2015 Harvey Award Nominees Announced for Over 20 Categories

2015 Harvey Awards Nominees Announced

Visit www.harveyawards.org for Ballots & Submission Details

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - The 2015 Harvey Awards Nominees have been announced with the release of the final ballot, presented by the Executive Committees of the Harvey Awards and the Baltimore Comic-Con. Named in honor of the late Harvey Kurtzman, one of the industry's most innovative talents, the Harvey Awards recognize outstanding work in comics and sequential art. They will be presented September 26, 2015 in Baltimore, MD, in conjunction with the Baltimore Comic-Con.

Nominations for the Harvey Awards are selected exclusively by creators - those who write, draw, ink, letter, color, design, edit, or are otherwise involved in a creative capacity in the comics field. They are the only industry awards both nominated and selected by the full body of comic book professionals. Thank you to all that have already participated by submitting a nomination ballot. Final ballots are due to the Harvey Awards by Monday, August 31, 2015. Full submission instructions can be found on the final ballot.

Voting is open to anyone professionally involved in a creative capacity within the comics field. Final ballots are available at www.harveyawards.org. Those who prefer paper ballots may e-mail harveys@baltimorecomiccon.com.

This will be the tenth year for the Harvey Awards in Baltimore, MD. Look for more details soon as to how you can attend the Harvey Awards dinner.

This year's Baltimore Comic-Con will be held September 25-27, 2015. The ceremony and banquet for the 2015 Harvey Awards will be held Saturday night, September 26th.

Without further delay, the 2014 Harvey Award Nominees:

BEST LETTERER
____ Aubrey Aiese, LUMBERJANES, BOOM! Box (BOOM! Studios)
____ Deron Bennett, HACKTIVIST, Archaia Black Label (BOOM! Studios)
____ Ed Dukeshire, THE WOODS, BOOM! Studios
____ Jack Morelli, AFTERLIFE WITH ARCHIE, Archie Comic Publications
____ Josh Reed, DAMSELS IN EXCESS, Aspen

BEST COLORIST
____ Elizabeth Breitweiser, VELVET, Image Comics
____ Jordie Bellaire, MOON KNIGHT, Marvel Comics
____ Laura Martin, ARMOR HUNTERS, Valiant Entertainment
____ Dave Stewart, HELLBOY IN HELL, Dark Horse Comics
____ Matthew Wilson, THE WICKED + THE DIVINE, Image Comics

BEST SYNDICATED STRIP or PANEL
____ DICK TRACY, Joe Staton and Mike Curtis, Tribune Media Services
____ DILBERT, Scott Adams, Universal Uclick
____ FOX TROT, Bill Amend, Universal Uclick
____ GET FUZZY, Darby Conley, Universal Uclick
____ MUTTS, Patrick McDonnell, King Features Syndicate

BEST ONLINE COMICS WORK
____ ALBERT THE ALIEN, Trevor Mueller and Gabriel Bautista, albertthealien.com
____ BATTLEPUG, Mike Norton, battlepug.com
____ GIRLS WITH SLINGSHOTS, Danielle Corsetto, girlswithslingshots.com
____ SPACE MULLET, Daniel Warren Johnson, space-mullet.com
____ THE PRIVATE EYE, Brian K. Vaughan, Marcos Martin, and Muntsa Vicente, panelsyndicate.com

BEST AMERICAN EDITION of FOREIGN MATERIAL
____ BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS, Drawn & Quarterly
____ BLACKSAD: AMARILLO, Dark Horse
____ CORTO MALTESE: UNDER THE SIGN OF CAPRICORN, EuroComics/IDW
____ THE COLLECTOR, Archaia/BOOM! Studios
____ THE KILLER OMNIBUS VOL. 2, Archaia/BOOM! Studios

BEST INKER
____ Roger Langridge, JIM HENSON'S THE MUSICAL MONSTERS OF TURKEY HOLLOW, Archaia/BOOM! Studios
____ Danny Miki, BATMAN, DC Comics
____ Mark Pennington, ARMOR HUNTERS: BLOODSHOT, Valiant Entertainment
____ Joe Rivera, THE VALIANT, Valiant Entertainment
____ Wade Von Grawbadger, ALL NEW X-MEN, Marvel Comics

BEST NEW SERIES
____ BITCH PLANET, Image Comics
____ LUMBERJANES, BOOM! Box (BOOM! Studios)
____ MS. MARVEL, Marvel Comics
____ SOUTHERN BASTARDS, Image Comics
____ THE WICKED + THE DIVINE, Image Comics

MOST PROMISING NEW TALENT
____ Steve Bryant, ATHENA VOLTAIRE COMPENDIUM, Dark Horse Comics
____ Daniel Warren Johnson, GHOST FLEET, Dark Horse Comics
____ Chad Lambert, "KILL ME" FROM DARK HORSE PRESENTS, Dark Horse Comics
____ Babs Tarr, BATGIRL, DC Comics
____ Jen Van Meter, THE DEATH-DEFYING DOCTOR MIRAGE, Valiant Entertainment

SPECIAL AWARD FOR HUMOR IN COMICS
____ James Asmus, QUANTUM AND WOODY, Valiant Entertainment
____ James Asmus & Fred Van Lente, THE DELINQUENTS, Valiant Entertainment
____ Ryan Browne, GOD HATES ASTRONAUTS, Image Comics
____ Fred Van Lente, ARCHER AND ARMSTRONG, Valiant Entertainment
____ Chip Zdarsky, SEX CRIMINALS, Image Comics

BEST ORIGINAL GRAPHIC PUBLICATION FOR YOUNGER READERS
____ JIM HENSON'S THE MUSICAL MONSTERS OF TURKEY HOLLOW, Archaia/BOOM! Studios
____ LUMBERJANES, BOOM! Box (BOOM! Studios)
____ SISTERS, Scholastic-Graphix
____ SPONGEBOB COMICS, United Plankton Pictures
____ THIS ONE SUMMER, First Second Books

BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED
____ HIT: 1955 TP, BOOM! Studios
____ MOUSE GUARD: BALDWIN THE BRAVE AND OTHER TALES HC, Archaia/BOOM! Studios
____ RAI VOL. 1: WELCOME TO NEW JAPAN TP, Valiant Entertainment
____ SIX-GUN GORILLA TP, BOOM! Studios
____ THE LOVE BUNGLERS, Fantagraphics

BEST ANTHOLOGY
____ DARK HORSE PRESENTS, Dark Horse Comics
____ IN THE DARK: A HORROR ANTHOLOGY, IDW
____ LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM, Locust Moon Press
____ MASTERFUL MARKS: CARTOONISTS WHO CHANGED THE WORLD, Simon & Schuster
____ WILD OCEAN, Fulcrum Publishing

BEST DOMESTIC REPRINT PROJECT
____ HARVEY KURTZMAN'S JUNGLE BOOK: ESSENTIAL KURTZMAN VOLUME 1, Kitchen Sink Books/Dark Horse Books
____ STERANKO NICK FURY AGENT OF S.H.I.E.L.D. ARTIST'S EDITION, IDW
____ THE COMPLETE QUANTUM AND WOODY CLASSIC OMNIBUS, Valiant Entertainment
____ VALIANT MASTERS: H.A.R.D. CORPS VOL. 1 - SEARCH & DESTROY, Valiant Entertainment
____ WALT DISNEY DONALD DUCK AND UNCLE SCROOGE: THE SON OF THE SUN (DON ROSA LIBRARY VOL. 1), Fantagraphics

BEST COVER ARTIST
____ Mike Del Mundo, ELEKTRA, Marvel Comics
____ Francesco Francavilla, AFTERLIFE WITH ARCHIE, Archie Comic Publications
____ Jenny Frison, REVIVAL, Image Comics
____ Chris Samnee, DAREDEVIL, Marvel Comics
____ Fiona Staples, SAGA, Image Comics

BEST BIOGRAPHICAL, HISTORICAL, or JOURNALISTIC PRESENTATION
____ BACK ISSUES, Comic Pop
____ COMIC BOOK CREATOR, TwoMorrows Publications
____ HEROES OF THE COMICS: PORTRAITS OF THE LEGENDS OF COMIC BOOKS, Drew Friedman, Fantagraphics
____ MASTERFUL MARKS: CARTOONISTS WHO CHANGED THE WORLD, Monte Beauchamp, Simon & Schuster
____ TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE ULTIMATE VISUAL HISTORY, Andrew Farago, Insight Editions

SPECIAL AWARD for EXCELLENCE IN PRESENTATION
 ____ ARMOR HUNTERS, Josh Johns and Warren Simons, Valiant Entertainment
____ HARVEY KURTZMAN'S JUNGLE BOOK: ESSENTIAL KURTZMAN VOLUME 1, John Lind and Philip R. Simon, Kitchen Sink Books/Dark Horse Books
____ LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM, Andrew Carl, Josh O'Neill, and Chris Stevens, Locust Moon Press
____ JIM HENSON'S THE MUSICAL MONSTERS OF TURKEY HOLLOW, Scott Newman, Archaia/BOOM! Studios
____ THE VALIANT, Kyle Andrukiewicz and Warren Simons, Valiant Entertainment

BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM ORIGINAL
 ____ ATHENA VOLTAIRE COMPENDIUM, Dark Horse Comics
____ JIM HENSON'S THE MUSICAL MONSTERS OF TURKEY HOLLOW, Archaia/BOOM! Studios
____ SECONDS, Ballantine Books
____ THE WRENCHIES, First Second Books
____ THIS ONE SUMMER, First Second Books

BEST CONTINUING OR LIMITED SERIES
____ AFTERLIFE WITH ARCHIE, Archie Comic Publications
____ DAREDEVIL, Marvel Comics
____ SAGA, Image Comics
____ SOUTHERN BASTARDS, Image Comics
____ THE VALIANT, Valiant Entertainment

BEST WRITER
____ Jason Aaron, SOUTHERN BASTARDS, Image Comics
____ Jen Van Meter, THE DEATH-DEFYING DOCTOR MIRAGE, Valiant Entertainment
____ Brian K. Vaughan, SAGA, Image Comics
____ Mark Waid, DAREDEVIL, Marvel Comics
____ G. Willow Wilson, MS. MARVEL, Marvel Comics

BEST ARTIST
____ Clayton Crain, RAI, Valiant Entertainment
____ Roberto de la Torre, THE DEATH-DEFYING DOCTOR MIRAGE, Valiant Entertainment
____ Chris Samnee, DAREDEVIL, Marvel Comics
____ Fiona Staples, SAGA, Image Comics
____ Jillian Tamaki, THIS ONE SUMMER, First Second Books

BEST CARTOONIST
____ Steve Bryant, ATHENA VOLTAIRE COMPENDIUM, Dark Horse Comics
____ Howard Chaykin, BLOODSHOT #25, Valiant Entertainment
____ Farel Dalrymple, THE WRENCHIES, First Second Books
____ Terry Moore, RACHEL RISING, Abstract Studios
____ Dan Parent, KEVIN KELLER, Archie Comic Publications
____ Andy Runton, X-O MANOWAR #25, Valiant Entertainment

BEST SINGLE ISSUE OR STORY
____ ARMOR HUNTERS #1, Valiant Entertainment
____ "Breaking Out", DARK HORSE PRESENTS #35, Dark Horse Comics
____ JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER: WITCHES #4, Archaia/BOOM! Studios
____ MULTIVERSITY: PAX AMERICANA, DC Comics
____ RAI #1, Valiant Entertainment

Congratulations to all of the nominees! If you know a nominee, please pass on the good news using email, Facebook, and Twitter.

Please submit any corrections to harveys@baltimorecomiccon.com. We try our best to list nominees correctly, and want to know if there is an error.

The Harvey Committee and the Baltimore Comic-Con will make every effort to contact all nominees. If you are a nominee and you do not hear from us by July 25, 2015, please contact us at harveys@baltimorecomiccon.com. We would love to discuss your involvement in the ceremony and the Baltimore Comic-Con.

For additional information about Harvey Kurtzman and the Harvey Awards, visit www.harveyawards.org or http://www.facebook.com/theharveyawards.

2015 Eisner Award winners are here.

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Review: THE DEMON PRINCE OF MOMOCHI HOUSE Volume 1

THE DEMON PRINCE OF MOMOCHI HOUSE, VOL. 1
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

MANGAKA: Aya Shouoto
TRANSLATION: JN Productions
LETTERS: Inori Fukuda Trant
EDITOR: Nancy Thislethwaite
ISBN: 978-1-4215-7962-7; paperback (July 2015); Rated “T” for “Teen”
172pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

VIZ Media is publishing another manga from Aya Shouoto, the creator of Kiss of the Rose Princess.  Entitled The Demon Prince of Momochi House, the series focuses on a young woman who inherits a house with a strong supernatural connection.

On her 16th birthday, Himari Momochi inherits an old house in the woods that she has never seen.  She does not know that it is called the Momochi House and that it already has three inhabitants.  One of them is practically the “Demon Prince” of Momochi House.

The Demon Prince of Momochi House, Vol. 1 (Chapters 1 to 3) opens with Himari deep in the mountains looking for the ancestral estate, Momochi House.  A local warns her to avoid the house because she will be cursed by the “Omamori-sama.”  When she finally finds the house, she discovers that the place is practically a wreck, and that three squatters live there.

Seventeen-year-old Aoi Nanamori seems to be the leader, while Yukari and Ise just seem like lazy guys looking for a place to stay.  There is, however, more than meets the eye, as she learns that Momochi House is a barrier between the human and spiritual realms.  The house may have even more residents, and Aoi... handsome Aoi has a secret.

I am a sucker for a yokai-themed manga, and The Demon Prince of Momochi House manga focuses on “ayakashi,” an apparent old term for yokai.  Demons and spirits aside, this is, like other manga from creator Aya Shouoto, a shojo manga.

The Demon Prince of Momochi House Volume 1 quickly establishes a budding and complicated romance between Himari and Aoi.  This series seems as if it will be both a supernatural romance and a high school romantic drama.  It has potential, but, other than establishing the dynamics between the leads, The Demon Prince of Momochi House is a bit unformed after three chapters, which is what makes up this first graphic novel in the series.

B

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux (Support Leroy on Patreon)


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

Review: FIGHT CLUB 2 #1

FIGHT CLUB 2 #1
DARK HORSE COMICS – @DarkHorseComics

WRITER: Chuck Palahniuk
ART: Cameron Stewart
COLORS: Dave Stewart
LETTERS: Nate Piekos of Blambot
COVER:  David Mack
VARIANT COVERS: Lee Bermejo; Amanda Connor; Steve Lieber; Cameron Stewart; and Chip Zdarsky; Joëlle Jones; Paul Pope; Tim Seeley
EDITOR: Scott Allie
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (May 2015)

The Tranquility Gambit #1: “Keep The Home Fires Burning”

Written by Chuck Palahniuk, the novel, Fight Club, was first published in 1996.  It was subsequently adapted into a film of the same title by director, David Fincher, that starred Brad Pitt and Edward Norton in the lead roles.  Released in 1999, the film was not a big box office smash, but it has since gained cult status and continued popularity.

Fight Club the novel follows an unnamed male protagonist, who is struggling with insomnia and is unhappy with his workaday life as an office drone.  The turning point in his life is when he meets a mysterious man named Tyler Durden, who has established an underground fighting club, which becomes a kind of radical psychotherapy for disaffected males who are unsatisfied with the modern, industrial, consumerist world.

Last year, Dark Horse Comics and Chuck Palahniuk announced that Fight Club was getting a sequel, but that sequel would not be a novel.  It would be a comic book, and thus, we now have Fight Club 2, which is written by Chuck Palahniuk, drawn by Cameron Stewart, colored by Dave Stewart, and lettered by Nate Piekos, with cover art by David Mack.

Fight Club 2 #1 (“Keep The Home Fires Burning”) reintroduces the unnamed protagonist of Fight Club, who now calls himself “Sebastian.”  A decade ago, he had an army of men ready to take down the modern world.  Now, Sebastian is surrounded by assorted pills and medications.  His wife, Marla Singer, once his co-revolutionary, is deeply unsatisfied with the suburban, TV Land life they lead.  Even their son, “Junior,” is now more interesting than his dad.  Marla just wants to fuck Tyler Durden again, and she just may get that chance...

I think I saw Fight Club the movie before I read the novel.  Both are good.  The film is a bracing, exhilarating trip through the dissatisfaction of the kind of Gen-X males that, having generously supped on the tit of White privilege, suddenly found themselves overfed and bored.  The book is nuanced, probing, thoughtful, and provocative.  It demands that its reader engage it, and each reader takes from the novel what he can understand or absorb.

Fight Club 2 retains the voice of the novel, which might seem obvious considering that the originator of Fight Club is also the writer of the comic book.  However, popular culture is littered with the disappointing or uneven results of creators returning to a creations some considerable time after they first began working on them.  Some of you, dear readers, will immediately think of the original Star Wars films and compare them to the “prequel trilogy.”  In comics, a good example would be Frank Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again, which disappointed readers because it was so different from the original, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.  So the voice is not always the same when it should obviously be the same.

Discounting the film, there was more to say about Fight Club, and although this is only the first issue, Fight Club 2 seems as if it will be both a worthy successor to the original and also a solid narrative in its own right.  Artist Cameron Stewart captures the banality and the fragility of Sebastian's current life, as well as its surreal and unreal nature.  David Mack's cover art for this first issue evokes the sense that Tyler Durden is both alluring and dangerous. This cover alone should earn him an Eisner Award nomination in the “cover artist” category.

So after one issue, I heartily recommend Fight Club 2 #1, at least, to anyone who has ever read Fight Club the novel and/or seen the film.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux (This review first appeared on Patreon.)


The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

DC Comics from Diamond Distributors for July 15, 2015

DC COMICS

MAY150259     ASTRO CITY #25     $3.99
APR150289     BATMAN HARLEY QUINN TP     $19.99
APR150290     BATMAN SECOND CHANCES TP     $19.99
MAY150136     BLACK CANARY #2     $2.99
MAY150186     DOOMED #2     $2.99
MAY150143     DR FATE #2     $2.99
APR150295     GREEN LANTERN CORPS TP VOL 06 RECKONING     $14.99
MAY150223     GREEN LANTERN THE LOST ARMY #2     $2.99
MAY150214     HARLEY QUINN #18     $3.99
MAR150306     INVISIBLES HC BOOK 04 DELUXE EDITION (MR)     $39.99
MAY150127     JUSTICE LEAGUE #42     $3.99
MAY150160     MARTIAN MANHUNTER #2     $2.99
APR150296     NEW 52 FUTURES END TP VOL 02     $29.99
APR150302     NEW SUICIDE SQUAD TP VOL 01 PURE INSANITY     $16.99
MAY150217     ROBIN SON OF BATMAN #2     $3.99
MAY150176     SECRET SIX #4     $2.99
APR150301     SUPERGIRL TP VOL 06 CRUCIBLE     $16.99
MAY150188     SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN #19     $3.99

DC COMICS/DC COLLECTIBLES

DEC140431     BATMAN BLACK & WHITE STATUE BY MIKE MIGNOLA     $79.95
DEC140436     DC COMICS NEW 52 GREEN LANTERN JOHN STEWART AF     $24.95
JAN150420     SUPERMAN MAN OF STEEL STATUE BY JOHN ROMITA JR     $79.95

Marvel Comics from Diamond Distributors for July 15, 2015

MARVEL COMICS

MAR150801     ALL NEW X-MEN PREM HC VOL 07 UTOPIANS     $24.99
MAY150795     ANT-MAN ANNUAL #1     $4.99
MAY150728     ARMOR WARS #3 SWA     $3.99
MAY150714     CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MIGHTY DEFENDERS #1 SWA     $3.99
MAY150744     CAPTAIN MARVEL AND CAROL CORPS #2 SWA     $3.99
MAY150798     DARK TOWER DRAWING THREE HOUSE CARDS #5 (MR)     $3.99
APR150938     FANTASTIC FOUR BY AGUIRRE-SACASA AND MCNIVEN TP     $24.99
APR150830     GUARDIANS OF KNOWHERE #1 SWA     $3.99
MAY150699     HAIL HYDRA #1 SWA     $3.99
AUG140839     HAWKEYE #22     $4.99
APR158743     INFINITY GAUNTLET #1 WEAVER 2ND PTG VAR     $3.99
MAY150672     INHUMANS ATTILAN RISING #3 SWA     $3.99
MAY150746     KORVAC SAGA #2 SWA     $3.99
APR150909     MARVELS ANT-MAN ART OF MOVIE SLIPCASE HC     $49.99
FEB150856     MMW MIGHTY THOR HC VOL 14     $75.00
MAY150808     MOON KNIGHT #17     $3.99
APR158744     PLANET HULK #1 DEL MUNDO 2ND PTG VAR     $4.99
MAY150758     PLANET HULK #3 SWA     $3.99
APR158712     PRINCESS LEIA #2 DODSON 3RD PTG VAR     $3.99
APR158747     SECRET WARS #3 ROSS 2ND PTG VAR     $3.99
APR158713     SECRET WARS BATTLEWORLD #2 MURRAY 2ND PTG VAR     $3.99
MAY150670     SECRET WARS BATTLEWORLD #3 SWA     $3.99
MAY150675     SIEGE #1 SWA     $3.99
APR150704     SILVER SURFER #13 SWA     $3.99
APR150935     SPIDER-MAN 2099 TP VOL 02 SPIDER-VERSE     $19.99
APR158714     STAR WARS #4 CASSADAY 2ND PTG VAR     $3.99
APR150922     THOR GOD OF THUNDER TP VOL 04 LAST DAYS OF MIDGARD     $19.99
APR158745     ULTIMATE END #1 BAGLEY 2ND PTG VAR     $3.99
APR158746     ULTIMATE END #2 BAGLEY 2ND PTG VAR     $3.99
MAY150757     WHERE MONSTERS DWELL #3 SWA     $3.99
APR150936     WOLVERINES TP VOL 03 LIVING AND THE DEAD     $15.99
APR150931     X-MEN TP VOL 05 BURNING EARTH     $12.99
MAY150734     YEARS OF FUTURE PAST #3 SWA     $3.99

IDW Publishing from Diamond Distributors for July 15, 2015

IDW PUBLISHING

MAR152639     CHEW CASES OF THE FDA CARD GAME     $35.00
MAY150313     GODZILLA IN HELL #1     $3.99
MAY150390     LITTLEST PET SHOP HC WAIT A SECOND     $12.99
MAY150372     MY LITTLE PONY ADVENTURES IN FRIENDSHIP HC VOL 03     $12.99
MAR150344     SUPERMAN ATOMIC AGE SUNDAYS HC VOL 01 1949 - 1953     $49.99

Dark Horse Comics from Diamond Distributors for July 15, 2015

DARK HORSE COMICS
MAR150083     ABE SAPIEN TP VOL 06 DARKNESS SO GREAT     $19.99
MAY150082     BPRD HELL ON EARTH #133     $3.50
MAY150030     DARK HORSE PRESENTS 2014 #12     $4.99
MAY150099     DEATH HEAD #1     $3.99
MAY150036     GROO FRIENDS AND FOES #7     $3.99
MAY150061     PLANTS VS ZOMBIES #2 BULLY FOR YOU     $2.99
MAR150065     PREDATOR FIRE & STONE TP     $14.99
MAY150024     SHAPER #5     $3.99
MAY150102     STRAIN NIGHT ETERNAL #11 (MR)     $3.99
MAY150039     USAGI YOJIMBO #147     $3.50