Via comics, we received the nominees for this year in the prestigious Eisner Awards (as is often explained to the laymen of the comic book world, the Oscars of the comic). And the nominated ones are…
BEST SHORT STORY
- “Actual Size” by Chris Ware, in Kramers Ergot 7 (Buenaventura Press)
- “Chechen War, Chechen Women,” by Joe Sacco, on I Live Here (Pantheon)
- “Freaks,” by Laura Park, in Superior Showcase # 3 (AdHouse)
- “Glenn Ganges in 'Pulverize,'” by Kevin Huizenga, in Ganges # 2 (Fantagraphics)
- “Murder He Wrote,” by Ian Boothby, Nina Matsumoto, and Andrew Pepoy, in The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror # 14 (Bongo)
BEST REGULAR SERIES
- All Star Superman, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (DC)
- Fables, by Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Niko Henrichon, Andrew Pepoy, and Peter Gross (Vertigo / DC)
- Naoki Urasawa's Monster, by Naoki Urasawa (Viz)
- Thor, by J. Michael Straczynski, Olivier Coipel, Mark Morales, and others (Marvel)
- Usagi Yojimbo, by Stan Sakai (Dark Horse)
BEST LIMITED SERIES
- Groo: Hell on Earth, by Sergio Aragonés and Mark Evanier (Dark Horse)
- Hellboy: The Crooked Man, by Mike Mignola and Richard Corben (Dark Horse)
- Locke & Key, by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez (IDW)
- Omega the Unknown, by Jonathan Lethem, Karl Rusnak, and Farel Dalrymple (Marvel)
- The Twelve, by J. Michael Straczynski and Chris Weston (Marvel)
BEST NEW SERIES
- Air, by G. Willow Wilson and MK Perker (Vertigo / DC)
- Echo, by Terry Moore (Abstract Studio)
- Invincible Iron Man, dey Matt Fraction and Salvador Larocca (Marvel)
- Madame Xanadu, by Matt Wagner, Amy Reeder Hadley, and Richard Friend (Vertigo / DC)
- Unknown Soldier, by Joshua Dysart and Alberto Ponticelli (Vertigo / DC)
BEST PUBLICATION FOR CHILDREN
- Amulet, Book 1: The Stonekeeper, DE Kazu Kabuishi (Scholastic Graphix)
- Cowa! FROM Akira Toriyama (Viz)
- Princess at Midnight, DE Andi Watson (Image)
- Stinky, DE Eleanor Davis (RAW Junior)
- Tiny Titans, DE Art Baltazar and Franco (DC)
BEST PUBLICATION FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
- Coraline, by Neil Gaiman, adapted by P. Craig Russell (HarperCollins Children's Books)
- Crogan's Vengeance, by Chris Schweizer (Oni)
- The Good Neighbors, Book 1: Kin, by Holly Black and Ted Naifeh (Scholastic Graphix)
- Rapunzel's Revenge, by Shannon, Dean Hale and Nathan Hale (Bloomsbury Children's Books)
- Skim, by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki (Groundwood Books)
BEST HUMOR POST
- Arsenic Lullaby Pulp Edition No. Zero, by Douglas Paszkiewicz (Arsenic Lullaby)
- Chumble Spuzz, by Ethan Nicolle (SLG)
- Herbie Archives, from “Sean O'Shea” (Richard E. Hughes) and Ogden Whitney (Dark Horse)
- Petey and Pussy, by John Kerschbaum (Fantagraphics)
- Wondermark: Beards of Our Forefathers, by David Malki (Dark Horse)
BEST ANTHOLOGY
- An Anthology of Graphic Fiction, Cartoons, and True Stories, vol. 2, edited by Ivan Brunetti (Yale University Press)
- Best American Comics 2008, edited by Lynda Barry (Houghton Mifflin)
- Comic Book Tattoo: Narrative Art Inspired by the Lyrics and Music of Tori Amos, edited by Rantz Hoseley (Image)
- Kramers Ergot 7, edited by Sammy Harkham (Buenaventura Press)
- MySpace Dark Horse Presents, edited by Scott Allie and Sierra Hahn (Dark Horse)
BEST DIGITAL COMIC
- Bodyworld by Dash Shaw
- Finder, by Carla Speed McNeil
- The Lady's Murder, by Eliza Frye
- Speak No Evil: Melancholy of a Space Mexican, by Elan Trinidad
- Vs., by Alexis Sottile and Joe Infurnari
BEST JOB BASED ON TRUE FACTS
- Alan's War, DE Emmanuel Guibert (First Second)
- Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story, DE Frederik Peeters (Houghton Mifflin)
- Fishtown, DE Kevin Colden (IDW)
- A Treasury of XXth Century Murder: The Lindbergh Child, BY Rick Geary (NBM)
- What It Is, BY Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly)
BEST ALBUM (ORIGINAL)
- Alan's War, by Emmanuel Guibert (First Second)
- Paul Goes Fishing, by Michel Rabagliati (Drawn & Quarterly)
- Skim, by Mariko Tamaki Y Jillian Tamaki (Groundwood Books)
- Swallow Me Whole, by Nate Powell (Top Shelf)
- Three Shadows, by Cyril Pedrosa (First Second)
BEST ALBUM (COMPILATION)
- Berlin Book 2: City of Smoke, by Jason Lutes (Drawn & Quarterly)
- Hellboy Library Edition, vols. 1 and 2, by Mike Mignola (Dark Horse)
- Sam & Max Surfin 'the Highway anniversary edition HC, by Steve Purcell (Telltale Games)
- Skyscrapers of the Midwest, by Joshua W. Cotter (AdHouse)
- The Umbrella Academy, vol. 1: Apocalypse Suite deluxe edition, by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá (Dark Horse)
BEST ARCHIVE-STRIPS PROJECT OR COLLECTION
- The Complete Little Orphan Annie, by Harold Gray (IDW)
- Explainers, by Jules Feiffer (Fantagraphics)
- Little Nemo in Slumberland, Many More Splendid Sundays, by Winsor McCay (Sunday Press Books)
- Scorchy Smith and the Art of Noel Sickles (IDW)
- Willie & Joe, by Bill Mauldin (Fantagraphics)
BEST ARCHIVE-COMIC BOOKS PROJECT OR COLLECTION
- Breakdowns: Portrait of the Artist as a Young% @ & *! FROM Art Spiegelman (Pantheon)
- Creepy Archives, FROM various artists (Dark Horse)
- Elektra Omnibus, by Frank Miller and Bill Sienkiewicz (Marvel)
- Good-Bye, by Yoshihiro Tatsumi (Drawn & Quarterly)
- Herbie Archives, from “Sean O'Shea” (Richard E. Hughes) and Ogden Whitney (Dark Horse)
BEST AMERICAN EDITION OF INTERNATIONAL MATERIAL
- Alan's War, by Emmanuel Guibert (First Second)
- Gus and His Gang, by Chris Blain (First Second)
- The Last Musketeer, by Jason (Fantagraphics)
- The Rabbi's Cat 2, by Joann Sfar (Pantheon)
- Tamara Drewe of Posy Simmonds (Mariner / Houghton Mifflin)
BEST AMERICAN EDITION OF INTERNATIONAL-JAPANESE MATERIAL
- Cat Eyed Boy, by Kazuo Umezu (Viz)
- Dororo, by Osamu Tezuka (Vertical)
- Naoki Urasawa's Monster, by Naoki Urasawa (Viz)
- The Quest for the Missing Girl, by Jiro Taniguchi (Fanfare / Ponent Mon)
- Solanin, by Inio Asano (Viz)
BEST SCRIPTWRITER
- Joe Hill: Lock & Key (IDW)
- J. Michael Straczynski: Thor, The Twelve (Marvel)
- Mariko Tamaki: Skim (Groundwood Books)
- Matt Wagner: Zorro (Dynamite); Madame Xanadu (Vertigo / DC)
- Bill Willingham: Fables, House of Mystery (Vertigo / DC)
BEST COMPLETE ARTIST
- Ricky Geary: A Treasury of XXth Century Murder: The Lindbergh Child (NBM); J. Edgar Hoover (Hill & Wang)
- Emmanuel Guibert: Alan's War (First Second)
- Jason Lutes: Berlin (Drawn & Quarterly)
- Cyril Pedrosa: Three Shadows (First Second)
- Nate Powell: Swallow Me Whole (Top Shelf)
- Chris Ware: Acme Novelty Library (Acme)
BEST DRAWER / INKER OR DRAWER / TEAM OF INKERS
- Gabriel Bá: The Umbrella Academy (Dark Horse)
- Mark Buckingham / Steve Leialoha: Fables (Vertigo / DC)
- Olivier Coipel / Mark Morales: Thor (Marvel)
- Guy Davis: BPRD (Dark Horse)
- Amy Reeder Hadley / Richard Friend: Madame Xanadu (Vertigo / DC)
- Jillian Tamaki: Skim (Groundwood Books)
BEST PAINTER / MULTIMEDIA ARTIST
- Lynda Barry: What It Is (Drawn & Quarterly)
- Eddie Campbell: The Amazing Remarkable Monsieur Leotard (First Second)
- Enrico Casarosa: The Venice Chronicles (Ateliér Fio / AdHouse)
- Scott Morse: Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! (Red Window)
- Jill Thompson: Magic Trixie, Magic Trixie Sleeps Over (HarperCollins Children's Books)
BEST PORTADIST
- Gabrial Bá: Casanova (Image); The Umbrella Academy (Dark Horse)
- Jo Chen: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Serenity (Dark Horse); Runaways (Marvel)
- Amy Reeder Hadley: Madame Xanadu (Vertigo / DC)
- James Jean: Fables (Vertigo / DC); The Umbrella Academy (Dark Horse)
- Matt Wagner: Zorro (Dynamite); Grendel: Behold the Devil (Dark Horse)
BEST COLORIST
- Steve Hamaker: Bone: Ghost Circles, Bone: Treasure Hunters (Scholastic Graphix)
- Trish Mulvihill: Joker (DC), 100 Bullets (Vertigo / DC)
- Val Staples: Criminal, Incognito (Marvel Icon)
- Dave Stewart: Abe Sapien: The Drowning, BPRD, The Goon, Hellboy, Solomon Kane, The Unbrella Academy (Dark Horse); Body Bags (Image); Captain America: White (Marvel)
- Chris Ware: Acme Novelty Library # 19 (Acme)
BEST MARKER
- Faryl Dalrymple: Omega: The Unknown (Marvel)
- Jimmy Gownley: Amelia Rules! (Renaissance)
- Scott Morse: Tiger! Tiger! Tiger! (Red Window)
- Nate Powell: Swallow Me Whole (Top Shelf)
- Chris Ware: Acme Novelty Library # 19 (Acme)
BEST COMICS RELATED PERIODIC PUBLICATION
- Comic Book Resources, produced by Jonah Weiland
- The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth, Michael Dean, and Kristy Valenti (Fantagraphics)
- The Comics Reporter, produced by Tom Spurgeon and Jordan Raphael
- Comics Comics, edited by Timothy Hodler and Dan Nadel (PictureBox)
BEST BOOK ON COMICS
- Bill Mauldin: A Life Up Front, by Todd DePastino (Norton)
- Brush with Passion: The Art and Life of Dave Stevens, edited by Arnie and Cathy Fenner (Underwood)
- Drawing Words and Writing Pictures, by Jessica Abel and Matt Madden (First Second)
- Kirby: King of Comics, by Mark Evanier (Abrams)
- The Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How It Changed America, by David Hajdu (Picador / Farrar, Straus & Giroux)
BEST PUBLICATION DESIGN
- Breakdowns: Portrait of the Artist as a Young% @ & *! designed by Art Spiegelman (Pantheon)
- Comic Book Tattoo, designed by Tom Muller, Art Direction by Rantz Hoseley (Image)
- Hellboy Library Editions, designed by Cary Grazzini and Mike Mignola (Dark Horse)
- What It Is, designed by Lynda Barry (Drawn & Quarterly)
- Willie and Joe, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics)