With “New 52” numbers settled down (see here for a long-term breakdown), May marked a return to a variety of old-fashioned direct-market sales boosters: six of the loowest-selling “New 52” titles were replaced with new launches Earth-2, Worlds’ Finest, Dial H, G.I. Combat, The Ravagers and Batman, Incorporated; new creative teams (meaning Rob Liefeld, mostly) were instated on Hawkman, Deathstroke and Grifter, three of the lower-selling “New 52” books that haven’t been cancelled; Annuals for Batman, Animal Man and Teen Titans, three of the more popular “New 52” series; and, finally, four separate crossovers involving 21 titles, notably the “Court of Owls” storyline running through most of the Batman line.
And those tricks still work quite well, as it turns out: For the DC Universe imprint, average comic-book sales, total unit sales and total dollar sales soared back towards their highest respective levels since November 2011, which is pretty good. With Before Watchmen around the corner and September’s issue-#0 stunt and the next round of “New 52” replacements coming up, it seems safe to say that the publisher will be able to build on the ground recovered thanks to the “New 52” relaunch through the second half of 2012.
Over at Vertigo, on the other hand, alarm bells keep ringing for the periodical comic-book format. With Dominique Laveau, one of the imprint’s March launches has already been axed with issue #7, and with Scalped, Sweet Tooth and I, Zombie running their course, Hellblazer is now the lowest-selling ongoing title in Vertigo’s comic-book stable that doesn’t have an official end date. While it’s unlikely that the book itself is in danger due to low sales, this does put a question mark above Vertigo’s continued ability to publish comic-book titles that aren’t part of the Fables or American Vampire franchises. Look here for a long-term look at Vertigo’s month-to-month sales.
Finally, May was the first month since the launch of the “New 52” in which returnability no longer applied to any of the initial 52 books, and, fortunately, the figures of the 37 titles that had been returnable through April end up right where you’d expect them to. Which suggests that the assumption Diamond only reported 90% of those numbers and my subsequent re-addition of the missing 10% were right on the mark. Thanks again to John Jackson Miller for alerting me on the 90% figure in the first place. (Once again, due to this, please note that the chart positions don’t match the sales figures on those titles. Presuming anyone reads this at all. Which, experience has taught me, is not the case. So it is absolutely safe for me to confess that I am completely naked when writing these columns on DC Comics sales.)
Of course, as of May, Earth-2, Worlds’ Finest, The Ravagers, Dial H and G.I. Combat (but not Batman, Incorporated) were returnable, and their numbers tweaked accordingly by Diamond, so that particular game starts all over again: I’ve re-added 10% to each of those figures. We’ll find out if that‘s on the mark once returnability ends on those titles.
See below for the details and, as usual, please consider the small print at the end of the column. Thanks to Milton Griepp and ICv2.com for the permission to use their figures. An overview of ICv2.com‘s estimates can be found here.
Another procedural note: The “New 52” titles Earth-2, Worlds’ Finest, Batman, Incorporated, Dial H, G.I. Combat, The Ravagers, Batman, Justice League, Action Comics, Green Lantern, Flash, Stormwatch, Teen Titans, Wonder Woman, Detective Comics, Batman: The Dark Knight, Superman, Aquaman, Batwoman, Green Lantern: New Guardians and Swamp Thing are being promoted with various, sometimes multiple variant-cover editions that are likely to have boosted sales. I’ll just mention those here, so keep them in mind.
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3 - BATMAN 05/2007: Batman #665 -- 80,122 05/2008: Batman #676 -- 105,039 [122,877] 05/2009: BfC #3 of 3 -- 89,170 05/2010: Batman #699 -- 62,377 ------------------------------- 05/2011: Batman #710 -- 55,086 (- 2.6%) 06/2011: Batman #711 -- 53,113 (- 3.6%) 07/2011: Batman #712 -- 51,385 (- 3.3%) 08/2011: Batman #713 -- 51,760 (+ 0.7%) 09/2011: Batman #1 -- 188,420 (+264.0%) [219,660] 10/2011: Batman #2 -- 172,428 (- 8.5%) [177,721] 11/2011: Batman #3 -- 150,984 (- 12.4%) 12/2011: Batman #4 -- 133,781 (- 11.4%) [141,261] 01/2012: Batman #5 -- 135,145 (+ 1.0%) [142,499] 02/2012: Batman #6 -- 128,459 (- 5.0%) [135,435] 03/2012: Batman #7 -- 131,091 (+ 2.1%) 04/2012: Batman #8 -- 130,602 (- 0.4%) [136,218] 05/2012: Batman #9 -- 134,605 (+ 3.1%) ----------------- 6 months: - 10.9% 1 year : +144.4% 2 years : +115.8% 5 years : + 68.0%
The “Court of Owls” crossover brings a slight increase.
Since we haven’t had any big crossovers at DC in a while, it’s worth mentioning that they don’t really generate new readers — they’re yet another means to get the existing audience to buy more comics than they might otherwise have, basically. So the fact that the best-selling title gets the smallest increase isn’t surprising.
That said, in terms of boosting the sales of the other participating titles, “Court of Owls” is doing its job rather well, no doubt thanks to the good reception of the Snyder/Capullo run that it spins out of.
Meanwhile, Batman #8 charted again in May with an estimated 5,616 units. There were also “Combo Pack” editions for this and for various other titles, but none of them charted in May.
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4 - JUSTICE LEAGUE 05/2007: Justice League #9 -- 129,285 05/2008: Justice League #21 -- 90,035 05/2009: Justice League #33 -- 63,867 05/2010: Justice League #45 -- 62,465 --------------------------------------- 05/2011: JL of America #57 -- 46,729 (- 1.0%) 06/2011: JL of America #58 -- 45,442 (- 2.8%) 07/2011: JL of America #59 -- 43,545 (- 4.2%) 08/2011: JL of America #60 -- 42,587 (- 2.2%) 08/2011: Justice League #1 -- 185,776 (+336.2%) [266,131] 09/2011: -- 10/2011: Justice League #2 -- 196,569 (+ 5.8%) 11/2011: Justice League #3 -- 168,679 (- 14.2%) 12/2011: Justice League #4 -- 149,314 (- 11.5%) [152,340] 01/2012: Justice League #5 -- 144,670 (- 3.1%) [148,117] 02/2012: Justice League #6 -- 140,819 (- 2.7%) 03/2012: Justice League #7 -- 136,436 (- 3.1%) 04/2012: Justice League #8 -- 133,240 (- 2.3%) 05/2012: Justice League #9 -- 131,332 (- 1.4%) ----------------- 6 months: - 22.1% 1 year : +181.1% 2 years : +110.3% 5 years : + 1.6%
The book has found its level. Note that the highest-selling ongoing title from Marvel again failed to crack 70,000 units in May.
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5 - BATMAN ANNUAL 04/2012: Batman Annual #1 -- 101,394
This is part of “Court of Owls,” but more than 100K for an annual is still a spectacularly good number.
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7 - BATMAN INCORPORATED 05/2011: Batman, Inc. #6 -- 60,480 (- 2.8%) 06/2011: Batman, Inc. #7 -- 56,108 (- 7.2%) 08/2011: Batman, Inc. #8 -- 53,481 (- 4.7%) 09/2011: -- 10/2011: -- 11/2011: -- 12/2011: Lev Strikes #1 -- 43,048 (- 19.5%) 01/2012: -- 02/2012: -- 03/2012: -- 04/2012: -- 05/2012: Batman, Inc. #1 -- 96,486 (+124.1%) ---------------- 6 months: n.a. 1 year : +59.5%
Grant Morrison’s big Batman saga returns, and though it has nothing to do with the crossover du jour, likely clears 100,000 units, all things considered. The first issue of the pre-“New 52” run sold an estimated 95,587 units in its first month, so this is a great figure.
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8 - DETECTIVE COMICS 05/2007: Detective Comics #832 -- 51,727 05/2008: Detective Comics #844 -- 48,394 05/2009: -- 05/2010: Detective Comics #865 -- 41,501 ----------------------------------------- 05/2011: Detective Comics #877 -- 39,609 (- 1.3%) 06/2011: Detective Comics #878 -- 39,152 (- 1.2%) 07/2011: Detective Comics #879 -- 39,185 (+ 0.1%) 07/2011: Detective Comics #880 -- 38,585 (- 1.5%) 08/2011: Detective Comics #881 -- 39,729 (+ 3.0%) 09/2011: Detective Comics #1 -- 114,880 (+189.2%) [157,751] 10/2011: Detective Comics #2 -- 123,099 (+ 7.2%) 11/2011: Detective Comics #3 -- 111,197 (- 9.7%) 12/2011: Detective Comics #4 -- 99,366 (- 10.6%) 01/2012: Detective Comics #5 -- 99,342 (- 0.0%) 02/2012: Detective Comics #6 -- 94,415 (- 5.0%) 03/2012: Detective Comics #7 -- 89,891 (- 4.8%) 04/2012: Detective Comics #8 -- 87,675 (- 2.5%) 05/2012: Detective Comics #9 -- 96,016 (+ 9.5%) ----------------- 6 months: - 13.7% 1 year : +142.4% 2 years : +113.4% 5 years : + 85.6%
A “Court of Owls” crossover brings a handsome increase.
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11 - EARTH 2 04/2012: Earth 2 #1 -- 95,742
A new series set on Earth 2, which, I’m told, is where the gay people live in the DC Universe.
Once again, surprisingly good numbers, even if you factor in possible returns or the fact that there was a 1:25 variant-cover edition in addition to returnability.
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9 - ACTION COMICS 05/2007: Action Comics #849 -- 53,610 05/2007: Action Comics #850 -- 56,166 05/2008: Action Comics #865 -- 46,764 05/2009: Action Comics #877 -- 41,772 05/2010: -- -------------------------------------- 05/2011: Action Comics #901 -- 44,143 (- 26.6%) 06/2011: Action Comics #902 -- 41,960 (- 5.0%) 07/2011: Action Comics #903 -- 40,205 (- 4.2%) 08/2011: Action Comics #904 -- 39,323 (- 2.2%) 09/2011: Action Comics #1 -- 182,748 (+364.7%) [200,947] 10/2011: Action Comics #2 -- 153,855 (- 15.8%) 11/2011: Action Comics #3 -- 134,875 (- 12.3%) 12/2011: Action Comics #4 -- 112,839 (- 16.3%) 01/2012: Action Comics #5 -- 109,350 (- 3.1%) 02/2012: Action Comics #6 -- 96,592 (- 11.7%) 03/2012: Action Comics #7 -- 91,822 (- 4.9%) 04/2012: Action Comics #8 -- 87,980 (- 4.2%) 05/2012: Action Comics #9 -- 88,796 (+ 0.9%) ----------------- 6 months: - 34.2% 1 year : +101.2% 2 years : n.a. 5 years : + 61.8%
Guest art by Gene Ha and a return to the “Obama Superman” character result in a slight sales increase.
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10 - GREEN LANTERN 05/2007: Green Lantern #19 -- 62,439 05/2007: Green Lantern #20 -- 60,556 05/2008: Green Lantern #31 -- 65,874 05/2009: Green Lantern #41 -- 81,491 05/2010: Green Lantern #54 -- 88,292 -------------------------------------- 05/2011: Green Lantern #66 -- 75,371 (- 0.5%) 06/2011: -- 07/2011: Green Lantern #67 -- 74,521 (- 1.1%) 08/2011: -- 09/2011: Green Lantern #1 -- 141,682 (+90.1%) [169,159] 10/2011: Green Lantern #2 -- 142,344 (+ 0.5%) 11/2011: Green Lantern #3 -- 122,644 (-13.8%) 12/2011: Green Lantern #4 -- 104,199 (-15.0%) 01/2012: Green Lantern #5 -- 97,878 (- 6.0%) 02/2012: Green Lantern #6 -- 94,087 (- 3.9%) 03/2012: Green Lantern #7 -- 90,232 (- 4.1%) 04/2012: Green Lantern #8 -- 88,335 (- 2.1%) 05/2012: Green Lantern #9 -- 87,601 (- 0.8%) ----------------- 6 months: - 28.6% 1 year : + 16.2% 2 years : - 0.8% 5 years : + 42.5%
Sales have found their level.
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12 - BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT 05/2011: -- 06/2011: -- 07/2011: Dark Knight #3 -- 62,792 (- 11.7%) 07/2011: Dark Knight #4 -- 57,333 (- 8.7%) 08/2011: Dark Knight #5 -- 52,908 (- 7.7%) 09/2011: Dark Knight #1 -- 109,321 (+106.6%) [128,689] 10/2011: Dark Knight #2 -- 100,494 (- 8.1%) 11/2011: Dark Knight #3 -- 87,133 (- 13.3%) 12/2011: Dark Knight #4 -- 78,689 (- 9.7%) 01/2012: Dark Knight #5 -- 76,824 (- 2.4%) 02/2012: Dark Knight #6 -- 77,140 (+ 0.4%) [ 80,464] 03/2012: Dark Knight #7 -- 75,297 (- 2.4%) 04/2012: Dark Knight #8 -- 74,287 (- 1.3%) 05/2012: Dark Knight #9 -- 82,169 (+ 10.6%) ----------------- 6 months: - 5.7% 1 year : n.a.
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13 - BATMAN AND ROBIN 05/2010: Batman and Robin #12 -- 84,843 ---------------------------------------- 05/2011: Batman and Robin #23 -- 57,525 (- 2.6%) 06/2011: Batman and Robin #24 -- 54,984 (- 4.4%) 07/2011: Batman and Robin #25 -- 55,172 (+ 0.3%) 08/2011: Batman and Robin #26 -- 52,704 (- 4.5%) 09/2011: Batman and Robin #1 -- 94,713 (+79.7%) [116,053] 10/2011: Batman and Robin #2 -- 98,807 (+ 4.3%) 11/2011: Batman and Robin #3 -- 86,309 (-12.7%) 12/2011: Batman and Robin #4 -- 76,000 (-11.9%) 01/2012: Batman and Robin #5 -- 72,786 (- 4.2%) 02/2012: Batman and Robin #6 -- 70,103 (- 3.7%) 03/2012: Batman and Robin #7 -- 68,010 (- 3.0%) 04/2012: Batman and Robin #8 -- 66,659 (- 2.0%) 05/2012: Batman and Robin #9 -- 75,967 (+14.0%) ---------------- 6 months: -12.0% 1 year : +32.1% 2 years : -10.5%
Two more Batman titles boosted by “Court of Owls.”
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19 - FLASH 05/2007: Flash: FMA #12 -- 47,809 05/2008: Flash #240 -- 31,944 05/2009: Rebirth #2 of 5 -- 86,183 05/2010: Flash #2 -- 76,560 ----------------------------------- 05/2011: Flash #12 -- 54,914 (+ 0.5%) 06/2011: -- 07/2011: -- 08/2011: -- 09/2011: Flash #1 -- 129,260 (+135.4%) [147,818] 10/2011: Flash #2 -- 114,137 (- 11.7%) 11/2011: Flash #3 -- 90,417 (- 20.8%) 12/2011: Flash #4 -- 77,336 (- 14.5%) 01/2012: Flash #5 -- 71,611 (- 7.4%) 02/2012: Flash #6 -- 68,061 (- 5.0%) 03/2012: Flash #7 -- 64,975 (- 4.5%) 04/2012: Flash #8 -- 63,702 (- 2.0%) 05/2012: Flash #9 -- 62,807 (- 1.4%) ----------------- 6 months: - 30.5% 1 year : + 14.4% 2 years : - 18.0% 5 years : + 31.4%
Settling down around the 60,000-unit mark, it seems. A good number for a Flash series in the context of the last 10 years.
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20 - WORLDS' FINEST 04/2012: Worlds' Finest #1 -- 69,531
A second new title focusing on Earth-2 characters, also promoted with returnability and a 1:25 variant edition. Still, solid debut sales.
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21 - SUPERMAN 05/2007: Superman #662 -- 55,236 05/2008: Superman #676 -- 45,644 05/2009: Superman #688 -- 41,642 05/2010: -- --------------------------------- 05/2011: Superman #711 -- 38,471 (- 3.0%) 06/2011: Superman #712 -- 37,362 (- 2.9%) 07/2011: Superman #713 -- 36,646 (- 1.9%) 08/2011: Superman #714 -- 35,919 (- 2.0%) 09/2011: Superman #1 -- 131,529 (+266.2%) [150,128] 10/2011: Superman #2 -- 104,703 (- 20.4%) 11/2011: Superman #3 -- 86,386 (- 17.5%) 12/2011: Superman #4 -- 76,532 (- 11.4%) 01/2012: Superman #5 -- 73,719 (- 3.7%) 02/2012: Superman #6 -- 69,633 (- 5.5%) 03/2012: Superman #7 -- 66,588 (- 4.4%) 04/2012: Superman #8 -- 64,486 (- 3.2%) 05/2012: Superman #9 -- 62,232 (- 3.5%) ----------------- 6 months: - 28.0% 1 year : + 61.8% 2 years : n.a. 5 years : + 12.7%
Gently drifting down.
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22 - NIGHTWING 05/2007: Nightwing #132 -- 30,807 05/2008: Nightwing #144 -- 29,367 --------------------------------- 09/2011: Nightwing #1 -- 69,686 [87,561] 10/2011: Nightwing #2 -- 73,054 (+ 4.8%) 11/2011: Nightwing #3 -- 64,098 (-12.3%) 12/2011: Nightwing #4 -- 57,409 (-10.4%) 01/2012: Nightwing #5 -- 56,040 (- 2.4%) 02/2012: Nightwing #6 -- 53,036 (- 5.4%) 03/2012: Nightwing #7 -- 50,489 (- 4.8%) 04/2012: Nightwing #8 -- 52,063 (+ 3.1%) [61,711] 05/2012: Nightwing #9 -- 61,395 (+17.9%) ----------------- 6 months: - 4.2% 5 years : + 99.3%
“Court of Owls” brings a neat increase. Also, issue #8 made the chart again, selling an estimated 9,648 units in reorders. The book keeps doing very well for a Nightwing series.
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23 - AQUAMAN 09/2011: Aquaman #1 -- 80,302 [108,545] 10/2011: Aquaman #2 -- 79,156 (- 1.4%) [ 83,626] 11/2011: Aquaman #3 -- 69,137 (-12.7%) 12/2011: Aquaman #4 -- 64,961 (- 6.0%) 01/2012: Aquaman #5 -- 65,094 (+ 0.2%) 02/2012: Aquaman #6 -- 63,450 (- 2.5%) 03/2012: Aquaman #7 -- 62,345 (- 1.7%) 04/2012: Aquaman #8 -- 61,657 (- 1.1%) 05/2012: Aquaman #9 -- 60,527 (- 1.8%) ----------------- 6 months: - 12.5%
Standard attrition, but excellent sales for an Aquaman book, obviously.
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24 - BATGIRL 05/2010: Batgirl #10 -- 28,641 ---------------------------------- 05/2011: Batgirl #21 -- 24,043 (- 1.1%) 06/2011: Batgirl #22 -- 23,323 (- 3.0%) 07/2011: Batgirl #23 -- 22,619 (- 3.0%) 08/2011: Batgirl #24 -- 22,695 (+ 0.3%) 09/2011: Batgirl #1 -- 90,543 (+299.0%) [107,055] 10/2011: Batgirl #2 -- 83,586 (- 7.7%) 11/2011: Batgirl #3 -- 69,971 (- 16.3%) 12/2011: Batgirl #4 -- 59,972 (- 14.3%) 01/2012: Batgirl #5 -- 57,030 (- 4.9%) 02/2012: Batgirl #6 -- 53,151 (- 6.8%) 03/2012: Batgirl #7 -- 50,761 (- 4.5%) 04/2012: Batgirl #8 -- 48,878 (- 3.7%) 05/2012: Batgirl #9 -- 58,710 (+ 20.1%) ----------------- 6 months: - 16.1% 1 year : +144.2% 2 years : +105.0%
You know the drill: a big boost thanks to “Court of Owls.”
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30 - TEEN TITANS 05/2007: Teen Titans #46 -- 61,478 05/2007: Teen Titans #47 -- 63,673 05/2008: Teen Titans #59 -- 46,306 05/2009: Teen Titans #71 -- 34,110 05/2010: Teen Titans #83 -- 24,960 ----------------------------------- 05/2011: Teen Titans #95 -- 24,738 (- 1.8%) 06/2011: Teen Titans #96 -- 23,849 (- 3.6%) 07/2011: Teen Titans #97 -- 23,138 (- 3.0%) 07/2011: Teen Titans #98 -- 23,095 (- 0.2%) 08/2011: Teen Titans #99 -- 23,756 (+ 2.9%) 08/2011: Teen Titans #100 -- 27,459 (+ 15.6%) 09/2011: Teen Titans #1 -- 73,675 (+168.3%) [89,056] 10/2011: Teen Titans #2 -- 72,107 (- 2.1%) 11/2011: Teen Titans #3 -- 60,758 (- 15.7%) 12/2011: Teen Titans #4 -- 54,929 (- 9.6%) 01/2012: Teen Titans #5 -- 54,606 (- 0.6%) 02/2012: Teen Titans #6 -- 53,123 (- 2.7%) 03/2012: Teen Titans #7 -- 51,402 (- 3.2%) 04/2012: Teen Titans #8 -- 50,814 (- 1.1%) 05/2012: Teen Titans #9 -- 50,261 (- 1.1%) ----------------- 6 months: - 17.3% 1 year : +103.2% 2 years : +101.4% 5 years : - 19.7%
Standard attrition. Which is underwhelming, given that the issue was part of a crossover with Teen Titans Annual, Superboy and Legion Lost, as well as the launch pad for the new Ravagers title. It doesn’t look like retailers were particularly impressed.
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33 - CATWOMAN 05/2007: Catwoman #67 -- 19,926 05/2008: Catwoman #79 -- 17,999 ------------------------------- 09/2011: Catwoman #1 -- 59,633 [75,566] 10/2011: Catwoman #2 -- 63,573 (+ 6.6%) 11/2011: Catwoman #3 -- 52,196 (-17.9%) 12/2011: Catwoman #4 -- 45,581 (-12.7%) 01/2012: Catwoman #5 -- 44,034 (- 3.4%) 02/2012: Catwoman #6 -- 41,447 (- 5.9%) 03/2012: Catwoman #7 -- 39,608 (- 4.4%) 04/2012: Catwoman #8 -- 38,711 (- 2.3%) 05/2012: Catwoman #9 -- 49,726 (+28.5%) ----------------- 6 months: - 4.7% 5 years : +149.6%
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34 - RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS 09/2011: Red Hood #1 -- 56,112 [70,244] 10/2011: Red Hood #2 -- 59,382 (+ 5.8%) 11/2011: Red Hood #3 -- 50,140 (-15.6%) 12/2011: Red Hood #4 -- 44,278 (-11.7%) 01/2012: Red Hood #5 -- 42,560 (- 3.9%) 02/2012: Red Hood #6 -- 39,898 (- 6.3%) 03/2012: Red Hood #7 -- 38,630 (- 3.2%) 04/2012: Red Hood #8 -- 37,974 (- 1.7%) 05/2012: Red Hood #9 -- 54,220 (+42.8%) ----------------- 6 months: + 8.1%
Two more Batman spin-off titles surprisingly big sales boosts supplied by the “Court of Owls” crossover.
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35 - WONDER WOMAN 05/2007: Wonder Woman #9 -- 58,561 05/2008: Wonder Woman #20 -- 38,116 05/2009: Wonder Woman #32 -- 33,065 05/2010: Wonder Woman #44 -- 25,443 ------------------------------------- 05/2011: -- 06/2011: Wonder Woman #611 -- 30,874 (- 0.4%) 06/2011: Wonder Woman #612 -- 30,690 (- 0.6%) 07/2011: Wonder Woman #613 -- 29,720 (- 3.2%) 08/2011: Wonder Woman #614 -- 29,223 (- 1.7%) 09/2011: Wonder Woman #1 -- 76,214 (+160.8%) [95,902] 10/2011: Wonder Woman #2 -- 79,060 (+ 3.7%) 11/2011: Wonder Woman #3 -- 65,621 (- 17.0%) 12/2011: Wonder Woman #4 -- 57,675 (- 12.1%) 01/2012: Wonder Woman #5 -- 57,626 (- 0.1%) 02/2012: Wonder Woman #6 -- 54,190 (- 6.0%) 03/2012: Wonder Woman #7 -- 51,314 (- 5.3%) 04/2012: Wonder Woman #8 -- 50,450 (- 1.7%) 05/2012: Wonder Woman #9 -- 48,750 (- 3.4%) ----------------- 6 months: - 25.7% 1 year : n.a. 2 years : + 91.6% 5 years : - 16.8%
Levelling out, more or less. Historically, these numbers are still fine.
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36 - GREEN LANTERN CORPS 05/2007: Green Lantern Corps #12 -- 33,267 05/2008: Green Lantern Corps #24 -- 46,948 05/2009: Green Lantern Corps #36 -- 61,591 05/2010: Green Lantern Corps #48 -- 68,826 ------------------------------------------ 05/2011: Green Lantern Corps #60 -- 60,964 (+ 1.3%) 06/2011: -- 07/2011: Green Lantern Corps #61 -- 60,836 (- 0.2%) 07/2011: Green Lantern Corps #62 -- 57,928 (- 4.8%) 08/2011: Green Lantern Corps #63 -- 53,372 (- 7.9%) 09/2011: Green Lantern Corps #1 -- 83,077 (+55.7%) [94,800] 10/2011: Green Lantern Corps #2 -- 78,501 (- 5.5%) 11/2011: Green Lantern Corps #3 -- 65,393 (-16.7%) 12/2011: Green Lantern Corps #4 -- 57,180 (-12.6%) 01/2012: Green Lantern Corps #5 -- 54,088 (- 5.4%) 02/2012: Green Lantern Corps #6 -- 51,168 (- 5.4%) 03/2012: Green Lantern Corps #7 -- 48,692 (- 4.8%) 04/2012: Green Lantern Corps #8 -- 47,584 (- 2.3%) 05/2012: Green Lantern Corps #9 -- 46,336 (- 2.6%) ---------------- 6 months: -29.1% 1 year : -24.0% 2 years : -32.7% 5 years : +39.3%
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38 - GREEN LANTERN: NEW GUARDIANS 05/2011: Emerald Warriors #10 -- 52,971 (+ 2.3%) 06/2011: Emerald Warriors #11 -- 53,927 (+ 1.8%) 07/2011: Emerald Warriors #12 -- 48,087 (-10.8%) 08/2011: Emerald Warriors #13 -- 44,228 (- 8.0%) 09/2011: New Guardians #1 -- 84,033 (+90.0%) [96,596] 10/2011: New Guardians #2 -- 71,713 (-14.7%) 11/2011: New Guardians #3 -- 59,774 (-16.7%) 12/2011: New Guardians #4 -- 53,305 (-10.8%) 01/2012: New Guardians #5 -- 52,305 (- 1.9%) 02/2012: New Guardians #6 -- 50,319 (- 3.8%) 03/2012: New Guardians #7 -- 48,422 (- 3.8%) 04/2012: New Guardians #8 -- 47,320 (- 2.3%) 05/2012: New Guardians #9 -- 46,237 (- 2.3%) ---------------- 6 months: -22.7% 1 year : -12.7%
The two secondary Green Lantern titles keep making a slow drippydroppy.
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39 - TEEN TITANS ANNUAL 04/2012: Teen Titans Annual #1 -- 44,415
Part of the “Culling” crossover. (Not “Curling,” sadly.)
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40 - BATWOMAN 09/2011: Batwoman #1 -- 72,228 (+64.6%) [87,952] 10/2011: Batwoman #2 -- 74,392 (+ 3.0%) 11/2011: Batwoman #3 -- 61,997 (-16.7%) 12/2011: Batwoman #4 -- 52,757 (-14.9%) 01/2012: Batwoman #5 -- 51,924 (- 1.6%) 02/2012: Batwoman #6 -- 49,227 (- 5.2%) 03/2012: Batwoman #7 -- 46,874 (- 4.8%) 04/2012: Batwoman #8 -- 45,341 (- 3.3%) 05/2012: Batwoman #9 -- 43,942 (- 3.1%) ---------------- 6 months: -29.1%
Finding its level.
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47 - BIRDS OF PREY 05/2007: Birds of Prey #106 -- 28,363 05/2008: Birds of Prey #118 -- 21,941 05/2010: Birds of Prey #1 -- 50,428 [54,965] ------------------------------------- 05/2011: Birds of Prey #12 -- 29,690 (- 1.9%) 06/2011: Birds of Prey #13 -- 28,992 (- 2.4%) 07/2011: Birds of Prey #14 -- 27,102 (- 6.5%) 08/2011: Birds of Prey #15 -- 26,043 (- 3.9%) 09/2011: Birds of Prey #1 -- 56,073 (+115.3%) [66,423] 10/2011: Birds of Prey #2 -- 53,156 (- 5.2%) 11/2011: Birds of Prey #3 -- 40,891 (- 23.1%) 12/2011: Birds of Prey #4 -- 34,460 (- 15.7%) 01/2012: Birds of Prey #5 -- 31,700 (- 8.0%) 02/2012: Birds of Prey #6 -- 30,376 (- 4.2%) 03/2012: Birds of Prey #7 -- 29,196 (- 3.9%) 04/2012: Birds of Prey #8 -- 28,661 (- 1.8%) 05/2012: Birds of Prey #9 -- 41,521 (+ 44.9%) ----------------- 6 months: + 1.5% 1 year : + 39.9% 5 years : + 46.4%
More “Court of Owls.”
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48 - DIAL H 05/2012: Dial H #1 -- 45,308
A new “New 52” title written by popular sci-fi author China Miéville. Once again, you have to figure in returnability and a 1:25 variant, but the numbers are still solid.
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50 - RAVAGERS 05/2012: Ravagers #1 -- 44,230
A Teen Titans spin-off by Howard Mackie and Ian Churchill: “New 52,” returnability, 1:25 variant, yadda. Good numbers, given that the franchise was struggling to hit 25K with its mother title this time last year.
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52 - SWAMP THING 09/2011: Swamp Thing #1 -- 54,757 [73,683] 10/2011: Swamp Thing #2 -- 58,634 (+ 7.1%) 11/2011: Swamp Thing #3 -- 52,300 (-10.8%) 12/2011: Swamp Thing #4 -- 44,660 (-14.6%) 01/2012: Swamp Thing #5 -- 43,806 (- 1.9%) 02/2012: Swamp Thing #6 -- 41,235 (- 5.9%) 03/2012: Swamp Thing #7 -- 40,268 (- 2.4%) 04/2012: Swamp Thing #8 -- 39,431 (- 2.1%) 05/2012: Swamp Thing #9 -- 39,385 (- 0.1%) ---------------- 6 months: -24.7%
Levelled out, it seems. Let’s hazard a guess and say that this is between three and four times of what the book might be selling right now if it had been launched as a Vertigo title.
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34 - RED LANTERNS 09/2011: Red Lanterns #1 -- 73,940 [89,170] 10/2011: Red Lanterns #2 -- 74,163 (+ 0.3%) 11/2011: Red Lanterns #3 -- 60,823 (-18.0%) 12/2011: Red Lanterns #4 -- 50,271 (-17.4%) 01/2012: Red Lanterns #5 -- 46,992 (- 6.5%) 02/2012: Red Lanterns #6 -- 43,450 (- 7.5%) 03/2012: Red Lanterns #7 -- 41,628 (- 4.2%) 04/2012: Red Lanterns #8 -- 40,189 (- 3.5%) 05/2012: Red Lanterns #9 -- 39,215 (- 2.4%) ---------------- 6 months: -35.5%
Settling down around 40K. Perfectly good for yet another Green Lantern spin-off.
—–
62 - BATWING 09/2011: Batwing #1 -- 45,980 [53,721] 10/2011: Batwing #2 -- 42,750 (- 7.0%) 11/2011: Batwing #3 -- 35,110 (-17.9%) 12/2011: Batwing #4 -- 26,726 (-23.9%) 01/2012: Batwing #5 -- 24,036 (-10.1%) 02/2012: Batwing #6 -- 21,643 (-10.0%) 03/2012: Batwing #7 -- 21,058 (- 2.7%) 04/2012: Batwing #8 -- 20,373 (- 3.3%) 05/2012: Batwing #9 -- 35,731 (+75.4%) ----------------- 6 months: + 1.8%
That big whopping increase is courtesy of “Court of Owls,” naturally.
—–
63 - ANIMAL MAN 09/2011: Animal Man #1 -- 46,051 [65,229] 10/2011: Animal Man #2 -- 53,432 (+16.0%) 11/2011: Animal Man #3 -- 49,184 (- 8.0%) 12/2011: Animal Man #4 -- 42,630 (-13.3%) 01/2012: Animal Man #5 -- 40,573 (- 4.8%) 02/2012: Animal Man #6 -- 38,504 (- 5.1%) 03/2012: Animal Man #7 -- 36,860 (- 4.3%) 04/2012: Animal Man #8 -- 36,369 (- 1.3%) 05/2012: Animal Man #9 -- 35,699 (- 1.8%) ----------------- 6 months: - 27.4%
Standard attrition. See Swamp Thing, basically: At Vertigo, the book might have been somewhere below 10K, at this stage.
—–
65 - SUPERGIRL 05/2007: Supergirl #17 -- 50,429 05/2008: Supergirl #29 -- 30,192 05/2009: Supergirl #41 -- 33,441 05/2010: -- --------------------------------- 05/2011: Supergirl #64 -- 21,411 (- 0.9%) 06/2011: Supergirl #65 -- 20,985 (- 2.0%) 07/2011: Supergirl #66 -- 20,001 (- 4.7%) 08/2011: Supergirl #67 -- 19,764 (- 1.2%) 09/2011: Supergirl #1 -- 60,058 (+203.9%) [74,218] 10/2011: Supergirl #2 -- 61,388 (+ 2.2%) 11/2011: Supergirl #3 -- 50,784 (- 17.3%) 12/2011: Supergirl #4 -- 44,180 (- 13.0%) 01/2012: Supergirl #5 -- 41,446 (- 6.2%) 02/2012: Supergirl #6 -- 38,719 (- 6.6%) 03/2012: Supergirl #7 -- 37,041 (- 4.3%) 04/2012: Supergirl #8 -- 36,042 (- 2.7%) 05/2012: Supergirl #9 -- 35,129 (- 2.5%) ----------------- 6 months: - 30.8% 1 year : + 64.1% 2 years : n.a. 5 years : - 30.3%
Finding its level.
—–
67 - SUPERBOY 05/2011: Superboy #7 -- 24,622 (- 19.3%) 06/2011: Superboy #8 -- 23,037 (- 6.4%) 07/2011: Superboy #9 -- 22,102 (- 4.1%) 08/2011: Superboy #10 -- 20,563 (- 7.0%) 08/2011: Superboy #11 -- 20,317 (- 1.2%) 09/2011: Superboy #1 -- 55,608 (+173.7%) [69,283] 10/2011: Superboy #2 -- 57,424 (+ 3.3%) 11/2011: Superboy #3 -- 47,442 (- 17.4%) 12/2011: Superboy #4 -- 40,002 (- 15.7%) 01/2012: Superboy #5 -- 37,419 (- 6.5%) 02/2012: Superboy #6 -- 34,520 (- 7.8%) 03/2012: Superboy #7 -- 33,050 (- 4.3%) 04/2012: Superboy #8 -- 31,900 (- 3.5%) 05/2012: Superboy #9 -- 34,838 (+ 9.2%) ----------------- 6 months: - 26.6% 1 year : + 41.5%
Part of the “Culling” crossover.
—–
68 - JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK 09/2011: Justice League Dark #1 -- 69,840 [81,955] 10/2011: Justice League Dark #2 -- 63,392 (- 9.2%) 11/2011: Justice League Dark #3 -- 51,674 (-18.5%) 12/2011: Justice League Dark #4 -- 44,750 (-13.4%) 01/2012: Justice League Dark #5 -- 40,996 (- 8.4%) 02/2012: Justice League Dark #6 -- 38,360 (- 6.4%) 03/2012: Justice League Dark #7 -- 36,089 (- 5.9%) 04/2012: Justice League Dark #8 -- 35,022 (- 3.0%) 05/2012: Justice League Dark #9 -- 34,649 (- 1.1%) ----------------- 6 months: - 33.0%
Levelled out, evidently. It doesn’t look like the arrival of new writer Jeff Lemire is affecting sales much.
—–
71 - SUICIDE SQUAD 09/2011: Suicide Squad #1 -- 49,979 [61,815] 10/2011: Suicide Squad #2 -- 49,570 (- 0.8%) 11/2011: Suicide Squad #3 -- 40,827 (-17.6%) 12/2011: Suicide Squad #4 -- 34,550 (-15.4%) 01/2012: Suicide Squad #5 -- 32,726 (- 5.3%) 02/2012: Suicide Squad #6 -- 30,834 (- 5.8%) 03/2012: Suicide Squad #7 -- 32,908 (+ 6.7%) 04/2012: Suicide Squad #8 -- 32,789 (- 0.4%) 05/2012: Suicide Squad #9 -- 32,581 (- 0.6%) ----------------- 6 months: - 20.2%
Holding level, presumably because of a crossover with Resurrection Man.
—–
72 - JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL 09/2011: Justice League International #1 -- 67,866 [78,869] 10/2011: Justice League International #2 -- 66,100 (- 2.6%) 11/2011: Justice League International #3 -- 54,413 (-17.7%) 12/2011: Justice League International #4 -- 44,062 (-19.0%) 01/2012: Justice League International #5 -- 41,147 (- 6.6%) 02/2012: Justice League International #6 -- 37,534 (- 8.8%) 03/2012: Justice League International #7 -- 35,274 (- 6.0%) 04/2012: Justice League International #8 -- 33,773 (- 4.3%) 05/2012: Justice League International #9 -- 32,558 (- 3.6%) ----------------- 6 months: - 40.2%
Cancelled with issue #12. It’s unlikely that the decision is based on sales alone, though.
—–
75 - ANIMAL MAN ANNUAL 04/2012: Animal Man Annual #1 -- 31,710
A good number, not far below the monthly title. Letting the regular writers handle these books seems to be helping.
—–
77 - ALL STAR WESTERN 05/2007: Jonah Hex #19 -- 16,473 05/2008: Jonah Hex #31 -- 13,140 05/2009: Jonah Hex #43 -- 11,606 05/2010: Jonah Hex #55 -- 11,327 -------------------------------- 05/2011: Jonah Hex #67 -- 10,288 (- 0.5%) 06/2011: Jonah Hex #68 -- 10,224 (- 0.6%) 07/2011: Jonah Hex #69 -- 10,521 (+ 2.9%) 08/2011: Jonah Hex #70 -- 10,369 (- 1.5%) 09/2011: ASW #1 -- 43,681 (+321.3%) [54,992] 10/2011: ASW #2 -- 39,857 (- 8.8%) 11/2011: ASW #3 -- 32,776 (- 17.8%) 12/2011: ASW #4 -- 29,349 (- 10.5%) 01/2012: ASW #5 -- 27,206 (- 7.3%) 02/2012: ASW #6 -- 26,170 (- 3.8%) 03/2012: ASW #7 -- 25,349 (- 3.1%) 04/2012: ASW #8 -- 25,040 (- 1.2%) 05/2012: ASW #9 -- 31,413 (+ 25.5%) ----------------- 6 months: - 4.2% 1 year : +205.3% 2 years : +177.3% 5 years : + 90.7%
A “Court of Owls” tie-in. The book has been doing very well regardless, though.
—–
83 - G.I. COMBAT 04/2012: G.I. Combat #1 -- 33,740
Replacing Men of War as the resident war-with-other-genres-on-top DC Universe title. The issue is returnable and comes with a 1:25 variant, so let’s wait and see where the numbers end up in a few months. For now, sales look all right.
—–
96 - SMALLVILLE SEASON 11 04/2012: Smallville S11 #1 -- 27,004
A new title that continues the story of the TV show, modelled after the recent Buffy comics over at Dark Horse. Sales seem okay for this type of book.
—–
98 - GREEN ARROW 05/2007: Green Arrow #74 -- 30,751 05/2008: Arrow/Canary #8 -- 30,864 05/2009: Arrow/Canary #20 -- 21,445 ----------------------------------- 05/2011: Green Arrow #12 -- 31,742 (- 2.8%) 06/2011: Green Arrow #13 -- 27,552 (- 13.2%) 07/2011: Green Arrow #14 -- 25,568 (- 7.2%) 08/2011: Green Arrow #15 -- 23,883 (- 6.6%) 09/2011: Green Arrow #1 -- 61,680 (+158.3%) [72,359] 10/2011: Green Arrow #2 -- 58,708 (- 4.8%) 11/2011: Green Arrow #3 -- 46,899 (- 20.1%) 12/2011: Green Arrow #4 -- 37,116 (- 20.9%) 01/2012: Green Arrow #5 -- 33,593 (- 9.5%) 02/2012: Green Arrow #6 -- 30,097 (- 10.4%) 03/2012: Green Arrow #7 -- 29,004 (- 3.6%) 04/2012: Green Arrow #8 -- 27,433 (- 5.4%) 05/2012: Green Arrow #9 -- 26,966 (- 1.7%) ----------------- 6 months: - 42.5% 1 year : - 15.1% 2 years : + 25.8% 5 years : - 12.3%
Levelling out.
—–
100 - BATMAN: ARKHAM UNHINGED 04/2012: Arkham Unhinged #1 -- 31,170 05/2012: Arkham Unhinged #2 -- 25,215 (-19.1%)
Repackaged digital material tying in with a video game. Good numbers for this type of thing.
—–
104 - BATMAN BEYOND UNLIMITED 05/2011: Batman Beyond #5 -- 25,413 (- 4.9%) 06/2011: Batman Beyond #6 -- 24,524 (- 3.5%) 07/2011: Batman Beyond #7 -- 22,945 (- 6.4%) 08/2011: Batman Beyond #8 -- 21,838 (- 4.8%) ---------------------------------------- 02/2012: Unlimited #1 -- 26,589 (+21.8%) [30,683] 03/2012: Unlimited #2 -- 23,570 (-11.4%) 04/2012: Unlimited #3 -- 24,196 (+ 2.7%) 05/2012: Unlimited #4 -- 24,356 (+ 0.7%) ---------------- 1 year : - 4.2%
People seem to like this. An unexpected minor hit, it appears.
—–
108 - LEGION LOST 09/2011: Legion Lost #1 -- 46,362 [54,588] 10/2011: Legion Lost #2 -- 42,650 (- 8.0%) 11/2011: Legion Lost #3 -- 31,226 (-26.8%) 12/2011: Legion Lost #4 -- 24,020 (-23.1%) 01/2012: Legion Lost #5 -- 21,549 (-10.3%) 02/2012: Legion Lost #6 -- 19,447 (- 9.8%) 03/2012: Legion Lost #7 -- 18,214 (- 6.3%) 04/2012: Legion Lost #8 -- 17,984 (- 1.3%) 05/2012: Legion Lost #9 -- 23,794 (+32.3%) ---------------- 6 months: -23.8%
That’s a relatively big boost, thanks to the “Culling” crossover.
—–
115 - STORMWATCH 05/2008: Stormwatch: PHD #7 -- 12,812 05/2009: Stormwatch: PHD #21 -- 5,370 --------------------------------------- 09/2011: Stormwatch #1 -- 46,397 [57,287] 10/2011: Stormwatch #2 -- 47,520 (+ 2.4%) 11/2011: Stormwatch #3 -- 39,262 (-17.4%) 12/2011: Stormwatch #4 -- 30,987 (-21.1%) 01/2012: Stormwatch #5 -- 29,112 (- 6.1%) 02/2012: Stormwatch #6 -- 26,076 (-10.4%) 03/2012: Stormwatch #7 -- 24,384 (- 6.5%) 04/2012: Stormwatch #8 -- 23,212 (- 4.8%) 05/2012: Stormwatch #9 -- 22,448 (- 3.3%) ----------------- 6 months: - 42.8%
Finding its level very slowly.
—–
116 - FAIREST (Vertigo) 03/2012: Fairest #1 -- 31,769 04/2012: Fairest #2 -- 22,997 (-27.6%) 05/2012: Fairest #3 -- 22,329 (- 2.9%)
This one’s levelling out very quickly after the steep initial drop, on the other hand. On the downside, Fables writer Bill Willingham and popular artist Phil Jimenez will only stick around for the first arc, so sales are unlikely to stay this high.
—–
122 - DEATHSTROKE 09/2011: Deathstroke #1 -- 47,028 [56,820] 10/2011: Deathstroke #2 -- 44,647 (- 5.1%) 11/2011: Deathstroke #3 -- 33,754 (-24.4%) 12/2011: Deathstroke #4 -- 26,367 (-21.9%) 01/2012: Deathstroke #5 -- 23,872 (- 9.5%) 02/2012: Deathstroke #6 -- 21,306 (-10.8%) 03/2012: Deathstroke #7 -- 19,744 (- 7.3%) 04/2012: Deathstroke #8 -- 18,834 (- 4.6%) 05/2012: Deathstroke #9 -- 20,878 (+10.9%) ----------------- 6 months: - 38.2%
Rob Liefeld takes over as the new writer and artist, hence the slight increase.
—–
123 - THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES 05/2007: Supergirl & LoSH #30 -- 30,767 05/2008: LoSH #42 -- 27,940 05/2010: LoSH #1 -- 44,415 [50,106] --------------------------------------- 05/2011: LoSH #13 -- 23,105 (- 1.3%) 06/2011: LoSH #14 -- 22,600 (- 2.2%) 07/2011: LoSH #15 -- 21,788 (- 3.6%) 08/2011: LoSH #16 -- 21,373 (- 1.9%) 09/2011: LoSH #1 -- 50,402 (+135.8%) [58,325] 10/2011: LoSH #2 -- 47,227 (- 6.3%) 11/2011: LoSH #3 -- 34,979 (- 25.9%) 12/2011: LoSH #4 -- 27,832 (- 20.4%) 01/2012: LoSH #5 -- 25,624 (- 7.9%) 02/2012: LoSH #6 -- 23,428 (- 8.6%) 03/2012: LoSH #7 -- 21,894 (- 6.6%) 04/2012: LoSH #8 -- 21,457 (- 2.0%) 05/2012: LoSH #9 -- 20,854 (- 2.8%) ----------------- 6 months: - 40.4% 1 year : - 9.7% 5 years : - 32.2%
Slowly drifting downward.
—–
126 - DEMON KNIGHTS 09/2011: Demon Knights #1 -- 41,602 [52,329] 10/2011: Demon Knights #2 -- 42,230 (+ 1.5%) 11/2011: Demon Knights #3 -- 34,681 (-17.9%) 12/2011: Demon Knights #4 -- 28,109 (-19.0%) 01/2012: Demon Knights #5 -- 25,823 (- 8.1%) 02/2012: Demon Knights #6 -- 23,476 (- 9.1%) 03/2012: Demon Knights #7 -- 22,000 (- 6.3%) 04/2012: Demon Knights #8 -- 21,124 (- 4.0%) 05/2012: Demon Knights #9 -- 20,196 (- 4.4%) ---------------- 6 months: -41.8%
Not so slowly drifting downward.
—–
135 - RESURRECTION MAN 09/2011: Resurrection Man #1 -- 41,740 [50,230] 10/2011: Resurrection Man #2 -- 38,560 (- 7.6%) 11/2011: Resurrection Man #3 -- 29,480 (-23.6%) 12/2011: Resurrection Man #4 -- 23,060 (-21.8%) 01/2012: Resurrection Man #5 -- 20,750 (-10.0%) 02/2012: Resurrection Man #6 -- 18,569 (-10.5%) 03/2012: Resurrection Man #7 -- 17,176 (- 7.5%) 04/2012: Resurrection Man #8 -- 16,664 (- 3.0%) 05/2012: Resurrection Man #9 -- 18,018 (+ 8.1%) ---------------- 6 months: -38.9%
A slight increase, due to a crossover with Suicide Squad.
Still, the book is axed with September’s issue #0, oddly enough. You’d think the point of doing “#0” issues was to provide jumping-on points, but apparently not.
—–
138 - THE SAVAGE HAWKMAN 09/2011: Savage Hawkman #1 -- 55,954 [63,959] 10/2011: Savage Hawkman #2 -- 47,763 (-14.6%) 11/2011: Savage Hawkman #3 -- 35,177 (-26.4%) 12/2011: Savage Hawkman #4 -- 28,263 (-19.7%) 01/2012: Savage Hawkman #5 -- 23,967 (-15.2%) 02/2012: Savage Hawkman #6 -- 21,316 (-11.1%) 03/2012: Savage Hawkman #7 -- 19,433 (- 8.8%) 04/2012: Savage Hawkman #8 -- 18,300 (- 5.8%) 05/2012: Savage Hawkman #9 -- 17,626 (- 3.7%) ---------------- 6 months: -49.9%
Sales remain unaffected as a new creative team, led by plotter Rob Liefeld, takes over.
—–
139 - FABLES (Vertigo) 05/2007: Fables #61 -- 26,056 05/2008: Fables #73 -- 23,785 05/2009: Fables #84 -- 23,634 05/2010: Fables #95 -- 19,932 ------------------------------ 05/2011: Fables #105 -- 18,749 (- 0.3%) 06/2011: Fables #106 -- 18,505 (- 1.3%) 07/2011: Fables #107 -- 18,523 (+ 0.1%) 08/2011: Fables #108 -- 18,390 (- 0.7%) 09/2011: Fables #109 -- 18,072 (- 1.7%) 10/2011: Fables #110 -- 18,109 (+ 0.2%) 11/2011: Fables #111 -- 17,687 (- 2.3%) 12/2011: Fables #112 -- 17,602 (- 0.5%) 01/2012: Fables #113 -- 17,588 (- 0.1%) 02/2012: Fables #114 -- 17,374 (- 1.2%) 03/2012: Fables #115 -- 17,384 (+ 0.1%) 04/2012: Fables #116 -- 17,543 (+ 0.9%) 05/2012: Fables #117 -- 17,484 (- 0.3%) ---------------- 6 months: - 1.2% 1 year : - 6.8% 2 years : -12.3% 5 years : -32.9%
Rock-solid figures.
—–
141 - FRANKENSTEIN: AGENT OF S.H.A.D.E. 09/2011: Frankenstein #1 -- 41,551 [50,817] 10/2011: Frankenstein #2 -- 40,423 (- 2.7%) 11/2011: Frankenstein #3 -- 31,869 (-21.2%) 12/2011: Frankenstein #4 -- 24,812 (-22.1%) 01/2012: Frankenstein #5 -- 22,737 (- 8.4%) 02/2012: Frankenstein #6 -- 20,463 (-10.0%) 03/2012: Frankenstein #7 -- 18,891 (- 7.7%) 04/2012: Frankenstein #8 -- 17,953 (- 5.0%) 05/2012: Frankenstein #9 -- 17,266 (- 3.8%) ---------------- 6 months: -45.8%
Slowly finding its level.
—–
142 - THE FURY OF FIRESTORM: THE NUCLEAR MEN 09/2011: Firestorm #1 -- 51,537 [62,076] 10/2011: Firestorm #2 -- 43,990 (-14.6%) 11/2011: Firestorm #3 -- 31,654 (-28.0%) 12/2011: Firestorm #4 -- 25,610 (-19.1%) 01/2012: Firestorm #5 -- 21,329 (-16.7%) 02/2012: Firestorm #6 -- 19,162 (-10.2%) 03/2012: Firestorm #7 -- 17,786 (- 7.2%) 04/2012: Firestorm #8 -- 17,076 (- 4.0%) 05/2012: Firestorm #9 -- 17,240 (+ 1.0%) ---------------- 6 months: -45.5%
A crossover with Justice League International is responsible for the slight increase.
—–
144 - I, VAMPIRE 09/2011: I, Vampire #1 -- 39,683 [46,993] 10/2011: I, Vampire #2 -- 34,599 (-12.8%) 11/2011: I, Vampire #3 -- 26,070 (-24.7%) 12/2011: I, Vampire #4 -- 21,601 (-17.1%) 01/2012: I, Vampire #5 -- 18,816 (-12.9%) 02/2012: I, Vampire #6 -- 18,153 (- 3.5%) 03/2012: I, Vampire #7 -- 18,440 (+ 1.6%) 04/2012: I, Vampire #8 -- 18,717 (+ 1.5%) 05/2012: I, Vampire #9 -- 17,175 (- 8.2%) ---------------- 6 months: -34.1%
The storyline guest-starring Justice League Dark is over, so sales duly return to their old level.
—–
145 - BLUE BEETLE 05/2007: Blue Beetle #15 -- 16,906 05/2008: Blue Beetle #27 -- 13,802 ---------------------------------- 09/2011: Blue Beetle #1 -- 44,448 [52,288] 10/2011: Blue Beetle #2 -- 39,396 (-11.4%) 11/2011: Blue Beetle #3 -- 27,612 (-29.9%) 12/2011: Blue Beetle #4 -- 21,408 (-22.5%) 01/2012: Blue Beetle #5 -- 19,042 (-11.1%) 02/2012: Blue Beetle #6 -- 17,034 (-10.6%) 03/2012: Blue Beetle #7 -- 15,780 (- 7.4%) 04/2012: Blue Beetle #8 -- 15,180 (- 3.8%) 05/2012: Blue Beetle #9 -- 16,607 (+ 9.4%) ----------------- 6 months: - 39.9% 5 years : - 1.8%
Crossover with Green Lantern: New Guardians.
—–
150 - DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS 09/2011: DCU Presents #1 -- 45,701 [53,103] 10/2011: DCU Presents #2 -- 41,584 (- 9.0%) 11/2011: DCU Presents #3 -- 31,019 (-25.4%) 12/2011: DCU Presents #4 -- 24,398 (-21.4%) 01/2012: DCU Presents #5 -- 22,048 (- 9.6%) 02/2012: DCU Presents #6 -- 20,188 (- 8.4%) 03/2012: DCU Presents #7 -- 17,830 (-11.7%) 04/2012: DCU Presents #8 -- 16,566 (- 7.1%) 05/2012: DCU Presents #9 -- 15,776 (- 4.8%) ---------------- 6 months: -49.1%
A new arc by James Robinson and Bernard Chang doesn’t do much to the book’s sales.
—–
154 - GRIFTER 09/2011: Grifter #1 -- 41,222 [50,959] 10/2011: Grifter #2 -- 39,900 (- 3.2%) 11/2011: Grifter #3 -- 29,802 (-25.3%) 12/2011: Grifter #4 -- 22,486 (-24.6%) 01/2012: Grifter #5 -- 20,060 (-10.8%) 02/2012: Grifter #6 -- 18,057 (-10.0%) 03/2012: Grifter #7 -- 16,559 (- 8.3%) 04/2012: Grifter #8 -- 15,686 (- 5.3%) 05/2012: Grifter #9 -- 15,228 (- 2.9%) ---------------- 6 months: -48.9%
Rob Liefeld arrives as the new plotmaster, while sales keep finding their level. Grifter is now the lowest-selling “New 52” title that hasn’t been cancelled yet.
—–
156 - THE SHADE 10/2011: Shade #1 of 12 -- 30,648 11/2011: Shade #2 of 12 -- 21,431 (-30.1%) 12/2011: Shade #3 of 12 -- 18,922 (-11.7%) 01/2012: Shade #4 of 12 -- 17,512 (- 7.5%) 02/2012: Shade #5 of 12 -- 16,255 (- 7.2%) 03/2012: Shade #6 of 12 -- 16,005 (- 1.5%) 04/2012: Shade #7 of 12 -- 15,499 (- 3.2%) 05/2012: Shade #8 of 12 -- 15,051 (- 2.9%) ---------------- 6 months: -29.8%
Slowly drifting down the charts.
—–
161 - AMERICAN VAMPIRE (Vertigo) 05/2010: American Vampire #3 -- 26,510 --------------------------------------- 05/2011: American Vampire #15 -- 15,876 (- 1.8%) 06/2011: American Vampire #16 -- 15,705 (- 1.1%) 07/2011: American Vampire #17 -- 15,565 (- 0.9%) 08/2011: American Vampire #18 -- 15,423 (- 0.9%) 09/2011: American Vampire #19 -- 15,288 (- 0.9%) 10/2011: -- 11/2011: American Vampire #20 -- 15,685 (+ 2.6%) 12/2011: American Vampire #21 -- 15,026 (- 4.2%) 12/2011: American Vampire #22 -- 14,759 (- 1.8%) 01/2012: American Vampire #23 -- 14,240 (- 3.5%) 02/2012: American Vampire #24 -- 14,278 (+ 0.3%) 03/2012: American Vampire #25 -- 14,598 (+ 2.2%) 04/2012: American Vampire #26 -- 14,493 (- 0.7%) 05/2012: American Vampire #27 -- 14,420 (- 0.5%) ---------------- 6 months: - 8.1% 1 year : - 9.2% 2 years : -45.6%
Perfectly solid sales, all told.
—–
164 - VOODOO 09/2011: Voodoo #1 -- 40,301 [47,112] 10/2011: Voodoo #2 -- 34,690 (-13.9%) 11/2011: Voodoo #3 -- 25,067 (-27.7%) 12/2011: Voodoo #4 -- 20,703 (-17.4%) 01/2012: Voodoo #5 -- 17,683 (-14.6%) 02/2012: Voodoo #6 -- 16,422 (- 7.1%) 02/2012: Voodoo #7 -- 15,097 (- 8.1%) 03/2012: Voodoo #8 -- 14,589 (- 3.4%) 04/2012: Voodoo #9 -- 13,762 (- 5.7%) ---------------- 6 months: -45.1%
Cancelled in September, with issue #0.
—–
166 - SUPERMAN FAMILY ADVENTURES (Johnny DC) 05/2012: Superman Family Adventures #1 -- 13,303
A new Johnny DC title. See fine print.
—–
172 - CAPTAIN ATOM 09/2011: Captain Atom #1 -- 44,110 [51,314] 10/2011: Captain Atom #2 -- 38,309 (-13.2%) 11/2011: Captain Atom #3 -- 26,829 (-30.0%) 12/2011: Captain Atom #4 -- 19,908 (-25.8%) 01/2012: Captain Atom #5 -- 17,437 (-12.4%) 02/2012: Captain Atom #6 -- 15,220 (-12.7%) 03/2012: Captain Atom #7 -- 13,738 (- 9.7%) 04/2012: Captain Atom #8 -- 13,001 (- 5.4%) 05/2012: Captain Atom #9 -- 12,264 (- 5.7%) ---------------- 6 months: -54.3%
Cancelled with issue #0 in September. The writing was on the wall. The writing was also in the sky, in huge, fiery letters that made people reconsider their religious affiliations as we were waiting for DC Comics to make the announcement.
—–
180 - MYSTERY IN SPACE (Vertigo) 05/2011: Strange Adventures #1 -- 9,999 10/2011: The Unexpected #1 -- 10,416 ----------------------------------------- 05/2012: Mystery in Space #1 -- 11,184
Sales of these $7.99 anthologies keep increasing, so far.
—–
186 - SAUCER COUNTRY (Vertigo) 03/2012: Saucer Country #1 -- 15,684 04/2012: Saucer Country #2 -- 11,263 (-28.2%) 05/2012: Saucer Country #3 -- 10,656 (- 5.4%)
Levelling out quickly, at least.
—–
193 - GREEN LANTERN: THE ANIMATED SERIES (Johnny DC) 11/2011: GL: TAS #0 -- 13,569 ----------------------------- 04/2012: GL: TAS #1 -- 12,791 05/2012: GL: TAS #2 -- 9,615 (-24.8%) ---------------- 6 months: -29.1%
A new Johnny DC title. See fine print below.
—–
194 - THE NEW DEADWARDIANS (Vertigo) 03/2012: New Deadwardians #1 of 8 -- 14,530 04/2012: New Deadwardians #2 of 8 -- 10,229 (-29.6%) 05/2012: New Deadwardians #3 of 8 -- 9,594 (- 6.2%)
Another Vertigo book finding its level quickly after a harsh second-issue drop.
—–
195 - THE UNWRITTEN (Vertigo) 05/2009: The Unwritten #1 -- 26,915 [31,081] 05/2010: The Unwritten #13 -- 13,467 ------------------------------------ 05/2011: The Unwritten #25 -- 11,137 (+ 1.0%) 06/2011: The Unwritten #26 -- 10,979 (- 1.4%) 07/2011: The Unwritten #27 -- 10,787 (- 1.8%) 08/2011: The Unwritten #28 -- 10,731 (- 0.5%) 09/2011: The Unwritten #29 -- 10,511 (- 2.1%) 10/2011: The Unwritten #30 -- 10,481 (- 0.3%) 11/2011: The Unwritten #31 -- 10,434 (- 0.5%) 11/2011: The Unwritten #.5 -- 10,183 (- 2.4%) 12/2011: The Unwritten #32 -- 10,073 (- 1.1%) 12/2011: The Unwritten #.5 -- 9,759 (- 3.1%) 01/2012: The Unwritten #33 -- 9,888 (+ 1.3%) 01/2012: The Unwritten #.5 -- 9,483 (- 4.1%) 02/2012: The Unwritten #34 -- 9,789 (+ 3.2%) 02/2012: The Unwritten #.5 -- 9,595 (- 2.0%) 03/2012: The Unwritten #35 -- 9,675 (+ 0.8%) 03/2012: The Unwritten #.5 -- 9,529 (- 1.5%) 04/2012: The Unwritten #36 -- 9,678 (+ 1.6%) 05/2012: The Unwritten #37 -- 9,549 (- 1.3%) ---------------- 6 months: - 7.4% 1 year : -14.3% 2 years : -29.1%
Relatively solid figures.
—–
198 - HELLBLAZER (Vertigo) 05/2007: Hellblazer #232 -- 13,164 05/2008: Hellblazer #244 -- 11,826 05/2009: Hellblazer #255 -- 10,937 05/2010: Hellblazer #267 -- 10,155 ---------------------------------- 05/2011: Hellblazer #279 -- 9,454 (+0.4%) 06/2011: Hellblazer #280 -- 9,329 (-1.3%) 07/2011: Hellblazer #281 -- 9,225 (-1.1%) 08/2011: Hellblazer #282 -- 9,372 (+1.5%) 09/2011: Hellblazer #283 -- 9,597 (+2.4%) 10/2011: Hellblazer #284 -- 9,608 (+0.1%) 11/2011: Hellblazer #285 -- 9,500 (-1.1%) 12/2011: Hellblazer #286 -- 9,404 (-1.0%) 01/2012: Hellblazer #287 -- 9,368 (-0.4%) 02/2012: Hellblazer #288 -- 9,553 (+2.0%) 03/2012: Hellblazer #289 -- 9,363 (-2.0%) 09/2012: Hellblazer #290 -- 9,472 (+1.2%) 10/2012: Hellblazer #291 -- 9,426 (-0.5%) ---------------- 6 months: - 0.8% 1 year : - 0.3% 2 years : - 7.2% 5 years : -28.4%
Steady sales. This is now the lowest-selling ongoing Vertigo title that isn’t officially ending yet. Sales aren’t entirely terrible by Vertigo standards, but I’m half expecting Hellblazer to be relaunched as a “New 52” book after issue #200. Animal Man and Swamp Thing have shown that it might work, and the title character is already starring in Justice League Dark.
I mean, this isn’t the WildStorm Universe, you know.
—–
221 - NIGHT FORCE 03/2012: Night Force #1 of 6 -- 13,174 04/2012: Night Force #2 of 6 -- 9,698 (-26.4%) 05/2012: Night Force #3 of 6 -- 8,458 (-12.8%)
Terrible figures.
—–
226 - I, ZOMBIE (Vertigo) 05/2010: I, Zombie #1 -- 33,025 -------------------------------- 05/2011: I, Zombie #13 -- 10,567 (- 1.5%) 06/2011: I, Zombie #14 -- 10,320 (- 2.3%) 07/2011: I, Zombie #15 -- 10,006 (- 3.0%) 08/2011: I, Zombie #16 -- 9,568 (- 4.4%) 09/2011: I, Zombie #17 -- 9,316 (- 2.6%) 10/2011: I, Zombie #18 -- 9,237 (- 0.9%) 11/2011: I, Zombie #19 -- 8,999 (- 2.6%) 12/2011: I, Zombie #20 -- 8,805 (- 2.2%) 01/2012: I, Zombie #21 -- 8,514 (- 3.3%) 02/2012: I, Zombie #22 -- 8,344 (- 2.0%) 03/2012: I, Zombie #23 -- 8,219 (- 1.5%) 04/2012: I, Zombie #24 -- 8,032 (- 2.3%) 05/2012: I, Zombie #25 -- 7,974 (- 0.7%) ---------------- 6 months: -11.4% 1 year : -24.5%
Cancelled with issue #28.
—–
231 - SWEET TOOTH (Vertigo) 05/2010: Sweet Tooth #9 -- 9,654 ---------------------------------- 05/2011: Sweet Tooth #21 -- 8,360 (- 0.0%) 06/2011: Sweet Tooth #22 -- 8,252 (- 1.3%) 07/2011: Sweet Tooth #23 -- 8,018 (- 2.8%) 08/2011: Sweet Tooth #24 -- 7,948 (- 0.9%) 09/2011: Sweet Tooth #25 -- 7,896 (- 0.7%) 10/2011: Sweet Tooth #26 -- 7,963 (+ 0.9%) 11/2011: Sweet Tooth #27 -- 7,923 (- 0.5%) 12/2011: Sweet Tooth #28 -- 7,699 (- 2.8%) 01/2012: Sweet Tooth #29 -- 8,128 (+ 5.6%) 02/2012: Sweet Tooth #30 -- 7,584 (- 6.7%) 03/2012: Sweet Tooth #31 -- 7,541 (- 0.6%) 04/2012: Sweet Tooth #32 -- 7,534 (- 0.1%) 05/2012: Sweet Tooth #33 -- 7,631 (+ 1.3%) ---------------- 6 months: - 3.7% 1 year : - 8.7% 2 years : -21.0%
Ending with issue #40.
—–
239 - YOUNG JUSTICE (Johnny DC) 05/2011: Young Justice #4 -- 9,729 (+ 3.4%) 06/2011: Young Justice #5 -- 8,988 (- 7.6%) 07/2011: Young Justice #6 -- 8,642 (- 3.9%) 08/2011: Young Justice #7 -- 8,062 (- 6.7%) 09/2011: Young Justice #8 -- 7,930 (- 1.6%) 10/2011: Young Justice #9 -- 7,737 (- 2.4%) 11/2011: Young Justice #10 -- 7,650 (- 1.1%) 12/2011: Young Justice #11 -- 7,221 (- 5.6%) 01/2012: Young Justice #12 -- 7,288 (+ 0.9%) 02/2012: Young Justice #13 -- 7,237 (- 0.7%) 03/2012: Young Justice #14 -- 7,241 (+ 0.1%) 04/2012: Young Justice #15 -- 7,273 (+ 0.4%) 05/2012: Young Justice #16 -- 7,466 (+ 2.7%) ---------------- 6 months: - 2.4% 1 year : -23.3%
Another Johnny DC book.
—–
249 - DOMINIQUE LAVEAU: VOODOO CHILD (Vertigo) 03/2012: Dominique Laveau #1 -- 12,800 04/2012: Dominique Laveau #2 -- 8,302 (-35.1%) 05/2012: Dominique Laveau #3 -- 6,873 (-17.2%)
Cancelled with issue #7, and it’s not hard to see why. The question is where Vertigo will go from here. Plainly, this is what they get with new titles by unknown creators — and it’s not like established creators like Paul Cornell, Mike Carey or Brian Azzarello are doing much better.
—–
268 - SCALPED (Vertigo) 05/2007: Scalped #5 -- 9,022 05/2008: Scalped #17 -- 6,927 05/2009: -- 05/2010: Scalped #38 -- 6,632 ------------------------------ 05/2011: -- 06/2011: Scalped #49 -- 6,333 (+ 1.0%) 06/2011: Scalped #50 -- 6,471 (+ 2.2%) 07/2011: -- 08/2011: Scalped #51 -- 6,409 (- 1.0%) 09/2011: Scalped #52 -- 6,270 (- 2.2%) 10/2011: Scalped #53 -- 6,203 (- 1.1%) 11/2011: Scalped #54 -- 6,157 (- 0.7%) 12/2011: -- 01/2012: Scalped #55 -- 6,083 (- 1.2%) 02/2012: Scalped #56 -- 5,999 (- 1.4%) 03/2012: Scalped #57 -- 6,007 (+ 0.1%) 04/2011: -- 05/2012: Scalped #58 -- 6,098 (+ 1.5%) ---------------- 6 months: - 1.0% 1 year : n.a. 2 years : - 8.1% 5 years : -32.4%
Ending with issue #60.
—–
289 - SCOOBY DOO: WHERE ARE YOU? (Johnny DC) 05/2007: Scooby Doo #120 -- 4,343 05/2008: Scooby Doo #132 -- 4,309 05/2009: Scooby Doo #144 -- 4,062 05/2010: Scooby Doo #156 -- 3,857 --------------------------------- 05/2011: SD:WAY? #9 -- 4,838 (+ 5.2%) 06/2011: SD:WAY? #10 -- 4,774 (- 1.3%) 07/2011: SD:WAY? #11 -- 4,791 (+ 0.4%) 08/2011: SD:WAY? #12 -- 4,686 (- 2.2%) 09/2011: SD:WAY? #13 -- 4,701 (+ 0.3%) 10/2011: SD:WAY? #14 -- ? 11/2011: SD:WAY? #15 -- 4,701 12/2011: SD:WAY? #16 -- 4,627 (- 1.6%) 01/2012: SD:WAY? #17 -- 4,533 (- 2.0%) 02/2012: SD:WAY? #18 -- 4,655 (+ 2.7%) 03/2012: SD:WAY? #19 -- 4,677 (+ 0.5%) 04/2012: SD:WAY? #20 -- 4,752 (+ 1.6%) 05/2012: SD:WAY? #21 -- 5,269 (+10.9%) ---------------- 6 months: +12.1% 1 year : + 8.9% 2 years : +36.6% 5 years : +21.3%
Another Johnny DC book.
—–
REORDERS: 191: 9,648 -- Nightwing #8 282: 5,616 -- Batman #8
—–
6-MONTH COMPARISONS + 12.1%: Scooby-Doo + 8.1%: Red Hood + 1.8%: Batwing + 1.5%: Birds of Prey - 0.8%: Hellblazer - 1.0%: Scalped - 1.2%: Fables - 2.4%: Young Justice - 3.7%: Sweet Tooth - 4.2%: All Star Western - 4.2%: Nightwing - 4.7%: Catwoman - 5.7%: Dark Knight - 7.4%: Unwritten - 8.1%: American Vampire - 10.9%: Batman - 11.4%: I, Zombie - 12.0%: Batman and Robin - 12.5%: Aquaman - 13.7%: Detective Comics - 16.1%: Batgirl - 17.3%: Teen Titans - 20.2%: Suicide Squad - 22.1%: JLA - 22.7%: New Guardians - 23.8%: Legion Lost - 24.7%: Swamp Thing - 25.7%: Wonder Woman - 26.6%: Superboy - 27.4%: Animal Man - 28.0%: Superman - 28.6%: Green Lantern - 29.1%: Batwoman - 29.1%: GL: TAS - 29.1%: GL Corps - 29.8%: Shade - 30.5%: Flash - 30.8%: Supergirl - 33.0%: JLD - 34.1%: I, Vampire - 34.2%: Action Comics - 35.5%: Red Lanterns - 38.2%: Deathstroke - 38.9%: Resurrection Man - 39.9%: Blue Beetle - 40.2%: JLI - 40.6%: LoSH - 41.8%: Demon Knights - 42.5%: Green Arrow - 42.8%: Stormwatch - 45.1%: Voodoo - 45.5%: Firestorm - 45.8%: Frankenstein - 48.9%: Grifter - 49.1%: DCU Presents - 49.9%: Hawkman - 54.3%: Captain Atom
—–
1-YEAR COMPARISONS +205.3%: All Star Western +181.1%: JLA +144.4%: Batman +144.2%: Batgirl +142.4%: Detective Comics +103.2%: Teen Titans +101.2%: Action Comics + 64.1%: Supergirl + 61.8%: Superman + 59.5%: Batman Inc. + 41.5%: Superboy + 39.9%: Birds of Prey + 32.1%: Batman and Robin + 16.2%: Green Lantern + 14.4%: Flash + 8.9%: Scooby-Doo - 0.3%: Hellblazer - 4.2%: BB Unlimited - 6.8%: Fables - 8.7%: Sweet Tooth - 9.2%: American Vampire - 9.7%: LoSH - 12.7%: New Guardians - 14.3%: Unwritten - 15.1%: Green Arrow - 23.3%: Young Justice - 24.0%: GL Corps - 24.5%: I, Zombie
—–
2-YEAR COMPARISONS +177.3%: All Star Western +115.8%: Batman +113.4%: Detective Comics +110.3%: JLA +105.0%: Batgirl +101.4%: Teen Titans + 91.6%: Wonder Woman + 36.6%: Scooby-Doo + 25.8%: Green Arrow - 0.8%: Green Lantern - 7.2%: Hellblazer - 8.1%: Scalped - 10.5%: Batman and Robin - 12.3%: Fables - 18.0%: Flash - 21.0%: Sweet Tooth - 29.1%: Unwritten - 32.7%: GL Corps - 45.6%: American Vampire
—–
5-YEAR COMPARISONS +149.6%: Catwoman + 99.3%: Nightwing + 90.7%: All Star Western + 85.6%: Detective Comics + 68.0%: Batman + 61.8%: Action Comics + 46.4%: Birds of Prey + 42.5%: Green Lantern + 39.3%: GL Corps + 31.4%: Flash + 21.3%: Scooby-Doo + 12.7%: Superman + 1.6%: JLA - 1.8%: Blue Beetle - 12.3%: Green Arrow - 16.8%: Wonder Woman - 19.7%: Teen Titans - 28.4%: Hellblazer - 30.3%: Supergirl - 32.2%: LoSH - 32.4%: Scalped - 32.9%: Frankenstein
—–
Average Periodical Sales (not counting reprints, reorders shipping after the initial month of release, Johnny DC titles and magazines)
DC COMICS 05/2007: 35,656 05/2008: 27,075 05/2009: 24,386 05/2010: 27,785** --------------- 05/2011: 24,561 (- 4.3%)** 06/2011: 25,814 (+ 5.1%)** 07/2011: 26,138 (+ 1.3%)** 08/2011: 25,632 (- 1.9%)** 09/2011: 57,224 (+123.3%) 10/2011: 51,280 (- 10.4%)** 11/2011: 41,414 (- 19.2%)** 12/2011: 35,397 (- 14.5%)** 01/2012: 33,887 (- 4.3%)** 02/2012: 31,535 (- 6.9%)** 03/2012: 29,679 (- 5.9%) 04/2012: 31,319 (+ 5.5%) 05/2012: 39,179 (+ 25.1%) ----------------- 6 months: - 5.4% 1 year : + 59.5% 2 years : + 41.0% 5 years : + 9.9%
DC UNIVERSE 05/2007: 49,161 05/2008: 35,230 05/2009: 33,163 05/2010: 37,463 --------------- 05/2011: 27,745 (- 4.7%)** 06/2011: 28,673 (+ 3.4%)** 07/2011: 28,586 (- 0.3%)** 08/2011: 27,761 (- 2.9%)** 09/2011: 67,411 (+142.8%) 10/2011: 59,146 (- 12.3%)** 11/2011: 46,670 (- 21.1%)** 12/2011: 39,390 (- 15.6%)** 01/2012: 37,145 (- 5.7%)** 02/2012: 34,456 (- 7.2%)** 03/2012: 33,229 (- 3.6%) 04/2012: 35,264 (+ 6.1%) 05/2012: 44,797 (+ 27.0%) ----------------- 6 months: - 4.0% 1 year : + 61.5% 2 years : + 19.6% 5 years : - 8.9%
VERTIGO 05/2007: 12,256 05/2008: 10,418 05/2009: 12,918 05/2010: 11,756 --------------- 05/2011: 10,668 (+ 6.5%) 06/2011: 10,415 (- 2.4%) 07/2011: 10,784 (+ 3.5%) 08/2011: 10,147 (- 5.9%) 09/2011: 9,995 (- 1.5%) 10/2011: 10,643 (+ 6.5%) 11/2011: 10,355 (- 2.7%) 12/2011: 11,082 (+ 7.0%) 01/2012: 9,995 (- 9.8%) 02/2012: 10,252 (+ 2.6%) 03/2012: 12,688 (+23.8%) 04/2012: 11,595 (- 8.6%) 05/2012: 11,102 (- 4.3%) ----------------- 6 months: + 7.2% 1 year : + 4.1% 2 years : - 5.6% 5 years : - 9.4%
—–
Disclaimers, et cetera
The numbers above are estimates for comic-book sales in the North American direct market, as calculated by ICv2.com according to the chart and index information provided by Diamond Comic Distributors.
ICv2.com‘s estimates are somewhat lower than the actual numbers, but they are consistent from month to month, so the trends they show are fairly accurate. Since it’s a “month-to-month” column, the comments, unless otherwise noted, are on the most recent month.
Bear in mind that the figures measure sales to retailers, not customers. Also, these numbers do not include sales to bookstores, newsstands, other mass-market retail chains or the United Kingdom. Re-orders are included, so long as they either reached stores in a book’s initial calendar month of release or were strong enough to make the chart again in a subsequent month.
If additional copies of an issue did appear on the chart after a book’s initial calendar month of release, you can see the total number of copies sold in parenthesis behind those issues (e.g. “[36,599]”). Should more than one issue have shipped in a month which is relevant for one of the long-term comparisons, the average between them will be used.
Titles released under the Johnny DC imprint and magazines, such as Mad, mostly sell through channels other than the direct market, so direct-market sales don’t tell us much about their performance. For most Vertigo titles, collection sales tend to be a significant factor, so the numbers for those books should be taken with a grain of salt as well. To learn (a little) more about Vertigo’s collection sales, go right here.
** Two asterisks after a given month in the average charts mean that one or more periodical release did not make the Top 300 chart in that month. In those cases, it’s assumed that said releases sold as many units as the No. 300 comic on the chart for that month for the purposes of the chart, although its actual sales are likely to be less than that.
For a more lyrical approach to discussing sales figures that covers all the essentials in a more condensed, less tedious fashion, finally, go right here.
—–
Marc-Oliver Frisch writes about comics at his weblog and at Comicgate. You can also follow him on Twitter.
iZombie, I will miss you.
I suspect the jump in sales for Deathstroke had more to do with it being Lobo’s first New 52 appearance, and less to do with Rob Liefeld.
I read this naked.
@Ron Noes!
makes me happy to see those fat Vertigo anthologies slowly climbing-some of my favorite comics they put out recently. then again, im one of the small group of people who wants more anthologies
I’m amazed Firestorm hasn’t been canned yet. It’s an utter abortion of the concept.
What’s the comparison with the second wave title sales to the series they replaced?
Getting a bit worried about Demon Knights. Still my favourite from the ongoing DC books. But looks like it won’t see issue #20. Such a shame!
I agree with Brian’s assessment of the sales jump on that issue of Deathstroke.
I hope you are typing with both hands.
The crossover isn’t “Court of Owls”, it’s “Night of the Owls”!
(Still, it’s such a silly (but fun) concept that I doubt most fans would even notice the mistake. I mean, they don’t notice any of the plot-holes in it or its shameless plagiarism of so many story elements from “Batman R.I.P.”, so… Still, it was kind of a fun story.)
Why are your Deathstroke numbers so innacurate? Icv2 which you claim to use has the previous issue of Deathstroke, #8 at 16, 900 something, not the 18,334 you are reporting?
Typo?
Comics Chronicle has the same # for April as well? Why are you changing the #’s.
Don’t claim to use IcV2 if you are not actually using their numbers or the numbers of other sites with the factual numbers.
Best,
Rob
Deathstroke #8 is listed on ICV2 actual as 16,952 and Deathstroke #9 is 20,878. This is also reflected on comichron as well. Why the generous additional 2,000 sales added on issue #8?
That’s nearly 4,000 in increased sales rather than the erroneous 2,000 you are reporting.
Thanks,
Rob
Rob
Ggod God,Icv2 has Hawkman #8 at 16,470. Ditto Comichron, and Hawkman #9 at 17,626. Again our sales bump of 1,200 copies is not bejng reflected here?
What gives? Bias? Typo?
Please correct. I’ll presume the Grifter numbers are also wrong.
Wow, an entire DC Month-to-Month column almost entirely snark-free. If you needed concrete proof the relaunch has been a big success, look no further.
Rob, see the intro–that’s the extra 10% which Diamond underreported because the books were returnable, which apparently ended this month.
Nick,
Then the 8’s would be even lower than higher. Every other site reports the 8’s at 16k, this site adds 2000 sales diminishing the 4000 sales added on the 9’s.
“Then the 8’s would be even lower than higher.”
No, Rob. Diamond was reporting sales on #1-8 of returnable books as being 10% lower than what they were — in other words, if a book REALLY had 11k sales, Diamond reported 9,900 prior to #9.
Marc-Oliver is “fixing” the numbers to their proper level prior to #9.
Plus? He’s naked.
@ Torsten: The six cancelled books, at #8, were:
Hawk& Dove 13,480
O.M.A.C. 12,587
Static SHock 11,224
Mister Terrific 10,862
Men of War 10,802
Blackhawks 10,166
That sums to 69,121.
Just ONE of the replacement titles, BATMAN INC, did 96,486 in month #1, beating all of the replaced books single-handedly!
The sum of the six new titles (Batman Inc, Earth 2, World’s Finest, Dial H, Ravagers, and GI Combat) is 385,037 — 557% of the titles they are replacing.
-B
Rob:
As Niels and Brian say, Diamond only reported 90% of the sales of the returnable “New 52” titles through April 2012, including HAWKMAN, GRIFTER and DEATHSTROKE. Hence, I’ve been adding the missing 10% to their figures — AND noting the same in the introduction each month, including this month.
(Totally naked.)
Also, it’s TOTALLY AWESOME to see Rob Liefeld beg for “accurate numbers” (as reported by other sites), when Brian Wood has been complaining forever about just how inaccurate the Diamond numbers are!
-B
MOF: You ain’t a beauty, but, hey, you’re alright.
I think you meant Hellblazer #300 not #200. Are corrections made in the nude as well?
DC seems to have stabalized and keeping it to 52 books is reasonable. I am overall please with most of the relaunch (not perfect but not as bad as I initially though 1 year ago). I am curious how Marvel’s NOW! will perform and what it will really bring. It seems to be nothing really new except all #1’s (yet again) and a Xmen / Avengers merger……sesh, time to buy more DC and Indie titles. (Valiant! So far pretty good folks!)
I’d call the New 52 a success compared to where they were a year ago but honestly, why were they allowed to get that bad? Crossovers, bad ideas, and “controversial” stories IMO. The main downside I see to the New 52 is there seems to be alot of flying by the seat of their pants and editorial interference (according to people like George Perez). As a Marvel fan that HATES the direction that the company has gone in since Civil War, I hope that they can bring me back into the fold with Marvel NOW!
I can’t help but this that those $7.99 Vertigo anthologies would sell better overall if they made them perfect bound, slapped an ISBN on them, took out the ads (which are mostly house ads), and marked them up to $9.99. As books, they would have multiple sales channels outside of the direct market. But then who knows what the economics are for a one-shot periodical versus a book…
Speaking for Comichron’s practices, I have not been adjusting the “asterisked” numbers because (a) I have been informed that the adjustment factor has not always been an ironclad percentage on every single returnable item — and (b) because we’ll see the full totals at the end of the year anyway for most of the better-selling issues, as we did in 2011…
http://www.comichron.com/monthlycomicssales/2011.html
That does require waiting, yes — but it washes out a lot of error that the monthly reporting cycle introduces, and it saves me from making that decision. A Week 4 book is ALREADY under-reported in sales by something like 10% versus a Week 1 book, for example — but I don’t think it would be a good idea to try to factor that in independently. It’s one reason I don’t break out intra-title analyses: the monthly numbers ARE what Diamond says they are, but they’re also incomplete to different degrees for every item listed, and we already have caveats stacked up like cordwood as it is. It’s generally safer to focus more on the aggregate month-to-month, and so I tend to do that.
I, Vampire is a fantastic series. The best Jae Lee work he never did, and that’s not an insult.
John:
“It’s generally safer to focus more on the aggregate month-to-month, and so I tend to do that.”
You’re right, but if you follow through on that logic, publishing any sort of chart, even without sales numbers attached, gives you a distorted picture. Any books not coming out in the first week of the month are given short shrift, because they won’t have as much time to accumulate sales that “count” toward the Diamond chart as other titles. So even the Diamond chart placements probably aren’t what they might be with all things being equal.
And I’m not sure there’s any way to avoid that, even if we had “real” figures rather than estimates. As long as there are monthly charts, there will always be titles that end up looking better than others, because they have more time to sell in the period that’s relevant to a given chart.
I think these effects are mitigated by making the month-to-month trends visible. Individual numbers can make a given title look better or worse in individual months, depending on the shipping week, but over a longer period, the trends hold.
As far as the compensation for returnability is concerned, the way all of these figures line up now suggests to me that not adjusting the figures would have been much, much more of a distortion on a month-to-month basis. That’s not to say that all figures are 100% correct, but there’s nothing grossly misrepresented here, and whatever may be below the radar of what we can tell is covered by the disclaimers.
Your mileage may vary.
I won’t say I’ve never listed intra-title figures cross-time — it happened in the Standard Catalog of Comic Books sort of by default, since all issues had an entry. But my instinct is that in the Final Order era, any change in the single-digits percentage-wise stands a good chance of being statistical noise.
I surely agree that if you go out six months and things are off or up by a third, then you’ve got real movement — but that takes us into another area where I don’t feel the numbers speak for themselves. Not everyone reading realizes that “holding steady” is more positive than they think. In the Direct Market era, there’s been a small inverse correlation between issue number and orders, so the question probably shouldn’t be whether a comic book is declining in sales, but whether it’s deteriorating faster than the expectation or not.
You address that in your commentary, which is great — I would just find it extremely complicated to go at it case-by-case. I would suspect there are different mean trajectories or slopes to be found depending on the publisher and subject matter, and before long we’re overfitting.
In any event — yes, I think a lot of readers zero in on the micro-changes to a degree the data won’t support. There’s weather, and then there’s climate. But I agree that doesn’t mean you don’t report the weather.
I’m an East Coast weatherman, John, you’re a climatologist.
You now wan’t to provoke Bob Dylan quotes? :-P ;-)
How many copies most a title sell
Before you call it a hit?
How many events must a publisher flog
Before the fans get bored?
Yes, how many times must the hyperbole fly
Before they’re forever ignored?
The answer my friend is something you knew
The answer is always fifty-two.
@Marc-Oliver — yeah, I’m as interested in reading the rings on trees from the 1960s as in studying the latest data.
The man in the coon-skin cap
By the big pen
Wants eleven dollar bills
You only got ten.