Diamond Comics Distributors Gem Award Winners Announced

Diamond Comics Distributors today released the results of the Gem Awards, in which direct market comics retailers can name the best writers, artists, stories and publishers of the year According to Diamond, the Gem Awards are "The award stands as the pinnacle of sales achievement for comic book artists, writers, publishers and industry executives." Categories are divided into winners for publishers with over 4% of marketshare and under 4% of marketshare, so that smaller publishers aren't entirely left out of what is, by its nature, a celebration of books and merchandise that sell well. Image Comics won the Publisher of the Year for market share of over 4%, and Archie's Afterlife With Archie turned in a solid performance, too. You can check out a full list of the winners below. 2013 Comic Book Publisher of the Year - Over 4% Image Comics 2013 Comic Book Publisher of the Year - Under 4% BOOM! Studios 2013 Top Dollar Comic Book Publisher of the Year Marvel Comics 2013 Comic Book of the Year - Under $3.00 Afterlife with Archie #1 - Archie Comics (JUL130792) 2013 Comic Book of the Year - Over $3.00 Superior Spider-Man #1 NOW! - Marvel Comics (NOV120633) 2013 Top Dollar Comic of the Year Superman Unchained #1 (APR130107) 2013 Licensed Comic of the Year The Star Wars: Lucas Draft #1 - Dark Horse Comics (SEP138217) 2013 Magazine of the Year Batman Automobilia Figure Collectors Magazine - Eaglemoss 2013 Backlist Publisher of the Year DC Entertainment 2013 Original GN of the Year Hellboy: Midnight Circle HC - Dark Horse Comics (JUN130031) 2013 Reprint TP or HC of the Year Batman: Death of the Family Vol. 3 HC - DC Entertainment (MAY130216) 2013 Licensed TP or HC of the Year My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Vol. 1 TP - IDW Publishing (MAR130366) 2013 Manga TP of the Year Lone Wolf & Cub Omnibus Vol. 1 TP - Dark Horse Comics (JAN130124) 2013 Manga Publisher of the Year VIZ Media 2013 Anthology of the Year Dark Horse Presents - Dark Horse Comics (MAY130015) 2013 Indie GN of the Year March: Book One TP - Top Shelf Productions (JUN131298) 2013 Trade Book of the Year Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia HC - Dark Horse Comics (SEP120055) 2013 Best Free Comic Book Day Book FCBD 2013 The Walking Dead Special - Image Comics (JAN130008) 2013 Best All-Ages Series Adventure Time - BOOM! Studios 2013 Best New Comic Book Series East of West - Image Comics 2013 Game Manufacturer of the Year Wizkids/NECA 2013 Game Product of the Year The Walking Dead: Monopoly PX - USAopoly (OCT128266) 2013 Toy Manufacturer of the Year DC Collectibles 2013 Toy Product of the Year DC Comics Super Villains: The Joker Action Figure - DC Collectibles (MAY130285) 2013 Toy Line of the Year POP! Vinyl Figures - Funko 2013 Collectible Statue of the Year DC Comics Bombshells: Harley Quinn Statue - DC Collectibles (JUN130317)