The Russ Manning Award - named for the artist Russ Manning, best known for his work on the Tarzan and Star Wars newspaper strips and Magnus, Robot Fighter - has been given out annually at the San Diego Comic-Con since 1982. It's presented to a comics artist who, early in his or her career, shows a superior knowledge and ability in the art of creating comics - which, if anyone's read Bryan's work on Babble and beyond, will know that's something he certainly has in spades!
The award recipient will be announced during the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday, July 19 2013, and I sincerely hope you'll join me in wishing Bryan the best of luck!
You can find Bryan's blog here and follow him on Twitter @BrigonChomhgail.