With comic publishers limiting reprints of hot books to orders received from rushed solicitations, multiple printings of comics have become as common as dirt.  Still, even though President Obama may be running up against opposition in Washington, his comic book honeymoon is on the verge of turning into a mini-phenomenon with one book halfway to double digit printings and several others close behind.  ICv2 has confirmed that Marvel is soliciting a 5th printing of Amazing Spider-Man #583, which contains a 5-page story featuring the new president (see “Spidey Meets the Prez”).  The majority of retailers may still feel that Marvel, with its restrictive printing policies, missed a major opportunity to sell a much larger number of ASM #583, but there is little doubt that the multiple printings, incremental approach is still going to result in a very substantial number of copies sold when the last edition, whatever that will be, is printed.

 

But ASM #583 is not the only Obama comic that is going through multiple printings to meet demand.  Next Wednesday when the fourth printing of ASM #583 is slated to reach stores, retailers should also receive the 4th printing of IDW’s bio-comic, Presidential Material: Barack Obama (see “IDW’s Comic Book Bios”) that originally shipped in October, and a fourth printing of Savage Dragon #137, the issue in which Erik Larsen had his protagonist endorse Obama for president (see “Endorsement Gets Noticed”), ships to retailers on February 25th with its image of the Dragon endorsing Obama on the cover.

 

How long will Obama’s honeymoon with the comic book-buying public last?  The release next month of Youngblood #8 with a six-page story written and illustrated by Rob Liefeld  (see “More Obama Comics”) should give some indication of how long this particular sales phenomenon is going to continue.