Marvel Month-To-Month sales – June ’06 by Paul O’Brien

[We’re pleased to present the monthly sales analysis charts which Paul O’Brien and Mark Oliver Frisch have been compiling for several years now. These charts will be a regular feature here at The Beat.]

JUNE 2006
For the second month running, it’s all about CIVIL WAR, as the crossover continues to sprawl across the Marvel line. There are only two new titles this month, but they’re significant ones – CIVIL WAR: FRONT LINE and ETERNALS.

As usual, Marvel are the number one publisher for the month, although the margin over DC is fairly close – 39.5% to 36.7% in dollar share, and 42.6% to 40.2% in unit share. The bigger story is Marvel and DC’s combined market share, with the top two publishers cornering over 80% over the direct market by unit share. Given that the number three publisher, Dark Horse, could only manage 3.9%, it’s fair to describe the direct market as a duopoly. But then, the direct market isn’t the only show in town any more, and many of the other publishers do their best business elsewhere.

Thanks as always to Milton Griepp and ICV2 for permission to use their figures for these calculations.

1. CIVIL WAR
May 06 Civil War #1 (of 7) – 278,520
Jun 06 Civil War #2 (of 7) – 253,856 (-8.9%)

Dominating the charts for the second month, despite the one dollar price tag for DC’s BRAVE NEW WORLD one-shot (which charts at number 2 with 140,844 copies sold). Thanks to a combination of re-orders and variants, issue #1 ships a further 17,716 copies to chart at number 113. As always, those extra copies are included above. Even allowing for those re-orders, the second issue drop is modest; without them, it was tiny. The book, and the whole crossover, are huge hits.

3. NEW AVENGERS
Jun 01 Avengers #43 – 64,634
Jun 02 Avengers #55 – 51,495
Jun 03 Avengers #68 – 57,587
Jun 04 Avengers #84 – 57,083
======
Jun 05 New Avengers #6 – 164,592 ( -2.4%)
Jul 05 New Avengers #7 – 158,693 ( -3.6%)
Aug 05 New Avengers #8 – 156,037 ( -1.7%)
Aug 05 New Avengers #9 – 147,501 ( -5.5%)
Sep 05 New Avengers #10 – 143,014 ( -3.0%)
Sep 05 New Avengers #11 – 134,125 ( -6.2%)
Oct 05 New Avengers #12 – 130,110 ( -3.0%)
Nov 05 New Avengers #13 – 126,148 ( -3.0%)
Dec 05 New Avengers #14 – 126,583 ( +0.3%)
Jan 06 New Avengers #15 – 124,143 ( -1.9%)
Feb 06 New Avengers #16 – 124,256 ( +0.1%)
Mar 06 New Avengers #17 – 122,847 ( -1.1%)
Apr 06 New Avengers #18 – 121,550 ( -1.1%)
May 06 New Avengers #19 – 125,223 ( +3.0%)
Jun 06 New Avengers #20 – 125,600 ( +0.3%)
Jun 06 New Avengers #21 – 134,278 ( +6.9%)
6 mnth ( +6.1%)
1 year ( -18.4%)
2 year (+135.2%)
3 year (+133.2%)

A Civil War crossover issue, and NEW AVENGERS duly climbs. It’s actually a fairly modest increase by Civil War crossovers, but then NEW AVENGERS was climbing already, and selling large amounts to start with. For no obvious reason, issue #19 picks up 1,905 re-orders to chart at number 254. The ILLUMINATI special also picks up a further 1,446 re-orders, three months after it came out, bringing the total to 127,611.

6,18. CIVIL WAR: FRONT LINE
Jun 06 Civil War: Front Line #1 (of 10) – 122,057
Jun 06 Civil War: Front Line #2 (of 10) – 102,742 (-15.8%)

The Civil War B-title ships two issues in its first month, starting with an enormous number and then dropping back by a fairly standard amount. The amazing thing here is that FRONT LINE is selling over 100,000, and yet it’s only charting at number 18 – a sign of just how many sales juggernauts are on the shelves this month. Bearing in mind that this title was an unofficial replacement for THE PULSE, Marvel should be ecstatic with these numbers.

8. ASTONISHING X-MEN
Jun 04 Astonishing X-Men #2 – 133,784
======
Jun 05 n/a
Jul 05 Astonishing X-Men #11 – 127,768 (-18.3%)
Aug 05 Astonishing X-Men #12 – 134,693 ( +5.4%)
Sep 05 n/a
Oct 05 n/a
Nov 05 n/a
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 Astonishing X-Men #13 – 148,244 (+10.1%)
Mar 06 n/a
Apr 06 Astonishing X-Men #14 – 124,129 (-16.3%)
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 Astonishing X-Men #15 – 119,991 ( -3.3%)
6 mnth ( n/a )
1 year ( -6.1%)
2 year (-10.3%)

The highest Marvel book that isn’t connected in any way to CIVIL WAR. ASTONISHING X-MEN is still delivering consistently high sales. It’s also seeing sustained re-order activity, with a further 1,125 copies of issue #13 and another 4,584 of issue #14. Without taking those into account, this month’s number would have been a marginal climb.

9. WOLVERINE: ORIGINS
Apr 06 Wolverine: Origins #1 – 164,240
May 06 Wolverine: Origins #2 – 131,522 (-19.9%)
Jun 06 Wolverine: Origins #3 – 116,058 (-11.8%)

A bit steep for a third issue drop, but still a good number. Issue #1 picks up a further 5,969 in re-orders.

10. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN
Jun 01 Amazing Spider-Man #32 – 76,976
Jun 02 Amazing Spider-Man #42 – 96,537
Jun 03 Amazing Spider-Man #54 – 95,173
Jun 04 Amazing Spider-Man #509 – 88,289
======
Jun 05 Amazing Spider-Man #521 – 74,117 ( -2.7%)
Jul 05 Amazing Spider-Man #522 – 73,130 ( -1.3%)
Aug 05 Amazing Spider-Man #523 – 72,046 ( -1.5%)
Sep 05 Amazing Spider-Man #524 – 71,065 ( -1.4%)
Oct 05 Amazing Spider-Man #525 – 91,707 (+29.0%)
Nov 05 Amazing Spider-Man #526 – 90,343 ( -1.5%)
Dec 05 Amazing Spider-Man #527 – 89,922 ( -0.5%)
Jan 06 Amazing Spider-Man #528 – 97,807 ( -8.8%)
Feb 06 Amazing Spider-Man #529 – 132,329 (+35.3%)
Mar 06 Amazing Spider-Man #530 – 101,226 (-23.5%)
Apr 06 Amazing Spider-Man #531 – 96,213 ( -5.0%)
May 06 Amazing Spider-Man #532 – 105,523 ( +9.7%)
Jun 06 Amazing Spider-Man #533 – 112,982 ( +7.1%)
6 mnth (+25.6%)
1 year (+52.4%)
2 year (+28.0%)
3 year (+18.7%)

Back to Civil War, and a book that’s seen its sales boosted by one big event after another in recent months. This is the issue where Spider-Man unmasks, and it sees yet another bounce. Meanwhile, re-order activity continues to pile up on recent months. Issue #532 shifts another 9,979 copies, charting at number 149. Further down the charts, Marvel managed to sell 1,997 more copies of issue #531, 1,883 copies of issue #530, and even 1,477 of issue #529, now four months old and into its third printing.

17. ETERNALS
Jun 03 Eternal #1 – 25,172
======
Jun 06 Eternals #1 – 103,217
3 year (+310.0%)

Almost lost in the Civil War chaos, but still selling over 100,000, is the second Marvel project from Neil Gaiman. This time it’s a revamp of the ETERNALS, and if you want to know what the built-in audience is for an Eternals revamp, just look back to June 2003 when Chuck Austen took a crack at it. It’s fair to say that Gaiman is the primary selling point here.

19. WOLVERINE
Jun 01 Wolverine #165 – 68,398
Jun 02 Wolverine #177 – 67,450
Jun 03 Wolverine #2 – 99,867
Jun 04 Wolverine #16 – 67,519
======
Jun 05 Wolverine #29 – 79,951 ( -1.2%)
Jul 05 Wolverine #30 – 76,651 ( -4.1%)
Aug 05 Wolverine #31 – 75,618 ( -1.3%)
Sep 05 Wolverine #32 – 89,026 (+17.7%)
Sep 05 Wolverine #33 – 78,508 (-11.8%)
Oct 05 Wolverine #34 – 75,664 ( -3.6%)
Oct 05 Wolverine #35 – 73,684 ( -2.6%)
Nov 05 Wolverine #36 – 94,355 (+28.1%)
Dec 05 Wolverine #37 – 73,866 (-21.7%)
Jan 06 Wolverine #38 – 73,815 ( -0.0%)
Feb 06 Wolverine #39 – 75,285 ( +2.0%)
Mar 06 Wolverine #40 – 77,627 ( +3.1%)
Apr 06 Wolverine #41 – 70,965 ( -8.6%)
May 06 Wolverine #42 – 97,116 (+35.9%)
Jun 06 Wolverine #43 – 97,807 ( +0.7%)
6 mnth (+32.4%)
1 year (+22.3%)
2 year (+44.9%)
3 year ( -2.1%)

Civil War. Issue #42 picks up re-orders of 3,558, and even after taking those into account, this month’s issue is still climbing.

20. ULTIMATES
Jun 02 Ultimates #6 – 99,473
Jun 03 n/a
Jun 04 n/a
======
Jun 05 n/a
Jul 05 Ultimates 2 #7 – 99,134 ( -2.8%)
Aug 05 n/a
Sep 05 Ultimates 2 #8 – 95,980 ( -3.2%)
Oct 05 n/a
Nov 05 n/a
Dec 05 Ultimates 2 #9 – 94,493 ( -1.5%)
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 n/a
Mar 06 Ultimates 2 #10 – 94,900 ( +0.4%)
Apr 06 n/a
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 Ultimates 2 #11 – 96,751 ( +2.0%)
6 mnth ( +2.4%)
1 year ( -2.4%)

You know it’s a crazy month at the top end of the chart when an issue of ULTIMATES ships, it climbs in sales, and it still only scrapes the bottom end of the top twenty. The sales figures tell the real story, as ULTIMATES remains consistently successful despite its horrendous shipping problems.

22. FANTASTIC FOUR
Jun 01 Fantastic Four #44 – 51,589
Jun 02 Fantastic Four #56 – 42,947
Jun 03 Fantastic Four #70 – 53,066
Jun 04 Fantastic Four #514 – 49,895
======
Jun 05 Fantastic Four #528 – 55,937 (-25.9%)
Jul 05 Fantastic Four #529 – 52,963 ( -5.3%)
Aug 05 Fantastic Four #530 – 51,782 ( -2.2%)
Sep 05 Fantastic Four #531 – 49,745 ( -3.9%)
Oct 05 n/a
Nov 05 Fantastic Four #532 – 47,771 ( -4.0%)
Dec 05 Fantastic Four #533 – 46,751 ( -2.1%)
Jan 05 n/a
Feb 06 Fantastic Four #534 – 44,573 ( -4.7%)
Feb 06 Fantastic Four #535 – 43,124 ( -3.3%)
Mar 06 Fantastic Four #536 – 79,680 (+84.8%)
Apr 06 Fantastic Four #537 – 79,576 ( -0.1%)
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 Fantastic Four #538 – 78,147 ( -1.8%)
6 mnth (+67.2%)
1 year (+39.7%)
2 year (+56.3%)
3 year (+47.3%)

Civil War again, keeping the title way above its normal level. Issue #537 picks up re-orders of issue 1,416.

23. UNCANNY X-MEN
Jun 01 Uncanny X-Men #395 – 130,299
Jun 02 Uncanny X-Men #407 – 88,448
Jun 03 Uncanny X-Men #425 – 91,547
Jun 04 Uncanny X-Men #445 – 98,660
======
Jun 05 Uncanny X-Men #460 – 82,457 ( -1.3%)
Jun 05 Uncanny X-Men #461 – 91,221 (+10.6%)
Jul 05 Uncanny X-Men #462 – 91,125 ( -0.1%)
Aug 05 Uncanny X-Men #463 – 87,610 ( -3.9%)
Sep 05 Uncanny X-Men #464 – 85,885 ( -2.0%)
Oct 05 Uncanny X-Men #465 – 84,271 ( -1.9%)
Nov 05 Uncanny X-Men #466 – 82,825 ( -1.7%)
Dec 05 Uncanny X-Men #467 – 81,282 ( -1.9%)
Jan 06 Uncanny X-Men #468 – 79,808 ( -1.8%)
Feb 06 Uncanny X-Men #469 – 79,039 ( -1.0%)
Mar 06 Uncanny X-Men #470 – 79,389 ( +0.4%)
Mar 06 Uncanny X-Men #471 – 78,286 ( -1.4%)
Apr 06 Uncanny X-Men #472 – 79,157 ( +1.1%)
May 06 Uncanny X-Men #473 – 79,335 ( +0.2%)
Jun 06 Uncanny X-Men #474 – 78,140 ( -1.5%)
6 mnth ( -3.9%)
1 year ( -5.2%)
2 year (-20.8%)
3 year (-14.6%)

Virtually static over recent months. Ed Brubaker and Billy Tan take over in July.

24. X-MEN
Jun 01 New X-Men #115 – 133,056
Jun 02 New X-Men #127 – 99,672
Jun 03 New X-Men #142 – 97,867
Jun 04 X-Men #158 – 96,759
======
Jun 05 X-Men #171 – 80,307 ( -0.9%)
Jun 05 X-Men #172 – 78,889 ( -1.8%)
Jul 05 X-Men #173 – 77,154 ( -2.2%)
Aug 05 X-Men #174 – 76,342 ( -1.1%)
Sep 05 X-Men #175 – 76,555 ( +0.3%)
Oct 05 X-Men #176 – 74,635 ( -2.5%)
Nov 05 X-Men #177 – 78,405 ( +5.1%)
Nov 05 X-Men #178 – 76,195 ( -2.8%)
Dec 05 X-Men #179 – 77,189 ( +1.3%)
Dec 05 X-Men #180 – 75,559 ( -2.1%)
Jan 06 X-Men #181 – 74,094 ( -1.9%)
Feb 06 X-Men #182 – 78,653 ( +6.2%)
Feb 06 X-Men #183 – 79,477 ( +1.0%)
Mar 06 X-Men #184 – 79,480 ( +0.0%)
Apr 06 X-Men #185 – 78,815 ( -0.8%)
May 06 X-Men #186 – 79,536 ( +0.9%)
Jun 06 X-Men #187 – 77,918 ( -2.0%)
6 mnth ( +3.1%)
1 year ( -3.0%)
2 year (-19.5%)
3 year (-20.4%)

Also fairly stable, and once again there’s a new creative team in July, with Mike Carey and Chris Bachalo coming aboard.

27. ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN
Jun 01 Ultimate Spider-Man #10 – 80,736
Jun 02 Ultimate Spider-Man #23 – 87,521
Jun 03 Ultimate Spider-Man #42 – 100,151
Jun 04 Ultimate Spider-Man #60 – 104,789
======
Jun 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #78 – 79,420 ( -2.0%)
Jul 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #79 – 78,404 ( -1.3%)
Jul 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #80 – 76,906 ( -1.9%)
Aug 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #81 – 75,572 ( -1.7%)
Sep 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #82 – 75,756 ( +0.2%)
Sep 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #83 – 75,539 ( -0.3%)
Oct 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #84 – 74,670 ( -1.2%)
Nov 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #85 – 74,264 ( -0.5%)
Nov 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #86 – 76,864 ( +3.5%)
Dec 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #87 – 74,537 ( -3.0%)
Dec 05 Ultimate Spider-Man #88 – 74,213 ( -0.4%)
Jan 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #89 – 71,935 ( -3.1%)
Feb 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #90 – 71,470 ( -0.6%)
Mar 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #91 – 74,028 ( +3.6%)
Mar 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #92 – 72,269 ( -2.4%)
Apr 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #93 – 72,831 ( +0.8%)
May 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #94 – 74,051 ( +1.7%)
May 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #95 – 73,564 ( -0.7%)
Jun 06 Ultimate Spider-Man #96 – 73,472 ( -0.1%)
6 mnth ( -1.0%)
1 year ( -7.5%)
2 year (-29.9%)
3 year (-26.6%)

Now hovering in the low 70K range – substantially down from a couple of years ago, but relatively stable at its current level.

28. ULTIMATE X-MEN
Jun 01 Ultimate X-Men #7 – 100,737
Jun 02 Ultimate X-Men #19 – 92,815
Jun 03 Ultimate X-Men #34 – 110,753
Jun 04 Ultimate X-Men #47 – 95,254
======
Jun 05 Ultimate X-Men #60 – 78,613 ( -3.3%)
Jul 05 Ultimate X-Men #61 – 87,094 (+10.8%)
Aug 05 Ultimate X-Men #62 – 76,229 (-12.5%)
Sep 05 Ultimate X-Men #63 – 74,760 ( -1.9%)
Oct 05 Ultimate X-Men #64 – 75,118 ( +0.5%)
Nov 05 Ultimate X-Men #65 – 74,264 ( -1.1%)
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 Ultimate X-Men #66 – 73,720 ( -0.7%)
Feb 06 Ultimate X-Men #67 – 72,700 ( -1.4%)
Mar 06 Ultimate X-Men #68 – 72,765 ( +0.1%)
Apr 06 Ultimate X-Men #69 – 73,188 ( +0.6%)
May 06 Ultimate X-Men #70 – 72,235 ( -1.3%)
Jun 06 Ultimate X-Men #71 – 71,314 ( -1.3%)
6 mnth ( -3.3%)
1 year ( -9.3%)
2 year (-25.1%)
3 year (-39.1%)

And much the same applies here, as ULTIMATE X-MEN seems to be resuming its gentle slide.

29. MOON KNIGHT
Apr 06 Moon Knight #1 – 114,533
May 06 Moon Knight #2 – 77,552 (-32.3%)
Jun 06 Moon Knight #3 – 69,446 (-10.5%)

Reasonably healthy for a MOON KNIGHT launch. Issue #2 picks up 2,219 re-orders, while issue #1 sells a less-than-stellar 5,571 copies of its Director’s Cut.

31. UNCANNY X-MEN ANNUAL
Jun 06 Uncanny X-Men Annual #1 – 68,054

Only 10,000 copies or so behind the parent title, which is good going. This is a tie-in to the BLACK PANTHER wedding storyline, but it’s hard to imagine that playing much of a part in its sales.

34. X-FACTOR
Dec 05 X-Factor #1 – 64,861
Dec 05 X-Factor #2 – 52,705 (-18.7%)
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 X-Factor #3 – 48,307 ( -8.3%)
Mar 06 X-Factor #4 – 48,183 ( -0.3%)
Mar 06 X-Factor #5 – 46,490 ( -3.5%)
Apr 06 X-Factor #6 – 45,220 ( -2.7%)
May 06 X-Factor #7 – 44,315 ( -2.0%)
Jun 06 X-Factor #8 – 59,131 (+33.4%)
6 mnth (+12.2%)

Civil War crossover, obviously.

35. YOUNG AVENGERS
Jun 05 Young Avengers #5 – 69,956 ( +0.0%)
Jul 05 n/a
Aug 05 Young Avengers #6 – 68,733 ( -1.7%)
Sep 05 Young Avengers #7 – 67,036 ( -2.5%)
Oct 05 Young Avengers #8 – 63,873 ( -4.7%)
Nov 05 Young Avengers #9 – 63,213 ( -1.0%)
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 Young Avengers #10 – 56,347 (-10.9%)
Mar 06 n/a
Apr 06 Young Avengers #11 – 56,613 ( +0.5%)
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 Young Avengers #12 – 56,246 ( -0.6%)
6 mnth (-11.0%)
1 year (-19.6%)

Solid in the 56K region, despite its chronic scheduling problems. The book is going on hiatus after this, supposedly in part to help the next volume ship on time – although they said that about ULTIMATES 2, and look what happened.

37. SENSATIONAL SPIDER-MAN
Jun 04 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #3 – 82,715
======
Jun 05 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #15 – 54,102 ( -5.5%)
Jul 05 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #16 – 50,876 ( -6.0%)
Aug 05 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #17 – 48,555 ( -4.6%)
Sep 05 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #18 – 47,654 ( -1.9%)
Oct 05 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #19 – 75,461 (+58.4%)
Nov 05 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #20 – 73,262 ( -2.9%)
Dec 05 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #21 – 76,763 ( +4.8%)
Jan 06 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #22 – 74,923 ( -2.4%)
Feb 06 Sensational Spider-Man #23 – 59,051 (-21.2%)
Mar 06 Sensational Spider-Man #24 – 53,910 ( -8.7%)
Apr 06 Sensational Spider-Man #25 – 51,992 ( -3.6%)
May 06 Sensational Spider-Man #26 – 52,496 ( +1.0%)
Jun 06 Sensational Spider-Man #27 – 50,721 ( -3.4%)
6 mnth (-33.9%)
1 year ( -6.2%)
2 year (-38.7%)

39. FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN
Oct 05 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #1 – 100,430
Nov 05 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #2 – 82,988 (-17.4%)
Dec 05 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #3 – 81,309 ( -2.0%)
Jan 06 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #4 – 78,672 ( -3.2%)
Feb 06 n/a
Mar 06 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #5 – 59,900 (-23.9%)
Mar 06 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #6 – 58,853 ( -1.7%)
Apr 06 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #7 – 55,381 ( -5.9%)
May 06 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #8 – 53,910 ( -2.7%)
Jun 06 Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #9 – 50,177 ( -6.9%)
6 mnth (-38.3%)

Business as usual, despite the Spider-Man stunt. Look for big increases next month when they start doing “unmasked” stories, and effectively tie in to Civil War on the fringes.

40. DAREDEVIL
Jun 01 Daredevil #19 – 58,270
Jun 02 Daredevil #34 – 47,328
Jun 03 Daredevil #48 – 59,869
Jun 04 Daredevil #61 – 53,770
======
Jun 05 Daredevil #74 – 48,175 ( -1.0%)
Jul 05 Daredevil #75 – 47,800 ( -0.8%)
Aug 05 Daredevil #76 – 46,424 ( -2.9%)
Sep 05 Daredevil #77 – 45,945 ( -1.0%)
Oct 05 Daredevil #78 – 45,071 ( -1.9%)
Nov 05 Daredevil #79 – 44,250 ( -1.8%)
Dec 05 Daredevil #80 – 43,309 ( -2.1%)
Jan 06 Daredevil #81 – 44,252 ( +2.2%)
Feb 06 Daredevil #82 – 53,058 (+19.9%)
Mar 06 Daredevil #83 – 46,804 (-11.8%)
Apr 06 Daredevil #84 – 47,123 ( +0.7%)
May 06 Daredevil #85 – 47,899 ( +1.6%)
Jun 06 Daredevil #86 – 48,280 ( +0.8%)
6 mnth (+11.5%)
1 year ( +0.2%)
2 year (-10.2%)
3 year (-19.4%)

Edging slightly up for no apparent reason other than simple, honest popularity. A very good sign.

41. THUNDERBOLTS
Jun 01 Thunderbolts #53 – 35,388
Jun 02 Thunderbolts #65 – 28,224
Jun 03 Thunderbolts #80 – 18,766
======
Jun 05 New Thunderbolts #9 – 27,300 ( -1.7%)
Jul 05 New Thunderbolts #10 – 25,978 ( -4.8%)
Aug 05 New Thunderbolts #11 – 37,036 ( +42.6%)
Sep 05 New Thunderbolts #12 – 25,912 ( -30.0%)
Oct 05 New Thunderbolts #13 – 29,250 ( +12.9%)
Oct 05 New Thunderbolts #14 – 27,864 ( -4.7%)
Nov 05 New Thunderbolts #15 – 25,245 ( -9.4%)
Dec 05 New Thunderbolts #16 – 25,084 ( -0.6%)
Jan 06 New Thunderbolts #17 – 23,417 ( -6.7%)
Feb 06 New Thunderbolts #18 – 23,735 ( +1.4%)
Mar 06 Thunderbolts #100 – 26,798 ( +12.9%)
Apr 06 Thunderbolts #101 – 24,170 ( -9.8%)
May 06 Thunderbolts #102 – 23,741 ( -1.8%)
Jun 06 Thunderbolts #103 – 48,058 (+102.4%)
6 mnth ( +91.6%)
1 year ( +76.0%)
2 year ( n/a )
3 year (+156.1%)

Civil War again, and sales obligingly go through the roof.

42. SQUADRON SUPREME
Jun 05 Supreme Power #17 – 52,288 ( -5.0%)
Jul 05 n/a
Aug 05 Supreme Power #18 – 50,594 ( -3.2%)
Sep 05 n/a
Oct 05 n/a
Nov 05 n/a
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 n/a
Mar 06 Squadron Supreme #1 – 61,625 (+21.8%)
Apr 06 Squadron Supreme #2 – 51,197 (-16.9%)
May 06 Squadron Supreme #3 – 49,205 ( -3.9%)
Jun 06 Squadron Supreme #4 – 48,035 ( -1.8%)
6 mnth ( n/a )
1 year ( -8.1%)

Levelling out nicely, but it’s doing no better than it was under the previous title. Any benefit from the relaunch is gone now.

43. CAPTAIN AMERICA
Jun 01 Captain America #44 – 37,052
Jun 02 Captain America #3 – 67,445
Jun 03 Captain America #14 – 45,639
Jun 04 Captain America #27 – 36,212
======
Jun 05 Captain America #7 – 47,160 (-19.6%)
Jul 05 n/a
Aug 05 Captain America #8 – 51,842 ( +9.9%)
Aug 05 Captain America #9 – 44,638 (-13.9%)
Sep 05 Captain America #10 – 52,609 (+17.9%)
Oct 05 Captain America #11 – 45,162 (-14.2%)
Nov 05 Captain America #12 – 45,038 ( -0.3%)
Dec 05 Captain America #13 – 44,954 ( -0.2%)
Jan 05 n/a
Feb 06 Captain America #14 – 44,041 ( -0.2%)
Feb 06 Captain America #15 – 43,350 ( -1.6%)
Mar 06 Captain America #16 – 44,717 ( +3.2%)
Apr 06 Captain America #17 – 45,541 ( +1.8%)
May 06 Captain America #18 – 46,740 ( +2.6%)
Jun 06 Captain America #19 – 47,315 ( +1.2%)
6 mnth ( +5.3%)
1 year ( +0.3%)
2 year (+30.7%)
3 year ( +3.7%)

Another slow climber on the strength of straightforward popularity, and once again Ed Brubaker is the writer responsible. Now there’s something to take pride in.

48. X-MEN: THE END
Jun 05 Book Two #4 (of 6) – 54,875 ( -6.8%)
Jul 05 Book Two #5 (of 6) – 51,949 ( -5.3%)
Aug 05 Book Two #6 (of 6) – 49,565 ( -4.6%)
Sep 05 n/a
Oct 05 n/a
Nov 05 n/a
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 Book Three #1 (of 6) – 52,891 ( +6.7%)
Feb 06 Book Three #2 (of 6) – 47,370 (-10.4%)
Mar 06 Book Three #3 (of 6) – 44,899 ( -5.2%)
Apr 06 Book Three #4 (of 6) – 44,586 ( -0.7%)
May 06 Book Three #5 (of 6) – 43,581 ( -2.3%)
Jun 06 Book Three #6 (of 6) – 42,686 ( -2.1%)
6 mnth ( n/a )
1 year (-22.2%)

The trilogy wraps up with stable sales.

50. ANNIHILATION: SILVER SURFER
Jun 04 Silver Surfer #10 – 23,133
======
Apr 06 Silver Surfer #1 (of 4) – 49,120
May 06 Silver Surfer #2 (of 4) – 44,230 (-10.0%)
Jun 06 Silver Surfer #3 (of 4) – 41,637 ( -5.9%)
2 year (+80.0%)

Perfectly acceptable miniseries drops.

51. MS MARVEL
Mar 06 Ms Marvel #1 – 73,407
Apr 06 Ms Marvel #2 – 46,204 (-37.1%)
May 06 Ms Marvel #3 – 43,048 ( -6.8%)
Jun 06 Ms Marvel #4 – 40,627 ( -5.6%)

On the other hand, this is falling just a shade too quickly for comfort. But never mind, there’s a Civil War crossover imminent.

53. NEW X-MEN
Jun 03 New Mutants #2 – 45,568
Jun 04 New X-Men #2 – 58,855
======
Jun 05 New X-Men #15 – 34,007 ( -1.7%)
Jul 05 New X-Men #16 – 49,217 (+44.7%)
Aug 05 New X-Men #17 – 43,908 (-10.8%)
Sep 05 New X-Men #18 – 43,286 ( -1.4%)
Oct 05 New X-Men #19 – 41,691 ( -3.7%)
Nov 05 New X-Men #20 – 59,466 (+42.6%)
Dec 05 New X-Men #21 – 43,473 (-26.9%)
Jan 06 New X-Men #22 – 42,923 ( -1.3%)
Feb 06 New X-Men #23 – 41,463 ( -3.4%)
Mar 06 New X-Men #24 – 42,044 ( +1.4%)
Apr 06 New X-Men #25 – 40,176 ( -4.4%)
May 06 New X-Men #26 – 40,073 ( -0.3%)
Jun 06 New X-Men #27 – 39,785 ( -0.7%)
6 mnth ( -8.5%)
1 year (+17.0%)
2 year (-32.4%)
3 year (-12.7%)

Drifting down slowly, but still way ahead of the book’s pre-HOUSE OF M incarnation.

56. GIANT-SIZE HULK
Jun 06 Giant-Size Hulk #1 – 38,102

A Planet Hulk tie-in, doing very nicely. There was no regular issue of INCREDIBLE HULK solicited for June, by the way.

58. IRON MAN
Jun 01 Iron Man #43 – 36,917
Jun 02 Iron Man #56 – 36,126
Jun 03 Iron Man #69 – 31,976
Jun 04 Iron Man #84 – 29,629
======
Jun 05 n/a
Jul 05 n/a
Aug 05 Iron Man #4 – 48,403 ( -5.8%)
Sep 05 n/a
Oct 05 n/a
Nov 05 n/a
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 Iron Man #5 – 45,243 ( -6.5%)
Feb 06 n/a
Mar 06 Iron Man #6 – 40,264 (-11.0%)
Apr 06 Iron Man #7 – 49,404 (+22.7%)
May 06 Iron Man #8 – 38,860 (-21.3%)
Jun 06 Iron Man #9 – 37,650 ( -3.1%)
6 mnth ( n/a )
1 year ( n/a )
2 year (+27.1%)
3 year (+17.7%)

Finding its level – and basically, we’re back where we were four years ago.

60. NEW EXCALIBUR
Nov 05 New Excalibur #1 – 58,333
Dec 05 New Excalibur #2 – 48,816 (-16.3%)
Jan 06 New Excalibur #3 – 47,196 ( -3.3%)
Feb 06 New Excalibur #4 – 45,071 ( -4.5%)
Mar 06 New Excalibur #5 – 43,523 ( -3.4%)
Apr 06 New Excalibur #6 – 40,687 ( -6.5%)
May 06 New Excalibur #7 – 38,744 ( -4.8%)
Jun 06 New Excalibur #8 – 37,428 ( -3.4%)
6 mnth (-23.3%)

In decline, and a lengthy string of fill-ins surely can’t help.

61. ANNIHILATION: NOVA
Apr 06 Nova #1 (of 4) – 42,458
May 06 Nova #2 (of 4) – 39,602 (-6.7%)
Jun 06 Nova #3 (of 4) – 36,663 (-7.4%)

63. ANNIHILATION: SUPER-SKRULL
Apr 06 Super-Skrull #1 (of 4) – 42,779
May 06 Super-Skrull #2 (of 4) – 38,327 (-10.4%)
Jun 06 Super-Skrull #3 (of 4) – 35,576 ( -7.2%)

Dropping slightly too fast for comfort, but the numbers are still good for such D-list characters.

65. PUNISHER
Jun 01 Punisher #1 – 85,966
Jun 02 Punisher #13 – 45,756
Jun 03 Punisher #28 – 39,431
Jun 04 Punisher #7 – 48,124
======
Jun 05 Punisher #22 – 37,811 ( -0.5%)
Jul 05 Punisher #23 – 37,376 ( -1.2%)
Aug 05 Punisher #24 – 37,022 ( -0.9%)
Sep 05 Punisher #25 – 37,149 ( +0.3%)
Oct 05 Punisher #26 – 36,450 ( -1.9%)
Nov 05 Punisher #27 – 36,072 ( -1.0%)
Dec 05 Punisher #28 – 35,535 ( -1.5%)
Jan 05 Punisher #29 – 34,708 ( -2.3%)
Feb 06 Punisher #30 – 34,293 ( -1.2%)
Mar 06 Punisher #31 – 34,505 ( +0.6%)
Apr 06 Punisher #32 – 34,076 ( -1.2%)
May 06 Punisher #33 – 34,480 ( +1.2%)
Jun 06 Punisher #34 – 34,161 ( -0.9%)
6 mnth ( -3.9%)
1 year (-10.0%)
2 year (-29.0%)
3 year (-13.4%)

Rock solid.

69,70. EXILES
Jun 01 Exiles #1 – 55,899
Jun 02 Exiles #14 – 38,448
Jun 03 Exiles #28 – 39,048
Jun 04 Exiles #48 – 38,120
======
Jun 05 Exiles #65 – 34,484 ( +1.3%)
Jul 05 Exiles #66 – 34,092 ( -1.1%)
Jul 05 Exiles #67 – 33,751 ( -1.0%)
Aug 05 Exiles #68 – 33,815 ( +0.2%)
Sep 05 Exiles #69 – 43,794 (+29.5%)
Sep 05 Exiles #70 – 42,434 ( -3.1%)
Oct 05 Exiles #71 – 41,131 ( -3.1%)
Nov 05 Exiles #72 – 34,329 (-16.5%)
Nov 05 Exiles #73 – 34,008 ( -0.9%)
Dec 05 Exiles #74 – 33,881 ( -0.4%)
Jan 06 Exiles #75 – 33,485 ( -1.2%)
Jan 06 Exiles #76 – 32,843 ( -1.9%)
Feb 06 Exiles #77 – 32,998 ( +0.5%)
Mar 06 Exiles #78 – 33,506 ( +1.5%)
Apr 06 Exiles #79 – 34,119 ( +1.8%)
May 06 Exiles #80 – 34,039 ( -0.2%)
May 06 Exiles #81 – 33,908 ( -0.4%)
Jun 06 Exiles #82 – 33,342 ( -1.7%)
Jun 06 Exiles #83 – 33,143 ( -0.6%)
6 mnth ( -2.2%)
1 year ( -3.9%)
2 year (-13.1%)
3 year (-15.1%)

Ditto.

71. ANNIHILATION: RONAN
Apr 06 Ronan #1 (of 4) – 39,010
May 06 Ronan #2 (of 4) – 36,311 (-6.9%)
Jun 06 Ronan #3 (of 4) – 33,074 (-8.9%)

The lowest selling ANNIHILATION book, but still doing incredibly well for a Ronan the Accuser miniseries.

79. BLACK PANTHER
Jun 01 Black Panther #33 – 20,408
Jun 02 Black Panther #45 – 19,336
Jun 03 Black Panther #60 – 16,115
======
Jun 05 Black Panther #5 – 37,401 ( -8.1%)
Jul 05 Black Panther #6 – 35,256 ( -5.7%)
Aug 05 Black Panther #7 – 42,905 (+21.7%)
Sep 05 Black Panther #8 – 46,239 ( +7.8%)
Oct 05 Black Panther #9 – 40,173 (-13.1%)
Nov 05 Black Panther #10 – 31,987 (-20.4%)
Dec 05 Black Panther #11 – 29,327 ( -8.3%)
Jan 06 Black Panther #12 – 27,933 ( -4.7%)
Feb 06 Black Panther #13 – 26,054 ( -6.7%)
Mar 06 Black Panther #14 – 28,809 (+10.6%)
Apr 06 Black Panther #15 – 28,361 ( -1.6%)
May 06 Black Panther #16 – 28,091 ( -1.0%)
Jun 06 Black Panther #17 – 27,993 ( -0.3%)
6 mnth ( -4.5%)
1 year (-25.2%)
2 year ( n/a )
3 year (+73.7%)

Hovering in the high 20K range as the wedding draws near. Bizarrely, the charts list a variant cover of issue #1 – yes, #1 – at number 289, with reorders of 1,370.

82,86. LAST PLANET STANDING
May 06 Last Planet Standing #1 (of 5) – 32,232
May 06 Last Planet Standing #2 (of 5) – 29,165 (-9.6%)
Jun 06 Last Planet Standing #3 (of 5) – 26,447 (-9.3%)
Jun 06 Last Planet Standing #4 (of 5) – 25,529 (-3.5%)

Holding up very nicely.

87. CABLE & DEADPOOL
Jun 04 Cable & Deadpool #4 – 34,966
======
Jun 05 Cable & Deadpool #16 – 24,612 ( -0.9%)
Jul 05 Cable & Deadpool #17 – 34,393 (+39.7%)
Aug 05 Cable & Deadpool #18 – 25,304 (-26.4%)
Sep 05 Cable & Deadpool #19 – 25,298 ( -0.0%)
Sep 05 Cable & Deadpool #20 – 24,982 ( -1.2%)
Oct 05 Cable & Deadpool #21 – 25,030 ( +0.2%)
Nov 05 Cable & Deadpool #22 – 23,746 ( -5.1%)
Dec 05 Cable & Deadpool #23 – 23,296 ( -1.9%)
Jan 06 Cable & Deadpool #24 – 23,542 ( +1.1%)
Feb 06 Cable & Deadpool #25 – 22,918 ( -2.7%)
Mar 06 Cable & Deadpool #26 – 25,584 (+11.6%)
Apr 06 Cable & Deadpool #27 – 26,153 ( +2.2%)
May 06 Cable & Deadpool #28 – 25,665 ( -1.9%)
Jun 06 Cable & Deadpool #29 – 25,368 ( -1.2%)
6 mnth ( +8.9%)
1 year ( +3.1%)
2 year (-27.4%)

Another book that seems to have levelled out on the strength of buzz. A Civil War crossover is imminent.

88. NEXTWAVE: AGENTS OF H.A.T.E.
Jan 06 Nextwave #1 – 41,041
Feb 06 n/a
Mar 06 Nextwave #2 – 29,911 (-27.1%)
Mar 06 Nextwave #3 – 27,126 ( -9.3%)
Apr 06 Nextwave #4 – 26,728 ( -1.5%)
May 06 Nextwave #5 – 30,818 (+15.3%)
Jun 06 Nextwave #6 – 24,626 (-20.1%)

Last issue was boosted by the variant edition, so the drop isn’t really that significant. The book seems to be drifting slowly down the 20K range at the moment.

90. RUNAWAYS
Jun 03 Runaways #3 – 20,778
Jun 04 Runaways #16 – 19,049
======
Jun 05 Runaways #5 – 28,409 ( -1.9%)
Jul 05 Runaways #6 – 27,365 ( -3.7%)
Aug 05 Runaways #7 – 27,063 ( -1.1%)
Sep 05 Runaways #8 – 26,954 ( -0.4%)
Oct 05 Runaways #9 – 26,800 ( -0.6%)
Nov 05 Runaways #10 – 25,761 ( -3.9%)
Dec 05 Runaways #11 – 25,260 ( -1.9%)
Jan 06 Runaways #12 – 24,989 ( -1.1%)
Feb 06 Runaways #13 – 24,313 ( -2.7%)
Mar 06 Runaways #14 – 24,536 ( +0.9%)
Apr 06 Runaways #15 – 24,046 ( -2.0%)
May 06 Runaways #16 – 23,842 ( -0.8%)
Jun 06 Runaways #17 – 23,654 ( -0.8%)
6 mnth ( -6.4%)
1 year (-16.7%)
2 year (+24.2%)
3 year (+13.8%)

Exceptionally slow decline.

93. STORM
Feb 06 Storm #1 (of 6) – 32,831
Mar 06 Storm #2 (of 6) – 25,905 (-21.1%)
Apr 06 Storm #3 (of 6) – 24,214 ( -6.5%)
May 06 Storm #4 (of 6) – 22,513 ( -7.0%)
Jun 06 Storm #5 (of 6) – 21,840 ( -3.0%)

Standard miniseries numbers.

97. OFFICIAL HANDBOOK OF THE MARVEL UNIVERSE
Jun 04 Spider-Man 2004 – 32,013
======
Jun 05 Fantastic Four 2005 – 21,970 ( -2.6%)
Jul 05 Avengers 2005 – 23,668 ( +7.7%)
Aug 05 Ultimate Universe 2005 – 25,436 ( +7.5%)
Sep 05 Alternate Universes 2005 – 18,680 (-26.6%)
Oct 05 Horror 2005 – 15,849 (-15.2%)
Nov 05 X-Men 2005 – 22,986 (+45.0%)
Dec 05 Ultimates/Ultimate X-Men 2005 – 20,795 ( -9.5%)
Jan 06 A to Z #1 (of 12) – 23,423 (+12.6%)
Feb 06 A to Z #2 (of 12) – 21,828 ( -6.8%)
Mar 06 A to Z #3 (of 12) – 21,681 ( -0.7%)
Apr 06 A to Z #4 (of 12) – 21,531 ( -0.7%)
May 06 A to Z #5 (of 12) – 21,331 ( -0.9%)
Jun 06 A to Z #6 (of 12) – 20,731 ( -2.8%)
6 mnth ( -0.3%)
1 year ( -5.6%)
2 year (-35.2%)

Remarkably steady.

99. FOUR
Jun 04 Marvel Knights 4 #6 – 44,076
======
Jun 05 Marvel Knights 4 #19 – 28,153 ( -1.7%)
Jul 05 Marvel Knights 4 #20 – 27,548 ( -2.1%)
Aug 05 Marvel Knights 4 #21 – 27,023 ( -1.9%)
Sep 05 Marvel Knights 4 #22 – 26,446 ( -2.1%)
Oct 05 Marvel Knights 4 #23 – 25,100 ( -5.1%)
Nov 05 Marvel Knights 4 #24 – 24,129 ( -3.9%)
Dec 05 Marvel Knights 4 #25 – 22,753 ( -5.7%)
Jan 06 Marvel Knights 4 #26 – 21,365 ( -6.1%)
Feb 06 Marvel Knights 4 #27 – 20,977 ( -1.8%)
Mar 06 Four #28 – 20,976 ( -0.0%)
Apr 06 Four #29 – 21,233 ( +1.2%)
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 Four #30 – 20,294 ( -4.4%)
6 mnth (-10.8%)
1 year (-27.9%)
2 year (-54.0%)

Axed.

106. X-MEN: FAIRY TALES
May 06 Fairy Tales #1 (of 4) – 22,922
Jun 06 Fairy Tales #2 (of 4) – 18,817 (-17.9%)

Selling largely on the strength of the X-Men name, I suspect, but still doing alright.

108. MARVEL TEAM-UP
Jun 05 Marvel Team-Up #9 – 23,530 ( -3.0%)
Jul 05 Marvel Team-Up #10 – 22,549 ( -4.2%)
Aug 05 Marvel Team-Up #11 – 22,150 ( -1.8%)
Sep 05 Marvel Team-Up #12 – 21,240 ( -4.1%)
Oct 05 Marvel Team-Up #13 – 21,048 ( -0.9%)
Nov 05 Marvel Team-Up #14 – 26,200 (+24.5%)
Dec 05 Marvel Team-Up #15 – 20,000 (-23.7%)
Jan 06 Marvel Team-Up #16 – 19,955 ( -0.2%)
Feb 06 Marvel Team-Up #17 – 19,422 ( -2.7%)
Mar 06 Marvel Team-Up #18 – 18,944 ( -2.5%)
Apr 06 Marvel Team-Up #19 – 19,891 ( +5.0%)
May 06 Marvel Team-Up #20 – 18,843 ( -5.3%)
Jun 06 Marvel Team-Up #21 – 18,397 ( -2.4%)
6 mnth ( -8.0%)
1 year (-21.8%)

Axed with issue #25.

110. SPIDER-GIRL
Jun 01 Spider-Girl #35 – 24,402
Jun 02 Spider-Girl #48 – 24,311
Jun 03 Spider-Girl #61 – 23,429
Jun 04 Spider-Girl #75 – 24,674
======
Jun 05 Spider-Girl #87 – 19,605 ( +0.8%)
Jul 05 Spider-Girl #88 – 18,983 ( -3.2%)
Aug 05 Spider-Girl #89 – 18,538 ( -2.3%)
Sep 05 Spider-Girl #90 – 18,344 ( -1.0%)
Oct 05 Spider-Girl #91 – 18,159 ( -1.0%)
Nov 05 Spider-Girl #92 – 17,597 ( -3.1%)
Dec 05 Spider-Girl #93 – 17,057 ( -3.1%)
Jan 06 Spider-Girl #94 – 17,148 ( +0.5%)
Feb 06 Spider-Girl #95 – 16,778 ( -2.2%)
Mar 06 Spider-Girl #96 – 16,739 ( -0.2%)
Apr 06 Spider-Girl #97 – 17,508 ( +4.6%)
May 06 Spider-Girl #98 – 17,738 ( +1.3%)
Jun 06 Spider-Girl #99 – 17,915 ( +1.0%)
6 mnth ( +5.0%)
1 year ( -8.6%)
2 year (-27.4%)
3 year (-23.5%)

Axed with issue #100, to be relaunched as AMAZING SPIDER-GIRL in October. The direct market sales haven’t been that good in the last few years, but it’s reportedly doing very well in digest form and on the newsstands.

112. FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST FAMILY
Mar 06 First Family #1 (of 6) – 26,435
Apr 06 First Family #2 (of 6) – 21,444 (-18.9%)
May 06 First Family #3 (of 6) – 19,314 ( -9.9%)
Jun 06 First Family #4 (of 6) – 17,761 ( -8.0%)

A disappointing performance from a perfectly good book.

114. FURY: PEACEMAKER
Feb 06 Peacemaker #1 (of 6) – 27,423
Mar 06 Peacemaker #2 (of 6) – 21,612 (-21.2%)
Apr 06 Peacemaker #3 (of 6) – 19,177 (-11.3%)
May 06 Peacemaker #4 (of 6) – 18,379 ( -4.2%)
Jun 06 Peacemaker #5 (of 6) – 16,981 ( -7.6%)

Another slight underperformer.

137. HAUNT OF HORROR: EDGAR ALLAN POE
May 06 Haunt of Horror #1 (of 3) – 14,517
Jun 06 Haunt of Horror #2 (of 3) – 12,497 (-13.9%)

This, on the other hand, is about as good as you can reasonably expect for a book of Edgar Allan Poe adaptations.

141. MARVEL WESTERNS
Jun 06 Two-Gun Kid – 11,257
Jun 06 Outlaw Files – 7,285

Another slate of themed one-shots doomed to sell nothing, with the rest coming out in July. There’s also a Marvel Milestone reprint at number 209 featuring reprints of Rawhide Kid and Two-Gun Kid stories, which sells 3,597 copies.

154. MARVEL ADVENTURES AVENGERS
May 06 Marvel Adventures Avengers #1 – 13,891
Jun 06 Marvel Adventures Avengers #2 – 9,359 (-32.7%)

A bit steep, but direct market sales are irrelevant for this book.

163,181. MARVEL SPOTLIGHT
Dec 05 John Cassaday & Sean McKeever – 9,763
Jan 06 Warren Ellis & Jim Cheung – 6,843 ( -29.9%)
Feb 06 Joss Whedon & Michael Lark – 5,947 ( -13.1%)
Mar 06 David Finch & Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa – 4,146 ( -30.3%)
Apr 06 Daniel Way & Olivier Coipel – 3,309 ( -20.2%)
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 Mark Millar & Steve McNiven – 7,668 (+131.7%)
Jun 06 Neil Gaiman & Salvador Larroca – 5,449 ( -28.9%)
6 mnth ( -44.2%)

Well, the good news is that CIVIL WAR can boost sales even on this book. The bad news is that it still can’t get them into five figures. Is this really worth Marvel’s time…?

167. UNDERWORLD
Feb 06 Underworld #1 (of 5) – 12,479
Mar 06 Underworld #2 (of 5) – 11,134 (-10.8%)
Apr 06 Underworld #3 (of 5) – 8,667 (-22.2%)
May 06 Underworld #4 (of 5) – 8,158 ( -5.9%)
Jun 06 Underworld #5 (of 5) – 7,423 ( -9.0%)

Catastrophic. Let’s turn a polite blind eye and move on to the other all-ages books, whose direct sales don’t really matter…

170. SPIDER-MAN LOVES MARY JANE
Jun 04 Mary Jane #1 – 29,471
======
Dec 05 Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #1 – 11,171
Jan 06 Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #2 – 8,590 (-23.1%)
Feb 06 Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #3 – 7,648 (-11.0%)
Mar 06 Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #4 – 7,672 ( +0.3%)
Apr 06 Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #5 – 7,165 ( -6.6%)
May 06 Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #6 – 7,069 ( -1.3%)
Jun 06 Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #7 – 6,834 ( -3.3%)
6 mnth (-38.9%)
1 year ( n/a )
2 year (-76.8%)

174. AVENGERS & POWER PACK ASSEMBLE!
Apr 06 Avengers & Power Pack Assemble #1 (of 4) – 7,857
May 06 Avengers & Power Pack Assemble #2 (of 4) – 6,613 (-15.8%)
Jun 06 Avengers & Power Pack Assemble #3 (of 4) – 6,137 ( -7.2%)

175. MARVEL ADVENTURES SPIDER-MAN
Jun 04 Marvel Age Spider-Man #5 – 21,556
======
Jun 05 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #4 – 8,878 ( -2.5%)
Jul 05 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #5 – 8,075 ( -9.0%)
Aug 05 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #6 – 7,636 ( -5.4%)
Sep 05 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #7 – 7,199 ( -5.7%)
Oct 05 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #8 – 7,088 ( -1.5%)
Nov 05 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #9 – 6,637 ( -6.4%)
Dec 05 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #10 – 6,391 ( -3.7%)
Jan 06 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #11 – 6,107 ( -4.4%)
Feb 06 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #12 – 6,087 ( -0.3%)
Mar 06 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #13 – 5,899 ( -3.1%)
Apr 06 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #14 – 5,970 ( +1.2%)
May 06 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #15 – 6,165 ( +3.3%)
Jun 06 Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #16 – 6,114 ( -0.8%)
6 mnth ( -4.3%)
1 year (-31.1%)
2 year (-71.6%)

191. MARVEL ADVENTURES FANTASTIC FOUR
Jun 04 Marvel Age Fantastic Four #3 – 16,694
======
Jun 05 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #1 – 9,617 ( -1.1%)
Jul 05 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #2 – 6,864 (-28.6%)
Aug 05 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #3 – 6,447 ( -6.1%)
Sep 05 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #4 – 6,064 ( -5.9%)
Oct 05 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #5 – 5,969 ( -1.6%)
Nov 05 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #6 – 5,522 ( -7.5%)
Dec 05 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #7 – 5,058 ( -8.4%)
Jan 06 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #8 – 4,834 ( -4.4%)
Feb 06 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #9 – 4,711 ( -2.5%)
Mar 06 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #10 – 4,663 ( -1.0%)
Apr 06 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #11 – 4,526 ( -2.9%)
May 06 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #12 – 4,836 ( +6.8%)
Jun 06 Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #13 – 4,752 ( -1.7%)
6 mnth ( -6.0%)
1 year (-50.6%)
2 year (-71.5%)

If nothing else, it’s interesting to note that these books were doing much better in the direct market a couple of years ago. But it’s entirely possible that those sales have been lost to bookstores, newsstands and the like.

207. MARVEL ROMANCE REDUX
Feb 06 But He Said He Loved Me – 7,070
Mar 06 Guys & Doll – 6,150 (-13.0%)
Apr 06 Restraining Orders Are For Other Girls – 4,359 (-29.1%)
May 06 I Should Have Been Blonde – 4,473 ( +2.6%)
Jun 06 Love is a Four Letter Word – 3,727 (-16.7%)

Outright disaster.

Skip months
===========

ULTIMATE WOLVERINE VS HULK
Dec 05 Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk #1 (of 6) – 115,492
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk #2 (of 6) – 105,770 (-8.4%)
Mar 06 n/a
Apr 06 n/a
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 n/a

The Director’s Cut reprint of issues #1-2 appears at 292 with another 1,263 copies, taking the total to 17,201. Meanwhile, issue #3 is being rescheduled into oblivion, and the whole project is starting to take on the stench of another DAREDEVIL: FATHER.

ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR
Jun 04 Ultimate Fantastic Four #6 – 100,972
======
Jun 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #19 – 70,300 ( -1.6%)
Jun 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #20 – 69,097 ( -1.7%)
Jul 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #21 – 91,321 (+32.2%)
Aug 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #22 – 71,767 (-21.4%)
Sep 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #23 – 71,494 ( -0.4%)
Oct 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #24 – 70,549 ( -1.3%)
Nov 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #25 – 70,032 ( -0.7%)
Dec 05 Ultimate Fantastic Four #26 – 69,689 ( -0.5%)
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 Ultimate Fantastic Four #27 – 67,922 ( -2.5%)
Mar 06 Ultimate Fantastic Four #28 – 67,480 ( -0.7%)
Apr 06 Ultimate Fantastic Four #29 – 67,554 ( +0.1%)
May 06 Ultimate Fantastic Four #30 – 103,837 (+53.7%)
Jun 06 n/a

Late. Issue #30 picks up re-orders of 1,255.

INCREDIBLE HULK
Jun 01 Hulk #29 – 34,591
Jun 02 Hulk #41 – 46,355
Jun 03 Hulk #56 – 68,529
Jun 04 Hulk #73 – 44,249
======
Jun 05 Hulk #82 – 43,248 ( -1.3%)
Jul 05 Hulk #83 – 63,881 (+47.7%)
Jul 05 Hulk #84 – 58,583 ( -8.3%)
Aug 05 Hulk #85 – 53,177 ( -9.2%)
Sep 05 Hulk #86 – 52,992 ( -0.3%)
Oct 05 Hulk #87 – 42,454 (-19.9%)
Nov 05 Hulk #88 – 41,141 ( -3.1%)
Nov 05 Hulk #89 – 39,635 ( -3.7%)
Dec 05 Hulk #90 – 36,924 ( -6.8%)
Jan 06 Hulk #91 – 35,980 ( -2.6%)
Feb 06 Hulk #92 – 53,661 (+49.1%)
Mar 06 Hulk #93 – 47,437 (-11.6%)
Apr 06 Hulk #94 – 47,966 ( +1.1%)
May 06 Hulk #95 – 49,089 ( +2.3%)
Jun 06 n/a

Not solicited for June. Issue #95 picks up 2,518 re-orders.

SHE-HULK
Jun 04 She-Hulk #4 – 27,648
======
Oct 05 She-Hulk #1 – 37,220 (+60.4%)
Nov 05 She-Hulk #2 – 31,610 (-15.1%)
Dec 05 She-Hulk #3 – 29,428 ( -6.9%)
Jan 06 She-Hulk #4 – 28,214 ( -4.1%)
Feb 06 She-Hulk #5 – 27,183 ( -3.7%)
Mar 06 She-Hulk #6 – 26,631 ( -2.0%)
Apr 06 n/a
May 06 She-Hulk #7 – 26,561 ( -0.3%)
May 06 She-Hulk #8 – 43,812 (+64.9%)
Jun 06 n/a

Late.

DAREDEVIL: FATHER
Jun 05 n/a
Jul 05 n/a
Aug 05 Father #2 (of 5) – 39,745 (-42.8%)
Sep 05 Father #3 (of 5) – 37,571 ( -5.5%)
Oct 05 n/a
Nov 05 Father #4 (of 5) – 33,562 (-10.7%)
Dec 05 Father #5 (of 6) – 30,249 ( -9.9%)
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 n/a
Mar 06 n/a
Apr 06 n/a
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 n/a

Hibernating.

POWERS
Jun 01 Powers #13 – 27,007
Jun 02 Powers #22 – 26,561
Jun 03 Powers #32 – 26,774
Jun 04 n/a
======
Jun 05 Powers #11 – 27,703 ( -2.3%)
Jul 05 n/a
Aug 05 Powers #12 – 30,290 ( +9.3%)
Sep 05 n/a
Oct 05 Powers #13 – 26,535 (-12.4%)
Nov 05 Powers #14 – 26,109 ( -1.6%)
Dec 05 Powers #15 – 25,633 ( -1.8%)
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 Powers #16 – 24,924 ( -2.8%)
Mar 06 Powers #17 – 24,139 ( -3.1%)
Apr 06 n/a
May 06 Powers #18 – 23,617 ( -2.2%)
Jun 06 n/a

Not solicited for June.

THING
Jun 02 Freakshow #1 – 25,107
======
Nov 05 Thing #1 – 30,188
Dec 05 Thing #2 – 23,606 (-21.8%)
Jan 06 Thing #3 – 21,839 ( -7.5%)
Feb 06 Thing #4 – 21,190 ( -3.0%)
Mar 06 Thing #5 – 20,348 ( -4.0%)
Apr 06 Thing #6 – 20,577 ( +1.1%)
May 06 Thing #7 – 19,592 ( -4.8%)
Jun 06 n/a

Late, and axed with issue #8.

ARES
Jan 06 Ares #1 (of 5) – 20,541
Feb 06 Ares #2 (of 5) – 16,884 (-17.8%)
Mar 06 Ares #3 (of 5) – 15,895 (-14.4%)
Apr 06 n/a
May 06 Ares #4 (of 5) – 16,255 ( +2.3%)
Jun 06 n/a

Late.

KABUKI
Jun 05 n/a
Aug 05 n/a
Sep 05 n/a
Oct 05 Kabuki #5 – 11,420 (-20.3%)
Nov 05 n/a
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 n/a
Feb 06 Kabuki #6 – 11,349 ( -0.6%)
Mar 06 n/a
Apr 06 n/a
May 06 n/a
Jun 06 n/a

Late.

DAUGHTERS OF THE DRAGON
Jan 06 Daughters of the Dragon #1 (of 6) – 17,522
Feb 06 n/a
Mar 06 Daughters of the Dragon #2 (of 6) – 13,256 (-24.3%)
Mar 06 Daughters of the Dragon #3 (of 6) – 12,104 ( -8.7%)
Apr 06 Daughters of the Dragon #4 (of 6) – 11,604 ( -4.1%)
May 06 Daughters of the Dragon #5 (of 6) – 11,164 ( -3.8%)
Jun 06 n/a

Late.

And for completeness, MARVEL ZOMBIES #1 picks up another 1,224 re-orders at number 296, taking it to a total of 86,771.

6 month comparisons
===================

+91.6% – Thunderbolts
+67.2% – Fantastic Four
+32.4% – Wolverine
+25.6% – Amazing Spider-Man
+12.2% – X-Factor
+11.5% – Daredevil
+ 8.9% – Cable & Deadpool
+ 6.1% – New Avengers
+ 5.3% – Captain America
+ 5.0% – Spider-Girl
+ 3.1% – X-Men
+ 2.4% – Ultimates 2
– 0.3% – Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe
– 1.0% – Ultimate Spider-Man
– 2.2% – Exiles
– 3.3% – Ultimate X-Men
– 3.9% – Uncanny X-Men
– 3.9% – Punisher
– 4.3% – Marvel Adventures Spider-Man
– 4.5% – Black Panther
– 6.0% – Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four
– 6.4% – Runaways
– 8.0% – Marvel Team-Up
– 8.5% – New X-Men
-10.8% – Four
-11.0% – Young Avengers
-23.3% – New Excalibur
-33.9% – Sensational Spider-Man
-38.3% – Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
-38.9% – Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane
-44.2% – Marvel Spotlight

1 year comparisons
==================

+76.0% – Thunderbolts
+52.4% – Amazing Spider-Man
+39.7% – Fantastic Four
+22.3% – Wolverine
+17.0% – New X-Men
+ 3.1% – Cable & Deadpool
+ 0.3% – Captain America
+ 0.2% – Daredevil
– 2.4% – Ultimates 2
– 3.0% – X-Men
– 3.9% – Exiles
– 5.2% – Uncanny X-Men
– 5.6% – Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe
– 6.1% – Astonishing X-Men
– 6.2% – Sensational Spider-Man
– 7.5% – Ultimate Spider-Man
– 8.1% – Squadron Supreme
– 8.6% – Spider-Girl
– 9.3% – Ultimate X-Men
-10.0% – Punisher
-16.7% – Runaways
-18.4% – New Avengers
-19.6% – Young Avengers
-21.8% – Marvel Team-Up
-22.2% – X-Men: The End
-25.2% – Black Panther
-27.9% – Four
-31.1% – Marvel Advenures Spider-Man
-50.6% – Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four

2 year comparisons
==================

+135.2% – New Avengers
+ 80.0% – Silver Surfer
+ 56.3% – Fantastic Four
+ 44.9% – Wolverine
+ 30.7% – Captain America
+ 28.0% – Amazing Spider-Man
+ 27.1% – Iron Man
+ 24.2% – Runaways
– 10.2% – Daredevil
– 10.3% – Astonishing X-Men
– 13.1% – Exiles
– 19.5% – X-Men
– 20.8% – Uncanny X-Men
– 25.1% – Ultimate X-Men
– 27.4% – Cable & Deadpool
– 27.4% – Spider-Girl
– 29.0% – Punisher
– 29.9% – Ultimate Spider-Man
– 32.4% – New X-Men
– 35.2% – Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe
– 38.7% – Sensational Spider-Man
– 54.0% – Four
– 71.5% – Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four
– 71.6% – Marvel Adventures Spider-Man
– 76.8% – Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane

3 year comparisons
==================

+310.0% – Eternals
+156.1% – Thunderbolts
+133.2% – New Avengers
+ 73.7% – Black Panther
+ 47.3% – Fantastic Four
+ 18.7% – Amazing Spider-Man
+ 17.7% – Iron Man
+ 13.8% – Runaways
+ 3.7% – Captain America
– 2.1% – Wolverine
– 12.7% – New X-Men
– 13.4% – Punisher
– 14.6% – Uncanny X-Men
– 15.1% – Exiles
– 19.4% – Daredevil
– 20.4% – X-Men
– 23.5% – Spider-Girl
– 26.6% – Ultimate Spider-Man
– 39.1% – Ultimate X-Men