Writer/Director Notes for Ant-Man vs Atom | Spoilers ahead! We’re…we’re back?! No way! We have missed this show y’all. I mean, we never stopped working on it obviously but a huge part of this show is…all of you. The community that gathers around these episodes is an integral part of it. So after several long months of being away, it’s finally starting to feel like DB again. All of that to say, I’m so glad we’re back and I can’t wait for y’all to see this season! I think I mentioned this maybe on the podcast but this is the first time I wrote AND directed a Death Battle. I wrote a handful of episodes before I ever directed one and then spent a couple of seasons just directing, which was a great way to focus on the new role. But I was very happy to write an episode again and see how different the process is directing an episode you wrote. It’s that much more rewarding. And I hope y’all liked it cause I got another writer/director combo coming up this season! Ummmmmmm can you believe this is DJ’s first episode to edit? Cause it certainly doesn’t LOOK OR FEEL THAT WAY! It’s wild! He did such a fantastic job and clearly has so much raw talent. I’m so glad he’s joined the editorial team. This was a lot of fun to put together and I’m confident that y’all haven't seen anything yet. Look out for his cuts! I talked about this in the commentary, so look out for that too, but I really wanted to lean into how passionate and obsessed these two characters are about their work, their science. So there’s lots of fun facts about ants and white dwarfs throughout the episode. But my favorite two ant facts appear as “tabs” but they look a little different because they are panels pulled straight from Tales to Astonish #35, Ant-Man’s origin. Within that issue there are straight up ant facts throughout. I thought that was too perfect for a Death Battle on Ant-Man, so we had to include it. This is also the first episode we recorded the host voice over in person…in SO LONG! It was such a blast to be back in person in the studio. The energy was so exciting and we really started the session with that buzz and I think you can feel it in the final episode. We had a blast and I’m so happy everyone gets to see a glimpse into that with the return of bloopers! ... very soon! Let’s talk about that killing blow and the amazing job Zack did. He worked on that shot for weeks and really poured so much time, attention, and care into it. I mean, you can see that on screen for sure. It was so good, our notes were basically just about continuity and we were like deadlines be darned, keep going!!! I’ve seen such a positive reception to it so far and that’s 100% Zack. Tip your animators, people. Gavin Hammon as Ant-Man and Chris Okawa as Atom. That’s it. That’s the note. NO but seriously, how great did these guys sound? They obviously crushed it. I was not expecting we’d have someone audition with such a stellar young Michael Douglas-y vibe like Gavin did. I was so excited when I heard it. But imo, casting for DB is more than finding a voice match, you gotta find someone who can also deliver the goods. Like not just a voice but a performance. They gotta act! And I feel like Chris really shined there too along with Gavin. I felt like his audition showcased a little more of what he was specifically bringing to the table and I just felt that fit for Atom so well – a guy who is constantly bringing his goods to situations and solving insane problems. All of that to say, I was really confident in these guys and was so pleased with the final product. One thing I definitely wanted to touch on was Hank’s struggle with his mental health. And we all wanted to make sure that we treat it with respect. A lot of web shows in the past have joked about it and we didn’t want to do that. It was a tough tightrope to walk because we wanted to be honest about it but at the same time, the show is Death Battle and it’s not the time or place to stop the episode and give mental health the spotlight it truly deserves. I think we struck the right balance of acknowledging that issue for Hank in an earnest way but still having his rundown feel like a triumphant hero’s rundown. And that’s really the big reason I wanted to touch on it because it can be both. You can be a hero and you can be struggling with something. I think it’s cool and important to recognize that. Now, let’s briefly talk about the butt stuff. LOL. There was a legit pressure I think I put on myself to address it in some way in the episode. We talked about actually leaning into the meme and fully going for it but I’m so pleased with where we landed. Our version of blowing up someone from the inside out with Hank’s ants was so much more creatively fulfilling and then in the recap, I had a full on scientific explanation for how the butt thing wouldn’t actually work and Ben was just like, we should just joke about it. Like gross, Wiz, why are you even suggesting that? And that made us all really laugh. And now the thing you’ve all been waiting for, ant-puns that didn’t make the cut. Mostly just more names for Hank’s ants. ChANTs the Rapper, Phil CollANTS, Carlos SantANTa, John Carpenter Ant, and Lauryn Ant Hill. WELCOME BACK CHAMPIONS!