Graphic novels | With audiences flocking to see Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, it's little surprise that the bestselling graphic novel in bookstores in March was Batman vs. Superman: The Greatest Battles, a compilation of previously published stories about the pair's earlier tiffs. Also not surprising: All five volumes of Tokyo Ghoul are on the chart. That manga series seems to be the new Attack on Titan, with more readers coming in every month. The rest of the chart is a very mixed bag, with two Deadpool titles, a new Plants vs. Zombies graphic novel, and Daniel Clowes' Patience among the month's big sellers. [ICv2]

Politics | A Catholic Church official has publicly criticized the comic book depicting Philippines presidential candidate Manuel “Mar” Roxas II as a hero who personally risked his life rescuing victims of Typhoon Yolanda. Roxas says the comic was made without his knowledge but accurately depicts the events; his opposition has criticized the Aquino administration, of which he was part, for its slow response to the disaster. "In conscience, I need to belie this hypocritical claim of Mar Roxas claiming to be a hero in the emergency response," said Father Edwin Gariguez, executive secretary of Caritas Philippines. "We need to bring truth and decency to our electoral process." [Inquirer]



Creators | Jessica Abel, whose Out on the Wire is a graphic novel about radio storytelling, discusses the similarities between the two media. [KBLA]

Creators | Bret McCabe interviews Ben Katchor. [The Hub]

Creators | Brockton McKinney talks about his love of horror movies and his new comic Gingerdead Man, which features a bloodthirsty cookie. [AL.com]

Creators | On the 100th anniversary of the Easter Rebellion in Dublin, an Irish newspaper remembers political cartoonist Ernest Kavanagh, who promoted the cause of Irish independence through savage satire but was killed during the uprising. [Irish Independent]

Creators | Ten colorists discuss their craft in a lively roundtable. [The Comics Journal]



Comics | The real scandals of Orange County, California, are the subject of a new series of comics from Trabajo Press, The True Stories of OC. The second issue, The Great Santa Ana Drug Bust, tells the story of a May 2015 raid on a marijuana dispensary that resulted in criminal charges for three police officers. [OC Weekly]

Conventions | After 10 years in other locations, Gem City Comic Con is finally moving this year to Gem City (or Dayton, Ohio, as the rest of us know it). The convention, which takes place this weekend, will be in the Dayton Convention Center, close to downtown restaurants and nightspots, potentially allowing it to expand beyond last year's attendance of 5,500. This year's event is focusing on inkers, with special guests Art Thibert, John Beatty and Joe Rubenstein. "The inker is the unsung hero of the comic book world," said organizer Jesse Noble. "A good inker is super important to a book, and this time around we'll spotlight those guys. It's kind of turned into an inker's paradise this year." [Dayton Daily News]

Exhibits | The Marin Museum of Contemporary Art is displaying a retrospective of the works of local satirical cartoonist Phil Frank, who died in 2007. Frank, who read seven newspapers a day, drew the comic strip Farley, which ran in the San Francisco Chronicle for 22 years. [San Francisco Chronicle]