Now that we know what books actually came out in March, here are a few numbers to watch for when the various charts are released over the next few weeks.
Unlike January and February, there are a number of major releases. On the Diamond charts, there are at least two books which will certainly sell over 10,000 copies, WALKING DEAD TP VOL 20 and SAGA TP VOL 03, and in fact there's a good chance both books will sell over 20,000, which might be a first in the direct market (for as long back as we have comparable numbers), at least for two books with reprint content to sell that much in the first month of release. I'm guessing WALKING DEAD will come out ahead, with history and TV on its side, but SAGA has the momentum.
Also likely to do well, and in most months well enough to be the number one book, will be NEMO ROSES OF BERLIN HC. Might come in over 10,000 copies, or close to it. In the same range should be AVATAR LAST AIRBENDER TP VOL 07. So that's four releases which would have easily been #1 in the last few months coming out at once.
It'll be interesting to see how the two first volumes of spin-offs from ATTACK ON TITAN do, AoT BEFORE THE FALL GN VOL 01 and AoT JUNIOR HIGH GN VOL 01. Probably not quite up to the level of the previously mentioned books, but certainly good for direct market manga. It'll be more interesting to see how they chart on the BookScan numbers for the month.
It'll also be interesting to see numbers for a few other books. JUSTICE LEAGUE TRINITY WAR HC, if it can put up numbers compared to the regular JL book. It'll be very interesting to see what kind of numbers the NOAH HC book does in advance of the movie release. And I'm really curious about the big $60 STRAY BULLETS collection.
2014-03-26
Elsewhere: Feb. Beat DC Chart and Mayo trades podcast
The Beat's article on DC's February month-to-month numbers by David Carter is over here.
John Mayo's podcast about the February Diamond trades/GN chart, with co-host Chris Marshall, is now available.
John Mayo's podcast about the February Diamond trades/GN chart, with co-host Chris Marshall, is now available.
2014-03-25
Elsewhere: Marvel Feb. numbers at Beat
Roll out of the February month-to-month series charts starts at The Beat with the Marvel numbers from Jason Enright.
2014-03-23
February 2014 wrap-up
Well, I've pretty much exhausted the number of things I want to talk about on the February 2014 numbers. Hope you've found it interesting. There won't be as much on future months, I just had a lot of frames I wanted to look at the numbers through the first time around. In the future I'll pick one or two hopefully interesting angles. And if next month has a more typical Graphic Novel chart, without a flood of liquidated backlist, that will allow me to do a few interesting looks at the numbers.
If you're more interested in long term trends on an individual series, I recommend the articles which will appear on The Beat, probably within the next few weeks.
It'll be mostly links on this blog for the next few weeks, maybe a few surprises. I'm thinking of taking a look at some of the notable March releases ahead of the numbers release and see how closely I can guess their sales based on past trends.
If you have any ideas for interesting ways of looking at the numbers, or questions about anything specific, feel free to leave a comment here, or email me. I'm especially interested if anyone has thoughts on how to define backlist perennials on Diamond's Graphic Novel chart, which I intend to keep track of over here. My current working definition is any book published over six months ago which has made the Top 300 at least half the time in the last two years or since it was published, so an older book like a SANDMAN volume would have to chart at least 12 out of the last 24 months (which three of them manage), while a recent book like an ADVENTURE TIME collection published 8 months ago would have to chart at least 4 of those months. There are 115 books in the last two years which meet that definition, 64 of which appear on the February chart (a bit lower than normal, because of the extra Marvel entries).
I'm also going to work on a glossary of terms. Are there any any I've used that might seem obvious to me, but esoteric to someone who hasn't been following this stuff? I know I'm always struggling over when to use the term "graphic novel", which isn't one I like, but pretty much have to use to be consistent with the places I'm linking to and getting the data from.
If you're more interested in long term trends on an individual series, I recommend the articles which will appear on The Beat, probably within the next few weeks.
It'll be mostly links on this blog for the next few weeks, maybe a few surprises. I'm thinking of taking a look at some of the notable March releases ahead of the numbers release and see how closely I can guess their sales based on past trends.
If you have any ideas for interesting ways of looking at the numbers, or questions about anything specific, feel free to leave a comment here, or email me. I'm especially interested if anyone has thoughts on how to define backlist perennials on Diamond's Graphic Novel chart, which I intend to keep track of over here. My current working definition is any book published over six months ago which has made the Top 300 at least half the time in the last two years or since it was published, so an older book like a SANDMAN volume would have to chart at least 12 out of the last 24 months (which three of them manage), while a recent book like an ADVENTURE TIME collection published 8 months ago would have to chart at least 4 of those months. There are 115 books in the last two years which meet that definition, 64 of which appear on the February chart (a bit lower than normal, because of the extra Marvel entries).
I'm also going to work on a glossary of terms. Are there any any I've used that might seem obvious to me, but esoteric to someone who hasn't been following this stuff? I know I'm always struggling over when to use the term "graphic novel", which isn't one I like, but pretty much have to use to be consistent with the places I'm linking to and getting the data from.
Observations on Feb. 2014 Diamond GN Chart - Backlist
So, of the Top 300 books on Diamond's February 2014 Graphic Novel chart, 122 were new items (25 DC, 28 Marvel, 69 Other) and 92 were Marvel backlist that appears to have been heavily discounted. Of the other 86 backlist listings, 64 are on the list of what I'd call perennials, books which have a 50% or better record of appearing on the Top 300 over the last two years (I might refine that definition later). That leaves another 22 that are worth a closer look.
HELLBOY TP VOL 01 SEED OF DESTRUCTION (DAR) : 1054 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 02 WAKE THE DEVIL (DAR) : 998 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 07 THE TROLL WITCH & OTHERS (DAR) : 444 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 11 MASKS AND MONSTERS (DAR) : 450 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 12 THE STORM AND THE FURY (DAR) : 470 books
The whole HELLBOY series seems to generally sell well but under the radar of the Top 300, though the first book makes the list every few months, and by estimates of Diamond's year-end figures sells 3-4000 copies in the direct market every year. It looks like there was a concerted effort to bring all the volumes back into print in time for the 20th anniversary of the character, which could explain the unusual presence of five scattered volumes.
BATMAN MAD LOVE AND OTHER STORIES TP (DC) : 1141 books
FABLES TP VOL 03 STORYBOOK LOVE (DC) : 442 books
FABLES TP VOL 19 SNOW WHITE (DC) : 445 books
FABLES DELUXE EDITION HC VOL 01 (DC) : 483 books
PLANETARY OMNIBUS HC (DC) : 557 books
PREACHER TP BOOK 01 (DC) : 757 books
MAD LOVE has been around for a while, selling steadily but mostly outside the Top 300. The big surge here is probably due to the new HARLEY QUINN series getting some attention on the character. FABLES VOL 03 pops up occasionally, not quite as often as the first two books. FABLES VOL 19 is the latest one, and those tend to show up for a few months before falling below the Top 300 threshold. It looks like the FABLES DELUXE VOL 01 was out of print for a bit, so that's catching up to some accumulated demand. PLANETARY OMNIBUS came out in January, so this will probably be the last time it makes the list, though it's already sold very well for a $75 book. PREACHER has been getting some attention from the movement on a TV show, which would explain why the first book has been selling especially well lately, though the series has been a decent seller in one form or another since it began. If the TV show actually happens the whole series will become a fixture on the chart for a while.
CAPTAIN AMERICA WINTER SOLDIER ULTIMATE COLLECTION TP (MAR) : 599 books
DEADPOOL KILLS DEADPOOL TP (MAR) : 600 books
DEADPOOL TP VOL 03 GOOD BAD AND UGLY NOW (MAR) : 580 books
SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 04 NECESSARY EVIL (MAR) : 656 books
ULTIMATES 3 TP WHO KILLED SCARLET WITCH (MAR) : 634 books
Pretty obvious why that particular CAPTAIN AMERICA book has been selling well lately, and will probably stop selling as well soon. The previous books in the DEADPOOL KILLS, plain DEADPOOL and SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN lines have all been steady sellers, so I expect these ones to continue appearing for a while. The ULTIMATES 3 book just got a new printing, so probably won't be a regular on the list.
ATTACK ON TITAN GN VOL 01 (RAN) : 821 books
ATTACK ON TITAN GN VOL 02 (RAN) : 614 books
ATTACK ON TITAN GN VOL 03 (RAN) : 462 books
ATTACK ON TITAN was slow to catch on, but has been consistently charting for the last few months, here and on the BookScan reports of the mass-market. I'd expect at least the early books to keep showing up on a regular basis, especially once the anime is released in English.
JOHNNY HOMICIDAL MANIAC DIRECTORS CUT SC (SLA) : 627 books
SQUEE TP (SLA) : 482 books
These two have been steady sellers for years, mostly under the Top 300 threshold. They were both relisted in the January Previews so probably picked up some extra orders from that.
NEMO HEART OF ICE HC (TOP) : 607 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 02 WAKE THE DEVIL (DAR) : 998 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 07 THE TROLL WITCH & OTHERS (DAR) : 444 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 11 MASKS AND MONSTERS (DAR) : 450 books
HELLBOY TP VOL 12 THE STORM AND THE FURY (DAR) : 470 books
The whole HELLBOY series seems to generally sell well but under the radar of the Top 300, though the first book makes the list every few months, and by estimates of Diamond's year-end figures sells 3-4000 copies in the direct market every year. It looks like there was a concerted effort to bring all the volumes back into print in time for the 20th anniversary of the character, which could explain the unusual presence of five scattered volumes.
BATMAN MAD LOVE AND OTHER STORIES TP (DC) : 1141 books
FABLES TP VOL 03 STORYBOOK LOVE (DC) : 442 books
FABLES TP VOL 19 SNOW WHITE (DC) : 445 books
FABLES DELUXE EDITION HC VOL 01 (DC) : 483 books
PLANETARY OMNIBUS HC (DC) : 557 books
PREACHER TP BOOK 01 (DC) : 757 books
MAD LOVE has been around for a while, selling steadily but mostly outside the Top 300. The big surge here is probably due to the new HARLEY QUINN series getting some attention on the character. FABLES VOL 03 pops up occasionally, not quite as often as the first two books. FABLES VOL 19 is the latest one, and those tend to show up for a few months before falling below the Top 300 threshold. It looks like the FABLES DELUXE VOL 01 was out of print for a bit, so that's catching up to some accumulated demand. PLANETARY OMNIBUS came out in January, so this will probably be the last time it makes the list, though it's already sold very well for a $75 book. PREACHER has been getting some attention from the movement on a TV show, which would explain why the first book has been selling especially well lately, though the series has been a decent seller in one form or another since it began. If the TV show actually happens the whole series will become a fixture on the chart for a while.
CAPTAIN AMERICA WINTER SOLDIER ULTIMATE COLLECTION TP (MAR) : 599 books
DEADPOOL KILLS DEADPOOL TP (MAR) : 600 books
DEADPOOL TP VOL 03 GOOD BAD AND UGLY NOW (MAR) : 580 books
SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 04 NECESSARY EVIL (MAR) : 656 books
ULTIMATES 3 TP WHO KILLED SCARLET WITCH (MAR) : 634 books
Pretty obvious why that particular CAPTAIN AMERICA book has been selling well lately, and will probably stop selling as well soon. The previous books in the DEADPOOL KILLS, plain DEADPOOL and SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN lines have all been steady sellers, so I expect these ones to continue appearing for a while. The ULTIMATES 3 book just got a new printing, so probably won't be a regular on the list.
ATTACK ON TITAN GN VOL 01 (RAN) : 821 books
ATTACK ON TITAN GN VOL 02 (RAN) : 614 books
ATTACK ON TITAN GN VOL 03 (RAN) : 462 books
ATTACK ON TITAN was slow to catch on, but has been consistently charting for the last few months, here and on the BookScan reports of the mass-market. I'd expect at least the early books to keep showing up on a regular basis, especially once the anime is released in English.
JOHNNY HOMICIDAL MANIAC DIRECTORS CUT SC (SLA) : 627 books
SQUEE TP (SLA) : 482 books
These two have been steady sellers for years, mostly under the Top 300 threshold. They were both relisted in the January Previews so probably picked up some extra orders from that.
NEMO HEART OF ICE HC (TOP) : 607 books
A slight surge in sales as the second volume ROSES OF BERLIN is coming in March (out now), so the first got a catalog listing in January. it'll probably make the chart a few more times this year, and again when the third book comes out.
2014-03-22
Observations on Feb. 2014 Diamond Comics Chart - Launches and Predictions
Taking out one-shots and annuals, there were 32 new series on Diamond's February comics chart. Let's take out our crystal ball and see where these numbers are likely to be headed in the next few months, if past is indeed prologue (hint, the answer in almost all cases is down. Nostradamus doesn't predict peace and picnics).
WOLVERINE #1 (MAR) - 88923 copies
FANTASTIC FOUR #1 (MAR) - 65775 copies
PUNISHER #1 (MAR) - 54558 copies
MS MARVEL #1 (MAR) - 50286 copies
X-FORCE #1 (MAR) - 47427 copies
NEW WARRIORS #1 (MAR) - 45765 copies
LOKI AGENT OF ASGARD #1 (MAR) - 41921 copies
SHE-HULK #1 (MAR) - 41894 copies
WINTER SOLDIER BITTER MARCH #1 (MAR) - 31137 copies
Marvel's has all the top launches of the month, sometimes re-starting books which only ended a few weeks before. And thanks to their double-shipping, we already know the second issues of WOLVERINE and PUNISHER see drops of over 40%. Expect at least 30% for the rest next month, except maybe WINTER SOLDIER which is a mini-series. Unless there's a breakout hit in the group, all these should lose at least half these sales by #5.
TUROK DINOSAUR HUNTER #1 (DE) - 30722 copies
TOMB RAIDER #1 (DAR) - 18486 copies
Two fairly high profile launches of books which were at one time pretty successful for other publishers. TUROK will almost certainly see a big drop on #2, maybe over 50%. TOMB RAIDER's drop will be smaller, maybe 20-30%. It'll be interesting to see which one is higher with #2. Both should drift down to around 10k by #5. Dynamite has some more Gold Key launches coming up, I expect them to follow a similar trend to the Valiant launch of two years ago*, progressively lower launches and a steady slide with a few temporary upward blips.
*(for those who don't know, the Valiant/Acclaim line of the 1990s was made of old Gold Key revamps and original creations. The Gold Key titles are now owned by a company that licenses them out, previously to Dark Horse, now to Dynamite, while the original 1990s creations are owned by a new company using the Valiant name).
REVENGE #1 (IMA) - 17362 copies
FUSE #1 (IMA) - 15957 copies
UNDERTOW #1 (IMA) - 14859 copies
APOCALYPSE AL #1 (IMA) - 14055 copies
MERCENARY SEA #1 (IMA) - 10728 copies
DEXTER DOWN UNDER #1 (MAR) - 13203 copies
Marvel's second in a series of stories based on the DEXTER novels, not the TV show, by the creator of the character. Pretty much continues the trend from the first series, which ended at 13439. Probably won't see any huge drops, but still likely below 10k by the last issue.
ROYALS MASTERS OF WAR #1 (DC) - 12755 copies
DC's only debut this month is a Vertigo mini-series. Almost surely under 10k by #2 and down in the 7k neighbourhood by the final issue.
BUNKER #1 (ONI) - 10378 copies
KING CONAN CONQUEROR #1 (DAR) - 9646 copies
LOBSTER JOHNSON GET LOBSTER #1 (DAR) - 8266 copies
GFT WONDERLAND CLASH OF QUEENS #1 (ZEN) - 6791 copies
VANDROID #1 (DAR) - 4229 copies
CITY THE MIND IN THE MACHINE #1 (IDW) - 4224 copies
LOKI RAGNAROK & ROLL #1 (BOO) - 4139 copies
DEVILS HOPYARD #1 (ARD) - 2264 copies
These wouldn't have made the chart before that expansion, and are all pretty likely to drop off even the expanded chart within one or two issues.
For the record, here are the one shots and annuals:
BATMAN JOKERS DAUGHTER #1 (DC) - 51066 copies
Pretty good numbers, won't be surprised to see a JOKER'S DAUGHTER series or mini-series within the next year.
IRON MAN ANNUAL #1 (MAR) - 26047 copies
SUPERIOR CARNAGE ANNUAL #1 (MAR) - 25806 copies
Typical for annuals to come out in this range, about 80% to 90% of the nearest regular issue (which was a few months ago for the CARNAGE book).
MLP FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC 100 PENNY PRESS #1 (IDW) - 21957 copies
Most major publishers are doing these $1 reprints of the first issues of their most popular books, so I imagine they're driving some sales, maybe more likely to the collections and digital rather than single issues, since they don't make the second or third issues any easier to find in print.
SUPERMAN LOIS LANE #1 (DC) - 21550 copies
At least 60% less likely to see a LOIS LANE series than a JOKER'S DAUGHTER one.
DC COMICS PRESENTS HARLEY QUINN #1 (DC) - 15587 copies
This is by far the most successful of this series of $8 100-page not-quite-tradepaperback reprint collections that DC has done. It includes the 1999 BATMAN/HARLEY QUINN one-shot that introduced the character created for the animated series to the mainstream DC universe, plus several other early stories. If it was classified on the Graphic Novel chart, where a similar STAR LORD book from Marvel was put, it would have been #1 by a better than 3:1 margin.
X-FILES CONSPIRACY TMNT #1 (IDW) - 13104 copies
X-FILES CONSPIRACY TRANSFORMERS #1 (IDW) - 11897 copies
I guess the idea of crossing over various licensed properties appeals to someone. Pretty solid sales compared to the ongoing titles of those properties.
REVOLUTIONARY WAR DEATHS HEAD II #1 (MAR) - 11310 copies
REVOLUTIONARY WAR SUPERSOLDIERS #1 (MAR) - 10310 copies
Hey, remember Marvel UK? Yeah, me neither.
GFT ROBYN HOOD AGE OF DARKNESS (ZEN) - 6388 copies
Zenescope books generally hang around this level, so I guess that works for them.
RED SONJA BERSERKER ONE SHOT (DE) - 5810 copies
About half the regular RED SONJA book, which seems week. The lowest of three RED SONJA comics this month, seems like overkill for the character.
ROBOCOP BETA ONE SHOT (BOO) - 4263 copies
ROBOCOP TO LIVE AND DIE IN DETROIT ONE SHOT (BOO) - 4164 copies
ROBOCOP MEMENTO MORI ONE SHOT (BOO) - 4012 copies
ROBOCOP HOMINEM EX MACHINA ONE SHOT (BOO) - 3979 copies
Kids love the Rowboat Cop. Just not that many of them.
RED SONJA DOLLAR BOOK #1 (DE) - 3906 copies
1 FOR $1 MASS EFFECT FOUNDATION #1 (DAR) - 3012 copies
Two more $1 reprints. You know, for kids.
VILLAINS MONTH 3D MOTION COMPLETE SET (DC) - 2261 copies
A set of reprints of DC's sold-out 3-D cover comics from September for $200. Sold more than I'd have guessed. It's the top book of the month in dollar terms.
NANCY A DRAGON IN HELL ONE SHOT (AMI) - 1962 copies
I'm not quite sure what this is. I want it to be Ernie Bushmiller's Nancy meeting Smaug, but apparently it's something else.
SAMURAI JACK SPECIAL DIRECTORS CUT (IDW) - 1756 copies
It'll be good to see the original director's vision restored. Hey, who's your favourite comic book director?
FANTASTIC FOUR #1 (MAR) - 65775 copies
PUNISHER #1 (MAR) - 54558 copies
MS MARVEL #1 (MAR) - 50286 copies
X-FORCE #1 (MAR) - 47427 copies
NEW WARRIORS #1 (MAR) - 45765 copies
LOKI AGENT OF ASGARD #1 (MAR) - 41921 copies
SHE-HULK #1 (MAR) - 41894 copies
WINTER SOLDIER BITTER MARCH #1 (MAR) - 31137 copies
Marvel's has all the top launches of the month, sometimes re-starting books which only ended a few weeks before. And thanks to their double-shipping, we already know the second issues of WOLVERINE and PUNISHER see drops of over 40%. Expect at least 30% for the rest next month, except maybe WINTER SOLDIER which is a mini-series. Unless there's a breakout hit in the group, all these should lose at least half these sales by #5.
TUROK DINOSAUR HUNTER #1 (DE) - 30722 copies
TOMB RAIDER #1 (DAR) - 18486 copies
Two fairly high profile launches of books which were at one time pretty successful for other publishers. TUROK will almost certainly see a big drop on #2, maybe over 50%. TOMB RAIDER's drop will be smaller, maybe 20-30%. It'll be interesting to see which one is higher with #2. Both should drift down to around 10k by #5. Dynamite has some more Gold Key launches coming up, I expect them to follow a similar trend to the Valiant launch of two years ago*, progressively lower launches and a steady slide with a few temporary upward blips.
*(for those who don't know, the Valiant/Acclaim line of the 1990s was made of old Gold Key revamps and original creations. The Gold Key titles are now owned by a company that licenses them out, previously to Dark Horse, now to Dynamite, while the original 1990s creations are owned by a new company using the Valiant name).
REVENGE #1 (IMA) - 17362 copies
FUSE #1 (IMA) - 15957 copies
UNDERTOW #1 (IMA) - 14859 copies
APOCALYPSE AL #1 (IMA) - 14055 copies
MERCENARY SEA #1 (IMA) - 10728 copies
ONE HIT WONDER #1 (IMA) - 9719 copies
These are all middle tier Image launches. Books where the creators with a good track record, currently or recently working on high profile Marvel books tend to launch higher, over 25k. Books by relative unknowns launch lower. These are books by people known for their work at DC, lower profile Marvel or previous Image books. I'd expect at least a 20-25% range drop for #2 on each, but wouldn't be too surprised if at least one of them quickly stabilizes and even has a small up-tick within a few issues. If I were betting I'd say FUSE will be the best selling of those that reach #5.
These are all middle tier Image launches. Books where the creators with a good track record, currently or recently working on high profile Marvel books tend to launch higher, over 25k. Books by relative unknowns launch lower. These are books by people known for their work at DC, lower profile Marvel or previous Image books. I'd expect at least a 20-25% range drop for #2 on each, but wouldn't be too surprised if at least one of them quickly stabilizes and even has a small up-tick within a few issues. If I were betting I'd say FUSE will be the best selling of those that reach #5.
Marvel's second in a series of stories based on the DEXTER novels, not the TV show, by the creator of the character. Pretty much continues the trend from the first series, which ended at 13439. Probably won't see any huge drops, but still likely below 10k by the last issue.
ROYALS MASTERS OF WAR #1 (DC) - 12755 copies
DC's only debut this month is a Vertigo mini-series. Almost surely under 10k by #2 and down in the 7k neighbourhood by the final issue.
BUNKER #1 (ONI) - 10378 copies
KING CONAN CONQUEROR #1 (DAR) - 9646 copies
LOBSTER JOHNSON GET LOBSTER #1 (DAR) - 8266 copies
GFT WONDERLAND CLASH OF QUEENS #1 (ZEN) - 6791 copies
GFT ASCENSION #1 (ZEN) - 5327 copies
TERMINATOR ENEMY OF MY ENEMY #1 (DAR) - 6068 copies
WHITE SUITS #1 (DAR) - 5039 copies
PARIAH #1 (DAR) - 4377 copies
GRAVEL COMBAT MAGICIAN #1 (AVA) - 4287 copies
HELLBOY spin-offs like LOBSTER JOHNSON and CONAN minis tend to maintain sales pretty well, they're known quantities at this point, so those will get only modest drop-offs as they go. I'd expect a bit higher drops for the rest, maybe 15-20%, and most would probably fall off the charts within a few issues of Diamond hadn't expanded it to the Top 400. It's harder to guess likely drops in this ranger since there's less history to work with.
GRAVEL COMBAT MAGICIAN #1 (AVA) - 4287 copies
VANDROID #1 (DAR) - 4229 copies
CITY THE MIND IN THE MACHINE #1 (IDW) - 4224 copies
LOKI RAGNAROK & ROLL #1 (BOO) - 4139 copies
DEVILS HOPYARD #1 (ARD) - 2264 copies
These wouldn't have made the chart before that expansion, and are all pretty likely to drop off even the expanded chart within one or two issues.
BATMAN JOKERS DAUGHTER #1 (DC) - 51066 copies
Pretty good numbers, won't be surprised to see a JOKER'S DAUGHTER series or mini-series within the next year.
IRON MAN ANNUAL #1 (MAR) - 26047 copies
SUPERIOR CARNAGE ANNUAL #1 (MAR) - 25806 copies
Typical for annuals to come out in this range, about 80% to 90% of the nearest regular issue (which was a few months ago for the CARNAGE book).
MLP FRIENDSHIP IS MAGIC 100 PENNY PRESS #1 (IDW) - 21957 copies
Most major publishers are doing these $1 reprints of the first issues of their most popular books, so I imagine they're driving some sales, maybe more likely to the collections and digital rather than single issues, since they don't make the second or third issues any easier to find in print.
SUPERMAN LOIS LANE #1 (DC) - 21550 copies
At least 60% less likely to see a LOIS LANE series than a JOKER'S DAUGHTER one.
DC COMICS PRESENTS HARLEY QUINN #1 (DC) - 15587 copies
This is by far the most successful of this series of $8 100-page not-quite-tradepaperback reprint collections that DC has done. It includes the 1999 BATMAN/HARLEY QUINN one-shot that introduced the character created for the animated series to the mainstream DC universe, plus several other early stories. If it was classified on the Graphic Novel chart, where a similar STAR LORD book from Marvel was put, it would have been #1 by a better than 3:1 margin.
X-FILES CONSPIRACY TMNT #1 (IDW) - 13104 copies
X-FILES CONSPIRACY TRANSFORMERS #1 (IDW) - 11897 copies
I guess the idea of crossing over various licensed properties appeals to someone. Pretty solid sales compared to the ongoing titles of those properties.
REVOLUTIONARY WAR DEATHS HEAD II #1 (MAR) - 11310 copies
REVOLUTIONARY WAR SUPERSOLDIERS #1 (MAR) - 10310 copies
Hey, remember Marvel UK? Yeah, me neither.
GFT ROBYN HOOD AGE OF DARKNESS (ZEN) - 6388 copies
Zenescope books generally hang around this level, so I guess that works for them.
RED SONJA BERSERKER ONE SHOT (DE) - 5810 copies
About half the regular RED SONJA book, which seems week. The lowest of three RED SONJA comics this month, seems like overkill for the character.
ROBOCOP BETA ONE SHOT (BOO) - 4263 copies
ROBOCOP TO LIVE AND DIE IN DETROIT ONE SHOT (BOO) - 4164 copies
ROBOCOP MEMENTO MORI ONE SHOT (BOO) - 4012 copies
ROBOCOP HOMINEM EX MACHINA ONE SHOT (BOO) - 3979 copies
Kids love the Rowboat Cop. Just not that many of them.
RED SONJA DOLLAR BOOK #1 (DE) - 3906 copies
1 FOR $1 MASS EFFECT FOUNDATION #1 (DAR) - 3012 copies
Two more $1 reprints. You know, for kids.
VILLAINS MONTH 3D MOTION COMPLETE SET (DC) - 2261 copies
A set of reprints of DC's sold-out 3-D cover comics from September for $200. Sold more than I'd have guessed. It's the top book of the month in dollar terms.
NANCY A DRAGON IN HELL ONE SHOT (AMI) - 1962 copies
I'm not quite sure what this is. I want it to be Ernie Bushmiller's Nancy meeting Smaug, but apparently it's something else.
SAMURAI JACK SPECIAL DIRECTORS CUT (IDW) - 1756 copies
It'll be good to see the original director's vision restored. Hey, who's your favourite comic book director?
2014-03-21
Observations on Feb. 2014 Diamond Comics Chart - Increases
Obviously the general trend for a comic book series single issue sales is down. Absent other factors a fall of about 1-3% per issue is expected after the big initial second and third issue drops. Sometimes you do get other circumstances, and there's an increase. I tend to view an increase of under 3% as statistical noise, unless it can be sustained for several months in a row, which is rare. Here are the entries on Diamond's February 2014 Comics chart which had increases of over 3% from the previously charting issue.
DEATH SENTENCE #5 (TIT) : 3093 copies - +26%
WORLDS FINEST #20 (DC) : 25585 copies - +22%
SAVAGE DRAGON #193 (IMA) : 4979 copies - +20%
SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #27 .NOW (MAR) : 86405 copies - +19%
GREEN ARROW #28 (DC) : 26725 copies - +12%
THOR GOD OF THUNDER #19 .NOW (MAR) : 42034 copies - +10%
GHOSTBUSTERS #13 (IDW) : 6355 copies - +10%
CAPTAIN AMERICA #16 .NOW (MAR) : 36534 copies - +9%
BLACK SCIENCE #4 (IMA) : 25713 copies - +9%
GOD IS DEAD #6 (AVA) : 12852 copies - +8%
HAWKEYE #15 (MAR) : 39546 copies - +7%
SUPERGIRL #28 (DC) : 23567 copies - +7%
ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #0 ARCHER (VAL) : 8671 copies - +7%
X-MEN #10 .NOW (MAR) : 52486 copies - +6%
CRYPTOZOIC MAN #4 (DE) : 11291 copies - +6%
X-O MANOWAR #22 (VAL) : 9808 copies - +5%
NOVA #13 .NOW (MAR) : 26147 copies - +4%
GHOSTED #7 (IMA) : 6403 copies - +4%
Not sure why this one saw a big increase at #5 of a 6-issue series, but at this level of sales a relatively small number of copies (641) shows up as a big percentage. If the book is getting good word-of-mouth that might be seen in the upcoming collection.
SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #27 .NOW (MAR) : 86405 copies - +19%
DEATH SENTENCE #5 (TIT) : 3093 copies - +26%WORLDS FINEST #20 (DC) : 25585 copies - +22%
SAVAGE DRAGON #193 (IMA) : 4979 copies - +20%
SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #27 .NOW (MAR) : 86405 copies - +19%
GREEN ARROW #28 (DC) : 26725 copies - +12%
THOR GOD OF THUNDER #19 .NOW (MAR) : 42034 copies - +10%
GHOSTBUSTERS #13 (IDW) : 6355 copies - +10%
CAPTAIN AMERICA #16 .NOW (MAR) : 36534 copies - +9%
BLACK SCIENCE #4 (IMA) : 25713 copies - +9%
GOD IS DEAD #6 (AVA) : 12852 copies - +8%
HAWKEYE #15 (MAR) : 39546 copies - +7%
SUPERGIRL #28 (DC) : 23567 copies - +7%
ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #0 ARCHER (VAL) : 8671 copies - +7%
X-MEN #10 .NOW (MAR) : 52486 copies - +6%
CRYPTOZOIC MAN #4 (DE) : 11291 copies - +6%
X-O MANOWAR #22 (VAL) : 9808 copies - +5%
NOVA #13 .NOW (MAR) : 26147 copies - +4%
GHOSTED #7 (IMA) : 6403 copies - +4%
DEATH SENTENCE #5 (TIT) : 3093 copies - +26%
Not sure why this one saw a big increase at #5 of a 6-issue series, but at this level of sales a relatively small number of copies (641) shows up as a big percentage. If the book is getting good word-of-mouth that might be seen in the upcoming collection.
SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #27 .NOW (MAR) : 86405 copies - +19%
THOR GOD OF THUNDER #19 .NOW (MAR) : 42034 copies - +10%
CAPTAIN AMERICA #16 .NOW (MAR) : 36534 copies - +9%
X-MEN #10 .NOW (MAR) : 52486 copies - +6%
NOVA #13 .NOW (MAR) : 26147 copies - +4%
Marvel's ".Now" branding for (theoretically) good starting points sees some modest increases, mostly explainable by various ordering incentives. Most of the increases tend to be wiped out by the next issue.
HAWKEYE #15 (MAR) : 39546 copies - +7%
Marvel's only other significant rise of the month is an odd special case. HAWKEYE is running late and shipped issues out of order, so #16 came before #15. If you flip them, you'd pretty much get your standard decline.
WORLDS FINEST #20 (DC) : 25585 copies - +22%
GREEN ARROW #28 (DC) : 26725 copies - +12%
SAVAGE DRAGON #193 (IMA) : 4979 copies - +20%
That's compared to #191, since the book's sales don't always make the chart before the recent increase to releasing the Top 400. This issue is billed as a jumping on point and features a variant cover inked by Todd McFarlane, which still carries some weight, if only a fraction of the weight it carried two decades ago.
GHOSTBUSTERS #13 (IDW) : 6355 copies - +10%
Again, small absolute increases at this level have a large relative effect. This issue does starts a new storyline which will no doubt change the Ghostbusters forever. PS, RIP Harold Ramis.
BLACK SCIENCE #4 (IMA) : 25713 copies - +9%
GOD IS DEAD #6 (AVA) : 12852 copies - +8%
CRYPTOZOIC MAN #4 (DE) : 11291 copies - +6%
ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #0 ARCHER (VAL) : 8671 copies - +7%
X-O MANOWAR #22 (VAL) : 9808 copies - +5%
GREEN ARROW #28 (DC) : 26725 copies - +12%
SUPERGIRL #28 (DC) : 23567 copies - +7%
DC's three substantial increases for the month. WORLDS' FINEST and SUPERGIRL both benefit from crossovers with better selling books. GREEN ARROW rises on the strength of a charity blank variant cover. Both styles of increases are generally fully reversed by the next regular issue.
That's compared to #191, since the book's sales don't always make the chart before the recent increase to releasing the Top 400. This issue is billed as a jumping on point and features a variant cover inked by Todd McFarlane, which still carries some weight, if only a fraction of the weight it carried two decades ago.
GHOSTBUSTERS #13 (IDW) : 6355 copies - +10%
Again, small absolute increases at this level have a large relative effect. This issue does starts a new storyline which will no doubt change the Ghostbusters forever. PS, RIP Harold Ramis.
BLACK SCIENCE #4 (IMA) : 25713 copies - +9%
GOD IS DEAD #6 (AVA) : 12852 copies - +8%
CRYPTOZOIC MAN #4 (DE) : 11291 copies - +6%
GHOSTED #7 (IMA) : 6403 copies - +4%
These seem to be books which are getting good word-of-mouth, which might see steady or even increasing sales, and will likely be seen in sales of their collections.
X-O MANOWAR #22 (VAL) : 9808 copies - +5%
I kind of tend to ignore short-term movement in the Valiant line. Their overall trend is always down, regardless of individual blips.
Elsewhere: Beat Indie Chart and Mayo podcast
Paul Mellerick has his regular round-up of month-to-month trends on the "Indie" (non-DC/Marvel) Diamond comics chart for January, wrapping up that set of charts for The Beat.
John Mayo has his latest podcast at The Comic Book Page discussing the February Diamond comics chart. The Graphic Novel / Trades one should follow soon.
John Mayo has his latest podcast at The Comic Book Page discussing the February Diamond comics chart. The Graphic Novel / Trades one should follow soon.
Observations on Feb. 2014 Diamond GN Chart - Marvel
In terms of new book releases, Marvel generally has about two to three dozen books come out a month, and is usually the most prolific publisher in the direct market. February was about average, with 28 new books on Diamond's Top 300. Dividing them into a few broad groups for easy digestion (you'll find I like dividing stuff into groups)...
They're mostly committed to publishing some form of collected editions of their entire mainstream super-hero line, though sometimes an especially low selling and/or quickly cancelled book will slip between the cracks. More than half of what they publish collects recently published (within the last two years) serialized comics. The formats seem pretty chaotic to me, maybe there's a method to them, but some books get quick thin hardcovers (collecting 4-6 issues, only SAVAGE WOLVERINE this month) followed within a year by softcovers (AVENGERS tops that list this month), some books (even a few better selling ones) go straight to softcover (SUPERIOR FOES). It seems if something does especially well the softcover is eventually followed by an oversized hardcover, collecting two or more of the thinner books (DEADPOOL BY POSEHN AND DUGGAN, DAREDEVIL BY MARK WAID). Big events (INFINITY this month) usually get big $75 hardcovers first, which include key crossovers, followed by smaller books which collect only the main story.
If there's still perceived demand for a book after a long run by a particular creator, they're likely to get a creator-branded (usually just the writer(s) as few Marvel comics keep consistent artists for long runs) "Complete Collection" softcover or series of softcovers generally collecting between 12 and 20 issues at a time, depending on how long the run was. These were previously branded as "Ultimate Collections" until 2013.
And then there are reprints of even older material. This list tends to be heavily influenced by whatever is on deck in the movies, so this month we get a lot of Cap books. The STAR LORD reprint ties in with the upcoming GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY movie, and is Marvel's best selling book on the list, but is also an $8 publication without an ISBN which could just as easily have been classified as Marvel's lowest book on the comics chart where it would have been #340.5 (and where, for example, the also $8 reprint DC COMICS PRESENTS HARLEY QUINN was at #124 this month, selling 15,587 copies).
Also in this category are Marvel's three regular reprint lines, the hardcover Masterworks, the softcover Masterworks and the Epic Collections, each currently publishing one volume a month (the softcover Masterworks for February seems to have shipped to at least some stores in March and didn't make the chart).
In the "everything else" catch-all, we have the creator owned SECRET SERVICE, not doing as well as you'd expect from the co-creators of WATCHMEN and KICK-ASS teaming up with a mildly successful director, but maybe waiting for the film release to really catch on, and the softcover release of a spin-off from the TV show CASTLE, which isn't going to sell in the direct market but might sell somewhere.
INFINITY HC : 3388 copies
AVENGERS TP VOL 01 AVENGERS WORLD : 2637 copies
DEADPOOL BY POSEHN AND DUGGAN HC VOL 01 : 2168 copies
SUPERIOR FOES SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 01 GETTING BAND BACK : 2111 copies
IRON MAN TP VOL 01 BELIEVE : 2012 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA TP VOL 01 CASTAWAY DIMENSION Z BOOK 1 : 1996 copies
NOVA TP VOL 01 ORIGIN NOW : 1876 copies
SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN TEAM UP TP VERSUS : 1519 copies
SCARLET SPIDER TP VOL 04 INTO GRAVE : 1387 copies
DAREDEVIL BY MARK WAID HC VOL 02 : 1286 copies
UNCANNY AVENGERS TP VOL 01 RED SHADOW : 1267 copies
SAVAGE WOLVERINE PREM HC VOL 02 HANDS ON DEAD BODY : 1258 copies
SECRET AVENGERS TP VOL 02 ILIAD : 1242 copies
FEARLESS DEFENDERS TP VOL 02 MOST FAB FIGHTING TEAM OF ALL : 1195 copies
ULTIMATE COMICS X-MEN BY BRIAN WOOD TP VOL 03 : 1119 copies
INFINITY TP HEIST HUNT : 1059 copies
SHE-HULK BY SLOTT TP VOL 01 COMPLETE COLLECTION : 1256 copies
JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY BY GILLEN TP VOL 01 COMPLETE COLL : 1170 copies
X-FORCE BY KYLE AND YOST COMPLETE COLLECTION TP VOL 01 : 1088 copies
Also in this category are Marvel's three regular reprint lines, the hardcover Masterworks, the softcover Masterworks and the Epic Collections, each currently publishing one volume a month (the softcover Masterworks for February seems to have shipped to at least some stores in March and didn't make the chart).
STAR LORD ANNIHILATION CONQUEST : 3430 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA WINTER SOLDIER HC : 1542 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA TP LIVING LEGEND : 1526 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA TP LIVING LEGEND : 1526 copies
MMW DEFENDERS HC VOL 04 : 1048 copies
X-MEN HC PHALANX COVENANT : 879 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA EPIC COLLECTION TP DAWNS EARLY LIGHT TP : 866 copies
GOLDEN AGE CAPTAIN AMERICA OMNI HC VOL 01 : 769 copies
SECRET SERVICE TP (MR) : 1128 copies
CASTLE TP RICHARD CASTLES STORM SEASON : 643 copies
2014-03-20
The Marvel Backlist Bargain Flood of Feb. 2014
Just a few words on the abnormal amount of Marvel backlist items on Diamond's February 2014 charts. That's happened a few times before, Marvel decides to liquidate vast sections of their backlist (DC has also had a few similar mass liquidations show up on the charts). I'm not sure how they do it now, but I know a few years ago it was done through progressively higher discounts. One week retailers get an option to order from a large list of books at 70% off. Books that sell out come off the list, the next week remaining books are 75% off. Eventually everything sells, even if some of it is over 90% off. You end up seeing a lot of these books at conventions, from dealers selling paperbacks for $5, standard hardcovers for $10, oversized hardcovers for $20, with no shortage of inventory. You can find a lot of them now from on-line sellers offering them at half-price or lower. If past is prologue, if you really want any of them, now is a good time to order, you'll never get a better combination of price and availability.
It looks like discounts in that range were the order of business for 92 of the items Marvel had on the Top 300 for February. Those books fall into three groups.
39 of the books were from Marvel's ESSENTIAL line of thick black and white softcovers. The line appears to have wrapped up, at least there haven't been any books released in a few months, and none are on the schedule.
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 02 : 520 copies
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 03 : 556 copies
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 04 : 498 copies
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 05 : 474 copies
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN AMERICA TP VOL 02 : 464 copies
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN AMERICA TP VOL 04 : 858 copies
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN MARVEL TP VOL 01 : 951 copies
ESSENTIAL CLASSIC X-MEN TP VOL 03 : 828 copies
ESSENTIAL DAREDEVIL TP VOL 04 : 642 copies
ESSENTIAL DAZZLER TP VOL 01 : 500 copies
ESSENTIAL DEFENDERS TP VOL 04 : 467 copies
ESSENTIAL DOCTOR STRANGE TP VOL 02 : 529 copies
ESSENTIAL DOCTOR STRANGE TP VOL 03 : 690 copies
ESSENTIAL DOCTOR STRANGE TP VOL 04 : 564 copies
ESSENTIAL FANTASTIC FOUR TP VOL 01 : 871 copies
ESSENTIAL FANTASTIC FOUR TP VOL 07 : 618 copies
ESSENTIAL GHOST RIDER TP VOL 02 : 653 copies
ESSENTIAL GHOST RIDER TP VOL 03 : 630 copies
ESSENTIAL GHOST RIDER TP VOL 04 : 445 copies
ESSENTIAL HULK TP VOL 04 : 745 copies
ESSENTIAL HULK TP VOL 05 : 770 copies
ESSENTIAL IRON MAN TP VOL 01 : 570 copies
ESSENTIAL MAN-THING TP VOL 02 : 552 copies
ESSENTIAL MARVEL TEAM-UP TP VOL 03 : 647 copies
ESSENTIAL MARVEL TWO IN ONE TP VOL 03 : 494 copies
ESSENTIAL MOON KNIGHT TP VOL 03 : 442 copies
ESSENTIAL PARKER SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 03 : 757 copies
ESSENTIAL PARKER SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 04 : 727 copies
ESSENTIAL POWER MAN AND IRON FIST TP VOL 02 : 505 copies
ESSENTIAL PUNISHER TP VOL 01 : 629 copies
ESSENTIAL PUNISHER TP VOL 03 : 778 copies
ESSENTIAL RAMPAGING HULK TP VOL 01 : 1178 copies
ESSENTIAL RAMPAGING HULK TP VOL 02 : 485 copies
ESSENTIAL SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 10 : 767 copies
ESSENTIAL WOLVERINE TP VOL 04 : 649 copies
ESSENTIAL WOLVERINE TP VOL 05 : 818 copies
ESSENTIAL X-MEN TP VOL 02 : 832 copies
ESSENTIAL X-MEN TP VOL 04 : 741 copies
ESSENTIAL X-MEN TP VOL 05 : 1021 copies
AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 01 AVENGERS WORLD : 653 copies
AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 02 LAST WHITE EVENT NOW : 628 copies
AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 03 PRELUDE TO INFINITY : 605 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA PREM HC VOL 01 CASTAWAY DIMENSION Z BK 1 NOW : 625 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA PREM HC VOL 02 CASTAWAY DIMENSION Z BK 2 : 504 copies
DEADPOOL PREM HC VOL 05 WHAT HAPPENED IN VEGAS : 745 copies
INDESTRUCTIBLE HULK PREM HC VOL 01 AGENT OF SHIELD NOW : 597 copies
IRON MAN PREM HC VOL 01 BELIEVE : 613 copies
MARVEL UNIVERSE END PREM HC : 505 copies
NOVA PREM HC ORIGIN NOW : 574 copies
SAVAGE WOLVERINE PREM HC VOL 01 KILL ISLAND NOW : 625 copies
THOR GOD OF THUNDER PREM HC VOL 01 GOD BUTCHER : 686 copies
UNCANNY AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 01 RED SHADOW NOW : 776 copies
UNCANNY AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 02 APOCALYPSE TWINS : 616 copies
It looks like discounts in that range were the order of business for 92 of the items Marvel had on the Top 300 for February. Those books fall into three groups.
39 of the books were from Marvel's ESSENTIAL line of thick black and white softcovers. The line appears to have wrapped up, at least there haven't been any books released in a few months, and none are on the schedule.
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 02 : 520 copies
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 03 : 556 copies
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 04 : 498 copies
ESSENTIAL AVENGERS TP VOL 05 : 474 copies
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN AMERICA TP VOL 02 : 464 copies
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN AMERICA TP VOL 04 : 858 copies
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN MARVEL TP VOL 01 : 951 copies
ESSENTIAL CLASSIC X-MEN TP VOL 03 : 828 copies
ESSENTIAL DAREDEVIL TP VOL 04 : 642 copies
ESSENTIAL DAZZLER TP VOL 01 : 500 copies
ESSENTIAL DEFENDERS TP VOL 04 : 467 copies
ESSENTIAL DOCTOR STRANGE TP VOL 02 : 529 copies
ESSENTIAL DOCTOR STRANGE TP VOL 03 : 690 copies
ESSENTIAL DOCTOR STRANGE TP VOL 04 : 564 copies
ESSENTIAL FANTASTIC FOUR TP VOL 01 : 871 copies
ESSENTIAL FANTASTIC FOUR TP VOL 07 : 618 copies
ESSENTIAL GHOST RIDER TP VOL 02 : 653 copies
ESSENTIAL GHOST RIDER TP VOL 03 : 630 copies
ESSENTIAL GHOST RIDER TP VOL 04 : 445 copies
ESSENTIAL HULK TP VOL 04 : 745 copies
ESSENTIAL HULK TP VOL 05 : 770 copies
ESSENTIAL IRON MAN TP VOL 01 : 570 copies
ESSENTIAL MAN-THING TP VOL 02 : 552 copies
ESSENTIAL MARVEL TEAM-UP TP VOL 03 : 647 copies
ESSENTIAL MARVEL TWO IN ONE TP VOL 03 : 494 copies
ESSENTIAL MOON KNIGHT TP VOL 03 : 442 copies
ESSENTIAL PARKER SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 03 : 757 copies
ESSENTIAL PARKER SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 04 : 727 copies
ESSENTIAL POWER MAN AND IRON FIST TP VOL 02 : 505 copies
ESSENTIAL PUNISHER TP VOL 01 : 629 copies
ESSENTIAL PUNISHER TP VOL 03 : 778 copies
ESSENTIAL RAMPAGING HULK TP VOL 01 : 1178 copies
ESSENTIAL RAMPAGING HULK TP VOL 02 : 485 copies
ESSENTIAL SPIDER-MAN TP VOL 10 : 767 copies
ESSENTIAL WOLVERINE TP VOL 04 : 649 copies
ESSENTIAL WOLVERINE TP VOL 05 : 818 copies
ESSENTIAL X-MEN TP VOL 02 : 832 copies
ESSENTIAL X-MEN TP VOL 04 : 741 copies
ESSENTIAL X-MEN TP VOL 05 : 1021 copies
There were also 39 books from Marvel's line of slightly smaller than standard trim size (but larger than digest size) 5 1/2-in. x 8-in softcover line, which they somewhat confusingly labelled as "graphic novel trade paperbacks", or "GN TP". That format also appears to be done, with only a few releases in 2013 wrapping up some lines and nothing on the horizon.
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN TP OFF INDEX MARVEL UNIVERSE GN : 562 copies
AVENGERS ASSEMBLE HISTORY OF EARTHS HEROES GN TP : 559 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA AND KORVAC SAGA GN TP : 699 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA FIGHTING AVENGER TP : 875 copies
DAREDEVIL NOIR GN TP : 473 copies
FRANKLIN RICHARDS TP SON GENIUS ULT COLL GN BOOK 01 : 1060 copies
FRANKLIN RICHARDS TP SON GENIUS ULT COLL GN BOOK 02 : 663 copies
IRON MAN & ARMOR WARS GN TP : 741 copies
IRON MAN NOIR GN TP : 552 copies
LOCKJAW AND PET AVENGERS TP GN : 540 copies
NEW X-MEN BY GRANT MORRISON GN TP BOOK 01 : 980 copies
NEW X-MEN BY GRANT MORRISON GN TP BOOK 02 : 824 copies
NEW X-MEN BY GRANT MORRISON GN TP BOOK 03 : 802 copies
NEW X-MEN BY GRANT MORRISON GN TP BOOK 04 : 804 copies
NEW X-MEN BY GRANT MORRISON GN TP BOOK 05 : 815 copies
NEW X-MEN BY GRANT MORRISON GN TP BOOK 06 : 760 copies
NEW X-MEN BY GRANT MORRISON GN TP BOOK 07 : 807 copies
OZ DOROTHY AND WIZARD IN OZ GN TP : 863 copies
OZ MARVELOUS LAND OF OZ TP : 1334 copies
OZ OZMA OF OZ GN TP : 1455 copies
OZ ROAD TO OZ GN TP : 1183 copies
PETER PORKER TP VOL 01 SPECTACULAR SPIDER-HAM GN : 577 copies
PRIDE AND PREJUDICE GN TP : 713 copies
SENSE AND SENSIBILITY GN TP : 517 copies
SPECTACULAR SPIDER-GIRL TP LAST STAND GN : 639 copies
THOR MIGHTY AVENGER GN TP VOL 01 GOD WHO FELL INTO EARTH : 838 copies
THOR MIGHTY AVENGER GN TP VOL 02 : 848 copies
UNCANNY X-MEN FIRST CLASS TP HATED AND FEARED GN : 774 copies
UNCANNY X-MEN FIRST CLASS TP KNIGHTS OF HYKON GN : 655 copies
UNCANNY X-MEN OFF INDEX MARVEL UNIVERSE GN TP : 465 copies
VAMPIRE TALES GN TP VOL 01 : 517 copies
VAMPIRE TALES GN TP VOL 02 : 492 copies
VAMPIRE TALES GN TP VOL 03 : 470 copies
WOLVERINE NOIR GN TP : 485 copies
WOLVERINE TALES OF WEAPON X TP GN : 705 copies
X-BABIES CLASSIC GN TP VOL 01 : 843 copies
X-BABIES TP STARS REBORN GN : 827 copies
X-MEN FIRST CLASS GN TP CLASS PORTRAITS : 447 copies
X-MEN NOIR TP MARK OF CAIN GN : 463 copies
Lastly, there were 14 books in Marvel's "premiere hardcover" line, mostly thin collections of some of their better selling monthly comics, published quickly after each story arc ends and replaced within a year with a softcover edition with the same contents. The softcover editions of most of these books have been or soon will be released, so retailers buying them are probably spending slightly less than they would for those softcovers.
AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 02 LAST WHITE EVENT NOW : 628 copies
AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 03 PRELUDE TO INFINITY : 605 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA PREM HC VOL 01 CASTAWAY DIMENSION Z BK 1 NOW : 625 copies
CAPTAIN AMERICA PREM HC VOL 02 CASTAWAY DIMENSION Z BK 2 : 504 copies
DEADPOOL PREM HC VOL 05 WHAT HAPPENED IN VEGAS : 745 copies
INDESTRUCTIBLE HULK PREM HC VOL 01 AGENT OF SHIELD NOW : 597 copies
IRON MAN PREM HC VOL 01 BELIEVE : 613 copies
MARVEL UNIVERSE END PREM HC : 505 copies
NOVA PREM HC ORIGIN NOW : 574 copies
SAVAGE WOLVERINE PREM HC VOL 01 KILL ISLAND NOW : 625 copies
THOR GOD OF THUNDER PREM HC VOL 01 GOD BUTCHER : 686 copies
UNCANNY AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 01 RED SHADOW NOW : 776 copies
UNCANNY AVENGERS PREM HC VOL 02 APOCALYPSE TWINS : 616 copies
Now, all this brings up a few interesting points to ponder. First off, Marvel seems to be doing much better on the supply side than they were a few years ago. It used to be pretty reliable a few years ago that they'd quickly sell out of any book that there was any demand for. It seems they do invest in a generous overprint now, and have books available for a while.
Unfortunately, I think they might have problem on the demand side. Maybe they trained retailers too well to not expect continued availability, and to order whatever they needed up-front. The frequency of the liquidations might also have trained retailers and buyers to hold off on ordering older books, since they might be available at steep discounts soon enough.
2014-03-19
Observations on Feb. 2014 Diamond GN Chart - DC
DC tends to publish about 25 new books a month, and this month was right on average for them. For convenience I'll divide them into three groups.
The first is the New 52, collections of their current mainstream super-hero line. Until the recent decision to cancel the GREEN TEAM collection, every on-going book in the line was collected, with the top sellers getting an initial hadcover followed by a softcover the day the next hardcover volume ships (see FLASH this month), and the other books going straight to softcover. Occasionally crossover storylines (like WRATH OF THE FIRST LANTERN this month) also get a separate collection. There are about ten New 52 collections every month, eleven this month.
There's a pretty wide spread in sales, mostly matching the monthly sales of those books. The spread is actually even wider, since that FLASH TP VOL 02 book has already sold over 3200 copies in the direct market in hardcover, and will probably continue to sell as backlist much better than those lower sellers, six of which collect issues of books already cancelled.
FLASH TP VOL 02 ROGUES REVOLUTION (N52) : 2753 copies
CONSTANTINE TP VOL 01 SPARK AND THE FLAME (N52) : 2675 copies
GREEN LANTERN WRATH OF THE FIRST LANTERN HC (N52) : 2478 copies
FLASH HC VOL 03 GORILLA WARFARE (N52) : 2103 copies
SUPERGIRL TP VOL 03 SANCTUARY (N52) : 1996 copies
DEATHSTROKE TP VOL 02 LOBO HUNT (N52) : 1734 copies
DIAL H TP VOL 02 EXCHANGE (N52) : 1526 copies
LEGION OF SUPER HEROES TP VOL 03 FATAL FIVE (N52) : 1116 copies
RAVAGERS TP VOL 02 HEAVENLY DESTRUCTION (N52) : 891 copies
THRESHOLD TP VOL 01 THE HUNTED (N52) : 819 copies
DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS TP VOL 03 BLACK LIGHTNING BLUE DEVIL (N52) : 767 copies
DC's Vertigo line usually accounts for about four or five entries every month. This month is a little bit heavy for them, as they're in the process of re-issuing some books in updated formats, usually more pages per volume. For example, DMZ will be collected in 5 books in this format, instead of the 11 in the original format. In fact, only two of the eight books they have this month collect material which has never been collected before: FBP (collecting the first storyline of a new book) and STRANGE ADVENTURES (collecting several short story anthologies).
FBP FEDERAL BUREAU OF PHYSICS TP VOL 01 : 2648 copies
WE3 TP NEW ED : 2140 copies
FABLES DELUXE EDITION HC VOL 08 : 1794 copies
SPACEMAN TP : 1525 copies
DMZ DELUXE EDITION HC BOOK 01 : 1320 copies
INVISIBLES HC BOOK 01 DELUXE EDITION : 1293 copies
UNKNOWN SOLDIER TP NEW ED : 961 copies
STRANGE ADVENTURES TP : 864 copies
The first is the New 52, collections of their current mainstream super-hero line. Until the recent decision to cancel the GREEN TEAM collection, every on-going book in the line was collected, with the top sellers getting an initial hadcover followed by a softcover the day the next hardcover volume ships (see FLASH this month), and the other books going straight to softcover. Occasionally crossover storylines (like WRATH OF THE FIRST LANTERN this month) also get a separate collection. There are about ten New 52 collections every month, eleven this month.
There's a pretty wide spread in sales, mostly matching the monthly sales of those books. The spread is actually even wider, since that FLASH TP VOL 02 book has already sold over 3200 copies in the direct market in hardcover, and will probably continue to sell as backlist much better than those lower sellers, six of which collect issues of books already cancelled.
FLASH TP VOL 02 ROGUES REVOLUTION (N52) : 2753 copies
CONSTANTINE TP VOL 01 SPARK AND THE FLAME (N52) : 2675 copies
GREEN LANTERN WRATH OF THE FIRST LANTERN HC (N52) : 2478 copies
FLASH HC VOL 03 GORILLA WARFARE (N52) : 2103 copies
SUPERGIRL TP VOL 03 SANCTUARY (N52) : 1996 copies
DEATHSTROKE TP VOL 02 LOBO HUNT (N52) : 1734 copies
DIAL H TP VOL 02 EXCHANGE (N52) : 1526 copies
LEGION OF SUPER HEROES TP VOL 03 FATAL FIVE (N52) : 1116 copies
RAVAGERS TP VOL 02 HEAVENLY DESTRUCTION (N52) : 891 copies
THRESHOLD TP VOL 01 THE HUNTED (N52) : 819 copies
DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS TP VOL 03 BLACK LIGHTNING BLUE DEVIL (N52) : 767 copies
DC's Vertigo line usually accounts for about four or five entries every month. This month is a little bit heavy for them, as they're in the process of re-issuing some books in updated formats, usually more pages per volume. For example, DMZ will be collected in 5 books in this format, instead of the 11 in the original format. In fact, only two of the eight books they have this month collect material which has never been collected before: FBP (collecting the first storyline of a new book) and STRANGE ADVENTURES (collecting several short story anthologies).
FBP FEDERAL BUREAU OF PHYSICS TP VOL 01 : 2648 copies
WE3 TP NEW ED : 2140 copies
FABLES DELUXE EDITION HC VOL 08 : 1794 copies
SPACEMAN TP : 1525 copies
DMZ DELUXE EDITION HC BOOK 01 : 1320 copies
INVISIBLES HC BOOK 01 DELUXE EDITION : 1293 copies
UNKNOWN SOLDIER TP NEW ED : 961 copies
STRANGE ADVENTURES TP : 864 copies
The third category is everything else, this month consisting of two collections of recent comics for younger readers and four collections of mainstream super-hero books from before the New 52 reboot. Only one of those four, MARTIAN MANHUNTER, collects material which hasn't been collected before, either in hardcover versions of the same books or previous smaller collections.
BATMAN LIL GOTHAM TP VOL 01 : 2298 copies
SUPERMAN FAMILY ADVENTURES TP VOL 02 : 1581 copies
POWER GIRL POWER TRIP TP : 1544 copies
JLA TP VOL 04 : 1520 copies
LEGION OF SUPER HEROES GREAT DARKNESS SAGA TP NEW ED : 996 copies
MARTIAN MANHUNTER SON OF MARS TP : 898 copies
2014-03-18
Observations on Feb. 2014 Diamond Comics Chart
The trends for individual series on the comics chart will eventually be gone over in greater detail than I'm able to do by writers over on the Beat. I like to look at general trends more than specific titles.
The Second Issue Drop Watch
The most basic common wisdom of comic book sales trends is that second issues drop in sales. They drop in sales a lot. Retailers generally have to order second issues before customers have seen the first, although in recent years they sometimes have a narrow window to adjust orders up or down between #1 being released and orders for #2 being finalized. I don't have as consistent sources for numbers in the 1990s, but supposedly at the height of the speculator boom drops of well over 50% for a second issue weren't unusual. A few years ago the average drop from #1 to #2 was about 20%. That's only been increasing lately, and this month it's about 30%. More and more publishers are front-loading the sales to get a big launch, offering ordering incentives, lower prices, higher discounts, multiple covers, custom variants and returnability. It might make sense, since your first issue sales are pretty much your sales ceiling, except in a few cases, and you also have to allow for people who use first issues to sample a series, intending to eventually buy the collection when its available.
Here are the second issue drops for February 2014:
DISNEY KINGDOMS SEEKERS OF WEIRD (MAR) : -63%
TWILIGHT ZONE (DE) : -55%
LEGENDERRY A STEAMPUNK ADV (DE) : -52%
WOLVERINE (MAR) : -47%
VAMPIRE DIARIES (DC) : -44%
EGOS (IMA) : -43%
DEADLY CLASS (IMA) : -43%
PUNISHER (MAR) : -42%
ALL NEW INVADERS (MAR) : -41%
SCRIBBLENAUTS UNMASKED CRISIS OF IMAGINATION (DC) : -39%
BAD ASS (DE) : -36%
TEEN TITANS GO (DC) : -33%
UNWRITTEN VOL 2 APOCALYPSE (DC) : -31%
SERENITY LEAVES ON THE WIND (DAR) : -29%
GEORGE ROMEROS EMPIRE OF DEAD ACT ONE (MAR) : -28%
GFT WONDERLAND ASYLUM (ZEN) : -22%
ROBOTECH VOLTRON (DE) : -20%
JUDGE DREDD MEGA CITY TWO (IDW) : -16%
ADVENTURE TIME FLIP SIDE (BOO) : -15%
GFT TALES FROM OZ (ZEN) : -14%
TMNT UTROM EMPIRE (IDW) : -14%
MY LITTLE PONY FRIENDS FOREVER (IDW) : -12%
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN MOVIE ADAPTATION (MAR) : -11%
INJUSTICE YEAR TWO (DC) : -8%
BALTIMORE CHAPEL OF BONES (DAR) : -5%
Third issue drops tend to be more modest, as retailers can react to people seeing the actual books. They used to be around 10%, but they've been creeping up slowly, closer to 13% now, especially with a lot of double-shipping from Marvel.
Fourth Issue Drop Watch
Yeah, why not go one more, just for kicks.
The Second Issue Drop Watch
Here are the second issue drops for February 2014:
DISNEY KINGDOMS SEEKERS OF WEIRD (MAR) : -63%
TWILIGHT ZONE (DE) : -55%
LEGENDERRY A STEAMPUNK ADV (DE) : -52%
WOLVERINE (MAR) : -47%
VAMPIRE DIARIES (DC) : -44%
EGOS (IMA) : -43%
DEADLY CLASS (IMA) : -43%
PUNISHER (MAR) : -42%
ALL NEW INVADERS (MAR) : -41%
SCRIBBLENAUTS UNMASKED CRISIS OF IMAGINATION (DC) : -39%
BAD ASS (DE) : -36%
TEEN TITANS GO (DC) : -33%
UNWRITTEN VOL 2 APOCALYPSE (DC) : -31%
SERENITY LEAVES ON THE WIND (DAR) : -29%
GEORGE ROMEROS EMPIRE OF DEAD ACT ONE (MAR) : -28%
GFT WONDERLAND ASYLUM (ZEN) : -22%
ROBOTECH VOLTRON (DE) : -20%
JUDGE DREDD MEGA CITY TWO (IDW) : -16%
ADVENTURE TIME FLIP SIDE (BOO) : -15%
GFT TALES FROM OZ (ZEN) : -14%
TMNT UTROM EMPIRE (IDW) : -14%
MY LITTLE PONY FRIENDS FOREVER (IDW) : -12%
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN MOVIE ADAPTATION (MAR) : -11%
INJUSTICE YEAR TWO (DC) : -8%
BALTIMORE CHAPEL OF BONES (DAR) : -5%
So lots of hefty 40% and higher drops. The second issues that seem to do the best relative to the first issue are spin-offs of well established books with known sales trends and the latest in a series of continuing limited series, which generally see a small bump for the first issue, followed by the later issues falling back in line with the overall trend for the series.
Third Issue Drop Watch
MIRACLEMAN (MAR) : -33%
AVENGERS WORLD (MAR) : -26%
JUSTICE LEAGUE 3000 (DC) : -20%
TERMINATOR SALVATION FINAL BATTLE (DAR) : -19%
ORIGIN II (MAR) : -17%
MARVEL KNIGHTS HULK (MAR) : -16%
ILLEGITIMATES (IDW) : -13%
HARLEY QUINN (DC) : -13%
DEAD BOY DETECTIVES (DC) : -11%
HALO ESCALATION (DAR) : -10%
DEAD BODY ROAD (IMA) : -10%
BLACK WIDOW (MAR) : -10%
DOC SAVAGE (DE) : -9%
ALL NEW SOULFIRE (ASP) : -8%
GFT CODE RED (ZEN) : -8%
ALL NEW X-FACTOR (MAR) : -7%
SMALLVILLE SEASON 11 ALIEN (DC) : -6%
STAR WARS DARTH VADER & CRY OF SHADOWS (DAR) : -6%
NIGHT OF LIVING DEADPOOL (MAR) : -6%
ROVER RED CHARLIE (AVA) : +0%
ROVER RED CHARLIE actually managed the rare feat of a sales increase with #3, although a very small statistically insignificant one (+0.39%, or 26 copies, if you were wondering). MIRACLEMAN will be fascinating to see. It's still selling well at 26,000 for what's essentially an over-priced reprint, if one that needs a lot more production than an average reprint, but a few more drops like that (and a few issues coming up with less impressive art) will really take the shine off.
Fourth Issue Drop Watch
UNITY (VAL) : -20%
PROTECTORS INC (IMA) : -16%
LETTER 44 (ONI) : -12%
KINGS WATCH (DE) : -11%
DRUMHELLAR (IMA) : -11%
ASH & THE ARMY OF DARKNESS (DE) : -10%
MARVEL KNIGHTS X-MEN (MAR) : -9%
UMBRAL (IMA) : -9%
PAINKILLER JANE PRICE OF FREEDOM (MAR) : -9%
REGULAR SHOW SKIPS (BOO) : -7%
WRAITH WELCOME TO CHRISTMASLAND (IDW) : -7%
GFT QUEST (ZEN) : -7%
AMAZING X-MEN (MAR) : -6%
MAXX MAXXIMIZED (IDW) : -6%
LEGENDS OF RED SONJA (DE) : -5%
STAR WARS DAWN O/T JEDI FORCE WAR (DAR) : -4%
MANIFEST DESTINY (IMA) : -4%
ALEX + ADA (IMA) : -4%
CRYPTOZOIC MAN (DE) : 6%
BLACK SCIENCE (IMA) : 9%
Historically 5-7% drops are what you'd see with #4, and you hope to settle into "standard attrition" within a few issues, and we're on the high side of that right now, up at a 7% average. UNITY as an outlier on one side was very heavily promoted, and is quickly falling into line with the rest of the Valiant books. The outliers on the other side are actually starting to show sales increases, which has to be encouraging.
More to come, including books that increased in sales and debuts.
More to come, including books that increased in sales and debuts.
Observations on Feb. 2014 Diamond GN Chart
So, a few general comments about Diamond's February 2014 Graphic Novels chart (take your pick of sources over here).
For the Top 300 there are approximately 122 new items and 178 backlist items. That's not precise, since there are some definition questions. For example, I count the listing for BATMAN DARK VICTORY TP as backlist, even though the listing this month is a new edition at a higher price and a new ISBN. However, most books fall more firmly on one side of the other. Anyway, that's the reverse of the normal new to backlist ratio, entirely due to Marvel selling a bunch of stuff at higher than normal discounts. I'll have a separate post about that, but over 90 of the entries appear to be Marvel books at high discounts. Without those it probably would have been closer to the normal. I might also look at some new items that fell below the charts later.
The Marvel sale flood also served to drown out a lot of the other backlist items you'd normally expect. Mostly what's left are the perennials which almost always chart. Of the remaining backlist entries, 67 of them were on the chart at least 4 of the last 6 months. The other backlist entries are recent books seeing second and third month sales before probably falling off forever and older books which occasionally pop up based on various factors. PREACHER BOOK ONE probably shows up a lot lately with the publicity behind the TV show, and it looks like Dark Horse reprinted a bunch of HELLBOY books this month, and Slave Labor reprinted some Jhonen Vasquez books, so those sales are probably the result of a few months of accumulated demand being filled at once, or benefiting from having a proper catalogue listing to remind retailers they exist.
On to the new stuff, LOCKE & KEY HC VOL 06 by Gabriel Rodriguez and Joe Hill is the top book by a pretty good margin. It would have been even wider if IDW hadn't bifurcated the sales by offering the book with a slipcase to fit the whole series for $10 more (and that's a good number of slipcases to sell, especially if they encourage people to get the other five hardcovers). Combine the two and you have sales of over 6200 copies. The rest of IDW's new entries are collections of their various licensed books.
Image's top book is FATALE TP VOL 04. The first three books have been solid sellers, I suspect that'll continue at least until the serialization ends, then we'll see if it becomes a permanent fixture on the charts in some form. Image has another ten collections of recent comics, all at least partly creator owned (sometimes owned by the creator of the character but not the creators of the specific stories being printed), later down the list.
Boom comes in at #3 with ADVENTURE TIME TP VOL 04, and their only other Top 300 book is the related BRAVEST WARRIORS TP VOL 02. Looks like a good choice of a licensing avenue for them to explore.
Marvel's top book is STAR LORD ANNIHILATION CONQUEST, which is one of those borderline cases which could have just as easily been listed on the comics chart. Their top actual book is INFINITY HC, the now traditional $75 collection of their most recent event series and its major crossovers. DC's top book is FLASH TP VOL 02 ROGUES REVOLUTION, collecting the current series. DC and Marvel have enough entries on the list to warrant separate posts later (here's DC, here's Marvel).
Dark Horse's best-selling book is AVATAR LAST AIRBENDER SEARCH LIBRARY ED HC at #16, a $40 hardcover collecting three smaller volumes of the series. Pretty impressive, and the book is selling well in the mass-market as well. Dark Horse has one of the most varied publishing lines around, and their entries include collections of recent licensed comics, recent creator owned comics, classic comics, manga and original graphic novels.
Dynamite Entertainment has six books, collecting recent licensed and creator owned books, plus a few books collecting comics from prior publishers of properties they currently license.
Various other publishers have four or fewer new books in the Top 300. Oddly Viz, which usually has over a dozen entries on the list, is completely absent. It looks like they only shipped three books during the month (getting most of their February scheduled books out early in January), and they were all lower selling ones which might make the list sometimes, but not in the face of Marvel's bargain basement backlist bonanza.
Note the publisher codes Diamond. RAN is Random House, mostly manga books published by Kodansha. HAC is Hachette, mostly Yen Press. ST. is St. Martin's, which tends to be either First Second or Seven Seas Entertainment. DIA can be any number of publishers, in the case below British publisher PS Artbooks.
For the Top 300 there are approximately 122 new items and 178 backlist items. That's not precise, since there are some definition questions. For example, I count the listing for BATMAN DARK VICTORY TP as backlist, even though the listing this month is a new edition at a higher price and a new ISBN. However, most books fall more firmly on one side of the other. Anyway, that's the reverse of the normal new to backlist ratio, entirely due to Marvel selling a bunch of stuff at higher than normal discounts. I'll have a separate post about that, but over 90 of the entries appear to be Marvel books at high discounts. Without those it probably would have been closer to the normal. I might also look at some new items that fell below the charts later.
The Marvel sale flood also served to drown out a lot of the other backlist items you'd normally expect. Mostly what's left are the perennials which almost always chart. Of the remaining backlist entries, 67 of them were on the chart at least 4 of the last 6 months. The other backlist entries are recent books seeing second and third month sales before probably falling off forever and older books which occasionally pop up based on various factors. PREACHER BOOK ONE probably shows up a lot lately with the publicity behind the TV show, and it looks like Dark Horse reprinted a bunch of HELLBOY books this month, and Slave Labor reprinted some Jhonen Vasquez books, so those sales are probably the result of a few months of accumulated demand being filled at once, or benefiting from having a proper catalogue listing to remind retailers they exist.
| Title | Price | Pub | Sales |
| LOCKE & KEY HC VOL 06 ALPHA & OMEGA | $29.99 | IDW | 4,532 |
| MY LITTLE PONY TALES TP VOL 02 | $17.99 | IDW | 2,874 |
| LOCKE & KEY SLIPCASED HC VOL 06 ALPHA & OMEGA | $39.99 | IDW | 1,678 |
| TMNT ONGOING TP VOL 07 CITY FALL PT 2 | $17.99 | IDW | 1,492 |
| MARS ATTACKS JUDGE DREDD TP | $17.99 | IDW | 677 |
| MR PEABODY & SHERMAN TP | $17.99 | IDW | 550 |
| X-FILES CLASSICS HC VOL 03 | $29.99 | IDW | 478 |
| GI JOE TP VOL 02 THREAT MATRIX | $19.99 | IDW | 467 |
Image's top book is FATALE TP VOL 04. The first three books have been solid sellers, I suspect that'll continue at least until the serialization ends, then we'll see if it becomes a permanent fixture on the charts in some form. Image has another ten collections of recent comics, all at least partly creator owned (sometimes owned by the creator of the character but not the creators of the specific stories being printed), later down the list.| Title | Price | Pub | Sales |
| FATALE TP VOL 04 PRAY FOR RAIN | $14.99 | IMA | 4,174 |
| INVINCIBLE TP VOL 19 THE WAR AT HOME | $16.99 | IMA | 3,608 |
| REVIVAL TP VOL 03 A FARAWAY PLACE | $14.99 | IMA | 2,772 |
| THIEF OF THIEVES TP VOL 03 | $14.99 | IMA | 2,355 |
| PROPHET TP VOL 03 EMPIRE | $14.99 | IMA | 2,244 |
| ZERO TP VOL 01 AN EMERGENCY | $9.99 | IMA | 2,054 |
| PETER PANZERFAUST TP VOL 03 CRY O/T WOLF | $14.99 | IMA | 1,684 |
| SPAWN ORIGINS TP VOL 20 | $14.99 | IMA | 921 |
| REALITY CHECK TP | $14.99 | IMA | 593 |
| HOAX HUNTERS TP VOL 03 BOOK OF MOTHMAN | $14.99 | IMA | 563 |
| MICE TEMPLAR TP VOL 04 .1 LEGEND PT 1 | $17.99 | IMA | 460 |
| Title | Price | Pub | Sales |
| ADVENTURE TIME TP VOL 04 | $14.99 | BOO | 3,941 |
| BRAVEST WARRIORS TP VOL 02 | $14.99 | BOO | 1,248 |
Marvel's top book is STAR LORD ANNIHILATION CONQUEST, which is one of those borderline cases which could have just as easily been listed on the comics chart. Their top actual book is INFINITY HC, the now traditional $75 collection of their most recent event series and its major crossovers. DC's top book is FLASH TP VOL 02 ROGUES REVOLUTION, collecting the current series. DC and Marvel have enough entries on the list to warrant separate posts later (here's DC, here's Marvel).
| Title | Price | Pub | Sales |
| AVATAR LAST AIRBENDER SEARCH LIBRARY ED HC | $39.99 | DAR | 2,431 |
| LOBSTER JOHNSON TP VOL 03 SATAN SMELLS A RAT | $18.99 | DAR | 2,059 |
| MASS EFFECT FOUNDATION TP VOL 01 | $16.99 | DAR | 1,563 |
| ANGEL & FAITH TP VOL 05 WHAT YOU WANT NOT WHAT YOU NEED | $17.99 | DAR | 1,504 |
| AXE COP TP VOL 05 AXE COP GETS MARRIED | $14.99 | DAR | 1,465 |
| CAPTAIN MIDNIGHT TP VOL 01 | $14.99 | DAR | 1,358 |
| CONAN PHANTOMS O/T BLACK COAST TP | $19.99 | DAR | 1,329 |
| SHERLOCK HOLMES & VAMPIRES OF LONDON HC | $17.99 | DAR | 1,185 |
| BREATH OF BONES A TALE O/T GOLEM HC | $14.99 | DAR | 1,057 |
| CHRONICLES OF KING CONAN TP VOL 07 DAY OF WRATH | $19.99 | DAR | 1,025 |
| STRAIN TP VOL 03 THE FALL | $19.99 | DAR | 998 |
| STAR WARS LEGACY HC VOL 03 | $34.99 | DAR | 952 |
| EC ARCHIVES VAULT OF HORROR HC VOL 03 | $49.99 | DAR | 805 |
| BLOOD C GN VOL 03 | $12.99 | DAR | 668 |
| CREEPY COMICS TP VOL 03 LURKING FATE | $19.99 | DAR | 661 |
| CREEPY ARCHIVES HC VOL 18 | $49.99 | DAR | 594 |
| BLOOD BLOCKADE BATTLEFRONT TP VOL 05 | $12.99 | DAR | 516 |
| Title | Price | Pub | Sales |
| RED SONJA TP VOL 01 QUEEN OF PLAGUES | $19.99 | DE | 1,314 |
| VAMPIRELLA THE ESSENTIAL WARREN YEARS TP | $24.99 | DE | 762 |
| MOCKING DEAD TP VOL 01 | $17.99 | DE | 704 |
| UNCANNY TP VOL 01 SEASON OF HUNGRY GHOSTS | $19.99 | DE | 634 |
| SHADOW MASTER SERIES TP VOL 01 | $24.99 | DE | 607 |
| DEJAH THORIS & GREEN MEN OF MARS TP VOL 01 RED MEAT | $16.99 | DE | 582 |
Note the publisher codes Diamond. RAN is Random House, mostly manga books published by Kodansha. HAC is Hachette, mostly Yen Press. ST. is St. Martin's, which tends to be either First Second or Seven Seas Entertainment. DIA can be any number of publishers, in the case below British publisher PS Artbooks.
| Title | Price | Pub | Sales |
| BOJEFFRIES SAGA GN | $14.95 | TOP | 1,962 |
| SIXTH GUN TP VOL 06 | $19.99 | ONI | 1,584 |
| ATOMIC ROBO REAL SCIENCE ADV TP VOL 02 | $13.95 | RED | 1,123 |
| WHERE BOLD STARS GO TO DIE GN | $7.95 | SLA | 1,039 |
| HARBINGER TP VOL 04 PERFECT DAY | $14.99 | VAL | 1,022 |
| ARCHER & ARMSTRONG TP VOL 04 SECT CIVIL WAR | $14.99 | VAL | 951 |
| GFT WONDERLAND THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS TP | $15.99 | ZEN | 887 |
| ARCHIE 1000 PG COMICS PALOOZA TP | $14.99 | ARC | 883 |
| GFT NO TOMORROW TP | $15.99 | ZEN | 668 |
| FAIRY TAIL GN VOL 35 | $10.99 | RAN | 662 |
| ALONE FOREVER GN | $9.95 | TOP | 644 |
| FERALS TP VOL 03 | $19.99 | AVA | 626 |
| DRAGONAR ACADEMY GN VOL 01 | $12.99 | ST. | 618 |
| CHARLIE BROWN & FRIENDS TP | $9.99 | POC | 608 |
| STRIKE WITCHES MAIDENS I/T SKY GN VOL 01 | $12.99 | ST. | 588 |
| MYSTERIOUS STRANGERS TP VOL 01 STRANGE WAYS | $19.99 | ONI | 566 |
| ANT COLONY HC | $21.95 | DRA | 558 |
| IS THIS A ZOMBIE GN VOL 07 | $13.00 | HAC | 555 |
| DOWN SET FIGHT GN | $19.99 | ONI | 493 |
| BATTLE ANGEL ALITA LAST ORDER OMNIBUS VOL 03 | $19.99 | RAN | 471 |
| BTOOOM GN VOL 05 | $11.99 | HAC | 465 |
| DISAPPEARANCE OF NAGATO YUKI CHAN GN VOL 05 | $13.00 | HAC | 462 |
| JOYNERS 3D HC | $29.95 | ARA | 453 |
| PUELLA MAGI KAZUMI MAGICA GN VOL 04 INNOCENT MALICE | $11.99 | HAC | 447 |
| ROY THOMAS PRESENTS VOL 03 PLANET COMICS HC | $49.99 | DIA | 442 |
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