Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night nor website domains expiring nor a killer bout of insomnia can keep comics articles from issuing forth onto the internet, and so we return, reinvigorated, to sample more of this week’s links, below.
Let's go!
— Jim Woodring (@jimwoodring.bsky.social) 2025-05-15T03:51:48.393Z
This week’s news.
Some recent awards news to start off with this week, as San Diego Comic-Con announced the nominees for this year's Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, with Fantagraphics leading the pack with 24 nominations, winners will be announced on July 25th; the Chicago Alternative Comics Expo named Mili St. John as the winner of this year’s Cupcake Award, with Pidge acting as this year’s Cupcake mentor; and the winners of the 49th annual Kodansha Manga Awards were announced, with honours for ONE, Bose, and Kyōtarō Azuma’s Versus, Coco Uzuki’s Fall in Love, You False Angels, and Hitoshi Iwaaki’s Historie.
BEHOLD! The CAKE 2025 Poster by Mike Centeno!Mike is a Chicago-based cartoonist and illustrator born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela. Find more of his work including issues of his comic series Futile, at mikecenteno.comStay tuned as we introduce our special guests, and we'll see you in June!
— Chicago Alternative Comics Expo (@cakechicago.bsky.social) 2025-05-14T18:42:15.044Z
This week’s reviews.
TCJ
• Tiffany Babb reviews the sharp humour of Juni Ba’s Monkey Meat — “Though most all of the stories are about work and labor, ownership and renting, Ba does not get tied down into a repetitive storytelling style. He is clearly considering what type of tone fits each story in hand.”
• Tom Shapira reviews the cartoon mischief of Frédéric Brémaud and Federico Bertolucci’s Vacation Parade — “Vacation Parade still feels like a self-imposed challenge, there are several moments that seemingly call for some old-fashioned symbol swearing, but the book doesn’t try to pretend like it’s making a serious statement about life, the universe and everything else.”
AIPT
• Jonathan Waugh reviews the surprising sweetness of Mark Millar, Rafael Albuquerque, et al’s Huck: Big Bad World #1.
• Kevin Clark reviews the infectious enthusiasm of Dave Hill, Artyom Topilin, et al’s Dark Regards #1.
• Diane Darcy reviews the delightful start of Sophie Campbell et al’s Supergirl #1.
• David Brooke reviews the compelling drama of Tim Seeley and Nikola Čižmešija’s Godzilla #1; and the chaotic fun of Cavan Scott, Stefano Nesi, et al’s Gwenpool #1.
• Colin Moon reviews the manic action of Marvel Comics’ Fantastic Four Epic Collection: The More Things Change…; and the ambitious storytelling of Denis-Pierre Filippi and Silvio Camboni’s Mickey Mouse and the Amazing Lost Ocean.
• Collier Jennings reviews the gory flair of Robert Kirkman, Ryan Ottley, et al’s Invincible Universe: Battle Beast #1; and the character parallels of Fabian Nicieza, Emilio Laiso, et al’s Godzilla vs. X-Men #1.
The Beat
• Matt Ledger reviews the retro vibes of Sophie Campbell et al’s Supergirl #1.
• D. Morris reviews the big picture of Mat Groom. Kyle Higgins, Luciano Vecchio, et al’s Spider-Verse vs. Venomverse #1.
• Clyde Hall reviews the memorable start of James Tynion IV, Michael Walsh, et al’s Exquisite Corpses #1.
• Jared Bird reviews the impressive showcase of Image Comics’ Energon Universe 2025 Special #1.
• Tim Rooney reviews the engrossing magic of Charles Soule, Will Sliney, et al’s The Cold Witch: A Tale of the Shrouded College #1.
• Ricardo Serrano Denis reviews the wild ride of Dave Hill, Artyom Topilin, et al’s Dark Regards #1.
• Jordan Jennings reviews the snappy pacing of Frank Tieri, Angel Hernandez, et al’s Godzilla: Here There Be Aliens #1.
• Hayame Kawachi reviews the adorable absurdity of Shunpei Morita, Aldehyde, et al’s You Talk Too Much, So Just Shut It Already! Volume 1.
• Kathryn Hemmann reviews the exquisite charm of Kazimir Lee’s Low Orbit.
• Zack Quaintance reviews the masterful conclusion of Brian Michael Bendis, André Lima Araújo, et al’s Phenomena Book 3: The Secret, and the bold choices of Youssef Daoudi's The Giant – Orson Welles, The Artist & The Shadow.
Broken Frontier
• Gary Usher reviews the winning debut of Dora Grents’ Done With Demons.
• Lindsay Pereira reviews the colourful depictions of Nicholas Finet, Thierry Lamy, et al's Punk Rock in Comics.
• Andy Oliver reviews the magic wit of Katherine Hemmings’ The Witch and Loaf Cat, and the echoing questions of Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal’s They Shot the Piano Player.
Four Color Apocalypse
Ryan Carey reviews the dark hilarity of Justin Gradin’s Pageant, and the narrative authenticity of Briana Loewinsohn’a Raised by Ghosts.
House to Astonish
Paul O’Brien has capsule reviews of Marvel Comics’ Astonishing X-Men Infinity Comic #20, Free Comic Book Day: Fantastic Four/Giant Size X-Men, X-Men #16, Storm #8, Psylocke #7, and Laura Kinney: Wolverine #6.
Montreal Review of Books
Heather Leighton reviews the thorough research of Guy Delisle's Muybridge.
Publisher’s Weekly
Have capsule reviews of:
• The stunning visuals of Peter Kuper’s Insectopolis: A Natural History.
• The refreshing romance of Lindsay Ishihiro’s Motherlover.
• The show-stopping fluidity of Maurane Mazars’ To Broadway, translated by Dan Christensen.
• The meticulous craft of Joe Sacco’s The Once and Future Riot.
• The visceral empathy of Katarina Thorsen’s Salt Green Death.
Solrad
Hagai Palevsky reviews the narratorial perspectives of Ville Kallio’s Bio-Whale.
In partnership with AFI Silver Theatre, we proudly present the documentary Drew Friedman: Vermeer of the Borscht Belt on May 18 at 3:15 PM taking us thru Drew’s evolution from underground comics to the cover of The New Yorker.Followed by a Q&A with filmmakers Kevin Dougherty and Thom Shubilla.
— Small Press Expo (@smallpressexpo.bsky.social) 2025-05-10T17:19:13.048Z
This week’s interviews.
AIPT
David Brooke speaks with James Tynion IV and Michael Walsh about Exquisite Corpses and tapping into big crossover energy, and with Scott Snyder about Absolute Batman and the core values of the book.
Alan Moore World
Smoky Man, Omar Martini, and Francesco Pelosi talk to Alan Moore about The Moon and Serpent Bumper Book of Magic, the beginnings of the modern world, layered realities, and the nutritional origins of magic.
The Beat
Javier Perez interviews Steve Cuzor about adapting Stephen Crane’s The Red Badge of Courage, the importance of the story’s prologue, and deciding on the book’s monochrome colouring.
NPR
• Republished from 2005 and 2007, Terry Gross speaks with R. Crumb and Aline Kominsky-Crumb about The R. Crumb Handbook, thoughts on the grotesque, and cartoon personas.
• Ayesha Rascoe talks to Michael Dean about Lost Marvels No.1: Tower of Shadows, the storied history of horror comics in the US, and the artistic freedoms to be found in the collection.
Steven Heller interviews Steve Brodner about political illustration in the Trumpian era and the immediacy of contemporary workflows, and Peter Kuper about Insectopolis: A Natural History and having a bee named after you.
Drew a bunch of cottages on floating rocks, as you do
— Ian McQue (@ianmcque.bsky.social) 2025-05-15T09:04:55.921Z
This week’s features and longreads.
• Here at TCJ, John Kelly writes in remembrance of illustrator and cartoonist Mark Zingarelli, creator of Real Life, who died earlier this year at the age of 72 — “[Jon B. Cooke:] I knew of his work for many a year and I loved his artwork and his lush inking technique. I held him in the same esteem as I did any number of artists unafraid to lay in the blacks and feather the details with their brushwork.”
• Also for TCJ, Chris Anthony Diaz presents photographs from a recent visit to the west coast, on the occasion of this year’s Emerald City Comic Con — “I decided to attend because Noah Van Sciver was a guest, and I had not seen him since before the pandemic. I just got a new camera a few months earlier and wanted to take new photos of Noah since he no longer had a mustache.”
• Finally for TCJ this week, Jacob Ahana-Laba writes on the comics of mangaka Zajirogh, examining the themes to be found across this body of work, and the surreality of Rapid Commuter Underground — “RCU takes place in trains, sure, but malleable, metamorphic train. Trains that, in a split-second, may set walls between passengers, blocking them off from the world, simultaneously creating a collective experience.”
• As the Netflix adaptation of Héctor Germán Oesterheld’s El Eternauta hits screens, The Guardian writes on the disappearance of Oesterheld and relatives by Argentina’s military dictatorship of the 70s and 80s, with further mention of the comic to be found in The Nation’s recent coverage of the country’s contemporary right-wing government.
• Elsewhere, checking in with a slightly odd story out of Japan, as various outlets have been tracking the effect that Ryo Tasuki’s manga Watashi ga Mita Mirai (The Future I Saw) has been having on local tourism, after the book’s prediction that a major earthquake will occur in the region this summer went viral.
• Coverage from the theatre world, as reviews are in for Charles Newell and Mickle Maher’s adaptation of Jason Lutes’ Berlin, with pieces from Chicago Reader, Third Coast Review, and New City Stage, and an interview with Newell and Maher for Chicago Magazine.
• Over at Shelfdust, Adam Karenina Sherif continues the site’s retrospective of Matt Fraction and Steve Lieber’s Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen, this edition looking back at the awkward questions of class and material wealth to be found in issue seven of the series.
• For AIPT, Diane Darcy writes on the historical brutality of Batman that Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta’s Absolute Batman appears to be tapping into with its own brand of superhero violence.
• As The Comics Courier's second edition comes to Kickstarter, editor Tiffany Babb writes on the importance and role of criticism of creative endeavours, and the various ways to support critics and publishers of criticism in order to foster an environment that produces better criticism.
• The Mindless Ones’ weekly dispatches continue apace, with coverage this week of Jules Scheele’s Pansycore #2; and brief thoughts on the Morrison-, Moore-, and Ennis-coding to be found in contemporary superheroics.
• Mike Peterson rounds up the week’s editorial beat, for The Daily Cartoonist, as naval mishaps, continuing deportation abductions, economic extortion, and conflicts of interest are all just par for the course in 2025.
I didn’t do a color study nor do I have any idea how to color this so let’s fuck about
— Pam Wishbow (@pamwishbow.bsky.social) 2025-05-14T03:47:28.800Z
This week’s audio/visual delights.
• Ben Katchor hosted the latest meeting of the New York Comics & Picture-Story Symposium, as this week Dan Nadel spoke on Crumb: A Cartoonist’s Life, R. Crumb’s body of work across the decades, record crate digging, and how Crumb is doing these days.
• Brian Hibbs welcomed Kay O’Neill to the latest edition of the Comix Experience Graphic Novel Club, as they discussed A Song For You & I, the creative freedoms and solitary nature of comics making, and lessons learned from publishing webcomics.
• Deb Aoki hosted the most recent episode of Mangasplaining, as the team discussed Naoya Matsumoto’s genre-crossing story Kaiju No. 8, the various tropes that the book dips into and accelerates past, and the comedy and drama to be found in amongst the monster fights.
• David Harper welcomed Alejandro Arbona to Off Panel, as they spoke about Lake Yellowwood Slaughter, shifting into gear with writing, lessons learned from editorial roles, what makes for a successful horror story, and the state of the comics industry in 2025.
• Calvin Reid, Heidi MacDonald, and Kate Fitzsimons convened for a new edition of Publisher’s Weekly’s More to Come, as recent comics wins in the Pulitzer Prizes were discussed, alongside the various dramas of Diamond Comics Distributors’ sale under auction.
• A pair of interviews with Peter Kuper to close out the week, who appeared on Gil Roth’s Virtual Memories Show and Henry Chamberlain’s Comics Grinder, discussing Insectopolis: A Natural History, and the wonders of the class Insecta.
mood 🌦️🌱[ #art | #illustration ]
— 𝕕𝕖𝕡𝕣𝕒𝕧𝕖𝕕 𝕖𝕘𝕘 (@vreni.bsky.social) 2025-05-14T20:18:56.092Z
No more links this week, as the comics shelves are full, and so an increasingly esoteric system of storage must be devised, in order to save having to deal with the accursed auction sites to free up more space.
— delfina pa (@deruderu.bsky.social) 2025-04-08T15:11:31.332Z
English (US) · 