Two of my favorite pop culture icons growing up were Speed Racer and Star Wars. I didn’t get to see Speed Racer this weekend (I’d rather remember it like it was), but from what I’ve heard the best part of the movie was the trailer the animated Star Wars: Clone Wars animated feature. I’m not a fan of the prequels, but the trailer does look pretty good.

Today is an absolutely batty day if you are a fan of Batman. The first issue of the closely guarded story arc Batman R.I.P. begins today with Batman #676. IGN had an interview with Batman scribe Grant Morrison back in March and his answers were as cryptic as ever. From DC Comics,

Are you ready for “Batman R.I.P.”?

Beginning the epic story that will change the legend of the Dark Knight forever! Everything in Grant Morrison’s groundbreaking run on Batman has been leading to this story, and nothing will ever be the same again.

Who will live? Who will die? Who will be Batman? The answers are sure to shock you in “Batman R.I.P.,” featuring artwork by Tony Daniel and Sandu Florea and covers by Alex Ross.

Other Batman items released today include Batman Confidential #17, Batman Strikes #45, Batman the Jokers Last Laugh TP, Batman the Resurrection of Ras Al Ghul HC, and the Batman Versus the Joker Statue.

by Chase Bouzigard and Blake Petit
Our big May spectacular continues as Blake and Chase (along with back-up geeks Mike and Kenny) delve into the world’s first superhero team, and one of the best monthly comics currently on the stands: Justice Society of America. The guys pick their favorite JSA stories, talk about the past, present and future of the team, discuss the strength of Legacy heroes, and show their excitement over the upcoming Power Girl series! Next, the guys update their Final Crisis discussion from Episode 64, and in the picks this week, Blake loves Noble Causes and Perhapanauts, while Chase goes for Star Trek: Year Four. (Mike enjoys Batman Confidential and Green Lantern Corps.) Next week, the guys begin their two-week debate on the greatest and worst comic book movies ever made, and in three weeks, the long-awaited Valiant Comics episode! E-mail us with your thoughts on these topics, this episode, “Ask Chase Anything” questions, or anything else at Showcase@comixtreme.com!
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Episode 68: Justice Society of America
(left-click to listen, right-click to download)

Thank you to everyone that not only made it out to the premier of Iron Man last Tuesday, but for also making this year’s Free Comic Book Day our best yet. This year we gave out over a thousand free comics, HeroClix, and other cool stuff. A special thanks to everyone in the 501st for coming by with some great costumes, Anthony Figaro, Vernon Smith and Karen Chen of The Adventures of Dexter Breakfast, Doug and Monty of welcometobordercity.com, Robby Musso of Transformers and Speed Racer fame, and to Chase and Blake of 2 In 1 Showcase for covering the entire event. Mark your calendars for next year, Free Comic Book Day will be on May 2, 2009 and we promise it will be huge. Also, the new website should debut within the next week and just to whet your appetite, the image above is part of our new web design.

by Chase Bouzigard and Blake Petit
It’s part two of our Free Comic Book Day coverage! Chase and Blake return to the floor at BSI Comics where they talk to Marcus DiGesu and Anthony Figaro, the creators behind Lightning Age Studios‘ upcoming Justice City Chronicles graphic novel and the Leonidas: Rise of the King miniseries. After chatting with the customers and making their picks of the week (including DC Universe #0 from BSI’s Jason, Wolverine: First Class #2 from Chase and Action Comics #864 from Blake), we talk with Doug Raymond and Monty from Welcome to Border City. Kathleen Ledet and Jen Suran tell us about their documentary film Weeding By Example, and Robby Musso — artist of multiple IDW TransFormers comics and Speed Racer: Chronicles of the Racer, sits down for a long-awaited interview. Oh — and because it’s us, we go out talking about Lost. We hope you enjoyed this two-parter as much as we enjoyed making it! Come back on Saturday for our Justice Society of America episode, and e-mail us at Showcase@comixtreme.com!
Music provided by the Podshow Podsafe Music Network
Episode 67.5: Free Comic Book Day 2008 Part Two
(left-click to listen, right-click to download)