Sales for last month's books have been posted and I am starting to get nervous. It is a classic Anj move to look at sales (really orders) and think the worst. But when sales of your favorite character's book starts to hover around 20K, when it loses a third of sales in a couple of months, maybe I have a good reason to get nervous.
As usual, I love the analysis on ICv2. Here is a link to their coverage:
https://icv2.com/articles/markets/view/41597/top-500-comics-september-2018
Supergirl #22 came out in September, the second issue of the new direction of the book.
I will remind people that before the Bendis pause and the new direction, the creative team of Orlando, Houser, and Rocha seemed to be peaking. The book had Artgerm variants and sales were healthy.
A 'bold new direction' can be a jumping off point. The idea of Supergirl wielding an axe and leaving Earth is certainly bold and new but it will it be accepted? Seems like many like a Supergirl on Earth.
The book came in at #104 and only 22,115 issues were ordered. That is a relatively precipitous drop. It's not as if the book hasn't dipped this low during the Rebirth time period. But the concern is where will it bottom out.
Yes, I am concerned.
For reference, the monthly sales figures of the Rebirth era Supergirl.
Oh how I miss those 30K figures.
Meanwhile, Brian Michael Bendis seems to have found his footing on the main Superman titles. The Action Comics book has crackled for me. And the Superman book with it's gorgeous Ivan Reis art has been steadily improving.
Superman is selling close to 70K. Action is close to 60K.
While not mega-sellers, maybe what DC was hoping with all the 'Bendis is Coming' stuff, these are very solid numbers. Glad these books are finding a sizeable audience.
11 comments:
I'm also concerned. Two issues in this new direction, and Supergirl is floating barely above the danger zone. And since Andreyko's run is just starting, there's little room for manouvre.
I don't know what such a precipitous drop may be due to. Stanley Lau no longer illustrating covers? Supergirl fans tired of still another "new, bold, begin-anew" direction that tosses Supergirl's former character development, history, supporting cast, friendships and setting out? Do they think this is just another "Dark Supergirl" story? Or they aren't interested in Rogol Zaar and the conspiration surrounding him?
I find funny, though, that fans over CBR praised Supergirl ditching the CW's setting and the new direction and claimed whoever had issue with Kara's angrier portrayal in SG 21 wanted an ever-smiling, saccharine-sweet Supergirl, and Steve Orlando was tanking the title anyways.
Some things never, ever, change, don't they?
I hope sales improve.
Andreyko's seems like her doesn't have any idea about SG and he is writing her how he thinks teenage girls are. She doesn't have a personality here and I miss the days when Orlando made Kara a compassionate and kind but also a mature young woman who dealt with conflicts. Here she doesn't tell the people on her side what's up and takes off abruptly. Jokes and kryto won't cover it much and it is showing. Marc andreyko is way out of his depth here.
I hope the sales pick up.
Also just how ironic is that that her show is one of the most successful at dctv and with a movie in the pipeline, her book is hovering over cancellation numbers. If sales don't pick up then Dan didio won't think a sec more about cancelling it.
I guess since people are asking, and I may soon be dropping the book, I should talk about why.
When the sales numbers for that first issue back from the unexplained hiatus came out and they were actually lower than the last issue of the previous run it didn’t look good. A new writer, Maguire on art, and a storyline based on the Bendis/Superman direction should have increased sales, but to see those sales actually drop felt like a bad sign. It said to me that the usual collection of new one-time buyers, Bendis and Superman fans, and tourists that drop by to see what’s new when there’s a creative change wasn’t enough to make up for the regular readers who dropped out. And now that the first blush is over and the one time buyers are going on to the next new thing the baseline numbers for this run may be starting to become apparent.
And I’m soon to be one of those missing readers because the book feels disconnected from… well, from Supergirl. Honestly, this run so far is very pretty, has some cute moments, but I’m not seeing any reason to care because it’s not really about Kara Zor-El. She’s why I buy the book, and the book doesn’t feel to me like it’s about her. It’s just a side-story for Superman’s Rogol Zaar storyline, and they’re not doing anything to make it feel like a Supergirl storyline like finding some ties to her world. They could make it feel more like her story by at least tipping the hat to her stories and continuity, but they aren’t. Where are the Reds she knows? Why didn’t Guy Gardner drop by to say hello? She’s in space, what about all her connections at the Crucible? Why hasn’t she given any thought to the family she left behind, her friends at school, her foster parents? Does she not care? Why don’t we get a page, a panel, even a thought balloon or dialog box, heck just put a lampshade on it?
Buehler? Buehler?
The previous run that was doing well had been focusing on Supergirl’s characterization, family, friends, and development as a person and a hero. This story arc has none of those things, it’s a detective story about the mystery of Krypton’s destruction, based on a Superman arc. The set-up made it about Superman’s villain, Superman’s peers and friends in the Green Lantern corp, and even Superman’s dog. It feels like a book written for Superman fans, not Supergirl readers.
And Supergirl is back to being a bit rash and untrusting, all the lessons and growth lost. The characters in the GL universe that we’ve seen her interact with aren’t present, and suddenly Lanterns we’ve never seen her interact with seem to know her and we don't even get the courtesy of a "Oh, hi John, I haven't seen you since the X adventure." She used to be a Red, yet nobody mentions it. Everything from a character and plot standpoint that I’d come to be interested in isn’t being followed up on, and a bunch of other stuff that isn’t really her story has been parachuted into the book.
So it’s both a jumping on and jumping off point, and there’s plenty of reasons for old readers like me to jump off and I’m not seeing any reasons for people who aren’t Supergirl fans to jump on. They re-made the book around what they think Superman fans would want, rather than Supergirl storylines, and it looks like the Superman fans aren’t interested.
At least she’s not involved in Heroes in Crisis.
I think the current storyline's "Epic Disconnect" may be leaving potential buy-in readers unimpressed, but I also suspect the lay off drove a chunk of the audience away as well. DC has to work hard to win that casually dismissed cohort back, they ought to make more of of Maguire & Artgem's contributions. In sum editorial inconsistency is bad for Supergirl, but the irony is, thats been her publication history since 1972. I hope the book doesn't get canceled, while I remain critical of the storyline its not a repellant story like her "Red Lantern" Dalliance or her "School Bus Killer" ideation.
JF
The issue, as everyone has more or less highlighted- is of the fact that this doesn't feel like a Supergirl story and this doesn't feel like Supergirl. Years of development, all brushed under the rug for another round of same old same old, why would readers stick around even? Krypto is cute but I don't read a Supergirl book for Krypto, or for who is drawing the book even, I read it for the protagonist who seems to be missing from her own book.
I don't like reading about a reckless Supergirl, she is so so much more than that, but I can't stick around to watch everything from scratch again and again, written by unimaginative writers who always fall back on the PTSD and trauma but can't depict it tactfully.
On one hand, I want the book to sell and see where andreyko is taking it because he has said that ultimately she will come back to earth. The thing which we can do is talk about it with andreyko respectfully and comment on the DC Twitter account. But there's a hitch here too, all those Superman family fansites who are reviewing the book are giving it good reviews and so DC might think it's just a handful of fans crowing about nothing. Remember that wonder woman fans were able to get Robinson off the book by serial negative reviews and it was apparent that he didn't care about Diana.
But why about here with Kara? This is her book and yet it feels like a Superman side story. We can't complain that she is just there in three panels because she is depicted everywhere and yet I don't see Kara zor el here. Man, I miss the days when Kara sat with Eliza around the fire and talked about her problems with her adoptive mom- those are the kind of stories I wanna see, a dog is cute but he isn't gonna be able to replace a family, the best would have been to have him be part of the family.
I am just so disappointed anj, sorry for all the rambling. I don't know what to do. Should I stop supporting it and pray that DC gets it right or should I keep on going even with a contrived storyline which has plot holes the size of boulders just to read about this hollow shell of a character I love.
Guess, the tvshow will have to suffice for now.
Depressing sales, unexpectedly low.
I thought the Amanda Connor variant covers have been great, but maybe they’re not much of a draw. My LCS was unimpressed and didn’t think it would cause extra sales. Anyway, not that many get ordered by shops unless customers have pre-ordered them.
This is an unpopular opinion, but I am bored by Dodson covers. They all look fairly similar. They never surprise me.
#23 may see sales a bump - Artgerm’s cover is my favorite of the foil covers. It’s striking in color and texture. Most of the other foil covers are a dull 2-tone. (Too bad he gave her the face of a 12-year old though.)
DC utterly blew the Supergirl publishing hiatus. As far as I can tell, all the other books that went on hiatus either came out with a Special #1 before resuming their numbering, or started over with #1.
How did DC handle this hiatus? Crickets. We were left here twisting in the wind. The only clue was that #20 wasn’t marked as FINAL, but that could have been a mistake. There was no official word that the book was coming back. Eventually there was some unofficial heads-up on Twitter, maybe by Andreyko himself? Can’t remember.
DC could have creatively filled the gap with stories. Flashbacks; Specials; hey, we pay them to be creative, I don’t get paid for it.
There could also have been monthly tie-in stories during Man of Steel. As with New Krypton. It's true there was no Superman or Action tie-ins, but Man of Steel carried on the "Superman book." It wasn't called "Family of Steel."
Why would anyone sink money into a subscription to a book that might again stop publishing at any time with no announcement, remain unpublished for an unannounced number of months, and then come back with the same numbering as if nothing had even happened? Is this going to happen again? Fan community was ignored, as if no community existed or was worth keeping in the loop.
As for the old Supergirl supporting cast, Ben Rubel has been moved to Titans as a supporting tech advisor, and there was one dismissal of him when he said he knew Supergirl. I think it was Steel who responded curtly with something like “Irrelevant.” YUP, irrelevant? A writer wrote that dialog. Editors agreed with the sentiment. The dialog could as easily have been “Oh, cool!” Not hard. It’s a throwaway line, throwing away the importance of a character. What is Ben even supposed to think if other heroes dismiss her? (There was competition going on between Ben and the others, so the dismissal was kind of dismissal of Ben's qualifications - but at the expense of Supergirl, to bring him down a notch.)
Now, on the other hand - one has to admit #21 did have sales in line with older issues of the title. The steep decline in #22 suggests people sampled and did not like.
Handled correctly, though, #21 would have seen a steep BUMP if it had been a #1. Then like any other book, it would have seen a slow settling. But, in those first few months, it might have hooked some new readers.
T.N.
"I am just so disappointed anj, sorry for all the rambling. I don't know what to do. Should I stop supporting it and pray that DC gets it right or should I keep on going even with a contrived storyline which has plot holes the size of boulders just to read about this hollow shell of a character I love.
Guess, the tvshow will have to suffice for now."
Sadly, the tvshow is not enough for me. I want to watch the adventures of Supergirl, not the adventures of female Clark Kent battling Superman villains and getting tangled in stupid romance subplots. The CW setting may be okay for a live-action show, but my Supergirl itch can only be scratched by the comicverse.
Well, to be honest, my itch can only be scratched by the original Kara Zor-El with her full history back, but I know I'm definitely not getting that.
Anyway, Supergirl isn't an A-Lister, so I'm afraid stopping support isn't an option. Why? Well, is she making regular appearances out of her book? No? Not even a team allegiance? And how many appearances she made after her sixth volume was cancelled? What do you mean she was gone for one whole year and nobody ever brought her up? As soon as her book was cancelled she was out of a JL team and hasn't been included in any secondary teams since? And what happened after her 80's series was cancelled? Oh, yes, she was barely seen again until DC got killed her off and replaced and then tried to make everyone forget she ever existed.
If we stop buying her book, DC will not think "Fans are angry because the writing isn't good enough but they'll return if I hire a better writer". They'll think "Kara Zor-El isn't popular enough to support her own solo, let's cancel her series and relegate her to cameo appearances every so often to keep the trademark's ownership". And then they'll let everyone forget her until she becomes a D-Lister with few fans, at best. Perfect cannon fodder for the next Crisis.
I get people who are annoyed by a new start-over which is again ignoring her story and growing made since 2011. I get it. Andrekyo thinks he's being original and groundbreaking with a story delving into her PTSD, but he is stomped over well-trodden ground. Again, I get it. But stop buying her books isn't an option. DC will write her off and she'll become even more of a non-entity to the general audience's eyes than she is now. Supergirl NEEDS an ongoing.
It's funny to think about the 2004-2011 era. I've been reading comics from those years, and back then Kara was everywhere, had connections to dozens of heroes, was active or reserve member of several super-teams, made appearances in most of events, even if they were mere cameos (or the events were terrible)...
What did happen to it all?
Oh, yes, Flashpoint.
Nonetheless, I think another factor we aren't considering is the higher comic prices. Supergirl #23 made it to Comixology Top 20 the week it came out:
Comixology Top 25 For The Week
Superman #4
Avengers #9
Amazing Spider-Man #7
Detective Comics #990
Infinity Wars #4
Spider-Geddon #1
Immortal Hulk #7
Wonder Woman #56
Captain America #4
The Flash #56
Titans #27
Ms. Marvel #35
Venom #7
Red Hood and the Outlaws #27
X-23 #5
Hawkman #5
Catwoman #4
Supergirl #23
Domino #7
X-Men Black: Mojo #1
Hellboy Omnibus Vol. 4: Hellboy in Hell (67% off)
Plastic Man #5
Hellboy Omnibus Vol. 3: The Wild Hunt (67% off)
The Walking Dead #184
The Walking Dead #182 (50% off)
https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/10/12/comixology-bestseller-list-12th-october-2018-brian-bendis-superman-tops-the-charts/
So, maybe digital sales are better?
The trouble with numbers is that they're just that-numbers. They don't tell you the why and wherefore, or what goes on in people's minds when it comes to buying or not buying certain comics.
While the numbers here don't look good for Supergirl, it may be worth noting that orders have dropped for ALL the Super-titles. Superman 1 was at 133,307, then dropped to 77,454 for Superman #2. Okay, number ones always sell a lot. But orders for #3 went down another 10,000. Action Comics has gone from 79,327 for #1001 to 57,865 for #1003, a loss of 21,462. Orders for Adventures of the Super Sons went down by 10,294 between issues 1 and 2.
And getting away from the Super-titles for a second, the new Catwoman comic saw a drop of 9,653 between 1 and 2.
As for the current storyline, there's nothing wrong with it, but as others have suggested, some references to her life on Earth would be nice. Does she miss her parents and her high school friends? What are they up to? Do they worry about her gallivanting across the universe, or is it out of sight, out of mind? "Don't come back too soon, we rented out your room!"
I agree with Anonymous above that not buying the book would send the wrong message to DC. Support the character, but let DC know (by letter, email, etc.) that you like Supergirl, but you don't like the current direction.
Finally, to get back to the numbers once more...If you consider DC comics only, Supergirl's comic is at number 40. If you narrow that down to just DC on-going monthly or twice monthly comics, Supergirl is at number 30.
I love coming here because no matter how grim a situation is, you guys over here do know how to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
The numbers are bad; 22,000 no matter how one looks at it, is just bad. It doesn't help that she can't interact with a vast array of characters since she is off on her space adventure (unless they bring in the legion) not that she did before, but still.
The issue with the Titans and her non appearance in other books or just being used as a muscle tells one thing- other writers don't care for her, otherwise they would have included her. The issue runs deeper- all these runs aren't exactly adding to her rogue's gallery at all, while Orlando managed to stack some up, but it doesn't look like andreyko is looking to do that and even if he is- the live action potential of adapting that character is low because it would include huge amounts of expensive CGI.
I have to say, DC doesn't care for SG and neither does its writers; it's not me saying this- it is literally showing.
Thanks so much for all the comments and the great discussion!
Too many good comments above to try and recapture. But I agree that this direction not acknowledging anything that has come before it ... whether it is pre-Rebirth stuff (Red Lantern/Crucible space time) or Rebirth stuff (does she miss anything from her old life) seems to be a misstep. And the characterization of extreme sadness feels oh so 2011.
Hoping things turn around.
"Supergirl fans tired of still another "new, bold, begin-anew" direction that tosses Supergirl's former character development, history, supporting cast, friendships and setting out"
Bingo bango. You nailed it on the head for me. This that stupid character killing event book, and Titans have been my biggest disappointments of the year from DC. Rebirth was going so well, Supergirl was going so well and they had to crap all over it. It's like
Fans: Rebirth is great, thanks for changing stuff from new 52
DC: Fans are happy? WTF? Change it. Now.
Fans: We're getting tired of dark and gritty, can't we have some fun. I mean you tried with JL, but we need more. Something that way from the start, not some mismanaged amalgamation.
DC: Hmm. Let's try this with Shazam and Aquaman and see the reactions.
Fans:Shazam and Aquaman look great! Can't wait for Titans TV show.
DC: heh heh heh. "Make Titans dark and gritty and as unlike the comics and cartoons as you can". "Sir"? "Do it". *walks into the light and is revealed to be Lex Luthor*
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