By the end of 2015, movie concession stands will have to divulge how many calories there are in your favorite snacks; Phox talks about the unglamorous life on tour; ‘Happyish’ creator Shalom Auslander (pictured) on how the show handled the death of original lead actor, Philip Seymour Hoffman.
How Showtime's 'Happyish' moved on after Philip Seymour Hoffman's death
Shalom Auslander's "Happyish" is a dark dramedy about the idea that happiness isn't something we'll ever achieve. Auslander once worked in advertising, and "Happyish" has given him the opportunity to express what he really thinks about that industry.
"One of the first sentences in the pitch is 'f--- Mad Men,'" Auslander said. "And a lot of it had to do with my own disgust with that business, and this very popular show that made it kind of sexy and cool — and it's anything but. It's at best just another crap job — at worst, it's manipulative and a tool of Satan."
Despite the dark subject matter, Auslander believes there's humor to be found here.
"Unhappiness is funny. And our sort of endless pursuit of it, and constantly flopping as we try to get it," Auslander said. "To some degree, the name is about the thing that we should be striving for. 'Happyish' is probably a much more realistic goal than 'happiness.' And that shooting for happiness is probably just going to get us very, very unhappy."
Watch the full first episode of "Happyish" here, which Showtime has made available free:
Full first episode of Happyish
The show's original pilot starred Philip Seymour Hoffman. Auslander had to deal with Hoffman's death from an overdose and, ultimately, moving ahead with the show.
"I don't know if it'd be different if I'd been a career TV person, but [the show] very quickly became irrelevant [after Hoffman's death]," Auslander said. "It was just dealing with all of the emotions that come with something like that. And it took a while to deal with — for everybody."
Auslander said the characters pre-dated Hoffman's involvement, and that he began to feel like he knew them.
"It's one of those sort of douchey-sounding writer things, where it's like, Oh, but I really like these characters, and I want to see what happens to them," Auslander said. "But that is really what it felt like. And there was no need to go lose any more people around me."
Auslander said he didn't know if he'd even be able to do the show, but the process proved cathartic and eventually led him back to writing:
"I never had the sunniest outlook on life to begin with. I was raised very orthodox, with a real prick for a god, who tended to just set you up to knock you down. Very belligerent and punishing. And even though that was longer than half my life ago now, it's a hard view to get rid of. So in some ways, everything that happened just confirmed my worldview in a rough way.
"And, honestly, this is the most I've spoken about any of this with an interviewer, because it isn't something I like to talk about, and Phil [Hoffman] still looms large in my mind, and it's not something he would want to talk about. But the reality was that it wasn't as if I was expecting everything to go smoothly."
Hoffman came onboard after the show was already written, Auslander says:
"We obviously discussed stuff a lot, but he was very respectful of me and the writing and the words on the page. So it didn't change very much. It changed more when Steve [Coogan] came onboard."
While several actors were interviewed about replacing Hoffman, Coogan ended up having qualities Auslander thought were a good fit for the show:
"What I think Steve gave us was, aside from some tremendous comedic gifts, he's been through a lot. He has a fair degree of tragedy within him, and that was interesting to me. Whereas with Phil, the idea was let's take someone whose wheelhouse is tragedy and see if we can find some lightness in it. Steve came around and I realized it was the complete opposite of that, in a very good way, and could probably get at the same things, but different."
Auslander noted that Coogan has a broad range of talents — an ability to do anything written for him. Auslander said it let him do more with the character, particularly when it came to fantasy sequences — including having sex with animated Keibler cookie elves.
"There's nobody who has sex with animated elves better than Steve Coogan," Auslander joked.
Despite the potential of cookie-based lawsuits, Showtime approved the scene.
"I write it and I let Showtime tell me when they're uncomfortable and when they're not," Auslander said. "They've been incredible. And this is one of those things where, not knowing much about TV, the things I did know is the network are all evil and they're stupid and they give you terrible notes — and then they stab you in the back. And it hasn't been any of that. Their notes have been very specific and helpful, and they've been incredibly supportive of just the ideas that come up and letting it just live, which is why it will probably tank after two episodes."
Still, Auslander's OK with that.
"It will be an honest two episodes, G-- damn it!"
CinemaCon 2015: Theater owners brace for new calorie labeling mandate on concessions
The Food and Drug Administration announced last year that your local multiplex will have to start posting nutritional information about all of its concessions by the end of 2015. So by the time you see the next “Star Wars” movie in December, you'll probably know exactly how many actual calories there are in your favorite movie theater snacks.
If you don’t want your moviegoing experience ruined, cover your ears and stop reading now, because that big tub of popcorn can have as many as 1,200 calories — with three days’ worth of saturated fat and as much as 1,500 milligrams of sodium. And that’s without the butter. The butter.
From your body’s perspective, that’s a real horror movie.
At this week’s CinemaCon, exhibitors have been patrolling the trade floor looking at all of the new snacks they can sell to audiences without freaking them out with the new FDA regulations.
A former heart surgeon named Dr. Ron Law has an interesting idea:
"Edamame at the movies...you might say why edamame at the movies?" said Dr. Law on the CinemaCon trade floor in Las Vegas. "What people choose to eat is changing very quickly. I think theaters are looking for alternatives and this is the answer. I think edamame’s time has come.”
Law is at CinemaCon for the first time peddling his bags of pre-salted soy beans. He calls them Eda-Movie, and boasts that an entire eight-ounce pack has just 150 calories. He thinks his soybean solution should sell for about five bucks.
That money is critical. With box office admissions down to their lowest level since 1995, concessions keep many theaters in the black more than ever. Movie theater owners sold about $4 billion in concessions last year, and they can make as much as half their income from snacks and sodas.
While a lot of high-end theaters have been selling upscale food and alcohol lately, the major chains still traffic in Red Vines and Milk Duds. It’ll be important that popular candies have their own versions of Hollywood sequels — or reboots.
Here’s what’s new from the makers of Red Vines:
"This year we’re focusing on our best-selling Sour Punch, and it's in brand new assorted flavors," said Liz Negrau, national sales manager for American Licorice Company. "We’re so happy to be able to introduce lemon for the first time, so we’ve got our best-selling strawberry, blue raspberry, and zappin' apple, and now complete with lemon, only available in the four-ounce theater tray."
Now, even if you’re a vegan or a vegetarian, you soon should be able to get a White Castle burger that has no meat or animal products in it.
"It's something that we tested last year, we brought it out in January in our restaurants and it did quite well," said Rob Camp, vice president and general manager at White Castle Food Products, LLC. "We're working with Dr. Praeger's on seeing what we can do to maybe bring it out in frozen."
But we all know what we really love for a movie snack.
"I feel that we need good labeling laws," said Frank Morrison, president of Nebraska Popcorn. "Popcorn without butter on it is only about 45 calories per cup. So really it's a low-calorie food, what we add to it adds the calories."
Ultimately, movie fans may not really care how unhealthy the concessions are. After all, that’s part of the joy of heading to the multiplex, according to John Fithian, the president of the National Association of Theatre Owners.
"When people go to the movies they go to the movies to escape the hassles and stresses of their day, and to escape their diet," said Fithian. "I buy things at the cinema for my kids that I would never buy at home, and I think most people are like that. People come to the cinemas because they want to have fun."
Fithian says he’s not worried that the calorie counts will hurt concession sales. Everyone already knows that a Double-Double from In-N-Out is a lot worse for you than carrot sticks — and the lines at that burger joint are just as long as moviegoers waiting to see “Furious 7.”
Phox members say being the new 'it' band has its own struggles
The indie folk band Phox officially formed on a whim in 2011 when guitarist Matt Holmen played a one-off show in Baraboo, Wisconsin. He recruited various musicians with whom he had performed in the past and who had also been involved with guitarist Zach Johnston's album, "Sonntag."
Since they had no songs of their own at the time, they played music from the "Sonntag" album, bringing in singer Monica Martin to perform vocals at the show.
And since that evening, the band's been living a charmed life — within three years of forming they've opened for bands like Blitzen Trapper and the Lumineers, and they recorded their debut album in Bon Iver's home studio in Wisconsin.
But that doesn't change the fact that this is a young band, which means they're basically living in a tour van. And since Phox consists of six members, plus a crew of two, that leads to one very cramped van.
When Martin and Johnston came by the Frame studios between weekends at Coachella, we talked to them about playing gigs at restaurants, being written up in the New York Times, and the struggles of life on the road.
Interview Highlights:
What shows did you play between the two weekends of Coachella? One was at a Mexican restaurant?
Monica: We had a show booked in Santa Cruz, and then the promoter said, "You know who'd really love you guys? Please go for this — Felton, this town that's adjacent." It was a Monday and there were a lot of people there, and they were all really lovely, and it was great. [laughs]
Zach: We're not the kind of band that gets bummed out when we get to the venue and it's a restaurant. [laughs]
Monica: It ends up being pretty ramshackle no matter what we do. I'm not really the type — and I don't really think any of us are — to be like, Oh, we're in a band, we're cool. So being in an intimate space with people feels like being chummy with your friends.
Zach: Felt like being back home.
There are eight of you traveling around in a van, which is just a fact of life for a band in your position.
Monica: You get cozy.
Zach: It's strangely become home. When we first started touring and we were out for two weeks, we all felt totally nuts, like you're going camping every day in the city. But now when I'm driving in the van anywhere in America, I'm just like, Oh, this feels like home. Most of my memories are in the van. [laughs] I don't remember the shows, but I remember the van. It's cool though — I'm really happy. Bands don't always last forever, you know? You don't know how long you're going to do this, so it's really cool to do something like this while you're young and you can handle it. [laughs]
Monica: You ultimately want to have something that's more stable, I think? But when you're having a rough day and you're thinking, Whoa, I'm in a van for 12 hours today, you can just laugh and say, I'll have a house one day. But I'm in a band so I don't have income." [laughs] No, just kidding, but I will have a houseboat or a kayak one day.
When you're constantly on the road the way you are, do you have the opportunity to step back and think about a strategy, like, "Where do we want to go and how are we going to get there?"
Zach: That's not something we've ever talked about. [laughs]
You're just doing what you're doing?
Zach: Yeah, and I think there's a part of that that's been really healthy for us because we don't have a lot of expectations and we've been really fortunate. But yeah, maybe it's time to start thinking about what we want after a few years.
Monica: I certainly didn't set out to be in a band — it just sort of happened. And then Zach as well, he was making films and probably had the most promising career before this. I'm very sorry that was ruined.
Yet there's some buzz about this band, right? You've been written up in the New York Times, you were a pick of the week at Starbucks everywhere. And now you've played Coachella. So how have those things changed your lives and the life of the band?
Zach: There's such a contrast between this life on the road and then life at home, because we live in a small town called Baraboo, Wisconsin. We go home to this tiny, rural town, and you go to the local bar and do the same things, so in some ways it changes everything. But in a lot of ways it really doesn't make any difference if we're written about in the New York Times. At least it doesn't in my day-to-day life.
Was there a moment when you realized there's something here, that could be more than a lark? Did you have any expectations going in? Had either of you been in a band before?
Zach: I had in high school. Matt Holmen, our guitarist, is sort of the mastermind behind this band, and I think he has expectations, visions and ideas about what he wants to do, but we're always like, Why are we here? That's our reaction, for the most part.
Monica: We think we're fooling people, often. [laughs] But I'm starting to develop ideas or dreams within this career. Now that we're putting ourselves out there, I do want to do it very well. I dodged putting myself out there for a long time in every facet of my life because it was really scary, but now that we're out here I'm like, Oh, we could have done this better. Moving forward, I want to make sure that we all love every song on the next record, and I want people to like it. That's the goal.
2015 Eisner Award nominations: The comic book industry's Oscars
Comic books have their own industry awards, their own Emmys/Grammys/Oscars/Tonys — the Eisners. The 2015 nominations were announced Wednesday, with nominees ranging from indie books and digital-only releases to the major publishers and classic characters.
One of the nominees is Ed Brubaker, who the Frame spoke with last month. He's nominated, along with artist Sean Phillips, for "The Fade Out," a new series from Image (the largest publisher of creator-owned comics), presenting a classic Hollywood-based noir story. The book started out as something Brubaker said was the least commercial idea he'd ever had, but it ended up being the best-selling collaboration he and illustrator Sean Phillips have done to date.
"The first thing I thought was, What do I want to do that I would be hard-pressed to sell a comic book publisher on? And I thought, Well, a bunch of people in the '40s standing around and talking. And lo and behold, there's nothing else like it on the shelves — and people like it," Brubaker said.
While Brubaker's nomination honors the work, the Eisners also have awards specifically for creators as well. This year's nominees for Best Writer include Grant Morrison, who KPCC spoke with last year about "The Multiversity" — which is also nominated for Best Limited Series and Best Single Issue (or One-Shot) for it's "Pax Americana" issue. The series is in some ways the culmination of Morrison's career, even more meta than the fourth wall-breaking work he's done in the past, and that's ended up nabbing it multiple nominations.
"One of my great missions is to dissolve the boundary between the reader and the comic, and this I think does it more effectively than anything else," Morrison said. "I think in this one, the reader is really on the front line."
One other former guest on "The Frame" whose work is being acknowledged is Ed Piskor, whose "Hip Hop Family Tree" is nominated for Best Reality-Based Work. Piskor's book provided a history of hip-hop, a genre he believes has a lot in common with comic books.
"There are alter egos in hip-hop and alter ego in mainstream superhero comics," Piskor said. "But the thing I like that is similar between both of them is just how they're both kind of cultural bastard children, and they make parents nervous when their kids are into them too much."
See all of this year's Eisner Awards nominees below.
Best Short Story
“Beginning’s End,” by Rina Ayuyang, muthamagazine.com
“Corpse on the Imjin!” by Peter Kuper, in Masterful Marks: Cartoonists Who Changed the World (Simon & Schuster)
“Rule Number One,” by Lee Bermejo, in Batman Black and White #3 (DC)
“The Sound of One Hand Clapping,” by Max Landis & Jock, in Adventures of Superman #14 (DC)
“When the Darkness Presses,” by Emily Carroll, http://emcarroll.com/comics/darkness/
Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)
Astro City #16: “Wish I May” by Kurt Busiek & Brent Anderson (Vertigo/DC)
Beasts of Burden: Hunters and Gatherers, by Evan Dorkin & Jill Thompson (Dark Horse)
Madman in Your Face 3D Special, by Mike Allred (Image)
Marvel 75th Anniversary Celebration #1 (Marvel)
The Multiversity: Pax Americana #1, by Grant Morrison & Frank Quitely (DC)
Best Continuing Series
Astro City, by Kurt Busiek & Brent Anderson (Vertigo)
Bandette, by Paul Tobin & Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain)
Hawkeye, by Matt Fraction & David Aja (Marvel)
Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan & Fiona Staples (Image)
Southern Bastards, by Jason Aaron & Jason Latour (Image)
The Walking Dead, by Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard, & Stefano Gaudiano (Image/Skybound)
Best Limited Series
Daredevil: Road Warrior, by Mark Waid & Peter Krause (Marvel Infinite Comics)
Little Nemo: Return to Slumberland, by Eric Shanower & Gabriel Rodriguez (IDW)
The Multiversity, by Grant Morrison et al. (DC)
The Private Eye, by Brian K. Vaughan & Marcos Martin (Panel Syndicate)
The Sandman: Overture, by Neil Gaiman & J. H. Williams III (Vertigo/DC)
Best New Series
The Fade Out, by Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips (Image)
Lumberjanes, by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis, Noelle Stevenson, & Brooke A. Allen (BOOM! Box)
Ms. Marvel, by G. Willow Wilson & Adrian Alphona (Marvel)
Rocket Raccoon, by Skottie Young (Marvel)
The Wicked + The Divine, by Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie (Image)
Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 7)
BirdCatDog, by Lee Nordling & Meritxell Bosch (Lerner/Graphic Universe)
A Cat Named Tim And Other Stories, by John Martz (Koyama Press)
Hello Kitty, Hello 40: A Celebration in 40 Stories, edited by Traci N. Todd & Elizabeth Kawasaki (VIZ)
Mermin, Book 3: Deep Dives, by Joey Weiser (Oni)
The Zoo Box, by Ariel Cohn & Aron Nels Steinke (First Second)
Best Publication for Kids (ages 8-12)
Batman Li’l Gotham, vol. 2, by Derek Fridolfs & Dustin Nguyen (DC)
El Deafo, by Cece Bell (Amulet/Abrams)
I Was the Cat, by Paul Tobin & Benjamin Dewey (Oni)
Little Nemo: Return to Slumberland, by Eric Shanower & Gabriel Rodriguez (IDW)
Tiny Titans: Return to the Treehouse, by Art Baltazar & Franco (DC)
Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)
Doomboy, by Tony Sandoval (Magnetic Press)
The Dumbest Idea Ever, by Jimmy Gownley (Graphix/Scholastic)
Lumberjanes, by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis, Noelle Stevenson, & Brooke A. Allen (BOOM! Box)
Meteor Men, by Jeff Parker & Sandy Jarrell (Oni)
The Shadow Hero, by Gene Luen Yang & Sonny Liew (First Second)
The Wrenchies, by Farel Dalrymple (First Second)
Best Humor Publication
The Complete Cul de Sac, by Richard Thompson (Andrews McMeel)
Dog Butts and Love. And Stuff Like That. And Cats. by Jim Benton (NBM)
Groo vs. Conan, by Sergio Aragonés, Mark Evanier, & Tom Yeates (Dark Horse)
Rocket Raccoon, by Skottie Young (Marvel)
Superior Foes of Spider-Man, by Nick Spencer & Steve Lieber (Marvel)
Best Digital/Web Comic
Bandette, by Paul Tobin & Colleen Coover, Monkeybrain/comiXology.com
Failing Sky by Dax Tran-Caffee, http://failingsky.com
The Last Mechanical Monster, by Brian Fies, http://lastmechanicalmonster.blogspot.com
Nimona, by Noelle Stephenson, http://gingerhaze.com/nimona/comic
The Private Eye by Brian Vaughan & Marcos Martin http://panelsyndicate.com/
Best Anthology
In the Dark: A Horror Anthology, edited by Rachel Deering (Tiny Behemoth Press/IDW)
Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream, edited by Josh O’Neill, Andrew Carl, & Chris Stevens (Locust Moon)
Massive: Gay Erotic Manga and the Men Who Make It, edited by Anne Ishii, Chip Kidd, & Graham Kolbeins (Fantagraphics)
Masterful Marks: Cartoonists Who Changed the World, edited by Monte Beauchamp (Simon & Schuster)
To End All Wars: The Graphic Anthology of The First World War, edited by Jonathan Clode & John Stuart Clark (Soaring Penguin)
Best Reality-Based Work
Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant? by Roz Chast (Bloomsbury)
Dragon’s Breath and Other True Stories, by MariNaomi (2d Cloud/Uncivilized Books)
El Deafo, by Cece Bell (Amulet/Abrams)
Hip Hop Family Tree, vol. 2, by Ed Piskor (Fantagraphics)
Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales: Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood, by Nathan Hale (Abrams)
To End All Wars: The Graphic Anthology of The First World War, edited by Jonathan Clode & John Stuart Clark (Soaring Penguin)
Best Graphic Album—New
The Gigantic Beard That Was Evil, by Stephen Collins (Picador)
Here, by Richard McGuire (Pantheon)
Kill My Mother, by Jules Feiffer (Liveright)
The Motherless Oven, by Rob Davis (SelfMadeHero)
Seconds, by Bryan Lee O’Malley (Ballantine Books)
This One Summer, by Mariko Tamaki & Jillian Tamaki (First Second)
Best Graphic Album—Reprint
Dave Dorman’s Wasted Lands Omnibus (Magnetic Press)
How to Be Happy, by Eleanor Davis (Fantagraphics)
Jim, by Jim Woodring (Fantagraphics)
Sock Monkey Treasury, by Tony Millionaire (Fantagraphics)
Through the Woods, by Emily Carroll (McElderry Books)
Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips (at least 20 years old)
Winsor McCay’s Complete Little Nemo, edited by Alexander Braun (TASCHEN)
Edgar Rice Burroughs’s Tarzan: The Sunday Comics, 1933–1935, by Hal Foster, edited by Brendan Wright (Dark Horse)
Moomin: The Deluxe Anniversary Edition, by Tove Jansson, edited by Tom Devlin (Drawn & Quarterly)
Pogo, vol. 3: Evidence to the Contrary, by Walt Kelly, edited by Carolyn Kelly & Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)
Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse, vols. 5-6, by Floyd Gottfredson, edited by David Gerstein & Gary Groth (Fantagraphics)
Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books (at least 20 Years Old)
The Complete ZAP Comix Box Set, edited by Gary Groth, with Mike Catron (Fantagraphics)
Steranko Nick Fury Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. Artist’s Edition, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)
Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: Trail of the Unicorn, by Carl Barks, edited by Gary Groth (Fantagraphics)
Walt Disney’s Uncle Scrooge and Donald Duck: The Son of the Son, by Don Rosa, edited by David Gerstein (Fantagraphics)
Walt Kelly’s Pogo: The Complete Dell Comics, vols. 1–2, edited by Daniel Herman (Hermes)
Witzend, by Wallace Wood et al., edited by Gary Groth, with Mike Catron (Fantagraphics)
Best U.S. Edition of International Material
Beautiful Darkness, by Fabien Vehlmann & Kerascoët (Drawn & Quarterly)
Blacksad: Amarillo, by Juan Díaz Canales & Juanjo Guarnido (Dark Horse)
Corto Maltese: Under the Sign of Capricorn, by Hugo Pratt (IDW/Euro Comics)
Jaybird, by Lauri & Jaakko Ahonen (Dark Horse/SAF)
The Leaning Girl, by Benoît Peeters & François Schuiten (Alaxis Press)
Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia
All You Need Is Kill, by Hiroshi Sakurazaka, Ryosuke Takeuchi, Takeshi Obata & yoshitoshi ABe (VIZ)
In Clothes Called Fat, by Moyoco Anno (Vertical)
Master Keaton, vol 1, by Naoki Urasawa, Hokusei Katsushika, & Takashi Nagasaki (VIZ)
One-Punch Man, by One & Yusuke Murata (VIZ)
Showa 1939–1943 and Showa 1944–1953: A History of Japan, by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
Wolf Children: Ame & Yuki, by Mamoru Hosada & Yu (Yen Press)
Best Writer
Jason Aaron, Original Sin, Thor, Men of Wrath (Marvel); Southern Bastards (Image)
Kelly Sue DeConnick, Captain Marvel (Marvel); Pretty Deadly (Image)
Grant Morrison, The Multiversity (DC); Annihilator (Legendary Comics)
Brian K. Vaughan, Saga (Image); Private Eye (Panel Syndicate)
G. Willow Wilson, Ms. Marvel (Marvel)
Gene Luen Yang, Avatar: The Last Airbender (Dark Horse); The Shadow Hero (First Second)
Best Writer/Artist
Sergio Aragonés, Sergio Aragonés Funnies (Bongo); Groo vs. Conan (Dark Horse)
Charles Burns, Sugar Skull (Pantheon)
Stephen Collins, The Giant Beard That Was Evil (Picador)
Richard McGuire, Here (Pantheon)
Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo: Senso, Usagi Yojimbo Color Special: The Artist (Dark Horse)
Raina Telgemeier, Sisters (Graphix/Scholastic)
Best Penciller/Inker
Adrian Alphona, Ms. Marvel (Marvel)
Mike Allred, Silver Surfer (Marvel); Madman in Your Face 3D Special (Image)
Frank Quitely, Multiversity (DC)
François Schuiten, The Leaning Girl (Alaxis Press)
Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)
Babs Tarr, Batgirl (DC)
Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)
Lauri & Jaakko Ahonen, Jaybird (Dark Horse)
Colleen Coover, Bandette (Monkeybrain)
Mike Del Mundo, Elektra (Marvel)
Juanjo Guarnido, Blacksad: Amarillo (Dark Horse)
J. H. Williams III, The Sandman: Overture (Vertigo/DC)
Best Cover Artist
Darwyn Cooke, DC Comics Darwyn Cooke Month Variant Covers (DC)
Mike Del Mundo, Elektra, X-Men: Legacy, A+X, Dexter, Dexter Down Under (Marvel)
Francesco Francavilla, Afterlife with Archie (Archie); Grindhouse: Doors Open at Midnight (Dark Horse); The Twilight Zone, Django/Zorro (Dynamite); X-Files (IDW)
Jamie McKelvie/Matthew Wilson, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Ms. Marvel (Marvel)
Phil Noto, Black Widow (Marvel)
Alex Ross, Astro City (Vertigo/DC); Batman 66: The Lost Episode, Batman 66 Meets Green Hornet (DC/Dynamite)
Best Coloring
Laura Allred, Silver Surfer (Marvel); Madman in Your Face 3D Special (Image)
Nelson Daniel, Little Nemo: Return to Slumberland, Judge Dredd, Wild Blue Yonder (IDW)
Lovern Kindzierski, The Graveyard Book, vols. 1-2 (Harper)
Matthew Petz, The Leg (Top Shelf)
Dave Stewart, Hellboy in Hell, BPRD, Abe Sapien, Baltimore, Lobster Johnson, Witchfinder, Shaolin Cowboy, Aliens: Fire and Stone, DHP (Dark Horse)
Matthew Wilson, Adventures of Superman (DC); The Wicked + The Divine (Image), Daredevil, Thor (Marvel)
Best Lettering
Joe Caramagna, Ms. Marvel, Daredevil (Marvel)
Todd Klein, Fables, The Sandman: Overture, The Unwritten (Vertigo/DC); Nemo: The Roses of Berlin (Top Shelf)
Max, Vapor (Fantagraphics)
Jack Morelli, Afterlife with Archie, Archie, Betty and Veronica, etc. (Archie)
Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo: Senso, Usagi Yojimbo Color Special: The Artist (Dark Horse)
Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism
Alter Ego, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows)
Comic Book Creator, edited by Jon B. Cooke (TwoMorrows)
Comic Book Resources, edited by Jonah Weiland, www.comicbookresources.com
Comics Alliance, edited by Andy Khouri, Caleb Goellner, Andrew Wheeler, & Joe Hughes, www.comicsalliance.com
tcj.com, edited by Dan Nadel & Timothy Hodler (Fantagraphics)
Best Comics-Related Book
Comics Through Time: A History of Icons, Idols, and Ideas (4 vols.), edited by M. Keith Booker (ABC-CLIO)
Creeping Death from Neptune: The Life and Comics of Basil Wolverton, by Greg Sadowski (Fantagraphics)
Genius Animated: The Cartoon Art of Alex Toth, vol. 3, by Dean Mullaney & Bruce Canwell (IDW/LOAC)
What Fools These Mortals Be: The Story of Puck, by Michael Alexander Kahn & Richard Samuel West (IDW/LOAC)
75 Years of Marvel Comics: From the Golden Age to the Silver Screen, by Roy Thomas & Josh Baker (TASCHEN)
Best Scholarly/Academic Work
American Comics, Literary Theory, and Religion: The Superhero Afterlife, by A. David Lewis (Palgrave Macmillan)
Considering Watchmen: Poetics, Property, Politics, by Andrew Hoberek (Rutgers University Press)
Funnybooks: The Improbable Glories of the Best American Comic Books, by Michael Barrier (University of California Press)
Graphic Details: Jewish Women’s Confessional Comics in Essays and Interviews, edited by Sarah Lightman (McFarland)
The Origins of Comics: From William Hogarth to Winsor McCay, by Thierry Smolderen, tr. by Bart Beaty & Nick Nguyen (University Press of Mississippi)
Wide Awake in Slumberland: Fantasy, Mass Culture, and Modernism in the Art of Winsor McCay, by Katherine Roeder (University Press of Mississippi)
Best Publication Design
Batman: Kelley Jones Gallery Edition, designed by Josh Beatman/Brainchild Studios (Graphitti/DC)
The Complete ZAP Comix Box Set, designed by Tony Ong (Fantagraphics)
Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream, designed by Jim Rugg (Locust Moon)
Street View, designed by Pascal Rabate (NBM/Comics Lit)
Winsor McCay’s Complete Little Nemo, designed by Anna Tina Kessler (TASCHEN)