A week where, amongst Everything Else Going On, you wake up to see a headline about a struggling shoe company pivoting to instead providing Artificial Intelligence services, after having to read about even more layoffs across creative sectors, and you realise “well, that frown line is a new and permanent addition to the topography of my forehead, so I guess I’ll just lean into having the becragged face of a '70s character actor, in this new and exciting world in which we find ourselves.” So it goes.
Sit down.
— Andi Watson (@andicomics.bsky.social) 2026-04-16T13:38:29.481Z
This week’s news.
• Another week, another news section kicking things off with details of layoffs at a publisher caught in the crosshairs of corporate machinations, as the Walt Disney Company’s new CEO did what CEOs are wont to do and decided that a streamlining of operations was needed, and implemented a program of firings across Marvel’s various offices, rather than, ohhh, I don’t know, not accepting an unnecessarily gigantic individual paycheck, and saving costs on that front, or not chasing unsustainable growth in a changing media landscape, with, presumably, similar news waiting in the wings across the aisle, once we know whether DC is indeed going to have a new corporate parent, later this year.
• In memoriam, remembering those the world of comics has lost, as news was shared of the passing of cartoonist and academic, creator of The Adventures of Jesus, Frank Stack, aka Foolbert Sturgeon, who has died at the age of 88.
• News was also shared of the passing of award-winning mangaka Sadao Shoji, creator of Asatte-kun, who has died at the age of 88 due to heart failure.
incubation
— ionomycin (@ionomycin.bsky.social) 2026-04-15T21:50:47.256Z
This week’s reviews.
TCJ
• Doris Sutherland reviews the strange iconography of Nick Bunch’s How to Quit Smoking Cigarettes — “A project like this can easily give itself over in its entirety to the creator’s personal doubts, anxieties and pains. Bunch takes the time to illustrate the simple truth that, while an individual is being gnawed away by these doubts, their social circle will just keep on spinning around them.”
• Leonard Pierce reviews the perfect execution of Roman Muradov’s All the Living -—“While the dialogue is simple and the action is easy to follow, Muradov abstracts everything in a skillful way so that every panel contains hidden depth. The woman returns to a washed-out city as lacking in color and interest as her own tiny apartment, which she now must awkwardly share with her own shade. When she begins to encounter others, it doesn't get any easier (it would spoil one of the book's best gags to reveal the circumstances under which one of them died, but trust me, it's worth waiting for).”
AIPT
• Tiffany Leigh reviews the meticulous pacing of Greg Rucka, DaNi, et al’s Batwoman #2.
• George Loftus reviews the violent beauty of Torunn Grønbekk, Davide Gianfelice, et al’s Catwoman #86.
• Michael Guerrero reviews the artistic decisions of Dan Watters, Denys Cowan, et al’s Nightwing #137.
• Jonathan Waugh reviews the impactful fun of Marc Guggenheim, Madibek Musabekov, et al’s Star Wars: Jedi Knights – A Higher Path.
• David Brooke reviews the sharpened focus of Sam Humphries, Geraldo Borges, et al’s Alias: Red Band #2.
• Chris Coplan reviews the wonderful weirdness of Matt Bors, Tristan Wright, et al’s Toxic Crusaders #5.
The Beat
• Joe Grunenwald reviews the satisfying conclusion of Peter Hogan and Steve Parkhouse’s Resident Alien – One More For The Road #1.
• Jordan Jennings reviews the masterclass finale of Matt Kindt, David Lapham, et al’s Knight City #3.
• Khalid Johnson reviews the kinetic action of Curt Pires, Franklin Jonas, Patrick Mulholland, et al’s Fireborn #1.
• Arpad Okay reviews the narrative understanding of Asante Amani’s Troubled Detective.
• Kerry Vineberg reviews the smart surreality of Brad Neely’s Creased Comics.
• Kathryn Hemmann reviews the universal themes of Difference Engine’s Delay: A Comics Anthology, edited by Charis Loke and Paolo Chikiamco.
• Zack Quaintance reviews the savvy publishing of Hugo Pratt's Corto Maltese: Fable of Venice and Other Adventures, translated by Dean Mullaney and Simone Castaldi.
Blogcritics
Jeff Provine reviews the meta commentary of Jessica Campbell’s Hot or Not: 20th Century Male Artists.
Broken Frontier
• Andrea Magbual reviews the bold choices of Don’t Fold Press’ Something Alien Anthology.
• Harish P. I. reviews the imaginative depictions of ILYA’s Romo the WolfBoy.
• Lindsay Pereira reviews the charming wit of Anouk Ricard’s Animan, translated by Montana Kane.
• Lara Boyle reviews the powerful minimalism of Joana Mosi's The Mongoose.
• Andy Oliver reviews the graphic violence of Rebellion’s Action, Before the Ban: The Archival Collection – Volume 1, and the sophisticated shifts of Darryl Cunningham’s Elon Musk: American Oligarch.
Frontline
Bharath Murthy reviews the uneasy metaphor of Sarnath Banerjee’s Absolute Jafar.
House to Astonish
Paul O’Brien has capsule reviews of Marvel Comics’ Uncanny X-Men Annual #1, Uncanny X-Men #26, Wolverine #18, Moonstar #2, and Psylocke: Ninja #4.
Socialist Worker
Ken Olende reviews the humorous pessimism of Ben Passmore’s Black Arms to Hold You Up: A History of Black Resistance.
Solrad
Hank Kennedy reviews the frustrating approach of Darryl Cunningham’s Elon Musk: American Oligarch.
Yatta-tachi
Adam Wescott reviews the shōjo heart of Kazumi Yamashita’s Wonder Boy, Volume 1, translated by Giuseppe di Martino.
It’s the final countdown Luna Moths! Luna Moth Zine Fest is happening THIS SATURDAY, 4/18 from 11–4 at 72 Concord Street in Manchester & we’re buzzin'!We’re packing the space with 71 vendors & 4 workshops. Grab your tote, your friends, your trades & your zine‑loving hearts!
— Luna Moth Zine Fest (@lunamothzinefest.bsky.social) 2026-04-15T13:11:14.660Z
This week’s interviews.
TCJ
• Robert Aman interviews Matti Hagelberg about B.E.M. and Läskimooses, Finnish comics culture, the influence of Julie Doucet and Gary Panter, and playing with authorship and identities — “I felt that my work was understood elsewhere in a way that it perhaps wasn’t in Finland. For example, I received the Swedish Urhunden Award for best book. But of course, this could also be a misconception — being a guest at a foreign comics festival is very different from sitting alone in your studio in Finland.”
• J.D. Harlock interviews Dan Martin about Deathbulge, character anatomy, '00s webcomics and alt-text, and crowdfunding successes — “Turns out, trying to avoid being formulaic and to generate funny scenarios from scratch, over and over again, with no formula to build on, is quite mentally exhausting. I overdid it and needed a break. The Kickstarter campaign for Deathbulge: Battle of the Bands launched the following year, so I think a lot of people blame the game for why I stopped making comics, but really, I would've stopped anyway.”
AIPT
Chris Coplan speaks with:
- Darcy Van Poelgeest and Erin Connally about The Cutting Garden and the question at the core of the book.
- Lee Loughridge and Marz, Jr. about The Adequates and '90s influences.
- Alex Antone about G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero and crowdfunding collections of the book’s first 300 issues.
- Andrew MacLean about Head Lopper and the importance of making things that are fun.
- Aaron Losty about Ruffian Meat and assembling the team of contributors to the anthology.
- Mathieu Bablet about Silent Jenny and creating new ways of inhabiting the world.
The Beat
Jared Bird talks to Matt Kindt about MIND MGMT: New and Improved, returning to fictional worlds, and letting the story drive the visuals.
Boston University
Marc Chalufour chats with A. David Lewis about Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine, and the shared questions between medicine and theology.
Fanbase Press
Barbra Dillon interviews Trevor Mueller about Secret STEAM Society, educational adventures, and making learning lessons memorable.
FreakSugar
Jed W. Keith speaks with Dave Baker and Nicole Goux about Punk’n Heads, starting with a name, and capturing the spirit of music scenes.
GraphicMemoir
Jonathan Sandler talks to Ziggy Hanaor about Shushu, comics making and editorial work, and publishing at Cicada Books.
Steven Heller interviews Michael DeForge about All the Cameras in My Room, drivers of technological development, and the difficulty of writing about grief.
Publisher’s Weekly
• Samantha Puc speaks with Jules Scheele about adapting Virginia Woolf’s Orlando, personal history with the novel, and the enduring central message of the book.
• Christian Holub talks to Wild Signal’s Mike Rauch and Ronald Wimberly about the impetus for launching the new media company, and cultivating the next generation of artists.
Salon
Andi Zeisler chats with Julia Wertz about Bury Me Already (It’s Nice Down Here), leaving New York, the realities of motherhood, and not hurting the people you care about when making memoir comics.
Smash Pages
JK Parkin interviews Jay Eaton about Runaway to the Stars and the inescapable pull of comics, and Joe Palmer about Destination Kill and the amalgamation of ideas that led to the book.
Yatta-tachi
Mzhdanova speaks with BookWalker’s Sam Pinansky and Isabell Castro about the digital storefront’s overhaul and moves to focus in on the U.S. manga and manhwa markets.
ATTENTION POTENTIAL EXHIBITORS! This year's application guidelines are now live on the site. Swing by to check them out and get your materials ready! www.micexpo.org/apply
— Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (@massmice.bsky.social) 2026-04-12T13:22:59.662Z
This week’s features and longreads.
• Here at TCJ, Cynthia Rose writes in remembrance of cartoonist Hermann Huppen, aka Hermann, storied creator of Jeremiah amongst many others, who died last month at the age of 87 — “Hermann loved to draw the things others left to assistants: dense, snarling undergrowth, churning mud or ramshackle buildings. He also saw how the natural world could be as ruthless as any thug. In Volume 7 of Bernard Prince, the setting is an island completely ravaged by fires and all of Comanche's fifth tale occurs during torrential rains.”
• For The Conversation, Alex Fitch and Louise Curran write on the 250th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen last year, and the publication during that year of celebrations of Kate Evans’ Patchwork: A Graphic Biography of Jane Austen and Janine Barchas and Isabel Greenberg’s The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography.
• Fred Petrossian writes for 9e Kunst on the intersection of the dystopias of George Orwell and Aldous Huxley, as found in Judge Dredd, soon to also be observing a significant anniversary in 2027, and the different forms of revolt and reflection against and within this dystopic society seen across almost 5 decades of stories.
• Over at Shelfdust, Steve Morris writes on Doug Moench, Denys Cowan, and Alfredo Alccala’s Batman Annual #10, and the ever-changing context of Batman’s Billions, as Bruce Wayne’s amassing and use of money has become increasingly, overtly politicised over the years, as consolidation of global wealth stratifies into an ever-smaller population of modern day amoral robber-barons.
• From the world of open-access academia, for the Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, Petra Dominkova writes on The System of Comics and Comics and Narration, examining and analysing some of author Thierry Groensteen’s comparisons of comics and film found therein; and Yiqi Zhang applies art-historical methodologies of comparison to contrast Elisabetta Gnone, Alessandro Barbucci, and Barbara Canepa’s fumetti W.I.T.C.H. with Haruko Lida’s manga adaptation of the same name, and explores the complexities of defining shōjo manga as a genre.
• For Humanities, Michael T. Williamson examines Don McGregor and Billy Graham’s 1970s collaborations, Panther’s Rage and The Black Panther Takes on the Klan, and the ways in which these comics series expanded the availability and focus of stories centered on “the Black experience.”
• Mike Peterson rounds up the week’s editorial beat, over at The Daily Cartoonist, as memes were found to be self-evident on the statements of Melania Trump, President Donald Trump, and the Pope and the Holy See.
Are you interested in volunteering at CAKE 2026? Send us an email! [email protected]
— Chicago Alternative Comics Expo (@cakechicago.bsky.social) 2026-04-06T21:07:43.789Z
This week’s audio/visual delights.
• Closing out our week with digital recordings of a comic booked nature, as the New York Comics & Picture-Story Symposium saw Bill Kartalopoulos present a talk on researching links between the Lettrism movement and comics history, Ben Katchor host a presentation from David Francis Taylor on the words to be found in and out of political cartoons from the golden age of caricature, and Lilli Carré host a talk from Jillian Tamaki on the literal and figurative collaborative aspects of comics making.
• Sally Madden and Katie Skelly hit record to discuss more Thick Lines, as consideration was given to Rachel Ang's singular I Ate the Whole World to Find You, the art of blogging, the changing severity of lifeguards, mascots and Wrong Organ's Mouthwashing, the lexicon of Goodreads, and the strange realities of Australia.
• With an inside track on the logistics of shipping comics between continents, Fantagraphics’ Kristian St. Clair spoke with NPRs Planet Money about recent struggles with transporting books across the world, due to the United States’ ongoing war with Iran.
• Brian Hibbs’ reconvened the Comix Experience Graphic Novel Club, as Robert Mgrdich Apelian spoke about Fustuk, creating magic systems, structuring the book’s narrative, and the little details to be found in comics through multiple readings.
• Publisher’s Weekly’s More to Come returned, as Calvin Reid paid a visit to this year’s MoCCA Art Fest, and spoke with Graphic Mundi’s Kendra Boileau, Street Noise Books’ Liz Frances, the Jack Kirby Museum’s Rand Hoppe, and Abrams ComicArts’ Charles Kochman.
• Some more interviews from Off Panel’s David Harper, who spoke with Tiffany Babb on new comics zine The Comics Staple and with Julia Wertz about Bury Me Already (It’s Nice Down Here); and Gil Roth returned with a fresh Virtual Memories Show, speaking with Dean Haspiel and Doug Latino about the new anthology Real Life Comix: Only in New York, and the book’s crowdfunding campaign.
If you missed the live event, the recording of this talk is now available publicly on YouTube! Check it out here:www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEbq...
— Cartoonists United (@cartoonist.coop) 2026-04-15T23:30:50.483Z
No more links this week, lest the article become too big for AI data-mining to scrape efficiently.
LUFFY
— James Stokoe (@jamesstokoe.bsky.social) 2026-04-16T05:44:49.254Z
