The 2026 Mike Wieringo Comic Book Industry Awards (Ringo Awards) were presented over the weekend at Baltimore Comic-Con, and Comics Beat published the full winners list on September 28.
Headline jury/fan categories: Best Series went to Absolute Batman (DC Comics). Best Writer went to Deniz Camp. Best Artist or Penciller/Inker Team went to Javier Rodriguez. Best Colorist went to Dave Stewart. Best Anthology went to Bowling with Corpses and Other Strange Tales From Lands Unknown (Dark Horse).
Fan Favorites included Doctor Doom (Favorite Villain), Batman (Favorite Hero), Excavator (Favorite New Series), Reese Hannigan (Favorite New Talent), and Etan Comics (Favorite Publisher). The Mike Wieringo Spirit Award went to The Avengers in the Veracity Trap (Abrams ComicArts).
Hero Initiative: the Dick Giordano Humanitarian of the Year Award went to Jeffrey Brown, and the Lifetime Achievement Award went to Jim Lee. Indy creator Terry Moore delivered the keynote; Beat notes Dark Horse will begin reissuing Moore’s catalog in October 2026.
Absolute Batman’s Best Series win lands as the book is mid-Scarecrow climax in shops. For recent Absolute Universe coverage on RCG, see Absolute Batman #24 — Barbara Gordon debuts as The Bat.
Baltimore Comic-Con’s Ringo ceremony remains one of the Direct Market’s fan-and-pro hybrid award nights, with category sponsorships listed by Comics Beat alongside the winners. Absolute Batman’s Best Series win is the clearest DC Absolute Universe trophy of the weekend, while Deniz Camp’s Best Writer and Javier Rodriguez’s Best Artist/team awards round out the creative-side headline slate.
Jim Lee’s Hero Initiative Lifetime Achievement Award is industry recognition rather than a new comic solicit, and Jeffrey Brown’s Dick Giordano Humanitarian honor is likewise a service award. Readers tracking awards season can pair this Ringo wrap with Absolute Batman’s ongoing monthly for the in-continuity payoff behind the trophy.
What we are not saying: winners above are taken from Comics Beat’s published ceremony wrap. We are not inventing extra categories, runners-up as winners, or a single street date for the Terry Moore / Dark Horse reissue program beyond the October 2026 start window Beat reported.
