2025 Eisner Awards: Who’s Nominated for Best Continuing Series?

Eisner Awards 2025 - Best Continuing Series Nominees - Walt's Comic Shop

0 comments

Written by Petar

Wanted to be an astronaut, ended up exploring comics instead.

Written by Matheus

Filmmaker by day, Wishlistmaker by night. Kamala Khan’s unofficial PR team since 2014.

The Department of Truth by James Tynion IV and Martin Simmonds (Image) - By Petar

I was a bit hesitant to get into The Department of Truth. While I do love most of the things Tynion writes, Simmonds’ art just was not doing it to me. That is, until I picked up my copy of the Deluxe Edition, at which point I kind of had to get into it at that point, right?

And what an adventure this book actually is. The oversized format has allowed me to better admire Simmonds’ art, which is very painterly, sometimes smudgy or scratchy. The colors can be weird no matter how on-point the models are, but that’s actually the point of the whole story and as I dove deeper into The Department of Truth, I loved it more and more (maybe I was Stockholmed into it?).

The story follows an ex-FBI agent Cole Turner as he’s conscripted into a secret department within the United States – a place only few chosen people get access to. As Cole learns more about the Department, so does the reader. The world as we know it isn’t real – it actually balances on a thin edge of belief, and if too many people start believing in a conspiracy theory, it becomes true. The Department of Truth is there to preserve the truth… or maybe control it. As the story progresses, we learn about different factions, and Cole is split between covering up conspiracies and finding the truth about his own past…

After a two year wait, the team returned last year and it is so great to see them return back in full form, winning them this Eisner nomination.

All The Department Of Truth Editions:

Batman: Detective Comics by Ram V, Tom Taylor, Riccardo Federici, Stefano Raffaele, Javier Fernandez, Christian Duce, March and Mikel Janín (DC) - By Petar

Last year, Ram V’s operatic run on Detective Comics ended on a crescendo, clearing Gotham of the demons that have haunted it for the past two years. From the start, the run was met with some polarizing opinions – Ram V is a writer who’s very methodical and likes to take his time deconstructing the story, setting and characters. He very intentionally created an arc that lasted for two years and over thirty issues, which is not everyone’s cup of tea going into it week in and week out.

However, going back to it now – with all five TBPs out – it reads as an exciting and contemplative romp. I would highly recommend you pick up Gotham Nocturne: Overture when given a chance and take the first bite of what the story has to offer.

The story sees a new, mysterious Orgham family (with ties to the Arkham family) returning to Gotham on a mission to change it. This isn’t the first time they have done such a thing around the world, but Gotham is, of course, a completely different meal.

Then, beginning with the All In initiative, Tom Taylor and Mikel Janín picked up the title with issue 1090 to tell a more grounded, personal story. They pick up on the threads of previous writers, with Bruce still reeling from the fact that him aging means he is losing his top form, and might need some help as the new villain with possible ties to Waynes’ past shows up.

The person who does not need any help though is Janín, who is killing it on the book. He’s not a newcomer in the world of Batman, but I believe this is the first time I’ve seen him tackle the colors too, and this really elevates his work further (this isn’t a dig on his previous colorists, but I just REALLY enjoy it in this book). There is a hue to every scene depending on the location that’s really fun to see, and his figures do not look “3D modeled” with this coloring (which is a criticism I’ve often heard).

I really recommend you pick this run too – Detective Comics is just always a blast, and it’s great that we’re seeing some detective stories back in the title!

Batman: Detective Comics is collected in:

Fantastic Four by Ryan North, Carlos Gomez, Ivan Fiorelli, and others (Marvel) by Matheus

Petar and I have gone character by character in the Fantastic Four for this blog, sharing our favorite moments for each of them. And every single time we landed on the question of which run to recommend, Ryan North’s came up. Every time. That’s because what this run does best is simple but incredibly rare - it gives every character their moment to shine.

This run reads like a nerdy, joyful explanation of the endless reasons Fantastic Four was, is, and always will be the best superhero book out there.

Calling something a “love letter” is a go-to of mine in this blog, and for good reason. Comics are made by passionate people, and when they finally get a chance to write the thing they’ve always loved, they don’t hold back. They pour their hearts into it. But there are love letters… and then there’s this.

North’s run feels like a carefully built blueprint. A step-by-step breakdown of why the Fantastic Four revolutionized comics back in the ‘60s and how they can still push things forward today, while honoring what made them great in the first place.

There are wild sci-fi stories. There are stories just about science. There’s comedy. There’s pure soap opera drama. There’s classic cape-shit throwdowns. There are zingers and one-liners. There are pranks. There’s meditation. There’s solo reflection, and there’s coming together. There’s love, and there’s grief.

Nothing captures what I mean better than North’s very first decision in the run. Get rid of the kids. Not forever, just long enough to strip the team back to its core, to show who they are when it’s just the four of them. And then, once that foundation is set, he brings the kids back and gives them the space and care they’ve always deserved. It’s a balancing act, an ensemble done right.

North is the kind of writer who understands two crucial things: how to be funny, and how to write comics. That combination turns out to be exactly what the Fantastic Four needed. Someone who gets the weight of the legacy, but still knows when to throw in a stretch-arm dad joke.

This run celebrates the Fantastic Four. A place Marvel should always keep them in.

Fantastic Fourth by Ryan North is collected in:

Santos Sisters by Greg & Fake, Graham Smith, Dave Landsberger, and Marc Koprinarov (Floating World) by Matheus

When a bunch of nerds start saying “wait, I actually don’t know what this is” during a Zoom meeting, you know something is really flying under the radar. But the only thing we love more than bloating our knowledge is stumbling across little nuggets of greatness and screaming about them to everyone we know.

And I’m so happy to do that with this one.

Do you remember when comics were funny just for being funny? Not to prove a point. Not to follow a trend. Not to hide behind three layers of irony. Just... funny. Silly. Breezy. Joyfully dumb in the smartest way possible.

Santos Sisters is that. It’s like a long-lost issue from some garage sale spinner rack, where Archie, early She-Hulk, vintage MAD Magazine, and a bit of Jack Kirby weirdness all got smashed together into something.

There’s a sort of magic in how effortless it all feels. It doesn’t scream for your attention. It just exists in its own bright, silly world and trusts that you’ll get on its wavelength. The Santos Sisters themselves are a perfect kind of ridiculous. Part superpowered satire, part social commentary, and part Totally Spies and other French cartoons we used to catch on TV having no idea it was French (I'm assuming this is a worldwide thing and not just Brazil). But in retrospect, of course it was French.

It also reminds me of the good parts of american adult animation, something like Beavis and Butt-Head and South Park but way, waaaay less mean. The positivity and the simple attitude is exactly the charm actually. Funny without offense but kinda low-key making fun of everything. Just a good energy to have. It makes you want to support it.

Everything feels like a love letter to the history of comics without ever being precious or self-important about it. It winks at the format but never mocks it. Instead, it plays with structure, tone, and aesthetics like a bunch of kids making a comic for the sheer joy of making one.

Toiled-read really, if I'm honest, but real ones know this is the best type of compliment a book can ever receive.

And my guy Todd steals the show. I get you Todd. I feel like I would also have a crush on a Todd-type but if you tell anyone I'll beat you up.

So no, maybe you haven’t heard of Santos Sisters. But now you have. And now you can go tell your coolest, most comic-snobby friend about it, then smugly watch them fall in love, issue by issue, just like you did.

Ultimate Spider-Man by Jonathan Hickman, Marco Checchetto and David Messina (Marvel)

Will I ever stop writing about Ultimate Spider-Man? In my opinion, this title did for Marvel and Spider-Man what Absolute Batman did for DC and their headliner. I just love this book so, so much. It scratches that itch I’ve been having for a Spidey story that will grab me and not let go, and I just wish we had so much more of it.

I have already gushed about it in my Modern Spider-Man Runs article (you’ll allow a shameless self-promo, right?). So, let’s examine it from another angle. I think the thing that differs Ultimate Spider-Man from Absolute Batman is the way in which it approaches the established mythos of the character.

Snyder has already written the story about Batman being Batman all the way back in New 52. He’s already given his input in the idea of who Batman is, what he stands for, etc. And while Hickman has written Peter before during his fantastic/amazing (spectacular?) Fantastic Four run, he now has the chance to dive head-on into the whole “power and responsibility” concept – a thing he does wonderfully in the book.

This is not to say that Snyder is not exploring what it means to be Batman, he is just doing it from a new, unique angle, with his tongue firmly placed in his cheek. Meanwhile, Hickman is treading new ground, but he’s doing it from a more genuine perspective, with his (and his characters) heart on the sleeve. It’s a great showcase for both him and his artists month to month, and it promises to be a wild ride in the upcoming months too.

So, will I ever stop writing about Ultimate Spider-Man? Just try and stop me!

Ultimate Spider-Man by Jonathan Hickman is collected in:

Wonder Woman by Tom King and Daniel Sampere (DC) by Matheus

This one is hard to talk about. Not because I don’t have thoughts but because it’s a book people I deeply respect have strong, valid, often scathing criticisms of. And I get it. I’ve read the threads, the essays, about how this run doesn't “get” Wonder Woman. And a lot of those arguments are hard to argue against.

But I also really love this book.

So allow me to tell you the reasons why.

America is a complicated beast and, depending on your vantage point, also a pretty simple one. Tom King is a writer who’s usually good at both, at pointing a sharp finger at what’s fundamentally broken in the American psyche, while also being deeply fluent, sometimes frustratingly so, in indulging its worst bullshit. He is, after all, an American. You can take that statement however you want. But he's also an artist. And I think artists deserve the space to express a vision, even if you think it's the wrong one for this character specifically.

In this case, that vision starts with an America that has turned its back on the Amazons. After a fatal bar incident, where an Amazonian woman kills several men following the usual sexist harassment, the U.S. government reacts by banning Amazons from the country. It’s fear politics. Instant dehumanization. The kind of authoritarianism wrapped in PR that feels, unfortunately, like it could happen tomorrow.

Enter The Sovereign, head of the Monarchy, a secret dynastic power structure that has always pulled the strings in America from the shadows. They see this as the perfect opportunity to launch a campaign against Diana, not just because she’s an Amazon, but because she’s a symbol they can’t control. And when America can’t control something, it smears it.

Diana chooses to resist and to investigate. To dig into the truth behind the incident. And what unfolds is a slow-burn psychological chess match between state power and a singular woman who refuses to bend to it. It’s told in a dense, looping narrative style, framed as a recollection by a member of the Monarchy, speaking in the first person to Trinity, Wonder Woman’s future daughter. The past is our present. The consequences are already written. It’s an incredibly well-crafted setup, and if you like King’s long games, this one’s a high-wire act from the jump.

What makes it good for me, though, are the thematic gut punches, especially around masculinity.

Because if there’s one thing we’ve seen time and time again, it’s that men really don’t like being challenged by women in superhero costumes. They’ll throw full-on tantrums over a movie trailer. Whole YouTube ecosystems are built around whining about "wokeness" because a woman lifted a hammer or twerked in a 5 second scene. And what King does here is smart. He folds that same fragile, reactionary energy into the story. The Monarchy exploits male insecurity the same way real-world grifters, pundits, and politicians do, weaponizing it, monetizing it, using it to control and to keep people apart.

There’s one issue in particular that I really loved.

While the villains make their move, Diana spends the day doing nothing epic, just visiting a sick kid. One of those classic superhero-reads-to-a-child issues. But the way it's executed here is full of meaning. The kid is her biggest fan, wide-eyed and full of questions. And at one point, he asks if something is wrong with him because he doesn't like the same things other boys do. Because he loves Wonder Woman. And it’s such a simple, crushing moment.

As someone who fell in love with comics through female characters, this hits hard. There’s something infuriating about the idea that art should only reflect your life, your gender, your worldview. That if a story centers someone not like you, it's suddenly political. Diana’s entire mythology is about love and peace and perseverance and yet, every time she’s portrayed with complexity or force, some corner of fandom loses its mind.

King’s Wonder Woman is a woman standing against a machine built to erase her. And while you could argue that this Diana is too cold, too reactive, too unlike the compassionate warrior we’ve known, that’s fair. I’d also argue that the world she’s walking into demands a different stance. It’s not a warm book. It’s not a hopeful book. But it’s a defiant one. And that counts for something.

No run can define Wonder Woman on its own. That’s the beauty of her. She’s been many things to many people. But this version is one worth talking about, even if it makes you uncomfortable. Maybe especially if it makes you uncomfortable. And by god, please hate It and explain why you hate It. But it's so GOOD to have something to actually disagree on, with valid points both ways. Better than most of the spineless things we are force-fed from the big-two from time to time.