This week on The Comics Alternative podcast, John Mayo (of the Comic Book Page) and Chris Marshall (Collected Comics Library) return for another roundtable discussion with the Two Guys with PhDs.  This time the topic is the San Diego Comics Con and the Eisner Award ceremony that took place there.  They begin by asking John how his experience was in San Diego — he was the only one of the four to actually attend — and what for him were the highlights of the event. They talk quite a bit about the many happenings at the con, both comic-related and otherwise, and then discuss the coverage of the con in the media. Next, they turn their attention to the 2013 Eisner Award winners, trying to make sense of what the results may reveal (or not reveal) about the current state of comics as well as the attitudes and biases of the selection committee. The four podcasting guys also pick apart the various award categories, noting their histories and how many of them have changed over the years. For example, they point out the weaknesses with the “Best Digital Comic” category (too broad, too ill-defined), suggest ways of reconceptualizing the award for comics-related journalism, and even problematize the idea of the “Best Graphic Album-New.” (Is Building Stories really an “album”? Doesn’t it actually contain a lot of reprinted material?)  It may be a bit of Monday morning quarterbacking, but they don’t care. Chris, John, Andy, and Derek have a great time discussing and sharing ideas, and you can experience the fun by listening to the podcast.