Thick Lines

A comics podcast by cartoonists Katie Skelly and Sally Madden. Support the show and get bonus episodes at patreon.com/thicklinespod.

*TEASER* 157- Akbar and Jeff with Sam Szabo 04/22/2025

*TEASER* 157- Akbar and Jeff with Sam Szabo Full episode at patreon.com/thicklinespod. What says "Happy 420, Two Days Late" like host and guest favorites, Akbar and Jeff? Sally and Sam Szabo find out what it means to be gay in Regan's America with Akbar and Jeff's Guide to Life by Matt Groening (Pantheon, 1989). This strip continued beyond the book's publication date for another TWENTY THREE YEARS so there's lots more of our favorite couple beyond this episode. Topics include: where the elite meet, American Psycho, Working Girl, learning about color cartoons, fezzes and more. Sally was minutes away from finding out she had covid while recording AND editing this episode, thank you for bearing with us regarding the sound quality. Thank you kindly to our Elite Cathies, Starscruch and Drawn & Quarterly for supporting this show at the $20/month level- you can access 50+ additional episodes for $5/month over at our patreon: You can read many many MANY comics by Sam over at her patreon: Akbar and Jeff's Guide to Life: /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/36271005

156- Poor Helpless Comics! with Sam Szabo 04/22/2025

156- Poor Helpless Comics! with Sam Szabo Happy Earth Day! Listener favorite Sam Szabo (Comics Will Break Your Balls, The Enlightened Transsexual, The Onion) is back to look at the PG-13 porno comics of Poor Helpless Comics! by Ed Subitzky (NYRC, 2023). Topics include, Heather McAdams' Cartoon Girl, going to the movies, National Lampoon, David Letterman, and so very much more. Sally was minutes away from finding out she had covid while recording AND editing this episode, thank you for bearing with us regarding the sound quality. Thank you kindly to our Elite Cathies, Starscruch and Drawn & Quarterly for supporting this show at the $20/month level- you can access 50+ additional episodes for $5/month over at our patreon: You can read many many MANY comics by Sam over at her patreon: Poor Helpless Comics!: Heather McAdams info: /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/36270735

154- Best of 2024 with Jog PART ONE 04/04/2025

154- Best of 2024 with Jog PART ONE What's our favorite books from 2024? Sally describes them all in no particular order to beloved listener favorite Joe McCulloch! Part one is here for you to enjoy, for Part Two, we will see you over at our patreon: Follow us on Instagram @thicklinespod and email us to join our Discord at [email protected] - John Mejias (zine) (audiobook)- Ana Woulfe - Dash Shaw - Em Frank - Charles Burns - Molly Colleen O’Connell - Leomi Sadler by Louka Butzbach - Anand - J. Webster Sharp by Eileen Wolf Echikson by Stan Mack by Edward Steed by Sugiura Shigeru by Beth Hetland by Mia Oberländer by Joe Steinhardt and Marissa Paternoster by Eleanor Davis by Julia Gfrorer edited by Angela Fanche and Katie Lane /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/36010195

153- *RE-RELEASE* A Very Gorey Episode 03/05/2025

153- *RE-RELEASE* A Very Gorey Episode Last week marked the centennial of Edward Gorey's birth, so let's wish a happy birthday to our shared goth uncle with a listen back to episiode 23. Enjoy! Katie Skelly and Sally Madden discuss Edward Gorey's "Amphigorey: Fifteen Books" (1980). Topics discussed include Max Ernst, Edward Lear, Agatha Christie, Charles Addams, Tomie dePaola, Roald Dahl, holding newborns, ballet, New England, and more. Next time: "Magician A" by Natsuko Ishitsuyo. Find 50+ additional episodes at our patreon: Follow us on Instagram @thicklinespod and email us to join our Discord at [email protected] /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/35544955

*TEASER* 162- Interview with Em Frank and Frances Cordelia Beaver part 1: Live from PCX! 03/05/2025

*TEASER* 162- Interview with Em Frank and Frances Cordelia Beaver part 1: Live from PCX! This is a subscriber-only episode, for the full audio please visit Thank you to Partners and Son for hosting us! Sally interviews Em Frank (Heavenly Days, I Never Found You, Dark Garbage) and Frances Cordelia Beaver (On a Cute One, Spirits Hungover At Work, Give My Best To Your Kind!) live from Partners and Son at PCX. Topics include: why comic books are the easiest art form to get done, taking elementary schoolers to Wong Kar-wai movies, not taking responsibility for torturing your own characters, and much more. This is part 1! Partners and Son: Em Frank: Frances Cordelia Beaver: /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/35544610

151- The Pervert with Frances Cordelia Beaver 03/03/2025

151- The Pervert with Frances Cordelia Beaver Frances Cordelia Beaver (On A Cute One, 2021) joins Sally Madden to read The Pervert by Michelle Perez and Remy Boydell (Image Comics, 2018) Topics include: a picnic at the graveyard, Milk White Steed by Michael D. Kennedy (Drawn and Quarterly, 2025), Peephhole #1 (despite what Sally says at the top of the episode, the table of contents is CLEARLY labeled with each artist's attributed page numbers, despite the pages not being numbered), Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh (Gallery Books, 2020) X-rated amazon packaging, Paris is Burning, Summer Fun by Jeanne Thornton (Soho Press, 2021), disgust, and much more. Support the show and get bonus content at Follow us on Instagram You can find Frances's artwork , her music is Partners and Son has new and first-reprint-in-a-decade+ vintage zines from Sally Madden here: AND you can find Sally (and Katie Skelly) next weekend at ! Smell ya later! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/35520805

150- Surfing The Crimson Wave with Molly Colleen O'Connell 02/23/2025

150- Surfing The Crimson Wave with Molly Colleen O'Connell I was always here, where were you? Thick Lines is back! Sally Madden talks with with Molly Colleen O’Connell about The Green Hand and Other Stories by Nicole Claveloux (NYRC, 2017) topics include gardening, nudity, getting our periods for the first time, and lots more. Thank you for listening! Katie Skelly and Sally Madden are part of the programming at MoCCA next month, please come say hello! Support the show and get bonus content at Follow us on Instagram You can find Molly Colleen O’Connell’s comics and wares here: You can find Katie Skelly’s comics and wares here: Partners and Son has newborn and vintage zines from Sally Madden here: /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/35395370

149 - Katie & Sally Apology Tour '24 11/28/2024

149 - Katie & Sally Apology Tour '24 Oops! We're back! Katie and Sally catch up on recent reads including Unwholesome Love (Fictopicto/Partners and Son, 2024) and Final Cut (Pantheon, 2024) by Charles Burns, Blurry by Dash Shaw (New York Review Books, 2024), Sunday by Olivier Schrauwen (Fantagraphics, 2024), My Time Machine by Carol Lay (Fantagraphics, 2024), John Willie: A Bizarre Life by Jane Garrett (Schiffer, 2024), plus a look at the film The Substance (2024). Catch Katie at Comic Arts LA on December 14 & 15: Back VISCERE #2: Folk Horror on Kickstarter through December 20: Support the show and get bonus content at Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/34188405

*TEASER* 148 - Scary Stories to Tell on the Pod 10/29/2024

*TEASER* 148 - Scary Stories to Tell on the Pod Full episode at . Katie and Sally are back with a bone-chilling countdown of their top three scariest comics. Artists discussed include Josh Simmons, Al Columbia, Kazuo Umezz, Jacques Loustal and Villard, Stephen Gammell, Julia Gfrorer, Conor Stechschulte, Art Spiegelman, Jaime Hernandez, Richard McGuire, and many others. Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible. Happy Halloween! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/33674927

147 - The Charming Bad Man Industrial Complex with Anya Davidson 10/18/2024

147 - The Charming Bad Man Industrial Complex with Anya Davidson Katie is joined by cartoonist Anya Davidson (Night and Dana, School Spirits, Band for Life, Lovers in the Garden) to discuss Pascin by Joann Sfar (Uncivilized Books, 2016), translated by Edward Gauvin and Uncivilized Books. Find more Anya at and on Instagram . Support the show and get bonus episodes and more at . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/33517217

*TEASER* 146 - Boots on the Ground: SPX 2024 09/30/2024

*TEASER* 146 - Boots on the Ground: SPX 2024 Full episode at . Sally and daughter hit the aisles of The Small Press Expo in Bethesda, MD on September 14 & 15 to ask creators, publishers, and retailers which formative reading experiences pushed them further into comics. Guests include: Avi Ehrlich (Silver Sprocket) B. Erin Cole Dash Shaw Drew Weing Ellen Marcus Em Jon-Michael Frank Ina Parsons Jason Leivian (Floating World Comics) Joe Sikoryak Jonathan Baylis Mattie Lubchansky Natalie Andrewson Peggy Burns (Drawn and Quarterly) Ryan Holmberg Tigrspoon Ursakursa Walter Scott Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/33267942

*TEASER* 145 - Ware Pilled 09/27/2024

*TEASER* 145 - Ware Pilled Full episode available at . Katie and Sally tackle Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth by Chris Ware (Pantheon, 2000). Topics include Little Nemo in Slumberland, Dan Clowes, The New Yorker, intergenerational trauma, and Flip Wilson. Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/33235462

144 - Iris in the Morning with Chloe Brailsford 09/23/2024

144 - Iris in the Morning with Chloe Brailsford Katie is joined by cartoonist Chloe Brailsford (DC Pride 2024, Sapphic Pulp, Viscere #1) for a look at Iris: A Novel For Viewers, written by Lo Hartog van Banda, drawn by Thé Tjong-Khing (Fantagraphics, 2024). Topics discussed include Barbarella, Auranella, Kris Kool, Guido Crepax, Guy Peellaert, and lots more. Find Chloe on and at @chloe.in.pink. Support the show and get bonus episodes at . Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/33141072

143 - Thee Medical Arts with Shannon Spence 09/18/2024

143 - Thee Medical Arts with Shannon Spence Sally is joined by Shannon Spence (P*NK LAB GRL! Burn it Down!, Kid Internet Connect) for a chat about their shared backgrounds and interest in medical illustration. Topics discussed include The Andromeda Strain, Frank Bender, Frank Netter, Gray's Anatomy, and lots more. Follow Shannon at on Instagram. Support the show and get bonus episodes at . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/33114482

*UNLOCKED* 82 - There's a Billboard Over Glendale Blvd. with Hellen Jo 09/13/2024

*UNLOCKED* 82 - There's a Billboard Over Glendale Blvd. with Hellen Jo We'll be back with all new episodes starting next week! Katie and Sally are joined by Hellen Jo (Jin & Jam, ) to discuss the billboard with her artwork gracing Glendale Blvd., plus a lengthy discussion of her comics journey, studio process, her life drawing classes, boba orders, girl gangs, Korean shamanism, and lots more. Hellen Jo is a Los Angeles based artist who has worked in comics, animation, illustration, and fine art. Her credits include writing and storyboards for Steven Universe, Regular Show, and Gothball; creator of comics Jin & Jam #1 (Sparkplug), Deep Cut, Paralysis, and A Bleeding Cut; and group exhibitions at Subliminal Projects. She also teaches life drawing seminars at . Find her billboard on SW Glendale Blvd (between Edenhurst Ave and Glenfeliz Blvd) through June 2023. Find more of Jo's work at and on Instagram at @helllllenjjjjjo. Thank you to our patrons for making this episode possible! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/33047912

*TEASER* 142 - Lookie Loos 08/31/2024

*TEASER* 142 - Lookie Loos Full episode at . Katie and Sally reconvene to catch up on our Fall to-read piles and take a look at the Fantagraphics Winter '25 catalog. Comics touched on: Round World Thinking by Ana Woulfe, Pony Show by Bread Tarleton, Distant Ruptures by C.F., Blurry by Dash Shaw, Processing: 100 Comics That Got Me Through It by Tara Booth, A Guest in the House by E.M. Carroll, Oba Electroplating Factory by Yoshiharu Tsuge, Ninja Sarutobi Sasuke by Sugiura Shigeru, Heavenly Days by Em Frank, Chad in Amsterdam by Chad Bilyeu, Kommix by Charles Burns, Iris: A Novel for Viewers by Thé Tjong-Khing and Lo Hartog Van Banda, and The Return of Mister X by Dean Motter and Los Bros. Thank you to our patrons for making this episode possible! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/32811822

*UNLOCKED* 92 - Squaring the Circle 08/30/2024

*UNLOCKED* 92 - Squaring the Circle Originally published June 15, 2023. Support the show and never miss a bonus episode at . Katie and Sally discuss Zero Girl by Sam Kieth (Homage Comics, 2001), an at times bizarre vision that only Kieth could breathe to life. Topics discussed include Suicide Girls, Tampa by Alissa Nutting, and lots more. Thanks to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/32811322

*TEASER* 141 - Peepshow #15 07/31/2024

*TEASER* 141 - Peepshow #15 Full episode at . Katie and Sally discuss Peepshow #15 by Joe Matt (Fantagraphics, 2024). Topics discussed include being cheap, Seth, Weezer, tv people, writing letters, and lots more. Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! Catch Katie reading with Beth Hetland at in Los Angeles, CA on Sunday, August 4. Catch Sally at the in Boise, ID on August 24 & 25. Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/32368877

*TEASER* 140 - Bernadette with Katie Lane and Angela Fanche Live at Partners and Son 07/26/2024

*TEASER* 140 - Bernadette with Katie Lane and Angela Fanche Live at Partners and Son Full episode at . Sally gets the scoop on the new Bernadette magazine with its editors Katie Lane (Single Camera Sitcom) and Angela Fanche (Humility Machine), recorded live at Partners and Son in Philadelphia, PA on Friday, July 12, 2024. Bernadette features work from 27+ artists including Lala Albert, Gabrielle Bell, Clair Gunther, Charlotte Pelissier + Juliette Collet, Sam Szabo, Molly Dwyer, Ana Woulfe, and many more. Pick up Bernadette from or wherever fine comics are sold! Follow Katie and Angela on Instagram at and . Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/32307862

139 - Little Lit with Bread Tarleton 07/13/2024

139 - Little Lit with Bread Tarleton Sally is joined by Bread Tarleton (Ponyshow, Horse) for a look at Little Lit: Folklore and Fairy Tale Funnies edited by Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly (RAW Junior, 2000), a venture into stories for kids with comics by Dan Clowes, Chris Ware, David Mazzucchelli, Kaz, and many more. Find Bread on Instagram . Support Thick Lines and get bonus content at . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/32119002

138 - My Pretty Vampire with Corinne Halbert 07/03/2024

138 - My Pretty Vampire with Corinne Halbert Sally is joined by Corinne Halbert (Acid Nun, Scorpio Venus Rising) for a look at My Pretty Vampire by Katie Skelly (Fantagraphics, 2017). Topics discussed include Herzog's Nosferatu, vampire lore, establishing mise-en-scène, and lots more. Find Corinne on Instagram . Support the show and get bonus episodes at /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31986042

*TEASER* 137 - My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness with Chloe Brailsford 06/28/2024

*TEASER* 137 - My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness with Chloe Brailsford Full episode at . Katie is joined by Chloe Brailsford (DC Pride 2024, Sapphic Pulp, Viscere #1) to discuss the perils of being a lonely queer cartoonist with a long chat about My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Kabi Nagata (Seven Seas, 2016). Plus some yapping about blockbuster graphic novels, telling vs. showing, and living vs. trying to live through your work. Find Chloe on and at @chloe.in.pink. Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31935142

*TEASER* 136 - The Big Skinny with Bread Tarleton 06/21/2024

*TEASER* 136 - The Big Skinny with Bread Tarleton Full episode at patreon.com/thicklinespod. Sally is joined by cartoonist and illustrator Bread Tarleton (Horse, Ponyshow) for a look at Goodreads darling The Big Skinny: How I Changed My Fattitude by Carol Lay (Villard, 2008). Find Bread on Instagram at . Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31843097

135 - Future Perfect with Dash Shaw 06/12/2024

135 - Future Perfect with Dash Shaw Sally is joined by Dash Shaw (Bottomless Belly Button, BodyWorld, Cryptozoo) to discuss Social Fiction by Chantal Montellier (New York Review Comics, 2023). Topics discussed include how to read a comic, combining comics and poetry, Bubbles Con, Jacques Tardi, The Drifting Classroom, Dylan Dog, Dawn of the Dead, Chris Ware, C.F., Métal hurlant, Becky Chambers, J.G. Ballard, Dash's next book, and lots more. But first, a show announcement at the top of the episode. Follow Dash on Instagram at . Support the show and get bonus episodes at Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31707457

*TEASER* 134 - Boots on the Ground: Nancy Fest 06/03/2024

*TEASER* 134 - Boots on the Ground: Nancy Fest Full episode at . Sally goes to the first ever at The Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum in Columbus, OH on May 24-25 and takes attendee and staff temperatures on the Nancy renaissance. Thank you to our Patreon subscribers for making this episode possible! Support the show and get bonus episodes at . Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31583767

*TEASER* 133 - Tender Mercies with Sam Szabo 05/31/2024

*TEASER* 133 - Tender Mercies with Sam Szabo Full episode at . Sally is joined by Sam Szabo (Enlightened Transsexual Comix) for a mega episode looking at Tender by Beth Hetland (Fantagraphics, 2024). Catch Sam at Zine Not Dead in Chicago, IL on Saturday, June 15: Follow Sam on Instagram at . Get bonus episodes and video content at . Follow Thick Lines on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31556322

132 - Hot off the Presses with Chris Mautner 05/22/2024

132 - Hot off the Presses with Chris Mautner Sally talks to fellow newly-minted Comics Journal co-editor Chris Mautner (Comic Books are Burning in Hell pod) about writing about comics, Bubbles Con, who isn’t from Pennsylvania, Garfield, working in journalism, being a newspaper man, and what’s next for TCJ. Check out Sally and Chris in action at The Comics Journal: Listen to Chris on Comic Books Are Burning in Hell: Follow Thick Lines on Instagram . Support the show and get bonus episodes at . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31426377

*UNLOCKED* 79 - The Lady with the Crocodile Purse 05/17/2024

*UNLOCKED* 79 - The Lady with the Crocodile Purse Katie and Sally discuss Pink by Kyoko Okazaki (Vertical, 2013, orig. pub. 1989). Topics discussed include Graham Rawle, Quentin Blake, Jennifer's Body, Jean-Luc Godard, and Lana Del Rey's Phoebe Gloeckner moment. Thank you to our subscribers for making this episode possible! /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31357302

*TEASER* 131 - Katie's Friend Trina 05/03/2024

*TEASER* 131 - Katie's Friend Trina Full episode at . Katie and Sally discuss Last Girl Standing, a prose memoir by the late Trina Robbins (Fantagraphics, 2017). Plus, some show news and a fresh round of the Bad Boyfriend Bracket. Thank you to our patrons for making this episode possible! Catch Sally at Bubbles Con on Saturday, May 4 in Richmond, VA: Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/31097033

130 - Sally's Friend Tony 04/25/2024

130 - Sally's Friend Tony Katie and Sally discuss The House at Maakies Corner by Tony Millionaire (Fantagraphics, 2002), the second Fantagraphics collection of Maakies strips created from 2000 to 2002. Topics discussed include Johnny Gruelle, Sock Monkey: The Glass Doorknob, alt weeklies, Fred Basset, and lots more. Get bonus episodes and video content at Follow us on Instagram . /episode/index/show/thicklines/id/30989053

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