A Comics Capital

Showing up for comics creators was the theme of my summer. Well, that, and amassing a gargantuan stack of properly weird indie comics while traveling...

Those travels included an extended weekend in our nation's capital, in which I had modest ambitions and few expectations. I committed to one recommended downtown comic shop to ask about regional creators, maybe two, if the first one didn't pan out. Otherwise, that was the extent of my planning: squeezing in comics exploration when and if it fit. But after strolling up the stairs of downtown's Fantom Comics for the first time, I pretty much decided to make it fit.

What I ended up getting from Washington, D.C. was obviously far more enlightening than a "Room Where It Happened" themed history lesson. And I'm not just referring to the +8 lbs. of comics that needed to be redistributed to other luggage before takeoff (see featured image at the top). Reading and absorbing all of those new comics will take a bit, as will translating enthusiasm into quality reporting/writing. To that I can only say: good things take time, and patience is a virtue.

So lend us your attention, and we promise not to waste it...

Smithsonian's Comic Mural by Dinner Date's Creative Team

I wasn't looking for it, but the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History still had a prominent presence from comic creators. The second floor harbors the Cellphone: Unseen Connections special exhibit on the history, manufacturing, and impact of cellphones, which stands apart from most everything else in the building.

Mostly, I'm referring to the beautiful sequential story that lines the walls from writer Joanne Starer and artist Khary Randolph. The pair first worked together on BOOM! Studio's Sirens of the City. Their latest series, Dinner Date from Ignition Press, is scheduled to hit comic shelves this October. Their Smithsonian mural was an unexpected highlight I didn't know I wanted. (And I wasn't alone, given how annoying I must have been waiting for crowds to clear so I could take photos – see below.)

It's hard to say how effective something like this is overall. We get a rich, visually thoughtful lesson on the long-term impacts, including unsavory bits like the toxic waste accumulated by replacing your smartphone every few years. Society seems fairly agreeable to allowing the next generation to deal with the problem. It sets a precedent, with each new generation coming to power eager to recycle this same idea.

Or maybe that's the entire point of the exhibit, to get people asking these sorts of questions. In any event, if you're in the Capital, it's worth checking out. You could make a day out of it when visiting Fantom Comics (shop photos below!), which recommended a slew of indie comics and zines from creators in the area.

While I'm not entirely sure everyone is still based here, the books below are worth your valuable time regardless...

To Bleed Stone Dry Beautifully Meshes Existential Dread with Vampires & Angelic Statues

A 2026 Ignatz Award nominee, To Bleed Stone Dry is an enlightening, deceptively deep mini comic about a self-loathing vampire who regularly visits a local church for philosophical conversations with the statue of an Angel. It opens with the vampire, named Matthew after the eighth apostle, who was once a gifted sculptor before his hands transformed into talons. Meanwhile, the Angel, Michael, contemplates existence.

The conceptual description for the story feels like the kind of thing my mind might have invented while attending Catholic Mass as a means of escaping boredom during biblical readings or choir hymns – except interesting enough for it to stay with me long after digesting those bland communion wafers.

Creator R.D. Yoon's artwork is beautiful and deliberate, with bold color choices that really make the story pop. It reminded me pretty quickly of the art style used by J.H. Williams III in Promethea (see photos above).

You can grab a copy of To Bleed Stone Dry via Yoon's web store, along with three other short comics.

ANTS: Things Fall Apart... But with Billionaire Ridicule

ANTS is a hilarious, relevant comic that parodies the news and recent politics. It primarily features two humanoid ants (Traz and Brodie) taking the piss out of super wealthy tech bros, ridiculing the Trump administration, and reframing new economic realities without stock market jargon. It took me a second to get the brilliant subtlety of using ants to represent normal people, though not too long.

"I've drawn them this way essentially since I created them when I was 14. It seemed like a simple way to communicate as anthropomorphized bugs," creator Julian Lytle told Weird City. Lytle, who I briefly spoke with at SPX, is also a film/games critic and regular contributor to The Beat. That makes sense, given how bluntly some of his short comics about the news media are portrayed.

It was also something I didn't know I needed until flipping through the pages of ANTS: Things Fall Apart, a collected print version of his signature comics. When I moved to Austin, Texas 5,600+ days ago, Joe Rogan's podcast HQ was still a celebrated movie theater, Elon was still California's problem, and using Twitter was more acceptable than shopping at Target or eating Chick-fil-A. Being able to joke about it is imperative, but finding ways to do it without activating your outrage can be a challenge. ANTS makes a solid attempt.

Immediately upon opening, we get treated to Traz referring to Musk as "Afrikaner Stark" – making light of the billionaire growing up in Apartheid-era South Africa (until fleeing to Canada at age 17 to avoid military service). Then in "Mecha Hitler," Lytle engineers a short story in which his characters discuss rationale for getting off Twitter before it somehow hacks their Nintendo Switch 2.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Wong also makes an appearance in a comic. "Protection" is about his capitulation to Trump's demand that his company give the government a 15% stake in exchange for opening sales to China, which continues to raise eyebrows. And honestly, Lytle's assessment of how best to deal with such powerful business leaders is probably the most correct I've encountered (see above).

Lytle told me he plans to do more comics as time permits, but you should check out ANTS: Things Fall Apart for FREE via Global Comix.

Pet Peeves and the Limitations of Personal Growth Through Pet Ownership

Knowing what your passion is, what it is that drives you, can be a unifying experience that brings clarity to the rest of your life. It can also represent frustration and guilt as the necessities of real life take priority. You can't simply ignore showing up for a dead-end job where you aren't appreciated, for instance.

In Nicole Goux's Pet Peeves from Avery Hill, readers watch such a scenario play out for Bobbie, an aspiring musician with a brutal work schedule at a local dive bar. The story's slow buildup of Bobbie's frustration includes her ex bringing a date to the bar, her boss stringing her along to get a slot for her band to perform, and a growing awareness that her situation is less comfortable than ever.

Then she meets a stray dog, a small, sweet thing with a deficiency of house training that leads to much strife between Bobbie and her increasingly irritable roommate of many years. Despite the inconveniences and disruption to their apartment, her dog shows up for her regardless of circumstances. But the writing is on the wall with her roommate, who is eager to grow into a new phase of life.

It's a familiar tale, and one many of us have experienced at one point or another. What stands out about this comic is Goux's ability to convey those emotions with the pacing of her sequential art and a limited color palette of black, white, and red.

Pet Peeves is definitely worth picking up at your local shop, though it's also available digitally via Sweet Shop at a very reasonable price. An added benefit of reading it is that it also put some of Goux's other books on my radar, such as Punk'n Head (with writer Dave Baker) and This Place Kills Me (with writer Mariko Tamaki).

The Secret History of Black Punk & It Starts In Anger

Class is in session, and it's rarely looked so interesting. The Secret History of Black Punk: Record Zero, we get a visual lesson on the impact of Black musicians across punk and many other genres. Talented creator Raeghan Buchanan leans more into the zine-style than breaking things down into panels, but it's the right mix for this project, and perfect for someone like myself who knew nothing about the topic before opening the book. It's available from Silver Sprocket, or digitally on Sweet Shop. I'm taking my time getting through the book, but couldn't pass up mentioning it.

When I do finish, my next read will need to be It Starts In Anger by James Spooner, who kindly went deep with me about punk and music when I met him at SPX. The new book is about the origins of the Afropunk Festival, the annual global arts and music event that celebrates Black culture, alternative music, fashion, and activism. Spooner does so through his own experiences, including growing up as a young punk rocker in 1990s New York.

Sand's The Tale of Luc & San: Starfall Is A Gorgeous Creationism Origin Story

Another book I picked up on the trip and enjoyed is the fantasy comic Sand (Genesis), The Tale of Luc & San: Starfall by Alex Lupp and artist Jade Lee. Sand is a series of stories set in a fictional desert world created by accident from a rivalry between twin sibling gods, Luc and San.

The issue I picked up, Genesis #1, is a prequel about that rivalry, telling a familiar creation story of light dispelling the eternal darkness. The opening issue introduces us to reality-shaping celestial beings: Behemoths, Beacons, and Feys – each with their own specific role.

The story is satisfying, with themes of inadequacy, feeling unappreciated, and the unwieldy, stubborn nature of community sentiment shaping perception. Lee's strong artwork makes the story work, with simple line illustration that blends into each scene's emotion and a limited color palette that really helps advance the narrative.

You can check out more pages from the 32-page #1 via the fantasy comic's website, or follow Lupp's convention schedule to snag copies of all four issues in print.

Fantom Comics, the center of gravity for D.C. comics scene

I didn't expect the nation's capital to serve as a natural hub for nurturing indie comics and hungry creators eager to share their work. But it makes sense, as it's perfectly set up to do so. Washington, D.C. pulls regionally from large nearby cities in Maryland and Virginia, as well as other localities as far as Boston, with plenty of grants available to fund such work, and lots of opportunities to connect with others at shows like nearby SPX.

Though if there's a clear center of gravity, it is gliding up the stairs at Fantom Comics...

It's not difficult to see this is more than a store. It's a meeting ground for ideas, printed and shared. The staff are creators and support other community creators, as evident from the walls lined with their art. It's a small space, but filled to the brim with comics. The back room's centerpiece (and back wall) is devoted to small press, zines, and other less distributed indie comics. They even have a "Free Comics" box at the front door (and not bargain books; Absolute Batman was in there). I was able to pick up comic projects I'd only ever heard about, but never really had a chance to observe physically – like Ronald Wimberly's Laab. But I'll have to save that and more for next dispatch...

Coming In Part Two: Speed Running SPX