‘Absolute Wonder Woman,’ ‘The Power Fantasy’ among nominees for the 2026 Hugo Awards

Winners will be announced in August.

The nominees have been announced for the 2026 Hugo Awards, which includes a “Best Graphic Story or Comic” category.

Presented annually since 1955, the Hugo Awards recognize the best science fiction in books, comics, movies, TV and more. The Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story has been awarded since 2009, with previous winners including volumes of Saga, Ms. Marvel, Girl Genius, LaGuardia, Far Sector and Monstress. The graphic novel Star Trek: Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way won the category last year.

This year DC, Image and First Second all scored a nomination, with a picture book, a webcomic and an Ursula K. Le Guin adaptation rounding out the category.

This year’s nominees are:

Continue reading “‘Absolute Wonder Woman,’ ‘The Power Fantasy’ among nominees for the 2026 Hugo Awards”

Exclusive | First look at the slipcase for ‘The Marvel Art of Mike Zeck’

The Kickstarter campaign for the 200-plus page coffee table book celebrating the artist behind ‘Secret Wars,’ ‘Kraven’s Last Hunt’ and the first ‘Punisher’ miniseries, launches soon

Today we have an exclusive first look at the slipcase for The Marvel Art of Mike Zeck, the 10th volume in Clover Press and Marvel’s ongoing series of high-end artbooks celebrating legendary Marvel artists.

You can follow the campaign on Kickstarter.

The slipcase itself is a showcase of some of Zeck’s most iconic imagery. The front features his artwork from the cover of Captain America #286, which featured a Deathlok story by J.M. DeMatteis and Zeck. It’s inked by John Beatty, Zeck’s frequent collaborator during his celebrated run on the title. The back features a striking pin-up from Silver Surfer Annual #4, and tucked on the spine is an image of Kraven the Hunter from Kraven’s Last Hunt, the landmark Spider-Man story that remains one of Zeck’s most enduring projects.

“I first met Mike at the Chicago Comicon in 1986 right after his Punisher was released, and he left such a positive impression on this very impressionable kid,” said Clover Press Publisher Hank Kanalz. “I had the privilege of working with him on a couple of projects over the years, and I am thrilled that in retirement, he’s agreed to be a part of our prestigious The Marvel Art Of… line of art books.

Continue reading “Exclusive | First look at the slipcase for ‘The Marvel Art of Mike Zeck’”

Smash Pages Q&A | Matt Kindt on ‘Mind MGMT: New & Improved’

After moving his Flux House imprint from Dark Horse to Oni Press, the cartoonist prepares to launch another round of his mind-bending series.

Matt Kindt has proven to be one of comic’s most restlessly inventive creators, particularly when it comes to story structure, formal experimentation and the physical design of the books themselves. From his early work on Pistolwhip and Super Spy to Mind MGMT and beyond, Kindt has never been content to make a comic that looks or reads like anything else on the shelf.

Now he’s making a move. After launching Flux House at Dark Horse Comics, Kindt is relocating his imprint to Oni Press, where his first two titles will be Mind MGMT: New & Improved and Fort Psycho, the latter co-created with artist Brian Hurtt. Mind MGMT: New & Improved #1 arrives in June, billed as a self-contained entry point for new readers. Although Kindt would be the first to tell you, you should probably read that disclaimer with some skepticism.

I spoke with Kindt about this new chapter, both for Flux House and for Mind MGMT, how the new series differs from the previous one and his zany approach to the blind bag cover program for the first issue. My thanks for his time.

Continue reading “Smash Pages Q&A | Matt Kindt on ‘Mind MGMT: New & Improved’”

Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Spider-Man + Superman, round two

Check out new comics arriving this week by Andrew MacLean, Aditya Bidikar, SOM, Ray Fawkes, Federico Sabbatini, Michael DeForge, Christopher Priest, Davis Goetten, Ted May, Ben Sears and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what’s coming to your local comic shop this week.

I’ve pulled out some of the highlights for this week below, but for the complete list of everything you might find at your local comic shop and on digital this week, you’ll want to check out one or more of the following:

As a reminder, things can change and what you find on the above lists may differ from what’s actually arriving in your local shop. So check with your retailer to see what’s arriving at their shop this week.

Continue reading “Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Spider-Man + Superman, round two”

Smash Pages Q&A | Mark Russell on ‘The Forgotten Divine’

The award-winning writer of ‘The Snagglepuss Chronicles’ and ‘Not All Robots’ talks to us about his latest project for Ahoy Comics.

Mark Russell’s new book with artist Russ Braun is about how ordinary people fall into cults. The Forgotten Divine follows Rodney Coleman, an unhoused veteran and former bomb disposal expert whose dreams of a faraway planet draw him toward others who’ve had the same visions, and the group that forms around their shared experience.

The book arrives via AHOY Comics’ first-ever Kickstarter, which gave the team the freedom to tell the story they wanted to in the format they thought fit it best. I spoke with Russell about the project, the Kickstarter campaign, why he takes his “kiss of death” ideas to AHOY and more.

Continue reading “Smash Pages Q&A | Mark Russell on ‘The Forgotten Divine’”

Jaime Hernandez, Trung Le Nguyen win at the 2026 L.A. Times Book Awards

Congratulations to this year’s winners.

Graphic novels by Jaime Hernandez and Trung Le Nguyen each took home an L.A. Times Book Prize this year.

Life Drawing: A Love and Rockets Collection by Hernandez won in the Graphic Novel category, while Nguyen’s Angelica and the Bear Prince won in the Young Adult Literature category.

Continue reading “Jaime Hernandez, Trung Le Nguyen win at the 2026 L.A. Times Book Awards”

Exclusive | Check out the merch for Stephan Franck’s ‘Palomino’ Kickstarter

The campaign for the final graphic novel in the series will launch next week.

Cartoonist Stephan Franck will launch a Kickstarter next week for the sixth volume of Palomino, his neo-noir graphic novel series, and we’ve got an exclusive look at some of the rewards he’ll offer as part of the campaign.

Available exclusively through the Kickstarter will be a Palomino T-shirt, mug and art print. The campaign will also offer all six volumes of the series, which wraps up in this final volume. Take a look at the merch after the jump.

Continue reading “Exclusive | Check out the merch for Stephan Franck’s ‘Palomino’ Kickstarter”

Kelly Thompson + Stephen Byrne’s new ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ comic series launches at Dynamite in July

Dynamite Entertainment’s new Buffy ongoing kicks off with an oversized first issue tying in the cast of both Buffy and Angel.

Dynamite Entertainment has revealed the full creative team, launch date and story details for their new Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, the first details since the publisher announced the license at San Diego Comic-Con last summer.

Artist Stephen Byrne will join Kelly Thompson on the title, along with colorist Lee Loughridge and letterer Jeff Eckleberry. Nate Cosby is editing the series.

The oversized first issue kicks off an event story drawing in characters from both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, with Thompson describing a “mythic new villain” and a major twist she says will shake longtime fans. The series picks up at a pivotal point in the character’s timeline and includes the comics debut of a beloved character from the TV series. Thompson is also writing a companion Angel title, with further details to come.

Continue reading “Kelly Thompson + Stephen Byrne’s new ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ comic series launches at Dynamite in July”

The bunny did it: ‘Exquisite Corpses: Rascal Randy’ launches in July

Tyler Boss and Dylan Burnett explore the dark origins of the fan-favorite mascot killer in a five-issue series from Tiny Onion and Image Comics.

Tiny Onion and Image Comics have announced that the rabbit suit-wearing killer from Exquisite Corpses, Rascal Randy, will star in a five-issue spinoff series from writer Tyler Boss and artist Dylan Burnett. Colorist Jordie Bellaire and letterer Becca Carey round out the creative team.

Rascal Randy is one of a dozen assassins dispatched to the town of Oak Valley, Maine, where they compete in a deadly game of, well, trying to kill each other for their ultra-powerful and ultra-demented clients, in the pages of James Tynion IV and Michael Walsh’s Exquisite Corpses.

“From the moment I saw the full cast of killers for Exquisite Corpses, I, like most discerning readers, knew Randy would be the winner of the first season’s game,” said Boss. “Now while I still can’t say whether we’ve been proven correct or not, I can say the story Dylan and I have created for everyone’s favorite furry fiend is as sweet and cuddly as a porcupine.”

Continue reading “The bunny did it: ‘Exquisite Corpses: Rascal Randy’ launches in July”

DC announces ‘Clayface: Celebrity Dirt’ for July

Jude Ellison S. Doyle and Fran Galán present a noir horror series starring the Batman villain.

Following the debut of the first footage from the upcoming Clayface movie, DC Comics has announced Clayface: Celebrity Dirt, a six-issue miniseries from writer Jude Ellison S. Doyle and artist Fran Galán that will launch in July.

The series follows Basil Karlo after he escapes Arkham Towers to find that a doppelgänger has stolen his identity and achieved the Hollywood stardom he never could. A spreading plague is transforming ordinary people into clay-warped figures, and tracing both mysteries draws Basil deeper into the history of the Clayface legacy.

Continue reading “DC announces ‘Clayface: Celebrity Dirt’ for July”

Exclusive | The Power Pets + Superteens team up in ‘Archie Comics 85th Anniversary Presents: Archie’s Movie Mania’

Writer Jamie L. Rotante and artists Steven Butler and Lily Butler bring the Superteens and Power Pets together in the upcoming one-shot.

Archie Comics has shared an exclusive first look with us of a new superhero story appearing in Archie Comics 85th Anniversary Presents: Archie’s Movie Mania, on sale May 13.

The story teams the Superteens and the Power Pets against a group of rampaging zoo animals, who are being controlled by a sinister force. Writer Jamie L. Rotante is joined by penciler Steven Butler, inker Lily Butler, colorist Glenn Whitmore and letterer Jack Morelli.

The one-shot also includes a fashion-world story starring Veronica Lodge and Ginger Lopez, with the issue taking inspiration from upcoming films including Masters of the Universe, The Mandalorian and Grogu, and The Devil Wears Prada 2. Dan Parent provides the main cover, with variant covers by Holly G! and Adrian Ropp, and a foil virgin variant by Parent.

Take a look at the preview, covers and a complete “classic” Archie story below.

Continue reading “Exclusive | The Power Pets + Superteens team up in ‘Archie Comics 85th Anniversary Presents: Archie’s Movie Mania’”

Smash Pages Q&A | Joe Palmer on ‘Destination Kill’

The ‘Time Before Time’ and ‘2000 AD’ artist talks about his new series from Oni Press, which debuts in May.

Joe Palmer had been carrying pieces of Destination Kill around in his head for years before he finally had the chance to put them all together. The British cartoonist, known for his work on 2000 AD, Time Before Time, Write it in Blood and more, spent that time accumulating ideas, characters and images that didn’t quite have a home yet, but found one in this new title that he’s writing and drawing.

The result arrives from Oni Press on May 13: a 40-page first issue set in 2125 London, where a superfast transatlantic train, a robot workforce and a citywide worker uprising collide. We talked about the genesis of the project, going solo and lettering your own comics, among other topics. My thanks for his time.

Continue reading “Smash Pages Q&A | Joe Palmer on ‘Destination Kill’”