Sales of the original ‘Uncanny X-Men’ series have held fairly consistently for the past six years. I wish I could go back further than the eight years shown here to see how these numbers compare to the heyday of the 1980s. And yes, ‘Uncanny X-Men’ has averaged almost 15 issues per year (and managed 19 issues in 2003!).

While there have been many spikes in sales since 2000, the letters on the chart above correspond to the most pronounced jumps:

- A: Issue 395 (sales of 130,299) featured the ‘relaunch’ by Joe Casey at the same time as the Grant Morrison relaunch of ‘New X-Men’
- B: Issue 400 (sales of 125,044) was the landmark 400th issue by Joe Casey
- C: Issue 444 (sales of 112,500) boasted the return of Chris Claremont to the flagship X-Men title
- D: Issue 475 (sales of 103,993) started Ed Brubaker’s run on the series
- E: Issue 494 (sales of 105,520) marked a three-issue spike around the ‘Messiah CompleX’ crossover

Actual data comes from the monthly top 300 charts generated by ICv2.com.

Previous sales overview include
-Adjectiveless X-Men Sales #103-211
-New Avengers #1-41 Sales
-Ultimate X-Men #1-94 Sales Analysis
-Sales Overview for ‘Astonishing X-Men’ #1-24 (and Giant-Size)
-Sales Overview for ‘Wolverine’ Vol. 2, uh… Vol. 3?
-‘Wolverine: Origins’ Sales Freefall

You may have noticed a new graphic on the left rail of the ‘Wolverine Files’ website.

Yup, we just won the Project Fanboy Award for Website Excellence for June!

And we will be one of the nominees for the Best Fansite of the Year award.

“Project Fanboy is host to the coveted Project Fanboy Awards. The Awards began as a monthly honor, bestowing fansites with the ‘Project Fanboy Award For Website Excellence’ but soon grew into accolades on a much broader scale.In May of 2008 the Project Fanboy Award was restructured and reslated as an annual event and now boast twenty-five different annual categories.

The Awards are nominated and voted on by fans spanning the globe and nominations in all categories are now being accepted. Nominations will end November 1st, followed by two months of voting with the winners announced on the 1st of January, 2009. ONLY THE TOP FIVE NOMINEES WILL BE VOTED ON IN EACH CATEGORY.

Click here to submit your nominations for the Project Fanboy Awards. All categories are not mandatory, but your nominations are important to us so please cast nominations in every category possible.”

Categories include:
1. Best Writer
2. Best Artist
3. Best Title
4. Best Indy Writer
5. Best Indy Artist
6. Best Indy Title
7. Best Comic Book to Movie Adaption
8. Best Comic Book to Movie Adaption: Actor
9. Best Comic Book to Movie Adaption: Actress
10. Best Character
11. Best Hero
12. Best Indy Villain
13. Best Indy Character
14. Best Indy Hero
15. Best Villain
16. Best Storyline
17. Best Publisher
18. Best Comic Book Related Novel
19. Best Graphic Novel
20. Best Black & White Title
21. Best Rookie Title
22. Best Comic Book News Source
23. Best Webcomic
24. Best Comic Book Website
25. Best Fansite

Sales over the past eight years of the ‘adjectiveless’ X-Men series have declined some 20%, but considering the collapse of other titles over the same period, these numbers are quite resilient, especially for the junior X-Men series in the Marvel universe.

And while there have been many jumps in sales since 2000, the letters on the chart above correspond to the most pronounced spikes:

- A: Issue 114 (sales of 135,394) featured the debut of Grant Morrison as series writer
- B: Issue 151 (sales of 124,012) was Grant Morrison’s final arc, the future of the X-Men with Marc Silvestri as artist
- C: Issue 188 (sales of 95,487) kicked off the Mike Carey/Chris Bachalo run
- D: Issue 200 (sales of 136,672) started the ‘Endangered Species’ backup series
- E: Issue 207 (sales of 104,793) concluded the ‘Messiah CompleX’ crossover event

Actual data comes from the monthly top 300 charts generated by ICv2.com.

Previous sales overview include
-New Avengers #1-41 Sales
-Ultimate X-Men #1-94 Sales Analysis
-Sales Overview for ‘Astonishing X-Men’ #1-24 (and Giant-Size)
-Sales Overview for ‘Wolverine’ Vol. 2, uh… Vol. 3?
-‘Wolverine: Origins’ Sales Freefall

Brian Bendis followed up the hugely successful ‘Avengers: Disassembled’ storyline with the new series, ‘New Avengers’. Sales for the first issue topped 240,000, and while numbers did understandably decline, sales stayed well above 120,000 for 31 of its first 32 issues. And while sales have dropped to the 100,000 range recently, ‘New Avengers’ has achieved a most impressive run during its first 3 1/2 years.

The letters on the chart above correspond to spikes in sales as shown below (some increases significant, but most less so):

- A: Issue 5 (sales of 162,412) featured Wolverine joining the team and on the cover
- B: Issue 21 (sales of 134,278) was a Civil War crossover boasting ‘New Avengers: Disassembled’
- C: Issue 23 (sales of 154,262) was another big Civil War crossover featuring Spider-Woman
- D: Issue 27 (sales of 130,531) promoted the return of the New Avengers
- E: Issue 31 (sales of 160,911) teased the infamous “most important last page of the year,” unveiling the Skrull secret Invasion
- F: Issue 40 (sales of 110,470) started the ‘Secret Invasion’ crossover issues

Actual data comes from the monthly top 300 charts generated by ICv2.com.

Previous sales overview include
-‘Wolverine: Origins’ Sales Freefall
-Sales Overview for ‘Wolverine’ Vol. 2, uh… Vol. 3?
-Sales Overview for ‘Astonishing X-Men’ #1-24 (and Giant-Size)
-Ultimate X-Men #1-94 Sales Analysis

Hulk vs. Wolverine, direct-to-DVD, premieres at San Diego Comic Con on July 24th and available in stores January 2009.

Marvel states, “This dark, violent, smash and slash story was first told in issue 181 of THE INCREDIBLE HULK and the rematches have continued to thrill comic fans ever since. Now Marvel and Lionsgate takes the best of those famous comic book battles and merges them into one heart pounding 33-minute story.”

Want more details? Marvel continues…

ALBERTA, Canada. Over the past week, The INCREDIBLE HULK has been tearing a line across the Canadian wilderness, leaving a swathe of destruction in his wake. He has to be stopped, and there’s only one man up to the job.

He’s the best at what he does, but what he does isn’t very nice.

He’s WOLVERINE, an elite agent of Canada’s top secret Department H, and he’s been put on Hulk’s trail with a single objective: stop the Green Goliath… at all costs.

Hulk and Wolverine are about to enter the fiercest battle of their lives. And they have no idea that there are a few unpleasant surprises waiting for them on the other side.

And from earlier in the summer, Marvel announced, “WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN marks the return of Marvel’s most Uncanny mutant heroes to the small screen and in 2009 the first 26 episodes of this new saga will begin airing on NICKTOONS.”

Like ‘Hulk vs. Wolverine,” this series will be debuting at the San Diego Comic Con. Watch the second trailer below and the first trailer here.

Following the huge success of ‘Ultimate Spider-Man,’ Marvel decided to ultimatize their mutants and launched ‘Ultimate X-Men’ in December of 2000. The first issue logged impressive sales of 116,017, but those numbers didn’t last, dropping down to the 90,000 range over the next 2 1/2 years.

The letters on the chart above correspond to spikes in sales as articulated below (some sales increases significant, but most less so):

- A: Issue 34 (sales of 110,753) began Brian Bendis’ Wolverine-Spider-Man crossover
- B: Issue 38 (sales of 117,729) featured Brian Bendis and Ultimate Phoenix
- C: Issue 50 (sales of 103,154) boasted Brian K. Vaughan and Ultimate Gambit
- D: Issue 61 (sales of 87,097) kicked Brian K. Vaughan’s final run
- E: Issue 75 (sales of 73,837) starred Ultimate Cable by Robert Kirkman
- F: Issue 87 (sales of 63,028) offered up the Ultimate Sentinels by Robert Kirkman

Actual data comes from the monthly top 300 charts generated by ICv2.com.

Previous sales overview include
-‘Wolverine: Origins’ Sales Freefall
-Sales Overview for ‘Wolverine’ Vol. 2, uh… Vol. 3?
-Sales Overview for ‘Astonishing X-Men’ #1-24 (and Giant-Size)

“More charts! More charts!”

The pleas of the masses have been heard!

The ‘Astonishing X-Men’ run by Joss Whedon and John Cassaday (through issue 24 and the Giant-Size finale) kicked off with unbelievable first issue sales of 209,389 in May 2004 before plateauing to still impressive numbers (between 120,000 and 140,000) for most of its run.

And despite a slight downturn to 105,508 to wrap things up, overall sales were fairly consistent considering only 25 issues came out over the course of four years.

Compare that to other titles during the same period and ‘Astonishing X-Men’ proved to be quite… uh… astonishing.

Actual data comes from the monthly top 300 charts generated by ICv2.com.

Readers seem to be enjoying these charts, so let’s take a look at the current ‘Wolverine’ series through issue 65 (not including Mark Millar’s ‘Old Man Logan’ from issue 66). As with all these charts, the actual data comes from the monthly top 300 charts generated by ICv2.com.

The relaunch of ‘Wolverine’ (Vol. 2) by Greg Rucka and Darick Robertson — also referred to as Vol. 3 over confusion whether ‘Wolverine’ from 1982 was Vol. 1 or just a limited series — kicked off with impressive sales of 158,787 in May 2003 before dropping to the 60,000 range over the next 18 months.

The letters on the chart above correspond to spikes in sales (some significant, some not so) and are as follows:

- A: Issue 20 with sales of 116,831 started Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr.’s ‘Enemy of the State’ run.
- B: Issue 26 with sales of 105,984 began Millar and Romita’s sequel, ‘Agent of SHIELD.”
- C: Issue 32 with sales of 89,026 was Mark Millar’s ‘Prisoner Number Zero.’
- D: Issue 36 with sales of 85,969 launched Daniel Way’s ‘Origins and Endings’ the beginning of the ‘Wolverine: Origins’ storyline.
- E: Issue 45 with sales of 108,680 opened the Civil War crossover ‘Vendetta’ by Marc Guggenheim and Humberto Ramos.
- F: Issue 50 with sales of 115,621 commenced the final Wolverine-Sabretooth tale by Jeph Loeb and Simone Bianchi.
- G: Issue 55 with sales of 130,707 finished the Wolverine-Sabretooth storyline in emphatic fashion.
- H: Issue 58 with sales of 83,810 initiated the first chapter of Marc Guggenheim and Howard Chaykin’s ‘Logan Dies’ arc.

Unfortunately, the last six months, covering the end of ‘Logan Dies’ and all of the ‘Get Mystique’ arc, features the lowest sales of the past five years. One suspects, however, that ‘Old Man Logan’ will result in a huge spike.

But if history is any guide, those sales won’t last.

I think the above chart really says it all, but I’m going to blather on about it anyway.

On a lark, I decided to review sales for the various series that Wolverine stars in or appears in (data coming from the monthly top 300 charts generated by ICv2.com).

As you can see, ‘Wolverine: Origins’ kicked off with an impressive 150,283 orders in April 2006 but has steadily plummeted over the course of the last two plus years (covering the first 25 issues of the run). In fact, the drop is so precipitous that the book, written by Daniel Way and illustrated by Steve Dillon, has lost a staggering two-thirds of its audience in that time.

As an aside, please let me know if you enjoyed this feature. I have sales data going back all the way to 2000 so I can do similar analysis to any number of Wolverine-related titles.

I have been remiss in providing up-to-the-minute Wolverine news, but now that I have caught up with reviews (finally!), it is high time I catch up on the news. So below, find Wolverine news from the past week with interesting tidbits from the last month sprinkled in.

From Marvel: “The first, official trailer for Marvel’s upcoming animated series, Wolverine and the X-Men, is here! Packed with more mutants than you can shake a stick at, check out what’s in store for a world in which Professor X has been taken out and Wolverine must lead the X-Men into a very uncertain and dangerous future!

“Wolverine and the X-Men begins as an explosive event shatters the lives of the X-Men and takes away their mentor, Professor X. The beaten heroes, including Beast, Storm, Cyclops and Nightcrawler, walk away from it all but then they are given a rare glimpse into the future, where they see a world in utter ruin…ruled by giant destructive robots. They discover the world has spiraled out of control because the X-Men have given up. So now the most legendary of all X-Men, Wolverine, must take the lead on the ultimate mission—to prevent the world’s destruction—while fending off enemies Magneto and The Brotherhood.

“Check it out the debut trailer below right now OR watch the bigger version at Marvel.com’s Videos section. Better yet? Watch the Wolverine and the X-Men animated series trailer in hi-res!”

.

More Wolverine news…
-Comicbookresources.com: X-Force Special: Ain’t No Dog Preview
-Comicbookresources.com: Ultimate X-Men #97 Cover by Gabriele Dell’Otto
-Marvel.com: Wolverine #65 Preview
-Marvel.com: Wolverine: The Amazing Immortal Man & Other Bloody Tales #1 Preview
-Marvel.com: Wolverine #66 Wrap-Around Cover
-Newsarama.com: Marvel, Del Ray Announce Wolverine Manga Creators
-Newsarama.com: Mark Millar on ‘Old Man Logan’ (from January)