The sales numbers for May have been posted and I, for one, was pretty interested in seeing how this month all shook out. As usual, here is the link ti ICv2 and their coverage:
https://icv2.com/articles/markets/view/40671/top-500-comics-may-2018
For me, this was interesting as it marked the handing of the Superman baton over to Brian Michael Bendis. There was no Supergirl on the shelves this month. There was no Action Comics. We had a couple of specials. And we had the first issue of the weekly The Man of Steel comic by Bendis and a cadre of ultra-talented artists.
This mini-series isn't a reboot but a reinvigoration. It is Marvel Icon Bendis' first major work at DC. It should sell like hotcakes.
So ....
I have to admit I am a bit surprise to see it come in at #9 overall in sales, with orders of 78,942 officially on the books.
I'm not saying that 79K is anything to sneeze at in this market. It is a huge seller. But this is Superman and Bendis. I thought we'd cross the 100K mark. Certainly I thought we'd sell more than Justice League No Justice.
In some ways, DC may have hurt store sales by not offering variant covers. In other ways, I am thrilled they didn't because this reflects 'true' store interest and not some chasing of a rare covered book to sell.
So solid if a bit underwhelming.
Jurgens et al weren't lifted from the Superman books because of poor sales. In fact, most Superman fans would say that Rebirth and Reborn rekindled interest and brought back a Superman everyone can read.
This could have easily been forgotten as a needless story given the approach of Bendis on the horizon.
Interesting, store owners must have known that Superman fans stick around. Maybe this being Jurgens last story added a bit. It sold a very respectable 47,236. Not bad for a special.
Another book lost in the wake of the Bendis re-imagination was Super Sons.
This was something of a loss as the book had a solid fanbase, solid sales numbers, and was simply fun.
While the title was absent, we did get a Hanna Barbera crossover, a rather dark tale with Blue Falcon and Dynomutt.
How did that sell?
I have to say I am impressed with the ordering number of 23,852.
That is just about where the Super Sons title sold. It shows they have fans willing to follow them.
I am hoping the two characters, for the most part, emerge from the next few months intact.
3 comments:
Yes, sales are a bit underwhelming. Not at all bad, but they're not as high as expected. Maybe it's because Bendis isn't a great draw anymore.
So far, the mini has been good. Bendis gets Superman. He also writes a good Supergirl (I'm pretty sure a moment of MoS #5 will make it to your 2018 Best Moments post. It'd certainly would make it to my personal list) and the best interactions between both cousins since New Krypton. Let's hope sales pick up.
The reviews of Man of Steel over at comicbookroundup are all over the map. This week Bendis gave some really strange dialog to Flash, but we'll discuss that later I guess.
The orders for No Justice dropped with each issue - I guess comic book stores ordered fewer of each issue, expecting audience drop-off. Same thing will likely happen with Man of Steel.
It's impressive that the Dynomutt crossover had decent orders. Apparently many comic book shops were aware enough of it to order in advance. (Mine wasn't, and it took a few weeks to get it. At least they were able to - sometimes I have to shop online to get stuff my comic book shop didn't order and then say is sold out.)
Are these Hanna Barbera crossovers generally selling this well?
I had to order Green Arrow Annual #1 online - no local comic book shop had it in stock and no one was able to order it for me after it was published.
These days I have to order "peripheral" stuff, especially Specials and Annuals, well in advance, before the deadline for the shops to place their order - a sub to the running title doesn't always lead to the store ordering specials and annuals, though it used to till they computerized their inventory.
Same thing with variant covers - there are just too many for stores to invest in all of them unless you specifically ordered it. (If they get stuck with some extras, SOMETIMES they will mark them up if they can tell there is high demand for them.)
You’re not the first to talk about the top 10list.
See if I get the moment right tomorrow in my review.
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