Fireside Chat with Phillip Kennedy Johnson

Jace continues the 2025 12 Days of The Comic Source Fireside Chats by welcoming back writer Philip Kennedy Johnson for a wide-ranging holiday conversation covering recent announcements and an overview of what has been keeping him busy across DC, Marvel, and creator-owned work. The discussion revisits Johnson’s recent DC work, including Batman and Robin and the Quiet Man storyline (with talk about the character’s moral gray area, the “ordinary person” angle, and the creative choices behind details like Scarface and the book’s mystery tone), while also digging into the world-building and legacy focus of Adventures of Superman / Book of L and how back matter and lore help carry the series’ larger mythology. Johnson also talks through the horror-forward approach of his Hulk run leading into Infernal Hulk, why emotional thematic beats matter as much as spectacle, and how his storytelling aims to balance big superhero scope with grounded human fears, before shifting into creator-owned reflections on Crocodile Black and the idea of identity and masks. The episode closes with holiday traditions and seasonal music favorites, including cutting down a live tree with his son, writing and playing Christmas music together, and listening staples like Vince Guaraldi and Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite, along with a note on Johnson’s move to an exclusive Marvel deal while finishing planned conclusions on current DC projects.