Might have to pick it up and give it another read.

  21. I love love loooooovvvvvvveeeee Mike Allred!!! When i got the text from twitter saying this weeks show was going to be an interview with Mr.Allred i gasped then showed my girlfriend(shes a big Allred fan as well)and then she got mad at me cuz i got the twitter message before her.

    Excellent job Ron and Sonia. Though, Ron you looked extremely uncomfortable when Mike talked about the Book of Moron and Joseph Smith.:)

    @Adam: Anyone that lets an artists religion, politics, gender, sexual orientation, personal beliefs or past mistakes get in the way of enjoying their art, then that is one rather close minded person.    

  22. I’m ashamed that I didn’t know much about Mike Allred before but after seeing that I’ve got say that he’s the man. Definately going to get some of his work, what a great guy. Also have to say that I vote for more Sonia; she’s mighty fine in the visual medium as well as audio.

  23. Yeah, I take it I’m not the only one who has developed a little crush on Sonia?

  24. @ActualButt – I still can’t decide between Mike and Ron.

  25. nice…

  26. BEWARE! Mike Allred has apparently worked on a recent issue of Fables, and the discussion/scans of that issue smack-dab in the middle of the interview tooooootally spoils the Fable War you’ve been waiting to see the end of for the last several years. Woe unto you, trade readers!

  27. I wanna get drunk with Mike Allred…and he’s right y’know…living forever sucks ass

  28. @Jimski, as long as you already know who the Adversary is, it doesn’t spoil that much that an intelligent reader couldn’t have figured out on their own…

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