Sales Review: September 2015

Comics are dying!
We have heard this over and over for such a long time that at times I think it is like Chicken Little saying the sky is falling. After all, superheroes are everywhere.

Then I see reports on sales, especially months like September 2015, and I think maybe there is a death knell. Comics overall were done last month and last quarter and the numbers are sort of sobering for me. Here is the link to ICv2's excellent coverage: http://ift.tt/1WZ4hA9

Last month, Superman #44 caught up the the current timeline, finally bringing the title up the speed. This showed the immediate post-reveal life that Superman was living. It was the last chapter of this new reality with the superstar team of Gene Yang, John Romita Jr, and Klaus Janson.

Has this new Superman been embraced?

The issue came in remarkably high, ranked #24th overall.

Looking at the numbers, it sold only 43K. It amazes me that the 24th most popular comic in sales sold so few issues.

But this isn't huge sales. It doesn't seem like this new approach to Superman have brought in new readers.

I have said all along that the Pak/Kuder Action Comics is the best Superman book on the rack.

But even this book, which I have really think is magical at times, has been sinking into the darkness of the grim new approach. Heck, the cover certainly depicts that.

The Soviet Supergirl is flying high in the DC Bombshells book. This Kara seems a little hard but certainly determined and strong. This is one of two books were Supergirl is currently a character.

Both Action Comics and DC Bombshells sold around 37K.

This certainly is a new world. Bombshells is an out of continuity book based on merchandise. And it is selling as much as Action Comics. In fact, both are selling just above Silk, a book I love but based on a Spiderman derivative.

I think the quality of Bombshells and Silk are great books. But I wonder if Action would sell better if DC just let Pak and Kuder write true Superman stories.

Lastly, Justice League 3001 has the most classic take on Supergirl. We have barely seen this Kara in the book. But what we have seen is great. I want to see more of this Silver Age-y Supergirl interacting with these flawed clones.

Hopefully the creative team will get to some stories where she plays a big part soon. Because sales are slipping. The book was ranked 129 overall, selling just below 17K. Those are cancellation numbers.

I wish more people were reading this book. It is a hoot.

And I want to be able to report on a true Supergirl book. When will that happen???

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