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Comics By The Numbers – November 2005

Before jumping into the numbers let me announce that going forward this column will move to BUZZSCOPE. By the good graces of Guy LeCharles Gonzales and the folks at BUZZSCOPE I’ll be contributing a monthly sales analysis column that will be very similar to what I’ve been doing here. I’m not sure what the name will be as yet (they’re certainly welcome to this one) but you can be assured I’ll be regularly plugging it once it’s up. And I'm keeping the analysis light this week since most of the conversation I want to have revolves around year-in-review numbers and indie books, both of which I'm saving for next month. 

Now, on to business.

ICV2 has released Diamond’s sales estimates for November. You can read ICV2’s brief analysis of the numbers here.

Batman vs. Superman: All Star Edition

ALL STAR SUPERMAN’s failure to crack the 200k mark tops the news this month, as the premiere checked in to the number two spot with roughly 170,800 units sold. I predicted last month that AS Superman would be the next book to reach the 250,000 range and while that may have been ambitious, I’m perplexed it didn’t even manage to outsell the second issue of ASB&R (~178K). (It was outsold this month by INFINITE CRISIS #2 at 207K.)

So, what accounts for this difference? My own theory is that Batman enjoys a broader base of general popularity among comic book fans than Superman, however the sales numbers of the Batman and Superman centric books over the last year or so don’t really bare this out (although they might if every Batman mini series or tangentially related title were included in the mix). Certainly the critical reception isn’t the answer as ASB&R #1 was largely panned while AS Superman received mostly positive, if not glowing, reviews. I suppose the higher profile creative team of Frank Miller and Jim Lee -- particularly the interest in Miller’s return to Batman -- has to be the defining variable, but I wouldn’t have guessed Miller and Lee would be worth 80,000 extra units.

Seven Soldiers Fatigue

In September’s column I commented that the sales of the SEVEN SOLDIERS books were starting to trail off as the storyline progresses. That trend continued with the release of BULLETEER and FRANKENSTEIN which checked in with first issue sales of roughly 33,700 and 32,800 – compared to the first issues of ZATANNA (43,600) and SHINING KNIGHT (41,300). These are pretty significant drops from the initial issues of the first four books in the series.  Here’s the final numbers for those first four:

                                                 

	1	2	3	4	Total
Klarion	39,400	34,200	30,600	29,000	133,200
Manhattan Guardian	41,500	35,600	32,900	29,900	140,000
Shining Knight	42,900	37,500	35,200	32,000	147,600
Zatanna	43,600	37,500	35,200	32,000	156,900

It seems likely the final issues of the remaining books will dip into the low 20K range but I’m guessing the finale will check in at around the 50K mark, similar to the debut. I’m also revising my comments about DC possibly being less than thrilled with the overall sales numbers of the crossover. As Guy pointed out to me, as a largely creator-driven set of books the cumulative numbers are pretty good. However, back when this project kicked off Morrison and DC frequently mentioned how each of the series would be self-contained with the various styles appealing to different types of readers. And while the case could be made that Morrison has so far successfully executed on this, there’s little indication that readers have interpreted the project as much more than a Grant Morrison vehicle.   

Missing the Mark

There are several high–profile, high-concept books that have slunk in with decidedly desultory sales. The first on my list is LOVELESS, Brian Azzarello’s western entry, whose first two issues limped in at 22,500 and 17,700, respectively. (Compare to JONAH HEX #1 at 33,800.) DC normally puts a bullet through the head of books in this sales range, but this one falls under the Vertigo imprint which tends to get a little more leeway. Still…

NICK FURY’S HOWLING COMMANDOS has similar numbers to LOVELESS (although the first issue did marginally better at around 25K) but given the marketing push Marvel gave this book, the sales have got to be a major disappointment.

Given the high regard in which many comic fans hold the first two volumes of TOP 10, the most recent mini should be considered a significant miss with sales averaging less than 15K over issues 2-4. I would have expected a book like this to hit 25K or more, but clearly the lack of Alan Moore at the helm hurt the response. (Moore and Gene Ha’s $25 hardcover, TOP 10: THE FORTY-NINERS, sold nearly 10,000 units all by itself when it debuted.) This probably doesn’t bode well for anyone who was hoping TOP 10 might live on under a non-Moore/Ha creative team.

Odd and Ends

The various GI Joe and Star Wars titles totaled 50K and 60K in sales this month (roughly and respectively) - not too shabby…November saw the number of mini series in the top thirty drop closer to pre-HOUSE OF M and INFINITE CRISIS levels, with only seven titles finding their way into that strata. A year ago seven would have been a big number…Supergirl #3 logged in at ~100K, almost identical to issue two. This is a mere 18% drop from the debut issue, pretty good by recent standards where 25% or greater drop is more the norm for a book in the 100K+ sales region…one trend I see consistently playing out is the roughly 10% drop from the next-to-last issue of a mini to the last. You can almost make book on it. It seems strange to me that readers would buy right up to the last issue and then quit, maybe there’s another explanation for the drop…One explanation I definitely need is for how JACK CROSS and FELL can post almost identical sales numbers (approx 16K) – FELL is a dollar cheaper and light years better.

See you next month over at Buzzscope!

Bad Planet #1

Image Comics
Script: Thomas Jane & Steve Niles
Art: Lewis Larosa & Tim Bradstreet

Yes, it’s that Thomas Jane.

This is high-concept sci-fi stuff and it works provided you don’t think too hard. The series revolves around alien DeathSpiders (which have apparently been trademarked – a move best described as ambitious at this early juncture) that have landed on Earth with havoc-wreaking intentions until the Convict arrives to clean up this one atmosphere town. The cast is rounded out by an 11-year-old, laptop-wielding, African boy -- who, along with the Convict, is on the cover but makes no appearance in the book, one of my top five comic annoyances -- and a hottie science gal who probably should have been on the cover if for no other reason than to give Larosa and Bradstreet another opportunity to lovingly draw her ample bosom. All will team up to battle the invaders although you don’t get much of that in this first issue.

So this looks to be more space western than space opera, which is fine by me so long as it doesn’t slide into odd-buddy team-up territory or try to get too clever with the dialog. The moment the alien Convict starts sounding like Bruce Willis or the African boy tells the female lead, “You go girl!” the whole of it will unravel faster than that awful sweater my aunt knitted me for Christmas when I was twelve. Regardless, they’ve got me on board at least through the third issue which will include a handful of 3D panels and 3D glasses to boot. Really I just want the glasses.

The art in this first issue is decent although it won’t knock your socks off and I really wanted to see more of the Convict -- who looks fun in conception -- but I suppose I can wait until number two for that. I’m relatively unfamiliar with Loraso and Bradstreet but they seem up to carrying off the story. On the whole, BAD PLANET got off to a slow but respectable start. We’ll see where things go from here.

Additional links:

You can read Thomas Jane’s  BAD PLANET interview here for a solid overview Jane’s plan for the series.

Comic Book Resources ran a series of interviews with the entire creative team back in October. You can read the first of them here. (It has links to the others.)

Click here if you’d like to view the BAD PLANET trailer. I think every comic should have its own trailer.

Honor Roll – Week of December 12, 2005

The Honor Roll is a weekly column where I rundown five interesting posts, comments or developments that are buzzing about the comics blogosphere. This isn’t about  events in the books themselves – we all know what happens there – merely a bit of navel gazing. Worse, it’s subject to my own myopic interpretation of what’s interesting or funny. Enjoy.

I was going to dedicate this week’s Honor Roll to the Speakeasy gefuffle but decided I’ve little more to add. Let’s have fun instead.

5) Chris at 2 errr, 3 Guys Reading Comics had exactly the same reaction to Marvel’s ANNIHILATION announcement I did. I’m waiting for the House of DC presser.

4) After the holidays you’re going to have a little extra time so take a break after paying homage to Visa and read Jim Roeg’s latest opus. It’s on ALL STAR SUPERMAN and it’s a dandy.

3) Jason Rodriguez, of DC Conspiracy, Moose in the Closet and Hoarse and Buggy (ELK’S RUN) fame, is putting his splendid Here’s the Thing series to bed and will be starting something anew after the first. Look for that. Here’s the Thing was one of the better ongoing comic book blog columns and I expect the new effort will be a similarly excellent read.

2) I’ve noticed it’s link Mike Sterling week around the comics blogosphere and truly, few are more deserving. My favorite recent post is his rundown on the old DC Samplers. I actually stopped reading comics before these came around so when I think of samplers I think of sushi or microbrewed beer. Somehow that all still fits together.

1) Now for some truly inspired Christmas related blogging. Go forth and read Tom Bondurant’s Infinite Christmas over at Comics Ate My Brain.

And I’ll take this moment to wish all my comic blogosphere friends and various visitors a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

The Future of the Comics Business? – Part I

There appears to be a sea change coming to comics – all the recent news points to it – a change that might not affect the stories in the comics you read, but may make them more accessible, may allow more independent creators an opportunity to strut their stuff and may, gasp, allow some publishers to become profitable. I’m probably not talking about what you think.

You’re thinking digital, right? Quesada’s comments and Marvel’s newest on-line comics, Speakeasy’s latest announcement, all those Koreans…but no, the change I’m talking about is the convergence of comics and movies or specifically film production companies. You see, in addition to the digital connection the other common ground these  groups find is film production. (Well, I assume there’s a Korean film studio anyway.)

Action!

Making movies? All the cool kids are doing it. Comic books and movies have had a friendly relationship for some time, but the lines between the two are becoming more blurred than ever. Marvel is starting their own studio, DC has Warner, Dark Horse has Dark Horse Entertainment, VIZ Media and TOKYOPOP have deeply vested animation engines, Top Cow has Platinum Studios (which we’ll get into later), I’m unaware of a direct connection between Image and any particular studio although Paramount did option INVINCIBLE, and of course there’s Speakeasy and Ardustry. These aren’t single digit licensing and fee deals that essentially sign over the big the dollars to the studios, these are movie studios taking strong financial positions and a very participatory roles in comic book companies or, as in Marvel’s case, comic book companies that are actually making movies. And while making movies is always a dicey game there are ways to hedge your bet and the upside is huge where one major hit can cover a host of failures – two or three hosts in some cases.

There’s a natural chemistry between comic books and film. Where the medium is only starting to make inroads towards critical literary recognition, Hollywood acknowledged its value long ago, continually and successfully mining comic books for stories, characters and profit. What could be better for a movie producer than a ready-made story with at least some market proven solidity, complete in a pitch-ready, visually familiar format? And what comic creator doesn’t imagine his work in cinematic detail or at least wonder about a cinematic depiction of his work?

Platinum Studios may be the textbook case for this evolving business model. Tracing back to MEN IN BLACK, Platinum Studios chairman, Scott Rosenberg has a history of successfully bringing comic book properties to the big screen, although many of his current productions will likely only see a “big screen” in the form of someone’s projection TV as most are clearly headed straight to DVD. And I’m guessing that’s just fine by Rosenberg, as the DVD/home entertainment category of film revenue now outstrips the theater-derived revenue by a factor of five.

Some of you may remember Rosenberg as the publisher of Malibu comics (which was sold to Marvel in 1994). His MO these days is to acquire comic book properties, largely via overseas publishers, in an attempt to build a “Platinum Macroverse” that will serve as the intellectual property base for the film production side. Additionally, Platinum is producing a theatrical releases of Top Cow’s WITCHBLADE and Fred Van Lente’s COWBOYS AND ALIENS the latter a part of their own stable of published comics.

From a production standpoint, Platinum has taken a very similar road to the one Marvel’s likely headed down: small to medium-sized production budgets, multiple distribution targets (theatrical, television, direct-to-video), and multiple production types (live action, CGI animation, video game etc.). How effective can this be? Very - for now. In the short term it makes for a solid mix that I’ll explore in more detail in Part II.

Cut!

The affect on comic books and creators? Well, the idea would be that the influx of “studio” money would remove a bit of the onus on the publishing side; it would expand the available options for creators as publishers cast an ever widening net in search of the next multi-media success; and it should allow publishers to give new titles a bit more breathing space, more time to find or build an audience. The other side of the coin is that this could cause publishers to place a premium on "film-ready" stories and there's a pretty good chance an already crowded comic book market would see  an even bigger glut of largely marginal product as publisher's take more of shotgun approach. Would all these things happen? Probably not, but at a very high level more money means more opportunity and more comics. Or at least a few more rich studio executives. 

Which brings us back to the curious case of Speakeasy and Ardustry. After starting up with a reportedly go slow model, Speakeasy proceeded to add titles like a drunken sailor, quickly followed by completion of the Ardustry merger and an announcement that terms of some deals with independent creators would change or at least go forward deals would be structured differently. Speakeasy’s stated intent is to put more of an emphasis on Speakeasy-owned properties; to build up their intellectual property. This may prove to be a smart move, but it’s not engendering much good will for the brand in the near term and while exhibiting some background in film production (in the form of Barry Levine), Ardustry has no real track record to boast of.

Should every small publisher start looking for a studio to partner with? Some may not have to as studios will certainly come looking for them. Independent creators will likely face more pressure to give up some ownership as publishers place more emphasis on owning the IP. And comic book shops will likely have to deal with more selection than they can possibly sell. (Which, ironically, may make electronic distribution a necessity for some publishers.) For better or worse, the comic book medium looks secure for the next few years if for no other reason than some publishers will need it to serve as their venue of initial "release".   

Part II: Why film production will allow comic book companies to mint money in the short run but better brace themselves for major changes over the longer haul.

Ultimates 2 #9

Marvel Comics
Script: Mark Millar
Art: Bryan Hitch & Paul Neary

I have to give Millar credit (as a general rule I don’t), the events of the current issue of ULTIMATES 2 make a certain warped sense and yet I truly didn’t see them coming. But I’m about as thick as Millar’s Tony Stark, so I guess that’s no surprise. There are surprises in this issue and, while I won’t spoil them, I will say that I’m looking forward to a great clash of titans in true Aveng...errr...Ultimates style.    

I get the feeling Millar and Hitch had a lot of fun with this issue. Huge panoramic destruction scenes, giant robots stomping on Manhattan, sex, bad guys, American comeuppance, and a literal, and likely metaphorical bullet, between the eyes to a character that is one of the few true anchors to the Avengers iconography. There’s even a nice touch of political irony -- intended or not -- as America’s enemies, fearful of what the super power might do next, decide to topple the Great Satan with their own array of super powers. An armada of supers in fact, to a degree that one would wonder if they were truly worried or simply looking for an excuse. Either way there’s boatloads of mayhem and destruction and no Iron Man, Cap or Thor to be found. I’m personally rooting for the Ultimates to storm back and bring all holy hell down on the invaders, but with Millar you can’t be too sure where he’s heading, which, in this case, is part of the fun. (One direction I don’t want to see it go is some sort of Loki-driven plot device that miraculously twists everything back to its original form.)

On a side note, it’s been fascinating to read some of the Internet response to how this (and other titles) affect the overall Ultimate continuity. Not being heavily vested in this myself I hadn’t given it much thought, but you can certainly see Marvel quickly building this universe to a point where reboots and zero events start to enter the conversation. I’m curious if Marvel has a five year plan for this imprint or if they’re simply letting it grow organically. I plan to pick up ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN and ULTIMATE X-MEN in trade – any recommendations on which of the two to start with?   

Jonah Hex #2

Script: DC Comics Script: Justin Gray & Jimmy Palmiotti
Art: Luke Ross

I’ve decided to set my expectations for this book at exactly the same level I have for nearly every John Wayne or Clint Eastwood western I’ve ever seen: the plot and outcome are nearly foregone conclusions, just try to enjoy the ride. We get the full Eastwood as Jonah Hex treatment in this issue and from my new perspective, it works. Where the first issue left me nonplussed, this one felt more fluid. It was certainly familiar as Hex is faced with circumstances recognizable from any number of Eastwood horse operas and responds in predictable Clint-like fashion. Luke Ross even seems to be drawing Hex with a more Eastwood lean than the first issue.

So it’s a fast moving, action-filled little yarn that serves up a small dish of morality (greed is bad, in case you were wondering) and let’s Hex shoot things up a bit. What’s missing is any kind of undercurrent that might give this title a little weight. Perhaps that’s by design as exploration of greater themes or Hex himself would complicate the stories which I realize are meant to be stand-alone. As such there are bound to be hits and misses with this run, and this one is a solid base hit, although that’s about as much credit as I’d give it.

As I read Ian Brill’s interview with Warren Ellis, I was struck by the similarities between what Ellis was trying to accomplish with FELL and what was going on with JONAH HEX. Ellis on FELL:

Why a detective story? Do you consider many of the TV detective shows an influence?

I wanted to write something accessible. Anyone who's sat in front of a TV at any time over the last 50 years has a certain comfort level with the detective form as a visual narrative that provides a complete story. I don't want people to be frightened of the fact that it's a comic, you know? If you've ever sat through an episode of Law & Order: Child Rape Cavalcade, then you've got all the equipment to comprehend an episode of Fell. It's why I built it on the nine-panel grid—it looks like three newspaper strips stacked one atop the other, it's among the easiest comics forms for a newcomer to the art to understand.

The western form is equally recognizable and accessible. And Hex, as Palmiotti and Gray have written it so far, makes for an easy point of entrance for any new reader. This issue even utilizes a very basic six panel panorama layout on many pages. So what are the chances of DC dropping the book to $2 bucks an issue? About as likely as a gospel sharp at a four-flusher convention.

Honor Roll – Week of December 5, 2005

The Honor Roll is a weekly column where I rundown five interesting posts, comments or developments that are buzzing about the comics blogosphere. This isn’t about events in the books themselves – we all know what happens there – merely a bit of navel gazing. Worse, it’s subject to my own myopic interpretation of what’s interesting or funny. Enjoy.

5) Uncensored over at Zilla and the Comic Junkies has posted the first (that I’ve come across) of what is sure to be many year-in-review posts we’ll see in the next few weeks. I’m a sucker for these. Uncensored is a big Daredevil fan, in case you were wondering.

4) Batman didn’t used to be so bound up by this whole “sanctity of human life thing.” Check out Sleestak’s comparison of the original BATMAN AND THE MONSTER MEN and Matt Wagner’s version. 

3) My sons have been running around the house singing this, so it seems appropriate to link to H and Mag’s (at The Comic Treadmill) Holiday offering.

2) Scott at Polite Dissent and Dave at Yet Another Comics Blog have both kicked off Comic Book Cover Christmas themes. Who knew there were so many Christmas themed covers? Fun stuff. And don’t forget Dave’s CBLDF Fund Drive.  I’m going to do this, I promise.

1) Speaking of violence, Marionette has a thought provoking post up regarding violence towards women in comics, as filtered through the latest issue of Supergirl. I didn’t read this one, and probably won’t, but I’m unsure if this by itself is an example of the writer or artist’s subconscious anger towards women. I'm sure the fallback position for any particualr instance is that the author/artist is doing what they do in service to a specific story. I think the problem is not with any one event or depiction but the sum of it all. This Supergirl/Lex Luthor confrontation probably wouldn’t have registered with me but for one little comment Luthor makes -- you can go read that for yourself if you don’t already know -- which sends the whole scene in a very creepy and unnecessary direction.

Irrational X-uberance?

I’m having lunch with an old business partner last month and I happened to mention Marvel’s little announcement and the resultant drop in the stock price, prompting this exchange:

Old Partner, Who Has More Money Than Me: “Really? That’ll bounce back some. What’s their ticker?”

Me: “MVL. Save your money. No one knows what’s going on with that company.”

Old Partner, Who Has More Money Than Me: “No, No. People overreact. This is a Christmas stock. Spider-Man. Hulk. Christmas. Big-time B-U-Y.”

This is how he talks when he’s rationalizing a deal. Drives me crazy.

So he calls me yesterday and wants to have lunch next week, on him. Why? See for yourself:

Old Partner, Who Now Has Even MORE Money Than Me: “2500 shares. Netted two bucks per. Sold it yesterday. Merry Christmas.”

**Sigh.**

Stream of Comicness

No, I didn’t decide to withhold from posting until somebody cranked up the ComicWeblogotron3000 again, I’ve just been sick and unmotivated to even meet my normally low posting standards. Somehow my traffic number have gone up despite this, which I refuse to take personally. So here’s a fever-driven, NyQuil-addled, entry – take it for what it’s worth. Oh, and this takes the place of this week’s Honor Roll, which shall return Monday.

I did manage to put the sick time to good use though (**cough** **cough**) following in detail the great Larry Young Loose Cannon fallout. Very entertaining, I must say. I somehow managed to read the column before the crep started flying, and my reaction? Well, he’s not talking about me. What’s for lunch…

See I was operating on a couple of assumptions: 1) Larry likely doesn’t read this blog. I don’t think I’ve ever reviewed an AiT/PlanetLar book. I own several but for some reason haven’t posted on any. (I think.) I’m sure that will change eventually; and 2) For some reason I thought Larry might be addressing more than just web bloggers. Doubtless he has to monitor a great deal beyond the comic blogosphere in his efforts to stay on top of whatever counts as Internet Buzz and let’s face it, you could fill several Fanboy Rampage’s with the vitriol pouring off the various message boards, so, yeah, the word negativity occasionally comes to mind.

Then I read Fossen’s defense, which I completely agreed with but knew for sure Larry wasn’t talking about Mark and, like I said, he wasn’t talking about me either so…Yes, I’m incredibly egocentric. What can I say, I grew up in the 70’s. In California.

So then Larry - who does read Mark’s blog, because he’s smart like me and probably you – posted his own rebuttal, more or less settling issue:

“Not every off-hand observation is A POISON DART MEANT JUST FOR YOU, one feels the need to remind folks in the mezzanine.”

Although the thought occurs that it has to be meant for someone, or it’s meant for no one. But it would probably be too much to ask to have Larry name names.

Then I picked up the thread on The Engine and Cognitive Dissonance and various destinations in between. The whole matter eventually settled into a discussion of the comic world’s dearth/wealth of professional grade criticism, although not without a little histrionics first.

I think Mark still needed to say what he said, even without the context of Larry’s column. There’s just so much good out there. And bad. When I started reading comics again, some 18 months or so ago, I naturally turned to the Internet to help fill those huge chunks of backstory and to better dope out what was good and what wasn’t. One of the things I quickly realized is that the world of on-line comics news and commentary is pretty finite. Setting aside the endless messageboards, it’s not outrageously difficult to keep track of pretty much everything that’s going on – at least from a surface view. And the layer of separation between creators, publishers, bloggers, and fans is wafer thin - and some cases nonexistent - creating a wonderful community but not an ideal forum for critical review. (As Guy LeCharles Gonzalez – aptly pointed out, much of the commentary is dulled by the fact many bloggers are “wannabe creators”. And therein lies the truth. I’m not one. I have no desire to write comics, however I wouldn’t dodge an opportunity to run a comic book company. Even that may be the fever talking.)   

I think in part it’s the size of this fish bowl we’re swimming in that forces so much concern amongst us about the quality of the output. For that matter the medium we’re discussing has similar limitations. In any give week how many books come out that are truly worthy of any sort of meaningful critical analysis? Particularly when you factor in the near ridiculous number of mini’s on the shelves requiring one to wait until they’re complete so they may be properly appreciated in all their glory. Which isn’t to say that there’s not tons of great stuff out there (I hate that sentence) but we have to stay with the current, the now, I mean reviewing JONAH HEX #2 is so yesterday and don’t even start me on the MARVEL HOLIDAY SPECIAL…Where was I? 

My reaction to this reminds me of my reaction to that tawdry little expose of on-line comics journalism The Comics Journal did. Turns out there isn’t any such thing and in fact, no one was even willing to tuck a press pass into their Fedora and pretend to be a comics journalist. Fancy that. And while I agree with the general thesis, when I looked at the date range selected for examination – Aug. 2 to Oct. 2, 2005 – I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly they were expecting? Two months? That’s barely enough time for the Republicans to muster up a good finance scandal, and they want some hard comic news? Exactly how many hard comic news stories broke in that time? At one point the author asks,

“Why not add into the mix, say once or twice a week, a more substantial report that asks tough questions and explores the ramifications of what all those press releases are telling us and not telling us?”

Once or twice a week? Hey, slow down there, you’re heading into San Francisco Chronicle territory.

It’s a small comic book world is all I’m saying. Everything is amplified and sometimes that’s good and sometimes it’s noisy. If you have something to say, say it. If you don’t, say it anyway (and louder, that always helps), it’s the Internet, baby! That’s what it’s for. 

I’m going back to sleep now. Wake me when Quesada breaks this beast in half again. That never gets old.

12:00

When one of you kids gets a moment, would you mind putting new batteries in the ComicWeblogotron3000 thingy? Thanks.