October was a first litmus test for the good “New 52” relaunch numbers, as it was the first month that allowed retailers to react to customer feedback on DC’s “New 52” initiative in a meaningful way.
As a result, Marvel won a little less of the market share than usual got really spanked by DC in October, which took the Top 6 spots, along with a whopping 17 out of the Top 20 (and 32 out of the Top 50, and 60 out of the Top 100), as well as 50.97 percent of the unit market share and 42.47 percent of the dollar share.
DC’s average periodical numbers were down a bit from September and are now in the exact same area as right after the line-wide “One Year Later” event in May 2006, which had been DC’s high-water mark before the current relaunch. Back then, the average new DC comic book (not counting the now-defunct WildStorm) sold an estimated 50,519 units, the average new DC Universe comic book 59,505. In October 2011, now, it’s 51,280 and 59,146, respectively. These numbers don’t suggest we need to build a new ball park quite yet, but DC certainly did a great job of filling up the old one in a way that hasn’t happened since, well, 2006.
While a slight drop-off from September was to be expected, it turns out to be very slight indeed, because 16 of the “New 52” titles didn’t drop at all, but rather increased in sales. They’re led by Animal Man, which, on the back of good reviews, saw an impressive second-issue increase of 16 percent. And even most of the rest of the bunch displays much slighter drops than we’re used to, for that matter. Only 16 of the percentage drops are in the double digits, and only four of those — Action Comics, Men of War, Superman and Blackhawks — are in the area you’d usually suspect. As a result, the average second-issue drop for the “New 52” is a tiny 5.2 percent — a dream figure by any standard.
(Also, it’s worth noting that many of the books with the bigger second-issue drops came out in the last week of October. Technically, this means that they were disadvantaged, because all subsequent re-orders slipped into November. On the other hand, the first issues of those titles shipped in the last week of September, too, of course, so it should have evened out. In any case, we’ll get a clearer picture of what’s going on with the November chart.)
As far as DC’s market-share dominance is concerned, massive re-orders for all debut issues except one (poor Men of War) played a big role. The leader in October re-orders was Aquaman #1, which sold an additional 28,243 units. Given that the book first shipped in the last week of September, all post-release re-orders fell into October, so it had a slight edge over runners-up Green Lantern #1 and Detective Comics #1. Still, DC’s Aquaman revamp looks like a big success, so far. Overall, the re-orders bring the average sales of the “New 52” debut issues up to an impressive 83,474 units. (Below the individual month-to-month changes, I’ve added some extra statistics on “New 52” re-orders, aggregate total sales of the debut issues and second-issue changes.)
Thanks to an increased number of releases in October (74 new DC Universe and Vertigo titles in October versus 62 in September; plus 52 re-ordered September issues, of course), DC’s new comic-book output cracked the $11-million mark for the first time since Diamond Distributors started reporting data on actual sales to retailers in March 2003. In October 2011, DC’s new periodicals resulted in a total dollar value of 11.8 million, 11.5 million of which fall on the DC Universe imprint. Both are record-breaking numbers for the publisher.
However, there’s still cause to remain skeptical when it comes to the longevity of the “New 52” buzz and the company’s current success. For one thing, the additional traffic doesn’t seem to have affected Vertigo by more than a few hundred copies total. More importantly, though, it doesn’t seem to have affected the new DC Universe launches in October much, either. For all the success of the “New 52” books themselves, there’s virtually no indication that October launches like The Shade, The Huntress or Penguin profited from the event — and all of these came out in the first two weeks of October, so it’s not like there wasn’t enough time to get more copies to retailers.
That said, those books weren’t promoted as heavily with special incentives by DC as the “New 52” books, of course. So it’s only reasonable that retailers were more skeptical here, and it’s still entirely possible that we’re going to see a trend reversal once retailers had more time to process things, with increasing sales and re-orders on the November chart. For now, though, the absence of any crossover appeal even within the DC Universe line is notable.
At Vertigo, meanwhile, everything remained more or less normal. The big launch of the month was Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso’s Spaceman series, which is being promoted with a $1.00 debut issue. But again, that one doesn’t seem to have profited from the “New 52” traffic in any way, either.
Wrapping up the introduction, I’ll repeat the procedural note from last month: The fact that 41 of the “New 52” titles below are listed with higher numbers than over at ICv2.com is not an error. It’s because Diamond only reported 90% of their sales on the chart, to compensate for the fact that they were made returnable by DC if retailers met a specific sales quota. Since Diamond’s way of accounting for the incentive seems fairly arbitrary, I’ve re-added the missing 10% for those books to get a more accurate picture. Just keep in mind that those numbers probably wouldn’t have been as high if retailers weren’t required to meet a certain threshold to qualify for returnability. It’s just one more gimmick that publishers use. (As another result of this, don’t be surprised if the chart positions are all over the place, by the way.)
Of the 11 remaining “New 52” books, Batman, Justice League, Action Comics, Green Lantern and Flash were promoted with a 1:25 variant-cover edition and a 1:200 variant-cover edition each. The special discount, which also required retailers to meet a certain quota, applies to Batwoman, Green Lantern: New Guardians, Stormwatch, Swamp Thing, Teen Titans and Wonder Woman, meanwhile. I’ll just mention those here, so keep in mind that these promotional initiatives are likely to have affected the numbers of those books. Whether it affected them more than the thresholds for returnability affected the other 41 titles or less so, we have no way of knowing.
See below for the details, and 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.
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1 - JUSTICE LEAGUE 10/2006: -- 10/2007: JL of America #14 -- 101,763 10/2008: JL of America #25 -- 80,731 10/2008: JL of America #26 -- 77,353 10/2009: JL of America #38 -- 61,012 -------------------------------------- 10/2010: JL of America #50 -- 59,686 (+ 3.6%) 11/2010: JL of America #51 -- 50,887 (- 14.7%) 12/2010: JL of America #52 -- 48,501 (- 4.7%) 01/2011: JL of America #53 -- 47,093 (- 2.9%) 02/2011: JL of America #54 -- 46,269 (- 1.8%) 03/2011: JL of America #55 -- 50,533 (+ 9.2%) 04/2011: JL of America #56 -- 47,179 (- 6.6%) 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%) [255,556] 09/2011: -- 10/2011: Justice League #2 -- 196,569 (+ 5.8%) ----------------- 6 months: +316.7% 1 year : +229.3% 2 years : +222.2% 5 years : n.a.
Between the regular issue and the “Combo Pack,” Justice League #1 sold another 23K in October, which, combined with the 47K it shifted in September, now pushes the final number well past 250,000 — and, incidentally, past the 251,266 units total of the last relaunch issue from August 2006, which was the best-selling single issue of the title to date.
The big surprise in October is that first-month sales are actually increasing. It’s very rare for this to happen on any book, let alone one that retailers knew well in advance was going to be a big seller. Included in the October number are the 15,860 extra units of the “Combo Pack” edition that charted at No. 143. For an extra dollar, it came with a download code for the digital edition of Justice League #2.
Speaking of re-orders, it’s worth pointing out that the three Geoff Johns titles — Justice League, Aquaman and Green Lantern — are leading the “New 52” in terms of how many units were shipped to retailers after the initial on-sale calendar month. Which is certainly good news for Geoff Johns.
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2 - BATMAN 10/2006: -- 10/2007: Batman #670 -- 76,890 [86,049] 10/2008: Batman #680 -- 103,941 10/2009: Batman #692 -- 70,322 ------------------------------- 10/2010: -- 11/2010: Batman #704 -- 65,212 (- 15.4%) 12/2010: Batman #705 -- 63,262 (- 3.0%) 01/2011: Batman #706 -- 60,231 (- 4.8%) 02/2011: Batman #707 -- 58,803 (- 2.4%) 03/2011: Batman #708 -- 58,594 (- 0.4%) 04/2011: Batman #709 -- 56,578 (- 3.4%) 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%) [211,520] 10/2011: Batman #2 -- 172,428 (- 8.5%) ----------------- 6 months: +204.8% 1 year : n.a. 2 years : +145.2% 5 years : n.a.
After the debut issue actually outsold Justice League #1 by a couple thousand units in first-month sales, Batman claims a very respectable No. 2 spot on the October chart, coming in about 20,000 copies ahead of Action Comics #2.
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3 - ACTION COMICS 10/2006: Action Comics #844 -- 78,869 [88,290] 10/2007: Action Comics #856 -- 53,815 10/2007: Action Comics #857 -- 51,401 10/2007: Action Comics #858 -- 54,596 [59,031] 10/2008: Action Comics #870 -- 57,407 10/2009: Action Comics #882 -- 34,754 -------------------------------------- 10/2010: Action Comics #894 -- 42,291 (+ 24.6%) 11/2010: Action Comics #895 -- 33,089 (- 21.8%) 12/2010: Action Comics #896 -- 32,357 (- 2.2%) 01/2011: Action Comics #897 -- 32,134 (- 0.7%) 02/2011: Action Comics #898 -- 31,935 (- 0.6%) 03/2011: Action Comics #899 -- 31,808 (- 0.4%) 04/2011: Action Comics #900 -- 60,152 (+ 89.1%) [ 73,004] 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +155.8% 1 year : +263.8% 2 years : +342.7% 5 years : + 95.1%
This is one of the bigger second-issue drops of the “New 52” books, but it’s still smaller than what you’d expect from a much-hyped sales juggernaut under normal circumstances. On a related note, both Superman titles are at the deep end of the spectrum in terms of second-issue drops.
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4 - GREEN LANTERN 10/2006: -- 10/2007: Green Lantern #24 -- 78,650 10/2008: Green Lantern #35 -- 63,383 10/2009: Green Lantern #47 -- 101,349 -------------------------------------- 10/2010: Green Lantern #58 -- 81,626 (- 4.2%) 11/2010: Green Lantern #59 -- 76,173 (- 6.7%) 12/2010: Green Lantern #60 -- 76,360 (+ 0.3%) 12/2010: Green Lantern #61 -- 72,203 (- 5.4%) 01/2011: -- 02/2011: Green Lantern #62 -- 71,517 (- 1.0%) 03/2011: Green Lantern #63 -- 75,632 (+ 5.8%) 03/2011: Green Lantern #64 -- 76,898 (+ 1.7%) 04/2011: Green Lantern #65 -- 75,780 (- 1.5%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: + 87.8% 1 year : + 74.4% 2 years : + 40.5% 5 years : n.a.
Green Lantern remains at the same level as in September. Total sales of issue #1 are only about 10K shy of those of Green Lantern #1 from May 2005.
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6 - DETECTIVE COMICS 10/2006: Detective Comics #824 -- 62,431 10/2007: Detective Comics #837 -- 51,363 10/2008: Detective Comics #849 -- 65,878 10/2009: Detective Comics #858 -- 58,599 ----------------------------------------- 10/2010: Detective Comics #870 -- 35,674 (- 4.6%) 11/2010: Detective Comics #871 -- 36,941 (+ 3.6%) 12/2010: Detective Comics #872 -- 37,961 (+ 2.8%) [ 39,758] 01/2011: Detective Comics #873 -- 38,417 (+ 1.2%) 02/2011: Detective Comics #874 -- 39,106 (+ 1.8%) 03/2011: Detective Comics #875 -- 40,047 (+ 2.4%) 04/2011: Detective Comics #876 -- 40,133 (+ 0.2%) 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%) [141,035] 10/2011: Detective Comics #2 -- 123,099 (+ 7.2%) ----------------- 6 months: +206.7% 1 year : +245.1% 2 years : +110.1% 5 years : + 97.2%
Given that the numbers of Tony Daniel’s Batman run were nothing to write home about before the relaunch came along, it’s a little surprising that Detective Comics ends up beating Batman: The Dark Knight so decisively on the October chart. Maybe the book’s traditional title turns out to be a bigger draw than retailers expected.
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5 - THE FLASH 10/2006: Flash: FMA #5 -- 61,576 10/2007: Flash #233 -- 51,152 10/2008: Flash #245 -- 28,085 ----------------------------------- 10/2010: -- 11/2010: Flash #6 -- 57,673 (- 7.1%) 12/2010: Flash #7 -- 56,304 (- 2.4%) 12/2010: Flash #8 -- 53,975 (- 4.1%) 01/2011: -- 02/2011: Flash #9 -- 55,980 (+ 3.7%) 03/2011: -- 04/2011: Flash #10 -- 54,953 (- 1.8%) 04/2011: Flash #11 -- 54,633 (- 0.6%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +108.3% 1 year : n.a. 2 years : n.a. 5 years : + 85.4%
Another double-digit drop, but again, that’s very tame compared to what you’d usually expect. And, in any case, Flash #2 is still the No. 3 best-selling Flash issue since Diamond started reporting on actual sales to retailers in March 2003.
The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive relaunch from 2006 started with first-month sales of 120,404 and dropped way down to 77,487 with the second issue, so this time things are going much better for the book. For the time being, the Flash seems to be back among DC’s top properties, despite the absence of Geoff Johns from the credits and the lack of the kinds major crossovers with other media that Batman, Superman and Green Lantern have enjoyed in recent years.
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10 - SUPERMAN 10/2006: -- 10/2007: Superman #668 -- 47,948 10/2007: Superman #669 -- 47,271 10/2008: Superman #681 -- 54,611 [57,212] 10/2009: Superman #693 -- 35,395 --------------------------------- 10/2010: Superman #703 -- 50,460 (+ 0.9%) 10/2010: Superman #704 -- 46,741 (- 7.4%) 11/2010: Superman #705 -- 46,261 (- 1.0%) 12/2010: Superman #706 -- 43,027 (- 7.0%) 01/2011: Superman #707 -- 41,843 (- 2.8%) 02/2011: Superman #708 -- 40,639 (- 2.9%) 03/2011: Superman #709 -- 39,846 (- 2.0%) 04/2011: Superman #710 -- 39,644 (- 0.5%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +164.1% 1 year : +115.4% 2 years : +195.8% 5 years : n.a.
This is the second-largest “New 52” second-issue drop in October, and one of the two that are beyond the 20% mark. To be fair, Superman is one of the books that came out in the last week of the month.
In any case, it’s about what you’d expect for this type of book under normal circumstances, so this probably says more about the overall strength of the line in October, anyway. And again, the Top 10 is dominated by Batman and Superman (two titles each), Green Lantern and the Flash, as far as DC franchises are concerned — and the Justice League, of course.
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11 - BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT 12/2010: Dark Knight #1 -- 89,985 [ 92,791] 01/2011: -- 02/2011: -- 03/2011: Dark Knight #2 -- 71,108 (- 21.0%) 04/2011: -- 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%) ----------------- 6 months: n.a.
12 - BATMAN AND ROBIN 10/2009: Batman and Robin #5 -- 101,607 ---------------------------------------- 10/2010: Batman and Robin #15 -- 80,173 (- 3.3%) 11/2010: Batman and Robin #16 -- 80,343 (+ 0.2%) 11/2010: Batman and Robin #17 -- 70,600 (-12.1%) 12/2010: Batman and Robin #18 -- 68,814 (- 2.5%) 01/2011: Batman and Robin #19 -- 61,785 (-10.2%) 02/2011: Batman and Robin #20 -- 60,642 (- 1.9%) 03/2011: Batman and Robin #21 -- 59,818 (- 1.4%) 04/2011: Batman and Robin #22 -- 59,076 (- 1.2%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: +67.3% 1 year : +23.2% 2 years : - 2.8%
Batman: The Dark Knight sees a very modest drop, while Batman and Robin even gets a nice increase, with the book’s highest sales since issue #5 of the previous run. As a result, the two books are now selling back to back on the chart.
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14 - BATGIRL 10/2008: Batgirl #4 of 6 -- 23,501 10/2009: Batgirl #3 -- 37,011 ---------------------------------- 10/2010: -- 11/2010: Batgirl #15 -- 25,827 (- 3.9%) 12/2010: Batgirl #16 -- 25,225 (- 2.3%) 01/2011: Batgirl #17 -- 25,189 (- 0.1%) 02/2011: Batgirl #18 -- 24,390 (- 3.2%) 03/2011: Batgirl #19 -- 24,821 (+ 1.8%) 04/2011: Batgirl #20 -- 24,310 (- 2.1%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +243.8% 1 year : n.a. 2 years : +125.8%
Despite the very slight drop-off, that’s still a much higher number than for any pre-relaunch issue of Batgirl covered by the current set of estimates dating back to March 2003.
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13 - WONDER WOMAN 10/2006: -- 10/2007: Wonder Woman #13 -- 48,385 10/2008: Wonder Woman #25 -- 33,583 10/2009: Wonder Woman #37 -- 26,972 ------------------------------------- 10/2010: Wonder Woman #604 -- 37,405 (- 3.7%) 11/2010: -- 12/2010: Wonder Woman #605 -- 35,495 (- 5.1%) 01/2011: Wonder Woman #606 -- 33,601 (- 5.3%) 02/2011: Wonder Woman #607 -- 33,053 (- 1.6%) 03/2011: Wonder Woman #608 -- 32,540 (- 1.6%) 03/2011: Wonder Woman #609 -- 31,421 (- 3.4%) 04/2011: Wonder Woman #610 -- 31,002 (- 1.3%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +155.0% 1 year : +111.4% 2 years : +193.1% 5 years : n.a.
The debut issue did very well in September, but it wasn’t a spectacular number. In October, however, the book turns out to be one of the most re-ordered titles, and first-month sales show an increase for the second issue. Maybe the good reviews are helping.
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16 - TEEN TITANS 10/2006: -- 10/2007: Teen Titans #52 -- 55,176 10/2008: Teen Titans #64 -- 39,695 10/2009: Teen Titans #76 -- 29,166 ----------------------------------- 10/2010: Teen Titans #88 -- 27,637 (+ 18.8%) 11/2010: Teen Titans #89 -- 26,444 (- 4.3%) 12/2010: Teen Titans #90 -- 25,997 (- 1.7%) 01/2011: Teen Titans #91 -- 25,443 (- 2.1%) 02/2011: Teen Titans #92 -- 26,170 (+ 2.9%) 03/2011: Teen Titans #93 -- 24,957 (- 4.6%) 04/2011: Teen Titans #94 -- 25,187 (+ 0.9%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +186.3% 1 year : +160.9% 2 years : +147.2% 5 years : n.a.
A very small drop. This is the first of the three Scott Lobdell titles, all of which remain above 50K in October.
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18 - AQUAMAN 09/2011: Aquaman #1 -- 80,302 [108,545] 10/2011: Aquaman #2 -- 79,156 (-1.4%)
First-month sales are holding level, while Aquaman #1 sold another 28,243 units in its second month — more than any other “New 52” debut issue apart from Justice League #1. This seems to be one of the titles that retailers underestimated the most.
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19 - GREEN LANTERN CORPS 10/2006: Green Lantern Corps #5 -- 43,546 10/2007: Green Lantern Corps #16 -- 60,862 10/2007: Green Lantern Corps #17 -- 59,223 10/2008: Green Lantern Corps #29 -- 46,316 10/2009: Green Lantern Corps #41 -- 81,377 ------------------------------------------ 10/2010: Green Lantern Corps #53 -- 60,808 (- 4.4%) 11/2010: Green Lantern Corps #54 -- 57,448 (- 5.5%) 12/2010: Green Lantern Corps #55 -- 54,387 (- 5.3%) 01/2011: Green Lantern Corps #56 -- 53,646 (- 1.4%) 02/2011: Green Lantern Corps #57 -- 52,770 (- 1.6%) 03/2011: Green Lantern Corps #58 -- 60,100 (+13.9%) 04/2011: Green Lantern Corps #59 -- 60,162 (+ 0.1%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: +30.5% 1 year : +29.1% 2 years : - 3.5% 5 years : +80.3%
Over at the Green Lantern spin-off books, meanwhile, some interesting shifts have occurred. Green Lantern Corps is now the best-selling of the bunch.
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15 - BATWOMAN 11/2010: Batwoman #0 -- 43,891 -------------------------------- 09/2011: Batwoman #1 -- 72,228 (+64.6%) [87,952] 10/2011: Batwoman #2 -- 74,392 (+ 3.0%)
Good news for another fan-favorite Batman spin-off. That’s the highest first-month number yet for a solo book starring the new Batwoman, the character’s stint in Detective Comics included.
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20 - RED LANTERNS 09/2011: Red Lanterns #1 -- 73,940 [89,170] 10/2011: Red Lanterns #2 -- 74,163 (+0.3%)
17 - GREEN LANTERN: NEW GUARDIANS 10/2010: Emerald Warriors #3 -- 50,490 (-10.3%) 11/2010: Emerald Warriors #4 -- 46,319 (- 8.3%) 12/2010: Emerald Warriors #5 -- 44,077 (- 4.8%) 01/2011: Emerald Warriors #6 -- 43,471 (- 1.4%) 02/2011: Emerald Warriors #7 -- 44,828 (+ 3.1%) 03/2011: Emerald Warriors #8 -- 51,322 (+14.5%) [54,110] 04/2011: Emerald Warriors #9 -- 51,784 (+ 0.5%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: +38.5% 1 year : +42.0%
And here are the other two Green Lantern titles. Red Lanterns held level and sold a lot of extra units of issue #1 in October. For New Guardians, signals are mixed. There’s a nice chunk of re-orders, but also a relatively big drop — this was the best-selling of the three spin-off books in September. Again, though, New Guardians came out in the last week of October, so take it with a grain of salt.
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21 - NIGHTWING 10/2006: Nightwing #125 -- 38,470 10/2007: Nightwing #137 -- 28,363 10/2008: Nightwing #149 -- 50,588 --------------------------------- 09/2011: Nightwing #1 -- 69,686 [87,561] 10/2011: Nightwing #2 -- 73,054 (+4.8%) ----------------- 5 years : + 89.9%
Another book with an upward correction.
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23 - JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL 09/2011: Justice League International #1 -- 67,866 [78,869] 10/2011: Justice League International #2 -- 66,100 (-2.6%)
Holding up extremely well.
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30 - JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK 09/2011: Justice League Dark #1 -- 69,840 [81,955] 10/2011: Justice League Dark #2 -- 63,392 (-9.2%)
Another book that shipped in the final week of October, so the drop may or may not be all she wrote.
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27 - SWAMP THING 09/2011: Swamp Thing #1 -- 54,757 [68,742] 10/2011: Swamp Thing #2 -- 58,634 (+7.1%)
Swamp Thing has been one of the most well-reviewed “New 52” titles. Maybe it’s helping.
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29 - CATWOMAN 10/2006: Catwoman #60 -- 24,117 10/2007: Catwoman #72 -- 19,473 ------------------------------- 09/2011: Catwoman #1 -- 59,633 [75,566] 10/2011: Catwoman #2 -- 63,573 (+6.6%) ----------------- 5 years : +163.6%
Whereas Catwoman has been received somewhat less favorably, if you believe the reviews and online reactions. Maybe it doesn’t matter at all.
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33 - SUPERGIRL 10/2006: -- 10/2007: Supergirl #22 -- 41,758 10/2008: Supergirl #34 -- 33,958 10/2009: Supergirl #46 -- 30,377 --------------------------------- 10/2010: Supergirl #57 -- 23,842 (- 4.8%) 11/2010: Supergirl #58 -- 25,412 (+ 6.6%) 12/2010: Supergirl #59 -- 22,606 (- 11.0%) 01/2011: Supergirl #60 -- 22,568 (- 0.2%) 02/2011: Supergirl #61 -- 22,048 (- 2.3%) 03/2011: Supergirl #62 -- 21,786 (- 1.2%) 04/2011: Supergirl #63 -- 21,598 (- 0.9%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +184.2% 1 year : +157.5% 2 years : +102.1% 5 years : n.a.
Upward correction.
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35 - RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS 09/2011: Red Hood #1 -- 56,112 [70,244] 10/2011: Red Hood #2 -- 59,382 (+5.8%)
Like Catwoman, this hasn’t been very well-received online. So far, retailers clearly have a different opinion.
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36 - GREEN ARROW 10/2006: Green Arrow #67 -- 32,583 10/2007: Year One #6 of 6 -- 30,943 10/2007: Arrow/Canary #1 -- 52,183 10/2008: Arrow/Canary #13 -- 26,890 10/2009: Arrow&Canary #25 -- 18,013 ----------------------------------- 10/2010: Green Arrow #5 -- 42,188 (- 4.6%) 11/2010: Green Arrow #6 -- 39,575 (- 6.2%) 12/2010: Green Arrow #7 -- 36,835 (- 6.9%) 01/2011: Green Arrow #8 -- 35,307 (- 4.2%) 02/2011: Green Arrow #9 -- 33,922 (- 3.9%) 03/2011: Green Arrow #10 -- 33,085 (- 2.5%) 04/2011: Green Arrow #11 -- 32,669 (- 1.3%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: + 79.7% 1 year : + 39.2% 2 years : +225.9% 5 years : + 80.2%
Holding up very well.
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39 - SUPERBOY 11/2010: Superboy #1 -- 39,701 12/2010: Superboy #2 -- 31,761 (- 20.0%) 01/2011: Superboy #3 -- 29,550 (- 7.0%) 02/2011: Superboy #4 -- 27,448 (- 7.1%) 03/2011: Superboy #5 -- 27,215 (- 0.9%) 04/2011: Superboy #6 -- 30,490 (+ 12.0%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: + 88.3%
Upward correction. If you’d told me last year that Scott Lobdell was going to have three ongoing titles with sales upwards of 50,000 each this fall, it would have been very funny to me.
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42 - ANIMAL MAN 10/2009: Last Days #6 of 6 -- 11,271 ------------------------------------ 09/2011: Animal Man #1 -- 46,051 [60,553] 10/2011: Animal Man #2 -- 53,432 (+16.0%) ----------------- 2 years : +374.1%
Animal Man is the biggest winner in October, in terms of its second-issue increase. It’s another very well-reviewed title.
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43 - BIRDS OF PREY 10/2006: Birds of Prey #99 -- 30,385 10/2007: Birds of Prey #111 -- 26,400 10/2008: Birds of Prey #123 -- 21,110 ------------------------------------- 10/2010: -- 11/2010: Birds of Prey #6 -- 34,440 (- 14.2%) 12/2010: Birds of Prey #7 -- 33,114 (- 3.9%) 01/2011: Birds of Prey #8 -- 31,616 (- 4.5%) 02/2011: Birds of Prey #9 -- 30,641 (- 3.1%) 03/2011: Birds of Prey #10 -- 30,777 (+ 0.4%) 04/2011: Birds of Prey #11 -- 30,270 (- 1.7%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: + 75.6% 1 year : n.a. 5 years : + 74.9%
The last “New 52” title to remain above the 50,000-unit mark in October sees a modest drop.
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45 - SUICIDE SQUAD 10/2007: Raise the Flag #2 of 8 -- 22,774 ----------------------------------------- 09/2011: Suicide Squad #1 -- 49,979 [61,815] 10/2011: Suicide Squad #2 -- 49,570 (-0.8%)
Holding level.
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49 - THE SAVAGE HAWKMAN 10/2006: Hawkgirl #57 -- 19,909 ------------------------------------- 09/2011: Savage Hawkman #1 -- 55,954 [63,959] 10/2011: Savage Hawkman #2 -- 47,763 (-14.6%) ----------------- 5 years : +139.9%
That’s a comparatively big drop. This is another book that shipped in the last week of October, though, so let’s wait and see.
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44 - STORMWATCH 10/2007: StormWatch: PHD #12 -- 10,011 10/2008: StormWatch: PHD #15 -- 7,411 --------------------------------------- 09/2011: Stormwatch #1 -- 46,397 [57,287] 10/2011: Stormwatch #2 -- 47,520 (+2.4%)
Upward correction for the best-selling of the three WildStorm Universe adoptees.
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50 - THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES 10/2006: Supergirl & LoSH #23 -- 41,554 10/2007: Supergirl & LoSH #35 -- 27,370 10/2008: LoSH #47 -- 23,751 --------------------------------------- 10/2010: LoSH #6 -- 30,246 (- 6.7%) 11/2010: LoSH #7 -- 26,439 (- 12.6%) 12/2010: LoSH #8 -- 25,063 (- 5.2%) 01/2011: LoSH #9 -- 24,230 (- 3.3%) 02/2011: LoSH #10 -- 23,738 (- 2.0%) 03/2011: LoSH #11 -- 23,667 (- 0.3%) 04/2011: LoSH #12 -- 23,419 (- 1.1%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +101.7% 1 year : + 56.1% 5 years : + 13.7%
A modest second-issue drop. Particularly since Legion of Super-Heroes #1 is, pretty much, the only “New 52” issue that makes no discernible effort whatsoever to be accessible to people who aren’t already following the series.
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54 - DEATHSTROKE 09/2011: Deathstroke #1 -- 47,028 [56,820] 10/2011: Deathstroke #2 -- 44,647 (-5.1%)
Very slight second-issue drop.
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55 - THE FURY OF FIRESTORM: THE NUCLEAR MEN 10/2006: Firestorm #30 -- 16,494 -------------------------------- 09/2011: Firestorm #1 -- 51,537 [62,076] 10/2011: Firestorm #2 -- 43,990 (-14.6%) ----------------- 5 years : +166.7%
You may have guessed it: This is another book that came out in the last week of the month. We’ll find out if the drop is genuine.
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58 - BATWING 09/2011: Batwing #1 -- 45,980 [53,721] 10/2011: Batwing #2 -- 42,750 (-7.0%)
59 - LEGION LOST 09/2011: Legion Lost #1 -- 46,362 [54,588] 10/2011: Legion Lost #2 -- 42,650 (-8.0%)
Two spin-off titles with very small second-issue drops.
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62 - DEMON KNIGHTS 09/2011: Demon Knights #1 -- 41,602 [52,329] 10/2011: Demon Knights #2 -- 42,230 (+1.5%)
The only completely new title among the “New 52” (though it doesn’t actually have any new characters, either) gets a small upward correction from retailers.
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63 - DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS 09/2011: DCU Presents #1 -- 45,701 [53,103] 10/2011: DCU Presents #2 -- 41,584 (-9.0%)
65 - FRANKENSTEIN: AGENT OF S.H.A.D.E. 09/2011: Frankenstein #1 -- 41,551 [50,817] 10/2011: Frankenstein #2 -- 40,423 (-2.7%)
67 - GRIFTER 09/2011: Grifter #1 -- 41,222 [50,959] 10/2011: Grifter #2 -- 39,900 (-3.2%)
Three more books with a relatively slight second-issue drop.
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68 - ALL STAR WESTERN 10/2006: Jonah Hex #12 -- 18,299 10/2007: Jonah Hex #24 -- 14,749 10/2008: Jonah Hex #36 -- 12,629 10/2009: Jonah Hex #48 -- 11,281 -------------------------------- 10/2010: Jonah Hex #60 -- 11,141 (- 2.7%) 11/2010: Jonah Hex #61 -- 10,796 (- 3.1%) 12/2010: Jonah Hex #62 -- 10,899 (+ 1.0%) 01/2011: Jonah Hex #63 -- 10,752 (- 1.4%) 02/2011: Jonah Hex #64 -- 10,255 (- 4.6%) 03/2011: Jonah Hex #65 -- 10,353 (+ 1.0%) 04/2011: Jonah Hex #66 -- 10,335 (- 0.2%) 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%) ----------------- 6 months: +285.7% 1 year : +257.8% 2 years : +253.3% 5 years : +117.8%
If All Star Western could keep even half of its current numbers six months down the road, the relaunch would still have doubled its sales.
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69 - BLUE BEETLE 10/2006: -- 10/2007: Blue Beetle #20 -- 27,611 10/2008: Blue Beetle #32 -- 11,828 ---------------------------------- 09/2011: Blue Beetle #1 -- 44,448 [52,288] 10/2011: Blue Beetle #2 -- 39,396 (-11.4%) ----------------- 5 years : n.a.
Another one of the bigger drops.
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70 - RESURRECTION MAN 09/2011: Resurrection Man #1 -- 41,740 [50,230] 10/2011: Resurrection Man #2 -- 38,560 (-7.6%)
Small drop.
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71 - CAPTAIN ATOM 09/2011: Captain Atom #1 -- 44,110 [51,314] 10/2011: Captain Atom #2 -- 38,309 (-13.2%)
Whereas Captain Atom is dropping a few nodges more.
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60 - LEGION: SECRET ORIGIN 10/2011: Secret Origin #1 of 6 -- 38,248
66 - THE HUNTRESS 10/2011: Huntress #1 of 6 -- 36,099
These are the two highest-charting new DC titles in October. It’s hard to tell whether the “New 52” relaunch had any impact here, so it can’t have been much of an impact.
Arguably, those are high sales for another Legion spin-off, but then again, the Previews listing mentions something about “a special offer on Legion of Super-Heroes promotional rings,” so that may be the explanation — plastic-ring promotion have resulted in enormous sales boosts for DC in the past.
Be that as it may, both books are outsold by all “New 52” debut issues safe O.M.A.C., in terms of first-month numbers.
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73 - HAWK & DOVE 09/2011: Hawk & Dove #1 -- 42,294 [47,999] 10/2011: Hawk & Dove #2 -- 36,068 (-14.7%)
Well, there’s a lot that’s still up in the air about the “New 52” thing, but one thing that seems clear from these sales is that Rob Liefeld’s name isn’t as much of a draw as it used to be.
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75 - MISTER TERRIFIC 09/2011: Mister Terrific #1 -- 41,450 [48,352] 10/2011: Mister Terrific #2 -- 35,963 (-13.2%)
80 - VOODOO 09/2011: Voodoo #1 -- 40,301 [47,112] 10/2011: Voodoo #2 -- 34,690 (-13.9%)
81 - I, VAMPIRE 09/2011: I, Vampire #1 -- 39,683 [46,993] 10/2011: I, Vampire #2 -- 34,599 (-12.8%)
84 - O.M.A.C. 09/2011: O.M.A.C. #1 -- 37,312 [42,871] 10/2011: O.M.A.C. #2 -- 32,704 (-12.4%)
85 - STATIC SHOCK 06/2011: Special #1 of 1 -- 9,976 ----------------------------------- 09/2011: Static Shock #1 -- 37,782 (+278.7%) [43,046] 10/2011: Static Shock #2 -- 32,360 (- 14.4%)
86 - BLACKHAWKS 09/2011: Blackhawks #1 -- 40,014 [46,435] 10/2011: Blackhawks #2 -- 31,704 (-20.8%)
87 - MEN OF WAR 09/2011: Men of War #1 -- 37,488 10/2011: Men of War #2 -- 31,446 (-16.1%)
And this would be the rest of the bunch. These titles don’t just have the lowest second-issue numbers, but also come with some of the biggest second-issue drops and the lowest number of re-orders. That’s not an encouraging combination.
As far as potential excuses go, Blackhawks, Voodoo and I, Vampire all shipped in the last week of October. So, technically, there’s still a possibility that a lot of copies reached stores in November.
On the flipside, virtually all of these books are still doing way better than they would have under normal circumstances, of course.
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82 - THE SHADE 10/2011: Shade #1 of 12 -- 30,648
The new maxiseries by James Robinson and Cully Hamner was promoted with 1:10 variant edition. But, once again, this is a disappointing number by “New 52” standards. It’s precisely the kind of sales you’d have expected for this project six months ago.
Which can’t be what DC were hoping for at all. But again, maybe this is just retailers being too cautious for their own good. We’ll find out on the November chart.
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83 - BATMAN: ODYSSEY VOL. 2 07/2010: Batman: Odyssey #1 of 6 -- 61,827 08/2010: Batman: Odyssey #2 of 6 -- 47,675 (-22.9%) 09/2010: Batman: Odyssey #3 of 6 -- 40,046 (-16.0%) 10/2010: Batman: Odyssey #4 of 12 -- 35,307 (-11.8%) 11/2010: Batman: Odyssey #5 of 13 -- 31,386 (-11.1%) 02/2011: Batman: Odyssey #6 of 13 -- 29,093 (- 7.3%) -------------------------------------------- 10/2011: Odyssey Vol. 2 #1 of 7 -- 30,410 (+ 4.5%) ---------------- 1 year : -13.9%
Same picture here: There was a variant edition, but there’s no discernible positive effect from the relaunch whatsoever.
In this case, though, there’s arguably a good excuse, as Batman: Odyssey isn’t really set in DC Universe continuity — ultimately, it’s a loose end from last year that needs to be wrapped up. (Originally, this was meant to be issue #7 in a 13-part maxiseries, presumably.)
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96 - PENGUIN: PAIN AND PREJUDICE 10/2011: Penguin #1 of 5 -- 26,380
There’s no variant edition here, but it’s still the same pattern: no visible effect from the relaunch.
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110 - SPACEMAN (Vertigo) 10/2011: Spaceman #1 of 9 -- 22,355
Vertigo did a bunch of $1.00 debut issues between May 2009 and May 2010, including The Unwritten #1 (first-month sales of 26,915), Greek Street #1 (20,422), Sweet Tooth #1 (18,657), Joe the Barbarian #1 (25,543) and I, Zombie #1 (33,025).
Compared with those, Spaceman #1 sold an awfully small number of copies, given the critically acclaimed 100 Bullets creative team of Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso. And it doesn’t look like the people who purportedly bought the “New 52” books were much interested either, for that matter.
Once more, though, it’s worth pointing out that Spaceman also came out in the last week of October. So, let’s wait for the November chart to see if there’s any increase in demand.
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131 - FABLES (Vertigo) 10/2006: Fables #54 -- 25,534 10/2007: Fables #66 -- 25,016 10/2008: Fables #77 -- 23,761 10/2009: Fables #89 -- 21,118 ------------------------------ 10/2010: Fables #99 -- 19,656 (+ 0.3%) 11/2010: -- 12/2010: Fables #100 -- 23,014 (+17.1%) 01/2011: Fables #101 -- 19,183 (-16.7%) 02/2011: Fables #102 -- 19,215 (+ 0.2%) 03/2011: Fables #103 -- 18,910 (- 1.6%) 04/2011: Fables #104 -- 18,811 (- 0.5%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: - 3.7% 1 year : - 7.9% 2 years : -14.3% 5 years : -29.1%
Holding level.
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136 - MY GREATEST ADVENTURE 01/2011: Weird Worlds #1 of 6 -- 14,964 02/2011: Weird Worlds #2 of 6 -- 11,587 (- 22.6%) 03/2011: Weird Worlds #3 of 6 -- 10,470 (- 9.6%) 04/2011: Weird Worlds #4 of 6 -- 9,665 (- 7.7%) 05/2011: Weird Worlds #5 of 6 -- 9,043 (- 6.4%) 06/2011: Weird Worlds #6 of 6 -- 8,536 (- 5.6%) --------------------------------------- 10/2011: MGA #1 of 6 -- 17,222 (+101.8%) ---------------- 6 months: +78.2%
Pretty much the continuation of Weird Worlds. And over here, sales actually did improve for some reason. A sign of “The New 52” affecting other comics, after all? But if so, why for My Greatest Adventure and not The Shade, which also debuted in the first week of October?
Again, the November chart is going to be interesting.
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148/151 - DC UNIVERSE ONLINE: LEGENDS 02/2011: DCU Online: Legends #1 -- 36,517 02/2011: DCU Online: Legends #2 -- 28,953 (-20.7%) 03/2011: DCU Online: Legends #3 -- 24,824 (-14.3%) 03/2011: DCU Online: Legends #4 -- 23,001 (- 7.3%) 04/2011: DCU Online: Legends #5 -- 21,427 (- 6.8%) 04/2011: DCU Online: Legends #6 -- 20,461 (- 4.5%) 05/2011: DCU Online: Legends #7 -- 20,064 (- 1.9%) 05/2011: DCU Online: Legends #8 -- 19,471 (- 3.0%) 06/2011: DCU Online: Legends #9 -- 18,759 (- 3.7%) 06/2011: DCU Online: Legends #10 -- 18,178 (- 3.1%) 07/2011: DCU Online: Legends #11 -- 17,509 (- 3.7%) 07/2011: DCU Online: Legends #12 -- 17,223 (- 1.6%) 08/2011: DCU Online: Legends #13 -- 16,540 (- 4.0%) 08/2011: DCU Online: Legends #14 -- 16,018 (- 3.2%) 09/2011: -- 10/2011: DCU Online: Legends #15 -- 15,460 (- 3.5%) 10/2011: DCU Online: Legends #16 -- 15,238 (- 1.4%) ---------------- 6 months: -26.7%
Back after its September hiatus. Business as usual.
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159 - AMERICAN VAMPIRE: SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST (Vertigo) 06/2011: Survival #1 of 5 -- 17,160 07/2011: Survival #2 of 5 -- 14,590 (-15.0%) 08/2011: Survival #3 of 5 -- 14,696 (+ 0.7%) 09/2011: Survival #4 of 5 -- 14,204 (- 3.5%) 10/2011: Survival #5 of 5 -- 14,186 (- 0.1%)
Excellent sales for a Vertigo book, overall.
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199 - THE UNWRITTEN (Vertigo) 10/2009: The Unwritten #6 -- 15,314 ------------------------------------ 10/2010: The Unwritten #18 -- 12,273 (- 4.1%) 11/2010: The Unwritten #19 -- 12,036 (- 1.9%) 12/2010: The Unwritten #20 -- 11,684 (- 2.9%) 01/2011: The Unwritten #21 -- 11,443 (- 2.1%) 02/2011: The Unwritten #22 -- 11,371 (- 0.6%) 03/2011: The Unwritten #23 -- 11,319 (- 0.5%) 04/2011: The Unwritten #24 -- 11,028 (- 2.6%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: - 5.0% 1 year : -14.6% 2 years : -31.6%
Holding level.
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201 - THE UNEXPECTED (Vertigo) 05/2011: Strange Adventures #1 of 1 -- 9,999 ---------------------------------------------- 10/2011: The Unexpected #1 of 1 -- 10,416
Another $ 7.99 anthology one-shot, selling at the same level as the last one. Not bad sales at all for this type of book.
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213 - HELLBLAZER (Vertigo) 10/2006: Hellblazer #225 -- 13,629 10/2007: Hellblazer #237 -- 12,703 10/2008: Hellblazer #248 -- 11,600 10/2009: Hellblazer #260 -- 10,767 ---------------------------------- 10/2010: Hellblazer #272 -- 9,650 (-2.0%) 11/2010: Hellblazer #273 -- 9,645 (-0.1%) 12/2010: Hellblazer #274 -- 9,342 (-3.1%) 01/2011: Hellblazer #275 -- 9,507 (+1.8%) 02/2011: Hellblazer #276 -- 9,466 (-0.4%) 03/2011: Hellblazer #277 -- 9,525 (+0.6%) 04/2011: Hellblazer #278 -- 9,417 (-1.1%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: + 2.0% 1 year : - 0.4% 2 years : -10.8% 5 years : -29.5%
Hellblazer keeps climbing, ever so slightly. In this case, a crossover effect from the “New 52” would make sense, of course, but if that’s what’s going on, it’s just a couple hundred extra copies so far.
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218 - I, ZOMBIE (Vertigo) 10/2010: I, Zombie #6 -- 13,782 (- 7.1%) 11/2010: I, Zombie #7 -- 12,800 (- 7.1%) 12/2010: I, Zombie #8 -- 12,038 (- 6.0%) 01/2011: I, Zombie #9 -- 11,536 (- 4.2%) 02/2011: I, Zombie #10 -- 11,182 (- 3.1%) 03/2011: I, Zombie #11 -- 10,874 (- 2.8%) 04/2011: I, Zombie #12 -- 10,727 (- 1.4%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: -13.9% 1 year : -33.0%
Levelling out, at last.
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222 - SUPERNATURAL 05/2007: Origins #1 -- 21,128 06/2007: Origins #2 -- 15,955 (-24.5%) 07/2007: Origins #3 -- 14,812 (- 7.2%) 08/2007: Origins #4 -- 13,915 (- 6.1%) 09/2007: Origins #5 -- 13,034 (- 6.3%) 10/2007: Origins #6 -- 12,350 (- 5.5%) ------------------------------------- 04/2008: Rising Son #1 of 6 -- 16,013 (+29.7%) 05/2008: Rising Son #2 of 6 -- 11,846 (-26.0%) 06/2008: Rising Son #3 of 6 -- 11,276 (- 4.8%) 07/2008: Rising Son #4 of 6 -- 10,676 (- 5.3%) 08/2008: Rising Son #5 of 6 -- 10,110 (- 5.3%) 09/2008: Rising Son #6 of 6 -- 9,590 (- 5.1%) ------------------------------------- 01/2010: End #1 of 6 -- 9,251 (- 3.5%) 02/2010: End #2 of 6 -- 6,922 (-25.2%) 03/2010: End #3 of 6 -- 6,764 (- 2.3%) 04/2010: End #4 of 6 -- 6,420 (- 5.1%) 05/2010: End #5 of 6 -- 6,403 (- 0.3%) 06/2010: End #6 of 6 -- 6,711 (+ 4.8%) ------------------------------------- 10/2011: Supernatrl #1 of 6 -- 8,896 (+32.6%)
Diminishing returns, obviously, despite Brian Wood’s name in the credits. Still, by the standards of the late WildStorm imprint, this would almost look like a hit.
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238 - SWEET TOOTH (Vertigo) 10/2009: Sweet Tooth #2 -- 11,315 ---------------------------------- 10/2010: Sweet Tooth #14 -- 8,933 (- 1.8%) 11/2010: Sweet Tooth #15 -- 8,750 (- 2.1%) 12/2010: Sweet Tooth #16 -- 8,602 (- 1.7%) 01/2011: Sweet Tooth #17 -- 8,522 (- 0.9%) 02/2011: Sweet Tooth #18 -- 8,466 (- 0.7%) 03/2011: Sweet Tooth #19 -- 8,532 (+ 0.8%) 04/2011: Sweet Tooth #20 -- 8,361 (- 2.0%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: - 4.8% 1 year : -10.9% 2 years : -29.6%
Sweet Tooth creator Jeff Lemire is writing Animal Man, of course, the “New 52” book with the biggest percentage increase in October. Maybe retailers order a few dozen extra units for Sweet Tooth as a result.
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243 - TINY TITANS (Johnny DC) 10/2008: Tiny Titans #9 -- 9,521 ---------------------------------- 10/2010: Tiny Titans #33 -- 8,045 (- 0.4%) 11/2010: Tiny Titans #34 -- 7,713 (- 4.1%) 12/2010: Tiny Titans #35 -- 7,515 (- 2.6%) 01/2011: Tiny Titans #36 -- 7,480 (- 0.5%) 02/2011: Tiny Titans #37 -- 7,426 (- 0.7%) 03/2011: Tiny Titans #38 -- 7,372 (- 0.7%) 04/2011: Tiny Titans #39 -- 7,445 (+ 1.0%) 05/2011: Tiny Titans #40 -- 7,847 (+ 5.4%) 06/2011: Tiny Titans #41 -- 7,811 (- 0.5%) 07/2011: Tiny Titans #42 -- 7,664 (- 1.9%) 08/2011: Tiny Titans #43 -- 7,534 (- 1.7%) 09/2011: Tiny Titans #44 -- 7,619 (+ 1.1%) 10/2011: Tiny Titans #45 -- 7,836 (+ 2.9%) ---------------- 6 months: + 5.3% 1 year : - 2.6% 2 years : -17.7%
A Johnny DC book, see disclaimers.
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245 - YOUNG JUSTICE (Johnny DC) 01/2011: Young Justice #0 -- 9,412 02/2011: Young Justice #1 -- 10,777 (+14.5%) 03/2011: Young Justice #2 -- 9,612 (-10.8%) 04/2011: Young Justice #3 -- 9,407 (- 2.1%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: -17.8%
Another Johnny DC title.
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262 - NORTHLANDERS (Vertigo) 10/2008: Northlanders #11 -- 10,353 10/2009: Northlanders #21 -- 8,360 ----------------------------------- 10/2010: Northlanders #33 -- 7,169 (- 2.1%) 11/2010: Northlanders #34 -- 7,018 (- 2.1%) 12/2010: Northlanders #35 -- 7,061 (+ 0.6%) 01/2011: Northlanders #36 -- 6,806 (- 3.6%) 02/2011: Northlanders #37 -- 7,006 (+ 2.9%) 03/2011: Northlanders #38 -- 7,020 (+ 0.2%) 04/2011: Northlanders #39 -- 6,983 (- 0.5%) 05/2011: Northlanders #40 -- 7,055 (+ 1.0%) 06/2011: Northlanders #41 -- 6,954 (- 1.4%) 07/2011: Northlanders #42 -- 6,989 (+ 0.5%) 08/2011: Northlanders #43 -- 6,901 (- 1.3%) 09/2011: Northlanders #44 -- 6,858 (- 0.6%) 10/2011: Northlanders #45 -- 6,973 (+ 1.7%) ---------------- 6 months: - 0.1% 1 year : - 2.7% 2 years : -16.6%
Cancelled with issue #50.
—–
269 - THE ALL-NEW BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD (Johnny DC) 10/2006: Batman Strikes! #26 -- 7,560 10/2007: Batman Strikes! #38 -- 6,664 10/2008: Batman Strikes! #50 -- 6,413 10/2009: Brave & Bold #10 -- 6,646 ---------------------------------------- 10/2010: Brave & Bold #22 -- 6,044 (- 4.7%) 11/2010: All-New BBB #1 -- 8,408 (+ 39.1%) 12/2010: All-New BBB #2 -- 6,688 (- 20.5%) 01/2011: All-New BBB #3 -- 6,557 (- 2.0%) 02/2011: All-New BBB #4 -- 6,561 (+ 0.1%) 03/2011: All-New BBB #5 -- 6,463 (- 1.5%) 04/2011: All-New BBB #6 -- 6,324 (- 2.1%) 05/2011: All-New BBB #7 -- 6,869 (+ 8.6%) 06/2011: All-New BBB #8 -- 6,645 (- 3.3%) 07/2011: All-New BBB #9 -- 6,404 (- 3.6%) 08/2011: All-New BBB #10 -- 6,351 (- 0.8%) 09/2011: All-New BBB #11 -- 6,410 (+ 0.9%) 10/2011: All-New BBB #12 -- 6,771 (+ 5.6%) ---------------- 6 months: + 7.1% 1 year : +12.0% 2 years : + 1.9% 5 years : -10.4%
Another Johnny DC book.
—–
271 - HOUSE OF MYSTERY (Vertigo) 10/2008: House of Mystery #6 -- 15,934 10/2009: House of Mystery #18 -- 10,922 --------------------------------------- 10/2010: House of Mystery #30 -- 7,913 (- 2.2%) 11/2010: House of Mystery #31 -- 7,610 (- 3.8%) 12/2010: House of Mystery #32 -- 7,348 (- 3.4%) 01/2011: House of Mystery #33 -- 7,227 (- 1.7%) 02/2011: House of Mystery #34 -- 7,092 (- 1.9%) 03/2011: House of Mystery #35 -- 7,170 (+ 1.1%) 04/2011: House of Mystery #36 -- 7,096 (- 1.0%) 05/2011: House of Mystery #37 -- 6,909 (- 2.6%) 06/2011: House of Mystery #38 -- 6,763 (- 2.1%) 07/2011: House of Mystery #39 -- 6,627 (- 2.0%) 08/2011: House of Mystery #40 -- 6,512 (- 1.7%) 09/2011: House of Mystery #41 -- 6,387 (- 1.9%) 10/2011: House of Mystery #42 -- 6,570 (+ 2.9%) ---------------- 6 months: - 7.4% 1 year : -17.0% 2 years : -39.9%
Cancelled.
—–
282 - SCALPED (Vertigo) 10/2007: Scalped #10 -- 7,536 10/2008: Scalped #22 -- 6,964 10/2009: Scalped #32 -- 6,905 ------------------------------ 10/2010: Scalped #41 -- 6,623 (+ 0.5%) 10/2010: Scalped #42 -- 6,476 (- 2.2%) 11/2010: Scalped #43 -- 6,324 (- 2.4%) 12/2010: Scalped #44 -- 6,192 (- 2.1%) 01/2011: Scalped #45 -- 6,187 (- 0.1%) 02/2011: Scalped #46 -- 6,179 (- 0.1%) 03/2011: Scalped #47 -- 6,222 (+ 0.7%) 04/2011: Scalped #48 -- 6,272 (+ 0.8%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: - 1.1% 1 year : - 6.3% 2 years : -10.2%
Ending with issue #60.
—–
- DMZ (Vertigo) 10/2006: DMZ #12 -- 14,640 10/2007: DMZ #24 -- 11,583 10/2008: DMZ #35 -- 9,240 10/2009: DMZ #46 -- 7,399 -------------------------- 10/2010: DMZ #58 -- 6,198 (-2.1%) 11/2010: DMZ #59 -- 6,046 (-2.5%) 12/2010: DMZ #60 -- 6,023 (-0.4%) 01/2011: DMZ #61 -- 5,855 (-2.8%) 02/2011: DMZ #62 -- 5,781 (-1.3%) 03/2011: DMZ #63 -- 5,877 (+1.7%) 04/2011: DMZ #64 -- 5,851 (-0.4%) 05/2011: DMZ #65 -- 5,865 (+0.2%) 06/2011: DMZ #66 -- 5,825 (-0.7%) 07/2011: DMZ #67 -- 5,720 (-1.8%) 08/2011: DMZ #68 -- 5,668 (-0.9%) 09/2011: DMZ #69 -- 5,544 (-2.2%) 10/2011: DMZ #70 -- 5,610 (+1.2%) ---------------- 6 months: - 4.1% 1 year : - 9.5% 2 years : -24.2% 5 years : -61.7%
Ending with issue #72.
Gears of War #20 also shipped in October, but missed the Top 300 chart. As usual, for the purpose of the average-sales statistics below, I’m assuming it sold as many units as the No. 300 book on the chart. Corrected copies of Driver: Crossing the Line #1 were shipped to retailers in October, too, and in the only previous case this happened that I recall, the corrected copies also showed up on the chart. That was years ago, though, and in any case, I included Driver in the average charts when it originally shipped (though it didn’t actually make the Top 300 back then, either), so I won’t include it again.
—–
"NEW 52" RE-ORDERS 88: 28,243 -- Aquaman #1 93: 27,477 -- Green Lantern #1 98: 26,235 -- Detective Comics #1 108: 23,100 -- Batman #1 111: 21,340 -- Batman and Robin #1 ----------- 117: 19,688 -- Wonder Woman #1 120: 19,368 -- Batman: The Dark Knight #1 125: 18,599 -- Superman #1 126: 18,558 -- Flash #1 130: 18,199 -- Action Comics #1 132: 17,875 -- Nightwing #1 139: 16,512 -- Batgirl #1 141: 15,933 -- Catwoman #1 144: 15,724 -- Batwoman #1 146: 15,593 -- Justice League #1 149: 15,381 -- Teen Titans #1 152: 15,230 -- Red Lanterns #1 ----------- 155: 14,502 -- Animal Man #1 160: 14,160 -- Supergirl #1 161: 14,132 -- Red Hood and the Outlaws #1 163: 13,985 -- Swamp Thing #1 165: 13,675 -- Superboy #1 173: 12,563 -- Green Lantern: New Guardians #1 178: 12,115 -- Justice League Dark #1 181: 11,836 -- Suicide Squad #1 182: 11,723 -- Green Lantern Corps #1 187: 11,311 -- All Star Western #1 190: 11,003 -- Justice League International #1 192: 10,890 -- Stormwatch #1 194: 10,727 -- Demon Knights #1 195: 10,679 -- Green Arrow #1 198: 10,539 -- Firestorm #1 202: 10,350 -- Birds of Prey #1 ----------- 208: 9,792 -- Deathstroke #1 210: 9,737 -- Grifter #1 216: 9,266 -- Frankenstein #1 228: 8,490 -- Resurrection Man #1 235: 8,226 -- Legion Lost #1 236: 8,005 -- Hawkman #1 240: 7,923 -- Legion of Super-Heroes #1 242: 7,840 -- Blue Beetle #1 244: 7,741 -- Batwing #1 248: 7,537 -- Justice League #1 Combo Pack 253: 7,402 -- DC Universe Presents #1 257: 7,310 -- I, Vampire #1 259: 7,204 -- Captain Atom #1 263: 6,902 -- Mister Terrific #1 267: 6,811 -- Voodoo 278: 6,421 -- Blackhawks #1 287: 5,705 -- Hawk & Dove 292: 5,559 -- O.M.A.C. #1 298: 5,264 -- Static Shock #1
—–
"NEW 52" AGGREGATE DEBUT-ISSUE SALES 1 - 255,556 -- Justice League #1 2 - 211,520 -- Batman #1 3 - 200,947 -- Action Comics #1 ----------- 4 - 169,159 -- Green Lantern #1 5 - 150,128 -- Superman #1 6 - 147,818 -- Flash #1 7 - 141,035 -- Detective Comics #1 8 - 128,689 -- Batman: The Dark Knight #1 9 - 116,053 -- Batman and Robin #1 10- 108,545 -- Aquaman #1 11- 107,055 -- Batgirl #1 ----------- 12- 96,596 -- Green Lantern: New Guardians #1 13- 95,902 -- Wonder Woman #1 14- 94,800 -- Green Lantern Corps #1 15- 89,170 -- Red Lanterns #1 16- 89,056 -- Teen Titans #1 17- 87,952 -- Batwoman #1 18- 87,561 -- Nightwing #1 19- 81,955 -- Justice League Dark #1 20- 78,869 -- Justice League International #1 21- 75,566 -- Catwoman #1 ----------- 22- 74,218 -- Supergirl #1 23- 72,359 -- Green Arrow #1 24- 70,244 -- Red Hood and the Outlaws #1 25- 69,283 -- Superboy #1 26- 68,742 -- Swamp Thing #1 27- 66,423 -- Birds of Prey #1 28- 63,959 -- Hawkman #1 29- 62,076 -- Firestorm #1 30- 61,815 -- Suicide Squad #1 31- 60,553 -- Animal Man #1 32- 58,325 -- Legion of Super-Heroes #1 33- 57,287 -- Stormwatch #1 34- 56,820 -- Deathstroke #1 35- 54,992 -- All Star Western #1 36- 54,588 -- Legion Lost #1 37- 53,721 -- Batwing #1 38- 53,103 -- DC Universe Presents #1 39- 52,329 -- Demon Knights #1 40- 52,288 -- Blue Beetle #1 41- 51,314 -- Captain Atom #1 42- 50,959 -- Grifter #1 43- 50,817 -- Frankenstein #1 44- 50,230 -- Resurrection Man #1 ----------- 45- 48,352 -- Mister Terrific #1 46- 47,999 -- Hawk & Dove #1 47- 47,112 -- Voodoo #1 48- 46,993 -- I, Vampire #1 49- 46,435 -- Blackhawks #1 50- 43,046 -- Static Shock #1 51- 42,871 -- O.M.A.C. #1 52- 37,488 -- Men of War #1
—–
"NEW 52" 2ND-ISSUE CHANGES +16.0%: Animal Man ------ + 7.2%: Detective Comics + 7.1%: Swamp Thing + 6.6%: Catwoman + 5.8%: Justice League + 5.8%: Red Hood ------ + 4.8%: Nightwing + 4.3%: Batman and Robin + 3.7%: Wonder Woman + 3.3%: Superboy + 3.0%: Batwoman + 2.4%: Stormwatch + 2.2%: Supergirl + 1.5%: Demon Knights + 0.5%: Green Lantern + 0.3%: Red Lanterns ------ - 0.8%: Suicide Squad - 1.4%: Aquaman - 2.1%: Teen Titans - 2.6%: JLI - 2.7%: Frankenstein - 3.2%: Grifter - 4.8%: Green Arrow ------ - 5.1%: Deathstroke - 5.2%: Birds of Prey - 5.5%: GL Corps - 6.3%: LoSH - 7.0%: Batwing - 7.6%: Resurrection Man - 7.7%: Batgirl - 8.0%: Legion Lost - 8.1%: Dark Knight - 8.5%: Batman - 8.8%: Jonah Hex - 9.0%: DCU Presents - 9.2%: JLD ------ -11.4%: Blue Beetle -11.7%: Flash -12.4%: O.M.A.C. -12.8%: I, Vampire -13.2%: Captain Atom -13.2%: Mister Terrific -13.9%: Voodoo -14.4%: Static Shock -14.6%: Firestorm -14.6%: Hawkman -14.7%: New Guardians -14.7%: Hawk & Dove ------ -15.8%: Action Comics -16.1%: Men of War -20.4%: Superman -20.8%: Blackhawks
—–
6-MONTH COMPARISONS +316.7%: Justice League +285.7%: All Star Western +243.8%: Batgirl +206.7%: Detective Comics +204.8%: Batman +186.3%: Teen Titans +184.2%: Supergirl +164.1%: Superman +155.8%: Action Comics +155.0%: Wonder Woman +108.3%: Flash +101.7%: LoSH + 88.3%: Superboy + 87.8%: Green Lantern + 79.7%: Green Arrow + 78.2%: My Greatest Adventure + 75.6%: Birds of Prey + 67.3%: Batman and Robin + 38.7%: New Guardians + 30.5%: GL Corps + 7.1%: All-New BBB + 5.3%: Tiny Titans + 2.0%: Hellblazer - 0.1%: Northlanders - 1.1%: Scalped - 3.7%: Fables - 4.1%: DMZ - 4.8%: Sweet Tooth - 5.0%: Unwritten - 7.4%: House of Mystery - 13.9%: I, Zombie - 17.8%: Young Justice - 26.7%: DCU Online
—–
1-YEAR COMPARISONS +263.8%: Action Comics +257.8%: All Star Western +245.1%: Detective Comics +229.3%: Justice League +160.9%: Teen Titans +157.5%: Supergirl +115.4%: Superman +111.4%: Wonder Woman + 74.4%: Green Lantern + 56.1%: LoSH + 42.0%: New Guardians + 39.2%: Green Arrow + 29.1%: GL Corps + 23.2%: Batman and Robin + 12.0%: All-New BBB - 0.4%: Hellblazer - 2.6%: Tiny Titans - 2.7%: Northlanders - 6.3%: Scalped - 7.9%: Fables - 9.5%: DMZ - 10.9%: Sweet Tooth - 13.9%: Batman: Odyssey - 14.6%: Unwritten - 17.0%: House of Mystery - 33.0%: I, Zombie
—–
2-YEAR COMPARISONS +374.1%: Animal Man +342.7%: Action Comics +253.3%: All Star Western +225.9%: Green Arrow +222.2%: Justice League +193.1%: Wonder Woman +147.2%: Teen Titans +145.2%: Batman +125.8%: Batgirl +115.4%: Superman +110.1%: Detective Comics +102.1%: Supergirl + 40.5%: Green Lantern + 1.9%: All-New BBB - 2.8%: Batman and Robin - 3.5%: GL Corps - 10.2%: Scalped - 10.8%: Hellblazer - 14.3%: Fables - 16.6%: Northlanders - 17.7%: Tiny Titans - 24.2%: DMZ - 29.6%: Sweet Tooth - 31.6%: Unwritten - 39.9%: House of Mystery
—–
5-YEAR COMPARISONS +166.7%: Firestorm +163.6%: Catwoman +139.9%: Hawkman +117.8%: All Star Western + 97.2%: Detective Comics + 95.1%: Action Comics + 89.9%: Nightwing + 85.4%: Flash + 80.3%: GL Corps + 80.2%: Green Arrow + 74.9%: Birds of Prey + 13.7%: LoSH - 10.4%: All-New BBB - 29.1%: Fables - 29.5%: Hellblazer - 61.7%: DMZ
—–
Average Periodical Sales (not counting reprints, reorders shipping after the initial month of release, Johnny DC titles and magazines)
DC COMICS 10/2006: 33,406 10/2007: 31,648 10/2008: 29,109 10/2009: 27,525** --------------- 09/2010: 23,212 (- 0.5%)** 10/2010: 23,756 (- 2.3%)** 11/2010: 25,497 (+ 7.3%)** 12/2010: 23,869 (- 6.4%)** 01/2011: 21,922 (- 8.2%)** 02/2011: 23,252 (+ 6.1%)** 03/2011: 23,976 (+ 3.1%)** 04/2011: 25,651 (+ 7.0%) 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%)** ----------------- 6 months: + 99.9% 1 year : +120.9% 2 years : + 86.3% 5 years : + 53.5%
DC UNIVERSE 10/2006: 42,581 10/2007: 39,748 10/2008: 37,273 10/2009: 34,795 --------------- 09/2010: 32,042 (- 4.1%) 10/2010: 32,832 (+ 2.5%) 11/2010: 34,180 (+ 4.1%) 12/2010: 30,870 (- 9.7%) 01/2011: 24,321 (- 21.2%)** 02/2011: 25,887 (+ 6.4%)** 03/2011: 26,720 (+ 3.2%)** 04/2011: 29,126 (+ 9.0%) 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%)** ----------------- 6 months: +103.1% 1 year : + 84.6% 2 years : + 70.0% 5 years : + 38.9%
VERTIGO 10/2006: 15,189 10/2007: 10,678 10/2008: 11,284 10/2009: 10,551 --------------- 09/2010: 11,622 (+27.8%) 10/2010: 9,546 (-17.9%) 11/2010: 9,034 (- 5.4%) 12/2010: 11,193 (+23.9%) 01/2011: 10,145 (- 9.4%) 02/2011: 10,295 (+ 1.5%) 03/2011: 10,450 (+ 1.5%) 04/2011: 10,014 (- 4.2%) 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%) ---------------- 6 months: + 6.3% 1 year : - 8.4% 2 years : + 0.9% 5 years : -29.9%
—–
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.
Marc, why do you hate DC so much?
I think what you are seeing with the last week numbers is the result of retailers seeing the sales on the first week books for a week before order adjusting. Sales on #2s have dropped substantially on many of the books. Although certain books are seeing a good, sustainable bump. And I think the DC line will be selling more in three months than they did prior to the new 52.
I hope that publishers notice the benefit of clumping new releases together instead of sprinkling them out. This allows them to spend marketing dollars to actually promote the new “season” of books. That is a novel idea that the comic industry would do well to copy.
Also, I hear of retailers who are returning 1000s of books. I don’t know how returns will be tabulated into your numbers. From what I am hearing, the returns might be more substantial on #2s than on #1s.
Unfortunately, they’re going to interpret this as” “We were right! Readers do want boobies and decapitations!”
I’m excited about DC’s books, and I’m really happy the numbers reflect their success. My favorite element of the launch is that there is a representative for just about every genre, and they’re all tied into the same universe. The books are fun and exciting and the price-point has allowed me to test the waters. I’m happy to be giving DC my money right now!
@Jay
Sex and violence are always in demand.
@Regan Clem
I think you’ve got something with your remark about “seasons”. The downside to that is that all titles could become 12 issue maxi-series.
@saipaman
Not at the degradation & torture porn levels DC is currently operating at. No, it’s not.
I think the essential lesson to draw from this is that fewer titles yields higher sales per title. Since there is only a tiny incremental cost per copy sold, DC and Marvel should both take this lesson to heart.
Think how nice it would be to actually be able to follow the majority, if not all, of the core DC universe (or Marvel for that matter).
It’s a Thanksgiving miracle!! A “You’re a Monster, Marc Oliver Frisch” special!! I can’t wait for the inevitable hatefest in the comments. I think I’m more giddy about this than I am about anything on Thanksgiving day!
Marc, how long does it take on average to do one of these analysis’?
Why would “The Shade” sell a lot? It’s a spinoff from a series that ended ten years ago. A beloved series, true, but still you have to be realistic. It didn’t get the promotion and all the reviews the New 52 issues did.
Having said that, I loved James Robinson’s “Starman” and really enjoyed the return of The Shade!
I love that all of 9 minutes passed before someone accused Marc-Oliver of hating DC.
Could have been a tongue-in-cheek post.
I wish Sweet Tooth was always hovering so close to the danger zone. One of the best books out there, people. Buy it.
Maybe it does alright in trades.
I meant “wasn’t,” of course.
Regarding Huntress #1 sales. What did her last two mini series (cry for blood and year one) debut at? That should give some indication as to how well this new mini went.
Why oh why can’t you just acknowledge that DC has completely rewritten the rule book? DC has obviously destroyed Marvel for all time with the new 52, and you’re adopting this ridiculous measured tone.
You’ve been so disrespectful of DC in the past, I feel like you need to make it up now. I think a personal apology to DC’s fans, creators, and especially its characters is needed here.
Yeah, it’s all blood & porn at DC these days.
As if that statement is even true, and even if it is…as if DC is the only studio then guilty of it.
I, for one, am enjoying a wide breadth of the new 52. It’s good to see healthy sales across the board.
It’s also encouraging to hear Rood & Wayne continually say that “winning the month” is not the goal. It will make it that much easier to ignore the Chicken Little’s when Marvel double-ships the hell out of their $3.99 books in February, which I assume will give them the market share lead back (if not before).
Sam, how exactly has DC rewritten the rule book? They’ve boosted sales to 2006 levels via massive promotions and new #1s on all their books. These aren’t new tricks, and while we aren’t far enough out from the launch that we can say if the books have staying power, we know that relaunches tend to lead to short term boosts, not long-term sales health.
Regan:
“From what I am hearing, the returns might be more substantial on #2s than on #1s.”
Yeah, the anecdotal reports I’ve seen suggest that retailers may have overcompensated in their #2 orders, thanks to the unexpected success of the relaunch. If that holds true, we should see a more substantial drop-off in November.
That said, the bulk of the adjustments probably won’t be over until January or February 2012, so until then, I expect the pendulum to keep swinging a bit, in terms of month-to-month changes.
As far as the returns are concerned, there’s no way of measuring those in terms of the Diamond figures, unfortunately. If retailers do end up returning a lot of these books, though, it will affect the orders for subsequent issues, as well. So, either way, we’ll have a pretty clear idea of how things are working out, a few months down the road.
Ralph:
“Marc, how long does it take on average to do one of these analysis’?”
Five or six hours on average, I’d guess.
briguyx:
“Why would “The Shade” sell a lot?”
It wouldn’t, but that’s the point.
If there was a lasting and substantial effect as a result of the “New 52,” as some have suggested, it would have to affect more titles than just the “New 52” books themselves.
So far, that doesn’t seem to be the case, looking at these numbers. As I say, though, we’re still early in the adjustment period, so let’s wait and see.
Sam:
“I think a personal apology to DC’s fans, creators, and especially its characters is needed here.”
You’re right. My heartfelt apologies to the whole Sinestro Corps.
Just to be 100% clear to everyone: I am kidding. I was trying to make it obvious by going way over the top, but I didn’t go far enough with my first comment, so I tried again. But it still wasn’t far enough.
Chastened, I will attempt to satirize those who accuse this site of anti-DC bias no more.
“If there was a lasting and substantial effect as a result of the “New 52,” as some have suggested, it would have to affect more titles than just the “New 52″ books themselves.”
So, DC introduces 52 new titles in one month and the success or failure of those titles means nothing? The only standard is whether titles that have NOTHING to do with the relaunch and got NONE of the media attention are affected? And that affect MUST show up within the first 3 months?
Let’s look at some numbers and not BS theorizing.
October 2011
Huntress #1 – 36,099
April 2011
Birds of Prey #11 – 30,270
Batgirl #24 – 24,438
October 2011
The Shade #1 – 30,648
June 2001
Starman #80 – 23,305
October 2011
Penguin #1 26,380
April 2011
Teen Titans #94 – 25,187
Thunderbolts #156 – 25,117
X-Factor #218 – 24,826
Gotham City Sirens #22 – 24.438
Annihilators #2 – 24,117
So, Huntress started out significantly better than where other female, third string Bat-books were doing 6 months before. The Shade sold better than the final issue of Starman and Penguin’s debut has to be considered a success by any reasonable standard.
How about everybody just hold off until at least the 6 month mark before trying to figure out if the New 52 has worked and to what extent? Before that, we’re all just making fools of ourselves looking for data to confirm our individual bias.
Mike
I have no idea where MBunge’s anger comes from but the thing missing in his analysis is that he’s comparing regular issues of like #11 or #24 of less popular characters with brand-spanking-new #1’s. Of course the former are going be selling less copies, even several years ago. I echo Marc’s surprise that this latter bunch of launches didn’t do better. Especially The Shade.
Mike:
“So, DC introduces 52 new titles in one month and the success or failure of those titles means nothing? The only standard is whether titles that have NOTHING to do with the relaunch and got NONE of the media attention are affected? And that affect MUST show up within the first 3 months?”
I’m not sure where you get the idea.
As I say, I think it’s premature to declare the “New 52” relaunch a game-changer for the direct market or some such thing, as some have done.
Because if it was, then (a) the success would have to affect more books — and certainly more DC books — than those initial 52 relaunch titles, and (b) it would have to boost sales for longer than just the first few months.
Hence, I think it’s way too early to go overboard. That’s the point. If this turns out to be the kind of direct-market revolution some have suggested, the numbers will back it up soon enough.
So far, though, I don’t think they do. If pointing this out makes me biased, then I guess we just have very different definitions of the term.
Mike, you’re comparing issue 1s to random issues of other comics.
Sam, I totally got the joke with your first post, but the second one made you seem completely serious! LOL So I’m glad you confessed!
Is it safe to conclude that the relaunch and October numbers proves that there is, in fact, more money to be had from the direct market? Or is it possible everyone just expanded their budgets temporarily?
“Because if it was, then (a) the success would have to affect more books — and certainly more DC books — than those initial 52 relaunch titles, and (b) it would have to boost sales for longer than just the first few months.”
1. The idea that the New 52 can only be a game changer based on the sales of books other than the New 52 seems like a standard designed so that it can’t be met. “Look! The first issue of a mini-series based on a supporting character of a book that was cancelled a decade ago didn’t sell 60,000 copies! Epic fail!”
2. You provide no evidence or reason why the New 52 hasn’t positively effected other titles besides the fact that they apparently didn’t reach some unexpressed level you pulled completely out of your ass. How many copies would The Huntress have sold without the New 52? 36,000 for a third-tier, female led title with no connection to the New 52 and virtually no publicity for its launch seems pretty good.
3. The New 52 could be a game changer if it creates a higher floor for low-selling books. That would also indicate it’s brought new and lapsed readers back and certainly can’t be determined within the 1st three months.
Seriously, you’re turning into a caricature of yourself by insisting on immediately putting the worst possible spin on these numbers.
Mike
“Mike, you’re comparing issue 1s to random issues of other comics.”
I still put more effort into my comparison than Frisch.
Mike
“I echo Marc’s surprise that this latter bunch of launches didn’t do better. Especially The Shade.”
As previously mentioned, The Shade debuted with higher sales than the end of Robinson’s Starman series. Exactly how well did you think a mini-series starring a supporting character from a low-selling (in the Direct Market) comic that was cancelled a decade ago was going to do?
Mike
And just because some folks brought it up, here’s a 1st issue to 1st issue comparison.
October 2011
The Shade #1 – 30,648
April 2011
The Mighty Thor #1 – 82,071
Herc #1 – 38,774
Fear Itself Home Front #1 – 32,601
Steve Rogers Super Soldier Annual #1 – 24,573
Skaar King of The Savage Land #1 18,002
Deadpool Family #1 – 17,392
Fear Itself Sins Past #1 17,038
Walking Dead Survivor’s Guide #1 – 16,158
Now, when looking at The Shade is their really a lot of reason to think “It’s precisely the kind of sales you’d have expected for this project six months ago”?
Mike
Mike:
“The idea that the New 52 can only be a game changer based on the sales of books other than the New 52 seems like a standard designed so that it can’t be met.”
If we’re talking about a game-changer, then in my mind, we’re talking about something that affects the direct market as a whole, not just one specific set of titles from one specific publisher.
That’s the point of the term.
“You provide no evidence or reason why the New 52 hasn’t positively effected other titles besides the fact that they apparently didn’t reach some unexpressed level you pulled completely out of your ass.”
I suggest you look again.
“36,000 for a third-tier, female led title with no connection to the New 52 and virtually no publicity for its launch seems pretty good.”
Under normal circumstances, it would be a comparatively good number, yes. I don’t think I’ve suggested otherwise.
I’m still not sure what your point is, other than to vent and hurl insults at me for pointing out facts you don’t like.
“The Shade debuted with higher sales than the end of Robinson’s Starman series. Exactly how well did you think a mini-series starring a supporting character from a low-selling (in the Direct Market) comic that was cancelled a decade ago was going to do?”
I dunno…maybe as well as Resurrection Man, another property that hadn’t been heard from in even longer and yet #1 nearly tripled sales of the last issue of that series (41,740 vs. 15,104 copies of issue #27 way back in June 1999).
Mike makes some excellent points.
I ordered Huntress, Penguin, and the Shade #1s the same way I ordered the “New 52” #1s. We sold 90% of the Shade, and had to place reorders for Penguin AND Huntress.
Huntress sold for me at nearly 6x what the last mini sold for me.
Penguin sold 3x what Joker’s Asylum sold for me, and that was a surprise mini-hit.
Shade #1 sold a handful more than Justice League: Cry for Justice (in which he guest-starred) sold here.
I have ordered the Ray #1 the same way.
I have said it before, but it bears repeating: The new and returning customers who have jumped on-board with DC’s relaunch at my store are much more likely to try new things than my average customer pre-relaunch. They are also much quicker to drop titles they don’t like, so I’ve had to keep on my toes about all the new titles.
MBunge: “Walking Dead Survivor’s Guide #1 – 16,158”
This wasn’t a comic, it was bios of characters. So it’s not really comparable.
“I’m still not sure what your point is, other than to vent and hurl insults at me for pointing out facts you don’t like.”
Your analysis of Shades numbers are not fact. Inane yes. Facts no.
YAY! I was worried the Marc Oliver haters would take the month off but MBunge and OccupyThis to the rescue!
BTW – sam, your parody of the Marc Oliver haters was scarily close to what the actual haters say every month. ^_^
I appreciate the work you put into this post Marc but lets see if the numbers are anywhere close to the same sales this time next year and Marvel is not going to role over and play dead.
Demon Knights does not have any new characters?
That is news to people who actually read Demon Knights.
To those who expected the Shade to do better: I would have picked it up, since I was a big fan of the old Starman series. However, I’m boycotting DC for their half-@##ed relaunch, so I didn’t buy it.
While everyone is harping on Frisch’s comments about Shade and Huntress, they’re missing the actual problem with the article– the write up for Detective comics makes no sense, as it seems to be based around Frisch conflating Tony Daniel and David Finch.
MBunge– Starman wasn’t cancelled, it reached the end of Robinson’s storyline, so please stop asserting that Shade’s the return of a character from a cancelled book.
Nice to see Supergirl going up.
“MBunge– Starman wasn’t cancelled, it reached the end of Robinson’s storyline, so please stop asserting that Shade’s the return of a character from a cancelled book.”
Cancelled, shmancelled. I think the important point is that the last issue of Starman sold less than the first issue of The Shade. The whole decade gap between them would be point number 2.
Mike
To MOF and MBunge:
It is very hard to know how much Huntress and Shade would have sold before/without the “new 52”. But in a few weeks we will know the numbers for the new T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents. Then we can make a before/after comparison.
The numbers for #1 exactly one year ago:
11/2010: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #1 — 16,122
And #10 in august:
08/2011: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #10 — 8,453
If the numbers now are notably higher the new 52 initiative has had at least some kind of impact.
***Now, when looking at The Shade is their really a lot of reason to think “It’s precisely the kind of sales you’d have expected for this project six months ago”?***
Yes, it fits into the range of #1’s you offered about where I’d expect. Debuts of minor characters used to be in the 30,000 range all the time. It’s not significant that it sold more than the last issue of a series ending it’s run by author choice. It is significant that people came back for nostalgia, and how do we know they wouldn’t have done that regardless the New 52? I would have looked at it.
Joe:
“… the write up for Detective comics makes no sense, as it seems to be based around Frisch conflating Tony Daniel and David Finch …”
No idea what you mean. The paragraph you refer to seems fine to me, and it says exactly what it’s meant to.