The 2018 Will Eisner Comic Book Industry Awards took place on July 20 in San Diego at the yearly Comic-Con. The awards, now in their 30th year, honor creative achievement in comic books from around the world. Basically, they are the comics industry's equivalent of the Oscar Awards.

The awards are named in honor of pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, creator of The Spirit and credited as the father of the Graphic Novel with the 1978 publication of A Contract with God.

The nominations in each category are generated by a five to six-member jury, then voted on by comic book professionals and presented at the annual San Diego Comic-Con International convention held in July.

Below you'll find the full list of nominees, with the winners marked in red, with all titles linked out to our catalog or Hoopla digital media streaming service (where applicable):

Best Short Story
“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!)
”A Life in Comics: The Graphic Adventures of Karen Green” by Nick Sousanis, in Columbia Magazine (Summer 2017)
“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
Barbara by Nicole Miles (ShortBox)
Hellboy: Krampusnacht by Mike Mignola and Adam Hughes (Dark Horse)
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)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Continuing Series
Black Hammer by Jeff Lemire, Dean Ormston, and David Rubín (Dark Horse)
Giant Days by John Allison, Max Sarin, and Liz Fleming (BOOM! Box)
Hawkeye by Kelly Thompson, Leonardo Romero, and Mike Walsh (Marvel)
Monstress by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda (Image)
The Wicked + The Divine by Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie (Image)

 

 

 

 

 

Best Limited Series
Black Panther: World of Wakanda by Roxane Gay, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Alitha E. Martinez (Marvel)
Extremity by Daniel Warren Johnson (Image/Skybound)
The Flintstones by Mark Russell, Steve Pugh, Rick Leonardi, and Scott Hanna (DC)
Mister Miracle by Tom King and Mitch Gerads (DC)
X-Men: Grand Design by Ed Piskor (Marvel)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best New Series
Black Bolt by Saladin Ahmed and Christian Ward (Marvel)
Grass Kings by Matt Kindt and Tyler Jenkins (BOOM! Studios)
Maestros by Steve Skroce (Image)
Redlands by Jordie Belaire and Vanesa Del Rey (Image)
Royal City by Jeff Lemire (Image)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 8)
Adele in Sand Land by Claude Ponti, translated by Skeeter Grant and Françoise Mouly (Toon Books)
Arthur and the Golden Rope by Joe Todd-Stanton (Flying Eye/Nobrow)
Egg by Kevin Henkes (Greenwillow Books)
Good Night, Planet by Liniers (Toon Books)
Little Tails in the Savannah by Frederic Brrémaud and Federico Bertolucci, translated by Mike Kennedy (Lion Forge/Magnetic)

 

 

 

 

 

Best Publication for Kids (ages 9–12)
Bolivar by Sean Rubin (Archaia)
Home Time: Under the River by Campbell Whyte (Top Shelf)
Nightlights by Lorena Alvarez (Nobrow)
The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O’Neill (Oni)
Wallace the Brave by Will Henry (Andrews McMeel)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)
The Dam Keeper by Robert Kondo and Dice Tsutsumi (First Second/Tonko House)
Jane by Aline Brosh McKenna and Ramón K. Pérez (Archaia)
Louis Undercover by Fanny Britt and Isabelle Arsenault, translated by Christelle Morelli and Susan Ouriou (Groundwood Books/House of Anansi)
Monstress by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda (Image)
Spinning by Tillie Walden (First Second)

 

 

 

 

 

Best Humor Publication
Baking with Kafka by Tom Gauld (Drawn & Quarterly)
Batman/Elmer Fudd Special #1 by Tom King, Lee Weeks, and Byron Vaughn (DC)
The Flintstones by Mark Russell, Steve Pugh, Rick Leonardi, and Scott Hanna (DC)
Rock Candy Mountain by Kyle Starks (Image)
Wallace the Brave by Will Henry (Andrews McMeel)

 

Best Anthology
A Bunch of Jews (and Other Stuff): A Minyen Yidn by Max B. Perlson, Trina Robbins et al. (Bedside Press)
A Castle in England by Jamie Rhodes et al. (Nobrow)
Elements: Fire, A Comic Anthology by Creators of Color, edited by Taneka Stotts (Beyond Press)
Now #1 edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)
The Spirit Anthology edited by Sean Phillips (Lakes International Comic Art Festival)

 

 

 

 

 

Best Reality-Based Work
Audubon: On the Wings of the World by Fabien Grolleau and Jerémie Royer, translated by Etienne Gilfillan (Nobrow)
The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui (Abrams ComicArts)
Calamity Jane: The Calamitous Life of Martha Jane Cannary, 1852–1903 by Christian Perrissin and Matthieu Blanchin, translated by Diana Schutz and Brandon Kander (IDW)
Lennon: The New York Years by David Foenkinos, Corbeyran, and Horne, translated by Ivanka Hahnenberger (IDW)
Spinning by Tillie Walden (First Second)

 

 

 

 

Best Graphic Album—New
Crawl Space by Jesse Jacobs (Koyama Press)
Eartha by Cathy Malkasian (Fantagraphics)
My Favorite Thing Is Monsters by Emil Ferris (Fantagraphics)
Stages of Rot by Linnea Sterte (Peow)
The Story of Jezebel by Elijah Brubaker (Uncivilized Books)

 

 

 

 

 

Best Graphic Album—Reprint
Boundless by Jillian Tamaki (Drawn & Quarterly)
Fantagraphics Studio Edition: Black Hole by Charles Burns edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)
Small Favors: The Definitive Girly Porno Collection by Colleen Coover (Oni/Limerence)
Sticks Angelica, Folk Hero by Michael DeForge (Drawn & Quarterly)
Unreal City by D. J. Bryant (Fantagraphics)

 

 

 

 

Best Adaptation from Another Medium
Beowulf adapted by Santiago García and David Rubín (Image)
H. P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other Stories adapted by Gou Tanabe, translated by Zack Davisson (Dark Horse)
Herman Melville’s Moby Dick adapted by Christophe Chabouté, translated by Laure Dupont (Dark Horse)
Kindred by Octavia Butler, adapted by Damian Duffy and John Jennings (Abrams ComicArts)

 

 

 

 

 

Best U.S. Edition of International Material
Audubon: On the Wings of the World by Fabien Grolleau and Jerémie Royer, translated by Etienne Gilfillan (Nobrow)
Flight of the Raven by Jean-Pierre Gibrat, translated by Diana Schutz and Brandon Kander (EuroComics/IDW)
FUN by Paolo Bacilieri, translated by Jamie Richards (SelfMadeHero)
Ghost of Gaudi by El Torres and Jesús Alonso Iglesias, translated by Esther Villardón Grande (Lion Forge/Magnetic)
The Ladies-in-Waiting by Santiago García and Javier Olivares, translated by Erica Mena (Fantagraphics)
Run for It: Stories of Slaves Who Fought for the Freedom by Marcelo D’Salete, translated by Andrea Rosenberg (Fantagraphics)

 

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia
Furari by Jiro Taniguchi, translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian (Fanfare/Ponent Mon)
Golden Kamuy by Satoru Noda, translated by Eiji Yasuda (VIZ Media)
My Brother’s Husband by Gengoroh Tagame, translated by Anne Ishii (Pantheon)
Otherworld Barbara, Vol. 2 by Moto Hagio, translated by Rachel Matt Thorn (Fantagraphics)
Shiver: Junji Ito Selected Stories by Junji Ito translated by Jocelyne Allen (VIZ Media)

 

 

 

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips
Celebrating Snoopy by Charles M. Schulz, edited by Alexis E. Fajardo and Dorothy O’Brien (Andrews McMeel)
Crazy Quilt: Scraps and Panels on the Way to Gasoline Alley by Frank King, edited by Peter Maresca (Sunday Press)
Foolish Questions and Other Odd Observations by Rube Goldberg, edited by Peter Maresca and Paul C. Tumey (Sunday Press Books)
Sky Masters of the Space Force: The Complete Dailies by Jack Kirby, Wally Wood et al., edited by Daniel Herman (Hermes Press)
Star Wars: The Classic Newspaper Strips, Vol. 1 by Russ Manning et al., edited by Dean Mullaney (LOAC/IDW)

 

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books
Akira 35th Anniversary Edition by Katsuhiro Otomo, edited by Haruko Hashimoto, Ajani Oloye, and Lauren Scanlan (Kodansha)
Behaving MADly written and compiled by Ger Alpeldoorn and Craig Yoe (Yoe Books/IDW)
The Collected Neil the Horse by Arn Saba/Katherine Collins, edited by Andy Brown (Conundrum)
Fantagraphics Studio Edition: Jaime Hernandez edited by Gary Groth (Fantagraphics)
Will Eisner: The Centennial Celebration, 1917-2017 by Paul Gravett, Denis Kitchen, and John Lind (Kitchen Sink/Dark Horse)

Best Writer
Tom King, Batman, Batman Annual #2, Batman/Elmer Fudd Special #1, Mister Miracle (DC)
Matt Kindt, Grass Kings (BOOM! Studios); Ether (Dark Horse); Eternity, X-O Manowar (Valiant)
Jeff Lemire, Black Hammer (Dark Horse); Descender (Image)
Marjorie Liu, Monstress (Image)
Mark Russell, The Flintstones (DC)

Best Writer/Artist
Lorena Alvarez, Night Lights (Nobrow)
Chabouté, Moby Dick (Dark Horse); Alone, Park Bench (Gallery 13/Simon & Schuster)
Emil Ferris, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters (Fantagraphics)
Cathy Malkasian, Eartha (Fantagraphics)
Jiro Taniguchi, Furari, Louis Vuitton Travel Guide: Venice (Fanfare/Ponent Mon)

 

 

 

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team
Isabelle Arsenault, Louis Undercover (Groundwood Books/House of Anansi)
Mitch Gerads, Mister Miracle (DC)
Gary Gianni, Hellboy: Into the Silent Sea (Dark Horse)
Ramón K. Perez, Jane (Archaia)
David Rubín, Black Hammer #9 & #12, Ether, Sherlock Frankenstein #1–3 (Dark Horse); Beowulf (Image)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)
Federico Bertolucci, Love: The Dinosaur, Little Tails (Lion Forge/Magnetic)
EFA, Monet: Itinerant of Light (NBM)
Jean-Pierre Gibrat, Flight of the Raven (EuroComics/IDW)
Cyril Pedrosa, Portugal (NBM)
Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

 

 

 

Best Cover Artist
Jorge Corona, No. 1 with a Bullet (Image)
Nick Derington, Mister Miracle (DC); Doom Patrol (DC Young Animal)
Brian Stelfreeze, Black Panther (Marvel)
Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)
Julian Totino Tedesco, Hawkeye (Marvel)

 

 

 

Best Coloring
Emil Ferris, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters (Fantagraphics)
Mitch Gerads, Mister Miracle (DC)
Ed Piskor, X-Men: Grand Design (Marvel)
David Rubín, Ether, Black Hammer, Sherlock Frankenstein (Dark Horse); Beowulf (Image)
Dave Stewart, Black Hammer, BPRD: Devil You Know, Hellboy: Into the Silent Sea, Sherlock Frankenstein, Shaolin Cowboy (Dark Horse); Maestros (Image)
Rosemary Valero-O’Connell, What Is Left (ShortBox)

 

Best Lettering
Isabelle Arsenault, Louis Undercover (Groundwood Books/House of Anansi)
Clayton Cowles, Bitch Planet: Triple Feature, Redlands, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Black Bolt, Spider-Gwen, Astonishing X-Men, Star Wars (Marvel); Batman, Mister Miracle (DC Comics)
Emil Ferris, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters (Fantagraphics)
Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo, Groo: Slay of the Gods (Dark Horse)
John Workman, Mother Panic (DC Young Animal); Ragnarök (IDW)

 

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism
Alter Ego, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows)
The Comics Journal, edited by Dan Nadel, Timothy Hodler, and Tucker Stone, tcj.com (Fantagraphics)
Hogan’s Alley, edited by Tom Heintjes
Jack Kirby Collector, edited by John Morrow (TwoMorrows)
PanelXPanel magazine, edited by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, panelxpanel.com

 

 

Best Comics-Related Book
Deconstructing the Incal by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius, by Jean Annestay and Christophe Quillien (Humanoids)
How Comics Work by Dave Gibbons and Tim Pilcher (Wellfleet Press/Quarto Group)
How to Read Nancy: The Elements of Comics in Three Easy Panels by Paul Karasik and Mark Newgarden (Fantagraphics)
Line of Beauty: The Art of Wendy Pini by Richard Pini (Flesk)
Monograph by Chris Ware (Rizzoli)
To Laugh That We May Not Weep: The Life and Times of Art Young by Glenn Bray and Frank M. Young (Fantagraphics)
 

 

Best Academic/Scholarly Work
The Comics of Charles Schulz: The Good Grief of Modern Life, edited by Jared Gardner and Ian Gordon (University Press of Mississippi)
Ethics in the Gutter: Empathy and Historical Fiction in Comics by Kate Polak (Ohio State University Press)
Latinx Superheroes in Mainstream Comics by Frederick Luis Aldama (University of Arizona Press)
Neon Visions: The Comics of Howard Chaykin by Brannon Costello (LSU Press)
Picturing Childhood: Youth in Transnational Comics, edited by Mark Heimermann and Brittany Tullis (University of Texas Press)

 

 

Best Publication Design
Akira 35th Anniversary Edition, designed by Phil Balsman, Akira Saito (Veia), NORMA Editorial, and MASH•ROOM (Kodansha)
Celebrating Snoopy, designed by Spencer Williams and Julie Phillips (Andrews McMeel)
Monograph, designed by Chris Ware (Rizzoli)
My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics)
Will Eisner: The Centennial Celebration, 1917-2017, designed by John Lind (Kitchen Sink/Dark Horse)

Best Digital Comic
Bandette by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain/comiXology)
Barrier by Brian K. Vaughan and Marcos Martin (Panel Syndicate)
The Carpet Merchant of Konstaniniyya by Reimena Yee (reimenayee.com/the-carpet-merchant)
Contact High by James F. Wright and Josh Eckert (gumroad.com/l/YnxSm)
Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost by Harvey Kurtzman, Josh O’Neill, Shannon Wheeler, and Gideon Kendall (comiXology Originals/Kitchen, Lind & Associates)
Quince by Sebastian Kadlecik, Kit Steinkellner, and Emma Steinkellner, translated by Valeria Tranier (Fanbase Press/comiXology)

 

Best Webcomic
Awaiting a Wave by Dale Carpenter and Nate Powell, features.weather.com/us-climate-change/arkansas (The Weather Channel Digital)
Brothers Bond by Kevin Grevioux and Ryan Benjamin, www.webtoons.com/en/action/brothers-bond/list?title_no=1191 (LINE Webtoon)
Dispatch from a Sanctuary City by Mike Dawson, https://thenib.com/dispatch-from-a-sanctuary-city (The Nib)
The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O’Neill, teadragonsociety.com (Oni Press)
Welcome to the New World by Jake Halpern and Michael Sloan

 

 

Additionally...

• Jackie Ormes and Carol Kalish, Charles Addams, Karen Berger, Dave Gibbons and Rumiko Takahashi were inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame.
   
• Non-profit organization Comics4Kids received the 2018 Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award.
   
• Frederick Joseph, Joye Murchison Kelly, and Dorothy Woolfolk received the 2018 Bill Finger Award (Bill Finger was the oft-forgotten co-creator of Batman).
   
• Norma Comcis of Barcelona, Spain won the Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award.
   
• Hamish Steele and Pablo Tunica both won the Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award.

 

Once you're done checking out all of this year's winning books and creators and adding them to your to-read list(s), you can browse and borrow all kinds of additional cool comics from our collections—all you need is your library card!