The Harvey Awards will be presented this weekend at the Baltimore Comic Convention. As a long introduction would bring a column already long enough past the breaking point, here's where This Ship Is Totally Sinking gives you some predictions, as well as some hopes and fears on the upcoming ceremony. If you attend the awards, you'll be able to watch the look of smug superiority appear on my face when I'm right, as well as witness my crushing disappointment for the moments when I'm proven wrong. You'll also be a real freak, because staring at people you don't know is just weird. But hey! That's why you're dressed like a gigantic plush doll!
BEST ANTHOLOGY
Flight Volume 4, edited by Kazu Kibuishi, Ballantine Books
Mome Volume 8, edited by Gary Groth and Eric Reynolds, Fantagraphics Books
Popgun Volume 1, edited by Joe Keatinge and Mark Andrew Smith, Image Books
Postcards: True Stories That Never Happened, edited by Jason Rodriquez, Villard
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, edited by John Clark, Gemstone
Breakdown:
MOME and
Flight would be worthy contenders for the prize, but
Postcards has some serious potential, as it was a seriously stupid idea that seems to have worked out magnificently.
Walt Disney's Comics & Stories is fine for what it is, but how one tells the difference between the 2008 Disney output and the 1997 Disney output is a feat far beyond me.
Popgun must have the nomination out of sheer pity.
Our Pick: It'll probably be
Flight.
BEST NEW TALENT
Jeff Kinney,
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Jeff Lemire,
Essex County, Top Shelf
Vasilis Lolos,
Last Call, Oni Press
Robbi Rodriguez,
Maintenance, Oni Press
Christian Slade,
Korgi Vol. 1: Sprouting Wings, Top Shelf
What We Talk About When We Talk About Breakdowns:
Jeff Kinney will probably take more then a few Harveys home this year—besides outselling just about all of the titles up for awards this year, he's reached an audience that no other comic did in 2007. Whether that makes him the "best new talent" is more an argument about language; after all, do we need to know the vote count to find out who the
third best new talent is? The only real contender I see here is Jeff Lemire, and even that's a serious underdog. None of the names here have the name recognition of the
Wimpy Kid.
Our Pick: It's Jeff Kinney's to lose.
BEST NEW SERIES
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
The Order, Marvel Comics
Resurrection, Oni Press
Thor, Marvel Comics
Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics
I'm Mad As Breakdowns And I'm Not Going To Breakdowns Anymore:
It would be bittersweet, and still a bit just, if
The Order—a comic that wasn't able to sell enough to merit its continued publication—won the Award so closely following its cancellation. Once again, another Oni book that's been talked about around the same amount it's sold may suffer due to a lack of widespread knowledge,
Resurrection will probably suffer from people not wanting to vote for a book they haven't heard of. The idea that a
Thor comic could somehow be considered "best" or "new" is more then a little ridiculous, but people seem to like it enough…so, maybe?
Our Pick: Umbrella Academy seems the most likely candidate.
BEST CONTINUING OR LIMITED SERIES
All Star Superman, DC Comics
Captain America, Marvel Comics
Damned, Oni Press
Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics
Uncle Scrooge, Gemstone Comics
You've Got A Soda On Your Breakdowns:
Ed Brubaker's excellent work on
Daredevil and
Captain America will probably split his vote, as it's difficult from month to month to decide which one is "better," and
The Damned and Uncle Scrooge will catch some of the "I don't like heroes" vote, but in the end, this one should be a done deal.
Our Pick: All Star Superman
BEST SYNDICATED STRIP OR PANEL
Doonesbury, Garry Trudeau, Universal Press Syndicate
Get Fuzzy, Darby Conley, United Feature Syndicate
The K Chronicles, Keith Knight, Self-Syndicated
The Mighty Motor-Sapiens, Mark Wheatley, Daniel Krall, Robert Tinnell, MJ Butler, Craig Taillerfer, Matthew Plog, and Jerry Carr, Self-Syndicated
Mutts, Patrick McDonnell, King Features Syndicate
The First Rule Of Breakdowns Is Not To Talk About Breakdowns:
Now that the long string of consecutive
Mutts wins has been broken, it might be about time to start a new one with
The K Chronicles, one of the few syndicated strips that's following the
Doonesbury model of getting better as time passes. The less said about
Get Fuzzy, the better.
Our Pick: The K Chronicles
BEST INKER
Stefano Gaudiano,
Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Jeff Kinney,
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Steve Leialoha,
Fables, DC Comics
Mark Morales,
Thor, Marvel Comics
Kevin Nowlan,
Witchblade, Top Cow/Image
There Was A Really Strange Justice League Event Called Breakdowns:
It would be really funny to watch somebody win an award for inking
Witchblade, which has to be one of the most degrading jobs on the planet. It's one thing to actually draw or write
Witchblade, but seriously: ink
Witchblade? I'd rather eat garbage. Steve Leialoha, Stefano Gaudiano or Mark Morales would all be fine, but I wouldn't be surprised if the same crew of people that nominated Jeff Kinney in every category gives him the win here as well. But don't disregard Nowlan's pity votes.
Our Pick: Ehh, how do you pick on this one? I'll say Leialoha, even though I might prefer Gaudiano.
BEST COLORIST
Susan Daigle-Leach,
Uncle Scrooge, Gemstone
Jamie Grant,
All Star Superman, DC Comics
Matt Hollingsworth,
Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Matt Kindt,
Super Spy, Top Shelf
Laura Martin,
Thor, Marvel Comics
The Goodie Mob Wrote A Really Depressing Song About A Breakdown:
If the colorist spot were chosen based sheerly on intelligent execution, Matt Kindt's ambitious, and ultimately successful,
Super Spy would walk away with this one. Sadly, he's up against Jamie Grant, one of the few digital colortists whose work actually succeeds in making a comic book look good, as opposed to most of what digital coloring does to the rest of them.
Our Pick: Jamie Grant will probably walk away with this one.
BEST LETTERER
Chris Eliopoulos,
Daredevil, Marvel Comics
Jared K. Fletcher,
The Spirit, DC Comics
Willie Schubert,
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
Douglas E. Sherwood,
Local, Oni Books
Chris Ware,
Acme Novelty Library, Acme Novelty
Those Kids Won't Talk Until You Buy Them Some Breakdowns:
The Spirit has had some pretty solid lettering, and he might steal this one from Chris Ware just because the popularity of criticizing Ware seems to be growing. But the idea that
Acme Novelty Library might lose to
Local,
Daredevil and
Walt Disney Comics in this category is so patently offensive that it's hard to imagine. Say what you will about Ware's plots and dialog, but his technical mastery is one that remains undeniable.
Our Pick: C'mon. Chris Ware's journals make it obvious that he hates himself. Don't give him a real reason.
BEST COVER ARTIST
John Cassaday,
Astonishing X-Men, Marvel Comics
Marko Djurdjevic,
Daredevil, Marvel Comics
James Jean,
Fables, Vertigo/DC Comics
Mike Mignola,
Hellboy, Dark Horse Comics
William Van Horn,
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
Buddy Did Jersey, And He Did Seattle, But He Never Did Breakdowns:
At this point, the Harvey's have made it clear that James Jean could come over to your house and punch your mother in the face with an iron, and they would still give him "Best Cover Artist." Now that he's retired from the
Fables job, don't expect this to be the year where he's upset. It's their last chance to tell him they love him.
Our Pick: Seriously, James Jean could be a serial killer.
BEST BIOGRAPHICAL, HISTORICAL OR JOURNALISTIC PRESENTATION
Blah Blah Blog, Tom Brevoort,
http://www.marvel.com/blogs/Tom%20Brevoort/
The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth and Michael Dean, Fantagraphics Books
Meanwhile...: A Biography of Milton Caniff, R.C. Harvey, Fantagraphics Books
The Naked Artist and Other Comic Book Legends, Bryan Talbot and Hunt Emerson, Moonstone Books
Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, edited by J.C. Vaughn, Gemstone
Reading Comics: How Graphic Albums Work and What They Mean, Douglas Wolk, Da Capo Press
How Breakdowns Work And What They Mean:
This category makes no sense whatsoever. Tom Brevoort's blog versus Douglas Wolk's book versus the
Comics Journal and, for maximum crazy, the
Overstreet Price Guide? It's like the Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction being offered to a collection of Gore Vidal, the Drudge Report and an old mailbox.
Our Pick: I'd say Douglas Wolk has it, but seriously—how'd they come up with these nominations?
BEST SINGLE ISSUE OR STORY
Alice in Sunderland, Dark Horse Comics
All Star Superman #8, DC Comics
Captain America #25, Marvel Comics
Donald Duck: The Case of the Missing Mummy, Gemstone
I Killed Adolf Hitler, Fantagraphics Books
Immortal Iron Fist #7, Marvel Comics
Stephen Colbert's Tek Jansen #1, Oni Press
George Marlow Has A Creepy Lock-Up Where He Keeps His Breakdowns:
I'm probably alone in my immense dislike for the seventh issue of
Immortal Iron Fist, but I can't imagine I'm alone in thinking it's absurd that
Alice in Sunderland is up against
Stephen Colbert's Tek Jansen. How does something 328 pages long end up in "single issue or story?"
Our Pick: Alice would win, but it will lose a lot of votes because people will assume their ballot has been misprinted. So it'll probably be
All Star Superman, even though that issue was a two-parter, therefore: not a full story.
SPECIAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN PRESENTATION
The Annotated Northwest Passage, Scott Chantler, Oni Press
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney, Amulet Books
EC Archives, Various, edited by Russ Cochran, Gemstone
Postcards: True Stories That Never Happened, edited by Jason Rodriguez, Villard
Super Spy, Matt Kindt, Top Shelf
The Seven Capital Cities of Breakdowns:
Super Spy is brilliantly put together, and so is
Postcards, but this is the category where graphic novels get awarded for being published in unusual sizes.
Our Pick: Northwest Passage, due to all the "extras."
BEST ON-LINE COMIC
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney,
www.wimpykid.com
EZ Street, Robert Tinnell and Mark Wheatley,
www.comicmix.com/title/ez-street/
Penny Arcade, Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik,
www.penny-arcade.com
Perry Bible Fellowship, Nicholas Gurewitch,
www.pbfcomics.com
Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo, Dwight L. Macpherson, Thomas Boatwright and Thomas Mauer,
www.drunkduck.com/The_Surreal_Adventures_of_Edgar_Allan_Poo
When's Someone Gonna Give Yahtzee Croshaw Some Breakdowns:
Perry Bible Fellowship won't be winning any more awards anytime soon, due to it's serial hiatus, but
Penny Arcade and
Wimpy are hugely successful and carry a lot of weight.
Our Pick: Don't really have one, but
PBF is pretty damn funny.
SPECIAL AWARD FOR HUMOR
Chris Eliopoulos,
Franklin Richards series, Marvel Comics
Nicholas Gurewitch,
Perry Bible Fellowship, www.pbfcomics.com
Jeff Kinney,
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Bryan Lee O'Malley,
Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press
William Van Horn,
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
The Re-Up Gang Released Their Own Seven Album Version of Breakdowns:
The meaning of "special award for humor" escapes me—except for
Perry and
Scott Pilgrim, it seems to mean "comics for children," even though I suspect the
Franklin Richards stuff probably sells mostly to creepy adults. It's obviously not for "what's funny" because
Tales Designed To Thrizzle and
Johnny Ryan aren't nominated.
Our Pick: If this is a "for kids" award, it'll go to
Wimpy Kid, if it's not, it'll go to
Franklin Richards because it's a Marvel book and there's a lot of Marvel votes to go around.
BEST AMERICAN EDITION OF FOREIGN MATERIAL
Eduardo Risso's Tales of Terror, Dynamite Entertainment
Exit Wounds, Drawn & Quarterly
Manga Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet, Abrams
Moomin, Volume 2, Drawn & Quarterly
Witchblade Manga, Top Cow/Image
Sometimes You Just Have To Dumb It Down As Much As Breakdowns:
The manga Shakespeare project is so successful in another country that somebody got paid to translate it and publish it in America, and that version was so successful it got nominated for an award? That's what you're telling me?
Our Pick: Exit Wounds ties with
Moomin, because
Moomin isn't allowed to win on its own for some reason.
BEST DOMESTIC REPRINT PROJECT
Complete Peanuts, Fantagraphics Books
Complete Terry and the Pirates, IDW
EC Archives, Gemstone
Popeye, Fantagraphics Books
Walt and Skeezix, Drawn & Quarterly
We Don't Need No Breakdowns, Let The…:
Our Pick: Seriously, no breakdowns. I'm too much of a fan of the
Walt & Skeezix series to even consider anything else, even in this magnificently overstuffed category.
BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM - PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED
The Annotated Northwest Passage, Oni Press
Antiques, Volume 1, Gemstone
Captain America Omnibus, Volume 1, Marvel Comics
Damned, Volume 1, Oni Press
Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born, Marvel Comics
If Tupac's Dead, Then Who Do I Blame For These Remixed Breakdowns:
This is a category that probably should be dispensed with, as every company and their mother will be reprinting every single comic book into a "Graphic Album" from now until the world goes dark. Case in point: this category is totally random, and has nothing to do with whether something is good or not. Shouldn't
4th World be here? Or the
All Star Superman hardcover? Basically, shouldn't every single graphic album reprint that was published in 2007 be in here, since all of them were better than
Dark Tower?
Our Pick: For sheer insanity of weight, the
Captain America Omnibus.
BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM - ORIGINAL
The Arrival, Scholastic Books
Donald Duck: The Case of the Missing Mummy, Gemstone
Exit Wounds, Drawn & Quarterly
Laika, First Second
Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press
The Part In Breakdowns Past The Point Where Breakdowns Got Old:
Well, here's one of the big categories, where one is actually judging the "best" of what came out. Obviously, the Gemstone and Oni public relations department did a fine job getting their books in front of people, but this competition comes down to
The Arrival,
Exit Wounds, and
Laika.
Our Pick: Scott Pilgrim is certainly popular, but when it comes to achieved ambition, can anything match up to
The Arrival?
BEST CARTOONIST
Darwyn Cooke,
The Spirit, DC Comics
Matt Kindt,
Super Spy, Top Shelf
Jeff Kinney,
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Bryan Lee O'Malley,
Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press
Vasilis Lolos,
Last Call, Oni Press
William Van Horn,
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
X-X-X Scumbag Party Breakdowns:
Last Call is probably the biggest surpise contender in this category, but it really comes down to this: do you go with the guy who sold more then all of them, do you go with the guy whose work never disappoints, or do you go with the guy who arrived out of obscurity with a brilliant, fully formed work of comics bad-assery?
Our Pick: Darwyn Cooke will probably take it.
BEST ARTIST
Gabriel Ba,
Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics
John Cassaday,
Astonishing X-Men, Marvel Comics
Guy Davis,
BPRD, Dark Horse Comics
Frank Quitely,
All Star Superman, DC Comics
William Van Horn,
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
Music For Mechanical Breakdowns:
Objectively, I'll admit that this is a heated competition for many. For me, it comes down to how far Guy Davis has come from when I first saw his art on
Sandman Mystery Theatre to where he is now, which is a more refined style of the same on the
B.P.R.D. series. Out of all of the guys, and yes, they are all dudes, Guy seems to be moving the furthest in actually changing and exploring what he can do. That doesn't make him the "best," but it certainly makes him stand out. Whether anyone else feels the same is something I doubt. After all…
Our Pick: Frank Quitely's recent work on
All Star Superman, the knowledge that it's all come to an end—that had to weight on people's minds when they voted.
BEST WRITER
Ed Brubaker,
Captain America, Marvel Comics
Jeff Kinney,
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
Grant Morrison,
All Star Superman, DC Comics
William Van Horn,
Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
Brian K. Vaughan,
Y: The Last Man, Vertigo/DC Comics
I Just Found The Cure For Breakdowns:
Ed Brubaker's solid work on
Daredevil,
Captain America and
Criminal will probably weigh on people's minds, as will the fact that Grant Morrison's
All Star Superrman didn't have a lot of issues during the time being judged, but again: there's that
Wimpy Kid.
Our Pick: In the end, Brian K. Vaughan hasn't worn out his welcome on the awards stand, and it seems likely that he'll take it home for
Y: The Last Man, mostly because it's an election year.
You too can find out how horribly, horribly wrong I am the same way I will, by attending the Harvey Awards! What's that? Sold out? Well, that's alright. I'm sure somebody will tell you about it later, later being "after I've already found out."
Tucker Stone's writing may be found in print in Comic Foundry and online at The Factual Opinion, where he frequently reviews new releases.
This Ship Is Totally Sinking is © Tucker Stone, 2008
