How Succesful the New Buffy and Angel Comics Are.

[nerd4hire]

This article shows the success of the new canon comics against the figures for the old non-canon ones.

# 10 - BUFFY Buffy THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (Dark Horse Comics)

11/2001: Buffy #39 — 16,000*
11/2002: Buffy #51 — 16,028*
11/2003: Buffy #63 — 14,130
—————————–
03/2007: Buffy #1 — 109,919 [158,437]
04/2007: Buffy #2 — 96,409 (-12.3%) [132,378]
05/2007: Buffy #3 — 106,634 (+10.6%) [125,078]
06/2007: Buffy #4 — 102,430 (- 3.9%) [117,866]
07/2007: Buffy #5 — 100,830 (- 2.0%) [109,322]
08/2007: –
09/2007: Buffy #6 — 96,556 (- 4.2%) [ 99,910]
10/2007: Buffy #7 — 94,144 (- 2.4%)
11/2007: Buffy #8 — 91,595 (- 2.7%)
—————-
6 months: -14.1%

Sales remain strong three issues into the first arc not written by Buffy creator Joss Whedon himself. What’s also striking is that the first four issues all made the chart again in November, selling between 5,473 and 4,775 additional units. Given that a collection including those issues already came out back in mid-October, those are impressive reorder numbers.

As usual, there was a variant cover edition of Buffy #8.

—–
# 41 - ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL (IDW)
11/2001: Angel #3 of 4 — 15,130*
—————————————–
11/2006: Auld Lang Syne #1 of 5 — 8,057
12/2006: Auld Lang Syne #2 of 5 — 7,358 (- 8.7%)
01/2007: Auld Lang Syne #3 of 5 — 6,699 (- 9.0%)
02/2007: Auld Lang Syne #4 of 5 — 6,371 (- 4.9%)
03/2007: Auld Lang Syne #5 of 5 — 6,351 (- 0.3%)
04/2007: –
05/2007: –
06/2007: –
07/2007: –
08/2007: –
09/2007: –
10/2007: –
11/2007: After the Fall #1 — 47,563 (+648.9%)
—————–
6 months: n.a.
1 year : +490.3%

Similar to Dark Horse Comics’ Buffy the Vampire Slayer, IDW’s Buffy spin-off Angel: After the Fall is being promoted as the official continuation of the TV show. While series creator Whedon just “presents” this book, though, his name is featured prominantly on the cover, and - as with the last few Buffy issues - that seems to be enough.

The sales increase compared to previous Angel comics isn’t as massive as in the case of Buffy, but it’s still huge, obviously. The book is one of IDW’s biggest hits to date, in terms of direct market periodicals. (There were, as you may have expected, variant cover editions.)

If there’s a general lesson in these two projects, it’s that it’s not impossible to entice enough fans of a TV show into buying a spin-off comic to make the book a hit. Of course, the game is a bit rigged in this case, given the presumably considerable overlap between the fans of mainstream comics and fantasy shows in North America, as well as the fact that Whedon is a well-established name in both media. It still seems worth noting that fans are willing to buy the comics if you can convince them that the stories matter.

THE BEAT DC Month-to-Month Sales: November 2007 (http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/2007/12/31/dc-month-to-month-sales-november-2007/)

[Keanoite]

Personally I would have never picked up a comic if it wasn't for season 8. Not too proud to say that but it's the truth, I'm delighted they are doing so well.

[GATEGOD]

Personally I would have never picked up a comic if it wasn't for season 8. Not too proud to say that but it's the truth, I'm delighted they are doing so well.

:lmao:

I wouldn't have been caught dead 100 feet from a comic book store if it wasn't for season 8 of Buffy, WHICH I LOVE! :cheering:

[LittleMissLikesToFight]

i am AMAZED that is doing so well and SO proud. i love rubbing it in my friends' faces (they are 99% guys and would hate to think buffy would be one of the best selling comic this past year). Though it is SUCH a pain that if i don't go the first couple of days of release, its so hard to find around here.

[Bangelxx]

I have never read the Buffy season 8 comics but i REALLY want to!!!! (But first i have to finish season 7!) yes, its true, I havn't finished season 7 yet but i'm about to start it! don't worry!!:P

[palabravampiress]

Add me to the group of people who never would have looked at a comic in the past. Now that Buffy's out, though, I want to continue the obsession. Also, Joss' backing has a lot to do with my willingness to read these comics. At this point, I guess I'm more of a Joss fan than I am a fan of any other entertainer out there.

[Keanoite]

Add me to the group of people who never would have looked at a comic in the past. Now that Buffy's out, though, I want to continue the obsession. Also, Joss' backing has a lot to do with my willingness to read these comics. At this point, I guess I'm more of a Joss fan than I am a fan of any other entertainer out there.

Same here...I've gotten so sucked in I'm trying to get all the previous non canon and canon Buffy comics...Joss Whedon is the reason I have no money!!

[sosa lola]

I'm really glad the comics are doing well. I have to admit, I only read S8. I'm not that interested in the other comics, I prefer fanfic over them. :)

[alexa]

Also someone would hasn't bothered with comics until I heard Joss was doing season 8. Still I'm not interested in any comic that's not Buffy/Angel/Firefly related.
Those 10,000 people who dropped off after The Long Way Home need to read No Future For You.. it's great. Maybe they will hop back on with issue #10 because Joss is writing it?

[Blondie Bear]

i am AMAZED that is doing so well and SO proud. i love rubbing it in my friends' faces (they are 99% guys and would hate to think buffy would be one of the best selling comic this past year). Though it is SUCH a pain that if i don't go the first couple of days of release, its so hard to find around here.

Actually, according to the survey I ran for my Master's thesis, gender has NO impact on whether or not you like Buffy.

[Allycat]

I made my first forray into comics a little bit before Season 8, but now that I visit a comic book store once or twice a month anyway, I might as well pick up a few more things.

[VisionGuy]

I used to read comics when I was a kid but stopped when I reached middle school. Now I got into reading the Buffy and Angel comics.

[TabulaRasa]

I too wouldn't be buying them if they weren't continuations.
I wonder tho...if Angel's covers were any better would more sell? I realize that sounds weird cause you may want them for the story and not the cover. But I dunno. I don't get both covers for Angel because well, they don't please me. If the art was more in my favor I would buy both.

QUESTION...there was a third cover for issue 8 of Buffy? If so, please direct me. Thanks.

[Senior Watcher]

im very excited for joss and all of us buffy fans that the comics are doing so well. as a side note, im also happy for dark horse. they are in a tough business. marvel and dc basically dominate the top 100 slots in the comicbook world so the little guys dont have much of a voice.

analogy:
marvel is to coke as
dc is to pepsi as
dark horse is to dr. pepper!

...........i love dr. pepper!

[tommy]

I used to buy comics from my local newsagent, but not every month. Mostly stuff that I knew about from television and video games like The Simpsons, Sonic the Hedgehog and Mortal Kombat. Had a few Spiderman and X-Men but never a collection.

Then I didn't buy anything for years because nothing appealed and my town doesn't have a dedicated comic store for niche stuff. The thing that brought me back was Fray TPB which I bought on Amazon out of curiosity. I bought Buffy S8 #1 after the third issue was released then caught up.

There are a lot of junky comics that I'm not interested in. So many superheroes in costumes... even the ones that poke fun at themselves for being another superhero comic seem dull to me. I might be a big comic person if more comics were as good as Buffy.

[goldenboy]

The thing that brought me back was Fray TPB which I bought on Amazon out of curiosity. I bought Buffy S8 #1 after the third issue was released then caught up.

There are a lot of junky comics that I'm not interested in. So many superheroes in costumes... even the ones that poke fun at themselves for being another superhero comic seem dull to me. I might be a big comic person if more comics were as good as Buffy.

Huh. Yeah, Fray got me back into comics too. It does take a little digging to find the truly good stuff, but it's out there.