Seventeen years ago, the comics industry was in the waning days of its multi-distributor model. Marvel had purchased Heroes World Distribution, and would in July make it the only place where comics shops could buy its comics. And on April 28, 1995, DC and Diamond Comic Distributors announced their exclusivity pact — one which would … Read more
Best-seller for 1991 (and all time!) This is the week for end-of-year lists, but the comics bestseller list won’t be out for a week or so. So how about 20 old lists, instead — some seeing the light of day for the first time in years? December tends to be the time of year … Read more
After doing some research yesterday for my post on restarts inspired by the big news that DC is restarting much of its line at #1, I realized a clarification was necessary to a conversation I had with ComicBookResources’ Kiel Phegley before all this news broke: specifically, relating to the differences between the sales tracks for … Read more
As Comics Buyer’s Guide reports, Wizard magazine is suspending publication of its print version immediately, turning to a digital format in February. Wizard came on the scene in the early 1990s with a bang, capturing — and contributing — to the boom period in comics with its attention on new publishers, its monthly price guide, … Read more
In place of this week’s Flashback Friday, a much more expansive look back on the past. With the help of T.M. Haley, I’m pleased to announce the expansion of monthly sales rankings into a tumultuous stretch of history: 1995 and 1996, the period of the Exclusivity Wars in the comic-book Direct Market. I’ve written … Read more
On July 29, a Senior U.S. District Judge for the 7th Circuit Court for the Western District of Wisconsin ruled that writer Neil Gaiman had the right to a share of the profits from comics and merchandise related to three characters from Todd McFarlane‘s Spawn franchise. Maggie Thompson reports the ruling here, as part of … Read more