Annie Koyama will receive the 2024 Spurgeon Award

The curator of the the Koyama Provides grant program will be honored at this year’s Cartoon Crossroads Columbus festival in September.

Cartoon Crossroads Columbus, the annual comics festival that was co-founded by comics journalist and advocate Tom Spurgeon, has announced the recipient of this year’s Spurgeon Award.

Annie Koyama, the publisher of the well-regarded (and now defunct) Koyama Press and the curator of the Koyama Provides grant program, will receive the award during this year’s festival in Columbus, Ohio. Koyama Provides awards mini-grants to independent artists, providing them with funding to complete projects or start new ones.

Koyama received the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award in 2022, and at the time Comic-Con International said she had given out around $300,000 in grants. You can see many of the recipients on Koyama’s Instagram account, where she spotlights their work.

“I’m thrilled to have been chosen as the 2024 recipient of the Tom Spurgeon Award,” Koyama said. “I’m thankful to have found a way to stay connected to a community that I love, by directly supporting artists, especially cartoonists. Tom reached out to me in the early days of the press, when I had seemingly come out of nowhere and he continued to support the press and my plans beyond the press, for which I’ll always be grateful.”

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‘An incorruptible soul in a corrupt world’: Archie announces ‘Archie Is Mr. Justice’ miniseries

The Premium Event series kicks off with a story by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton, as they tell a modern superhero take on Archie Andrews.

Archie Comics is always finding new and interesting things to do with their characters, and this fall brings another “Premium Event” from the publisher — Archie Is Mr. Justice, a four-issue miniseries featuring stories of Archie Andrews as the hero Mr. Justice, told with a more modern tone.

The first issue is by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton, and subsequent issues will include stories by Amanda Diebert, Blake Howard, Kenny Porter, Maria Laura Sanapo and Brent Schoonover. The stories in each issue will be told after the fact — Mr. Justice has left Riverdale for some undisclosed reason, leaving his friends to remember his selfless and incredible exploits.

“Mr. Justice plays with the absolute sincerity of the Archie cast of characters, through the filter of a much more cynical superhero world,” Seeley said. “I think, understandably, we’ve spent years being jaded by the idea that someone with power would be good, but that’s totally who Archie Andrews is. However, his world is full of people who care a lot more about money and power than he does.”

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Captain Minnie: Marvel announces next Disney X Marvel What If? mash-up

‘What if Minnie became Captain Marvel?’ takes flight this November.

Following stories where Donald Duck becomes Wolverine and Thor, Minnie Mouse has now entered the chat. Marvel will release What if Minnie became Captain Marvel? in November, by the team of writers Steve Behling and Luca Barbieri, and artist Giada Perissinotto.

The story will pull directly from the first four issues of Ms. Marvel from the 1970s, which detailed the origin of how Carol Danvers, who is now Captain Marvel, became Ms. Marvel. You’ll see Pete as the Scorpion, and a Duckburg version of the original Captain Marvel.

“Steve, Luca and Giada perfectly capture the spirit of Carol Danvers’ origin, a real nostalgic treat with a Disney twist. Guaranteed to be the most fun comic of the month,” Editor Mark Paniccia said.

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Mad Cave announces a new manga imprint, Nakama Press

The first titles are expected to arrive next summer.

Mad Cave Studios is adding a manga imprint to their already impressive list of imprints. Nakama Press will publish original manga and licensed titles, along with manhwa from Korea, manhua from China and manfra, which are the French equivalent of OEL manga.

The release says they plan to partner with studios like Japanese animation company Tatsunoko Pro and The Rainbow Group, among others, to “deliver a compelling reading experience that appeals to manga enthusiasts and newcomers alike.”

“Our mission with Nakama Press is to connect readers with stories that resonate universally, transcending cultural boundaries,” said Mark Irwin, President of Mad Cave Studios, “We believe in the power of storytelling to bring people together, and Nakama Press is our way of celebrating that through the incredible world of manga and graphic novels.”

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Quick Hits | Eric Gitter, Filip Sablik, Jamie S. Rich + Jeremy Haun form a new comic company

Plus: An AI lawsuit moves forward! ‘Blankets’ is banned! The 1982 DC Comics Style Guide is delayed! And ‘A Guest in the House’ receives another awards nomination.

The Hollywood Reporter reports that four industry pros will come together to form an as-yet-untitled comics company. Producer Eric Gitter, formerly with Oni Press and the producer of the big -screen adaptations of Atomic Blonde and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, is teaming up with former BOOM! Studios president Filip Sablik; Jamie S. Rich, a former editor at IDW, DC and more; and Jeremy Haun, whose work includes The Realm, Red Mother, The Approach and more.

Sablik will serve as publisher of the new venture, with Rich taking on the role of editor-in-chief and Haun as creative director. Per THR, the new company “will eschew superheroes and lean toward horror, science fiction, crime and fantasy,” and hopes to start publishing comics next year.

“I can’t imagine partners that I believe in more,” Haun said in his newsletter. “Each of us bring something special to the table. Moreover— we’re lock step in our vision for what we want this company AND industry to be.”

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Can’t Wait for Wednesday | Wolverine battles his greatest rivals in a miniseries by Jonathan Hickman + Greg Capullo

Check out new comics and graphic novels arriving in stores this week by Tom King, Jeff Spokes, James Robinson, Scott Kolins, Lee Loughridge, Andrew Robinson, Benjamin Percy, Chris Allen, Fred Van Lente, Emiliano Urdinola and more.

Welcome to Can’t Wait for Wednesday, your guide to what comics are arriving in comic book stores, bookstores and on digital. This week is all about the returns, as Greg Capullo returns to Marvel in a big way, Jenny Sparks is back in a Black Label series, James Robinson returns with a new series and Joe Sacco’s Palestine gets a new printing.

I’ve pulled out some of the other 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 always check with your comics retailer for the final word on availability.

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Kahhori from the Disney+ ‘What If …?’ series makes her comics debut in November

‘Kahhori: Reshaper Of Worlds’ brings the Mohawk warrior into the Marvel Universe in a Marvel’s Voices special.

Following in the footsteps of Harley Quinn, Firestar, Morph and many others who first debuted on TV, Marvel has announced that Kahhori from the second season of the Disney+ animated series What If …? will make her comic book debut in Kahhori: Reshaper Of Worlds #1.

The one-shot will carry the Marvel’s Voices logo and arrive during Native American Heritage Month. It sounds like there will be more than one story, too, as Kahhori’s co-creator Ryan Little is contributing to the comic, along with Indigenous writers Arihhonni “Honni” David and Kelly Lynne D’Angelo, and artists David Cutler, Jim Terry and more.

Afua Richardson drew the cover:

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Slugfest | ‘Justice League Unlimited’ + related titles top DC’s November solicitations

November brings new titles featuring Batgirl, Black Lightning, the Question and more.

Slugfest is a roundup of cool announcements about projects coming to a shelf near you. This edition focuses on DC’s November 2024 solicitations. Hit the links for more information.

DC’s November 2024 solicitations arrived late last week, sharing more information on several titles that tie into the DC All In initiative that were revealed at the San Diego Comic-Con last month.

I pulled out some of the highlights below, including launching series and milestone issues. To see DC’s full solicitations, you can find them over on The Beat.

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Marco Finnegan brings ‘Calavera, P.I.’ back to life at Oni Press

The four-issue miniseries about an undead private investigator kicks off in November.

A folk hero returns from the dead to solve a kidnapping in Calavera, P.I, a four-issue miniseries coming from Oni Press later this year. Marco Finnegan writes and draws the story of Juan Calavera, a private investigator who defended the Chicano barrios in Los Angeles until he was murdered — but on Dia de los Muertos, he returns to continue his mission.

“Calavera, P.I. came about for two reasons,” Finnegan said. ”One, I love film noir/pulp novels and comic strips from the 1930s and ’50s. Those set in L.A. I love even more. There’s something about seeing the underside of a town you’re familiar with reflected back at you in black and white or written about in newsprint.

“The second reason is that as I learned more about the history of Chicanos in Los Angeles, the more it nagged at me how none of this history was reflected in those noirs I loved. Occasionally [Raymond] Chandler would have a Mexican driver give Marlowe some hot tip, or the Continental Op would chase a Latino hood in a [Dashiell] Hammett novel, but for the most part, we were erased. So I thought, if I lived during the thirties, what kind of hero would I want to represent me? Thus: Calavera, P.I.“

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Meet Ballpoint, the worst Transformer ever, in Skybound’s upcoming young adult graphic novel

Writer Brian “Smitty” Smith and artist Marz Jr. tell the story of a Decepticon who is bad at being bad.

Following the success of their best-selling and Eisner Award-winning Transformers reboot, Skybound will expand their partnership with Hasbro with Transformers: Worst Bot Ever: Meet Ballpoint, the first in a series of young adult graphic novels featuring the Transformers.

Writer Brian “Smitty” Smith and artist Marz Jr. will tell the story of Ballpoint, a Decepticon who gets kicked off the team for being horrible at his job. So he decides to try and take down the Autobots by himself.

“It’s been awesome bringing Ballpoint to life,” Smith said. “Getting to add a brand-new character to the Transformers universe is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!” 

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Nominees announced for the 2024 Harvey Awards

The awards program expands to seven categories this year; winners will be announced at the New York Comic Con in October.

The nominees have been announced for the 2024 Harvey Awards, the annual awards program given out at the New York Comic Con. The awards recognize graphic novels, manga, digital comics and “adaptations” across seven categories, up from six last year.

This year it looks like the committee decided to break the “Best Children’s or Young Adult Book” category into two separate categories, which feels like the right thing to do, given the number of books in both these categories published every year. Trying to combine the two into a single category was always kind of weird — it would be like pitting monthly comics against graphic novels in the same category, or even TV shows against movies or video games or musicals. It just doesn’t make a lot of sense.

This year’s Harvey Awards presentations will be livestreamed from New York Comic Con, and nominees for their Hall of Fame will be announced at a later date. Congratulations to this year’s nominees:

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‘Incredible Hulk’ #800 will bring a ‘complete status quo reset’

Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Nic Klein,Greg Pak, Benjamin Percy, Torunn Grønbekk, Geoff Shaw and more will contribute to the milestone issue.

Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Nic Klein’s monster-filled Incredible Hulk saga will come to a head in Incredible Hulk #19 this November, which because of math doubles as the 800th issue.

They’ll be joined by Greg Pak, Benjamin Percy, Torunn Grønbekk, Geoff Shaw, Lynne Yoshii, and Lan Medina, who will contribute stories to the oversized issue.

“It’s a tremendous honor to write a landmark issue of one of the biggest titles in comics, and we are NOT wasting the opportunity,” Johnson said. “Fans are finally going to see the throwdown between Hulk and Eldest, Nic Klein’s craziest Hulk transformation to date, an INSANE reveal featuring Hulk’s sidekick Charlie, and a complete status quo reset that will propel us into uncharted territory in 2025 and beyond.”

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