Whenever I go on vacation, things get weird in comics. And folks: Things got weird while I was out. So let’s cover some of that in another edition of Comics Disassembled, as I write about ten things I liked or didn’t like from the week of comics, with that led by the rapidly evolving story around Diamond Comic Distributors and its bankruptcy.

The Diamond Bankruptcy, Being Hilariously Messy

During the two weeks I was off from SKTCHD and the week I was back on, the following things related to Diamond Comic Distributors’ bankruptcy happened:

• Alliance Entertainment — a company that distributes video games, movie, and music related materials, amongst other things — was declared the winner of “substantially all” of the aspects of Diamond in its bankruptcy auction
• Alliance chairman Bruce Ogilvie took a victory lap by appearing on the “Industry of Comics” podcast, an experience that, uh, raised some eyebrows
• But wait??? IS THAT UNIVERSAL DISTRIBUTION/AD POPULUM’S MUSIC?! It was. It turns out that Diamond preferred the bid from Universal, a Canadian distribution company, and Ad Populum, an acquisition machine that owns — amongst other things — NECA, KidRobot, Chia Pets, Graceland (??), and assorted other things, so they decided to approve their bid of $69-ish million over Alliance’s $85-ish million bid, making them the de facto winner
• Alliance did not like that, so they sued Diamond for acting in bad faith
• The courts disagreed with all that and it was officially revealed that Alliance will be the winner of, once again, “substantially all” of Diamond

So, that’s that. Alliance won. Maybe.

Apparently there’s a window of 15 or so days when the creditors of Diamond’s bankruptcy (meaning the varying folks that are owed money by Diamond) can challenge this decision, so this may not be over. We also don’t know exactly what will be included in the “substantially all” of it all. That’s sort of fluid right now. Alliance’s initial list was Diamond Comic Distributors (as in the United States side of it, not the UK one), Alliance Game Distributors, Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles, and Collectible Grading Authority, but that leaves out an array of other aspects of the company, including Diamond UK (and its other half in Comic Exporter, Inc.), FreeComicBookDay.com, FandomWorld, and Comic Holdings, Inc.. So, we don’t know where everything will end up precisely, but I can think of a fair few folks who are likely holding their breath over what’s going to happen with Diamond UK (which is the distributor for comics in the UK and often mainland Europe and Ireland). TBD.

What this all means for the comics industry is similarly uncertain. I’d heard that some of the creditors of Diamond preferred the Universal/Ad Populum bid, which would have resulted in Universal acquiring Diamond UK and Alliance Game Distributors while Ad Populum would have taken the rest. Conversations with folks in comics this week were split enough on who they wanted to win that it seems that this largely came down to preferences as much as anything.

Both Alliance and Ad Populum are new to the comics space, so it’s difficult to tell what the former will do (outside of what Ogilvie said on that podcast) and what Ad Populum would have done if it won. But there is upside to Alliance’s at least temporary victory, as I have heard that its systems are slick and modern in a way that Diamond’s Windows 98 powered ones simply aren’t, and it theoretically opens comics up to other channels. But I cannot emphasize that “theoretically” enough in that regard. My hot take is I’m not sure the identity of the winner will end up making much of a difference for the direct market, beyond the fate of Diamond UK. And that’s still to play out.

We’ll see what it all ends up adding up to, but here’s one final note. The thing that I heard most consistently in regards to the subject of “does it matter who wins?” is that everyone believes it’s important that Diamond’s existing staff sticks around in this transition. That institutional knowledge would be a big loss. Alliance (or Ad Populum’s) staff isn’t filled with comics people. Diamond is. Keeping the distributor’s staff around would likely ensure a smooth transition no matter who wins. That’s important, so let’s hope that happens.

Tariff Talk, In an Abbreviated Fashion

What’s happening with the tariffs the United States of America is putting on countries seemingly at random and entirely on a whim? Right now, they mostly seem paused, but you never really know from moment to moment, which is why everyone (and every market) is so stressed out these days. I’m going to write a bit more about this subject in the near future, I believe, so I don’t want to dig too deep into it right now.

But there was a bit of good news on the comic front no matter what — probably — as it seems like tariffs will not apply to graphic novels (or comics, and books for that matter) printed in China because of a Cold War-era decision called the International Economic Emergency Powers Act, nor will it apply to books as well as paper products from Canada or Mexico thanks to the USMCA, or the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. That last bit is important, because many single-issue comics are printed on Canadian paper or printed north of the border altogether.

What does that mean? Comics are saved!

Okay, maybe not. The truth is, we’re living in a time where rules are made to be broken and/or ignored, so whether comics and graphic novels will end up being as tariff-free as they seem is currently unknown. Everyone believes they should be. But until the tariffs are on and that path is taken, it’s hard to tell. Actual application dictates what will happen more than anything.

That’s why the poor folks over at Fieldmouse Press — a small comic publisher based in the United States — are in such a weird spot. They had turned to GoFundMe to help deal with the apparent tariffs they were going to have to pay on an upcoming shipment of comics from China, but now they might be safe? Or might not be? They don’t really know, and honestly, that might be an even worse position to be in. Uncertainty is the killer. But that’s where everyone finds themselves these days, at the mercy of the whims of a person who cannot decide what move to make and how long to stick with it. This subject remains a very big TBD, even if this week’s revelations were positive — for now.