Word Balloon Comics Podcast Blood, Biplanes, and Barbarian Mayhem Garth Ennis Unfiltered
Feb 3, 2026
56:13
Garth Ennis has never been interested in playing it safe, and this conversation is a perfect snapshot of why his work still cuts deeper than just about anyone in comics. We dig into Babs from Ahoy Comics, his savage sword-and-sorcery riff that weaponizes absurdity, blood, and pitch-black humor to skewer genre clichés while still delivering the kind of brutal action Ennis fans crave. It’s funny, ferocious, and very deliberately unserious, until it suddenly isn’t.
From there, we shift gears into war stories, both old and new. Ennis talks about his long-running love affair with Johnny Red, the WWI and WWII aerial combat hero he’s revived through graphic novels with a historian’s respect and a storyteller’s bite. We also break down Battle Action, the modern revival of the classic British war anthology, and why those stripped-down, morally thorny combat tales still matter.
Finally, Garth looks ahead to what’s coming next, teasing new projects and directions slated for 2026, proof that he’s nowhere near done challenging readers, genres, or expectations.
From there, we shift gears into war stories, both old and new. Ennis talks about his long-running love affair with Johnny Red, the WWI and WWII aerial combat hero he’s revived through graphic novels with a historian’s respect and a storyteller’s bite. We also break down Battle Action, the modern revival of the classic British war anthology, and why those stripped-down, morally thorny combat tales still matter.
Finally, Garth looks ahead to what’s coming next, teasing new projects and directions slated for 2026, proof that he’s nowhere near done challenging readers, genres, or expectations.