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Even though the sale was officially approved by U.S. Bankruptcy Courts in late April, the saga of the former comics and pop culture gaming giant Diamond Comic Distributors continues to evolve even as the company is being split into parts by its new owners, with new owners laying off long-standing staff as soon as the sale closed, entire divisions of the company being speedily shuttered, and a threat to the very existence of the company being pulled at the last minute. 

For those who need a (very) quick primer: Diamond Comic Distributors — which also owned a gaming distributor, Alliance Game Distributors, as well as other distribution and comic-related business — filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2025, meaning that it was allowed to continue to operate as normal even as it sought potential buyers and/or a reorganization plan to climb out of debt. The bankruptcy announcement was, however, enough for multiple companies to cut ties and find new distribution partners, which might have been a good thing in the long run — shortly after the company had a winning bid in its sale auction in March, it emerged that the Bankruptcy Court itself was looking into whether or not the company should be liquidated for failing to file court-required paperwork regarding its financial stability, causing the buyer to back out of the deal.

A subsequent lawsuit filed by said potential buyer revealed that Diamond had allegedly been misleading multiple parties about its financial stability, and that it had known even before its bankruptcy filing that the company that made up roughly a quarter of its entire gaming distribution revenue would not be renewing its deal with the company. That lawsuit, and the fact that Diamond subsequently asked the Bankruptcy Court to speed up the sales process to its second-place bidder so that it wouldn’t default on loan payments, didn’t deter the second place bidders, and on April 30, the court approved that Diamond could be sold to Universal Distribution and Ad Populum, with the two companies planning to split the assets between them.

While many assumed that was the end of the story, it turns out that wasn't even close to the truth.

On May 16, just over two weeks after the court approved the deal, the sale finally closed. The new owners made it official via press release: Universal has purchased the assets of Alliance Game Distributors, while Ad Populum has acquired the assets of Diamond Comic Distributors, along with Diamond Book Distributors, Diamond Select Toys & Collectibles, Collectible Grading Authority, and what was described as “other related assets.” Those “other related assets" notably do not include British and European distribution arm Diamond UK, the status of which has remained unclear throughout this entire process so far — not a comforting thought for the international stores that rely on the company for access to US comics and merchandise right now. 

Almost immediately after the announcement of the sale closure, multiple senior figures inside Diamond were laid off by Ad Populum, including Diamond Book Distributors VP of sales and business development Rich Johnson, and Diamond Comics Distributors chief sales and service officer Chris Powell. When I say "almost immediately," Johnson wrote on his LinkedIn page that a "few minutes after the press release went out my sales team and I (Stuart Carter and Terry Helman) were let go." Given that the press release was sent out 1:42pm ET on a Friday afternoon, that's one dramatic way to start the weekend.

Other Diamond staff are also understood to have been released from the company, including the entire tech support team for the ComicSuite point-of-sale program used by retailers to generate and track orders; Diamond has sent a message to retailers noting that "For the time being, ComicSuite data and servers are operating as usual," and further information will be released soon. 

As if all of the above wasn't change enough, it also appears that Diamond Select Toys, the company’s in-house toy company has also reportedly been closed down.

What all of this means for fans is, at best, unclear; Diamond is clearly in significant flux, with entire departments seemingly either shuttered or operating at a significantly reduced capability, and retailers are likely to be experiencing the effects of that in the coming weeks and months as a new normal emerges. For now, fans and customers should be patient with their local stores, especially surrounding shipping delays and confusion surrounding potential new orders. 

Thankfully, even as all of this was happening, there was something approaching good news. Namely, the existing petition to move Diamond’s bankruptcy filing from Chapter 11 to Chapter 7 — which opened the possibility of the company being liquidated even post-purchase — has been officially withdrawn, with the official court paperwork noting the withdrawal explaining that “the deficiencies noted in the motion have been cured.” The existential threat to the company has ended, just as new practical threats have emerged.

So Diamond, it seems, will live to do business another day as a company in name, if nothing else… even as many of those responsible for making the company what it was for years have been hastily removed from the picture.

This story is almost certainly going to continue for some time. Keep your eyes on Popverse for more.

Get ready for what's next with our guide to upcoming comics, how to buy comics at a comic shop, and our guide to Free Comic Book Day 2025.