CA Staff

The death this week of writer, actor, and advocate Carrie Fisher has come as a devastating blow to her fans at the end of a difficult year. Best known for her performance as Princess Leia in the Star Wars movies, Fisher was a pop culture icon, and one of the most inspiring figures in the sci-fi canon. But beyond her most famous role, she was also a brilliant writer, a scathing wit, and a powerful voice for people struggling with mental illness. To honor the passing of a legend, and to thank her for the role she played in our lives, we've collected some of our thoughts and reflections on the many different sides of Carrie Fisher.

Ever since Pokémon Go took over the world, those weird, cute, sometimes creepy pocket monsters have become more popular than ever. Everyone has their favorites, whether its the beloved Pikachu, the dashing Ponyta, or that elusive Gyarados that they've been chasing since day one. But which of the original Pokémon is the best --- and which leave a lot to be desired? We asked a panel of pokéxperts to rate and review all 151 of the first generation Pokémon and create the definitive list, from worst to best! We look forward to your furious repudiations.

Best Comic Books Ever (This Week) is our weekly guide to the best new comics in stores, but today we're taking a special look at the best free comics on offer at this year's Free Comic Book Day on Saturday 7 May. Free Comic Book Day is an annual event in which publishers offer readers a chance to pick up free comics and samplers at local comic book stores. To find a participating store near you visit FreeComicBookDay.com. Most stores will only let you pick up a limited number of free comics, so that there are enough to go around, so here are our recommendations of the cream of the crop.

Two Christmases ago marked the 20th anniversary Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, a film that’s arguably its creators’ most perfect expression of their enduringly influential animated vision of DC Comics’ dark knight — a vision that many believe is the most perfect expression of Batman in any medium. While Warner Bros. has yet to announce any plans for a high definition reissue or any other offerings connected with the special occasion, the film fanatics at Mondo — purveyors of extremely fine illustrated film posters and other cinematic celebrations — decided to honor Mask of the Phantasm with an anniversary event in connection with the famous Alamo Drafthouse of Austin, Texas, where they screened the film in its original 35mm format for a sold-out house. As always, Mondo came prepared with an extremely limited quantities of an original screen-printed poster, which serves as an update of the film’s original theatrical one-sheet and an homage to the aesthetic legacy of co-directors Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski’s work. Naturally, being a Mondo release, the poster is no longer on sale except on the collectors' market, where it fetches hundreds. Now, ComicsAlliance was in attendance that night in Austin, and we were lucky enough to procure a variant edition of the poster -- illustrated by Phantom City Creative -- to offer to our readers in this giveaway contest. It took us quite a while, but we finally tracked down Timm as well as Andrea Beaumont herself, actor Dana Delany, who graciously signed the poster in the presence of former CA editor Andy Khouri, making this a truly one of a kind collectible.

The last twelve months offered comic book readers a wide variety of work ranging from the most crowd-pleasing superhero epics to the most idiosyncratic of indies, and the return of old favorites to the emergence of exciting new talent. It was a busy and productive year for the industry, and one we’re pleased to celebrate with what we’re certain will be an uncontroversial, unenumerated list of awards that will prompt only resounding agreement and unbroken fellowship amongst our readers in the comments below.