300 has landed at #12 on this week’s Hardcover Bestsellers list at Publishers Weekly. While it’s not the only listing for a graphic novel on a nationally recognized bestseller list (SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS charted a few years and ago and there have been others including, we believe, the ALIEN movie adaptation back in the day) it’s certainly a strong showing for the Dark Horse books.
We’re assuming Dirk hadn’t seen this when he castigates Dark Horse for their PR:
The following headline can currently be found on the Dark Horse homepage: “300 GRAPHIC NOVEL IS NUMBER ONE IN THE NATION!!!!!”
The 300 graphic novel is currently the #1 best selling graphic novel in the nation! Congratulations to Frank Miller and Lynn Varley!!!! Plus, a very special thank you to all the fans who have helped to make the book such a huge success.
The blurb is dated “Updated 3/23/07,” and I suppose it’s possible that Bookscan might be telling a different or more current story than, say, the USA Today listings. I hope so. I’d hate to think that Dark Horse, of all companies, doesn’t consider manga volumes to count as “graphic novels.”
We’d hate to think that Dirk is so in love with his manga that he ignores any evidence that goes against the worldview that he is hellbent on promoting each and every day. While we agree with him that it’s silly to ignore the huge success of manga, it’s equally silly to ignore the success of things that AREN’T manga…cuz it CAN happen y’know.
For the week ending 3/18/07, 300 was in fact the number one graphic novel on the Bookscan bestseller list. For the week ending 3/25, it has slipped to number two behind Naruto 13.
Wow. I brought 300 today, the reissue was new at my comic shop; my son was reading Naruto as I was checking out. Sadly, I didn’t buy him a copy of Naruto. :(
I guess I’m one of those ‘last week’ types. ^^v
I don’t have Bookscan numbers to go by (though you’ll note that I did allow that the Bookscan numbers might be different). USA Today had 300 behind Naruto both last week and this week. Right now, last week’s chart is still up on the webpage version, while this week’s version is already up in the PDF version.
Um… but doesn’t Dirk actually have a good point in calling out a BS distinction between GNs and manga? Isn’t it the same as a TV sitcom that will declare itself the “Best New Comedy on Tuesday Night?” I don’t think he’s knocking the success of “300″ but merely pointing out shameless and factually incorrect PR hype.
See Dallas’s point above. For that week of Bookscan it was #1. It also made the PW bestsellers list. Spin? Sure. But I’ve noted here many times that Naruto is the most popular comic in America. 300’s success doesn’t take away from that.
But aren’t manga volumes more rightly to be considered as “trades or colllections” instead of original graphic novels? They are reprinting serialized content whereas 300 came out as a stand alone as I recall.
Is this even a distinction?
300 was serialized in standard comic books first. I bought them and still have them. It was reformatted for the hardcover later.
Jamie, don’t be too harsh on anyone for forgetting that 300 was serialized in comic book format first. The director of the movie based on it forgot just that, with Zach Snyder being quoted as having “pledged to make Watchmen ‘Hollywood’s first R-rated comic book movie.’” (quote found at JK Parkin’s blog entry: http://blog.newsarama.com/2007/03/29/300-pg-13-be-damned). Naturally, JK points out how many other comic book movies that is forgetting, as well.
Thanks for the clarification, Jamie… and you weren’t being harsh.
Fuck that ugly movie