Comic dollar sales were up 7% vs. the year-ago numbers in December, with a 5% increase in comic periodicals and a 29% increase in graphic novel sales. This follows a 2% increase in November and a 16% decline in October.
Over-all, sales were still down in Q4 vs. 2003, booking a 3% decline year over year. Comic sales were down 4% and graphic novel sales up 2% for the quarter.
Because Diamond changed its reporting method for its sales indexes from pre-orders to actual sales in March, 2003, we are unable to compare the full year 2004 vs. the full year 2003. We can, however, compare ten months for a reasonable approximation.
Using March through December as a proxy for full year numbers, 2004 was up 5% over 2005 despite the Q4 decline. Comics sales were up 5%, while graphic novel sales were up only 1% over 2003.
For the top 100 graphics novels in December, see 'Top 100 Graphic Novels Actual--December 2004.'
For an over-view and analysis of the best-selling comics and graphic novels in November, see 'Sales Still Sliding on Top Comics.'
For the top 300 comics in November, see 'Top 300 Comics Actual--November 2004.'
For the top 100 graphics novels in November, see 'Top 100 Graphic Novels Actual--November 2004.'
For an over-view and analysis of the best-selling comics and graphic novels in November, see 'Sales Still Sliding on Top Comics.' For an analysis of the dollar trends in November, see 'Comics Sales Up 2% in November.'
For our index to our reports on the top comic and graphic novel preorders for January 2000 through December 2004, see 'ICv2's Top 300 Comics and Top 100 GNs Index.'