2004 Eisner Awards nominees announced

By: Patrick Sauriol
Date: Thursday, April 08, 2004
Source: Comic-Con International

The nominees for the 2004 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards have been announced. The Eisners are held every year at the San Diego International Comic Convention and are the comic industry's equivalent of the Oscars. Simply put, these are the best of the best of the past year's releases, as judged by some of the industry's top creative and editorial talent.

Three publications lead the pack with four nominations each: Neil Gaiman's THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS graphic novel, the LITTLE LIT anthology edited by art spiegelman and Francoise Mouly, and THE GOON, created by Eric Powell.

Here's the list of the 16th Annual Eisner Award Nominees (all for 2003 publications):


Best Short Story

"Death," by Neil Gaiman and P. Craig Russell, in THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS (Vertigo/DC)

"It Was a Dark and Silly Night . . ." by Lemony Snicket and Richard Sala, in LITTLE LIT: IT WAS A DARK AND SILLY NIGHT (HarperCollins)

"It Was a Dark and Silly Night," by Carlos Nine, in LITTLE LIT: IT WAS A DARK AND SILLY NIGHT (HarperCollins)

"Monsieur Jean," by Philippe Dupuy and Charles Berberian, in DRAWN AND QUARTERLY 5 (Drawn & Quarterly)

"Same Difference," by Derek Kirk Kim, in SAME DIFFERENCE AND OTHER STORIES (Small Stories)

"There Are No Flowers in the Real World," by David Lapham, in THE MATRIX COMICS (Burlyman Entertainment)

Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)

CONAN THE LEGEND #0, by Kurt Busiek and Cary Nord (Dark Horse)

FINDER #30: "Beware of Dog," by Carla Speed McNeil (Lightspeed Press)

GIANT THB 1.v.2, by Paul Pope (Horse Press)

GLOBAL FREQUENCY #5: "Big Sky," by Warren Ellis and Jon J. Muth (WildStorm/DC)

THE GOON #1, by Eric Powell (Dark Horse)

USAGI YOJIMBO #65: "Usagi and the Tengu," by Stan Sakai (Dark Horse)


Best Serialized Story

ALIAS #22-28: "The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones" & "Purple," by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos (Marvel)

DAREDEVIL #46-50: "Hardcore," by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev (Marvel)

FORLORN FUNNIES #3-5: "Mother Come Home," by Paul Hornschemeier (Absence of Ink)

GOTHAM CENTRAS #6-10: "Half a Life," by Greg Rucka and Michael Lark (DC)

QUEEN & COUNTRY #13-15: "Operation Blackwall," by Greg Rucka and Jason Alexander (Oni)


Best Continuing Series

ALIAS, by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos (Marvel)

DAREDEVIL, by Brian Michael Bendis/Alex Maleev and David Mack (Marvel)

THE GOON, by Eric Powell (Dark Horse)

GOTHAM CENTRAL, by Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka, Michael Lark, Brian Hurtt, and Stefano Gaudiano (DC)

100 BULLETS, by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC)

QUEEN & COUNTRY, by Greg Rucka, Jason Alexander, Carla Speed McNeil, and Mike Hawthorne (Oni)


Best Limited Series

ARROWSMITH, by Kurt Busiek, Carlos Pacheco, and Jesús Meriño (WildStorm/DC)

EMPIRE, by Mark Waid, Barry Kitson, and James Pascoe (DC)

GLOBAL FREQUENCY, by Warren Ellis and various artists (WildStorm/DC)

JSA: THE UNHOLY THREE, by Dan Jolley, Tony Harris, and Ray Snyder (DC)

SUPERMAN: RED SON, by Mark Millar, Dave Johnson/Andrew Robinson, and Kilian Plunkett/Walden Wong (DC)

UNSTABLE MOLECULES, by James Sturm and Guy Davis (Marvel)


Best New Series

EL CAZADOR, by Chuck Dixon and Steve Epting (CrossGen)

INVINCIBLE, by Robert Kirkman and Cory Walker (Image)

THE LOSERS, by Andy Diggle and Jock (Vertigo/DC)

PLASTIC MAN, by Kyle Baker (DC)

SLEEPER, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (WildStorm/DC)

THE WALKING DEAD, by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore (Image)


Best Title for a Younger Audience

ASTRO BOY, by Osamu Tezuka (Dark Horse)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN, LI'L SANTA, by Thierry Robin and Lewis Trondheim (NBM)

LITTLE LIT: IT WAS A DARK AND SILLY NIGHT, edited by art spiegelman and Francoise Mouly (HarperCollins)

LITTLE VAMPIRE DOES KUNG FU!, by Joann Sfar (Simon & Shuster)

PEANUTBUTTER AND JEREMY'S BEST BOOK EVER!, by James Kochalka (Alternative)

WALT DISNEY'S UNCLE SCROOGE, by various (Gemstone)


Best Humor Publication

CIRCLING THE DRAIN (The Collected Dork, vol. 2), by Evan Dorkin (SLG)

FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE JUSTICE LEAGUE, by Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, Kevin Maguire, and Joe Rubinstein (DC)

THE GOON, by Eric Powell (Dark Horse)

THE NEW BAKER, by Kyle Baker (Kyle Baker Publishing)

WHAT'S MICHAEL vols. 7 and 8, by Makoto Kobayashi (Dark Horse)


Best Anthology

AUTOBIOGRAPHIX, edited by Diana Schutz (Dark Horse)

THE DARK HORSE BOOK OF HAUNTINGS, edited by Scott Allie (Dark Horse)

DRAWN & QUARTERLY 5, edited by Chris Oliveros (Drawn & Quarterly)

LITTLE LIT: IT WAS A DARK AND SILLY NIGHT, edited by art spiegelman and Francoise Mouly (HarperCollins)

PROJECT: TELSTAR, edited by Chris Pitzer (AdHouse)

THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS, by Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean, P. Craig Russell, Miguelanxo Prado, Barron Storey, Frank Quitely, Glenn Fabry, Milo Manara, and Bill Sienkiewicz; co-edited by Karen Berger and Shelly Bond (Vertigo/DC)


Best Graphic Album New

BLACKSAD, by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido (ibooks)

BLANKETS, by Craig Thompson (Top Shelf)

THE FIXER: A STORY FROM SARAJEVO, by Joe Sacco (Drawn & Quarterly)

PERSEPOLIS, by Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)

YOSSEL, APRIL 19, 1943, by Joe Kubert (ibooks)


Best Graphic Album Reprint

BATMAN ADVENTURES: DANGEROUS DAMES AND DEMONS, by Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, and others (DC)

THE FRANK BOOK, by Jim Woodring (Fantagraphics)

LOUIS RIEL: A COMIC-STRIP BIOGRAPHY, by Chester Brown (Drawn & Quarterly)

THE P. CRAIG RUSSELL LIBRARY OF OPERA ADAPTATIONS, vols. 1 and 2, by P. Craig Russell (NBM)

PALOMAR: THE HEARTBREAK SOUP STORIES, by Gilbert Hernandez (Fantagraphics)

QUIMBY THE MOUSE, by Chris Ware (Fantagraphics)


Best Archival Collection/Project

AL CAPP'S L'IL ABNER: THE FRAZETTA YEARS, by Al Capp, edited by Denis Kitchen (Dark Horse)

BUDDAH, vols. 1 and 2, by Osamu Tezuka (Vertical)

CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKNOWN ARCHIVES, vol. 1, by Dave Wood and Jack Kirby, edited by Dale Crain (DC)

THE CHRONICLES OF CONAN, vols. 1 and 2, by Roy Thomas and Barry Windsor-Smith, edited by Jeremy Barlow (Dark Horse)

KRAZY AND IGNATZ, 19291930, by George Herriman, edited by Bill Blackbeard (Fantagraphics)

THE SPIRIT ARCHIVES, vol. 12, by Will Eisner, edited by Dale Crain (DC)


Best U.S. Edition of Foreign Material

BLACKSAD, by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido (ibooks)

BUDDAH, vols. 1 and 2, by Osamu Tezuka (Vertical)

CHALAND ANTHOLOGY: FREDDY LOMBARD, vols. 1 and 2, by Yves Chaland (Humanoids)

LITTLE VAMPIRE DOES KUNG FU!, by Joann Sfar (Simon & Shuster)

PERSEPOLIS, by Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)


Best Writer

Brian Azzarello, 100 BULLETS, SGT. ROCK: BETWEEN HELL AND A HARD PLACE (Vertigo/DC); Batman (DC)

Brian Michael Bendis, ALIAS, DAREDEVIL, ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN, ULTIMATE X-MEN (Marvel); POWERS (Image)

Ed Brubaker, CATWOMAN, DETECTIVE COMICS, GOTHAM CENTRAL (DC); SLEEPER (WildStorm/DC)

Warren Ellis, ORBITER (Vertigo/DC); GLOBAL FREQUENCY, RED, PLANETARY (WildStorm/DC)

Alan Moore, THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN, PROMETHEA, SMAX, TOM STRONG (ABC)

Greg Rucka, QUEEN & COUNTRY (Oni); , WONDER WOMAN (DC); (Marvel)


Best Writer/Artist

Jaime Hernandez, LOVE AND ROCKETS (Fantagraphics)

Paul Hornschemeier, FORLORN FUNNIES(Absence of Ink)

Takehiko Inoue, VAGABOND (Viz)

Paul Pope, GIANT THB 1.v.2 (Horse Press)

Craig Thompson, BLANKETS (Top Shelf)


Best Writer/Artist Humor

Kyle Baker, PLASTIC MAN (DC); THE NEW BAKER (Kyle Baker Publishing)

Tony Millionaire, SOCK MONKEY (Dark Horse)

Eric Powell,THE GOON (Dark Horse)

Joann Sfar, LITTLE VAMPIRE DOES KUNG FU!, LITTLE VAMPIRE GOES TO SCHOOL (Simon & Shuster)

Jeff Smith, BONE (Cartoon Books)


Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

John Cassaday, PLANETARY, PLANETARY/BATMAN: NIGHT ON EARTH (WildStorm/DC); HELLBOY WEIRD TALES (Dark Horse)

Tan Eng Huat, DOOM PATROL, JLA #91 (DC)

Alex Maleev, DAREDEVIL (Marvel)

Jim Lee/Scott Williams, BATMAN (DC)

Eduardo Risso, 100100 BULLETS (Vertigo/DC); BATMAN (DC); BOY VAMPIRE: THE RESURRECTION (SAF)


Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

Juanjo Guarnido, BLACKSAD (ibooks)

Ladronn, HIP FLASK: ELEPHANTMEN (Comicraft)

Miguelanxo Prado, "Dream," in THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS (Vertigo/DC)

Frank Quitely, "Destiny," in THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS (Vertigo/DC)

Jill Thompson, "Stray," in THE DARK HORSE BOOK OF HAUNTINGS (Dark Horse)


Best Coloring

Steven Griffin, HAWAIIAN DICK (Image)

Matt Hollingsworth, CATWOMAN (DC)

Paul Hornschemeier, FORLORN FUNNIES (Absence of Ink)

Jason Keith, EL CAZADOR (CrossGen)

Patricia Mulvihill, BATMAN, WONDER WOMAN (DC), 100 BULLETS (Vertigo/DC)


Best Lettering

Todd Klein, DETECIVE COMICS (DC); FABLES, THE SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS (Vertigo/DC); TOM STRONG, PROMETHEA (ABC); 1602 (Marvel)

Bill Oakley, HAWKMAN, JSA (DC); LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN vol. 2 (ABC); SLEEPER (WildStorm/DC)

Dave Sim, CEREBUS (Aardvark-Vanaheim)

Richard Starkings, BATMAN (DC); PLANETARY (WildStorm/DC); HULK: GRAY (Marvel); HIP FLASK: ELEPHANTMEN (Comicraft)


Best Cover Artist

James Jean, FABLES (Vertigo/DC)

Dave Johnson, BATMAN #620622 (DC); 100 BULLETS (Vertigo/DC)

Scott McKowen, 1602 (Marvel)

Joshua Middleton, NYX, X-MEN UNLIMITED, NEW MUTANTS (Marvel)

Sean Phillips, SLEEPER (WildStorm/DC)

Brian Wood, GLOBAL FREQUENCY (WildStorm/DC)


Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition

Derek Kirk Kim (writer/artist, SAME DIFFERENCE AND OTHER STORIES)

Chrstine Norrie (CHEAT)

Jeff Parker (writer/artist, THE INTERMAN)

Ben Towele (writer/artist, FAREWELL GEORGIA)

Brian Wood (writer, THE COURIERS; CHANNEL ZERO: JENNIE ONE, DEMO)


Best Comics-Related Periodical

ALTER EGO, edited by Roy Thomas (TwoMorrows)

COMIC ART, edited by M. Todd Hignite (Comic Art)

COMIC BOOK ARTIST, edited by Jon B. Cooke (Top Shelf)

THE COMICS JOURNAL, edited by Gary Groth and Milo George (Fantagraphics)


Best Comics-Related Book

THE ACME NOVELTY LIBRARY DATEBOOK, 19861995, by Chris Ware (Drawn & Quarterly)

THE ART OF HELLBOY, by Mike Mignola (Dark Horse)

BLACK IMAGES IN THE COMICS, by Fredrik Strömberg (Fantagraphics)

MYTHOLOGY: THE DC ART OF ALEX ROSS, by Chip Kidd (Pantheon)

STAN LEE AND THE RISE AND FALL OF THE AMERICAN COMIC BOOK, by Jordan Raphael and Tom Spurgeon (Chicago Review Press)


Best Publication Design

THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN: THE ABSOLUTE EDITION, vol. 1, designed by Todd Klein, Alex Sinclair, and Larry Berry (ABC)

LOUIS RIEL: A COMIC-STRIP BIOGRAPHY, designed by Chester Brown (Drawn & Quarterly)

MYTHOLOGY: THE DC ART OF ALEX ROSS, designed by Chip Kidd (Pantheon)

PROJECT: TELSTAR, designed by Chris Pitzer (AdHouse)

QUIMBY THE MOUSE, designed by Chris Ware (Fantagraphics)

TOP SHELF ASKS THE BIG QUESTIONS, designed by Brett Warnock (?) (Top Shelf)


HALL OF FAME ADDITIONS:


Judges' Choices:
Otto Binder, John Stanley

Voters will select four from the following individuals for inclusion into the Hall of Fame:

Bill Blackbeard, Wayne Boring, Al Capp, Jules Feiffer, Lou Fine, René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, Floyd Gottfredson, Graham Ingels, Kasuo Koike and Goseki Kojima, Don Martin, Jerry Robinson, Gilbert Shelton.

The Eisners will be given out on Saturday, July 23 at Comic-Con International.


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