The Eisner Awards, the comic book industry's answer to the Oscars, gave some love to the Dallas area over the weekend.
PVP, written by Scott Kurtz of Little Elm, won the Eisner for best digital comic. And Zeus Toys and Comics in Turtle Creek Village won the Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailing Award. Zeus is the first Texas store to win the retail award in its 14-year history.
Richard Neal, Zeus' owner and one half of its full-time staff, said he was so shocked by his store's win that he forgot his acceptance speech.
SCOTT KURTZ/www.pvponline.com
"Everything I was supposed to say went right out the window," Neal said yesterday. "I said, 'I sell your comic books, I love what I do,' then I squealed and ran off the stage."
Scott Hinze, host of Fort Worth's Fanboy Radio, said the retail prize is the Eisner with the most heated competition: "People will walk out if they don't win."
Stores are nominated by their customers. Neal credited Zeus' nomination to David Hopkins, the Arlington-based writer of Emily Edison, a graphic novel published this month by Irving's Viper Comics.
"That was an honor in itself, that some of the small-press people in town nominated us," Neal said.
Hopkins said Neal, 36, has always supported local creators. Last year, Zeus bought 200 copies of his Karma Incorporated and gave them away.
"It's just the sort of things that Richard does that are beyond the call of duty and rationale that make [Zeus] one of those stores you want to stand behind," Hopkins said.
A panel of judges narrowed the retailer nominees to about 25. Neal then had to present Zeus' case based on five criteria: the retailer's support of innovative material, knowledge, quality of store image, adherence to ethical business practices and community activity.
Zeus' big community event is CAPE!, a.k.a. the Comics and Pop-culture Expo. It's been held the last two Mays on the weekend of Free Comic Book Day. Neal said the idea came from Kurtz, who's also a Zeus customer.
"He came off a particularly poor convention experience, where comics weren't really the focus," Neal said. "He knew we had the Free Comic Book Day event, and he said, 'Hey, I know people. Let's make this a bigger thing.' "
Kurtz laid the path to his Eisner win in 1998, when he launched his Web site, www.pvponline.com. It features a daily comic strip about a fictional video game magazine. "He's the funniest guy on the Internet," Hinze said. Print editions are published by Image Comics.
"The Eisners for Zeus and for Scott [Kurtz] were really a win for the city," Neal said, "for the stuff we can do to promote the medium."
Dan just remembered that Quick named Neal as one of its Five to Watch last month. Boo-ya! E-mail him at dkoller@quickdfw.com.
Continuing series: Astonishing X-Men (Marvel), written by Joss Whedon and drawn by John Cassaday
Limited series: Seven Soldiers (DC), written by Grant Morrison and drawn by various artists
New series: All Star Superman (DC), written by Grant Morrison and drawn by Frank Quitely
Writer: Alan Moore, Promethea and Top Ten: The Forty-Niners (America's Best)
Writer/artist: Geof Darrow, Shaolin Cowboy (Burlyman)
Writer/artist (humor): Kyle Baker, Plastic Man (DC) and The Bakers (Kyle Baker Publishing)
Penciller/inker: John Cassaday, Astonishing X-Men (Marvel) and Planetary (WildStorm)
Major news to come out of Comic-Con International, the San Diego event where the Eisners ceremony was held.
•Beginning with October's issue No. 844, the new writing team on Action Comics will be Richard Donner, director of the original Superman film, and his former assistant, Infinite Crisis writer Geoff Johns.
•Adam Hughes confirmed he will be writing and drawing the third title in DC's "All Star" line of continuity-be-damned comics: All Star Wonder Woman.
•Marvel will publish an ongoing comic based on the Halo video game beginning next summer, and editor-in-chief Joe Quesada promised the initial writer will blow fans' minds.
•Marvel will publish a second Avengers title, The Mighty Avengers. It will be drawn by Frank Cho and written by Brian Michael Bendis , who already writes New Avengers.
•Nicolas Cage and son Wes have pitched Virgin Comics on a title they would write together, tentatively called Enigma.
•Spider-Man 3 director Sam Raimi screened footage of Topher Grace becoming Venom, complete with gigantic eyes and fangs.
•Frank Miller (Sin City) will write and direct a big-screen adaptation of Will Eisner's The Spirit.
•Director Jon Favreau confirmed that the Mandarin will be the villain in 2008's Iron Man.
•Bryan Singer said he intends to direct a sequel to Superman Returns to be released in 2009.
•Louis Leterrier (The Transporter) will direct a new Hulk movie. The screenplay is being written by Zak Penn, who helped write the last two X-Men films.
•The voice of Optimus Prime (below) in next year's Transformers movie will be provided by Peter Cullen, who also played the Autobots' leader in the 1980s TV series.
•Films based on DC's Doom Patrol and Deadman are in the works. Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy) may direct the latter.
SOURCES: Newsarama.com and WizardUniverse.com
