JPMorgan Spat With Comics Publishers Traps Batman, Power Rangers

Batman is being held hostage in a Mississippi warehouse. So, too, are James Bond, Doctor Who and Cruella de Ville. Not even pop culture’s grumpiest cat, Garfield, can escape.

They’re among thousands of characters represented in roughly 8.2 million comics, graphic novels, figurines and table-top games held for months in a 600,000-square-foot warehouse formerly operated by a major comics distributor that went bankrupt in 2025. Publishers have formed alliances to free the items but at least one powerful adversary is impeding them: JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan was Diamond Comic Distributors’ biggest creditor, and is fighting in court over the ...