Zack Kruse, PhD

DITKO: a documentary feature I'm directing and co-producing is in full swing!

I'm so proud of this project and what we are assembling; working with the Ditko estate has been fantastic. This project is more than Spider-Man. We're going to restart the conversation about Steve Ditko with this film.

A conversation with Justus Nieland about his recent book, Happiness by Design: Modernism and Media in the Eames Era (University of Minnesota Press). Our conversation considers shifting views of modernism, film & media studies, and the role of design and industrial film in these, and other, discourses.  Season 1 finale. 

Written, engineered, and produced by Zack Kruse. Music by Zack Kruse.

A conversation with Dr. Tamar Boyadjian about Robin Hood, translation, identity, the impact of early modern literature, and her new Robin Hood reader. Written, engineered, and produced by Zack Kruse. Music by Zack Kruse

A conversation with Professors Gordon Henry, LeAnne Howe, Margaret Noodin, and Kimberly Blaeser about Indigenous poetry and their contributions to the exciting new anthology, When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through.  Written, engineered, and produced by Zack Kruse. Music by Zack Kruse.

A conversation with Dr. Zarena Aslami about Afghanistan, race, and literature, and how Victorian Studies is can respond to these critical issues. Written, engineered, and produced by Zack Kruse. Music by Zack Kruse

Join Will, Ben, and Zack as they discuss Frank Young's Little Debbie and the Second Coming of Elmo, Kevin Eastman & Peter Laird's Fugitoid #1, and Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips' My Heroes Have Always Been Junkies. Enjoy!

A conversation with Professor Julian Chambliss about comics, DH, and the comics archive at Michigan State University. Written, hosted, and produced by Zack Kruse Music: "This is Coffee?" - Zack Kruse

Will, Ben, and Zack discuss Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely's We3 from Vertigo. 

Our 50th episode! Zack, Will, and Ben discuss Eric Haven's CRYPTOID, Tom Van Deusen's EXPELLING MY TRUTH, Dan Clowes's LLOOK OUT! IT'S LLOYD LLEWELLYN, and Ben Katchor's CHEAP NOVELTIES: THE PLEASURES OF URBAN DECAY. 

Zack, Will, and Ben discuss Max Allan Collins and Terry Beatty's Ms. Tree: One Mean Mother from Hard Case Crime and Titan Comics. 

Ben, Will, and Zack are back to discuss Frank Miller and Rafael Grampa's Dark Knight Returns: The Golden Child; Kirk Demarais's Mail-Order Mysteries; Jeff Lemire, Denys Cowan, and Bill Sienkiewicz's The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage; Daniel Warren Johnson's Wonder Woman: The Dead Earth; Steve Gerber and Jack Kirby's Destroyer Duck #1; and Jonah Hex and Other Western Tales Digests. Enjoy!

Ben, Will, and Zack discuss the highly-influnetial underground comix classic, Binky Brown Meets the Holy Virgin Mary by Justin Green. 

Will, Zack, and Ben are back with another Whatcha Readin'? episode and the guys discuss Gahan Wilson's Nuts, Howard Cruse's Stuck Rubber Baby, Alan Moore and Chris Sprouse's Tom Strong, and Steve Ditko and Robin Snyder's The Hero Comics #29--which includes big reveal from Ditko.

Will, Ben, and Zack discuss Chris Ware's devastating Rusty Brown from Pantheon Books!

Zack, Will, and Ben are back to discuss Jim Cornette Presents: Real Wrestling Stories from IDW, Chris Blain's Gus, Uncanny X-Men #141, and a quick trip down memory lane!

Zack, Will, and Ben discuss Junji Ito's Uzumaki from Viz. 

Will, Zack, and Ben are back to talk about some of the things they've been reading lately. They discuss Cecil Jensen's Elmo, Gabriel Bell's July Diary, Ray Wegner's Kingdom of Skulls, Jack Chick's Sabotage?, and Noah VanSciver's In the Thick of It.