Apparently the separation will be civil.
Diamond Comic Distributors announced Friday - one week after the bombshell news DC was discontinuing their relationship with the distributor after June 23 - that they’ve reached an agreement to extend some aspects of their working relationship with the publisher temporarily.
For Direct Market comic book retailers in the U.S., Diamond and DC have extended their agreement to fulfill reorders of in-stock comic periodicals previously offered for sale, fulfilling reorders through July 31.
For readers without a degree in comic book Direct Marketology, that means if you want a DC back issue released any time prior to June 23 that your local comic shop doesn’t have in stock, they can try to order it for you from Diamond through the end of July, assuming Diamond still has copies themselves.
For graphic novels and collections, readers have even longer. Retailers can order books DC offered through Diamond for sale on Final Order Cut-off June 1 or before through mid-December.
For you comic book readers who shop in stores serviced by Diamond U.K., they can continue to order new and backlist DC comic books and graphic novels through the end of 2020.
"The recovery of our retailer partners is of utmost importance to Diamond and DC as stores reopen amid many challenges," said Steve Geppi, founder of Diamond Comic Distributors and chairman & CEO of Geppi Family Enterprises in a press release. "With respect for our long partnership with DC Comics, we are happy to work on a smooth transition."
For you comic book readers outside the U.S. and the Diamond U.K. territories, DC is recommending your local comic book shop place their DC orders through distributor UCS if you’re in Eastern Canada, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
If you’re in Western Canada, the Asia-Pacific region (including Australia and New Zealand), and Latin America, DC recommends your store order through Lunar.
