Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Graphic Novels on Amazon this evening. All the previous caveats apply.

1 (-). Scott Pilgrim Volume 6: Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour *
2 (+7). Blackest Night *
3 (+8). Green Lantern: Blackest Night *
4 (+2). Troublemaker Book 1: Alex Barnaby Series 3 *
5 (-3). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
6 (-2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5 *
7 (+14). Blackest Night: Green Lantern Corps *
8 (-1). Scott Pilgrim, Vol. 1: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life
9 (-4). Scott Pilgrim, Vol. 3: Scott Pilgrim & the Infinite Sadness
10 (-2). Scott Pilgrim, Vol. 2: Scott Pilgrim Versus The World
11 (-8). Cover Run: The DC Comics Art of Adam Hughes
12 (+3). Batwoman: Elegy *
13 (+7). Walking Dead Volume 12 *
14 (-4). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
15 (+29). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
16 (+1). Watchmen
17 (-4). Irredeemable Vol 3 *
18 (-4). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
19 (+13). The Book of Genesis Illustrated by R. Crumb
20 (N). Blackest Night: Black Lantern Corps Vol. 2 *
21 (+13). Dork Diaries 2: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
22 (-6). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
23 (-4). Kick-Ass
24 (+1). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
25 (N). Blackest Night: Black Lantern Corps Vol. 1 *
26 (N). Blackest Night: Rise of the Black Lanterns *
27 (+18). The Long Way Home (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 8, Vol. 1)
28 (+3). Wilson
29 (R). Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
30 (+8). Blacksad
31 (-19). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
32 (N). Star Wars: Legacy Volume 9 - Monster *
33 (N). Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps
34 (-8). The Walking Dead Book 5
35 (N). Absolute Planetary Book One *
36 (+10). Batman: Year One
37 (-9). Prince Valiant: 1939-1940 (Vol. 2) *
38 (-16). Hellboy Volume 10: The Crooked Man and Others
39 (R). Odd Is on Our Side *
40 (-10). Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season Eight Volume 6: Retreat
41 (N). Absolute Planetary Book Two *
42 (R). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
43 (-1). Star Wars: Knights of The Old Republic Volume 9 - Demon *
44 (N). X-Necrosha *
45 (R). V for Vendetta
46 (N). Ouran High School Host Club, Vol. 14
47 (-8). Wolves at the Gate (Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight, Volume 3)
48 (-). Bloom County: The Complete Library, Vol. 2: 1982-1984
49 (N). Problem Identified: And You're Probably Not Part of the Solution (Dilbert) *
50 (N). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks


Commentary:

* It's a big week for Blackest Night. Three of the hardcovers are int he top ten, and four more debut a bit further down the list. Someone at DCE will be happily counting a pile of money before this is over...

* As strong as Blackest Night may be, it cannot topple Scott Pilgrim from the top of the chart. With just a bit over a week before the final volume debuts in bookstores, it also hits #89 on the overall Amazon books chart.

* Two volumes of Absolute Planetary debut in the bottom half of the chart.

* The only manga is the newest Ouran High School Host Club, debuting down at #46.

The Flood

Bizarro is brought to you today by Human Ingenuity.

Every thinking person has considered at one time or another how the world will end. By "the world" we always mean humanity, of course, as if the entire existence of the planet were about us. It is a common religious tenet that the world was created for humans but this self-centered idea is one that I believe to be born of ignorance and superstition.

I was indoctrinated with this concept, too, and believed it for most of my life; it's difficult to let go of things ingrained in us when we are very young. But acquainting myself with the body of knowledge about the earth and the universe that humans have gathered with our nimble brains over the past several thousand years, it became increasingly obvious that nothing could be further from the truth. We are but passengers on a ship along with millions of other species of plants and animals, all of which balance rather delicately upon each other.

There is also human arrogance in the idea that we will end it all with some amazing invention like the atomic bomb – killed by our own awesomely ingenious amazingness. Oh, the tragic drama of it all. In fact, it looks as though the end of us will be at the hands of a leaky pipe.

As T. S. Eliot said, "Not with a bang but a whimper."