DC is returning to comic shops in less than two weeks, using alternative distribution to work around the temporary shutdown of Diamond Comics Distributors, the publisher announced today. Orders made through Diamond for product that was supposed to have streeted in the first half of April have been cancelled, and retailers will have to reorder to accommodate their new circumstances. Per an announcement, DC is also making changes to the publishing schedule and offering a smaller number of titles at first in the hopes of helping retailers to ease back into ordering and getting a sense for what their business can handle.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Diamond’s current plan is to resume distribution in mid to late May, which might mean that DC is distributing sooner than most other publishers. It remains to be seen whether DC’s move to Lunar Distribution is something that other publishers can, or will want to, emulate.
The change also means that new comic book day will, at least temporarily, be moved from Wednesday to Tuesday. Tuesday is when many non-specialty retailers get their weekly and monthly periodical deliveries.
“The new schedule is designed to allow each of you to begin ordering a limited amount of DC product at first, and then ease back into the number of books that represents a normal release schedule from DC when your business can accommodate it,” the statement said.
You can check out their initial release date below.
New Comics available for sale on Tuesday 4/28
Batman #89 (3rd Printing)
Batman Giant #4
Daphne Byrne #4 (of 6)
The Dreaming #20
Nightwing #70 (2nd Printing)
New Comics available for sale on Tuesday 5/5
Batman and the Outsiders #12
DC Super Stars Facsimile Edition #17
The Flash #753
Green Lantern Season 2 #3
Hawkman #23
House of Whispers #20
Joker/Harley: Criminal Sanity #4 (of 9)
New Comics available for sale on Tuesday 5/12
Harley Quinn #72
Justice League #44
Justice League Odyssey #20
Lois Lane #10 (of 12)
Metal Men #6 (of 12)
DC provided retailers with the following guidance in order to help them make orders. The deadline for guaranteed delivery on April 28 will be April 21.
“To assist with the immediate distribution of DC titles during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, we’ve secured the assistance of two distributors to help facilitate orders of and shipping of our revised publishing schedule. Lunar Distribution and UCS Comic Distributors have agreed to work with us to distribute these new comics. Your orders will need to be placed no later than 4/21 to ensure receipt of goods by 4/28, and the orders can be released on or after 4/28. Reorders can be placed after the 4/21 date but are not guaranteed for receipt by 4/28.
“To help facilitate the fastest processing of order fulfillment for the week of April 27th, we strongly recommend ordering with one of the distributors based on your location in order to ensure receipt of product by 4/28 in the U.S. Unfortunately, orders cannot be guaranteed to reach destinations outside of the U.S. by 4/28.”
The comic shop market has been hit hard by the closure of Diamond, effectively the only mainstream distributor of American comics, and the halt of foot traffic to stores amid the novel coronavirus pandemic. Comic book and film professionals, as well as fans and others, have banded together using the Creators 4 Comics campaign to generate revenue for the Book Industry Charitable Foundation, which helps small booksellers and comic book stores stay afloat.
DC will resume same-day digital distribution for new comics when comics return to shops on April 28. The company said that collectibles, which have a longer distribution timeline, will have their own, separate announcement once the plans are sorted out.
