Friday, 29 April 2011

Amazon Top 50

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


1 (-). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
2 (+2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
3 (-1). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (And Other Useful Guides)
4 (+2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books
5 (-2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book
6 (R). The Arrival
7 (-2). Fables Vol. 15: Rose Red
8 (+10). Big Nate Out Loud
9 (+2). Thor by Walter Simonson Omnibus
10 (-2). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out *
11 (+37). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition) *
12 (+2). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
13 (+14). Maximum Ride: The Manga, Vol. 4
14 (+2). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
15 (N). Lost and Found: Three by Shaun Tan
16 (+26). Y The Last Man Deluxe Book Five *
17 (-4). Batman: Year One
18 (+5). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star *
19 (-7). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
20 (+8). Dork Diaries 2: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
21 (-2). Big Nate Boredom Buster: Super Scribbles, Cool Comix, and Lots of Laughs
22 (+4). Big Nate: From the Top
23 (+1). Walking Dead Volume 13
24 (+7). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (Kindle edition)
25 (+7). Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale
26 (-17). Mister Wonderful: A Love Story
27 (+23). Irredeemable: Volume 1
28 (-8). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
29 (-14). Uncanny X-Force: The Apocalypse Solution *
30 (-13). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
31 (R). The Indispensable Calvin And Hobbes
32 (-7). The Boys Vol. 8: Highland Laddie
33 (-11). Batman: The Killing Joke
34 (R). Daytripper
35 (-25). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
36 (N). Brightest Day, Vol. 2 *
37 (N). Black Bird, Vol. 8 *
38 (-). Watchmen
39 (+1). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
40 (N). Invincible Volume 14 *
41 (R). The Walking Dead Volume 11: Fear The Hunters
42 (-6). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition) *
43 (N). Black Butler, Vol. 5
44 (-1). S.H.I.E.L.D.: Architects of Tomorrow *
45 (-8). The Walking Dead, Vol. 10: What We Become
46 (R). The Walking Dead Volume 12
47 (-18). V for Vendetta
48 (R). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life
49 (R). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
50 (R). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art


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:

* Wimpy Kid blah blah blah Still #1 blah blah blah #98 overall blah blah blah.

* The big news is the surge of Shaun Tan due to his profile in the New York Times. The Arrival returns to the chart way up at #6, while Lost and Found shows up for the first time at #15.

* The remainder of the debuts—the latest volumes of Brightest Day, Black Bird, Invincible, and Black Butler—all show up in the bottom third of the chart.

* Meanwhile, last week's big debut, Marijuanaman, is nowhere to be seen. I'll let you write your own stoner joke.

* This week's #50 title, Scott McCloud's perennial Understanding Comics, is #2,650 overall.

Wednesday, 27 April 2011

The Seventh Annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

May is rapidly approaching, so it's time for the Seventh Annual Free Comic Book Month!

May 7 is Free Comic Book Day, but here at YACB one day isn't good enough. For the seventh straight year, we'll be giving away free comics every day of May!

That's right, free comics! Each day of May I'll pick someone to receive a free comic, taken from my personal collection: duplicates, things I have in trades, and other stuff. My goal is to match up people with a comic that they haven't read but that they may like. My tastes are wide and varied, so chances are I have a comic for you.

And by free I mean free. Really. No cost, no shipping & handling, all free.

Here's what you need to do to enter:

By email (superman@umich.edu), send me the following:

* Your name
* Your postal address
* Titles of five comics that you like
* One other thing that you like (a book, a movie, an activity, etc.)
* Please include 'FCBM' in the subject line

That's it! For every day of May I'll choose at least one entry and try to match up that person with a comic, then I'll mail the comic to him or her. It's easy, and it's free!

(Note that once again this year I'm adding one more piece of entry data: something other than a comic that you like. I hope that this will make things a bit more interesting and help me better in fitting you with a comic.)

Last year I gave away 92 comics to 35 different people!

Of course, there are a few restrictions:

* You must be 18 or older (by entering you assert this to be true)
* You must live in the United States
* You may enter at any point during May, but only one entry per person.

And a little bit of fine print:

* Persons receiving comics are chosen by me, based on whether I feel I can provide a comic to you
* Even if you've entered in previous years, you're welcome to enter again
* Yes you must be at least 18 to enter, but if you are a parent of a child you can send in an entry on their behalf
* I'll try my best, but there's no guarantee you'll actually like the comic I send
* All winners will be announced here on Yet Another Comics Blog (please let me know if you don't want your real name used)
* At least one winner will be selected each day, but it may take me a few days to get to the post office, so please be patient
* I will not use your address to spam you, nor sell or give your information to others

But wait, there's more!

Each person who has a free comic chosen for him/her will also receive a copy of the 2010 Halloween ashcan A John Stanley Library Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Halloween Treat featuring Nancy and Melvin the Monster.

That's right, two free comics! How could you ask for anything more?

So what are you waiting for? Send in your entry today!

Friday, 22 April 2011

Amazon Top 50

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


1 (+1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
2 (+2). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (And Other Useful Guides)
3 (-1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book
4 (-1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
5 (-). Fables Vol. 15: Rose Red
6 (-). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books
7 (N). Ziggy Marley's Marijuanaman *
8 (+4). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out *
9 (+5). Mister Wonderful: A Love Story
10 (+15). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
11 (-4). Thor by Walter Simonson Omnibus *
12 (+6). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
13 (+8). Batman: Year One
14 (+1). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
15 (N). Uncanny X-Force: The Apocalypse Solution *
16 (-3). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
17 (+25). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
18 (-2). Big Nate Out Loud *
19 (-11). Big Nate Boredom Buster: Super Scribbles, Cool Comix, and Lots of Laughs
20 (+2). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
21 (R). The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 1
22 (+18). Batman: The Killing Joke
23 (-3). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star *
24 (+8). Walking Dead Volume 13
25 (-14). The Boys Vol. 8: Highland Laddie
26 (-16). Big Nate: From the Top
27 (-8). Maximum Ride: The Manga, Vol. 4 *
28 (-11). Dork Diaries 2: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
29 (+4). V for Vendetta
30 (R). The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
31 (-4). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (Kindle edition)
32 (-1). Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale
33 (R). The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 2
34 (R). The Walking Dead, Vol. 9: Here We Remain
35 (R). The Absolute Sandman, Vol. 3
36 (N). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition) *
37 (R). The Walking Dead, Vol. 10: What We Become
38 (-9). Watchmen
39 (R). Gunnerkrigg Court, Vol. 3: Reason *
40 (-6). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
41 (-18). Bloom County: The Complete Library, Vol. 4: 1986-1987
42 (N). Y The Last Man Deluxe Book Five *
43 (N). S.H.I.E.L.D.: Architects of Tomorrow *
44 (N). Batman: Knightfall, Part One: Broken Bat
45 (R). The Complete Far Side 1980-1994
46 (R). Serenity, Vol. 1: Those Left Behind
47 (-10). Batman: Hush
48 (N). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition) *
49 (R). Irredeemable Vol 2
50 (-24). Irredeemable: Volume 1


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:

* The Wimpy Kid stays on the top (#91 overall), but The Oatmeal inches back closer into the #2 spot. Interestingly there's a revised and expanded edition of the WK Do-It-Yourself Book popping up on pre-order down at #48 which may cause sales of the regular edition (currently #3) to start to sag.

* Top debut of the week is Ziggy Marley's Marijuanaman at #7, no doubt helped by Marley's television appearances hawking the book on various shows. Also debuting high (ha, see what I did there?) is a new X-Force collection, while down near the bottom are collections of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Y, the Last Man.

* This week's trend to ponder is the sudden re-appearance of three Absolute Sandman volumes. Anyone got any clues as to why this may be happening?

* Several Batman titles show a surge this week, including the strange appearance of an eight-year-old Batman: Knightfall collection. Perhaps we can blame a Hollywood casting call for the new Batman movie for this?

* Irredeemable Vol. 1 at the bottom of the list is #2,460 overall.

Sunday, 17 April 2011

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover!

The gorilla is safe at third on the cover to The Brave and the Bold #49 (1963) by Carmine Infantino & Murphy Anderson.


(Standard disclaimer about baseball-playing gorillas not really being monkeys applies.)


Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.

Friday, 15 April 2011

Amazon Top 50

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



1 (+1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
2 (+1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book
3 (+1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
4 (-3). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (And Other Useful Guides)
5 (+3). Fables Vol. 15: Rose Red
6 (-1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books
7 (N). Thor by Walter Simonson Omnibus *
8 (+1). Big Nate Boredom Buster: Super Scribbles, Cool Comix, and Lots of Laughs
9 (N). 21: The Story of Roberto Clemente
10 (+3). Big Nate: From the Top
11 (+8). The Boys Vol. 8: Highland Laddie *
12 (-6). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out *
13 (+3). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
14 (N). Mister Wonderful: A Love Story
15 (-5). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
16 (+2). Big Nate Out Loud *
17 (-3). Dork Diaries 2: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
18 (-11). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
19 (N). Maximum Ride: The Manga, Vol. 4 *
20 (+8). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star *
21 (+3). Batman: Year One
22 (-10). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
23 (N). Bloom County: The Complete Library, Vol. 4: 1986-1987
24 (+5). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life
25 (R). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
26 (R). Irredeemable: Volume 1
27 (-4). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (Kindle edition)
28 (-13). Invincible Ultimate Collection Volume 6 HC
29 (-2). Watchmen
30 (R). Fables Vol. 14: Witches
31 (-10). Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale
32 (-10). Walking Dead Volume 13
33 (+12). V for Vendetta
34 (-8). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
35 (-24). Superman: The Black Ring
36 (R). Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
37 (+1). Batman: Hush
38 (N). X-Men by Chris Claremont and Jim Lee Omnibus - Volume 1 *
39 (-22). The Complete Peanuts 1979-1980 (Vol. 15)
40 (-20). Batman: The Killing Joke
41 (+1). The Long Way Home (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Season 8, Vol. 1)
42 (-8). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
43 (-8). iZombie Vol. 1: Dead to the World
44 (+6). Daytripper
45 (-20). The Unwritten Vol. 3: Dead Man's Knock
46 (R). Serenity, Vol. 2: Better Days
47 (N). Black Butler, Vol. 5 *
48 (R). The Cloud Searchers (Amulet)
49 (R). Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne
50 (R). Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season Eight Volume 6: Retreat


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:

* And after one week away at #2, the Wimpy Kid moves back up into the #1 slot, as The Oatmeal collection falls to #4.

* Plenty of new books on the charts this week, including two in the top 10: The massive Simonson Thor Omnibus, and the baseball biography 21: The Story of Roberto Clemente.

* Also debuting: Mister Wonderful by Dan Clowes; the latest Maximum Ride volume; the latest Bloom County collection; another huge Marvel omnibus: X-Men by Claremont & Lee; and the latest Black Butler volume, which is the only manga on the chart this week.

* Dead Watch: All those new titles appear to have come at the expense of the Walking Dead, as there are only a surprisingly low three WD collections in the top fifty this week. A momentary blip?

* The #1 and #50 slots are #70 and #2,713 on the overall chart this week.

Monday, 11 April 2011

Minicomic: Too Many Monkeys!

On Saturday we had our Minicomics Day event at the library. I drew an eight-page many comic: "The B-Team in... Too Many Monkeys!" It's a follow-up to my 24 Hour Comics Day comic "The B-Team Returns."

You can download and read it in two different formats:

"Too Many Monkeys" - high quality PDF for reading.

"Too Many Monkeys" - two-page print-and-assemble version, to make your own physical minicomic.

I had a blast doing it, and hope you enjoy reading it. And thanks to everyone who attended the event and made it such a success!