Tripwire announces its winners in its 2023 Tripwire Awards

By John Freeman on September 20, 2023

In front of an industry audience at London’s prestigious Cartoon Museum, Tripwire magazine’s editor-in-chief Joel Meadows and senior editor Andrew Colman announced the winners of this year’s Tripwire Awards, who include 2000AD writer Michael Carroll, for Best Writer, Gustavo Vargas for Best New Talent, and BEANO for Best Humour Comic.

Congratulations, too, to Andy Oliver at the fantastic Broken Frontier comic site, who deservedly won in the Best Comic-Related Web Site category.

Kevin O’Neill and George Pérez were also added to the Tripwire “Roll of Honour” who, sadly we lost last year.

“For a fifth year running, we have selected a range of nominees that reflects the breadth and range of the comics industry in the UK and US. We are excited as ever to be putting something back into the industry that has supported us for over thirty years now,” Tripwire’s editor-in-chief Meadows said.

BEANO won the inaugural award for Best Humour Comic, a welcome addition to the categories this year, humour comics largely overlooked by many comic awards.

Awards Nominations and Winners of the Tripwire Awards 2023
The winners are listed in bold

Best Writer Sponsored By Image Comics

Enniskillen Comic Fest 2023 - Michael Carroll. Photo: James Bacon — *Michael Carroll*

• Tom King – Human Target (DC)
• Mark Millar – The Ambassadors (Millarworld/ Image)
• Mark Russell – Second Coming: Trinity (Ahoy), Superman: Space Age (DC)
• Kelly Thompson – Captain Marvel (Marvel)

• Winner: Michael Carroll – Judge Dredd, 2000AD

Best Artist Sponsored By Image Comics

• Elsa Charretier – Love Everlasting (Image)
• Jorge Jimenez – Batman (DC), Nemesis: Reloaded (Millarworld/ Image)
• Dan Mora – Batman/Superman: World’s Finest/Shazam, DC
• Greg Smallwood – Human Target, DC

• Winner: Fiona Staples – Saga, (Image)

Best Cover Artist Sponsored by Ace Comics

• Steve Beach – Action Comics (DC)
• David Mack – Batman & the Joker the Deadly Duo (DC), The Seasons Have Teeth, (Boom! Studios)
• Bruno Redondo – Nightwing (DC)
• Greg Smallwood – Human Target, DC)

• Winner: Jenny Frison – Harley Quinn (DC)

Best Colourist

• Triona Farrell – Alien / Scarlet Witch (Marvel Comics)
• Giovanna Niro – The Ambassadors (Millarworld/ Image Comics), 3 Keys (Image Comics))
• Jacob Phillips – Night Fever/ Reckless, (Image Comics)
• Taki Soma – Murder Inc (Jinxworld/ Dark Horse)

• Winner: Tamra Bonvillain – Once And Future (Boom!), Department of Truth (Image Comics)

Best Letterer

• Jim Campbell – Barbaric (Vault)
• Ed Dukeshire – Magic (Boom!)
• Lee Loughridge – I Hate This Place (Skybound/ Image)
• Steve Wands – Swamp Thing: Green Hell (DC)

• Winner: Aditya Bidkar – The Swamp Thing (DC)

Best New Talent Sponsored By The Convention Collective

• Federico Blee – X-Men (Marvel)
• Filya Bratukhin – Agent of W.O.R.L.D. (Scout Comics)
• Danny Earls – Captain America (Marvel)
• Alex Lins – Hellcat (Marvel)

• Winner: Gustavo Vargas (creator, Puno, Trujillo)

Best New Series

• Batman/Superman: World’s Finest by Mark Waid and Dan Mora (DC Comics)
• Dead Romans by Fred Kennedy and Nick Marinkovich (Image Comics)
• Human Target by Tom King and Greg Smallwood (DC)
• Superman: Space Age by Mark Russell and Mike Allred (DC Comics)

• Winner: StarHenge by Liam Sharp (Image Comics)

Best Publisher Sponsored By Turnaround Publisher Services

• AHOY
• Dark Horse Comics
• DC Comics
• Rebellion

• Winner: Image Comics

Best Original Graphic Novel Sponsored By Image Comics

It's Lonely at the Centre of the Earth: This Book Is for Someone, Somewhere by Zoe Thorogood

• Ax-Wielder Jon by Nick Pittara
• Hancock: The Lad Himself by Stephen Walsh and Keith Page (B7)
• John Tiffany by Stephen Desberg and Dan Panosian (Mad Cave Studios)
• Night Fever by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image Comics)

• Winner: It’s Lonely at the Centre of the Earth by Zoe Thorogood (Image Comics)

Best Collection Sponsored By CGC

The 2000AD Art of Mick McMahon - Apex Standard Edition

• History of The DC Universe hardcover by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez (DC)
• JLA/ Avengers by Kurt Busiek and George Pérez (DC)
• Kevin Nowlan’s Marvel Heroes Artists Edition by Kevin Nowlan (IDW)
• Seven To Eternity by Rick Remender, Jerome Opena, et al (Image Comics)

• Winner: The 2000AD Art Of Mick McMahon Apex Edition (Rebellion)

Best Comics-Related Website / Publication

• Comic Book Creator
• Popverse
• The San Diego Comic Con Unofficial Blog
• SHIFT Magazine

• Winner: Broken Frontier

Run by Andy Oliver, Broken Frontier is a brilliant comic book and graphic novel news site established in 2002, that has done much to promote independent voices in comics. Their international team of staff writers covers quality stories from all corners of the globe.

Neither downthetubes or Tripwire were included in nominations in this category in 2023, as members of the team on both publications were involved in co-ordinating the Awards

Best Small Press / Independent (UK) Sponsored By Knockabout Comics

• Avery Hill
• SelfMade Hero
• The 77 Publications
• Time Bomb Comics

• Winner: Mad Robot Comics

Best Small Press / Independent (US)

• Ablaze
• AWA
• Black Mask Studios
• Mad Cave Studios

• Winner: Dynamite Entertainment

Best Editor

• Heather Antos (IDW)
• Daniel Chabon ( Dark Horse)
• Chris Conroy (DC)
• Mike Marts (Mad Cave)

• Winner: Matt Smith (2000AD)

Best Designer

• Tim Daniel (Full Tilt)
• Tom Muller – Cold Iron (Comixology)
• Nate Piekos – I Hate Fairyland
• Darran Robinson (DC)

• Winner: Rian Hughes

Best Crowdfunding Campaign

• First Men On Mars (EM Press) Kickstarter
• Full Tilt by Jason Copland Zoop
• Dracula: The Return (Scratch Comics) Kickstarter
• The Wicker Pasty (Trystan Mitchell) Kickstarter

• Winner: Fast Times In Comic Book Editing by Shelly Bond (Filth & Grammar)

Best Convention Sponsored By The Convention Collective

• New York Comic Con
• Lake Como Comic Festival
• Macc Pow!
• San Diego Comic Con

• Winner: Thought Bubble

Some events were not included die to the involvement of the Tripwire Awards team in their organisation

Best Audio Adaptation

• The Boys – Audible
• Doctor Who The Prisoners Of London – Big Finish
• Nemesis The Warlock Books 1-4 – Audible
• Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse – Marvel Press

• Winner: The Sandman Act III produced by Dirk Maggs – Audible

Best Humour Comic – Print

• Barbaric by Michael Moreci and Nathan Gooden (Vault Comics)
• Billionaire Island: Cult of Dogs (AHOY Comics)
• I Hate This Place by Skottie Young (Image)
• The Phoenix (Phoenix Publications)

• Winner: BEANO (DC Thomson)

Person Of The Year

• Scott Dunbier
• Kevin Feige
• Mark London
• Chip Mosher

• Winner: Lysa “Be Good at Spinning Plates” Hawkins (Senior Editor at Alien Books)

The Roll Of Honour

• Mark Chiarello
• Archie Goodwin
• Jenette Kahn
• Carlos Pacheco
• Chris Reynolds
• Trina Robbins
• John Romita Sr
• Tim Sale
• Louise Simonson
• Walt Simonson
• Bryan Talbot
• John Wagner

• Winners: Kevin O’Neill and George Pérez

The Tripwire Awards, run by Tripwire magazine, are the UK’s only annual comic awards, celebrating British and American talent in the industry every year since 2019, voted on by the comics-reading public.

• Check out Tripwire at tripwiremagazine.co.uk

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.