In the chaotic world of YouTube comic-book shows,
Lords of the Long Box reign in telling it like it is. Host
Tim Vo doesn't pull any punches, whether it's bashing click-baiters
Cosmic Book News with a sturdy F-Bomb or questioning the intelligence of DC Films executives. The program is breezy, informative, and funny as Vo and his fellow Lords unleash a regular stream of geek news and reviews, tossing in appropriate snark when needed.
Mikey Sutton: When did you start reading comic books? What got you into them, and what were you collecting initially?
Tim Vo: I started "reading" (I was mainly looking at the art) comics when I was in first grade; it started with
Amazing Spider-Man comics. My uncle used to read them and give them to me when he was done. I was fan of Spidey since the first time I saw him on
The Electric Company on PBS. I started buying comics off the shelf at 7-11 in the early '80s when I was in the 5th-6th grade and my first comic I bought with my own money was
Uncanny X-Men # 172 then in the '90s I went full ham when I had disposable income and was driving around all the Bay Area comic shops tracking down copies of
Witchblade #1.
Sutton: How did the Lords of the Long Box meet one another?
Vo: Darkside Jedi (Ryan) and myself (TVO) each had YouTube Channels and followed each other on Instagram and became friends. Otto and Nemesis Prime joined about a year ago, They were friends of ours from Instagram.
Sutton: Who developed the idea of a YouTube show and when did it debut?
A: I started the
Lords of the Long Box Youtube channel back in 2015 and then we started the live show in 2016
Sutton: You hold nothing back in thrashing lying click-bait sites. Have you ever gotten any troll action because of your honesty?
Vo: I try not to engage with trolls on Twitter since that's where their domain is. It's a cesspool of negativity. I try to tell the people that follow our show to be careful and do you research when dealing with click-bait!
Sutton: How many comic books do you usually purchase on a monthly basis?
Vo: I used to have a pull list of 15-20 books a week. I started running out of room so I do three to four titles a week now but I try to read everything digitally since its much more convenient.
Sutton: It’s a secret among comic-book fans that Dr. Fredric Wertham was right: Comics did corrupt us as minors. What comic books made you sick and twisted as a youth?
Vo: (Laughing) I s that what happened to me? I would say
Faust by Quinn and Vigil, when I was teenager; it really blew my mind.
Sutton: In Alan Moore’s
Miracleman # 15, Kid Miracleman, his incredibly violent reinterpretation of Captain Marvel, Jr., goes on a psychotic rampage in England. On the opening page, Kid Miracleman has ripped off the skin of an entire family and has their flesh hanging from a clothesline. What’s the most disturbing scene you’ve ever read in a comic book?
Vo: Joker beating Jason Todd with a crowbar in "Death in the Family." Even though Jason didn't "die" at the hands of the Joker per se, the whole idea that we the fans killed him by calling a hotline made it all the more shocking. But he at least he went out with a bang.
Sutton: Who is your all-time favorite superhero and why?
Vo: Doctor Strange! Hands down! I've always enjoyed characters using magic and cosmic powers. The Sorcerer Supreme is the one you call when the defecation hits the ventilation! From Ditko to Bruenner, I've always loved the trippy art and stories with the strange incantations, by the Hoary Hosts of Hoggoth.
Sutton: Do you have any faith in DC Films? Explain your answer.
Vo: As a combined Universe like the DCEU? No, unless Kevin Feige is cloned and named Calvin Beige and is named head of DC Films. But as standalone films that are not beholden to larger narrative, I think they proved with
WW, Aquaman, and
Shazam! that they can pull that off.
Sutton: What do you think of the monetary value of variant covers?
Vo: I think it's a short game, if you want to flip them for some quick bucks, do it within two weeks. I would say about only 10% of variants that come out hold their peak value over time then rest of them will drop by 30-50% of peak value a month later. There's always exceptions but that's definitely not the norm.
Sutton: How did you get involved with KRS Comics?
Vo: We met through Instagram back in 2015. Did I tell you that Instagram has a huge comic collecting community? We both live in So Cal and always see each other at local shows just became friends. He used to press books for me and submit to CGC before he became an online retailer. He's always supported our show and became our first sponsor.
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