Hello, everyone! This is the Comics NEWS Digest, an aggregation of all the top comics and comics-related stories that caught my attention that I thought you might enjoy reading. I post these two weeks after every regular newsletter.
I’ll start with the happiest news this month, which is that comic creator Margeaux Pepoy has come out as trans. A prolific artist with an extensive body of work, including for Archie comics and several others, she may be best known for her self-published work The Adventures of Simone & Ajax. Similar to Jenny Blake Isabella, Margeaux is fine with her previous credits remaining unchanged while she moves forward with new work that will be attributed to her correctly. And as with Jenny Blake, I want to express full love and support for Margeaux!
If I may provide a personal sidenote, it makes my heart happy to see people proud to live as their authentic selves later in life, especially in the times we’re living in. I don’t want to risk reducing people to symbols, but they’re proof (not that we needed any, frankly) that the fascists and Christian nationalists trying to erase and destroy the existence of trans and queer people will never succeed.
Unfortunately, the nationwide book ban mentioned last month, HR7661, which has also been called a “Don’t Say Trans” bill for how it targets LGBTQ+ material, has proceeded out of committee to be voted on by the full United States House of Representatives. This bill aims to alter the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to withdraw funding from any school with “sexually oriented material” accessible to minors, which is simply Republican code for anything inclusive of LGBTQ+ people. If it becomes law, it will be a disaster for schools and the children who attend them.
Elsewhere in the United States Government, the Department of Defense (I’m not calling it anything else) says it wants to remove all “woke distractions” from the independent military newspaper Stars and Stripes. These apparently include comics, because the paper is now banned from publishing comic strips.
In the most direct overlap of politics and comics, publisher Fantagraphics announced that they may have lost two full print runs after a cargo vessel was struck by an Iranian missile. The books being shipped were Bitchy! by Roberta Gregory, a massive collection of underground comics celebrating decades of work, and The Atlas Comics Library No. 9, Adventures into Weird Worlds, Volume 1, a collection of uncensored horror comics from the Golden Age by some of the mediums greatest pioneers.
Fantagraphics has secured the rights to publish R. E. Burke’s Visiting America: 19 Days in an I.C.E. Facility, based on her wrongful imprisonment after trying to cross the border into this country from Canada. It will be published in 2027.
Not much comics-specific AI news this month, but if anyone is looking for a “human-made” logo to certify their work has no AI-generated content, Oni Press has unveiled one designed by comic creator Matt Kindt with a Creative Commons license. Feel free to use or alter it, just make sure to use the attribution, “100% HUMAN-MADE© 2026 by Matt Kindt, LLC is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.”
The Comics Journal had a Diamond update with a look at the wider world of comics and how well its doing despite the turmoil. Here’s a more recent and thorough update from Comics Beat and Graphic Policy about the switch from Diamond’s bankruptcy from Chapter 11 to Chapter 7 and the struggles of publishers trying to get their inventory back.
Digital comics platform GlobalComix has acquired $13 million in new capital and the digital manga platform INKR, which greatly expands their catalogue. They’ve also named a new CEO: Henrik Rydberg, a “seasoned tech and startup growth executive,” a combination of words that sends a chill down my spine.
Comic Book Yeti did some digging into the executives named in this article in a Bluesky thread well worth reading. GlobalComix eventually amended its AI policy, promising to remove fully AI-generated comics from its platform but allowing its use for “supporting or enhancing a creator’s original work.” The list of examples that follows, including coloring assistance and idea exploration, is concerning to say the least. Also, and this is just me, the fact that they use “for example” in one parenthetical and “e.g.” two bullet points later is sloppy.
Speaking of manga, Dr. Stone artist and manga creator Boichi made headlines by expressing concern that the popularity of Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine might lead to a less “strong and vibrant” manga industry. As someone who can attest to a certain homogenization of comics in the United States thanks to the influence of the Big Two, I hope his concerns are understood and appreciated.
Meanwhile, Boom! Studios, which was recently acquired by Penguin Random House, has announced “a major restructuring” to be better integrated into PRH, including layoffs. Several key editorial staff have remained in place, thankfully.
Comics publisher Silver Sprocket has closed their storefront in San Francisco, effective March 23. A gofundme has been set up to help affected staff.
In a non-comics story that may reverberate outward, online marketplace Whatnot is the subject of 15 arbitration complaints alleging that it is an unregulated gambling operation over its practices regarding trading card sales. I don’t know if this will affect their comics sales and publishing ventures, but you may want to watch how this story develops.
In happier news, there’s a new comics nonprofit in the world dedicated to promoting the art form in Brooklyn and New York that’s launching a new convention! The Brooklyn Organization Dedicated to the Endurance of the Graphic Arts (BODEGA) will run the Brooklyn Expo of Comics (BEC) on November 14 and 15. Applications are open until May 17!
More news out of New York City, as the corner of Delancey and Essex Streets will be permanently known as Jack Kirby Way.
Out in Vermont, artist Stephen R. Bissette, best known for co-creating The Saga of the Swamp Thing, has been named the state’s sixth cartoonist laureate.
The Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc) Foundation is celebrating 30 years of helping book and comics people in times of need and awarding more than a thousand scholarships!
Given all the bleak stuff mentioned in the previous section, I thought I’d start this one with an essay from Seth Adrian Romo, “Comics Will Survive Fascism.” And congratulations to Pages and Panels on another year of publishing!
Stages of Rot by Linnea Sterte was a recent favorite of mine, and Gina Gagliano at The Comics Journal spoke with her about that comic as well as the rest of her work, her influences, her love of nature, and being a cartoonist in Sweden.
Aug Stone at The Comics Journal spoke with Jordi Lafebre, the creator of one of our most popular Comics Book Club selections. They discussed comics, film, generative AI, Always Never, and Lafebre’s new work, I Am Their Silence.
I wanted to highlight a couple of pieces from Andy Oliver at Broken Frontier. The first is this look at Mad Villain #1, written by Nikesh Shukla and illustrated by Camille Aubry. The self-published comic is the first of a projected five issues about a middle-aged father who joins an antifa group in Bristol.
The second is his interview with Bex Glendining, mostly about their debut graphic novel, On Starlit Shores, but also about their coloring work.
I’ll end this section with a couple of scholarly pieces. Martin Dolan has this look at Jaime Hernandez’s Locas comics for The Baffler (I might cite this again in a couple of months when we read The Girl from H.O.P.P.E.R.S.) and Varsha Singh wrote about E. Dawson Varughese’s Visuality and Identity in Post-Millennial Indian Graphic Narratives for the Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics.
The finalists were announced for the 38th Lambda Literary Awards. In addition to the LGBTQ+ Comics category, the LGBTQ+ Anthology category includes a couple of comics: Come Out and Play: The Queer Sports Project by Meghan Kemp-Gee and Megan Praz published by Stacked Deck Press and Queers at the Table: An Illustrated Guide to Queer Food (with Recipes) edited by Alex D. Ketchum and Megan J. Elias and published by Arsenal Pulp Press.
Heartstopper creator Alice Oseman has received a YA Book Prize Special Achievement Award.
The longlist for the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction includes the comic Cannon by Lee Lai. The shortlist will be announced on April 21.
The 2026 Herblock Prize was given to editorial cartoonist Jack Ohman with editorial cartoonist Pedro Molina announced as the finalist.
Cartoonist Emily Flake has won the 2026 Thurber Prize for American Humor in Cartoon Art. The award presentation will be May 7 in Columbus, Ohio.
The Society of Illustrators Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art Arts Festival was last month, and the SI MoCCA Arts Festival Awards of Excellence were given to 15 artists of varying styles and formats. They included traditional comics, a leatherwork shirt, a tarot deck, and a horse print.
The comics community suffered its share of sadness, as several celebrated creators from all over the world have passed away.
Belgian artist Frank Pé died back in November. A leading figure in Franco-Belgian comics, he was capable of whimsy, dark atmosphere, and everything in between. Known for drawing animals and humans with equal panache, his most famous comics are Broussaille and Zoo. He was 69.
Perhaps the most famous death in comics here in the United States this past month was that of Sam Kieth, who died of Lewy Body Dementia. He was 63. I know I’m far from alone in writing that his series The Maxx had a profound effect on me when it came out. It combined a psychological depth and experimental style that helped me realize what comics were capable of. It was eventually adapted into an animated series. He will be deeply missed.
Animator Barry Caldwell, known for childhood staples such as Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain, has died. He was 68.
Glen Baxter, a British cartoonist known for absurdist humor in magazine and greeting card illustrations, has died. He was 82.
Manga creator Yoshiharu Tsuge died of aspiration pneumonia. He was 88. The Comics Journal has collected essays and remembrances about his work. An incredibly influential and celebrated artist, a collection of his comics, He Rolled Me Up Like a Grilled Squid, is set to be published by Drawn and Quarterly.
Libertarian and comics historian Brian Doherty died after a fall in San Francisco. His most notable contribution to the latter may be his 2022 book Dirty Pictures: How an Underground Network of Nerds, Feminists, Misfits, Geniuses, Bikers, Potheads, Printers, Intellectuals, and Art School Rebels Revolutionized Art and Invented Comix. He was 57.
Chilean cartoonist José Palomo Fuentes passed away at the age of 82. A towering figure of Latin American humor, his comic strips were known for their introspection and political activism. Forced to flee into exile after the rise of Pinochet, he spent most of his adult life in Mexico.
Finally, Belgian artist Hermann Huppen, often credited using only his first name, has died. He was 88. Another monumental figure in Franco-Belgian comics, he was awarded the 2016 Grand Prix at Angoulême. His last work will be published posthumously on April 30, titled Cartagena.
That’s all for this month. Did I miss anything? Comment below if I have. Feel free to subscribe if you haven’t already. The Comics Book Club will be meeting again on April 15 to discuss Anthony Bourdain’s Hungry Ghosts. Thanks again for everything.
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