Cartoonist and animator Ben Wickey spent more than a decade toiling away on More Weight. The original graphic novel is an astonishing achievement, recounting the Salem witch trials through extensive research and dusting off History’s cobwebs. Wickey re-contextualizes the events and the people, establishing how the horror stretches across time, touching upon literary giants like Nathaniel Hawthorne and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, as well as himself and every one of his readers.

We’re publishing this podcast on the eve of the Eisner Awards, held at San Diego Comic-Con International. More Weight finds itself nominated for Best Graphic Novel Album - New. Wickey stands amongst some stiff competition, but as you heard in our Stampies: Best Comics of 2025 episode, we think it’s not only worthy of that nomination, but we believe it to be one of the best comics of the twenty-first century.

More Weight is not a textbook. It’s a riveting, horrorifying, and beautifully human drama. It’s staggering to witness the thought and concern Wickey put into these characters, and his artistic depiction is simply breathtaking. Today’s podcast is one we’ve wanted to have for months. It’s a thorough conversation, exploring with Wickey why the Salem witch trials are more significant today, and it will probably remain so for as long as those living dare to dismiss it as Halloween decoration.

More Weight is available from Top Shelf Productions wherever rad comic books are sold. Follow Ben Wickey on Instagram.

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