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Last Friday, Diamond’s weekly shipping list to retailers hit the inbox with a loud thud!

It’s common for the last week of the month’s order to be the largest.  Usually, DC Comics, Marvel, even Diamond “title dump” what’s left to ship.  Wizard Magazine and Diamond Previews end of the month delivery schedule only ensure that the last week of the month--without fail--is always the most expensive.

This week, was especially heavy because of Marvel’s sudden delivery of their late titles.  Here’s how Marvel’s shipping played out for the month of June:

Week 1 = 20 titles
Week 2 = 20 titles
Week 3 = 16 titles
Week 4 = 32 titles

That’s 22 regularly scheduled comics and 10 additional/late titles (not counting reprints or second printings).

In a week that already has four Marvel heavy hitters (New Avengers, Ultimate Spider-Man, Uncanny X-Men and X-Men), we’re getting other marvel giants like Captain America, Fantastic Four, Hulk, Marvel 1985, Mighty Avengers and Ultimates. Not only is this a big week for customers who now need to make purchasing decisions, retailers now brace for the pain that comes with a large invoice after a lighter week previously (add that to any additional end of month bills such as rent, utilities, payroll, sales tax, merchant fees).

List of titles after the jump