It’s time for an early/late addition of the All-New, All-New Different Marvel Rundown. Marvel shipped a select few comics early including Rocket Raccoon and Groot #1, this week’s exclusive #1! This week we’re exclusively taking a look at this one comic following up on the previous week’s spotlight on Patsy Walker A.K.A. Hellcat #1. While the first Rocket Raccoon […]

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By Nick Eskey

Thanks for tuning in geeky guys and gals to this Sunday update of SDCC ’15 Funko toy release. Better known for their “POP!” line, Funko strives to “cover as many beloved licenses and characters as possible to remind every Comic-Con attendee why they fell in love with these stories in the first place.”

Just as a reminder, this year Funko will not be taking pre-buys of their products. So if there’s any of these exclusive toys that you want to get, best to get them onsite or see if a lucky con-goer buddy will help you out.

Without further delay, here’s the addition to our list:

Disney’s Pixar, which arguably can be thanked for the recent revival of the Disney brand, has just recently released their newest movie “Inside out.” Involving the personified personality traits in people, this Pop figure from the movie features Sparkle Hair Joy. Don’t work, there’s enough anger and depression in the film to balance this perpetually happy and hyperactive lady.

Whether he’s being an imaginary character that only a large yellow bird can see, or a real thing, this 6 inch super sized Snuffleupagus from the much beloved Sesame Street will be materializing to Comic-Con. Who doesn’t want to own a Snuffy?

Once upon a time, there was a toy who wanted nothing but to rule. Now with your help, this Regina from the Once Upon a Time series can rule your figure collection. And look, she’s got an apple for you too as a gift. How thoughtful!

Protecting your crime riddled shelves is this ReAction Arrow Unmasked. Complete with 1970’s style packaging and limited posable action, this fantastic plastic will be a must have.

Guarding the galaxy is a big job. Thankfully, this Dorbz XL Mossy Groot is the humanoid plant you’ll be wanting for the job. Featuring a healthy growth of 6 inches, this happy creature will keep everything happily dancing along.

And lastly, the big wooded Groot can’t go too far without his furry compadre. Dorbz XL Nova Suit Rocket Raccoon will be providing 6 inches of vinyl sharp tongued humor to your collection. Despite his gruff exterior, look how cute he is!

Thanks for tuning in, and see you fellow nerds for our next installment. Stay tuned!

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This November’s Marvel comics will include a ton of Rocket Raccoon and Groot variant covers, making this officially the Year of An Awful Lot of Rocket and Groot, but as a waffer-thin nod towards making this maybe Too Much Rocket and Groot, one more cover by Simone Bianchi will appear.

“We were totally overwhelmed by the response to the Rocket Raccoon & Groot variants when we released them last month,” says Marvel SVP Sales & Marketing David Gabriel in a statement. “When Simone Bianchi said he wanted to do one too, we couldn’t resist! We couldn’t be happier with the stunning cover he turned in.”
 
When we herd that Bianchi’s variant was for Spider-Woman #2 we were hoping for an homage to the greatest Spider-Woman cover of all times, but alas, it is mere a tribute to Amazing Spider-Man #129.
                                                                                                                                    
SPIDER-WOMAN #2 ROCKET RACCOON & GROOT VARIANT (SEP148238)
Written by DENNIS HOPELESS
Art by GREG LAND
Cover by SIMONE BIANCHI
FOC – 11/24/14, On-Sale – 12/17/14
                                                                                                                

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As expected, although still shockingly, Rocket Raccoon #1 by Skottie Young was the #1 comics periodical for July, according to Diamond’s just released stats. As reported earlier, RR #1 sold some 300,000 copies—100,000 of them through a single order from bulk seller Loot Crate. Even so, 200,000 copies is a high water mark for a character viewed as a minor oddity a few months ago. As usual, and perhaps comfortingly, Batman #33  took the second spot, but Harley Quinn #8 was also in the top 10, another sign of the audience diversity that is beginning to take hold.

Marvel won the month  with a 35.09% dollar market share and a 38.39% unit market share to DC’s  28.18% dollar share and 31.32% unit share. Archie edged out Boom for #7, perhaps due to the death of Archie orders.

The month was up sharply in month to month and year to year, but July was a five Wednesday month so the stats aren’t that significant. 2014 is still generally flat against 2013, but that was a huge year for sales so the industry is still in a pretty good place.

The Walking Dead’s newest trade,  Volume 21: All Out War Part 2, led graphic novels, with the new Avatar the Last Airbender YA gn from Dark Horse and even Bryan Lee O’Malley’s Seconds also making an appearance.

TOP COMIC BOOK PUBLISHERS

PUBLISHER

DOLLAR

SHARE

UNIT

SHARE

MARVEL COMICS 35.09% 38.39% DC ENTERTAINMENT 28.18% 31.32% IMAGE COMICS 9.25% 9.82% IDW PUBLISHING 5.21% 4.11% DARK HORSE COMICS 5.02% 3.80% DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT 2.18% 2.16% ARCHIE COMICS 2.04% 1.88% BOOM! STUDIOS 1.76% 1.78% EAGLEMOSS PUBLICATIONS 1.05% 0.24% ZENESCOPE ENTERTAINMENT 1.05% 0.87% OTHER NON-TOP 10 9.18% 5.62%

NEW TITLES SHIPPED

PUBLISHER

COMICS SHIPPED

GRAPHIC NOVELS SHIPPED

MAGAZINES SHIPPED

TOTAL

SHIPPED

MARVEL COMICS 93 36 0 129 DC ENTERTAINMENT 97 31 0 128 IMAGE COMICS 66 17 0 83 IDW PUBLISHING 48 31 0 79 DARK HORSE COMICS 39 29 0 68 DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT 40 4 0 44 BOOM! STUDIOS 29 4 0 33 ZENESCOPE ENTERTAINMENT 14 4 0 18 ARCHIE COMICS 15 5 0 20 EAGLEMOSS PUBLICATIONS 0 0 10 10 OTHER NON-TOP 10 89 151 39 279

 

COMPARATIVE SALES STATISTICS

	DOLLARS	UNITS
JULY 2014 VS. JUNE 2014
COMICS	32.22%	29.25%
GRAPHIC NOVELS	21.04%	24.64%
TOTAL COMICS/GN	28.66%	28.88%
JULY 2014 VS. JULY 2013
COMICS	19.23%	14.73%
GRAPHIC NOVELS	4.84%	4.59%
TOTAL COMICS/GN	14.52%	13.87%
YEAR-TO-DATE 2014 VS. YEAR-TO-DATE 2013
COMICS	1.76%	-3.16%
GRAPHIC NOVELS	3.25%	5.27%
TOTAL COMICS/GN	2.22%	-2.51%

 

TOP 10 COMIC BOOKS

RANK	DESCRIPTION	PRICE	ITEM CODE	VENDOR
1	ROCKET RACCOON #1	$3.99	MAY140797-M	MAR
2	BATMAN #33	$4.99	MAY140230-M	DC
3	AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #4	$3.99	MAY140762-M	MAR
4	ORIGINAL SIN #5	$3.99	MAY140764-M	MAR
5	SPIDER-MAN 2099 #1	$3.99	MAY140807-M	MAR
6	ORIGINAL SIN #6	$3.99	MAY140768-M	MAR
7	JUSTICE LEAGUE #32	$3.99	MAY140173-M	DC
8	GRAYSON #1	$2.99	MAY140156-M	DC
9	THE LEGENDARY STAR-LORD #1	$3.99	MAY140804-M	MAR
10	HARLEY QUINN #8	$2.99	MAY140245-M	DC

TOP 10 GRAPHIC NOVELS & TRADE PAPERBACKS

RANK	DESCRIPTION	PRICE	ITEM CODE	VENDOR
1	THE WALKING DEAD VOL. 21: ALL-OUT WAR PART 2 (MR)	$14.99	MAY140652	IMA
2	AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER VOL. 8: RIFT PART 2 TP	$10.99	MAR140061	DAR
3	DEADLY CLASS VOLUME 1: REAGAN YOUTH TP (MR)	$9.99	MAY140626	IMA
4	SAGA VOLUME 1 TP (MR)	$9.99	AUG120491	IMA
5	BRYAN LEE O’MALLEY: SECONDS GN	$25.00	APR140949	RAN
6	DEADPOOL VOLUME 5: THE WEDDING OF DEADPOOL TP	$15.99	APR140772	MAR
7	SAGA VOLUME 3 TP (MR)	$14.99	JAN140556	IMA
8	STAR WARS: THE LUCAS DRAFT TP	$19.99	MAR140021	DAR
9	BATMAN VOLUME 1: THE COURT OF OWLS TP	$16.99	DEC120323	DC
10	LAZARUS VOLUME 2: LIFT TP (MR)	$14.99	FEB140527	IMA

TOP 10 BOOKS

RANK	DESCRIPTION	PRICE	ITEM CODE	VENDOR
1	THE OVERSTREET COMIC BOOK PRICE GUIDE VOLUME 44 SC	$29.95	APR141239-M	GEM
2	THE OVERSTREET COMIC BOOK PRICE GUIDE VOLUME 44 HC	$35.00	APR141240-M	GEM
3	STAR WARS: GOODNIGHT, DARTH VADER HC	$14.95	MAY141838	CHR
4	THE SAKAI PROJECT: 30 YEARS OF USAGI YOJIMBO HC	$29.99	MAR140071	DAR
5	WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S THE JEDI DOTH RETURN HC	$14.95	APR141583	RAN
6	MIKE MIGNOLA’S HELLBOY ARTIST’S EDITION	$95.00	MAR140463	IDW
7	STERANKO’S NICK FURY, AGENT OF SHIELD ARTIST’S EDITION	$112.50	FEB140330	IDW
8	GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY: AN ORIGIN STORY YR HC	$12.99	APR141554	HAC
9	FRANK MILLER: THE ART OF SIN CITY TP	$25.00	FEB140012	DAR
10	THE SHADOW DOUBLE NOVEL ANNUAL VOLUME 1 SC	$14.95	MAY141833	SAN

TOP 10 TOYS

RANK	DESCRIPTION	ITEM CODE	VENDOR
1	ARKHAM ASYLUM: THE JOKER/HARLEY QUINN/BATMAN/

THE SCARECROW ACTION FIGURE 4-PACK

MAR140312 DC 2 MARVEL SELECT: CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER:

THE FALCON ACTION FIGURE

DEC131823 DST 3 POWER RANGERS LEGACY DRAGONZORD FEB142135 BAN 4 DC COMICS: BATGIRL “NEW 52″ ARTFX+ STATUE DEC131932 KOT 5 DC COMICS SUPER VILLAINS: ARMORED LEX LUTHOR DELUXE FIGURE JAN140403 DC 6 MARVEL: SPIDER-WOMAN BISHOUJO STATUE DEC131933 KOT 7 DC COMICS: NEW 52 POWERGIRL & HUNTRESS ACTION FIGURE 2-PACK FEB140305 DC 8 DC COMICS: NEW 52 EARTH-2 WONDER WOMAN ACTION FIGURE JAN140396 DC 9 TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURLES MINI-FIGURES SERIES 1 MAY142311 BEA 10 DC COMICS COVER GIRLS: POISON IVY STATUE JAN140397 DC

 

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I kind of had an inkling that Guardians of the Galaxy would be the big thing at Comic-Con 2014, and after looking on the floor for a few minutes…I was right. If it isn’t the Lego Rocket and Groot, it’s dioramas or the spaceship (Owl ship?) in the Marvel booth. The Marvel booth is very “under construction” but I wouldn’t be too surprised to see more Guardians imagery. I’ll be peeking back in a bit to see what else I can find but here’s a quick look!

 

Some of these are blurry spy pics because workers don’t like it when you stand there and take a lot of clear, well framed photos.

 

All my life I have dreamed of seeing Sean Bean on an airport luggage conveyor belt. Best promo of the show so far, but I just landed.

Nice Guardians of the Galaxy display at Hasbro.

This is a video of JJ Abrams telling you how awesome Star Wars VII is going to be.

Hot Wheels, I think I love you.

 

Star Wars Rebels

The stars of the show so far.

 

Seriously the only danger is that Rocket and Groot may be approaching Poochie territory with the exposure they’re getting.

Doings at the Marvel Booth. Is that Kree, Skrull or just part of an air duct?

 

The Alex Ross booth is always a treat although it’s relatively unchanged in recent years.

More Marvel swagga.

Batman is the big theme of the DC booth! I tried to get a better shot of the Batman costume displays—which will be very impressive—but too many nosy parkers.

Top Shelf’s Leigh Walton is thankful his palette of books just arrived. And MArch 2 coming in January.

Yes SLG and publisher Dan Vado are here. Despite Vado’s recent money troubles, he made it to the show with a lot of merch to sell…

…including this cool shirt. Many more like it. Check out the SLG booth across from the DC booth!

And my favorite booth! The land that time forgot, New England Comics. But I got word of a new Tick…sign coming. Maybe.

Brutal working conditions thus far.

 

 

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I’ve wondered in the past if Rocket Raccoon would get overexposed before Guardians of the Galaxy comes out. Well as long as that exposure is swell variant covers by Jeff Smith, I have no worries about that.

Skottie Young’s brand new Rocket Raccoon series is taking the comic book industry by storm, garnering rave reviews from critics and fans alike! Today, Marvel is proud to unveil that legendary cartoonist Jeff Smith (Bone, RASL) will lend his pen to a jaw-dropping variant cover to the sold-out first issue available exclusively at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con International!
                                                   
“How cool is it to see Jeff Smith — the creator of the seminal Bone — render Marvel’s SDCC exclusive variant cover, featuring this year’s breakout comic character?  Pretty cool,” says Marvel Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso.
 
As if you didn’t need another reason to head to the comic event of the year, this stunning cover will only be available for purchase at the Marvel Booth at Comic-Con International: San Diego. Jeff Smith’s Rocket Raccoon #1 variant joins an array of soon to be announced merchandise that will be available exclusively on site at The Marvel Shop in Marvel’s San Diego Comic Con International booth (Booth #2329).
 
Limited to 5000 pieces and priced at $10.00, don’t miss out on your chance to snag this epic variant cover as comics legend Jeff Smith brings his unique style and charm to two of your favorite Guardians of the Galaxy exclusively at this year’s Marvel Shop for San Diego Comic Con International!
 
ROCKET RACCOON #1 
JEFF SMITH VARIANT ($10.00)
Written by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Art by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Cover by JEFF SMITH

 

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by Brandon Schatz

A few days before the book’s final order cut-off with retailers, Marvel let it slip that their upcoming Rocket Raccoon series had garnered over 300,000 initial orders, well above expected estimates for the series. Yesterday, the other shoe dropped as reports came in regarding mass quantities of the book having been ordered by Loot Crate, a company that sends boxes filled with assorted genre and video game paraphernalia to homes via subscription.

With numbers ranging from roughly 100,000 upwards to 180,000, depending on who’s been dong the digging, many feel as though this places an asterisk on the numbers Marvel so proudly announced. To put this into context, people who are subscribing to a service are receiving product, much like a shop’s regular subscription service. What’s more, many of these copies will be read and experienced by those who don’t normally make the regular trip to the comic shop, exposing the series and comics in general to a new audience – and while Marvel’s initial announcement wasn’t all that forthcoming, the information stands: Rocket Raccoon #1 has received over 300,000 in initial orders, a number that has no doubt grown as retailers made their final order adjustments with that information in mind.

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by Brandon Schatz

When Marvel first announced the Rocket Raccoon book, I was fairly excited. Pairing the character with Skottie Young just as interest would crest for the movie seemed like a no-brainer, one that I could use to sell a few copies to interested parties. I was expecting healthy sales, but nothing that would eclipse the character’s parent title – especially given how stylized Young’s art is. What I hadn’t counted on was for Marvel to play their hand almost perfectly, netting a fairly unprecedented 300,000 copy order before the book’s final cut-off. How in the world did they swing such a huge number – especially with a relatively small amount of incentives? Let’s break things down.

It starts at the core: with creator Skottie Young. Over the years, Young has built himself as a brand quite handily. Choosing projects that played to his strengths, and running with the swell of goodwill garnered by his spot-on series of hilarious “baby” covers, the man went from some punk kid drawing the Human Torch Tsunami book, to an overwhelming creative force through sheer force of will and talent. Witnessing this, Marvel offered him Rocket – a book that not only fit his art style, but his story telling sensibilities – and while almost any comic can sell given the right bit of zeitgeist and marketing, there’s no comic that blows up this big without the core being so strong from the get go. Take a look at the numbers for any of the big two’s recent events. Marvel and DC (and pretty much any company) would have killed to have numbers like this for one of their events – books that they push so hard and stack so high with talent that they can’t help but move tens of thousands of copies without breaking a sweat. Rocket seemed to accomplish a lot more, using relatively less.

The numbers on this series are indicative of Marvel’s creative direction as of late. While you won’t find a shortage of people decrying their tactics or stories, there’s little you can do in the face of numerical data – and while the industry isn’t pulling in the numbers it did in it’s heyday, any upswing that’s occurring within Marvel is down to some genius marketing on their part. If we’re talking Rocket and the Guardians of the Galaxy specifically, it begins with the relaunch of Guardians a year ago on the back of the movie development, and the creative team of Brian Michael Bendis and Steve McNiven. Combining a bit of meticulously planned timing with that specific creative team (and the regular round of marketing and variant thresholds), the series launched to an estimated tune of 211,312 copies for issue one – or, if you want to nitpick, 80,344 copies for the prologue issue #0.1. To put that in a kind of context, the previous ongoing Guardians book from 2008 debuted to a paltry 36,282 copies. Why? Well, there clearly wasn’t anything wrong with the creative team – after all, they formed the basis of what would become the current phenomena – it was a matter of marketing and timing. Quesada, for all the good he did for the company, never quite understood the cosmic side of the Marvel universe (a fact that he’s admitted in several interviews over the years) and as a direct or indirect result, when good books were coming out in this realm, the marketing never gelled. The same goes for any comic shop – if your proprietor doesn’t understand the appeal of a certain title, there’s a good chance that book won’t get a big push within the walls of that store as focus tends to remain elsewhere. As a business entity, it always pays to ignore taste (to an extent) and push through the blocks set up in your mind in order to gain the largest audience for the property in question. This is a lesson Marvel has clearly learned.

Everything about the release of Rocket Raccoon makes sense. A great creator matched with a great concept, dropped not a month before he stars in a big movie. An announcement made months in advance of regular solicitations to build up pressure alongside the movie, allowing retailers to hear whispers from their customers long before orders are even available to place, culminating in a fever pitch when orders are due. And then, there’s the fact that Marvel let the numbers slip the week before retailers had to set their Final Order Cut-Off numbers, allowing lazier retailers to shake their head and wonder if they’ve ordered enough themselves. Everything about this launch was perfectly timed, and should result in solid sales – at least for Marvel. As for possible sell through, that remains to be seen. Some of this hypothetical 300,000+ print run involves incentive covers running off of qualifiers that have goosed the numbers – but considering the fact that Marvel put heavier incentives on the first issue of Guardians and still came up with a smaller number speak volumes for what they’ve put together here.

Now before I call it a day, there remains another facet of this marketing tale left unexplored: that of the Legendary Star Lord book from Sam Humphries and Paco Medina. In all of the hubbub for this, I you’d be hard pressed to find people talking about this book, which I think is a shame. For all the good Marvel did in marketing Rocket, they really dropped the ball on Star Lord – which is to say, the numbers are probably very healthy, but could they be as healthy as they could have been? This should have been announced the week after the Rocket Raccoon announcement. The company should have been out there pounding the pavement with preview art and concepts. I’m a big fan of the works of both Humphries and Medina, and think they are a great match for this character – one that might not be as zeitgeist grabbing as the dude responsible for years of amazing variant covers and the gorgeous art that graced the Marvel Oz books, but still, there should have been more happening. As a result of some personal hustle, I have pre-order numbers that are quite comparable to that of my Rocket Raccoon numbers. That’s down to marketing – and while I understand there will never be a time where companies like Marvel or DC will treat all properties equally, it always pains me to see a marketing opportunity lost. I want books in the hands of people who are going to enjoy them, and I can’t always do that by myself. The comic book industry needs everyone to pull their own weight the keep it running, and while a 300,000+ run of Rocket Raccoon is nice to see, it would have been great to see even a 200,000+ run of Legendary Star Lord announced as well.

That said, it isn’t over until it’s over, and who knows? Maybe in a few months time, retailers will be swimming in Rocket Raccoon #1’s while scrambling to get second prints of Legendary Star Lord. The market is a strange and wonderful place, and in the end, despite, it’s always the readers who have the final say. Hopefully, we get two very healthy ongoings out of this, as I feel both books will deserve a healthy readership. Time will tell.

[Brandon Schatz has been working behind the comic book counter for eight years. He's spent the past four as the manager of Wizard's Comics and Collectibles in Edmonton, Alberta. In his spare time, he writes about the comics he likes over at Comics! The Blog and stares at passive keyboards and empty word documents, making secret wishes and bargains that will surely come back to haunt him. You can find him on twitter @soupytoasterson. The opinions expressed are those of Schatz and do not necessarily reflect those of The Beat]

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As announced yesterday, Skottie Young, Eisner winning artist, will be writing and drawing a ROCKET RACCOON ongoing series in July. And here’s some interior pages. Also of note: David Peterson (Mouse Guard) will be supplying a variant cover. Sold and sold.

As defenders of the cosmos go, Rocket Raccoon has faced his fair share of galactic battles. He’s been a hero to the weak, a champion of the good, a protector to the innocent, and  a heartthrob to many intergalactic species across the cosmos. But is he ready to be a raccoon on the run?!

Rocket’s high-flying life of adventure and heroism may soon be a thing of the past when he becomes framed for something he didn’t do! And the authorities aren’t the only ones hot on his TAIL! (Yeah, we went there.) “I figure that a guy like Rocket, with his attitude, has swindled his way over many planets and charmed many ladies,” says writer/artist Skottie Young. “He’s racked up a malitia of ex-girlfriends I’m dubbing the Exterminators. They’re all fed up and they’ve decided it’s time they dish out some payback on his furry little tail.”

With his pal Groot at his side, Rocket will have to blast his way out of trouble (and blast his way into some) if he wants to clear his name. Along the way he’ll tussle with some of the fiercest creatures in the known galaxy! But they’re about to bite off more than they can chew if they think they can go toe-to-paw against the shortest Guardian with the biggest gun!

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That Rocket Raccoon exploitation we told you about is well underway, but when the exploitation takes the form of a series written and drawn by Skottie Young, it’s really really hard to complain. And note well: this is an ONGOING series, not a one-shot or mini. It’s Young’s first gig writing AND drawing for Marvel.

“Even though it was just a sliver of Rocket [in the trailer], I couldn’t wait to work on this guy even more,” Young told MTV News. “I think it’s going to have a connection to that nostalgic feeling for ‘Looney Tunes,’ that old animated flavor where everything wasn’t squeaky clean, you know? Daffy Duck would get his bill blasted off with double barrel shotguns… That’s what I grew up watching, and being able to play around with that in this hyper-superhero intergalactic universe will be a lot of fun.”

All aboard for Rocket Raccoon.

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My "cover" of the classic Mike Mignola cover to the 1985 comic book Rocket Raccoon was accepted to Robert Goodin's amazing blog Covered. The top is the finished ink, gouache and photoshop piece and the bottom is just my inks.This comic had a huge impact on me as a kid. After years of reading what I would later learn were just Jack Kirby knock offs when I read this I thought"this is how they should make comics!"

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