February 2020 Comics Sales Early Look
Comics and Graphic Novels Reordered by North American Comics Shops
Based on Reports from Diamond Comic Distributors
February 2020 has four shipping weeks, the same as February 2019, so the year-to-year comparison will be an even one. The month was a weak one, with the smallest number of new comics releases since Diamond Comic Distributors began reporting overall figures in July 2013. There were no first issues in the top nine at all, indicating few publishers were interested in launching big projects into the month. DC, which had announced plans to reduce its periodical offerings, was responsible for nearly half of the drop in the number of new comics released. Its Batman Who Laughs #3 was the top seller, with 101,771 copies shipped. Overall, retailers in February 2019 ordered $34.73 million in comics and graphic novels, down 5% and the lowest figure since March 2012.
Feb. 7 sees the release of the Birds of Prey movie.
The estimated comics sales for the month will become available sometime in March 2020, likely in the second week or so. Follow @Comichron on Twitter to get the alert when the report becomes available. In the meantime, you can get a sense of what sales might be like from noting what products were most reordered by retailers.
Advance Reorders
Several weeks ago, retailers began placing advance reorders for items whose initial order deadlines had passed, but which had not yet released at the time the reorders were placed. These reorders, placed further out than regular reorders, tend to be more speculative in nature, as there is less certainty that stock will still be available. But they do give us the farthest-into-the-future look at potential sales. To see potential sales for this month, you generally want to look at the advance reorders placed from the month before.
Note that the listings mix hardcovers, softcovers, and comics together, and that they also rank items by dollars rather than units. Note, too, that advance reorder charts are ranked by retail dollars, so retailers' discounts have not yet been applied.
There is no guarantee that these advance reorders will be filled. It's also likely that a lot of books in these lists won't synch up exactly with this month; reorders are placed all the time and reported weekly, while comics sales are reported monthly.
Advance reorders placed between Dec. 9-15, 2019
• Top advance-reordered February-shipping comic book:Wolverine #1 Chip Kidd Die Cut Var. (Marvel)
• Top advance-reordered softcover graphic novel:
Dawn of X TPB Vol. 1 (Marvel)
• Top advance-reordered hardcover graphic novel:
Immortal Hulk HC Vol. 2 (Marvel)
Only two February's top releases made the Top 25, Wolverine #1 and the Dawn of X trade, but they led their respective categories.
Advance reorders placed between Jan. 6-12, 2020
• Top advance-reordered February-shipping comic book:Star Wars Darth Vader #1 (Marvel)
• Top advance-reordered softcover graphic novel:
New Mutants Epic Collection TPB Renewal New Ptg (Marvel)
With a movie slated for 2020, the New Mutants Epic Collection, slated for March, placed highly in the charts.
No hardcovers made the list.
Advance reorders placed between Jan. 13-19, 2020
• Top advance-reordered February-shipping comic book:Conan: Battle for the Serpent Crown #1 (Marvel)
• Top advance-reordered softcover graphic novel:
Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating the DC Universe Book 1 (DC)
The first issue of a new miniseres for Conan by Saladin Ahmed placed first among comics and overall. Star Wars: Rise of Kylo Ren #3 placed second, benefiting from aftermarket attention to the first issue.
Advance reorders placed between Jan. 20-26, 2020
• Top advance-reordered February-shipping comic book:Wolverine #1 (Marvel)
• Top advance-reordered softcover graphic novel:
X-Men Milestones: Messiah Complex (Marvel)
• Top advance-reordered hardcover graphic novel:
Bowie Stardust Rayguns & Moonage Daydreams HC 2nd Ed. (Insight)
Variants of Wolverine #1 took the top five slots on the charts.
Advance reorders placed between Jan. 27-Feb. 2, 2020
• Top advance-reordered February-shipping comic book:Giant-Size X-Men Jean Grey and Emma Frost #1 (Marvel)
• Top advance-reordered softcover graphic novel:
DC Poster Portfolio Stanley Artgerm Lau Vol. 2 (DC)
• Top advance-reordered hardcover graphic novel:
Batman Last Knight on Earth HC (DC)
The first Flash #750 entry made the list; it's a March 4 release.
Advance reorder charts will be posted here as soon as they are released. Stay tuned!
Click to skip down to the Reorders placed for issues shipping this month.
REORDERS
Reorders, by contrast, are orders for items that had already been released at the time of the order. In other words, these are the comics customers have been asking for, generally speaking; while deep discounts may also put titles on these lists, the charts are ranked by invoiced dollars, which is what retailers actually paid.
Reorders placed between Feb.10-16, 2020
• Top reordered February-shipping comic book:Star Wars: Darth Vader #1 (Marvel)
• Top reordered softcover graphic novel:
Prox Transmissions (Marvel)
• Top reordered hardcover graphic novel:
Daredevil by Bendis & Maleev Omnibus HC Vol. 2 (Marvel)
Star Wars: Darth Vader #1, which was the top advance reordered comic book one week in January, led among comics reorders.
Reorder charts will be released weekly during the month. Stay tuned!
The true top sellers for the month will replace this page once they are released by Diamond.
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