At The Counter #4: Talking DC Comics’ Resurgence — Don’t Call It A Comeback

After taking November off, because of well, it being November (you’re lucky to be getting this edition of the column), Tony and Greg are back to talk about the news, trends and observations from the retail side of the comics industry.

What’s on tap this month? Well, none other than the home of the Dark Knight and Man of Tomorrow, DC Comics!

Tony: Hey Greg! Thanks for being patient through our little holiday-inspired break. But you and I got to talk a few times in the meantime, and one thing we talked about was DC’s recent domination. Tell me a little more about what you’ve seen with DC’s sudden resurgence?

Greg: I’m really kind of in shock over the state of things over at DC. Having this store for over two decades, I’ve never seen the kind of sales I’m seeing right now with them. The New 52 was a bump and a temporary sales lead, but after a few months it went right back to Marvel’s chart topping. This hasn’t slowed, though. If anything, it’s crazier, which you just don’t see much in this industry. The last time I can remember sales increasing month to month was when The Walking Dead initially came out, and that’s been a minute or two.

Tony: I think a few things driving it are obvious — Superman dominating the box office, for example. But there’s two big obvious ones.

The first, according to ICV2, Batman/Deadpool absolutely dominated the month of November. What sort of bump did you see personally from the special? How was it different from September’s sister release?

Greg: It was excitement from people. That was the first crossover between the “big two” that there’s been for decades. Ever since publishers have been under the umbrella of huge corporations, they haven’t exactly gotten along, and there was verified talk that they’d never do another crossover. Even I thought those days were done, but it was a pleasant surprise that it happened. The DC version was even bigger for me, partly because, even though it wasn’t my creative dream team, it did tap into a whole generation of readers that were introduced to Batman by the Grant Morrison run, and it brought some of them back to the fold.

[Note: Greg and Tony had this conversation prior to the full Superman/Spider-Man announcement, otherwise they would have taken some time to discuss that as well.]

Tony: Now, I think you and I can agree that a DC/Marvel one shot is a flash in the pan a bit. The other bit of news here is that 9 of the top ten books of November were DC (including the latest chapter of the extremely poorly received “H2SH”), and of those nine, four of them were Absolute books. What impact has the Absolute line had on your sales this year?

Greg: Oh, I don’t know if it can be understated. The Absolute line has brought DC back from the brink. I was legitimately worried about the future of the entire company, but at this point, DC is killing Marvel in sales. They’ve been on top before, notably the New 52 initiative, but they’re staying this time. The New 52 gave them a bump, but they were right back in second about 3 or 4 months in. This time I’ve seen nothing but rising sales issue to issue, which is almost unheard of. I’d say Absolute Batman, in particular, is probably the single most important title in the last 20 years.  

Tony: I know you didn’t run a shop at the time, but would you say this impact is similar to the Ultimate Marvel line of the early 2000s?

Greg: Similar, but more dramatic. The similarities are that both companies were in trouble and just had their creatives throw things at the wall to see what sticks. It seemed to have worked both times. Occasionally, if you have nothing to lose, you can see some gains. The impact of Absolute has been much more, though.

Tony: One difference I would say between the two though is the Ultimate line was very much of the time. Just think of Uncle Ben’s ponytail, and Wolverine’s soul patch. Is Absolute doomed to the same or does it accomplish the same as Ultimate Marvel with a little bit of a timeless flair?

Greg: Well, when you look back, most comics, and entertainment in general, are a product of their times. Padding, guns, swords, ponytails … that pretty much sums up the whole of the ’90s! These days, people are fearful and angry. Unsure. Almost ready to lash out at a moment’s notice. Absolute Batman beats the living hell out of people and stabs them halfway to death. DC K.O., another huge seller, is literally characters fighting each other. That’s pretty much it. It’s like MMA in comic book form with lots of powers. What’s selling really well for Marvel right now, at least in my store? Punisher. ‘Nuff said. As far as how it’ll age? It’s really hard to tell. 

Tony: Has the reception to any of the individual series surprised you?

Greg: The biggest surprise, by far, has been the Martian Manhunter series. That’s the one I could see failing, but I have no issues at all in the store right now. It was even extended from 6 issues to 12 because of the demand.

Tony: Changing topics slightly — Were you surprised (pleasantly or not) that DC K.O. seemed to maintain this momentum of the first issue, this time without the blind bag gimmick?

Greg: I was very pleasantly shocked. I wasn’t sure how it was going to work out. A lot of buzz has been generated with that title because of the company and other media crossovers coming. You’re going to have Vampirella, Homelander, even Annabelle from The Conjuring movies show up. I haven’t seen this sort of cooperation between publishers since the ’90s. 

Tony: What would you say other publishers need right now to keep up with Absolute DC?

Greg: There’s a lesson to be learned. Try something different, but do it with new and returning readers in mind. Marvel in particular is so obsessed with blanketing their entire line with one idea (Knull), that they can’t see that not everyone really wants that. I’m not interested in reading Daredevil, one of my favorites, if he’s possessed by a symbiote. They need to go back to basics. As different as Absolute DC is, it’s still going back to just storytelling. There’s no bleed over into other books. There’s no company wide event. If this was a Marvel thing, Green Lantern’s ring would be in 30 different titles, flying around and turning everyone into Lanterns. Stop trying to be everything to everybody. It just doesn’t work.

Black Cat Comics is on the web at https://blackcat-comics.com/ and via all the usual social media channels. If you live in or are visiting the Salt Lake City area, you can visit the store at 2261 Highland Dr, Salt Lake City, UT 84106, or call Greg and his team at (801) 461-4228.