April Sales Estimates

[Brapbrap]

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65. Bloodshot Reborn (2015) 1 38,788

[agent_graves]

65 $3.99 VAL Bloodshot Reborn (2015) 1 *38,788 *I thought this was 45k, but if returnable, that would explain the %10 decrease.

223 $3.99 VAL Ninjak (2015) 2 11,211

241 $3.99 VAL Divinity (2015) 3 9,582 +198 from issue #2 +2.11% (The Interest Is Real!!!)

279 $3.99 VAL Rai (2014) 8 7,196 +45 from issue #7 +0.63%

282 $3.99 VAL X-O Manowar (2012) 35 7,127

287 $3.99 VAL Imperium (2015) 3 6,866

312 $3.99 VAL Ivar, Timewalker (2015) 4 6,080

331 $3.99 VAL Unity (2013) 17 5,327

391 $3.99 VAL Quantum and Woody Must Die 4 4,188

[greg]

65 $3.99 VAL Bloodshot Reborn (2015) 1 *38,788 *I thought this was 45k, but if returnable, that would explain the %10 decrease.

I think the 38,788 is the amount ordered in North America, so the international numbers would be added to that, as well as any portion that the publisher keeps for themselves.
If we can use that across the board, we might say that the total print run for a comic is around 115% of the Comichron North American numbers.

[paradise]

The Unity number is a bit troubling. I love what they are doing but i guess people are just not into the single character stories. This should be a flagship book but it's just not behaving like one right now.

[Brapbrap]

The Unity number is a bit troubling. I love what they are doing but i guess people are just not into the single character stories. This should be a flagship book but it's just not behaving like one right now.

Unity is Valiant's weakest title IMO, first arc is great and I liked The United but every other arc has been filler.

[greg]

The Unity number is a bit troubling. I love what they are doing but i guess people are just not into the single character stories. This should be a flagship book but it's just not behaving like one right now.

Unity is Valiant's weakest title IMO, first arc is great and I liked The United but every other arc has been filler.

What was the "current" Unity issue that had just come out when it was time to order Unity #17?
That might be a reflection of lower sales on that current issue at the time, so #17 felt the pain... or it could be more proof that restarting the numbering works.

[ilzuccone]

Dooooom

[jeremycoe]

Dooooom

and don't forget it's companion Glooooom

[BugsySig]

65 $3.99 VAL Bloodshot Reborn (2015) 1 *38,788 *I thought this was 45k, but if returnable, that would explain the %10 decrease.

I think the 38,788 is the amount ordered in North America, so the international numbers would be added to that, as well as any portion that the publisher keeps for themselves.
If we can use that across the board, we might say that the total print run for a comic is around 115% of the Comichron North American numbers.

Returnable books are listed as less than the actual order by Diamond to account for the returnability (this is likely the 10% missing). Year end numbers are adjusted later based on actual returns. Several of the top books this month were returnable and their numbers all reflect that.

I guess that also means even Diamond only expects about 10% of returnable books to actually be returned.

[BugsySig]

Some thoughts on the April #s:

-Bloodshot did great and Ninjak and Divinity continue to perform well. Rai and XO are solid as of this point.

-I'm really disappointed to see Imperium and Timewalker at under 7k. Those books are soooo good. Hopefully they both do very well in trade.

-Perhaps it's time to move on from Quantum and Woody. They may have run their course.

-Unity numbers have been decreasing steadily because IMHO, the book has no direction right now. This book needs to be The Avengers or Justice League--the top characters taking on major world-wide or even cosmic threats.

My solution? Add as many major characters to the team as possible (Shadowman, Bloodshot, Divinity, Sting, Palmer, Timewalker, A&A, etc) and have them take on the biggest bads (Harada's Imperium, Darque, The Torment, etc).

Those characters don't need to constantly be on the team--they can keep the core four--but add them as they take on threats. So take on Darque and have Shadowman and Dr. Mirage join the team. Take on Harada and add Bloodshot and Sting. Take on the cosmonauts from The Unknown and add Divinity. And so on.

[Bone-A-Fach-ee]

Am I correct in thinking 8 of those 9 books are ongoings?
Seems strange to me that Q&WMD ranked so low. Not that I really like !&W, but I would have thought Steve Leiber would have been a draw for fans? And it being a mini series, easy to get the whole arc?

[nycjadie]

My personal feeling is that Q&W is having mini-fatigue. You can't tell where to jump in, or what the continuity is. It's a bit confusing.

Also bummed about the Unity and Rai numbers, but it is what it is.

[jeremycoe]

Am I correct in thinking 8 of those 9 books are ongoings?

7/9 are ongoings. Divinity and Q&W Must Die are miniseries.

[kjjohanson]

-Unity numbers have been decreasing steadily because IMHO, the book has no direction right now. This book needs to be The Avengers or Justice League--the top characters taking on major world-wide or even cosmic threats.

My solution? Add as many major characters to the team as possible (Shadowman, Bloodshot, Divinity, Sting, Palmer, Timewalker, A&A, etc) and have them take on the biggest bads (Harada's Imperium, Darque, The Torment, etc).

Those characters don't need to constantly be on the team--they can keep the core four--but add them as they take on threats. So take on Darque and have Shadowman and Dr. Mirage join the team. Take on Harada and add Bloodshot and Sting. Take on the cosmonauts from The Unknown and add Divinity. And so on.

But that's what they've been doing. Aric was around for the second arc, Bloodshot was sort of connected for Armor Hunters (although I expected that it would have been a more obvious team effort), and Faith was around for an arc. I think it might help to bring in some B-level characters exclusive to the series so it looks like more of a team. Having the heavy hitters from other series involved makes the logistics of managing the line more difficult.

[ilzuccone]

-Unity numbers have been decreasing steadily because IMHO, the book has no direction right now. This book needs to be The Avengers or Justice League--the top characters taking on major world-wide or even cosmic threats.

My solution? Add as many major characters to the team as possible (Shadowman, Bloodshot, Divinity, Sting, Palmer, Timewalker, A&A, etc) and have them take on the biggest bads (Harada's Imperium, Darque, The Torment, etc).

Those characters don't need to constantly be on the team--they can keep the core four--but add them as they take on threats. So take on Darque and have Shadowman and Dr. Mirage join the team. Take on Harada and add Bloodshot and Sting. Take on the cosmonauts from The Unknown and add Divinity. And so on.

But that's what they've been doing. Aric was around for the second arc, Bloodshot was sort of connected for Armor Hunters (although I expected that it would have been a more obvious team effort), and Faith was around for an arc. I think it might help to bring in some B-level characters exclusive to the series so it looks like more of a team. Having the heavy hitters from other series involved makes the logistics of managing the line more difficult.

The book is just ok and the title blows.

[comicsyte95]

I may be in the minority but I like Unity as is.Add different heroes and maybe even villains on the team when need be ..as is done already.

[jeremycoe]

I may be in the minority but I like Unity as is.Add different heroes and maybe even villains on the team when need be ..as is done already.

Me too.

[jmatt]

The Unity number is a bit troubling. I love what they are doing but i guess people are just not into the single character stories. This should be a flagship book but it's just not behaving like one right now.

That's because the flagship encounter with Divinity got moved to its own book, which is probably why we got three issues in a row of the Unity team recovering. The battle with Malgam, while okay, wasn't really earth shattering enough to spend three issues in character reflection, etc. Again, not that it was bad, but a team book just broke down into three solo 1-shots.

And the arc against the United was okay but not great. This book needs a shakeup, maybe a new writer or something.

[bygranddesign]

I enjoy Unity each month

But I think conceptually its perplexing - A Ninja superspy as one of its core members - taking on huge global threats and advanced alien races? Its fun at times .. but he should be a guest starring character in a title like Unity - he is much better in his own title doing his super-spy ninja stuff verse enemies like Roku.

EW, the way he is written in Unity, is a barbarian with a battle axe. Its not like he is Thor with Mjolnir. The battle Axe is just ... an Axe

Livewire and Gin-GR are perfect for Unity. I would want them to be mainstays.

But an infusion of 4-5 characters that can be permanent members would give the title a boost ... with maybe a temporary members joining the team depending on the threat - like Dr. Mirage helping out with a supernatural threat.

But i fully expect the title to limp along and cross the 25 issue finishline ... and then a year later have the title re-launched with a brand new Unity team.

[agent_graves]

I understand everyone's assessment of Unity, it seems the interest level has faded, but to be fair, newer books that are getting high praise for their great stories (Imperium, Ivar) aren't that far ahead of Unity on the charts, so it's actually a line-wide issue, (sales) that needs to be addressed.

[jmatt]

But an infusion of 4-5 characters that can be permanent members would give the title a boost ...

It would work better if they were new characters. I think many potential readers see EW and Ninjak as retreads, in a way.

[comicsyte95]

EW, the way he is written in Unity, is a barbarian with a battle axe. Its not like he is Thor with Mjolnir. The battle Axe is just ... an Axe

EW must have an enchanted weapon in his arsenal.What if using it goes makes him a bad guy so he wont use it or such could be a cool plot twist.

[ilzuccone]

I understand everyone's assessment of Unity, it seems the interest level has faded, but to be fair, newer books that are getting high praise for their great stories (Imperium, Ivar) aren't that far ahead of Unity on the charts, so it's actually a line-wide issue, (sales) that needs to be addressed.

true. it's hard to see imperium selling so low. What a great book.

[mateo107]

I definitely agree with the sentiments on Unity, the last arc seemed relatively weak considering we've just seen the team in two bigger fights very recently (Divinity and the Valiant). I liked the Livewire issue the best, but I think that would have worked better as a one-shot while the Unity team and series took a break for a month. I'd like Unity to read like an ongoing crossover, so it should stick to world-shaking events and make use of villains that not just challenge the team, but threaten the universe. as it is, I don't think Unity will be around after issue 25.

regarding Imperium and Timewalker, I think it might help if VEI gave a little more context on the covers. while the cover art hasn't been bad, they don't seem to convey to the casual shopper what the book is about. I think the most descriptive cover overall for Imperium was the #2 variant depicting Harada like Nazi propaganda, but the rest of the covers have been esoteric and don't have much to do with the content inside. Marvel and DC tend to have main covers that reflect the interior and variants with an unrelated theme, and VEI used to be more like that (8-bit, valiantcraft). but lately, I find myself not even being able to pull out the story I'm looking for because the covers are too generic.

[jxm640]

I understand everyone's assessment of Unity, it seems the interest level has faded, but to be fair, newer books that are getting high praise for their great stories (Imperium, Ivar) aren't that far ahead of Unity on the charts, so it's actually a line-wide issue, (sales) that needs to be addressed.

While I agree with you on this theory, do they release monthly figures for online sales.

That would be the ultimate proof, or breaking of your theory.

If the theory is true, who do you target to sell more. The shops or the customers?