Comic-Con News: Chris Ware’s elaborate multiple books-in-a-box saga Building Stories earned four Eisners, while Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples’ Saga from Image Comics took home three, and artist David Aja collected two for his work on Marvel’s Hawkeye as the 2013 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards were handed out on Saturday night at the San Diego Comic-Con.
 
Ware won "Best New Graphic Novel," "Best Writer/Artist," "Best Lettering" and "Best Publication Design" for his Building Stories, which was published by Pantheon and featured a number of interconnected works in wildly differing comic formats that were all contained in one giant box that resembled an early 20th Century board game.
 
Saga, which has become a truly groundbreaking book as it reached new heights of popularity for a creator-owned title that is not about zombies, won "Best New Series," "Best Continuing Series," and "Best Writer" for Vaughan.  It still remains hard to fathom how Fiona Staples art work was overlooked and didn’t secure her even a nomination for “Best Artist.”
 
David Aja took home "Best Cover Artist," and "Best Penciller/Inker" awards for his work on Marvel’s Hawkeye, though he had to share the "Best Penciller" Award with Chris Samnee, whose stellar work on Daredevil and IDW’s Rocketeer was also very deserving.
 
Other key awards include a much-deserved win for Kaboom’s Adventure Time series, a superior kids’ comic based on the popular Cartoon Network series, Dark Horse Presents, which won the "Best Anthology" accolade, and Darwyn Cooke, who won "Best Adaptation From Another Medium" for his superb graphic novel based on Richard Stark’s Parker for IDW.  Viz Media took home the award for "Best U.S. Edition of International Material Asia" for its edition of Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys, while Dark Horse nabbed the "Best U.S. Edition of International Material" for its edition of BlackSad: Silent Hell by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido.
 
Six all-time greats made the Eisner Awards Hall of Fame including Lee Falk (The Phantom), Al Jaffee (Mad Magazine), Mort Meskin (Sheena, Black Terror), Trina Robbins (Wimmen’s Comix), Spain Rodriguez (Nightmare Alley, Che) and Joe Sinnott (Fantastic Four), while the Bill Finger Award for comic book writing went to Don Rosa (The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck) and Steve Gerber (Howard the Duck).
 
Challengers Comics and Conversation of Chicago took home the highly coveted "Will Eisner Spirit of Retailing Award."
 
Here is a complete list of the 2013 Eisner Award Winners:
 
Best Short Story: "Moon 1969: The True Story of the 1969 Moon Launch," by Michael Kupperman, in Tales Designed to Thrizzle #8 (Fantagraphics)

Best Single Issue (or One-Shot): The Mire, by Becky Cloonan (self-published)

Best Continuing Series: Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best New Series: Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 7): Babymouse for President, by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (Random House)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 8–12): Adventure Time, by Ryan North, Shelli Paroline, and Braden Lamb (kaboom!)

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13–17) : A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engle, adapted by Hope Larson (FSG)

Best Humor Publication: Darth Vader and Son, by Jeffrey Brown (Chronicle)

Best Digital Comic: Bandette, by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain)

Best Anthology: Dark Horse Presents, edited by Mike Richardson (Dark Horse)

Best Reality-Based Work (tie): Annie Sullivan and the Trials of Helen Keller, by Joseph Lambert (Center for Cartoon Studies/Disney Hyperion); The Carter Family: Don’t Forget This Song, by Frank M. Young and David Lasky (Abrams ComicArts)

Best New Graphic Album: Building Stories, by Chris Ware (Pantheon)

Best Adaptation From Another Medium: Richard Stark’s Parker: The Score, adapted by Darwyn Cooke (IDW)

Best Reprint Graphic Album: King City, by Brandon Graham (TokyoPop/Image)

Best Archival Collection/Project — Strips: Pogo, Vol. 2: Bona Fide Balderdash, by Walt Kelly, edited by Carolyn Kelly and Kim Thompson (Fantagraphics)

Best Archival Collection/Project — Comic Books: David Mazzucchelli’s Daredevil Born Again: Artist’s Edition, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material: Blacksad: Silent Hell, by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido (Dark Horse)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material, Asia: Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys, by Naoki Urasawa (VIZ Media)

Best Writer: Brian K. Vaughan, Saga (Image)

Best Writer/Artist: Chris Ware, Building Stories (Pantheon)

Best Penciler/Inker (tie): David Aja, Hawkeye (Marvel); Chris Samnee, Daredevil (Marvel); Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom (IDW)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art): Juanjo Guarnido, Blacksad (Dark Horse), Hawkeye

Best Cover Artist: David Aja (Marvel)

Best Coloring: Dave Stewart, Batwoman (DC); Fatale (Image); BPRD, Conan the Barbarian, Hellboy in Hell, Lobster Johnson, The Massive (Dark Horse)

Best Lettering: Chris Ware, Building Stories (Pantheon)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism: The Comics Reporter, edited by Tom Spurgeon, www.comicsreporter.com

Best Comics-Related Book: Marvel Comics: The Untold Story, by Sean Howe (HarperCollins)

Best Educational/Academic Work: Lynda Barry: Girlhood Through the Looking Glass, by Susan E. Kirtley (University Press of Mississippi)

Best Publication Design: Building Stories, designed by Chris Ware (Pantheon)

Hall of Fame: Lee Falk, Al Jaffee, Mort Meskin, Trina Robbins, Spain Rodriguez, Joe Sinnott

Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award: Russel Roehling

Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award: Chris Sparks and Team Cul de Sac

Bill Finger Excellence in Comic Book Writing Award: Steve Gerber and Don Rosa

Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award: Challengers Comics + Conversation, Chicago.