A long fight over comics trapped in Diamond Comic Distributors’ old warehouse is ending for one group of publishers. The court overseeing Diamond’s bankruptcy has approved a settlement that lets 13 publishers reclaim consigned inventory held at the Olive Branch, Mississippi warehouse, as ICv2 reports.
The publishers covered are Aspen Comics, Black Mask Studios, DSTLRY, Heavy Metal, Magnetic Press, Massive Publishing, Oni Press, Panini UK, Alien Books, Graphic Mundi, Titan, Vault Comics and Dark Horse Comics. The deal is between them, Diamond’s Chapter 7 trustee and Sparkle Pop, the Ad Populum subsidiary that bought Diamond’s operating assets and now runs the warehouse. The parties reached the settlement in September; the court’s approval now puts it into effect.
Publishers had to pick one of two “Pik&Pak” options, according to court papers summarized by Bleeding Cool. Under the first, Sparkle Pop keeps titles worth 4% of the remaining stock’s wholesale value and packs up the rest at no extra charge. Under the second, a publisher pays Sparkle Pop 2% of the wholesale value in cash and gets everything back. Dark Horse, Titan, Vault, DSTLRY and most of the group chose the first option, while Oni, Magnetic and Graphic Mundi chose to pay.
There is a clock. Sparkle Pop must make each publisher’s stock available at the loading dock within 10 business days of payment, and publishers then have 30 days to collect it before it can be treated as abandoned. ICv2 says that means books could start moving soon, possibly in time for part of the holiday season.
The settlement also resolves money held during the case, with escrowed sales proceeds going toward Sparkle Pop’s storage and processing claims. ICv2 stresses that the publishers are not being made whole: some of the stock has lost value with age, they are giving up cash from sales made during the bankruptcy, and their money has been tied up for close to two years.
A second group is still waiting. The Ad Hoc Consignors Committee, along with BOOM! Entertainment and Dynamite Entertainment, has its own proposed settlement before the court, with a hearing set for early November after Sparkle Pop objected. Dynamite has kept publishing through the dispute, recently unveiling its January 2027 solicitations. The broader consignment pool in Olive Branch was once valued at nearly $50 million at cost.
