Did Dark Horse Spoil Buffy's Big Bad To Boost Slipping Sales?

[Rich Johnston]

If it's a wag posting the last page of Blackest Night #6 on a message board that's one thing. If it's a toy company posting a new design ahead of its appearance in a comic book that happens. But these days Nekron appears on spoiler covers of Previews, Captain America is reborn before the end of Captain America Reborn and now Angel is tagged as the Big Bad from Buffy Season Eight, hilariously nicknamed "Twilight". Officially. On the released cover to issue 34 and in the CBR interview.

"We knew from the get go. It was back in January of four years ago when I found out that Angel was Twilight," "Buffy" editor Scott Allie explained to CBR in an exclusive first interview. "It sounds funny saying that. I've kept that secret for four years, so it feels funny saying out loud to a reporter from CBR that Angel is Twilight. I've tried so hard not to let those words slip!"

What the dickens?

Especially since the next couple of issues will be full of more "who is Twilight" nonsense with the readers screaming "we know, we read the interview, get on with it."

Could it have anything to do with these figures, hastily swiped from The Beat?

11/2007: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #8 - 91,595 11/2008: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #19 - 74,202 ===== 01/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #21 - 69,980 02/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #22 - 67,575 (-3.4%) 03/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #23 - 64,108 (-5.1%) 04/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #24 - 60,916 (-5.0%) 05/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #25 - 58,740 (-3.6%) 06/2009: BTVS Tales of the Vampires one shot- 45,568 (-22.4) 07/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #26 - 55,393 (+21.6%) 08/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #27 - 53,403 (-3.6%) 09/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #28 - 52,303 (-2.1%) 10/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #29 - 50,236 (-4.0%) 11/2009: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #30 - 49,155 (-2.2%)         &n bsp;       6 month (-16.3%)         &n bsp;       1 year (-33.8%)         &n bsp;       2 year (-46.3%)

Might a little bit of Twilight Reveal action get a bit more intrigue and interest, pushing it back over the psychologically important 50K mark?

[_OM_]

...And you know what was so pathetic about DC getting their panties in a wad over the Blackest Night #6 spoil? It wasn't *THAT* big a spoil, because it wasn't *THAT* big a plot point that nobody saw coming. People either figured by #6 Hal would either wear all the rings and become White Lantern, or one representative of each of the colors would team up for the final throwdown with Nekron. It was divided about 60/40 in favor of the White Lantern reveal, but the result's still the same. *NOBODY* was honestly surprised, and DC was whining about nothing.

As for Twilight being Angel or whatever...same name, different Twi-tards.

[Tom]

Bear in mind that before Buffy #20 retailers were having each cover delivered to them at a set ratio (with the Jeanty covers typically sitting on the shelves), whereas since then Dark Horse has allowed retailers to order whichever cover they like (hence the lower chart positions).

I think however with the series rapidly on its way to winding up, and the easy availability of the series in TPBs, not to mention the decline of the single issue magazine format in general, there's a lot of explanations for the fall...

[Pulp Nouveau Mike]

...And you know what was so pathetic about DC getting their panties in a wad over the Blackest Night #6 spoil? It wasn't *THAT* big a spoil, because it wasn't *THAT* big a plot point that nobody saw coming. People either figured by #6 Hal would either wear all the rings and become White Lantern, or one representative of each of the colors would team up for the final throwdown with Nekron. It was divided about 60/40 in favor of the White Lantern reveal, but the result's still the same. *NOBODY* was honestly surprised, and DC was whining about nothing.

As for Twilight being Angel or whatever...same name, different Twi-tards.

I was kinda hoping Hal would be a Rainbow Lantern myself. But that's got nothin' to do with Buffy, so let's return to our regularly scheduled thread.

[Pulp Nouveau Mike]

Sure, the sales on Buffy are slipping and that's always cause for concern (though par for the course on comics in general). But it's still leaps and bounds ahead of any Wildstorm or Vertigo book, and better than a seriously big chunk of Marvel and DC's output. Heck, it's almost 12,000 copies above Action Comics, 15,000 ahead of Thunderbolts and 20,000 over the last Marvel Zombies series.

[_OM_]

I was kinda hoping Hal would be a Rainbow Lantern myself. But that's got nothin' to do with Buffy, so let's return to our regularly scheduled thread.

...Rich raised the comparison point, so there was nothing "off-topic" about my post. Better luck next time, son.

[Pulp Nouveau Mike]

...Rich raised the comparison point, so there was nothing "off-topic" about my post. Better luck next time, son.

Sorry, sir, I didn't intend for it to seem like I was casting aspersions your way. I was actually talking about myself. My first comment had nothin' to do with Buffy. Much like this one has nothing to do with Buffy. So I'm derailing again. I'm a horrible person.

[jmac]

Rich,
Love your work. Have been following you for years.

The Twilight reveal drives me nuts, and the moreso because CBR posted it on their homepage, making it impossible for someone not to see it if they went to the page.

You've just done the same thing. Wish you'd take down the picture, so that people who don't want the secret blown won't have it happen.

Respectfully.

[_OM_]

Wish you'd take down the picture, so that people who don't want the secret blown won't have it happen.

...Sorry, but let's face it, son. The "Spoiler Challenged" should know better than to visit a comic book news website in the first place. The majority of fans could care less if things are spoiled, and have no problems with it.

[Evan Meadow]

Well let the spoiler get the people who may have wandered away from the book to come back.

Those of us who've been reading the book (while this has been spoiled for us) are now too busy going "How in the hell is this going to work alongside the IDW Angel book?"

Which Dark Horse and Whedon are saying it will when its all said and done.