Interview With Lewis Lovhaug

So Where Did He Purchase That Magic Gun Anyway?

Welcome to Atop the Fourth Wall, the place where bad comics burn, where intergalactic conquerors and interdimensional gods frolic, where the 90s come to life on a daily basis, and where one veteran internet reviewer entertains a legion of loyal fans with nothing more than a striking wardrobe and an endless serious of gags. What can we say, Lewis Lovhaug likes to live life in the fast lane!

Going by the alias of Linkara, Mr Lovehaug has managed to craft an ongoing series that is on the cusp of reaching it’s ten year anniversary. Primarily made up of comic book reviews, an original collection of narratives as well as the occasional look back at shows like Power Rangers and Star Trek, Atop the Fourth Wall has received tremendous success over the years.

Despite being busy preparing for his 500th episode as well as dealing with all manner of eldritch horrors, he was kind enough to engage in a little interview with us about his career and hopes for the show’s future!

First of all, thank you so much for taking the time to let us probe your brain!  

“No problem!”

Fans will of course know you for your iconic reviews, adamantium rage, countless enemies and beastly spaceship, but for curious newcomers can you summarise just who Linkara is and what he stands for? Preferably in a haiku.

“Atop the Fourth Wall
Bad comics burn on this show
Review like the wind”

Taking down terrible comics is your bread and butter, but which kind of terrible do you find is the most satisfying to break apart – the ones that try but ultimately fail, or the ones that are awful from start to finish?

“Awful from start to finish is definitely more satisfying, but also a bit more painful because I have to be even more thoughtful about my jokes and criticisms. Sure, it’s usually worth it in the end – all the snark and hard work leaving me feeling like I accomplished something… but there’s something to be said for something that’s so-bad-it’s-good, where it’s just so silly and goofy that’s just fun to crack jokes about even though the material itself isn’t taking itself too seriously.” 

You’ve obviously come leaps and bound from when fans first discovered you yelling “I AM A MAN!” What lessons would you give to someone who feels inspired by what you have accomplished and wishes to try their own luck on the net?

“My particular brand of videos is more about the jokes, but don’t feel like you HAVE to be a comedy series. However, even if you’re not funny… be entertaining. COMMAND your audience’s attention. Speak proudly and confidently about whatever the subject is. If you make a mistake, admit your wrongdoing and move forward. There’s nothing wrong about making those mistakes as long as you acknowledge them and move forward.”

In the time that you have been active, internet reviewing has practically exploded across the board. In your opinion, do you think it’s for the better or has it become somewhat saturated?

“I definitely think it’s for the better overall. It’s really no different than sharing opinions on your blog or amongst friends after having just seen a movie or the like – it’s just now there’s also an audience hungry for more takes, more opinions. And ultimately you will find some critics or reviewers out there whose opinions are… less-than nuanced or make so many grievous or factual errors that you wonder if they didn’t just make up an entirely separate piece of media in their heads and are reviewing that, it’s still an opinion and it might still allow you to think about your media in a different way. It’s actually been interesting these last ten years seeing format evolve over time. I still tend to follow a format popularized by reviewers like the Angry Video Game Nerd or the Nostalgia Critic, but the lengths of those reviews have altered as a result of youtube’s restrictions, the zeitgeist of the “caustic critic” has given away to more mixed analysis and right now it feels like the video essay is the popular format – long videos that deconstruct particular aspects of a piece of media and their place in a larger cultural context. I’m curious to see where it goes from here.”

Power Rangers and Star Trek are two franchises very near and dear to you. Why do you think that their legacy has endured so well and are you enjoying their current incarnations?

“A few different reasons why these two have endured. With Star Trek, it’s a sense of optimism coupled with stories that more often than not make you think about the human condition or expanding our horizons, that the future will always contain new wonders before us. For Power Rangers, what’s especially helped it endure is its ability to reinvent itself with each incarnation – partially because of its source footage, super sentai, also changing up its themes and aesthetic, but Power Rangers in particular has helped by, overall, being a good superhero show with new viewers able to come on and discover that first iteration that they’ll love for the rest of their lives – unique outfits and complex martial arts against imaginative threats. For both, they have great storytelling engines that ensure that there will always be new stories to tell.”

When you sit down to craft the storylines and villains for AT4W, where do you draw inspiration from? Some of us still have nightmares about the Entity!

“I draw inspiration from a number of sources, but primarily stuff that frightened me as a kid – namely from other media I’ve consumed. It’s no secret that Lord Vyce is inspired by Lord Zedd from Power Rangers even if his motivation and look are different, but the idea of a universal conqueror appealed to me. The Entity came from Pokémon of all places – with of course its inspiration being the MissingNo. glitch – a simple in-game trick one can perform with the earliest incarnations of the game that summon a quirk of the code. There was something very appealing and frightening to me as a kid doing something that I wasn’t supposed to be able to do – breaking the fundamental rules of the game to witness something that should not be. THAT is frightening to me and a good villain (assuming they’re not meant to be comedic) should frighten and excite the audience.”

As such, which villain/storyline was the most difficult to execute and which do you feel you managed to absolutely nail?

“The Sleepwalker arc was without a doubt the most difficult to execute. The original plan was to end it Halloween 2016, the fifth anniversary of the defeat of the Entity… but for a number of reasons it just kept getting pushed back. I moved, I got engaged, the effects and scripts just weren’t ready yet… stuff kept happening and for all the complex subplots and elements I had to introduce, it required a lot more time than I had originally thought would be there, hence why it ended up concluding in September of 2017, instead. I’m quite proud of it and how it finally concluded, even though it was SO difficult to get through for two years. Needless to say it’ll be a while before we get anything that complex again. That being said, the original Entity arc – “A Piece of the World is Missing” – is probably the arc that I feel I absolutely nailed. The buildup was great, the conclusion was satisfying, and as you said – I gave you nightmares with the Entity!”

 If you could tell Frank Miller one thing, what would it be?

“Do you really want your legacy to be stories that inspire hate?”

While some have certainly had enough of the goddamn Batman, what are your thoughts on the Dark Knight’s current status in the world of comics and on the big screen?

“Right now I’m quite enjoying him in the comics. It’s been a tumultuous time at DC, from the New 52 to Rebirth to Dark Knights Metal – just A LOT of big arcs and moments for Batman, but ultimately still reaffirming what a great and wonderful character he is. I only hope we can get to see that again on the big screen, since sadly the DC Cinematic Universe has not impressed me.”

In your Holy Terror review, you gave an impassioned speech on what superheroes truly stand for and why said comic speaks to the worst parts of our humanity. It’s a beautifully written piece that deeply resonated with viewers. Can you give us a little insight into your thoughts when it came to recording that segment?

“I don’t know if there’s much I can say that wasn’t already said in the episode itself. A visual shorthand for when I’m speaking to my audience not as the more bombastic Linkara but as myself (even though the opinions expressed are always my own) is taking off my glasses, so I wanted to make sure the audience knew I was speaking from the heart about it. The more I considered about the message that Frank Miller had put forth in Holy Terror, the more I realized it was at odds with my own personal philosophy and beliefs – embracing prejudice and fear over compassion and hope, believing in stereotypes and distrust of others instead of diversity and faith… as much as Holy Terror is just a terribly-made story, it’s a story that’s potentially dangerous – inspiring hate in people through outright falsehoods. It was important for me to show how profoundly distasteful and sickening it was to me.”

Where do you see AT4W headed in the near future? Do you have anything in the works that you can clue us into?

“The 500^th episode is coming on May 7^th and I think people are going to love it. While right now I don’t see it being anywhere near as emotional or heartfelt as my review for Holy Terror or One More Day were, it IS going to be a fun ride. The 10^th anniversary of the show is coming in October and I have a storyline planned for that that’ll reference a bunch of stuff from the last ten years and I hope people enjoy it. Overall what I hope people look forward to is the next ten years – I’d love to keep doing this until I die and I hope I can accomplish that.”

Lewis, thank you so much for your time! If fans want to message you and suggest a bad comic in need of burning, where can they find you?

“They can find me primarily at my Youtube channel or at my website atopthefourthwall.com“

And finally, as an honorary member of WatchMojo, if you could choose a subject for a top ten list, what would it be?

“Being the comic book guy, I’d say top ten bizarre and unexpected crossovers done only in comic books (not event comics, but I mean like different franchises crossing over like Star Trek and Planet of the Apes).”