The Homies 2019
There’s gifts on the fire and logs on the tree, and that means only one thing – it’s time for the annual House to Astonish Homies awards, where we dish out our gongs in various categories to the best and brightest comics of the year.
As always, Paul and I will individually be choosing a winner for each category, but there’s the usual proviso – we want YOU to help, so you all name your picks in the comments, and Paul and I each choose our own, and we talk a bit about each of the three on our awards show.
We’re likely to be recording at the very end of December/start of Jan, so we’re giving you until midnight UK time (7pm Eastern, 4pm Pacific) on December 29 to make your choice. When you list your picks, don’t just name names either, because we’ll be reading out the best comments on the show, so let us know your thinking!
BEST NEW SERIES
This one’s pretty self-explanatory – any comic whose first issue was published between 1 January 2019 and the close of nominations (29 December) is eligible. What new series got your attention the most this year?
BEST ACTUALLY NEW SERIES
This one’s a little less self-explanatory – what series, again first published between 1 January and 29 December, did you think was best, with the proviso that it has to be something where the property wasn’t in existence prior to the start of 2018. We’re counting re-use of titles as well as concepts, so Agents of Atlas or Criminal wouldn’t be eligible, but (for example) Coffin Bound or Excellence would.
BEST CONTINUING SERIES
The counterpart to the categories above, which covers books whose first issue was published in 2018 or before. They’ve been around the block, but they’ve still got what it takes.
BEST MINI, ONE-SHOT OR OGN
These are explaining themselves by this point, right? We’re looking for OGNs, one-shots and minis published in 2019 (or partially in 2019, in the case of minis).
FAVOURITE WRITER
FAVOURITE ARTIST
FAVOURITE COLOURIST
Each of these three is pretty self-explanatory – whose name on the cover or credits box of a book makes you want to pick it up? Whose work do you most look forward to seeing?
MOST WANTED
This is for the comic, series or graphic novel that saw print this year which you’d want to see more of, whether that be a book that was cancelled before its time, a one-shot or mini that just begs for a follow-up, or an OGN that you’d love to see a sequel to.
MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE
It may have seemed unappealing when you read about it online, and those preview pages may have looked unremarkable, but when you finally got the winner of this category in your hands you were ready to eat your words. What comic, series or graphic novel did you find yourself enjoying much more than you thought you would?
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT
This is exactly what it says – which creator, creative team, publisher or other contributor to the world of comics really knocked it out of the park this year?
Let us have your picks in the comments thread below, along with your thinking on each one – we’ll read out a range of the responses on our big end-of-year show. Happy nominating!
BEST NEW SERIES
Lazarus: Risen was a welcome return. There wasn’t a lot this year, mind.
BEST ACTUALLY NEW SERIES
Witch Hat Atelier – A dash of Ghibli, a splash of Moomin, and a heap of charm.
BEST CONTINUING SERIES
It’s Giant Days. I mean… come on, what else could it be?
BEST MINI, ONE-SHOT OR OGN
House of X / Powers of X: this series got me buying X-books again for the first time in years, rather than waiting for Marvel Unlimited to catch up because The Hype Was Real (and the Spoilers Were Also Very Real If You Waited, Really, Who Wants To Be That Cautious For 6 Months?)
FAVOURITE WRITER
John Allison – Giant Days and Steeple led to a very good year for him.
FAVOURITE ARTIST
Max Sarin – every page was amazing, every expression was a meme in waiting.
FAVOURITE COLOURIST
Rod Reis for New Mutants. The line work is great, but the colours are what make it pop.
MOST WANTED
The continuing adventures of the Lost Light, those sweet bots.
MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE
If TV is allowed, then Watchmen – I expected a fluff at best. I wasn’t expecting… any of that.
Otherwise, it’s House of X / Powers of X for exactly the same reasons.
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT
It was too late to get nominated last year, so… Spiderverse. All other answers are wrong.
BEST NEW SERIES
Copra (Image Comics)
BEST ACTUALLY NEW SERIES
Once and Future (Boom Studios)
BEST CONTINUING SERIES
The Wicked + The Divine (Image Comics)
BEST MINI, ONE-SHOT OR OGN
House of X and Powers of X (Marvel Comics)
FAVOURITE WRITER
Kieron Gillen (The Wicked + The Divine, Once and Future)
FAVOURITE ARTIST
RB Silva (Powers of X)
FAVOURITE COLOURIST
Matt Wilson (The Wicked + The Divine, Once and Future, The White Trees)
MOST WANTED
More issues of The White Trees (Image Comics) by Chip Zdarsky, Kris Anka, and Matt Wilson.
MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE
A new Legion of Super-Heroes ongoing series
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT
Geoff Johns & Gary Frank finally completing Doomsday Clock
BEST NEW SERIES
Criminal
BEST ACTUALLY NEW SERIES
Faithless
BEST CONTINUING SERIES
The Wicked + The Divine
BEST MINI
King Thor
FAVOURITE WRITER
Kieron Gillen (Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt was a surprise, he nailed the ending of WicDiv, I’ve been really enjoying DIE, and the RPG guide is just so over the top that I’ve got to hand it to him.)
FAVOURITE ARTIST
Tradd Moore
MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE
The final issue of The Walking Dead. (That #193 was the end was a surprise in itself, that this issue both served as a culmination of the series and as a well-crafted standalone story as well, a pleasant surprise indeed.)
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT
Jason Lutes’ Berlin came to a close in 2018, but if the collected edition counts at 2019, then the completion of that long-running, intermittent serialization deserves some praise. Otherwise, Eleanor Davis’s The Hard Tomorrow manages to be a powerful reaction to the present without slipping us into despair.