Week of 8/25/2025
This week, Bob's 1st Day of Work ends on The Shapes, I have a major announcement alongside some regular ones, and discuss my favorite Harvey Award nominees on Sammy the Critic.
The Shapes
Bob’s 1st Day of Work 15-16
News
Open Casting Call
Surprise news, everyone! I am working on a comic dub of The Shapes and am scouting for voice actors to play a few of the characters!! You can find more information about the project on my Casting Call Club page. If you’re interested in auditioning, email me at samuel.edme@outlook.com or send a Discord message @cartoonysam.
Event Announcements
Treehouse St. Pete
Tomorrow from 9 AM-1:30 PM, catch me at the Treehouse Church vending at their weekly Sunday market!
Tampa Makers Market
On Friday, I’ll be vending at New World Brewery in North Tampa for Tampa Makers Market. I might need a ride for this one, so if anyone can chime in and drive me from Gulfport, it would be much appreciated.
Bradenton Art Market
And for the first time, you can find me vending in Manatee County at the Bradenton Art Market, located at Adobe Kava, from 7-11 PM.
Sammy the Critic
Top 5 Harvey Awards Nominees
Hear ye, hear ye! It’s still comics award season, calling for the obligatory dive into my favorite nominated works. While the shortlist isn’t as stunning or comprehensive as the Eisner or Ignatz Awards (the latter of which I’m covering next week), there are, as always, doozies to be uncovered.
As I’ve done in years prior, for fairness's sake, I will only be highlighting works that I haven’t discussed before. However, at the end of my list, I will do a quick run-down of my overall favorites.
5. Mixed-Up by Kami Garcia & Brittney Williams (First Second)
Nomination: Best Children’s Book
After a successful run of Teen Titans graphic novels with the DC Comics YA imprint DC Ink, best-selling writer Kami Garcia teams up with artist Brittney Williams in her first children’s graphic novel.
Inspired by Garcia’s own namesake daughter, Mixed-Up follows middle-schooler Stella, a normal, well-adjusted girl of her age who bonds with her two best friends Emiko and Latasha over the fantasy franchise Witchlins. However, one thing she doesn’t realize yet is that she has dyslexia, which brings forth challenges when she tries to read the new online game guidebook for Witichlins.
Consistent with the book’s subject matter, its typography uses a large font size with ample line spacing for an accessible reading experience. Parents and children will find this book a useful resource and a good discussion catalyst for understanding dyslexia.
4. Raised by Ghosts by Briana Loewinsohn (Fantagraphics)
Nomination: Best Young Adult Book
Briana Loewinsohn’s second graphic novel, Raised by Ghosts, is a memoir that alternates between sequential narrative and diary entries spanning her teenage years during the early to mid-90s in the Bay Area. Although this is marketed as a YA book, its reflective saudade will be more relatable to adult readers who grew up around the same time as the author and recall what it was like being a latchkey kid. There is no major conflict, but latent motifs germane to absent parenting can be observed throughout, eventually building up to an abstract psychological sequence that contains several elements worthy of a deconstructive analysis.
3. The Summer Hikaru Died by Mokumokuren; translated by Ajani Oloye (Yen Press)
Nomination: Best Manga
Judging by the title and cover, you might think you’re in for a poignant tragedy about a bereaved friend. You absolutely could be further from the truth, but you’re not quite right in your initial assessment either.
Physically, Hikaru looks alive and healthy, but his best friend Yoshiki knows him well enough to notice something off and alien about him. As it turns out, it’s not just paranoia, for an eldritch entity has possessed Hikaru. The creepiest aspect is how latent the manga’s horror elements are, existing within the framework of slice-of-life. This isn’t an Exorcist situation where the being is a wholly malevolent threat that seeks disruption. It’s conscious with a personality despite internalizing traits of its host, wanting to build a close relationship with Yoshiki. I’ve only read the first volume, but I’m curious to see where this goes.
2. Final Cut by Charles Burns (Pantheon)
Nomination: Book of the Year
I’m not as well-acquainted with Charles Burns’ oeuvre as some (I still need to read Black Hole), so while I can’t compare Final Cut to his previous work, I can confidently state that I thoroughly enjoy his masterful cartooning craftsmanship.
Containing a mélange of behind-the-scenes wonder, Lynchian surrealism, and interpersonal relationship drama, the book follows a group of young adults filming a sci-fi horror film. Burns’ allusions to Golden Age comics, pulp literature, and B-movie cinema make Final Cut a loving tribute to all that is kitsch, strengthened by stellar dialogue and character dynamics.
1. Navigating with You by Jeremy Whitley, Cassio Ribeiro & Nikki Foxrobot (Maverick/Mad Cave)
Nomination: Best Young Adult Book
Disability advocate and cosplay designer Neesha Sparks is the new girl in town when she and her single mom move from Queens to a North Carolina city, and so is surfing enthusiast Gabby Graciana when her single dad moves from Miami to there. While Neesha is initially reluctant to pursue any friendship at her new high school, as fate has it for lovers, Gabby’s persistence in befriending her pays off as they bond over their love for the sci-fi manga series Navigator Nozomi, embarking on a mission to find the series’ remaining volumes.
From Cassio Ribeiro’s gentle colors and defined yet animated art to Jeremy Whitley’s incredible character writing, Navigating with You is the graphic equivalent of a hot coffee over a warm blanket by the fireplace. The fan in me who can relate to being passionate about a series felt a jolt of cozy warmth seeing the duo’s relationship develop. However, cute isn’t all there is to this book. Neesha’s struggles with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy are physically and socially depicted alongside Gabby’s toxic long-distance relationship and PTSD from losing her mother. It never gets to the point of patronizing pity, so you won’t have to worry about that ruining an otherwise light-hearted read.
And my brief run-down of my overall favorite nominees:
Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees by Patrick Horvath (IDW Publishing)
Nomination: Best Book of the Year
The Cartoonists Club by Raina Telgemeier & Scott McCloud (Graphix) Nomination: Best Children’s Book
Navigating with You
Final Cut
The Summer Hikaru Died