The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 (Part Two)

The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 (Part Two)

Author: Brad & Lisa Gullickson January 1, 2026 Duration: 1:58:10
Welcome back, friend. Our end-of-the-year celebration concludes with The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 (Part Two). If you missed the Part One party, click here, and discover the comics we considered the saddest of 2025, the most stylish, the most genre-bendy, etc, etc. For this week’s second half award show ceremony, we’re tackling the more traditional categories of Best Limited Series, Best Ongoing, Best Original Graphic Novel, and more. We wrap it all up by anointing the Jesse Tapia II Champ Stamp in honor of our dear departed friend, and announce how we’ll be kicking off 2026 next week. As was the case in our first half, The Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 (Part Two) features several guest-stars from folks across the industry. Each and every one of these cool cats is worth your attention, and we encourage you to follow their work and their socials listed below. This year produced too many dang great comics, but thankfully, these creatives helped us break beyond our limited perspective, and you benefit with even more titles to add to your ever-expanding to-read pile. The Best Comics of 2025 Part One Guest-Stars: Gregg Katzman (Bluesky), IDW Publishing's Senior Publicity Manager. Owen (Bluesky), Owen Likes Comics. Tyler Crook (Bluesky), The Lonesome Hunters, Out of Alcatraz, etc. Avery Kaplan (Bluesky), The Beat, Star Trek, TCJ, etc. BJ Kicks (Bluesky), Comics Are Dope. David Brooke (Bluesky), Owner, Writer, Host at AIPT. Chris Condon (Bluesky), That Texas Blood, Green Arrow, Ultimate Wolverine, etc. Chris Piers (Bluesky), Host of ComicTropes. Christian Ward (Bluesky), Batman: City of Madness, Event Horizon: Dark Descent, Two-Face, etc. This Week's Sponsors GlobalComix is the all-in-one digital comics platform offering unlimited reading of thousands of titles from top publishers, indie creators, across comics, manga, and toons. With GlobalComix Gold, members unlock access to more than 100,000 books and genres - superheroes, horror, sci-fi, manga, fantasy, romance, and more. Right now, GlobalComix is running a special Holiday Gold promotion: when you sign up for a year of GlobalComix Gold for $69, you'll get a bonus premium comics bundle from Dark Horse, DC, Kodansha, and Marvel - included for free. This bundle is valued at $67, making the annual plan essentially pay for itself with the bonus alone. How to Redeem: Use the link https://globalcomix.com/holiday-bundle-2025 to sign up. The offer is live now and available for a limited time (through January 4, 2026). Once subscribed, the bonus bundle will be added to your GlobalComix library. Are you ready to face the future? Look no further than 2000 AD – it’s the Galaxy’s Greatest Comic! Every week 2000 AD brings the best in sci-fi and horror, featuring characters like Judge Dredd, Rogue Trooper and more! Get a print subscription to 2000 AD, and it’ll arrive at your mailbox every week, and your first issue is free. You’ll also receive the HUNDRED PAGE 2000 AD Christmas Special this December at no extra cost! Or, subscribe digitally, and you can download DRM-free copies of each issue for only $9 a month. That’s 128 pages of incredible comics every month for less than $10! Head to 2000AD.com and click on ‘subscribe’ now – or download the 2000 AD app and start reading today! This Winter, from IDW Publishing, the Heroes in a Half-Shell take on the King of the Monsters! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles x Godzilla #1 crashes into comic shops on November 12th. Written by Godzilla Kei-Sei Scribe Tim Seeley and illustrated by the brilliant Turtle artist behind the Nightwatcher series, as well as the Stranger Things/TMNT crossover, Fero Pe, this new series finally brings two of our favorite franchises together. How can this reptilian miracle be?  Long before the organization was corrupted by Shredder, the Foot Clan’s original purpose was to save Japan from Kaiju! Now, in the present day, Godzilla and its fellow monsters have reappeared. Not only is the Fo

Ever wonder what keeps Lois Lane and Clark Kent together, or why the Joker and Harley Quinn’s dynamic is so endlessly dissected? That’s the kind of territory you’ll find in Comic Book Couples Counseling Podcast. Hosted by real-life married couple Brad and Lisa Gullickson, this isn’t just a rundown of famous pairs. Instead, they use their own relationship as a lens to examine the loves, feuds, and complicated bonds that define our favorite characters. Each episode feels like a lively conversation between two passionate fans who happen to share a life, digging into the psychology, history, and narrative impact of relationships across comic book publishing and wider pop culture. You’ll hear them analyze everything from classic Golden Age partnerships to the messy modern entanglements in contemporary graphic novels, always with a mix of deep knowledge and genuine curiosity. This podcast offers a uniquely personal and thoughtful way to engage with the stories you love, moving beyond powers and plot twists to ask what these fictional connections really say about us. Tune in for a smart, often funny, and always insightful look at the heart of the narratives.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Comic Book Couples Counseling Podcast
Podcast Episodes
Christian Ward on Event Horizon Inferno [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:38:06
Before Christian Ward joins us for a full-spoilers conversation about Event Horizon: Inferno, we get lost in a lengthy discussion about Stephen King’s The Stand. We promise, however, that both stories tie nicely together…
Franklin Jonas and Curt Pires on Fireborn [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:17:56
It’s a topic we discuss a lot. When you love comics, you eventually want to make them. Curt Pires heard Franklin Jonas professing his love for the medium on a podcast. Immediately, he recognized a kindred spirit. Pires i…
Henry Barajas and Rachel Merrill on Death to Pachuco [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:08:18
Comics don’t just happen. Artists will them from nothing. As you’ll hear from Henry Barajas and Rachel Merrill in this week’s podcast, comics arrive at your local comic book shop through tremendous persistence and imagin…
Zoe Tunnell on Seven Wives [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:33
Here’s an episode we’ve wanted to have for a while. Zoe Tunnell joins the podcast this week to discuss her new IDW Crime series Seven Wives and examine how easy it is to fall into cult-like behavior. As massive fans of (…
Klaus Janson - Episode 350 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23:09
Okay, it’s time to press pause on your life and press play on this week’s episode. Klaus Janson is an icon. He’s worked in comics for over fifty years, radically shaping characters like Daredevil and Batman, while workin…
Ethan Young on Demon Run [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:25
You love to see it. Cartoonist Ethan Young (Dragon Path, Nanjing: The Burning City) places a huge bet on himself. He’s reclaimed the rights to his main character from the graphic novel series The Battles of Bridget Lee,…
David Dastmalchian on Through [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:31
To create is to submit. Here’s my story, this is me. Filmmaker, actor, and comic book writer David Dastmalchian returns to the podcast this week. He’s discussing his new graphic novel Through, made in collaboration with…
Simon Roy on A Star Called the Sun [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:26
We’re all the product of our influences. Cartoonist Simon Roy, on this week's podcast discussing his new short story collection, A Star Called the Sun, refers to his influences as "foundational mulch." We dig into a bunc…
Stephen R Bissette, Jim Rugg, and Chris Stevens on Tyrant [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:26:11
When observing comic books, the miracles come in big or small ways. This week on the podcast, we’re discussing a resurrection we previously thought unimaginable. Stephen R Bissette, who gained legendary status working on…