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381: Through the Cronen-Hole

Today we descend into darkness as we discuss those wretched hives of scum and villainy: comment sections and fan forums! Okay, okay, there are plenty of wonderful and positive fan communities that we all love, and should! But something about the direction of fandom online over the decades tends to take a turn for the toxic whenever negativity, bullying, and anger (and, uh, threats to drink spit in protest to watching a movie?) take hold of the conversation.

What makes a good thread go bad, or even go on for 15 years? We dig into the evolution of fandom and fans online, how the platforms we use change the experience, how we’re hard-wired to choose and defend our favourites from childhood, and plenty more in this free-wheelin’, far-reaching discussion from three middle-aged fanboys who’ve seen it all on this ol’ Internet of ours. Merk even shares the twisted tale of the most deranged comment thread under a Brie Larson news post that was ever cursed upon his feed by: The Algorithm!

But on a brighter note, we just realized it’s the 9th anniversary of when we started making Zero Issues! And to celebrate this auspicious occasion, Merk challenges Kyle & Bry with a NEW GAME using his trusty deck of 1991 Marvel Universe trading cards: the roll of a die will reveal hidden truths about randomly-selected but still totally bodacious heroes and villains.

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357: …and John Cena as NFL SuperPro

This week, everything’s gone topsy-turvy! DCEU actors in the MCU! Mass hysteria! But with so many Marvel characters to be cast, and so many taken already, eventually every franchise actor will get The Call from Kevin Feige. The question is, who do DC’s biggest stars play when it’s time to take a walk on the Marvel side? The only rules are: it has to be a character who hasn’t been cast in the MCU yet, and any DCEU actor who’s already made the jump to Marvel Studios is off the board. Hey, we’re no Sarah Finn, but we have some fun here!

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298: It was a Fear Demon

This week’s episode was all about Black Widow and Loki, and had huge spoilers for both, but then a fear demon showed up, and now it’s all about retcons! From Puck originally being 6’6″, to Hal Jordan not really being a dick after all, to Norman Osborn and Gwen Stacy getting all Brazzersy, sometimes comic creators make some very, hmm, interesting choices. So we gripe about them!

Also, more news than you can handle; and in the Warmup, we try to figure out where to put all of these comics before they trap us like Principal Skinner in the classic Simpsons episode “Bart the Murderer”.

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250: Magneto’s Mutant-Making Orgasm Machine

Believe it or not, the year 2000 was 20 years ago! So this week we look back and celebrate the original X-MEN movie! The film that introduced Hugh Jackman (and, to some extent, Wolverine) to the public at large! How does this early Marvel movie hold up since comic movies have evolved so much since? What are the highlights? Who are the actors and characters who never got their due? Make like evolution and leap forward into this episode!!

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