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Over $1.4 million in Absolute Green Arrow #1 pre-orders could open the door for the series to grow

A new Green Arrow is killing corrupt billionaires in the Absolute DC universe, and over a million dollars worth of comics has already been sold to read about it

Absolute Green Arrow #1 Second Printing main cover by Rafael Albuquerque and Marcelo Maiolo excerpt
Image credit: Rafael Albuquerque/Marcelo Maiolo (DC Comics)

Ahead of the debut of the comic book series Absolute Green Arrow at your local comic shop on May 20, publisher DC Comics has announced plans to go back to press on the first issue for a second printing. While DC isn't saying publicly that the first printing has sold out at the distributor level (yet?), all signs point to that.

According to sources familiar with the situation, the print run of Absolute Green Arrow #1 wasn't paltry — in fact, it is larger than the first print run of Absolute Batman #1, a series which is now the line's highest seller — and has been the best-selling comic book in the superhero space since its launch in October 2024. Absolute Batman #1 has gone back for multiple printings, meaning the number of physical copies out there is ultimately (or would that be absolutely?) bigger than the first printing or Absolute Green Arrow's.

Absolute Green Arrow #1's first printing was over 300,000 copies according to our sources, which at its cover price of $4.99 would mean that there is over $1.4 million in Absolute Green Arrow #1 pre-orders ahead of its May 20 debut... and that's just the first printing, and only printed comics for that matter.

Related: DC Comics' next Absolute series is a "slasher horror" story that is "Scream, Halloween, meets Green Arrow"

Currently, the Absolute Green Arrow series is planned as a six-issue series, but DC has on several occasions extended series based on fan and retailer support, including extending Absolute Martian Manhunter and the hit series Poison Ivy. We haven't had a chance to ask series creators Pornsak Pichetshote and Rafael Albuquerque if they'd be up for an Absolute Green Arrow #7 and beyond... but I imagine that talk will be forthcoming.

Absolute Green Arrow #1 Second Printing main cover by Rafael Albuquerque and Marcelo Maiolo
Image credit: Rafael Albuquerque/Marcelo Maiolo (DC Comics)

"In Absolute Green Arrow, a serial killer is slaughtering corrupt billionaires, and the only clue to his identity is the green arrows protruding from the victims’ bodies," reads DC's description of Absolute Green Arrow. "Executive protection specialist Dinah Lance, also known as Absolute Black Canary, is assigned to uncover the murderer’s identity as she investigates a list of suspects drawn from the ranks of DC’s most dangerous archers. Each one is uniquely connected to a recently murdered Oliver Queen. A deadly mystery unfolds in this urban horror reimagining of the Emerald Archer’s mythos, brought to life by Eisner Award–winners Pornsak Pichetshote and Rafael Albuquerque."

DC is printing three variations of the Absolute Green Arrow #1 second printing, with a recolored version of the main cover by series artists Rafael Albuquerque and Marcelo Maiolo, as well as a foil version of Tula Lotay's variant, and one by Ivan Tao.

Absolute Green Arrow #1 (of 6) goes on sale May 20, with retailers now able to order the second printing for a June 17 on-sale, concurrent with the second issue of the series.


 

 

 

Chris Arrant

Chris Arrant: Chris Arrant is the Popverse's Editor-in-Chief. He has written about pop culture for USA Today, Life, Entertainment Weekly, Publisher's Weekly, Marvel, Newsarama, CBR, and more. He has acted as a judge for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the Harvey Awards, and the Stan Lee Awards. (He/him)

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