Alexis Deacon: high drama in the dog days of summer
The winning entry in our graphic short story prize is a dark, watery tale with a twist while the joint runners-up are witty, poignant and insightful, writes Rachel Cooke
Countess Markievicz by Fionnuala Doran
Fionnuala Doran has been named runner-up in the Observer/Cape/Comica graphic short story prize. This is her entry
After Life by Beth Dawson
Beth Dawson has been named runner-up in the Observer/Cape/Comica graphic short story prize. This is her entry
The River by Alexis Deacon
Alexis Deacon has been awarded the Observer/Cape/Comica graphic short story prize 2014. This is his winning entry
Robert Downey Jr hammers Iron Man into Captain America 3
Downey to be given prominent role in third Captain America film, which will see Steve Rogers and Tony Stark on opposite sides in the Marvel civil war
Sugar Skull by Charles Burns review – fear, loathing and male guilt
The final book in the trilogy following X’ed Out and The Hive is fittingly foreboding and mysterious, writes Rachel Cooke
Why Michael Keaton should watch Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies
Michael Keaton was a superb Batman, but in order to be the best, you have to be in the greatest Batman films – and he wasn’t, writes Ben Child
Chinese media accuse Japanese manga star Doraemon of subverting youth
Robotic cat, which is the subject of an exhibition touring China, is portrayed as Japanese propaganda tool by some newspapers
Gotham: holding out for a hero
Alfred’s an ex-Marine, a cat burglar is stealing milk, and a rookie cop is after a double murderer … Richard Vine on Gotham, the neo-noir pulp TV show that imagines the city before Batman
‘I can’t imagine life without Beth’: Down’s syndrome changed our lives for the better
Henny Beaumont’s daughter, Beth, has Down’s syndrome – she’s now the star of her mother’s graphic novel about her birth and early years. By Joanna Moorhead
Ghost in the Shell review – a rare slice of adult animation fantasy
Blending violent thriller, tech porn and sci-fi epic, this headspinning manga cyborg quest has dated better than its live-action rivals, writes Peter Bradshaw
My hero: Alison Bechdel by Elizabeth McCracken
The graphic memoirist's art is beautiful, exact yet somehow familiar, writes Elizabeth McCracken
X-Men’s Deadpool to fight his way back to the big screen after footage leak
Ben Child: X-men character gets green light following positive response to leaked footage online, with Ryan Reynolds tipped to play the anti-hero
Alan Moore takes cult horror comic Crossed into the future
Series creator Garth Ennis says it’s like Jimi Hendrix ‘wants to sing my songs’, as Moore signs up to write six issues of Crossed set in a future world, writes Alison Flood
Big Hero 6 first footage: a comic-book movie that kids and grownup kids will enjoy
Ben Child: Disney’s forthcoming film adaption of Marvel’s comic about a boy superhero and his robot friend reinvents the kid-sidekick trope – and could mark a new direction for comic-book movies