Named for legendary comics creator Will Eisner, the Eisner Awards saw their 29th presentation this weekend. 2018 Will Eisner Hall of Fame inductees included Carol Kalish (pioneering direct sales manager for Marvel Comics), and Jackie Ormes (first black female newspaper cartoonist, for the strip Dixie in Harlem featuring the character Torchy Brown). Sixteen others were considered for the honor this year, and Charles Addams, Karen Berger, Dave Gibbons, and Rumiko Takahashi were inducted. Joye Murchison Kelly and Dorothy Roubicek Woolfolk were awarded the Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing.
Tom King (Batman, Batman Annual #2, Batman/Elmer Fudd Special #1, Mister Miracle) and Marjorie Liu (Monstress) tied for Best Writer, with Liu the first woman awarded in the category. “Monsters” was the dominant theme of this year’s awards with Monstress (Image) and My Favorite Thing is Monsters (Fantagraphics) taking the most wins.
We congratulate all the winners and nominees.
Here are the winners awarded at the ceremony, in bold, along with the nominees by category:
Best Short Story
- ”A Life in Comics: The Graphic Adventures of Karen Green,” by Nick Sousanis, in Columbia Magazine (Summer 2017)
- “Ethel Byrne,” by Cecil Castelluci and Scott Chantler, in Mine: A Celebration of Liberty and Freedom for All Benefiting Planned Parenthood (ComicMix)
- “Forgotten Princess,” by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Antonio Sandoval, in Adventure Time Comics #13 (kaboom!)
- “Small Mistakes Make Big Problems,” by Sophia Foster-Dimino, in Comics for Choice (Hazel Newlevant)
- “Trans Plant,” by Megan Rose Gedris, in Enough Space for Everyone Else (Bedside Press)
Best Single Issue/One Shot
- Hellboy: Krampusnacht, by Mike Mignola and Adam Hughes (Dark Horse)
- Barbara, by Nicole Miles (ShortBox)
- Pope Hats #5, by Ethan Rilly (AdHouse Books)
- The Spotted Stone, by Rick Veitch (Sun Comics)
- What Is Left, by Rosemary Valero-O’Connell (ShortBox)
