The Sunday Spotlight: The ‘New Beginnings, New Possibilities, New Costumes!’ Edition
by Richard Bruton
Welcome to 2025 (which looks like the epitome of the old adage about living in interesting times)… and it’s the first Sunday Spotlight of the new year. Shall we take you through some of the best comics news…
2024 Artist’s Edition Index Dunbier Awards…
The end of the year, so it’s time for the 2024 Dunbier Awards, with the list of the 10 nominees for the best artist’s edition-type books announced here. Voting is open from January 1 to January 31, with the winners posted on February 1. Of course, the awards are named for Scott Dunbier, who brought the whole artist’s edition format into the world at IDW in 2010. Here’s the list in full..
- John Romita’s The Amazing Spider-Man Daily Strips Artist’s Edition
- The 2000 AD Art of Mick McMahon Apex Edition
- Bill Ward: The Fantagraphics Studio Edition
- Pretty Deadly: The Shrike, Vault Edition
- Chris Samnee’s Black Widow Artist’s Edition
- David Mazzucchelli’s Batman: Year One Artist’s Edition
- The 2000 AD Art of Steve Dillon Apex Edition
- Brian Bolland-Batman: The Killing Joke and Other Stories & Art Gallery Edition
- Savage Dragon: Vault Edition, Vol. 1
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Date for your diary – Neill Cameron and Jamie Smart – Lincoln, UK – Saturday 15 February…
Both fine gents have new books coming out in the new year – the latest ridiculously fun Bunny Vs Monkey from Jamie Smart as he continues his takeover of the young readers book charts, and the final volume in Neill Cameron‘s epic and quite wonderful Mega Robo Bros.
See them live in February…
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Coffee & Heroes, Smithfield, Belfast – Garth Ennis and Mike Perkins signing – 8 Feb 2025…
Another great looking comic shop now, Coffee & Heroes, hosting Garth Ennis and Mike Perkins on 8th February. If you’re in the area, head along. The shop is Belfast’s biggest and was voted Best Independent Book Store at the Northern Ireland Independent Retailer Awards 2019.
It looks absolutely fabulous – so far from the dim and dingy holes that were comic shops when I was growing up – and comics and coffee was a thing I was pushing for way back in the ’90s when I was dreaming of opening my own store one day… head along, enjoy the brew, buy the comics – support your local comics shop.
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Yet more dates for your diary… Lawless 2025 guests and Noble Bolt-01 award announced…
Another great convention, this one based around all things 2000 AD – it’s time for another great Lawless convention… all the guest details (at the moment) in the image below.
Lawless takes place at Doubletree by Hilton, Bristol, from 24-25 May 2025.
They’ve also announced the Noble Bolt-01 Award 2025, honouring comic supporters Colin Noble, Dave Evans, and Richmond Clements, all of whom sadly passed in recent years. It gives you the opportunity to nominate someone deserving of a great weekend at Lawless but who’ve never been able to make it, with Lawless covering ticket, transport, and accommodation for the weekend. It’s a really lovely idea.
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Comix Experience’s January 2025 Graphic Novel Club picks…
Comix Experience is a great San Francisco comics shop, owned and run by Brian Hibbs, that does a hell of a lot of things just right. And one of those things is its graphic novel club, giving members a curated monthly picked of adult and/or kids books. It’s not only a great service, but also highlights two really great books that you should be picking up, hence why I’ll keep banging on about it. You can find the full details here (and subscribe to the monthly mailing list).
New Release Adult GN selection for January 2025 is I Heart Skull-Crusher by by Josie Campbell and Alessio Zonno, published by BOOM! Studios! – get a signed copy here and Josie and Alessio talk to Brian on Sunday 1/26/2025 at 10am PST here, followed a week later by the audio-only podcast.
“Teenage Trini will do anything to compete in her favorite sport, Screaming Pain Ball, alongside her longtime hero Skull-Crusher, and a gaggle of misfits is just what she needs to cross the American wastes and battle in Queen Mob’s deadly tournament. With Trini’s dreams of being just like Skull-Crusher on the line, what will it take to win a coveted spot on their team? With hope in her heart and an icepick in her hand, Trini will never stop chasing her dreams… and taking us along for the funniest, queerest, craziest, bloodiest underdog tale of all time. Sports action in post-apocalyptic America with enough comic relief at its brutal heart to keep anyone along for the ride!”
The CE Kids Club selection is from the great Terry Laban, whose CUD I remember fondly from the ’90s. His first middle-grade graphic novel Mendel The Mess Up is published by Holiday House. Again, copies from the CE webstore here and a livestreamed conversation with Terry happens on Sunday 1/19/2025 at 10am PST here, with the audio-only version available a few days later.
Ask anyone-twelve-year-old Mendel can’t do anything right. When he tries to herd goats, they get out. When he tries to chop wood, he breaks the ax. It’s embarrassing to be called “Mendel the Mess Up,” but it’s worse to be so clumsy that he can’t even stand to read aloud without destroying the classroom. Nobody expects Mendel to keep out of trouble… least of all himself. But when the Cossacks invade Mendel’s remote Jewish village of Lintvint (famous for Lintvint kvatch, which is made from a very special ingredient), Mendel’s not the only one in trouble. When he slips away from the mountain caves where his fellow villagers are hiding, out of certainty he’ll find a way to make things worse if he’s around them, he discovers an unexpected opportunity to save the day. Could Mendel’s bad luck be the key to saving Lintvint? Or will his plan to drive the Cossacks off go as badly as everyone-including him-expects?
Finally, although CE doesn’t do their formal club for the Comics Masterpieces, they do make a monthly classic recommendation – and you don’t get much more classic than the brilliant Shojo manga by Riyoko Ikeda: The Rose of Versailles.
“Oscar François de Jarjeyes is a young noblewoman raised as a son by her father. As commander of Marie Antoinette’s palace guard, Oscar is brought face-to-face with the luxury of King Louis XVI’s court at Versailles. Joined by her servant André, Oscar is privy to the intrigue and deceit of France’s last great royal regime. The Rose of Versailles, the queen of shojo manga, is available for the first time in English! This deluxe hardcover volume contains the first 22 chapters of Riyoko Ikeda’s historical fiction masterwork.”
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And finally – comics people pop up in the strangest places… Christmas University Challenge…
The Christmas series of long-running Brit quiz University Challenge invites alumni of various Brit universities along for a (slightly) easier version of the quiz. And this year we had some comic and cartooning talent representing Brighton University – graphic novelist and former UK Comics Laureate Hannah Berry and political cartoonist and illustrator Chris Riddell. You can find the show here on the BBC iPlayer. Oh, and Brighton beat Machester Metropolitan 135-110.
