New DC 52 Sales Trends

New 52 Sales Trends
Listed in order of #1 sales (same as September 2011 order except for Justice League #1)
TITLE	SALES	RANK	SALES	RANK	SALES	RANK	SALES	RANK	SALES	RANK	SALES	RANK	SALES	RANK	SALES	RANK		Feb % of		NOTES
	Jul-11	Jul-11	Aug-11	Aug-11	Sep-11	Sep-11	Oct-11	Oct-11	Nov-11	Nov-11	Dec-11	Dec-11	Jan-12	Jan-12	Feb-12	Feb-12		Sept
Justice League			171,344	1	46,650	43	180,709	1	158,700	1	142,248	1	138,576	1	135,374	1		62.09987		JL #1 came out at the end of Aug; sales carried over into Sept
Justice League	43,545	32	42,587	29	46,650	43	180,709	1	158,700	1	142,248	1	138,576	1	135,374	1				Row partly repeated to compare with JL of America 59-60
Batman	51,385	22	-	-	188,420	1	172,458	2	150,984	2	133,781	2	130,492	2	128,459	2		68.17695		Jul #712
Action Comics	40,205	41	39,923	38	182,748	2	153,855	3	134,875	3	112,839	3	105,088	3	96,592	3		52.8553		Jul-Aug #903-904
Green Lantern	86,007	5	-	-	141,682	3	142,344	4	122,644	4	104,199	4	97,878	5	94,087	5		66.40717		Jul #67
Flash					129,260	4	114,137	5	90,417	9	77,336	8	73,719	8	68,061	8		52.65434
Superman	36,646	45	-	-	118,376	5	94,233	10	77,747	13	68,879	10	73,719	7	69,633	7		58.82358		Jul #713
Detective Comics			39,729	37	103,392	6	110,789	6	100,077	8	89,429	6	99,342	4	94,415	4		91.31751		Jul-Aug #880-881
Batman: The Dark Knight					98,389	7	90,455	11	78,240	12	70,820	9	76,824	6	77,140	6		78.40307
Batman and Robin	55,172	20	52,704	18	85,242	10	88,926	12	77,678	14	68,400	11	65,507	9	63,450	10		74.43514		Jul-Aug #25-26
Green Lantern: New Guardians					84,033	11	71,713	17	59,774	23	53,305	24	52,305	24	50,319	27		59.88005
Batgirl	22,619	96	22,695	106	81,489	12	75,227	14	62,974	18	53,975	23	51,327	26	47,836	30		58.7024		Jul-Aug #23-24
Wonder Woman	29,720	59	29,223	60	76,214	13	79,060	13	65,621	17	57,675	16	57,626	16	54,190	15		71.10242		Jul-Aug #613-614
Green Lantern Corps	60,836	10	53,272	16	74,769	14	70,651	19	58,854	24	51,462	28	48,679	32	46,051	32		61.59103		Jul-Aug #62-63
Teen Titans	23,138	91	27,459	68	73,765	15	72,107	16	60,758	21	54,929	19	54,606	19	53,123	18		72.01654		Jul-Aug #99-100
Aquaman					72,272	16	71,240	18	62,223	19	58,465	14	65,094	10	63,093	9		87.29937
Batwoman					72,228	17	74,392	15	61,997	20	52,757	26	51,924	25	49,227	29		68.15501
Red Lanterns					66,546	19	66,747	20	54,741	32	45,244	35	42,293	40	39,105	42		58.76386
Justice League Dark					62,856	20	57,053	30	46,507	42	40,275	40	36,896	52	34,524	55		54.92554
Nightwing					62,717	21	65,749	21	57,688	28	51,668	27	50,436	28	47,732	31		76.10696
Justice League International					61,079	24	59,490	23	48,972	40	39,656	43	37,032	51	33,781	59		55.30706
Green Arrow	25,568	82	23,883	96	55,512	28	52,837	36	42,209	48	33,404	57	30,234	62	27,087	77		48.79486		Jul-Aug #14-15
Swamp Thing					54,757	29	58,634	27	52,300	36	44,660	37	43,806	37	41,235	38		75.30544
Supergirl	20,001	107	19,764	120	54,052	31	55,249	33	45,706	43	39,762	42	37,301	49	34,847	53		64.4694		Jul-Aug #66-67
Catwoman					53,670	33	57,216	29	46,976	41	39,850	41	39,631	42	37,302	45		69.50252
Red Hood and the Outlaws					50,501	39	53,444	35	45,126	44	41,023	39	38,304	45	35,908	51		71.10354
Birds of Prey	27,102	71	26,043	80	50,466	40	47,840	43	36,802	61	31,014	63	28,530	67	27,338	74		54.17113		Jul-Aug #14-15
Savage Hawkman					50,359	41	42,987	48	31,659	69	25,437	74	21,570	85	19,184	103		38.09448
Superboy	22,102	98	20,563	113	50,047	42	51,682	39	42,698	47	36,002	54	33,677	58	31,068	65		62.07765		Jul-Aug #9-10
Stormwatch					46,397	44	47,520	44	39,962	56	30,987	64	29,112	65	26,076	81		56.20191
Fury of Firestorm the Nuclear Men					46,383	45	39,591	54	28,489	78	23,049	87	19,196	96	17,246	119		37.18173
Legion of Super-Heroes	21,788	100	21,373	111	45,362	46	42,504	50	31,481	71	25,049	77	23,062	79	21,085	98		46.48164		Jul-Aug #15-16
Suicide Squad					44,981	47	44,613	45	36,744	62	31,095	62	29,453	64	27,751	71		61.69494
Deathstroke					42,325	54	40,182	53	30,379	74	23,370	82	21,485	86	19,175	104		45.30419
Legion Lost					41,726	56	38,385	59	28,103	80	21,816	94	19,394	94	17,502	116		41.94507
Animal-Man					41,446	57	48,089	42	44,266	45	38,367	46	36,516	53	34,654	54		83.61241
Batwing					41,382	58	38,475	58	31,599	70	24,053	80	21,632	84	19,479	102		47.07119
DC Universe Presents					41,295	60	37,426	63	27,917	81	21,958	92	19,843	93	18,169	110		43.99806
Blue Beetle					40,003	62	35,456	69	24,851	89	19,267	104	17,138	111	15,331	130		38.32463
Captain Atom					39,699	63	34,478	71	24,146	93	17,917	115	15,693	120	13,698	140		34.50465
All Star Western	10,521	169	10,369	199	39,313	65	35,871	68	29,498	75	26,414	70	24,485	73	23,553	87		59.91148		Jul-Aug Jonah Hex #69-70
Hawk and Dove					38,065	68	32,461	73	24,851	90	18,014	114	15,775	119	14,291	136		37.54368		CANCELLED
Resurrection Man					37,566	71	34,704	70	26,532	85	20,754	99	18,675	101	16,712	121		44.48704
Demon Knights					37,442	72	38,007	62	31,213	72	25,298	75	23,241	78	21,128	97		56.42861
Frankenstein Agent of Shade					37,396	73	36,581	65	28,681	75	22,331	90	20,463	91	18,417	108		49.24858
Mister Terrific					37,305	74	32,367	75	22,754	99	16,167	127	13,802	130	11,601	164		31.09771		CANCELLED
Grifter					37,100	75	35,910	67	26,822	84	20,337	100	18,054	105	16,251	126		43.80323
Voodoo					36,271	76	31,221	80	22,551	105	18,633	110	15,915	117	14,780	132		40.74881
Blackhawks					36,013	77	28,534	86	20,114	115	15,026	135	12,267	143	10,730	172		29.7948		CANCELLED
I Vampire					35,715	78	31,139	81	23,463	96	19,441	103	16,934	112	16,338	124		45.74549
Static Shock					34,004	80	29,124	85	21,937	109	15,763	131	13,350	132	11,773	160		34.6224		CANCELLED
Men of War					33,739	81	28,301	87	21,393	112	14,977	139	12,699	137	10,872	167		32.22384		CANCELLED
Omac					33,581	82	29,434	84	22,572	104	16,534	126	14,618	125	12,646	150		37.6582		CANCELLED
COMMENTS
Info derived from The Comic Chronicles; other sites may have different sales figures; rankings listed are for *all* publishers
Flashpoint had already started in July 2011, hence the absense of the previous Flash series
The final issue of Justice League of America and first of Justice League came out the same month, hence the double listing above
Swamp Thing, Supergirl, Catwoman, Superboy, Animal-Man, and Demon Knights actually sold better with #2 than #1, though that trend didn't continue
Animal-Man is the only title whose #3 sold better than its #1, despite a drop from #2
Green Lantern Corps was the first title to sell below it's August 2011 levels, with #4; #3 sold below July 2011; with #6, Legion of Super-Heroes also dipped below July-Aug figures
Batman: The Dark Knight enjoyed an increase in both January and February
Selling at <50% of #1: Green Arrow, Legion of Super-Heroes, Deathstroke, Batwing, Frankenstein Agent of SHADE, Fury of Firestorm, Legion Lost, DC Universe Presents, Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, Resurrection Man, Grifter, Voodoo, I Vampire, all the cancelled titles
Every title except Detective Comics and Aquaman has lost over 10,000 sales since #1; both did dip below but recovered
Detective Comics has had the least percentage attrition since #1, Blackhawks the most (the latter is the lowest selling of the 52, with Justice League the highest)
For percentage of Feb sales over Sept sales, August sales for Justice League#1 were included in Sept sales of same; not a perfect solution but as accurate as we're likely to get
Captain Atom is the only non-cancelled title whose sales have dipped below one of the cancelled titles (Hawk and Dove)
Justice League and Batman are still selling over 100,000 copies
Justice League, Batman, Action Comics, Superman, Detective Comics, Batgirl, and All Star Western (Jonah Hex) are still selling more than double their pre-renumbering figures

Getting to Washington State’s Half Price Books from Downtown Seattle by Bus or Train

I’m very choosy as to which stores I publicly endorse, but the Half Price Books chain, at least in Washington State always has a decent selection of used and remaindered books, comics, DVDs, and CDs. If you’re at all into pop culture and part of your reason for travelling is to shop for books, movies, etc., it’s worth going out of your way to check a few of these out.  All Washington branches of the franchise can be reached from Seattle by public transportation. I may at some point cover other states, but I’m only able to properly verify the Washington ones.  All suggestions below assume Pike Place Market as a starting point.

1.      Capitol Hill, Seattle (115 Belmont Ave E): This one you can walk to if you’re so inclined. Otherwise, shortest (and most expensive) bus ride is to take the 402 (Community Transit) from 4^th & Union St to Howell St & Yale Ave.  Cheaper and with less of a walk upon exiting is to take the 14 or 43 (Metro Transit) from Pike St & 4^th Ave to Summit Ave & E Olive Way.  Equally cheap and shorter bus ride but longer walk upon exiting is to take the 10 (Metro Transit) from Pike St & 4^th Ave to E Pine St & Summit Ave. In between in terms of price, ride length, and walking is 545 (Sound Transit); get on at 4^th Ave & Pike St and exit at Bellevue Ave & E Olive St.  This is a well-travelled area so there may be other busses as well.

2.      University District, Seattle (4709 Roosevelt Way NE): Another well-travelled area, so more options may be possible: 510, 511 (Sound Transit) from 4^th Ave & Union St to I-5 & NE 45^th St; 71, 72, 73 (Metro Transit) from University Street Station Bay A in downtown transit tunnel (any other locations in the tunnel okay  as long as they’re Bay A) to University Way NE & NE 45^th St; 66 (Metro Transit) from 3^rd Ave & Union St to 11^th Ave NE & NE 47^th St

3.      Note: only covering means that you can do in two busses. James Village, Lynnwood (19500 Hwy 99): 511 (Sound Transit) from 4^th Ave & Union St to Lynnwood Transit Bay D2, then from Bay C3, 115, 116 (Community Transit) to 200^th St & 64^th Ave W; a longer bus ride but cheaper way is 358 (Metro Transit) from 3^rd Ave & Union St to Aurora Village Transit Center Bay 10, then from bay 9, Swift bus (Community Transit) to Heron NB Station & 200^th St SW (or from Aurora Village, go to Bay 7 and take the 101 (Metro Transit) to Hwy 99 & 196^th St SW)

4.      Across from Everett Mall, Everett (1321 SE Everett Mall Way): Take the 510 (Everett Transit) from 4^th Ave & Union St (Sound Transit) to Everett Station Bay A4 then take the 7 from Bay F1, 17 from Bay D4, or 701 Express (Everett Transit) from Bay I2 to Everett Mall (702 going the other direction); you can also take the 501 bus but get off at South Everett Freeway station Bay 6 and take the 27 or 29 (Everett Transit) to the mall.

5.      Crossroads Shopping Centre, Bellevue (15600 N.E. 8th St.): Time-wise, your best best by far is to enter the Downtown Transit Tunnel at Bay D (e.g. University Station but any will do as long as it’s Bay D), take the 550 bus (Sound Transit) to Bellevue Transit Center Bay 12, then from Bay 3, take the new B bus (Metro Transit) to 156^th Ave

6.      Near Redmond Town Center, Redmond (7805 Leary Way): From 4^th Ave & Pike St take the 545 (Sound Transit) to SR 202 & 166^th Ave NE and walk from there.

7.      Parkway Square (Tukwila): The fastest way is to enter the Downtown Transit Tunnel at Bay C (e.g. University Station but any will do as long as it’s Bay C) and take the 150 (Metro Transit) to Andover Park & Baker Blvd, at Tukwila Southcenter. From there you can 155 (Metro Transit) to Southcenter Pkwy & S 168^th St or the 156 (Metro Transit) to Strander Blvd & 61^st Pl S but in all honesty it’s a lot faster to just walk north to Southcenter Pkwy and then walk west from there than it is to wait for the connecting bus. A longer, more expensive but also far more relaxing way to get there is, still starting from Bay C, to take the 599 Airport train (Sound Transit) to Tukwila International Blvd Station and from Bay 2 there, take the 140 bus to Baker Blvd W & Andover Park W, then follow the above instructions/

8.      Rainier Place, Tacoma (4027 Tacoma Mall Blvd.): From 2^nd Ave & Stewart St take the 594 (Sound Transit) to Commerce St Transit Area Zone G; from there take the 3 bus (Pierce Transit) to Pine St & S 38^th St or walk to Zone F and take the 57 (Pierce Transit) Tacoma Mall Blvd & S Steele St. Rainier Place is right across from Tacoma Mall

10 Decent Non-Seattle Places to Visit While in the Seattle Area (Via Bus or Train)

Interesting side trips to visit while in the Seattle area. Busses below assume a downtown stop. Most stops described are also serviced by busses from other locations.  Sound Transit busses are generally considerably faster than Metro Transit busses, being express. More suggestions to follow on a future list.

1.      Alderwood Mall: Nice shopping mall (mostly indoor but some outdoor parts) with fountains and a horse sculpture. Best way to get there by bus from downtown: 511 (Sound Transit) to Lynnwood Transit Center., There 115, 116, 201, 202 (Community Transit) or 535 (Sound Transit) will take you to the mall.

2.      Angle Park Park (Seatac): Nice relaxing family park. Best way to get there by bus/train from downtown: Enter the Downtown Transit Tunnel and take the 599 Airport train (Sound Transit) to Tukwila International Blvd Station; From there take the A bus (Metro Transit) to the park.

3.      Cougar Mountain Zoological Park (Issaquah): Fairly small as zoos go but also uncrowded and with a good look at the animals. Best way to get there by bus from downtown: 554 (Sound Transit) to Issaquah Transit Center. Then unfortunately it’s a long (30 min or so) hike up Newport Drive.

4.      Downtown Marysville (Marysville): Marysville is a fascinating study of contrasts in that the main road has a small town feel, and yet there’s a long stretch of shopping opportunities: Best way to get there by bus from downtown: 510 (Sound Transit) to Everett Station, then 201 or 202 (Community Transit) north to Marysville

5.      Downtown Olympia (Olympia): Visit Washington State’s capitol, with various local businesses (often left wing) and the Heritage Fountain. Getting there by bus/train from downtown:590, 593, 594 (Sound Transit buses) or Sounder (Sound Transit train) to Tacoma Dome Station. From there transfer to 603, 605 (InterCity Transit).

6.      Glass Bridge (Tacoma): Lots of glass sculptures. Free, though it leads to the Glass Museum, which costs money.  Best way to get there by bus from downtown: 554 (Sound Transit) 590, 593, 594 (Sound Transit buses) or Sounder (Sound Transit train) to Tacoma Dome Station. From there, take the free TacomaLink train (Sound Transit) and get off at Union Station

7.      I-90 Sculpture Park (Mercer Island): Like Olympic Sculpture Park, lots of unique and interesting sculptures at a relaxing park. It’s right at the Mercer Island Park & Ride, on the south side. Best way to get there by bus from downtown: 554 (Sound Transit).

8.      Redmond Town Center: Large cute outdoor shopping centre with a children’s play area. Best way to get there by bus from downtown: 545 (Sound Transit) to SR 202 & 166 Ave NE, then walk 1/3 mile southwest to the shopping center

9.      Tukwila Southcenter & Tukwila Pond Park (Tukwila): for a study of contrasts there’s a lovely nature preserve across the street from a major shopping centre. Best way to get there by bus/train from downtown: Fastest way is 150 bus (Metro Transit). For a longer but more relaxing ride, enter the Downtown Transit Tunnel and take the 599 Airport train (Sound Transit) to Tukwila International Blvd Station; from there, take 140 bus (South Transit).

10.  Wild Waves Theme Park (Federal Way): Water themed park; also some traditional thrill rides. Best way to get there by bus from downtown: 578 (Sound Transit) to Federal Way Transit Center, then 402 (Pierce Transit) to the theme park.

Remembering… The AAU Shuperstar!

Back in the 1970s a unique superhero appeared on the back covers of numerous DC comics. Nothing is known about the back story of the AAU Shuperstar, a hero sporting a blue and yellow disco jumpsuit. He had blond hair, no mask, and yet no known secret identity. He constantly spoke in shoe puns and attracted like-minded villains such as Dirty Sneakers, Sinister Sole, and Missile-Toe.  The purpose of the one-page stories were to sell AAU brand shoes, but the AAU Shuperstar possessed abilities far beyond what the shoes would likely give their owners. Now most of his abilities to be sure were simply exaggerations on what shoes can allow (super-speed, super-jumping, super-kicking – he kicked Dirty Sneakers into outer space, possibly killing him; also the ability to block miniature missiles with the shoes.  However, he also had the ability to detect when evil was a-foot; no shoes are going to give their owners even minor mental abilities!  As another site pointed out (I can’t recall which one), the Dirty Sneakers ad is particularly fascinating because AAU Shuperstar is well groomed, likely having some money, while Dirty Sneakers was obviously much closer to the poverty with some hippy tendencies, and thus likely to not be entirely unsympathetic to some readers; this is the villain that the AAU Shuperstar chooses to apparently kill.  They don’t make ads like these anymore!

The Impossible 5 Chapter 9

Chapter 1 can be found here: http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/01/impossible-five-introduction-and.html
Chapter 2 can be found here: http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/01/impossible-5-chapter-2.html
Chapter 3 can be found here: http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/01/impossible-5-chapter-3.html
Chapter 4 can be found here: http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/01/impossible-5-chapter-4.html

Chapter 5 can be found here: http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/02/impossible-5-chapter-5.html 

Chapter 6 can be found here http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/02/impossible-5-chapter-6.html

Chapter 7 can be found here http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/02/impossible-5-chapter-7.html

Chapter 8 can be found here http://saneinsanities.blogspot.com/2012/02/impossible-5-chapter-8.html

The Impossible Five and Token Woman all looked at each other after Wallbreaker’s revelation, trying to be discrete about it, being at a library terminal.

“Well, of course, Wallbreaker,” said O’Canada. “Dead is dead.  Always has been, always will be.”

“Mac…” (since they were wearing civilian clothes, Wallbreaker used O’Canada’s real first name) “…you’re a good friend, don’t get me wrong, but like most superheroes, you have a bit of a blind spot about death.  Everyone comes back in our world, everyone. Think about it.”

Crack Heroine said, “He’s not talking right.  Maybe he’s under some sort of mind control.”

“No, hear him out,” said Token Woman. “I’m not sure why, but he normally hides his intelligence, like I used to. This is the real him. But let’s take this outside so we don’t bug the other computer uses and so we can let our favourite horse in on this.”

They walked outside and brought Helltrotter up to speed.  Helltrotter was smoking a cigar that Rita made him put out.

Wallbreaker said, “Just before the Master Plotter sent us to Earth-X32B, thus starting us on this quest through different worlds, we were at the funeral for the Blazer. How many times had we been to his funeral before?”

“Well, okay, a few,” said O’Canada, “but he was good at cheating death. We kept underestimating his ability to escape certain death.”

“And how many times did be not cheat death, but we found a way to revive him anyway.”

O’Canada frowned. “Two.  But…”

“And has any of us here never died and come back?”

“I haven’t!” said the Glowing Man.

“Well, that’s right, you haven’t” said Wallbreaker. “But the rest of us have died at least once.  Heck, we believed Helltrotter here was dead until we found him in the old west.  So that’s six out of seven. Not counting the Missile, who’s died on this mission and I assure you will be back, or most of our friends and enemies and even the occasional bystander.  Think about all the people whose funerals you’ve attended and then returned.”

“I don’t usually get to attend funerals,” said Helltrotter.

“You’re absolutely right,” said Wallbreaker, “You’re a horse and you therefore aren’t allowed at a lot of funerals. It’s unfair.  In terms of returns from the dead, things are if anything overly fair.”

“Oh come on,” said Rita Con. “It’s just amazing luck. When our number’s up, it’ll be up.”

Token Woman said, “You of all people should know that’s not true.”

“What?!?”

“You change origins more often than the Missile changes his underwear. How many times has your origin started to change during this mission alone?  Some force is playing us like chess pieces. If Wallbreaker thinks that the force might have less control over our destinies here, we should take that seriously.”

O’Canada said, “You know what? This is all irrelevant. We’re heroes, and whether it’s true or enough, we’ve always believed we could die on our missions permanently.  So let’s focus on the mission and we can figure out the rules of death when we get back.” 

Wallbreaker silently felt chagrined.  O’Canada’s point was fair. If you never knew you couldn’t die, why worry about it now?

O’Canada paused and added, “And Wallbreaker, if you really have been holding back your intelligence, don’t.  We need everyone’s best input to complete this mission.  Any thoughts on how to find this rod?”

Rita said, “It’s probably mystical. We should try the occult section of this library or, failing that, hit the book stores, especially the used ones.”

Wallbreaker added, “We should also check out the comic shops. If we really are comic book characters here, maybe the latest issue of our adventures will tell us where to proceed?”

The Crack Heroine said, “We should also lose the horse for now.”

“What?!?” exclaimed Helltrotter. 

“Sorry, dude.  The whole thing about use being performers will only take us so far if you keep yacking. And I’ve been looking around and I think the only horses are the ones who draw carriages.”

Helltrotter signed. “If this is anything like our world, there should be a park nearby called Beacon Hill Park. It should have some of the dull-headed horses. I’ll wait for you there.”

O’Canada said, “Okay, let’s check for occult books, and then check the phone book for book stores and comic shops.  We best not be giving any more money to the panhandlers if we’re going to be buying books and comics.  Our debit and credit cards won’t be valid here. And we’d best buy stuff if it’s really useful. Remember, technically speaking, even though our money’s real, if there’s any subtle differences on this world, it might be deemed counterfeit.”

They didn’t find anything useful at the library so they checked the phone book.  Fortunately, a particularly large used book store was very close by to the library, Russell Books.

They also found that there were three comic shops all on the same side of the same block.  Clearly this world was itself not immune to odd coincidences.

Token Woman, pointing that out, said, “If we really are fictional characters, this may be sign that this isn’t the real world either, if such a thing even exists.”

“Yes, very suspicious,” agreed Wallbreaker.  “If only we had more time, it would bear investigating.”

But before going to the comic shops, it was time to go to the book store, which was much closer.

Russell Books proved to be bigger than they had anticipated. The main area was pretty much a normal store size, but there was an outside staircase to a separate section.  O’Canada, Wallbreaker, and Token Woman checked out the lower level while Rita Con, the Crack Heroine, and the Glowing Man visited the upper section.

The former three found someone to ask about the occult section and it proved to be on that floor.  They focussed on books that were illustrated. No luck.  On a whim, Token Woman decided to check the local section. There had to be a reason that they were in Victoria.  She found a book on local lore and brought it over to the others.  “We might be in luck. It seems to be built into the structure of the entrance to Chinatown. That means that no bad guys have it.”

O’Canada looked closer.  “Maybe. Maybe not.   This book is from 1988. Still it’s worth investigating.”

Token Woman put the book back and they went upstairs and grabbed the others. Before heading back down they got directions to Chinatown from another staff member to Chinatown.

“It’s just past the comic shops,” said O’Canada. “Probably can’t hurt to visit them on the way.”

Crack Heroine said, “Yo, Glowing Man, the book store people are starting to look at us strangely.  Maybe because your fake face is starting to melt.”

“Sorry,” said the Glowing Man.  “Uh,” he said to the staff and customers looking their way. “it’s just a skin condition. Nothing to worry about.”

On the way down the stairs he removed his fake face and replaced it with a new one.

They walked to the comic shops. They split into groups of two, with Wallbreaker and Token Woman taking the middle one, Legends, the store that was more centred on non-superhero comics than the others.  Even so, when they entered, they still found plenty of superhero stuff. It was unlikely that the presence of the “indie” stuff would hurt their chances of finding what they were looking for.

They found last month’s issue, which ended with them leaving the Old West.  The comic was related Teen Plus. Not surprising, given the revelation that the Glowing Man’s activities there had led to him becoming O’Canada’s ancestor (O’Canada was paired with Rita Con for that reason. It would be quite some time before he was comfortable around the Glowing Man again!)

Wallbreaker asked the person at the cashier if the latest issue was out.

“Sorry. It was supposed to be out this week but it was delayed. It should be here next Wednesday.”

Token Woman found some back issues of Previews magazine and found some cover art in one of them for the next issue, plus a blurb.

“Oh no,” she whispered.

“What’s wrong?” Wallbreaker asked.

She showed him what she’d found.  The cover clearly showed the entrance to a Chinatown, probably the one here.  The Impossible Five’s evil counterparts were standing over their fallen forms.  According to the Previews blurb, “The final battle to the Master Plotter’s Cross-Dimensional Plot brings another death!”

Coming up next: the final battle! And then the following week, an epilogue that changes everything. 

If you want to read more adventures of the surviving heroes, let me know in the next couple weeks.  If there’s demand for more material, I’ll be happy to explore the new status quo afterwards.