NEXUS (Capital Comics, 1981 & First Comics, 1983)

Comics Rot Your Brain!

Steven and Chris tackle the mind-bending "superhero" space opera, NEXUS (1981, 1983), created by Mike Baron and Steve "The Dude" Rude.
COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comics (plus a few notable exceptions) in a weekly podcast. Screenwriters Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) & Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age.
SHOW NOTES

00:30 - Steven & Chris intro NEXUS
05:25 - How we first encountered NEXUS
15:41 - A detailed overview of the absurdly engaging high-wire act that forms the crux of NEXUS
27:40 - “If you’re writing fiction, you need to read NEXUS.” The series’ place in the American comics canon
28:39 - “...NEXUS feels like my platonic ideal of pure comics. Something that you can scarcely imagine existing in another medium without being dramatically changed or bastardized in order to dumb it down for some so-called 'mass audience'...”
36:04 - “...Neither fish nor fowl...” The elusive nature of NEXUS
48:39 - THE NAME OF THE ROSE by Umberto Eco; THE MASTER AND MARGARITA by Mikhail Bulgakov; IF ON A WINTER’S NIGHT A TRAVELER by Italo Calvino
1:00:30 - NEXUS’s stylish synthesis of Alex Toth, SPACE GHOST, and Jack Kirby. “...Mashing up elements that are clearly the individual passions of Baron & Rude... a crackling, kinetic mix.” In the words of Harlan Ellison: “It glows with originality.”
1:02:51 - The crossover with Mike Baron’s other First Comics title, THE BADGER
1:06:27 - The once-in-a-lifetime radiance of Steve Rude. “There’s nothing he can’t draw... That’s what’s f'd up.”
01:11:04 - “...These are alien landscapes, alien ships, alien clothing... Steve Rude... has lived in these worlds… a master class in comic book art
1:12:14 - The subtlety, grace, and beauty of Rude’s art -- a barrier-to-entry for some?
01:20:55 - The unbelievable alien physics of Steve Rude’s intergalactic architecture
01:29:55 - NEXUS as the apex of ongoing creator-owned comics
01:33:11 - Why you need to read NEXUS in the original floppy single issues: a rollicking letter column, “WHAT IT IS!” + Harlan Ellison’s hilarious exchange w/ Mike Baron
01:43:00 - The act of genius-level wholesale invention that is NEXUS, as opposed to WATCHMEN and SANDMAN
01:45:53 - A last fraught exchange, NEXUS letter column
01:49:46 - “...One of the greatest ongoing comics of all time -- and it isn’t even close.”
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บท

1. NEXUS (Capital Comics, 1981 & First Comics, 1983) (00:00:00)

2. Steven & Chris intro NEXUS (00:00:30)

3. How we first encountered NEXUS (00:05:25)

4. A detailed overview of the absurdly engaging high-wire act that forms the crux of NEXUS (00:15:41)

5. “If you’re writing fiction, you need to read NEXUS.” (00:27:40)

6. ...NEXUS feels like my platonic ideal of pure comics. (00:28:39)

7. “...Neither fish nor fowl...” The elusive nature of NEXUS (00:36:04)

8. THE NAME OF THE ROSE by Umberto Eco; THE MASTER AND MARGARITA by Mikhail Bulgakov; IF ON A WINTER’S NIGHT A TRAVELER by Italo Calvino (00:48:39)

9. NEXUS’s stylish synthesis of Alex Toth, SPACE GHOST, and Jack Kirby. (01:00:30)

10. The crossover with Mike Baron’s other First Comics title, THE BADGER (01:02:51)

11. The once-in-a-lifetime radiance of Steve Rude. “There’s nothing he can’t draw... That’s what’s f'd up.” (01:06:27)

12. “...These are alien landscapes, alien ships, alien clothing... Steve Rude... has lived in these worlds… a master class in comic book art (01:11:04)

13. The subtlety, grace, and beauty of Rude’s art -- a barrier-to-entry for some? (01:12:14)

14. The unbelievable alien physics of Steve Rude’s intergalactic architecture (01:20:55)

15. NEXUS as the apex of ongoing creator-owned comics (01:29:55)

16. Why you need to read NEXUS in the original floppy single issues (01:33:11)

17. The act of genius-level wholesale invention that is NEXUS, as opposed to WATCHMEN and SANDMAN (01:43:00)

18. A last fraught exchange, NEXUS letter column (01:45:53)

19. “...One of the greatest ongoing comics of all time -- and it isn’t even close.” (01:49:46)