The “we’re going back to a second printing!” announcement is a staple of today’s comics market. What with the lack of sales figures, triumphalism over a sell-out is a way to boldly state “This thing sold pretty good.”
And publishers are getting in on the fun with creative ways to announce what is, after all, a pretty boring topic: a second printing. And also sold out AT THE DISTRIBUTOR LEVEL. That means if a shop wants to order more copies from Lunar or wherever, there are no more to be had. You might be able to find all of the following at your comics shop. Maybe you should, because they all look pretty good.
Are all of these sell outs due to the “rarity craze” that has hit collectors of late? Mmmmaybe? But they all seem to be books that people are actually reading, as well. With that in mind here are some things that recently sold out at the distributor level.
§ Ben 10# 1 was a sell-out! No surprise there. Just the right amount of time to pass for a nostalgic reboot with the animated hit’s co-creator Joe Casey being the wheel as writer? And with more than 82,000 copies in initial orders, this is a hit by any standard.
According to publisher Dynamite, “we’re seeing overwhelming hype around BEN 10 #1 already. Social media is swarming with people sharing photos of the book and their reactions. We tried to go strong on our printing to make sure every retailer would be stocked sufficiently. But the excitement around the release even far exceeded our overprinting after FOC numbers, with almost all covers nearly completely sold out at our distributors. We’re rushing forward with a second printing available to order right now!”
The second printing will feature new covers by Robert Carey as well as a “virgin” variant.
§ Bad Idea – we don’t talk about Bad Idea much here at the Beat although their comics look great and seem to have a following. I don’t know why that is. Anyway, ORDAINED, the Robert Venditti/Trevor Hairsine book about a Navy Seal turned priest who FIGHTS THE IRISH MAFIA, has been doing good. The first issue is in its sixth printing! And other issues also have multiple printings.
ORDAINED #1 Fifth Printing, ORDAINED #2 Third Printing, and ORDAINED #0: THE MACHINE #0 Second Printing have all SOLD OUT in another LINE-WIDE KNOCK-OUT a full week before they deploy into stores on May 6th!
ORDAINED #1 Sixth Printing (LUNAR CODE: 0426BD8043), ORDAINED #2 Fourth Printing (LUNAR CODE: 0426BD8045), and ORDAINED #0 Third Printing (LUNAR CODE: 0426BD8027) arrive in comic shops on Wednesday, June 3rd alongside the explosive series finale, ORDAINED #3.
The series is wrapping up with Issue #3, so you only have to get three previous issues (there was a #0) to get in on the fun:
ORDAINED #3
Written by ROBERT VENDITTI
Art by TREVOR HAIRSINE
Colors by DAVE STEWART
Cover by JORGE FORNES
$5.99 | 48 PGS. | FULL COLOR
ON SALE JUNE 3, 2026
Father Roy faces off against the blue collar butcher known only as The Machine in a bloody showdown for Cormac Byrne’s soul. But that’s not all. ORDAINED #3 unleashes a major new player in the ORDAINED world.
ORDAINED may someday be a movie starring Colin Farrell, and if we were to pick someone to play an Irish Mafia fighting priest, it would surely be Colin Farrell.
§ Image’s Kat Salazar won the “second printing” hype race with this email headline: “If Destruction Be Our Lot Inventory Wiped Out At Distributor, Rushed Back To Print This Week.’ I have to be honest, this email inspired this whole post, so thank you, Kat.
It seems the first issue of the IF DESTRUCTION BE OUR LOT by Matthew Rosenberg (We’re Taking Everyone Down With Us, 4 Kids Walk Into A Bank) and Mark Elijah Rosenberg (Approaching the Unknown, Year Million), artist Andy Macdonald (Doctor Strange, Wonder Woman), colorist Francesco Segala, and letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou sold out. It’s described as an “action-packed, sci-fi thrill-ride,” and that has led to “escalating demand.”
This second printing will feature cover art by frequent-Matthew Rosenberg collaborator Tyler Boss and pays homage to the pair’s What’s the Furthest Place from Here? series’ issue #1 cover. Creators are holding space for these sell-outs, as well:
“It is always pretty terrifying to be putting your big, weird, and really personal stories out into the world. But it’s all worth it when people show up,” said Matthew Rosenberg. “We’re so thankful for everyone who wanted to join all of us and Abe on this journey and we’re so happy now even more people will be able to.”
In If Destruction Be Our Lot, humanity is extinct and all that remains are the robots who once helped us. The robots are happier now, doing their work without human interference. But not Abe, a robotic replicant of Abraham Lincoln in search of meaning beyond the daily grind. Abe believes there must be something more out there beyond the edge of the city. After nearly getting killed, he’s determined to wander the Earth until he finds it… or gets recycled trying.
If Destruction Be Our Lot #1, second printing (Lunar Code 0326IM8564) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, June 3.
If Destruction Be Our Lot #2 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, June 17:
§ But that was not the only Image sell-out: issues #8 of the wildly popular Assorted Crisis Events series by red-hot writer Deniz Camp (20th Century Men, The Ultimates, Absolute Martian Manhunter), breakout artist Eric Zawadzki (Heart Attack, House of El), multiple-Eisner Award winning colorist Jordie Bellaire (They’re Not Like Us, Birds of Prey), and letterer extraordinaire Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (Time Before Time, Poison Ivy) also sold out. In fact it is in its THIRD printing. And it gets a new cover by Javier Pulido. But every other issue of th series has also gone to multiple printings.
In Assorted Crisis Events, Time has no bounds in this world, and readers will follow in the footsteps of normal people who are just trying to get through a normal day, but instead have to deal with time loops and space portals, confused time travelers from different eras, and alternate dimensional versions of themselves…all while just taking a stroll down the street. Meanwhile, the overarching story dives into what caused the rules of time to suddenly shift, and if it’s possible to reverse the damage. Fans of Crisis on Infinite Earths, Black Mirror, and Doctor Who will enjoy this time-bending, clock-shattering new series.
Assorted Crisis Events #8, third printing (Lunar Code 0326IM8520) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, May 27.
Available at comic book shops now:
- Assorted Crisis Events #1, fifth printingfeaturing new cover art by Pulido – Lunar Code 0126IM8427
- Assorted Crisis Events #2, third printing featuring new cover art by Pulido – Lunar Code 0126IM8428
- Assorted Crisis Events #3, second printingfeaturing new cover art by Pulido – Lunar Code 1225IM8233
- Assorted Crisis Events #4, second printingfeaturing new cover art by Pulido – Lunar Code 0126IM8429
- Assorted Crisis Events #5, second printingfeaturing new cover art by Pulido- Lunar Code 0126IM8430
- Assorted Crisis Events #6, second printingfeaturing new cover art by Pulido – Lunar Code 1225IM8234
- Assorted Crisis Events #7, second printingfeaturing new cover art by Pulido – Lunar Code 1225IM8235
§ We’re going back in time a little with this one: Corpse Knight #1 from Skybound also had a case of the escalating demands. This is from co-creator/writer Michael Chaves (The Conjuring: Last Rites), co-creator/artist Matthew Roberts (Universal Monsters: Creature from The Black Lagoon Lives!) and colorist Rico Renzi (Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse) – the second printing is coming on May 27th with covers by series artists Matthew Roberts & Rico Renzi and Chris Mooneyham (G.I. JOE: A Real American Hero). It’s about a young girl whose father comes back from the dead to help protect her in a war-torn France. But is all well? Almost certainly, the answer is no.
Corpse Knight #1 Second Printing (Lunar Codes Coming Soon | SRP $3.99) will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, May 27, 2026.
Corpse Knight #1 Second Printing Cover A by Chris Mooneyham
Corpse Knight #1 Second Printing Cover B by Matthew Roberts & Rico Renzi
§ Not all reports of second printing are via PR. Chap Zdarsky confided to his newsletter readers that MAD ABOUT DC, the edition of the great MAD comic that he edited, has…gone back to press. And the second printing will have a cover by Rafael Albuquerque.
The news compelled Zdarsky to open up.
Can I be real for a moment? Like, genuine?
NO
Please?
UGH FINE JUST THIS ONCE
I’ve been pretty moved by the overwhelmingly positive reaction to this dumb project. The signings I’ve done since it came out have shown me how much people want fun in their comics. We need more books like MAD ABOUT DC! Edited by someone else because I’m so tired!
The second printing will also include a blank cover (known as a virgin cover to some) and the FOC is today so get in on it.
§ This one is really old but I’m enjoying looking at these previews. ROYALS #1 by Derek Kirk Kim (The Last Mermaid, Same Difference) and artist Jacob Perez (Tales of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) also got a sellout! This one is a crime caper, and given Kim’s past work, you should check this one out – the second printing hit shops last week so rush on down.
§ BUT is is not only comics that have sold out of late. According to the Tiny Onion newsletter, a line of SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN merch also sold out.
On Tuesday we debuted our official merch line for Something is Killing the Children, and immediately sold out of our Deluxe Embroidered Banana and the Order of Dad Hat. It was our first official merch launch, and by far our most successful drop to date. (As a friendly heads up, we’re almost sold out of the hoodies, sweatpants, and shorts. So get them while you can.)
I knew I messed up and had underestimated SIKTC fans when we sold out of the Embroidered Bandanas a couple of hours after they went live. Luckily, we already have more of these on the way (we had a feeling they would do well after seeing their popularity at C2E2), so we’ll be replenishing them soon!
