200609251241ICv2 notes that since BLEACH starting airing on the Cartoon Network, manga sales have soared.

The BookScan list of graphic novels sold in bookstores for the week ending September 17th displays the effect of the debut of the Bleach anime on the Cartoon Network on September 9th. The first volume in the Bleach manga series, which was originally released in June of 2004, soared to #7 on the list, while Bleach Vol. 2 jumped up to #20. It was the strong backlist sales of Naruto that heralded the “Cartoon Network effect,” after the Naruto anime debuted last September.

It’s unlikely that Bleach will be able to fully replicate Naruto’s performance — for one thing there are 14 volumes of Bleach out now versus seven volumes of Naruto in 2005, which means that new adopters have to make a much bigger commitment to Bleach. Also the scale of Naruto’s success was, and remains, staggering. So far in 2006, Naruto Vol. 1 has sold more than 70K copies in the bookstores — and the only books that have sold more are Volumes 9 & 10 of Naruto. According to one industry observer, sales of the 11 volumes of Naruto so far in 2006 account for just under 10% of total manga sales for the year.


Much more of ICv2’s usual insightful analysis in the link.

200609251242It’s worth noting that the Kid’s WB/CW Saturday morning line-up debuted this weekend, with a significant amount made up of comics-based shows.

7:00-7:30 am, KRYPTO THE SUPERDOG (E/I Compliant)
7:30-8:00 am, KRYPTO THE SUPERDOG (E/I Compliant)
8:00-8:30 am, MONSTER ALLERGY
8:30-9:00 am, TOM AND JERRY TALES
9:00-9:30 am, SHAGGY & SCOOBY-DOO GET A CLUE!
9:30-10:00 am, JOHNNY TEST
10:00-10:30 am, LEGION OF SUPER HEROES
10:30-11:00 am, THE BATMAN
11:00-11:30 am, XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN
11:30 am-12:00 pm, LOONATICS UNLEASHED


Is there the potential for any kind of KWB bounce here?

OBSERVATION: When looking at this list we were shocked to see that the much derided LOONATICS was actually on the air, let alone in its second season. Has anyone seen this show. Was it as bad as everyone thought it would be?

1 COMMENT

  1. I watched LOONATICS: UNLEASHED (natch!) with horror just this weekend. It’s about as bad as you could imagine; a mix of bag anime-inspired slapstick, that leaves the characters naked and tremendously unfunny. You can;’t removed these characters from theor 1950s Borscht belt comedy inspirations without stripping them of their charm.
    Oh – and my 3-year-old daughter was completely unimpressed by the who;le mess. Proof enough i say.

  2. Right… KWB bounce. When kids buy the bleach manga, they know exactly what to buy (Bleach #1, that just make too much sense), and the story they find it similar to what they’ve just watched on TV. After the same kid watches “The BATMAN”, what exactly are they going to buy and do they even know where to buy it? Better google for your nearest Comic Book Guy Store, kid!

    I would not to discount the power of Bleach when comparing to Naturo. During Anime Expo, there were so many Bleach cosplayers that they have to use 4 floors just to get picture of them all. Not nearly as many Naruto cosplayers. Bleach is has a deeper story and more interesting characters… The PSP launched in Japan on the strenght of the Bleach game (and probably the only reason many people bought a PSP, like myself). Just wait for the full bleach effect. Hard to commit to cus it has 14 volumes? Is the guy who wrote that on crack? When you buy the #1 and you’re hooked, you can’t stop yourself until you’ve bought all the volumes. ICv2 has always been clueless about manga sales trends but this is by far the dumbest thing they’ve said.

  4. Well, fans of “The Batman” can get copies of “The Batman Strikes!” at their local supermarket spinner rack or Border’s/Waldenbooks.

    Fans of Krupto get no lovin’.

  6. The KRYPTO comic is NOT just episodes from the TV retold. The first story in the first issue was a retelling of the origin story, but the rest of the stories in the 6-issue miniseries (2 per issue) are completely original, and look fabulous!