ICv2.com: May ‘08 DM Estimates

The comics business news and analysis site ICv2.com offers their usual array of lists, estimates and analysis regarding the performance of comic books and graphic novels in the Direct Market of comic and hobby shops, this time for May 2008.

* Overview
* Analysis
* Top 300 Comic Books
* Top 100 Graphic Novels

The big, big news is that the second issue of Marvel's Secret Invasion series moved more copies in initial order than the first issue of DC's Final Crisis series. I can't think of any way this could possibly be good news for DC, a company that has been aiming for this particular series while Marvel has been blithely moving from crossover to crossover. Remember that Diamond sales figure indicate sales into stores rather than sell-through, which means that you could also interpret this mainly as a relative loss of faith in DC's continuity-bending, wonky approach to its crossovers. Even the title, Final Crisis is a continuity reference whereas Secret Invasion isn't -- unless the Beyonder shows up.

On the positive side, DC came into Final Crisis limping from a poorly perceived anticipatory weekly series called Countdown, and DC is far better suited to playing the perceived marketplace number two than Marvel's ever been. For one, they're used to it. For another, they can point to things like back catalog gains due to their new bookstore distribution relationship as more important than nailing down those extra several thousand serial comics readers, and have a point in doing so. On the down side, DC can't point to its licensing and media function with its larger company as an obvious advantage over Marvel in the post-Iron Man world.

For a second take on things, I suggest keeping an eye on John Jackson Miller of The Comics Chronicles.
 
posted 8:20 am PST | Permalink
 

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