The Beat's Heidi MacDonald returns to the show to chat about a particularly wild time in the comic industry. MacDonald discusses the insanity of this moment, staying on top of everything, the Diamond Comic Distributors bankruptcy mess (note: This was recorded before the final decision of who won was in), the varying players, why Diamond may have favored Universal/Ad Populum, whether it matters who won, the importance of institutional knowledge, the infamous podcast appearance of Alliance's head, how the direct market responded to the bankruptcy, tariff concerns, actual and perceived impacts, the current state of the direct market, the ComicsPRO experience, what helps her in tough times, and more.