Comics criticism with the seatbelt off.
War Rocket Ajax treats superhero comics as both serious craft and excellent nonsense. Chris Sims and Matt Wilson move from Batman, Spider-Man, X of Swords, and guest conversations into video games, TV, listener prompts, and whatever odd proper noun has seized the room.
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War Rocket Ajax is a comics and pop-culture show that sounds like it has accumulated its own private mythology over many episodes. The center is still simple: Chris Sims and Matt Wilson talk about comics, rank stories, catch up on missed issues, and bring guests into the conversation. The execution is the whole thing. They can start with remote-recording housekeeping or a Flash Gordon bit, roll into a question about Pokemon partners or defunct social media, and somehow land on a useful reading of Batman, Spider-Man, or X of Swords. Short version: it moves fast. Longer version: the speed works because the references usually have a point, even when the point is just that a cursed novelty sword has entered the show’s shared universe. Comics Catch-Up is especially revealing, because it lets the hosts treat older books as living artifacts rather than homework. A Spider-Man magazine becomes a conversation about format, era-specific Aunt May writing, Peter Parker’s panic, and why later filmmakers may have loved particular images. Batman discussion can get even sharper. A Joker scene is read through psychology, structure, Morrison-era echoes, and the visual effect of a gatefold, with room left for blunt jokes and second thoughts. That mix defines the show: confident first reactions followed by useful caveats. The pop-culture drift is part of the texture. Fitness Boxing, Punch-Out, Fist of the North Star, The Pitt, Pokemon, Spider-Man villain animals, and TV-actor sightings all belong to the same conversation because the hosts treat genre culture as one big, overstuffed shelf. Guest episodes keep that shape. J. Gonzo joins a run of comic-book and merchandise talk without flattening the house style. The show is not polished newcomer bait. It assumes some tolerance for in-jokes, recurring sign-offs, strong language, and left-of-center political closers. But it is not random noise. Under the bits, War Rocket Ajax is a sharp, funny, highly specific record of how comics fans talk when the issue, the adaptation, the toy, the wiki, and the terrible idea are all equally available for inspection.
Made for: Best for comics readers who enjoy opinionated close reading, running bits, superhero continuity, and pop-culture side roads. It especially suits listeners comfortable with fast banter and niche references.
What sets it apart: War Rocket Ajax folds serious comics analysis into an unusually durable comic rhythm: rankings, catch-up episodes, listener prompts, fake lore, and blunt verdicts that usually get refined a minute later.
War Rocket Ajax is the world’s most explosive comic book and pop-culture podcast, featuring interviews with comics professionals, reviews, rankings and more.Every Story Ever [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1frfFoIyGG2_rel24ptmL0g-YJnPLVylQuQKjm2CPnsI/edit?usp=sharing]Thursday Night Raw [https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LpEY2I6_fSTmjgPBr2v_I-GpbzukVKvP4BBW-G5X3XY/edit?usp=sharing]War Rocket Wiki [https://warrocketwiki.com/Main_Page]Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/WarRocketAjax]Tumblr [https://warrocketpodcast.tumblr.com/]
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Chris Sims and Matt Wilson pair close comic criticism with playful pop-culture argument and an unusually strong memory for character history.
War Rocket Ajax turns comic criticism into a running conversation between Chris Sims and Matt Wilson, with sharp attention to how stories, characters, and artwork function on the page.
A wombat Spider-Man villain proposal gets you warmed up before Chris Sims and Matt Wilson start talking comics.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
Comic-book chat that begins with Pokemon partners and wanders into animal-themed Spider-Man villains.
War Rocket Ajax starts on a Pokemon-partner riff, moving from Bulbasaur and Magikarp to Snorlax, then on to Machamp and Machoke before Jay Gonzo steers things toward the show's opening-format habits.
A psychedelic Spider-Man magazine opens into a funny, uneasy look at Peter, Aunt May, and Green Goblin weirdness.
Comics Catch-Up revisits Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine issue number two from 1968, using the format question as a way into one of the stranger corners of Spider-Man history.
A social-media setup opens into sharp Batman and Joker talk.
War Rocket Ajax starts from a social-media thought experiment and then folds neatly into Batman and Joker discussion, with Dr. Zeller, Harley Quinn, and the Morrison run giving the conversation its clearest shape.
A Punisher issue that throws the hosts in cold and makes the confusion part of the fun.
War Rocket Ajax starts with a playful video-game swap game, then shifts into a Punisher issue that puts Frank Castle, Wilson Fisk, a brain chip, and Micro's return in the foreground.
Reinvented comic-book villains set up a firsthand look at a card game built around every card.
War Rocket Ajax works best when its comic-book argument keeps bumping into the absurd promise of a card game that seems to ask the impossible.
A candid, uneasy Grendel discussion with sharp context and dark humor.
War Rocket Ajax uses a long-delayed Grendel assignment to sort out where a reader is meant to begin: with Devil by the Deed in its Master's Edition.
A graveyard Fantastic Four cover gives Hickman, Epting, Sims, and Wilson plenty to argue over.
Chris Sims and Matt Wilson start with a very stupid K-Bartama argument, which is exactly the point: Sims has the terrible sword, and Wilson's money, sent for almost anything else, only gives the bit more room to grow.
Comics news with creator access and fan-table chaos.
Scrappy fandom talk with deep comic roots.
No question this time.
Matt Wilson and Chris Sims discuss and rank the 1994 Extreme Super Christmas Special comic on their show Comics Catch-Up.
Grendel gets its benchmark.
This episode of Comics Catch-Up features hosts Matt Wilson and Chris Sims discussing the 2014 Silver Surfer comic volume by Dan Slott and Mike Allred, as part of a series where they revisit comics they started but didn't finish.
This episode of Comics Catch-Up features hosts Chris Sims and Matt Wilson discussing the 1991 Robin comic as part of their spin-off series from War Rocket Ajax, where they revisit comics they missed or didn't finish reading.
Chris Sims and Matt Wilson open episode 786 by matching Dropout.television cast members to wrestlers, including Lou Wilson as Tanahashi and Zach Oyama as Okada or Flair.
This episode of Comics Catch-Up features hosts Chris Sims and Matt Wilson discussing Batman #383, a comic they missed and are reviewing as part of their spin-off podcast from War Rocket Ajax.
The hosts discuss fitness boxing video games, specifically the Fist of the North Star version and potential franchises like Punch-Out!!
The hosts of War Rocket Ajax discuss a listener-funded purchase of a K-Bartana toy and the humorous implications of receiving additional money to buy one for co-host Matt Wilson.
The hosts discuss their podcast recording setup with Zencastr and share observations about the TV show The Pit, including recognizing an improviser named Craig Kakowski.
The host discusses creating a personal coat of arms featuring a biscuit and coffee cup for a knightly identity.
War Rocket Ajax opens with a Zencastr read.
War Rocket Ajax's Comics Catch-Up covers Spectacular Spider-Man Magazine #2, a 1968, magazine-sized Spider-Man story credited to Stanley and John Romita, Sr.
Chris Sims and Matt Wilson kick things off with a social-media hypothetical.
Chris Sims and Matt Wilson open by wondering what video-game character they would drop into another game, and Chris quickly lands on Bloodborne as Samus Aran.
Chris Sims and Matt Wilson open with trading-card jokes.
Chris Sims and Matt Wilson discuss the 2014 She-Hulk comic series in their podcast, Comics Catch-Up, exploring its 12-issue run and its context within Marvel's Secret Wars era.