Hello again and welcome to another Kate edition of Previously on Comics! Can you believe it’s been a month since Tim Drake became canonically queer?? I have no new DC news to report, other than yesterday it was Batman Day so it’s time to revisit the eternal question of whether Batman fucks (spoiler: oh yeah you betcha).
Now on to other news.
The biggest stories in comics publishing this week comes from IDW, who, just days after announcing former DC editor Maggie Howell as their new Senior Editor of Original Content, announced a new multiyear deal with Penguin Random House for Direct Market distribution. IDW was already working with the Penguin Random House Publisher Services (PRHPS) for their trades-to-bookstore pipeline, but this new deal will include new and previously published comics, trades, and graphic novels to Direct Market comic book stores starting next June. It is unclear, however, if this means that IDW is parting ways with Diamond at that time.
This past weekend the Ignatz Awards Winners were announced, so here’s the round-up of the nominees and winners (in case you missed it). Shoutout to Alenka Figa for recommending Casey Nowak’s minicomic Bodyseed back in April for Gumroad Day!
Outstanding Artist
Ashanti Fortson – Leaf Lace (Hiveworks)
*Lee Lai – Stone Fruit (Fantagraphics)
Arantza Peña Popo – Lavender Scare (self-published)
Damien Roudeau – Crude (Graphic Mundi)
Karl Stevens – Penny (Chronicle)
Outstanding Anthology
A Queer Prisoner’s Anthology IV – ed. by Casper Cendre (ABO)
Bystander (Kadak Collective)
Confined Before Covid: A Pandemic Anthology by LGBTQ Prisoners (ABO)
First Wave: Comics from the Early Months of China’s Outbreak – ed. by Xinmei Liu (Paradise Systems)
*Glaeolia 2 (Glacier Bay Books)
Outstanding Collection
Sami Alwani – The Pleasure of the Text (Conundrum Press)
Ancco – Nineteen (Drawn & Quarterly)
*Abby Howard – The Crossroads at Midnight (Iron Circus Comics)
Tess Scilipoti – Do You Think I Look Like a Girl? (self-published)
Kuniko Tsurita – The Sky is Blue with a Single Cloud (Drawn & Quarterly)
Outstanding Comic
EA Bethea – Francis Bacon (Domino Books)
*Ashanti Fortson – Leaf Lace (Hiveworks)
Maddi Gonzalez – Rhapsodie (self-published)
Adam Szym – A Cordial Invitation (self-published)
Dominique Duong – The Dog & The Cat (self-published)
Outstanding Graphic Novel
Jim Terry – Come Home, Indio (Street Noise Books)
*Lee Lai – Stone Fruit (Fantagraphics)
Sloane Leong – A Map to the Sun (First Second)
Nico Harriman – Mr. H: Portrait of a High School Art Teacher (self-published)
Outstanding Minicomic
Brendan Leach – Slum Clearance Symphony (Grindstone Comics/Czap Books)
*Casey Nowak – Bodyseed (Diskette Press)
Arantza Peña Popo – Lavender Scare (self-published)
Whit Taylor – Montana Diary (Silver Sprocket)
Leda Zawacki – The Drain Pipe (self-published)
Outstanding Online Comic
*Michael DeForge – Birds of Maine
Ashanti Fortson – Leaf Lace (Hiveworks)
Shing Yin Khor – I Do Not Want to Write Today
Susannah Lohr – Shadows Become You
Alec Robbins – Mr. Boop
Outstanding Series
*Ex.Mag (Peow Studios)
Malarkey – November Garcia (Birdcage Bottom Books)
Ley Lines – ed. by L Nichols & Kevin Czap (Grindstone Comics/Czap Books)
Tongues – Anders Nilsen (self-published)
A Queer Prisoner’s Anthology IV – ed. by Casper Cendre (ABO)
Outstanding Story
Raquelle Jac – Misguided Love from Now #9 (Fantagraphics)
Ancco – Nineteen (Drawn & Quarterly)
Yeong-shin Ma – Moms (Drawn & Quarterly)
*Freddy Carrasco – Personal Companion from Ex.Mag #1 (Peow Studios)
Stan Stanley – The Hazards of Love (Simon & Schuster)
Promising New Talent
Royal Dunlap
Nico Harriman
Zoe Maeve
*Pa-Luis
Tess Scilipoti
One last note about the Promising New Talent category–the winner gets to design the Ignatz logo for the following year, which is a pretty rad prize, IMO.
You can check out the year’s full list of nominees on SPX’s website, or watch this year’s ceremony on YouTube.
And that’s it for me today. Until next time, faithful readers.
