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New DC Comic Books to be Available at Open and Operating Comic Book Retailers

By John Freeman on April 20, 2020 • ( 2 )

Batman and Superman publisher DC Comics has released a statement announcing it will resume distribution of comics beginning Tuesday 28th April 2020, using two new distributors ending its exclusive agreement with Diamond Distributors.

Orders through 15th April are cancelled but starting on 21st April retailers can confirm their orders for product shipping on 28th April, which will now be available on Tuesday 27th April.

A number of web sites, including Comics Beat, have reported that DC will be using two new distributors, Lunar Distribution (the comics retailer Forth Worth-based DCBS, the largest mail-order comics company in the US) and UCS Comic Distributors (New York-based Midtown Comics) to distribute weekly periodical comics, ending its exclusive agreement with Diamond Distributors. Retailers can sign up with either on a regional basis.

Responding to the announcement, Diamond, which has announced it will resume comics distribution in May, said: “We value our partnership with DC and will continue to support them as a distributor. Our focus is squarely on getting our industries’ entertainment products in the hands of fans as quickly and as safely as possible… We are currently building our restart plans and targeting mid- to late-May to being shipping new weekly product. If we see signs that it is safe to resume shipping earlier, we certainly will. However, with the limited number of retailers open and most customers on stay-at-home orders, our focus is on supporting our industry and the health and safety of our stakeholders.”

Here is DC Comics statement, released late last week, in full.

New DC Comic Books to be Available at Open and Operating Comic Book Retailers

DC comic books are returning to comic shops beginning Tuesday, April 28. After a four-week break, fans can celebrate that new superhero stories will be arriving at operating retail stores.

After surveying more than 2,000 stores across the U.S. and Canada, it became clear that many comic book store owners are finding new and creative ways to get books to the fans who want them. To find stores that may have the new titles, visit the comic shop locator webpage: www.dccomics.com/comicshoptracker

Check the page often, as it will be updated with new retailers.

The new slate of titles includes (also available for digital purchase at participating digital retailers):

Tuesday, April 28:

New Comic Books:
- Batman #89 (3rd Printing)
  - Featuring the first appearance of Punchline!
- Daphne Byrne #4
  - Daphne gains a new ally as she continues to wrestle with the malevolent forces within her!
- The Dreaming #20
  - The unbelievable finale to Si Spurrier and Bilquis Evely’s epic tale from the Sandman Universe!
- Nightwing #70 (2nd Printing)
  - The Clown Prince of Crime comes to Ric Grayson and Bludhaven in this prelude to The Joker War!
- Batman GIANT #4
  - Classic stories from the world of The Dark Knight, plus an all-new chapter of the original story “Concrete Jungle,” by Mark Russell (Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles) and Ryan Benjamin!

Tuesday, May 5:

New Comic Books:

Batman and the Outsiders #12
DC Super Stars #17 (Facsimile Edition)
The Flash #753
The Green Lantern Season Two #3
Hawkman #23
House of Whispers #20
Joker/Harley: Criminal Sanity #4

Tuesday, May 12:

New Comic Books:

Harley Quinn #72
Justice League #44
Justice League Odyssey #20
Lois Lane #10
Metal Men #6

• For more information on DC Comics, visit the website at www.dccomics.com, or follow on social media at @DCComics and @thedcnation.

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.