The following is an interview with David Hyde and Kris Simon on their recent return for season 3 of the Superfan Podcast, where the people who make the comics you love talk about the things that they love . . . that aren’t comics. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Hyde and Simon about the exciting (and spooky!) twists that they have added to the podcast format this season, the horror projects and creators that have had the biggest impact on their own creativity, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Congrats on the return of The Superfan Podcast for its third season! You have launched Season 3 with a few spectacularly spooky twists… What are you most excited to share with listeners in the upcoming episodes?
David Hyde: We set out to create a podcast where comic book creators celebrate the films, books, writers, and artists that they’re a fan of. In each episode we ask our guests if they’ve met the person that they’re a superfan of. And while I don’t want to spoil the conversation, I will say that in this week’s episode, we’ll discover that either Goon creator Eric Powell or 30 Days of Night writer Steve Niles met the novelist and screenwriter Richard Matheson, who the episode focuses on. It’s a charming and life-affirming little story.
And I will say that Matheson is due for a rediscovery. He was a towering figure in the world of horror, inspiring the likes of Stephen King, Anne Rice, George Romero, and Edgar Wright. He’s probably best known as the author of I Am Legend, in part because it has been adapted for the screen three times. And he also wrote 16 episodes of The Twilight Zone, including the iconic “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” episode with William Shatner and the Gremlin, as well as classics like “Little Girl Lost” and “Steel.” But wait, there’s more! Matheson wrote the screenplays for Roger Corman’s adaptations of Edgar Alan Poe’s House of Usher, The Pit and the Pendulum, Tales of Terror, and The Raven. And he adapted his 1971 short story “Duel” as a screenplay, which was directed by Spielberg and is a hell of a movie. What a career, right? I would love it if this episode helped more people discover Matheson’s writing!
Kris Simon: I would love to share that I have continued to become obsessed with some of these fandoms long after the podcast episode has ended! The episode with Eisner and Harvey Award winners Mariko Tamaki and Nicole Goux, where we discuss Murder, She Wrote and Columbo…I didn’t get to share this on the podcast, but the show Elsbeth is a direct homage to Columbo (both structurally and in terms of inspiration), and I can’t believe we didn’t even get to deep-dive into that! And now your readers know, so that’s off my chest.
DH: Now I have to watch Elsbeth!
BD: In pairing two friends as guests for this season, have you found that there is an exciting, new dynamic within the conversation of each episode?
KS: Yes, and the dynamic is different with each pair of guests. Some of them bounce off each other conversationally because they have known each other for a long time, and some of them were introduced to the topic recently by the other person, so they end up asking their own questions! It’s always different, which makes each episode surprising and fun.
DH: Exactly. Each duo has their own dynamic. Patrick Horvath and Tyler Crook are collaborating on Oni Press’ eagerly awaited Archie in Hell and have gotten to know each other while working together this year. On the other end of the spectrum are Victor LaValle and Mat Johnson, who are our guests for an episode about John Carpenter’s The Thing. They have been close friends for decades and used to be roommates, back when they were first breaking out as writers. Their conversation was fascinating, both because of their long history as friends, but also because they’re both accomplished teachers and they brought some deep insights to Carpenter’s film and horror as a genre.
(Editor’s Note: Legendary creators Matt Wagner and Kelley Jones were also recent guests discussing their love for the works of works of Brian De Palma and Krzysztof Kieślowski.)
BD: At Fanbase Press, we always like to learn more about creatives and what drives and inspires them. Are there any horror creators or projects that greatly influenced you and/or your own creativity?
DH: I was already a huge fan of David Lynch before we talked with Patrick Horvath and Tyler Crook, and my Lynch fandom is a pretty big part of who I am. I own all of Criterion’s 4K releases of his films and most of the books by and about him. And I have a small collection of art inspired by Lynch: a spectacular and haunting print of Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks by Jeff Lemire, a hilarious mash-up of Wally Brando, Michael Cera, and Scott Pilgrim by Bryan Lee O’Malley, a haunting Twin Peaks print by Shag, and an original sketch of the director by that comic book genius Matt Kindt.
Why Lynch? His films are haunting, dreamlike meditations on identity and life. And they’re strange and sexy and violent and weird and the kind of stories you can’t get out of your head, even if you wanted to.
But despite all that over-the-top weirdness, Lynch himself had the reputation for being incredibly sweet. His stories brought awareness to Transcendental Mediation and the Dalai Lama! I love that dichotomy.
Our episode with Patrick and Tyler ends not with a final question, but with a quote from Lynch. “Ideas are like fish. If you want to catch little fish, you can stay in the shallow water. But if you want to catch the big fish, you’ve got to go deeper.” Go catch the big fish, people.
BD: If given the opportunity, are there any super-star guests that you would love to have on the show to talk about their favorite horror or crime stories?
KS: “Super-star” is subjective, I think. I gotta say, if someone asked me who would pop into my head first when they say “horror comic book writer,” it would be Steve Niles, who just happens to be a guest this season with Eric Powell (who is also a super-star in my book)! Maybe Joe Hill? For artists, I would have to go for Junji Ito. And of course, there’s always Mike Mignola!
DH: I second Junji Ito and Mike Mignola, two masters of the macabre! I would love to have Alan Moore on the podcast.
BD: We always want to give a shout-out to the folks whose hard work makes our favorite projects possible! Are there any other individuals involved behind the scenes with the podcast that you would like to highlight?
KS: Absolutely! Where would we be without Dara Hyde, who edited this season’s YouTube episodes?! She also gathers all the show notes into one spot for me, and I am eternally grateful for that. And Christian Gossett, whose insane schedule prevented him from co-hosting this season, but he still managed to create the amazing Season 3 spooky artwork. I’ll let David tell you about the fantastic Halloween Boy ad, the copy written by Dave Baker, and, of course, our theme song and everyone else. It takes an army!
DH: It really does take an army! We had an incredible editor on seasons one and two: Mr. Bryant Dillon, a name readers of this site are very familiar with! Bryant did an incredible job. This season we decided to upload video onto YouTube and Dara took over editing and she’s done a terrific job. One of our guests was very sick and had a terrible cough when we recorded but all those coughs and sniffles are now, thankfully, on the cutting room floor.
We should also thanks to Dara’s brother, Don Walton, who recorded the fake ads for seasons two and three. This year’s ad is top shelf and a recommended listen for all the Vincent Price fans out there.
BD: Lastly, what would you like to tell fans who want to learn more about and subscribe to The Superfan Podcast?
DH: For more information, follow the Superfan Podcast on Substack, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, X, and YouTube and visit https://superfanmedia.net. For show notes, behind-the-scenes information, dessert and cocktail recipes, and round table fandom conversations and interviews, follow the Superfan Signal.
This is actually a really good time to become a paid subscriber to the podcast, because we are dropping a special subscriber-only Halloween treat this weekend….
