A linkblogger more susceptible to signs and portents than I would balk at the falling of this week’s links, below, on Fridays the 13th in as many months, however, if Matt Goss ever impressed upon me one lesson to be learned from the teachings of Stevie Wonder, it’s that a'body should never be superstitious, and lo and behold we shalln’t.
Steppin’ out
— shan🎷🐛 (@shanhoran.bsky.social) 2026-03-11T21:33:01.080Z
This week’s news.
• Starting with news out of Vermont this week, as 2026’s cartoonist laureate has been named as Stephen R. Bisette, becoming the state’s sixth laureate for the medium, with the official appointing ceremony to take place next month at the Vermont Statehouse, with a term running for three years.
• A round up of recent comics prizes, as Alice Oseman received a Special Achievement Award from the YA Book Prize for Heartstopper, Emily Flake received the 2026 Thurber Prize in Cartoon Art, Jack Ohman received this year's Herblock Prize, and Lee Lai’s Cannon has been named to the longlist for this year’s Carol Shields Prize for Fiction.
& today: the horrifying rug & fireplace. have been putting off drawing these despite this being the opening page of the scene. it's winter, still, sort of, I'm tired
— Linnea Sterte (@decassette.bsky.social) 2026-03-07T21:41:03.735Z
This week’s reviews.
TCJ
• Heather Leighton reviews the masterful symbolism of Joana Mosi’s The Mongoose — “Capturing grief in all its subtleties is a feat in itself. Few people would dare to address something that complex, but Mosi has succeeded brilliantly, and from my own experience, this is an accurate portrayal. Although this subject matter might not be everyone’s cup of tea, this story will be helpful to anyone who is trying to understand the intricacies of loss.”
• Valerio Stivé reviews the limited depth of Milo Manara’s Caravaggio: The Palette and the Sword Books 1 & 2 — “In Caravaggio, as in many of Manara’s books, most women share nearly identical faces, and even here — where some of them are based on real historical figures who played an important role in the painter’s life — the artist seems to struggle diverting from the usual “Manara woman” (brothel scenes are particularly bizarre, with so many women who almost look like clones).”
AIPT
• Collier Jennings reviews the balanced crafting of Curt Pires, Jok, et al’s 51 #1.
• David Canham reviews the disbelief suspension of Zack Kaplan, Stephen Thompson, et al’s Masterminds #4.
• David Brooke reviews the striking thrills of Christian Ward, Rob Carey, et al’s Event Horizon: Inferno #1.
• Justin Harrison reviews the formal shifts of Kieron Gillen, Stephanie Hans, et al’s DIE: Loaded #5.
• Crooker reviews the turning point of Robert Kirkman, Dan Mora, et al’s Transformers #30.
• Colin Moon reviews the series reset of Ryan North, Humberto Ramos, et al’s Fantastic Four: Save Everyone.
• George Loftus reviews the likable absurdity of G. Willow Wilson, Gleb Melnikov, et al’s Black Cat #8.
• Tiffany Leigh reviews the chaotic charms of Erica Henderson’s Harley & Ivy: Life & Crimes #4.
• Lily Abreu reviews the enjoyable dynamics of Tini Howard, Babs Tarr, et al’s Sirens: Love Hurts #2.
• Christopher Franey reviews the fresh intrigue of Morgan Hampton, Fernando Pasarin, et al’s Green Lantern Corps #14.
The Beat
• Clyde Hall reviews the solid selection of Mad Cave Studios’ Dick Tracy – St. Patrick’s Day Special #1.
• Gianni Palumbo reviews the kaiju showcase of IDW’s Godzilla vs. America – Godzilla vs. Portland #1.
• Tim Rooney reviews the feelgood breeziness of Jim McCann, Joe Eisma, et al’s The Other/Half #1.
• Diego Higuera reviews the ambitious spectacle of Scott Snyder, Eric Canete, et al’s Absolute Batman #18.
• Jordan Jennings reviews the lacking nuance of Eve Ewing, Tiago Palma, et al’s X-Men United #1.
• D. Morris reviews the storytelling fidelity of Zack Rosenberg and Jared Cullum’s Usagi Yojimbo: Kaitō 84 #1 and the commanding craft of Roman Muradov’s All the Living.
• Zack Quaintance reviews the narrative density of Mike Mignola et al’s Uri Tupka and the Gods, and the self-aware action of Patrick Kindlon and EPHK’s Tigress Island #1.
Broken Frontier
• Edward Picot reviews the inventive silliness of Tor Freeman’s Boss of the Underworld Books 1 & 2.
• Andy Oliver has reviews of:
- The harrowing delivery of Mohammad Sabaaneh’s 30 Seconds from Gaza: Diary of Genocide, translated by Nada Hodali.
- The deductive fun of Tom Philipson, James Patricks, Devlin Baker, et al’s The Stranger #2.
- The essential celebration of Kevin O’Neill’s Silent Pictures.
Comics Grinder
• Henry Chamberlain reviews the passionate craft of Alex Newton’s Artichoke Knight.
• Paul Buhle reviews the moving recounting of Susan Simensky Bietila’s Front Lines: A Lifetime of Drawing Resistance.
Four Color Apocalypse
Ryan Carey has reviews of:
- The creative survey of Obvious Fake Press’ Blackout Book, edited by Dan Welch.
- The engaging vibrancy of Dan Hill’s The Fifty Flip Experiment #35.
- The pleasant catch-up of Jonathan Baylis et al's So Buttons #15.
4Columns
Mark Sinker reviews the vivid talent of Jaime Hernandez’s Locas: The Maggie & Hopey Stories.
House to Astonish
Paul O’Brien has capsule reviews of Marvel Comics’ X-Men #26, Wolverine #17, X-Men Annual #1, and Moonstar #1.
Kirkus Reviews
Have starred capsule reviews of:
- The timeless triumph of Tillie Walden’s Charity & Sylvia.
- The heartfelt explorations of Niki Smith’s Midsummer Sisters.
- The effective nuance of Maia Kobabe and Swati “Lucky” Srikumar’s Opting Out.
Montreal Review of Books
• Emily Raine reviews the building momentum of Joana Mosi’s Physical Education.
• Esinam Beckley reviews the storytelling masterclass of Joe Ollman’s The Woodchipper.
• Jules Brown reviews the dreamy revelry of Jérémie Moreau’s Alyte, translated by Nick Frost and Catherine Ostiguy.
• Heather Leighton reviews the narrative grace of Melissa Mendes’ The Weight.
• Ian McGillis has reviews of:
- The riotous surrealism of Michael DeForge’s All the Cameras in My Room.
- The complementary alchemy of Cole Degenstein’s Dear Kenneth.
- The belly laughs of Pascal Girard’s Pastimes, translated by Aleshia Jensen.
- The pleasing completeness of Cathon’s Fruit Salad, translated by Robert Lang and Helge Dascher.
- The dramatic contrast of Bérénice Motais de Narbonne’s Metadoggoz, translated by Montana Kane.
NPR
Tahneer Oksman reviews the seamless plotting of Jarrett Dapier and AJ Dungo's Wake Now in the Fire.
The Observer
Killian Fox reviews the brilliant creations of Joff Winterhart’s Dear Historian.
Yatta-tachi
• Alex Henderson reviews the familiar shenanigans of Shoun Makise and Yuki Higashura’s Please Look After the Dragon, Volume 1, translated by Sarah Burch
• AJ Mack reviews the entertaining characters of Komachi Katsura’s Shoot Juliet Down, Volume 1, translated by Sawa Savage.
• Adam Wescott reviews the frustrating skittishness of G.M., Heyum, and Winter’s The Knight and Her Emperor, Volume 1, translated by Somin Parker.
Quick little 3 colour risograph I printed today - I will be hiding these around a park in Toronto tomorrow for Art & Found Day!
— Jenn Woodall (@funeralbeat.bsky.social) 2026-03-12T01:12:40.862Z
This week’s interviews.
TCJ
Sally Madden interviews Bill Griffith about Photographic Memory: William Henry Jackson and The American West and Zippy, family connections, the Library of Congress’ photographic archive, the process of aging, and the phenomenon of cuteness — “There’s a reflection of jealousy I feel towards Zippy. Whatever else is going on, he is at peace with himself. And that is not something that the Griffy character really experiences especially often, or that I do either very often. Real just acceptance of whatever is happening requires a certain amount of getting into a slightly meditative state.”
AIPT
• David Brooke speaks with Christian Ward about Event Horizon: Inferno, building out the Event Horizon universe, and the importance of horror reflecting the real world.
• Chris Coplan talks to Dan Schkade about Flash Gordon and Lavender Jack, serial comics skillsets, and appealing to a modern audience.
• Chris Hassan chats with Gene Luen Yang about Jubilee: Deadly Reunion, 80s X-Men memories, and the complex character of Jubilation Lee.
The Beat
• Javier Perez interviews Curt Pires about The Objectivist and Super Mondo Mega Mutts, comics cover conversation starters, and Steve Ditko inspirations.
• Diego Higuera speaks with Ben Crane about Scattered Futures, the hopeful origins of the anthology, and aspiring to gentleness in life.
CanvasRebel
Talk to Edanur Kuntman about Tales From Behind the Window, games design and storytelling, and translating academic research into comics.
Fanbase Press
Barbra Dillon interviews Klaus Janson about his solo show at the Philippe Labaune Gallery, and the different creative itches scratched by curating exhibitions of your work.
GraphicMemoir
Jonathan Sandler speaks with Mia Wolff about Bread & Wine: An Erotic Tale of New York and The Empty Lot, resonances with Silver Surfer and underground comix, and working across disciplines.
The New York Times
George Gene Gustines interviews Klaus Janson about his solo show at the Philippe Labaune Gallery, and key interior pages and cover art to be found therein.
Steven Heller talks to Brian Michael Weaver about illustrating the Insurrection Maze and the ICE Invasion Maze, crowd scene logistics, and changing people’s minds using art.
Publisher’s Weekly
• Zack Quaintance interviews Deniz Camp about Absolute Martian Manhunter, writing philosophies, and being in love with what characters can be.
• Samantha Puc talks to Morgan Boecher about Chicken Heart, connection and distancing through standup comedy, and differences between making webcomics and graphic novels.
Scroll.in
Amritesh Mukherjee speaks with Sarnath Banerjee about Absolute Jafar, eschewing nostalgia over reclaiming the past, the Indi-comics movement, and how making comics is good for your heart.
Smash Pages
JK Parkin chats with Ben H. Winters about Benjamin, superhero favourites, moving from writing for television to comics, and heroes who don’t fit the mold.
Solrad
Lara Boyle talks to Katie Fricas about Checked Out, embracing traditional drawing techniques, library clientele, and the process of pitch to publication.
SYFY Wire
Josh Weiss interviews David Dastmalchian about Through, the struggles with addiction that fueled the story, and the labyrinthine way in which people come to terms with their demons.
The recording of the panel I moderated at MICE last December about Romance & Relationships is up! This was a really fun one to prepare for and I think we did alright :)www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4zV...
— Zach Clemente (@clementeworks.com) 2026-03-12T00:06:23.939Z
This week’s features and longreads.
• Here at TCJ, Tegan O’Neil recounts recent adventures in purchasing the monthly issues of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, charting the history of Larry Hama on the title, as well as the shifting allegiances of Joe between various corporate owners — “You can see at a glance: [Hama] knew how to write flashy action comics that used the distinctive skills of superstars like Silvestri and Mark Texiera and Dwayne Turner and Adam Kubert to their utmost; and he knew how to get precise, dare I say military discipline out of a stable of rotating pros who could be trusted to draw G.I. Joe the way it’s supposed to be drawn. He just knows how comic books are supposed to look.”
• For The New York Times, George Gene Gustines writes in remembrance of colorist Tatjana Wood, who passed away last month at the age of 99.
• The BBC observes some recent comic book birthdays, as jings, crivvens, and help ma boab, Robert Low and Dudley Watkins’ Oor Wullie and The Broons are celebrating their 90th anniversaries, and Dennises the Menace/Dennis the Menaces are observing a relatively sprightly joint-75th oldening.
• Also for the BBC, Teklemariam Bekit writes on the release of cartoonist Biniam Solomon (aka Cobra) from prison in Eritrea after spending 15 years incarcerated without charge or trial, and with no contact allowed with family members.
• From Cover to Cover’s Scott Cederlund writes on Ram V and Anand RK’s Resurrection Man: Quantum Karma and journeys to the edge of creation, in order to find the motivations at the heart of the book.
• For Shelfdust, Lillian Hochwender examines the reinvention of the Caped Crusader, as found in Dennis O’Neil and Irv Novick’s Batman #227, and tracks the roots of this evolution of Bruce Wayne back to tales of Gothic romance.
• More musings from the Mindless Ones, as this week’s newsletter features consideration of Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier, and Hannah Berry’s 5 More Minutes.
• Paul O’Brien’s accounting of the villains of Daredevil continues, for House to Astonish, as Ann Nocenti’s run cements Matthew Murdock firmly into Hell’s Kitchen, and the pithily named Rotgut posits that “we’re not so different, you and I,” before never being seen ever again.
• From the world of open access academia, University of Michigan Press publishes Modern Japanese Literary Studies, containing chapters from Adam L. Kern on the contrasts between comics studies and manga studies in Western academic circles, and from Deborah Shamoon on contemporary approaches to researching and teaching manga as literature.
• For Humanities, Joachim Schiedermair writes on the focus of indexicality in memory studies on the analysis of photographs, looking to apply this to other mediums with examination of Steffen Kverneland’s Skygger and its relating of memories of World War II to the contemporary reader.
• Mike Peterson rounds up the week’s editorial beat, over at The Daily Cartoonist, as perceived enemies at home and abroad are all in the sights of the current White House administration, just don’t mention The War.
Ghost Rider is one of my favorite marvel comics characters
— Malachi Ward (@malachiward.bsky.social) 2026-03-07T16:00:08.085Z
No more links this week. Chainsaw Man is ending next month, so it’s high time to re-read the whole blooming saga.
Wixard
English (US) · 