Diamond Comics Distributors has declared bankruptcy. Graphic novel sales fell in 2024. JSA is getting more than one “Times Past” issue.
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Episode Transcript:
Diamond declares bankruptcy.
Graphic novel sales fell in 2024.
JSA gets more than one “Times Past” issue.
This is Comic Book Club News for January 15, 2025.
Diamond Comics Distributors Has Declared Bankruptcy:
After weeks — or months or years, depending on who you ask — or increasing issues, Diamond Comics Distributors has officially declared bankruptcy.
Per a press release distributed by the company, they have filed for a voluntary petition of relief under Chapter 11. Which, to be clear, does not mean the company is shutting down, so much as looking for financial help in continuing. Or as comic book writer Fred Van Lente noted on Bluesky, “It’s not GOOD, but, you know. It’s not the end.”
Per the company, as part of their restructuring, they have received a $39 million bid from Universal Distribution to purchase Alliance Game Distributors, a portion of the company. They have also received $41 million in financing from JP Morgan Chase to help meet adequate capital during the restructuring period.
In addition to the bid for Alliance Game Distributors, Diamond has also received what they characterize as “strong interest” in their business divisions, including a letter of intent from Universal to acquire Diamond UK. They are also “actively pursuing offers” for Diamond Book Distributors, Collectible Grading Authority, and Diamond Select Toys, “as well as its main comic, toy, and collectible distribution lines.”
So what does this mean for consumers? Nothing, as of yet. Business should continue as usual until the pieces of the company are sold. And even then, it’s possible Diamond may continue to operate in some form, although likely much, much smaller than it has been currently.
In addition, part of the reason Diamond is struggling is the exit of major exclusive partners. DC Comics switched to Lunar, while other publishers like BOOM! Studios are headed to Penguin Random House. So those comics should hit stores as normal. Though that said, on the store end anyone who was ordering solely through Diamond may have to restructure their own ordering schedule.
One major question? Free Comic Book Day, which is supposed to be held this year on May 3. The company has asserted that it remains committed to keeping the holiday/sales tool going this year… But that’s a whole four-ish months away, so the situation may change.
More on this as it develops.
Graphic Novel Sales Fell In 2024:
Graphic novel sales fell 11.5% last year, which seems bad until you consider that sales fell 22.4% in 2023.
The news comes via Publishers Weekly, in an article noting that book sales overall only rose 1% in 2024. And while graphic novel sales fell, they did sell 24.4 million copies, and were the fifth largest category in adult fiction, out of 12 subcategories.
And in more positive news, Dav Pilkey’s latest volume of Dog Man, The Scarlet Shedder, was the number three best-selling book of 2024.
Will sales bounce back in 2025? Per The Beat, three of the top-selling books in the first week of the year were graphic novels, including volumes of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Wings of Fire, and once again, Dog Man. So things are looking up!
JSA Is Getting More Than One “Times Past” Issue:
DC Comics’s JSA is getting a “Times Past” issue. The news was revealed via writer Jeff Lemire’s Substack, where he also revealed that the issue will be drawn by artist Gavin Guidry.
As Lemire said, while the first arc will span 12 issues, there will be a “time-out” in issue 8, set in 1945. Guidry elaborated on the issue during his appearance on Comic Book Club’s live show in New Orleans, noting that he may be doing another issue down the road, as well.
“I probably shouldn’t, but I will say we talked about me coming back and doing another flashback thing in a different era… I was like, alright, guys, this was fun. Bye. And Jeff was like, well, I did have another story in mind that I was going to do a little bit later. Maybe we could, like, bump it up and you could do it. And I was like, Look, you know, I’ll get back to you on that, but you’re selling me on it. And our editor was like, I’m on board. So that’s probably going to be the thing that I follow up this next two issue thing with.”
While no date has been announced for JSA #8, expect it to hit stores around June.
For Comic Book Club News, I’m Alex Zalben. And okay, fine, I’ll buy Diamond.
Got tips or stories you’d like us to cover? Email us at comicbookclublive@gmail.com.
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