ICv2’s February sales estimates are out based on Diamond’s rankings, and The Flash climbed back into the top 10 to score an impressive #9 ranking in units sold.
| Issue | Rank | Month | Units Sold | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash v.3 #1 | 2 | April 2010 | 100,903 | |
| Flash v.3 #2 | 12 | May 2010 | 76,560 | (-24.1%) |
| Flash v.3 #3 | 11 | June 2010 | 68,799 | (-10.1%) |
| Flash v.3 #4 | 15 | July 2010 | 64,832 | (-5.8%) |
| Flash v.3 #5 | 14 | September 2010 | 62,063 | (-4.3%) |
| Flash v.3 #6 | 15 | November 2010 | 57,673 | (-7.1%) |
| Flash v.3 #7 | 12 | December 2010 | 56,304 | (-2.4%) |
| Flash v.3 #8 | 18 | December 2010 | 53,975 | (-4.1%) |
| Flash v.3 #9 | 9 | February 2011 | 55,980 | (+3.7%) |
The issue actually sold more copies than the previous one for the first time since the relaunch! Some possible reasons for the climb:
- Start of a new story arc.
- Promoted as a Flashpoint lead-in.
- Theme cover.
- Return of the regular creative team.
- Return of the speedster guest cast (Wally, Jay, Bart)
Or perhaps the book has reached its level. The next question: what kind of boost will Flashpoint bring to the book?
(Thanks to Esteban of Comic Verso for the link!)
I’m kind of worried that issue 9 made it into the top 10 selling 20k copies less than issue 2, when they are only 9 months apart from each other.
It seems that the market is experiencing some very rough times.
The month’s top comic was Green Lantern #62 and it only came in at around 71,000 copies, which is apparently the lowest number for a top comic since ICv2 started tracking the numbers. We’ll have to see how the numbers look for March, because January and February looked kind of bleak for the industry.
On a somewhat related side note, I see by Kelson’s “Countdown to…” list that we won’t have a Flash come out in March now (#10 is now scheduled to come out on April 13). That’s a bummer. Is Flash on its way to becoming a bimonthly comic, or will they get it back on track in time for Flashpoint in May?
I have also read that traditionally sales are bleak for January, so we may still be climbing out of that rut. In any case, I’m happy to see Flash doing so well in the charts. The title deserves the high acclaim and it bodes well for the future.
I’m guessing that they’ll have to make it appear on time one way or the other. As long as they don’t rush the art, that should be ok.
When I was little, you saw comic books for sale in grocery stores and small fast-stop shots. When I was a young adult, the only comic book I saw for sale was The Death of Superman at a major discount dept store. If it hadn’t been for JL/JLU on tv and falling in love with Flash (thus remembering my fascination with Jay and Alan Scott in a library book) I’d still not know that comic books are still being sold. Even a large national bookstore that I went to last year searching for comics netted only one spinner stand of them. That department store *sometimes* has early reader Superfriends books.
Add to that the rising costs of necessary goods versus a pretty static income around here and….I’m not surprised sales are nowhere near what they were. You have to actively already know they exist to check the internet, or live close to a comic bookstore that isn’t hidden in a dilapidated mall strip, and have enough income to be willing to take a chance on a title.