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Update: Diamond Starts its Court Battles with Individual Publishers to get Control of Consigned Inventory

Posted on September 9, 2025 by Brett

As if the drama with Diamond‘s chapter 11 process isn’t crazy enough, now, there’s further issues in court when it comes to Diamond. Diamond has submitted a complaint against Ablaze to “determine the validity, priority or extent of a lien or other interest in property.” Ablaze is one of the publishers that are part of the Ad Hoc Committee that are fighting Diamond to determine who owns consigned inventory still in Diamond’s possession. Diamond wants to sell the inventory to raise money to pay back loans to JPMorgan Chase Bank while the publishers want the property back or be paid for it.

UDATE: As soon as we went to press with this, a similar motion against Action Lab was filed. Action Lab is not part of the Ad Hoc Committee. Since it went “AB” and now “AC,” we’re getting this in alpha order. We’ll keep a list of publishers below with each filing added as they’re released.

When it comes to Diamond’s plan to sell the consigned goods, a stay was put on that with another court date set for September 30. Diamond had a few options which was to see what happened on September 30, go with adversary proceedings against every consignor, aka publisher, or come to an agreement with the publishers.

It looks like Diamond will be going with adversary proceedings.

In Diamond’s motion they go through the history with Ablaze that they began a distribution agreement on April 1, 2023 where Ablaze supplied goods to Diamond on consignment. Ablaze then didn’t do the proper filing, UCC-1, which protects inventory if a distributor goes into chapter 11. Diamond began its chapter 11 proceedings in January. The lack of the UCC-1 Financing Statement is a regular argument that Diamond has made that they have the rights to the inventory. Diamond argues that due to bankruptcy code, and because Ablaze didn’t file the right paperwork, that Diamond has a superior interest to Ablaze when it comes to the inventory.

Diamond is asking the court to decide the inventory is theirs and they’re going publisher by publisher to do this.

In their filing they ask the court to declare that Diamond:

it has an interest in the Defendant Supplied Consigned Inventory superior to the interest of the Defendant,
the Debtor’s interest in the Defendant Supplied Consigned Inventory constitute property of the Debtor’s estate within the meaning of section 541(a) of the Bankruptcy Code, and
the Debtors can sell or otherwise dispose of the Defendant Supplied Consigned Inventory pursuant to Bankruptcy Code section 363(b), without regard to the terms and conditions of the Agreement, free and clear of any alleged interest in the Defendant Supplied Consigned Inventory held or asserted by the Defendant pursuant to Bankruptcy Code section 363(f).

All of this was Diamond’s original argument to be able to sell the consigned goods, now they’re just making it at the publisher level instead of a blanket one for all. The questions are:

Is this serious and going to play out with the upcoming hearing regarding the publishers motion over consignment goods still coming?
Is this an attempt at leverage to try to get the publishers to settle and cut a deal with Diamond?

We’ll keep updating this as to which publishers Diamond has filed against. Publishers include:

Ablaze
Action Lab Entertainment
Aftershock
Alien Books
American Mythology Productions
Aspen
Battle Quest Comics
Black Mask Studios
Boom Entertainment
Dark Horse Comics
Digital Manga

DSTLRY
Dynamic Forces
Fantagraphics
Goodman Games
Green Ronin Publishing
Heavy Metal Media
Herman & Geer Communications/Hermes Press
Humanoids
Living the Line
Magnetic Press

Massive Publishing
Netcomics
Oni Press
Paizo Inc.
Panini UK
Titan Comics
Udon Entertainment
Valiant Entertainment
Vault Comics
Zenescope

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Diamond Chapter 11

The Ad Hoc Committee Drops a Motion asking Out of Diamond, Ad Populum, and Universal Distribution, Who’s Actually Selling the Consignment Merchandise?

Posted on August 2, 2025 by Brett

There’s been a lot of unanswered questions when it comes to Diamond‘s chapter 11 filing and the purchase of its assets by Universal Distribution and Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop. The Ad Hoc Committee of Consignors has submitted a motion that lifts the veil a bit and gives clues as to some of those answers.

The Ad Hoc Committee of Consignors is a group of creditors, aka publishers, impacted by Diamond’s chapter 11 and also Diamond’s motion to try to sell consignment goods to help pay back its debts. The committee includes Ablaze, American Mythology, Avatar Press, Battle Quest, Drawn & Quarterly, Fantagraphics, Green Ronin, Hermes Press, Living the Line, Paizo, Udon Entertainment, and Zenescope.

At the heart of this motion is the question as to whether anyone can legally sell goods still held by Diamond and if Ad Populum or Universal Distribution properly continued any of the previous Diamond contracts.

In short, who the hell are currently selling and profiting from the comics and games being “sold by Diamond”?

Sit back, because this is a doozy of a filing and we’re going to try to break it down with bullet points for ease and the really interesting parts are in bold…

Diamond filed its bankruptcy on January 14, 2025 and on January 21 put in a motion to sell its assets
On May 1, Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop and Universal Distribution won the bidding prosses for the assets
On June 10, Diamond filed a notice of the sales closing with each closed in mid-May
Goods held on consignment by Diamond were excluded from the inventory sold to Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop and Universal Distribution
Spark Pop was given 20 business days after closing to decide what contracts it would continue and that includes the contracts (consignors) between Diamond and the publishers
Diamond nor Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop filed motions to have the “Consignors’ Contracts assumed and assigned.” This ended in early June 2025
Universal Distribution did include assumed contracts in its sale closing which was filed a month after closing. That included Green Ronin Publishing and a distribution agreement with Paizo. But, the purchase agreement and sale order didn’t identify any assigned contracts, so there’s some paperwork issues there.
On June 25, 2025, Diamond filed a motion to sell the consigned inventory it has.
After, there were a lot of objections to that consignment sale.
On April 17, Titan Publishing Group filed an emergency motion to compel Diamond to assume or reject its distribution agreement with Titan
On May 16, 2025, Diamond filed a motion objecting to Titan’s motion.

Got all that? In short, no one has filed the paperwork properly to assume or reject the contracts that existed between Diamond and the publishers.

There’s more interesting details…

On May 27, an email was sent to publishers stating the Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop and Universal Distribution were responsible for all sales activity after May 16 and Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop’s Diamond was a new entity. The Ad Hoc’s motion states that the email sent misled the publishers that the “Asset Sale to Sparke Pop was actually a sale of ownership, because it indicated that Diamond continued to operate under the ownership of a new buyer.”

What’s interesting is that that email says Ad Populum is responsible for new stock, but never took over any stock and that the legacy consignment stock continued to be sold… by someone.

And that’s what is at the heart of this motion, who is selling the stock that Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop and Universal didn’t purchase. Diamond isn’t providing information concerning that.

The May E-Mail confirms that the Stock continued to be sold by someone after the Sparkle Pop and/or UDL sales closed, but it is unclear who is selling the Stock. The Debtor has confirmed that it has not sold stock after May 15, 2025, but has declined to voluntarily provide any information to the Consignors as to who sold Stock after May 15, 2025, which Stock was sold, or what payments remain due and owing to the Consignors on account of
the sales. The Debtors have declined to voluntarily provide any information to the Consignors as to how any party other than the Diamond Distributor Debtor could sell Stock without a properly assumed and assigned agreement to do so.

The motion has amounts that are owned to each of the publishers. The 12 publishers are owed at least $555,971.84. But, that amount is unknown and likely higher since Diamond isn’t providing up-to-date reporting as to what’s sold or collected, so that amount may be higher.

The motion goes on further to poke holes in Diamond’s plan to sell the consignment stock and that there are outstanding obligations.

It’s asking for the status of these contracts to be determined and done so soon and the consignors what the contracts to be terminated when if Diamond rejects the contracts.

They’re also conducting discovery to find out who sold the stock after the May 15 sale to Ad Populum/Sparkle Pop.

Buckle up, this is going to get very interesting!

Read all of the filings below:

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Diamond Chapter 11

Who is the Ad Hoc Committee in the Diamond Bankruptcy Case?

Posted on July 26, 2025 by Brett

During the Diamond Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, there’s been an “Ad Hoc Committee” that has represented multiple creditors impacted, the creditors being publishers and others Diamond owes money to. But, who makes up the “Ad Hoc Committee?”

Formed on or about July 11, the group is represented by YVS Law, LLC and with a new filing, we now know who is represented answering more questions as to how publishers are responding to the legal proceeding and checking off 11 more who are involved in the proceedings.

The “Ad Hoc Committee” consists of:

Ablaze LLC
American Mythology Productions, LLC
Avatar Press, Inc.
Drawn & Quarterly Books Inc.,
Fantagraphics Books, Inc.
Green Ronin Publishing LLC
Herman & Geer Communications, Inc. dba Hermes Press
Living the Line LLC
Paizo Inc.
UDON Entertainment Inc.
Zenescope Entertainment Inc.

Check out the filing below:

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Diamond Chapter 11

Comic Splash Zone Issue 3! See what made our Top 5 New Release list this week!

Posted on January 21, 2025 by Brett

Don’t want to go through all of the comic, manga, manhwa, and graphic novel releases each week? In this week’s (Comic) Splash Zone, we run through the top 5 comics that stand out to us.

This week’s list includes:

Justice League Unlimited #3 (DC Comics)
Power Rangers Prime #3 (BOOM! Studios)
Traveling to Mars (Ablaze)
Ultimate Spider-Man #13 (Marvel)
Void Rivals #16 (Skybound)

Find out why these made the list and then go support your local comic shop and get them!

NYCC 2024: comixology Originals Expands With New Acquisitions and Print Distribution Channels

Posted on October 18, 2024 by Graphic Policy Team

Timed to New York Comic Con, Jeff DiBartolomeo, head of comiXology, unveiled a robust and diverse slate of new digitally exclusive comiCology Originals titles, teased upcoming projects, and announced a new print publisher for the program.

At an event at Amazon’s Midtown Manhattan office, DiBartolomeo underscored the company’s ongoing dedication to the comiXology Originals program as he teased 17 newly acquired projects with writers and artists Serg Acuña, Matthew Arnold, Frank Barbiere, Marc Bernardin, John Broglia, Mike Collins, Alex Cormack, Cat Farris, Valeria Favoccia, Alti Firmansyah, Veronica Fish, Adam Freeman, Davide Gianfelice, Marc Guggenheim, Kim-Joy, Neil Kleid, Szymon Kudranski, Lee Loughridge, Vic Malhotra, Marz Jr., Chris Matthews, Omar Morales, Mau Mora, Tom Morello, Stephen Rhodes, John Romita, Jr., Gonzalo Ruggieri, Mark Schey, Alex Segura, Scott Snyder, Taki Soma, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Jordan Thomas, Steven Thompson, and Harvey Tolibao.

DiBartolomeo also announced the next wave of new creator-owned comiXology Originals titles being released digitally in the coming months from all-stars Noah Bailey, Mike Carey, Whitney Cogar, Michael W. Conrad, Sunando C, Mark Dale, Allie Drake, Valeria Favoccia, Jonathan Hill, Tom Napolitano, Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, Curt Pires, Pablo Raimondi, MK Reed, Scott and Jack Snyder, and José Villarrubia.

In his remarks, DiBartolomeo underscored Amazon’s commitment to comics as he highlighted Comixology’s expanding print distribution. First, his presentation highlighted the upcoming print releases through comiXology’s new print distribution relationship with the publisher Ablaze, which was announced in May 2024. Beginning this month Ablaze is bringing the stunning 2024 Eisner award-nominated gothic love story Parliament of Rooks, by Abigail Jill Harding and Richard Starkings, to print in single issues. In November, in time for the holiday season, Ablaze will publish the Eisner award-winning graphic novel Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost, by co-writer Josh O’Neill and artist Gideon Kendall, who were on hand to presenttheir take on Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, followed by the publication of Miles Gunter and Briane Andan’s Grammaton Punch in 2025. And he shared that just this week Comixology extended their deal to bring 6 more titles to print with Ablaze including Cold Hard Cash: A Martha Chainey Escapade, Hard Style Juice!, Retroverse, Roderick and the City of Morhil, Sliced, and The Lycan. The release schedule will be announced at a later date.

DiBartolomeo then announced that Comixology has inked a new deal with independent publisher Mad Cave Studios to bring 10 Comixology Originals titles to bookstores, libraries, and comic shops. This exciting slate of releases includes Beneath, Boxed, Breaklands V2 and V3, Ghostbox, The Ghost of Wreckers Cove, Groupies, Midstate, Nostalgia, and Wag. The release schedule will be announced at a later date.

The next wave of Comixology Originals digital releases announced today include:

Ghostbox—Ghostbox #1 (of 5) debuts October 29, 2024

Ghostbox is a fantasy/horror story by acclaimed writer Mike Carey (Lucifer, The Girl With All The Gifts) and artist/letterer Pablo Raimondi (Sacred Creatures, Books of Doom), with colors by José Villarrubia launching just in time for Halloween! When sisters Chloe and Jan Peace unexpectedly inherit a mysterious carved wooden box, they discover that it’s inhabited by ghosts – and sought after by a race of shape-shifting monsters.

Stillman—Stillman #1 (of 5) debuts December 10, 2024

Writer Curt Pires (Endless, Money) and a rotating list of artists including Sunando C along with colorist Mark Dale and letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou tackle a new crime thriller. Peter Stillman leads a double life. By day he is a successful family man with a loving wife and two beautiful children trying to carve out his own little slice of the American dream. By night–his real life–as a violent hitman with deep ties to organized crime.

Budding Crisis–Budding Crisis #1 (of 5) debuts January 21, 2025.

Written by MK Reed (Americus, Science Comics: Dinosaurs, Delver) with art and letters by Jonathan Hill (Americus, Lizard Boy 2) and colors by Allie Drake, Budding Crisis is a new fantasy series about the disappearance of the world’s most precious magical resource, a plant whose seed has the power to grant wishes. With the Onomanthe plant extinct in the wild and the last cultivated strain dying out, what will the population do?

By A Thread Book 2—By A Thread #5 (of 4) debuts Spring 2025

Reuniting the father-and-son team of Scott & Jack Snyder with artists Valeria Favoccia and Whitney Cogar and letterer Tom Napolitano, the world of By A Thread expands with an all-new story arc! Charlie and our young heroes have defied the odds by traversing the deadly Shroud in search of a safe haven. With foes more powerful than ever before on their trail, will they even make it onto land?

The 99 Legs–The 99 Legs (ogn) debuts Spring 2025

Writer Michael W. Conrad (Neptune, Nightwing) and acclaimed artist Noah Bailey (Diabolical, Station Grand) reunite for the horror suspense original graphic novel The 99 Legs. The 99 Legs follows a down on his luck crime writer who discovers a string of murders in his area that seem to align with his newest unpublished manuscript. Terrified by this turn of events, the writer contacts his agent to halt the manuscript’s delivery to publishers, fearing that it will implicate him in the crimes. What follows is a blood spattered, spiraling nightmare, as the mystery of the killer’s identity unfolds.

The Comixology event hosted numerous creators including Jamal Igle, Tula Lotay, Lee Loughridge, Clay McCormack, Helen Mullane, Ricardo López Ortiz, Curt Pires, Alex Segura, Scott Snyder, and Chip Zdarsky showcasing their recent Comixology Originals titles. There were also special guest appearances by Kim-Joy and Marc Guggenheim and video messages from actor Thomas Jane and acclaimed writer Mike Carey talking about the upcoming release of The Lycan, which was announced earlier this year at SDCC, producer Steven DeKnight who talked about his debut original graphic novel Beneath, drawn by artist Michael Gaydos who was on hand at the event, and Ariela Kristantina spotlighted her upcoming graphic novel The Girl Who Draws on Whales.

The Kalevala, which inspired J.R.R. Tolkien to write The Lord of the Rings, is getting a graphic novel adaptation

Posted on August 3, 2024 by Graphic Policy Team

Ablaze has announced the upcoming release of a stunning comic adaptation of the epic The Kalevala, which inspired J.R.R. Tolkien to write The Lord of the Rings. It’s the foundational epic of the fantasy genre. The story and art is by Sami Makkonen.

Kalevala tells of the adventures and fates of wizard Väinämöinen, warrior Lemminkäinen, blacksmith Ilmarinen and other larger-than- life characters seeking love, riches, and magic in the faraway lands of the ancient North.

This is a bold approach to The Kalevala by an established talent — visually powerful and accessible.

Sami Makkonen is internationally renowned and is a recipient of the Sarjas Award for Best Fantasy Fiction. He also has been nominated for the Ghastly Awards for his horror work among numerous other awards.

Kalevala: The Graphic Novel is set for release September 24, 2024 and will retail for $29.99.

Comics

ComiXology Originals expands its print distribution to Ablaze

Posted on May 21, 2024 by Graphic Policy Team

ComiXology Originals is expanding print distribution by releasing three titles from Amazon’s comiXology Originals exclusive digital content line in print for the first time with Ablaze. Ablaze will distribute Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost, the Eisner award-winning version of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol in graphic novel form, the stunning Eisner award-nominated gothic love story Parliament of Rooks, and the action-packed supernatural story Grammaton Punch in print for the first time for customers in comic shops, bookstores, and libraries.

In 2023 Ablaze published Promethee 13:13–a prequel to the sci-fi bande dessinée series Prométhée by Christophe Bec–written by Andy Diggle with art by Shawn Martinbrough, in collaboration with Delcourt and first released digitally from comiXology Originals.

Harvey Kurtzman’s Marley’s Ghost

Written by Josh O’Neill and Shannon Wheeler
Art by Gideon Kendall

Marley’s Ghost is the posthumous completion of legendary creator Harvey Kurtzman’s adaptation of the classic Charles Dickens’ novel—A Christmas Carol. Kurtzman’s ambitious concept for Marley’s Ghost began in the 1950s—as an early “graphic novel”—but was never realized. Now, over 60 years later, writers Josh O’Neill and Shannon Wheeler expand upon Kurtzman’s extensive adaptation notes while illustrator Gideon Kendall’s outstanding artwork utilizes Kurtzman’s breakdowns and stylistic choices to make this long-lost vision a reality!

136 pages / color / on sale November 6, 2024 in comic shops and November 19, 2024 in bookstores and everywhere books are sold / MSRP $19.99 pbk / ISBN: 978-1-68497-353-8

Parliament of Rooks

Written and Illustrated by Abigail Jill Harding
Co-Written and Lettered by Richard Starkings

Artist Abigail Jill Harding (Ask For Mercy) makes her first ever longform writing and illustrating debut with the gothic love story Parliament of Rooks, a tale of dark fantasy, forbidden romance, menacing forces, and enchanting characters.

When architect Darius Ravenscar wakes from a strange and troubling dream. It becomes clear that something is terribly wrong and Ravenscar finds himself in a precarious predicament that will threaten his long-standing affection for the Princess, Seraphina. As Ravenscar becomes more tormented he searches for the truth, confronting ghosts from the past that haunt him and unraveling the mystery of his family, ultimately becoming torn between two worlds and two minds.

Publication date to be announced at a later date.

Grammaton Punch

Written by Miles Gunter
Art by Briane Andan

Grammaton Punch is an action-packed story about a boy who sees and fights ghosts. The supernatural story follows a high school freshman who must protect his classmates from the spirits feeding off their adolescent energy, all the while confronting his own self-imposed boundaries that prevent him from connecting with other people.

When Van starts his freshman year, he is shocked to discover his high school is ruled by a gang of ghosts feeding off his classmates’ energy. What’s worse, Van’s mom doesn’t believe that there are ghosts. In order to survive, Van will need to level up.

Publication date to be announced at a later date.

Ablaze licenses Shingo Honda’s Happyland

Posted on April 28, 2024 by Graphic Policy Team

Ablaze has announced it’ll release the English translation of Shingo Honda‘s manga Happyland. The series is about an extreme amusement park where nothing is as it seems and the horror that lies in store for an unsuspecting family that visits the park.

Welcome to Happyland, an extreme amusement park! The Komiya family is not unusual is any way, two parents love each other and their two children, who are healthy, happy, and accomplished at school and with extracurriculars. In appearance, they’re an ideal family that has everything going for them!

At least… That’s what they believed until the father decided to take them to spend a day at Happyland Park. In this park with its extreme attractions, the most shameful secrets will emerge in the most literally explosive way possible! A horrifying and gory tale of survival begins in this first of two volumes by Shingo Honda!

Happyland Vol. 1 will be released September 11 by Ablaze Manga.

Traveling to Mars #11 sticks the landing in the finale to one of the best comics in years

Posted on April 6, 2024 by Brett

As Roy’s journey to Mars comes to an end, he is forced to reflect on his life and the future of those who still have one.

Story: Mark Russell
Art: Roberto Meli
Color: Chiara Di Francia
Letterer: Mattia Gentili

Get your copy now! To find a comic shop near you, visit http://www.comicshoplocator.com or call 1-888-comicbook or digitally and online with the links below.

Zeus Comics
Kindle

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Graphic Policy’s Top Comic Picks this Week!

Posted on April 2, 2024 by Graphic Policy Team

Wednesdays (and Tuesdays) are new comic book day! Each week hundreds of comics are released, and that can be pretty daunting to go over and choose what to buy. That’s where we come in

Each week our contributors choose what they can’t wait to read this week or just sounds interesting. In other words, this is what we’re looking forward to and think you should be taking a look at!

Find out what folks think below, and what comics you should be looking out for this week.

Akogun: Brutalizer of Gods #1 (Oni Press) – In an age thought forgotten . . . when man, monster, and the divine all strode the Earth . . . a lone warrior emerges to test the immortality of the cruel gods who would deal destruction with impunity…

Deadpool #1 (Marvel) – It’s a new era for Deadpool and we’re always intrigued to see how new teams spin the character.

Godzilla vs. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers II #1 (IDW Publishing/BOOM! Studios) – The first volume was a hell of a lot of fun and we’re expecting more!

Principles of Necromancy #1 (Magma Comix) – The debut from Magma Comix has Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly writing and Eamon Winkle on art. The concept of a physician during the times of barbarians and knights wanting to overcome death sounds intriguing.

Red Sonja: Empire of the Damned #1 (Dynamite Entertainment) – Steve Niles writing Red Sonja. Nuff said.

The Sandman #19 Remastered (DC Comics/DC Black Label) – A new printing of the classic depiction of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Spider-Man: Shadow of the Green Goblin #1 (Marvel) – Norman Osborn was not the first goblin… wait, what?!

Traveling to Mars #11 (Ablaze) – Roy’s journey comes to an end as he reflects on his life and those that will live on.

Void Rivals #8 (Skybound) – The previous issue kicked off the new arc and introduced an intriguing bounty hunter to capture the fugitives. While it wasn’t the strongest issue, we’re still intrigued to see how this Energon Universe connected series keeps building its own mythos.

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