Retro Thursday: 2004′s top comics
Despite not really taking off as much as “Hush,” by Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee, “Superman” 204, kicking off the Jim Lee era of ”Superman” (with writer Brian Azzarello) was the best-selling comic of 2004. This article, from January of 2005, gives a rundown on what was big in comic books in ’04. An oversized “Absolute” edition of the “For Tomorrow” storyline is due this spring.
By Matthew Price
The Man of Steel’s first issue by comics’ hottest artist was 2004’s best-selling comic book. “Superman” No. 204, the first issue by the creative team of Brian Azzarello (“100 Bullets”) and Jim Lee (“Batman”) topped the recently released list of the top-selling comics of 2004 through Diamond Comic Distributors.
Diamond is the exclusive distributor to the comic-book specialty market of the four largest publishers: DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Image Comics and Dark Horse Comics.
Diamond does not release actual sales numbers, but industry Web site www.icv2.com estimated the sales of “Superman” No. 204 at nearly a quarter of a million copies. Diamond measures sell-in to stores, but not sell-through to consumers.
Jim Lee topped the charts in 2003 as well, as “Batman” No. 619, the conclusion to the “Hush” storyline, hit No. 1 for that year. Lee has a reasonable shot at the three-peat, as advance buzz is strong for “All-Star Batman” No. 1, written by Frank Miller (“The Dark Knight Returns,” “Sin City”) and drawn by Lee.
At No. 2 is “New Avengers” No. 1, a revamping of Marvel’s “Avengers” concept by writer Brian Michael Bendis (“Ultimate Spider-Man”) and penciler David Finch.
“New Avengers” finds Captain America reforming the Avengers after a crisis disassembled the team. This new team features fan-favorite characters Wolverine and Spider-Man, as well as Spider-Woman, Luke Cage and The Sentry.
“Superman/Batman” No. 8, written by Jeph Loeb (“Batman”) with art by Michael Turner (“Fathom”) holds down the No. 3 spot. This issue introduced the new Supergirl.
“Identity Crisis” No. 1 holds down the No. 4 slot. This murder mystery by novelist Brad Meltzer and artist Rags Morales was one of the most talked-about comics of the year, as a family member of a Justice Leaguer was murdered, and other heroes found their families at risk as well.
The first Marvel comic book written by Joss Whedon (creator of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) was the No. 5 best seller of the year. Whedon and artist John Cassaday launched “Astonishing X Men,” with the team returning to a more superheroic look.
The remainder of the top 10 include “Superman” No. 206, “Superman/Batman” No. 10, “Identity Crisis” No. 2, “Superman” No. 206 and “Superman/Batman” No. 9.
Despite DC’s relative dominance at the top of the list, Marvel Comics remained the No. 1 publisher.
Marvel had 36.54 percent of the dollar market share for comic books, graphic novels and magazines in 2004, while DC followed with 30.63 percent.
Lee’s “Hush” was a sales success for DC in the collected format as well, as “Batman: Hush Vol. 1” was the top-selling graphic novel or trade paperback collection for 2004.
“Hush” was followed by Mark Millar and Dave Johnson’s “Superman: Red Son,” a tale of a Superman who crash-landed in the Soviet Union rather than Kansas. “Spawn: Simony,” featuring the Todd McFarlane character, was third, and “Hellboy Vol. 1: Seed of Destruction” ranked fourth, building on the “Hellboy” movie buzz in 2004. Rounding out the top five was another title by Millar, “Ultimates Vol. 2: Homeland Security.”
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