Scott Pilgrim vs. high demand

Robot 6

Posted on February 6, 2009 - 06:26 AM by Kevin Melrose

Scott Pilgrim, Vol. 5

As the minutes tick down to the start of New York Comic Con, cartoonist Bryan Lee O'Malley appears to be the man of the hour.

The much-anticipated fifth installment of his popular Scott Pilgrim series, Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe, debuted this week to positive reviews, and a string of release parties in New York City.

As Heidi MacDonald pointed out yesterday, demand for the new volume is so high that some retailers, and fans, are coming up short.

Twitter is, well, atwitter with praise for the book, reports of quick sellouts, and concerns about locating a copy. Rogues Gallery owner Randy Lander ended up without a copy for himself, while Isotope Lounge's James Sime jokingly considered renaming his email in-box as, "Save Me Scott Pilgrim." He teased: "What is going to happen when Obama is on the cover of volume 6?"

Although Amazon.com lists the release date for Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe as Feb. 18, the title already is No. 296 on its bestselling books list, and No. 5 in graphic novels (behind Watchmen and three volumes of Diary of a Wimpy Kid).

To top is all off, this morning's New York Times features a profile of O'Malley, who tells George Gene Gustines that he's looking forward to see what kind of reception awaits him at Comic Con.

If the response so far is any indication, convention-goers should expect long lines at the Oni Press booth, and a sea of shiny covers and "I (Scott) NY" T-shirts.