{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/66d9c19629a27e316730341c/6ad085939fea6e0a641599d6?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"Fault Lines (2026) by Robert Cullen","thumbnail_width":200,"thumbnail_height":200,"thumbnail_url":"https://open-images.acast.com/shows/66d9c19629a27e316730341c/1792075547910-f1c485b4-43b7-4566-ac84-f8bef1118a06.jpeg?height=200","description":"<p>Mick and Ben open spooky season with <em>Fault Lines</em>, the debut comic anthology from Robert Cullen, the Irish animator who founded Boulder Media (<em>Danger Mouse</em>, <em>Transformers</em>, <em>Wacky Races</em>). It has three stories about guilt, grief and the Irish diaspora. They range from Twilight Zone strange to quietly devastating, and each turns on the moment a life breaks apart.</p><p><br></p><p>In this episode:</p><ul><li><strong>The Vanishing Act</strong>: Blackpool, 1976. Kathleen, an Irish showgirl in Tommy Cooper’s variety act, takes work as the assistant to a sleazy magician whose disappearing trick sometimes actually works. We look at magical realism, women “staying in their places”, and an eight-page silent sequence that shows how much comics can do.</li><li><strong>How to Be a Ghost</strong>: Mick’s favourite. A grief story set in Canada with a twist you’ll want to reread straight away. We cover Cullen’s limited colour palette, his nine-panel grids, and why this story only works as a comic.</li><li><strong>Siren</strong>: Campbell, a deaf man in Glasgow, hears a sound for the first time in 40 years and is pulled back to Edinburgh and an old crime. We talk about one of the best depictions of deafness and sign language we’ve seen in a comic, and about how guilt gets handed down to the next generation.</li></ul><p>Along the way: Cullen’s move from animation director to comic book creator, how he uses cinematic framing without making the pages feel like storyboards, and why independent Irish comics deserve your money. Spoilers throughout, so read it first. It’s a book club, not a review show.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Next time, for Halloween: <em>A Guest in the House</em> by E.M. Carroll.</strong></p><p><br></p><p>🎧 Listen and subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Acast</p><p><strong>Find us</strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"https://discord.gg/CTKJr3j2jp\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Join the Discord and read along</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"https://collectingissuespodcast.substack.com/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Read Our Substack</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/collectingissues/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Follow us on Instagram</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@collectingissues?lang=en\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Follow us on Tiktok</a></strong></p><p><strong><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4JTsT8MXJtk5jr4sJxUpXQ\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Watch us on Youtube</a></strong></p><p><br></p><p>Buy <em>Fault Lines</em> from your local independent comic shop.</p><p><br></p><p>Time Stamps:</p><p><br></p><p>00:00 Intro and Premise</p><p>01:13 Support Indie Comics</p><p>01:51 What Is Fault Lines</p><p>03:26 Creator Background</p><p>04:24 Vanishing Act Setup</p><p>04:32 Kathleen in Blackpool</p><p>13:34 Break In and Loss</p><p>16:47 Great Dini Offer</p><p>20:07 Snuff Magic Audience</p><p>22:43 Escape and Rescue</p><p>29:03 Story One Wrap</p><p>29:52 Story Two Tease</p><p>30:54 Follow and Subscribe</p><p>32:44 Ghost Story Twist</p><p>35:22 Comics Medium Advantage</p><p>36:43 Cullen Interview Craft</p><p>38:56 Color Memory Motifs</p><p>42:49 Crash Site Grief Reveal</p><p>44:26 Restraint Happy Ending</p><p>47:06 Siren Call Deafness</p><p>52:03 Guilt Road Trip Edinburgh</p><p>55:47 Accident Backstory Unfolds</p><p>58:20 Fault Lines Aftermath</p><p>01:00:30 Wrap Up Next Episode</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Tags / keywords:</strong> Fault Lines comic, Robert Cullen, Boulder Media, Irish comics, independent comics, horror comic anthology, graphic novel review, comic book podcast, comic book club, magical realism comics, Halloween comics, spooky season, Irish podcast, Collecting Issues</p>","author_name":"Mick and Ben"}