Tag: Diamond Comics Distributors

Quick Hits | Warren Ellis, Small Press Expo, Dragon Awards

Plus: News on John Byrne’s ‘Elsewhen,’ Andy Fish and more.

Publishers | Image Comics has announced a new project by Warren Ellis, Ghost Drive Station, after stating that they would not work with him again until he made amends to his sexual misconduct victims. Ellis was one of many creators called out for their behavior in 2020, when his numerous victims created a website that outlined the allegations as well as a path to make amends.

Ellis lost work in the comics industry as a result, and has not had any new comics work published since then (although some of his past publishers have released collected editions that included his work). In 2021, artist Ben Templesmith announced plans for the return of Fell, his comic with Ellis, which led to Image offering a statement that said, “Image Comics will not be working with Warren on anything further until he has made amends to the satisfaction of all involved.”

The creators of the SoManyofUs website last updated it in 2023, stating that, “to the best of our knowledge, Warren Ellis took none of the steps we hoped he would. A mediated accountability process with Warren Ellis is not possible at present, and we do not anticipate our involvement in any progress he might make in the future.” It does not sound like any amends were ever made.

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Quick Hits | Diamond bankruptcy: Publishers to recover consigned comics after settlement

Plus: News on Dan Boultwood, the 2026 Small Press Expo, San Francisco’s Cartoon Art Museum, a Marvel Compact Comics line and more.

Legal | After months of stalemate, resolution came this week in the case of Diamond’s trustee Morgan W. Fisher and a group of publishers concerning consigned goods being held by Diamond and Sparkle Pop. The settlement will allow BOOM!, Dynamite, Fantagraphics, Drawn & Quarterly and other publishers to recover their inventory from the Sparkle Pop-controlled warehouse, in exchange for waiving roughly $600,000 in claims. It also resolves a side dispute over money Sparkle Pop collected from unauthorized inventory sales during the fight.

The legal battle followed in the wake of Universal Distribution and Ad Populum’s purchase of several Diamond assets, including the comics distribution business, after Diamond declared bankruptcy. Graphic Policy has more.

Creators | Comic creator Dan Boultwood, who worked on Chu, It Came!, Baker Street Irregulars and more, was sentenced in London after pleading guilty to three counts of sexual activity with a child. Boultwood was sentenced to to three years’ imprisonment, which will be suspended for two years, as well as to rehabilitation activity, community service and sex-offender notification requirements in the United Kingdom. The offenses occurred in 2010 when Boultwood was 29 and the victim was 15; the case reached court after the victim reported it to police in 2023 and Boultwood was arrested in 2025.

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Universal Distribution + Ad Populum complete the purchase of Diamond; begin layoffs

It’s official now: Universal Distribution and Ad Populum, the second-place bidders in the Diamond bankruptcy auction, have completed the purchase of several Diamond assets, including the comics distribution business and Alliance Game Distributors.

Universal will take home Alliance Game Distributors, while Ad Populum gets Diamond Comic Distributors, Diamond Book Distributors, Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles, Collectible Grading Authority and other related assets. Diamond UK remains separate from this sale process.

“We are thrilled to officially welcome Alliance into the Universal Distribution family,” said Angelo Exarhakos, president and CEO of Universal Distribution. “This acquisition marks a transformative step forward in our mission to deliver exceptional service and value to retailers and publishers across North America. By combining Alliance’s respected legacy and expansive network with Universal’s operational strengths and innovation-driven approach, we are poised to elevate the distribution experience across the industry. We look forward to building on the trusted relationships Alliance has cultivated and continuing to support the growth and vibrancy of the hobby gaming community.”

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Diamond moves closer to having a new owner

The bankruptcy court approves the bid from Universal Distribution and Ad Populum, with a final closing date still pending.

It looks like Diamond is moving ever closer to having a new owner, and — surprise! — it’s not the top bidder in their bankruptcy auction.

Alliance Entertainment, “a global distributor and wholesaler specializing in music, movies, video games, electronics, arcades, and collectibles,” won the auction, which led to a bunch of drama that I’ll recount below. But after all sorts of shenanigans — is that a legal term? — the bid from Universal Distribution LLC and holding company Ad Populum has been approved by the court.

Under the agreement, Universal will acquire Alliance Game Distributors (a different company than Alliance Entertainment; things haven’t gotten that weird), and Ad Populum will acquire Diamond Comic Distributors, Diamond Book Distributors, Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles, Collectible Grading Authority and “other related assets.” Diamond UK remains separate from this sale process, and the transaction is subject to final closing.

The press release had quotes from all three entities, with Joel Weinshanker, managing director of Ad Populum, winning with the best one:

“Ever since I was young, I’ll never forget walking through the front door of my neighborhood shop and spotting those iconic Diamond Comic boxes, each one opening to reveal my dreams and ambitions,” said Joel Weinshanker, managing director of Ad Populum. “We’re incredibly excited to build on Diamond’s remarkable legacy by bringing Ad Populum’s best-in-class sales, marketing, and distribution to the next chapter.”

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Alliance Entertainment acquires Diamond Comic Distributors + other assets in bankruptcy auction

Subject to the approval of the bankruptcy court, Alliance will purchase Diamond Comic Distributors, Alliance Game Distributors, Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles and Collectible Grading Authority.

A new player has entered the comics distribution business, as Alliance Entertainment, “a global distributor and wholesaler specializing in music, movies, video games, electronics, arcades, and collectibles,” has bought several assets in the bankruptcy auction for Diamond.

Diamond declared bankruptcy in January, which brought speculation, rumors and chaos into the comic business — well, more than usual. According to their press release, Alliance has bought four of the 12 businesses that went up for auction as part of the bankruptcy proceedings. Those businesses include Diamond Comic Distributors (U.S.), Alliance Game Distributors (no relation), Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles and Collectible Grading Authority.

“This is a transformative opportunity to expand our leadership in the world of gaming and physical collectibles and deepen our reach into thriving fan-driven categories,” said Jeff Walker, CEO of Alliance Entertainment. “With their legacy of exclusive titles, deep retail relationships, and strong presence in comics, tabletop games, and collectible merchandise, these businesses are highly complementary to our existing distribution and fulfillment model. We see powerful cross-selling potential between our product lines and customer bases, expanding the reach of our expanded product portfolio across both mass retail and specialty channels.”

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Diamond Comics Distributors files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

The once-dominant comics distributor is ‘looking at potential buyers for their … business units.’

Diamond Comics Distributors, which spent decades as the primary comics distributor in North America, has announced they’ve filed for “a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court.”

This means they’ve filed for protection from those they are indebted to as they reorganize their business, keeping them operational as they attempt to pay back their creditors. This is different than Chapter 7 bankruptcy, where a company goes completely under, is sold for parts and the money is used to pay back those they owe.

As a part of their restructuring, Diamond says they’ve already started negotiations to sell their Alliance Game Distributors business to Universal Distribution. It sounds like Universal could be a potential buyer for their Diamond UK business as well. They also said they’re looking at potential buyers for their other business units, including Diamond Book Distributors, Collectible Grading Authority and Diamond Select Toys, as well as their main comic, toy and collectible distribution lines.

“Diamond has been a linchpin of the comic book industry for over four decades. Our priority has always been to provide quality service to publishers, retailers, and, ultimately, comic fans, and we remain committed to finding additional buyers for our businesses,” said Diamond President Chuck Parker in the announcement.

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Almost 50 titles announced for Free Comic Book Day 2025

Diamond reveals the silver sponsor titles, which include Godzilla, The Phantom, Black Mirror, Herobear and the Kid, and more.

Diamond has revealed the remaining Free Comic Book Day titles for 2025, which, along with the Gold Sponsor titles announced earlier this week, brings the number of titles that will be available to retailers and fans on May 3 to 46 — and that’s before DC reveals what they might be doing, as they aren’t included in this batch.

Some of the highlights include:

  • BOOM! will celebrate their 20th anniversary with a special issue that I’m guessing will be an anthology.
  • Fantagraphics has a Lost Marvels title featuring Dominic Fortune on the cover that’s promoting a collection of “never-collected Marvel comics”
  • IDW will have two FCBD titles, one featuring Godzilla: The New Heroes and one collecting stories from their new IDW Dark line.
  • Mad Cave and their all-ages imprint Papercutz are going all in on FCBD, with Speed Racer and Phineas and Ferb in the gold tier, and The Phantom, an all-ages Flash Gordon and Herobear and the Kid in the silver.
  • Graphic novel previews that will land on FCBD include Vault’s Def Leppard, Skybound’s all-ages Transformers book and Scholastic/Marvel’s Hulk Teach.
  • The list includes a couple of licensed comics I wasn’t aware of, including a Black Mirror comic from Twisted Comics and Diablo from Titan.

Check them all out below:

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Your 2025 FCBD line-up includes Spider-Man, Speed Racer, VR Troopers + more

Free comics from Marvel, Archie, Dark Horse, Mad Cave, BOOM! and more will be available next year on May 3.

Diamond has revealed the “Gold Sponsor” comic publishers and titles for Free Comic Book Day 2025, which includes Marvel, Mad Cave, BOOM!, Dark Horse and more. Thirteen comics from the gold sponsors will be available during next year’s event, which is scheduled for May 3.

“We’re excited for another fantastic year of celebrating comic books and the shops that make them special,” said Ashton Greenwood, Free Comic Book Day spokesperson. “This year’s selection has something for every kind of fan. Whether you’re new to comics or a longtime reader, you’re sure to find a title that grabs your attention.”

An additional 33 titles in the “Silver Sponsor” tier will be revealed tomorrow, although Marvel has already revealed three more titles they’ll offer, in addition to their two gold titles. DC is not mentioned in the announcement, as their books are not distributed by Diamond, but I’m sure they’ll have something on FCBD as well.

Check out the list of titles below:

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Almost 50 titles announced for Free Comic Book Day 2024

Diamond reveals the silver sponsor titles, which include Star Wars, Doctor Who, Flash Gordon, Monster High and more.

Diamond has revealed the remaining Free Comic Book Day titles for 2024, which, all told, brings the number of titles that will be available to retailers and fans on May 4 to 48.

Earlier this week they revealed the gold sponsor titles, and today brings the silver tier. Some of the highlights include:

  • DC will have a total of four titles for next year, which have not yet been revealed. One of them, though, will be a MAD Magazine title.
  • Marvel has five titles in 2024, including the two revealed earlier this week. Today brings news on a Star Wars book, a collection of Marvel’s Voices stories and a Spidey and his Amazing Friends title aimed at young readers.
  • Mad Cave has two titles focused on their two recent licensed comics announcements for Flash Gordon and Gatchaman.
  • Lots of other notable licenses pop up in the list, from video game Far Cry to Popeye to Monster High, which IDW recently announced a licensing agreement for. Oh, and Alien Books, who acquired the license to publish Valiant titles, will also be featured.

Check them all out below:

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Image Comics signs exclusively with Lunar for direct market distribution

The publisher will still work with Diamond for bookstore distribution.

Image Comics will join DC Comics and other publishers at Lunar Distribution for their direct market distribution. Beginning with their September titles, which will be solicited in June, Image will shift away from Diamond Comics Distributors to a new distributor for the first time since the company was founded three decades ago.

“We have enjoyed our relationship with Diamond over the decades and we have made some wonderful friends there, so this decision has been a difficult one,” said Erik Larsen, a founder and current CFO at Image Comics. “It was not a move that we made lightly, though, and ultimately, the change was made because of the benefits to readers and retailers who are our real customers. There are services Lunar will provide that will make it easier for stores to buy our titles, and for fans to find our books. This is a big win for them, and we hope this new partnership is as strong and long-lasting as the previous one. We wish Diamond nothing but the best as we look toward the future.”

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More than 40 titles announced for Free Comic Book Day 2023

New titles from Image, Oni, BOOM! and more will debut on May 6 next year.

Diamond has revealed the rest of the 2023 Free Comic Book Day line-up, which puts an additional 31 titles into the mix. Add’em to the “gold sponsor” titles announced earlier this week for a total of 44 free comics that will be available to retailers and fans on May 6.

Some of the highlights of the “silver sponsor” titles include:

  • The Sacrificers, a new Image Comics title by Rick Remender and Max Fiumara.
  • A preview of Punch Up, a new graphic novel from Oni Press by Zack Sterling.
  • Ten Speed Press has a preview of I Am Stan, the new Stan Lee biography by Tom Scioli.
  • BOOM! Studios will preview Mech Cadets by Greg Pak and Takeshi Miyazawa, which sounds like a sequel to the wonderful Mech Cadet Yu. Update: Actually they are reprinting the first issue of the miniseries rather than releasing something new. BOO! I want a new series!
  • There’s also Animal Crossing, Nightmare Before Christmas, the Freak Brothers, the Smurfs and many more familiar names.

Check’em all out below.

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Quick Hits | Rest in peace, Kim Jung Gi

Plus: Heavy Metal teams with Whatnot Publishing, Chuck D enters a ‘Rogue State’ and more news from New York Comic Con!

A lot of comics news came out this week in the buildup to the New York Comic Con, so here’s a round-up of some of the headlines. We start with some very tragic news about an artistic legend.

Artist Kim Jung Gi, who worked on manhwa like Tiger the Long Tail and drew covers for Marvel and DC, passed away from a heart attack this week as he prepared to travel to the New York Comic Con.

The 47-year-old artist was in Paris at the time, where his artwork was on display at the Daniel Maghen art gallery. One of his collaborators, Hyun Jin Kim, posted the news on social media:

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