It is that time of the month when we get to check out the latest graphic novels sales numbers. These sales numbers will include American superhero comic book sales, manga sales, and top author sales. We will check in on the battle between Marvel Comics and DC Comics versus their adversary in Japanese manga. You can check out the prior month’s sales charts for American superhero comics sales from Marvel Comics and DC Comics as well as the manga sales chart. As always, ICv2 is the best source for these sales numbers. ICv2 released several sales charts for April 2022 including the ComicHub Top 100 Graphic Novels, the Top 20 Author Graphic Novels, Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels, Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels, and Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels.
The ComicHub Top 100 Graphic Novels sales chart is based on point-of-sale numbers by the ComicHub system at stores selling American comics around the world. During the period for which these reports were generated, there were over 100 stores using the ComicHub system.
The Top 20 Author Graphic Novels, Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels, Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels, and Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales charts are all based on NPD BookScan numbers. NPD BookScan collects weekly point-of-sale data on print books from over 16,000 locations through direct reporting from all major retailers, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Target, independent bookstores, and many others. NPD BookScan covers approximately 85% of the U.S. trade print book market. Please be advised that this post also contains affiliate links and any purchase made through such links will award us a small commission, at no extra cost to you.
ComicHub April 2022 Top 100 Graphic Novels Sales Chart
Top 10
- Reckless Vol. 4 Ghost In You HC (Image Comics)
- Moon Knight Lemire Smallwood Complete Collection (Marvel Comics)
- House of Slaughter Vol. 1 (BOOM! Studios)
- Chainsaw Man Vol. 10 (Viz Media)
- Something is Killing the Children vol. 1 (BOOM! Studios)
- Moon Knight Legacy Complete Collection (Marvel Comics)
- Nice House On The Lake Vol. 1 (DC Comics)
- Sandman Vol. 1 (2022) (DC Comics)
- Department of Truth Vol. 3 (Image Comics)
- Moon Knight Vol. 1 Midnight Missions (Marvel Comics)
Marvel Comics won the Top 10 by a slim margin with three titles. What is so amazing is the franchise that powered Marvel Comics to this win. Was it Peter Parker? Nope. Was it the X-Men? Nope. It was Moon Knight! All three titles were Moon Knight collections. This is simply amazing. I am a lifelong Moon Knight fan ever since his first title that debuted back in 1980. I would have never imagined Moon Knight single-handedly dominating the Top 10 Graphic Novels Sales Chart. It is just stunning.
DC Comics, Boom Studios, and Image Comics all tied for second place with two titles apiece. What is surprising about DC Comics is that neither of its two titles was from the Batman franchise. Congrats, DC Comics!
Viz Media took fifth place with one title. The title was Chainsaw Man. I love seeing Tatsuki Fujimoto’s manga having such success in the traditional backyard of American comic books.
Top 25
- Marvel-Verse Moon Knight (Marvel Comics)
- Robin Vol. 1 The Lazarus Tournament (2021) (DC Comics)
- Many Deaths of Laila Starr (BOOM! Studios)
- Cat Kid Comic Club Vol. 3 On Purpose HC (Graphix)
- Batman Year One Dlx. Ed. (DC Comics)
- Kaiju No 8 Vol. 2 (Viz Media)
- Something Is Killing The Children Vol. 4 (BOOM! Studios)
- Dark Nights Death Metal (DC Comics)
- Gun Honey Vol. 1 (Titan Comics)
- Spy X Family Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- Venom By Al Ewing Ram V Vol. 1 Recursion (Marvel Comics)
- Saga Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Sakamoto Days Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- Mamo (BOOM! Studios)
- Chainsaw Man Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
The Battle for the Top 25 was incredibly even. Viz Media, DC Comics, Marvel Comics, and Boom Studios all tied for first place with five titles apiece. Wow. This is pretty cool. You do not usually see four publishers tie for first place in the battle of the Top 25!
With Marvel Comics, four of their five titles in the Top 25 were Moon Knight titles. Incredible! I remain so amazed by this incredible success of the Moon Knight franchise.
With DC Comics, two of their five titles were Batman franchise titles. Not having a majority of their titles not coming from the Batman franchise is an unusual result!
Image Comics came in fifth place with three titles. This was worse than the first place finish Image Comics had in March 2022 when they placed six titles in the Top 25.
Graphix and Titan Comics tied for sixth place with one title each.
Top 50
- Batman Hush (New Edition) (DC Comics)
- Something is Killing the Children Vol. 2 (BOOM! Studios)
- Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 15 (Viz Media)
- Death The Dlx. Ed. HC (2022 Edition) (DC Comics)
- Watchmen (DC Comics)
- Berserk Dlx. Ed. Vol. 1 HC (Dark Horse Comics)
- Moon Knight By Bendis & Maleev Complete Collected (Marvel Comics)
- Astro City Metrobook Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Mighty Marvel Masterworks Mighty Thor Vol. 2 (Marvel Comics)
- Wolverine Weapon X Gallery Edition HC (Marvel Comics)
- Inferno HC (Marvel Comics)
- Batman Vol. 1 the Court of Owls (New 52) (DC Comics)
- Decorum HC (Image Comics)
- DCeased Dead Planet (DC Comics)
- Batman White Knight Vol. 1 (DC Comics)
- Death of Doctor Strange (Marvel Comics)
- My Hero Academia Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- Sonic Hedgehog Sonic & Tails Best Buds Forever (IDW Publishing)
- Department of Truth Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Locke & Key Golden Age HC (IDW Publishing)
- Ice Cream Man Vol. 1 Rainbow Sprinkles (Image Comics)
- Me You Love In The Dark Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Something is Killing the Children Vol. 3 (BOOM! Studios)
- Batman Who Laughs (DC Comics)
- Star Wars High Republic Trail of Shadows (Marvel Comics)
DC Comics came in first place by placing twelve titles in the Top 50. This was exactly the same result that DC Comics posted in March 2022. Of course, six of the twelve titles were from the Batman franchise. Only five of the twelve DC Comics titles were published in the past five years. As usual, DC Comics still relies on comic books like Batman: Hush from twenty years ago and the Watchmen from thirty years ago.
Marvel Comics came in second place with eleven titles in the Top 50. This was a slight improvement over the nine titles that Marvel Comics placed in the Top 50 in March 2022. Five of the eleven titles were from the Moon Knight franchise. The remaining titles came from Wolverine, Dr. Strange, Venom, Thor, and Star Wars.
Image Comics came in third place with eight titles in the Top 50. This was down from the eleven titles that Image Comics put in the Top 50 in March 2022.
Viz Media and Boom Studios tied for fourth place with seven titles apiece. This was up slightly for Viz Media and Boom Studios which both placed five titles in the Top 50 in March 2022.
IDW Publishing came in sixth place with two titles in the Top 50. Dark Horse Comics, Graphix, and Titan Comics had one title apiece.
Top 75
- Naruto 3-In-1 Edition Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- Radiant Black Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Batman White Knight Vol. 2 Curse of The White Knight (DC Comics)
- Sonic The Hedgehog Vol. 1 Fallout (IDW Publishing)
- Demon Slayer Kimetsu No Yaiba Stories Water & Flame (Viz Media)
- Batman Dark Victory (New Edition) (DC Comics)
- Dark Nights Metal (DC Comics)
- Uzumaki 3 In 1 Dlx. Ed. Junji Ito HC (Viz Media)
- Batman A Death In the Family (New Edition) (DC Comics)
- Monstress Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Righteous Thirst For Vengeance Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Kaiju No 8 Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- Arrowsmith Vol. 1 So Smart In Their Fine Uniforms HC (Image Comics)
- Deserter Junji Ito Story Collected HC (Viz Media)
- Avatar Last Airbender Omnibus Vol. 5 North & South (Dark Horse Comics)
- Future State Gotham Vol. 1 (DC Comics)
- Chainsaw Man Vol. 9 (Viz Media)
- Deadpool Samurai Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- One Punch Man Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- Gotham Central Omnibus HC (2022 Edition) (DC Comics)
- Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries Vol. 1 (DC Comics)
- Dark Knight Returns (New Edition) (DC Comics)
- Flashpoint (DC Comics)
- Cat Gamer Vol. 1 (Dark Horse Comics)
- Chefs Kiss Soft Cover Vol. 1 (Oni Press Inc.)
DC Comics came in first place by placing twenty-one titles in the Top 75. This was slightly better than the twenty titles that DC Comics put in the Top 75 in March 2022. Thirteen of the twenty-one titles were from the Batman franchise. Only eight of DC Comics’ twenty-one titles were published in the past five years. Again, most of DC Comics’ titles are extremely old like Batman Dark Victory and Dark Knight Returns. However, it is interesting to see Future State Gotham creeping into the Top 75. This comic has sold terribly in single-issue format.
Well, well, well. Look who came in at second place. Yup. Viz Media took second place by putting fifteen titles in the Top 75. This is so impressive that Viz Media is starting to consistently go into Marvel Comics and DC Comics’ traditional safe space and pop impressive sales results. This was an improvement over the eleven titles that Viz Media placed in the Top 75 in March 2022.
What is even more impressive is that unlike Marvel Comics and DC Comics, Viz Media did not rely heavily on one franchise to power their sales success. Chainsaw Man placed the most volumes in the Top 75 with three volumes. Kaiju No. 8 placed two volumes in the Top 75. The remained of Viz Media’s titles came from a diverse selection of franchises including Spy X Family, Sakamoto Days, Jujutsu Kaisen, My Hero Academia, Naruto, Demon Slayer, Uzumaki, Deserter Junji Ito, Deadpool Samurai, and One Punch Man. This is an excellent sign for Viz Media’s future success that they do not have to overly rely on a single franchise to power their sales success. This diverse selection of titles shows the strong legs that Viz Media as they continue to nurture the growth of manga in the United States.
Image Comics came in third place with twelve titles in the Top 75. The was exactly the same as what Image Comics did in March 2022.
Marvel Comics slumped into fourth place with eleven titles in the Top 75. This was worse than the thirteen titles that Marvel Comics put in the Top 75 in March 2022. It is amazing to see Viz Media beating Marvel Comics in their safe space of local comic book shops. This is a testament to the growing power of manga and the decline of Marvel Comics and DC Comics. I would have never thought this was possible ten years ago.
Boom Studios came in at fifth place with seven titles in the Top 75. This is the same as what Boom Studios did in March 2022.
IDW Publishing and Dark Horse Comics tied for sixth place with three titles apiece. This was a big drop from the nine titles that Dark Horse placed in the Top 75 in march 2022. However, this was a slight improvement for IDW Publishing which had two titles in the Top 75 in March 2022.
Graphix, Titan Comics, and Oni Press came in last place with one title apiece.
Top 100
- Lore Olympus Vol. 1 (Del Rey Manga)
- Moon Knight Omnibus HC Vol. 1 Finch Cover New Printing (Marvel Comics)
- Thor By Jason Aaron Omnibus Vol. 1 HC (Marvel Comics)
- Spy X Family Vol. 7 (Viz Media)
- My Hero Academia Vol. 30 (Viz Media)
- Daredevil By Chip Zdarsky Vol. 1 To Know Fear (Marvel Comics)
- Paper Girls Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Teen Titans Go DC Super Hero Girls Exchange Students GN (DC Comics)
- My Brain Is Different Stories of Adhd (Seven Seas Ent.)
- Sandman Vol. 2 (2022) (DC Comics)
- Spawn Origins Vol. 1 (New Printing) (Image Comics)
- Demon Slayer Complete Box Set (Viz Media)
- Shazam To Hell And Back (DC Comics)
- My Hero Academia Vigilantes Vol. 12 (Viz Media)
- Amazing Fantasy Treasury Edition (Marvel Comics)
- DCeased (DC Comics)
- Saga Vol. 2 (Image Comics)
- Sandman Vol. 1 Preludes & Nocturnes 30th Ann. Ed. (DC Comics)
- Thor By Jason Aaron Complete Collection Vol. 1 (Marvel Comics)
- Batman Fortnite Zero Point HC (DC Comics)
- Cinnamon Vol. 1 (Behemoth Comics)
- Saga Vol. 3 (Image Comics)
- Tokyo Ghoul Vol. 1 (Viz Media)
- All Star Superman (Black Label) (DC Comics)
- Heartstopper Vol. 1 (Graphix)
DC Comics dominated everyone by placing twenty-eight titles in the Top 100. This was a little better than DC Comics’ first-place finish in March 2022 with twenty-six titles. Thirteen of DC Comics’ twenty-eight titles were Batman franchise titles. As usual, DC Comics relied heavily on older titles to power their success.
Viz Media took second place with twenty titles in the Top 100. This was a big improvement over the fifteen titles that Viz Media put in the Top 100 in March 2022. Again, this is a huge statement for the power of manga. Viz Media is beginning to flex its muscles in the area of local comic book shops that have long been the exclusive playpen of Marvel Comics and DC Comics. It looks like 2022 is going to bring a manga industry that just keeps growing in the United States.
Marvel Comics and Image Comics tied for third place with sixteen titles apiece. Ouch. This has to hurt Marvel Comics to get whipped in its own backyard. This was slightly worse than the seventeen titles that Marvel Comics put in the Top 100 in March 2022. It was exactly the same that Image did in March 2022.
Boom Studios took fifth place with seven titles in the Top 100. This was slightly worse than the eight titles that Boom Studios placed in the Top 100 in March 2022.
IDW Publishing and Dark Horse Comics tied for sixth place with three titles apiece. This was a big drop for Dark Horse Comics which placed ten titles in the Top 100 in March 2022. However, this was a slight improvement for IDW Publishing over their two titles in the Top 100 in March 2022.
Graphix came in at eighth-placed with two titles in the Top 100. Titan Comics, One Press, Del Rey Manga, Seven Seas Entertainment, and Behemoth Comics tied for last place with one title apiece.
NPD BookScan April 2022 Top 20 Author Graphic Novels
Top 10
- SOLO LEVELING VOL. 1 (YEN PRESS) 7,065 units
- SOLO LEVELING VOL. 2 (YEN PRESS) 5,033 units
- SOLO LEVELING VOL. 3 (YEN PRESS) 4,348 units
- NEIL GAIMAN’S CHIVALRY HC (DARK HORSE COMICS) 3,420 units
- THEY CALLED US ENEMY (TOP SHELF PROD) 3,390 units
- LORE OLYMPUS: VOLUME ONE HC (DEL REY) 3,232 units
- LORE OLYMPUS: VOLUME ONE TP (DEL REY) 2,916 units
- GENDER QUEER: A MEMOIR (ONI PRESS) 2,898 units
- MARCH: BOOK ONE (TOP SHELF PROD) 1,965 units
- THE GHOST IN YOU: A RECKLESS BOOK HC (IMAGE COMICS) 1,959 units
Sales in April 2022 were slightly down from the March 2022 sales. However, March 2022 was a five-week month so that may explain the small difference. In March 2022, the number one title sold 9,351 units. In April 2022, the number one title sold 7,065 units. In March 2022, sales did not dip into the 3,000 unit range until the number six spot. In April 2022, sales dropped into the 3,000 unit range by the number four spot. In March 2022, the number ten title sold 1,850 units. In April 2022, the number ten title sold 1,959 units.
Yen Press took first place with three volumes in the Top 10 and took the Top 3 spots. Yen Press’ success was powered on the back of Solo Leveling. Wow. What a great month for this South Korean webtoon. Again, claims that digital sales are guaranteed to hurt physical sales are not true. If a product is of high quality and popular then it will sell physical copies regardless if it was available in digital format first.
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Top Shelf and Del Rey tied for second place with two volumes apiece. Del Rey’s success is due to Olympus Lore. Again, this New Zealand webtoon is proving that taking a digital-first route will not hurt your physical sales.
Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, and Oni Press all tied for fourth place with one title apiece.
Once again, foreign webtoons dominated the Top 10 Author Graphic Novels sales chart by taking five spots in the Top 10.
Top 20
- INVINCIBLE COMPENDIUM VOL. 1 (IMAGE COMICS) 1,705 units
- LOCKE & KEY: THE GOLDEN AGE HC (IDW PUBLISHING) 1,681 units
- NORSE MYTHOLOGY VOL. 2 HC (DARK HORSE COMICS) 1,548 units
- 1984: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL HC (MARINER BOOKS) 1,251 units
- FUN HOME: A FAMILY TRAGICOMIC (MARINER BOOKS) 1,191 units
- PINBALL: A GRAPHIC HISTORY OF THE SILVER BALL (FIRST SECOND BOOKS) 1,148 units
- SAPIENS: A GRAPHIC HISTORY: THE BIRTH OF HUMANKIND (HARPER PERENNIAL) 1,138 units
- INVINCIBLE COMPENDIUM VOL. 2 (IMAGE COMICS) 1,105 units
- MICHAEL MOORCOCK’S ELRIC VOL. 4: THE DREAMING CITY (TITAN COMICS) 1,069 units
- BONE: THE COMPLETE CARTOON EPIC IN ONE VOLUME (PGW) 1,061 units
In March 2022, the title in the number eleven spot sold 1,767 units. In April 2022, the title in the number eleven spot sold 1,705 units. In March 2022, the title in the number twenty spot sold 1,340 units. In April 21022, the title in the number twenty spot sold 1,061 units.
Yen Press and Image Comics tied for first place with three volumes each in the Top 20. Top Shelf, Del Rey, Dark Horse Comics, and Mariner Books tied for third place with two volumes apiece in the Top 20.
Oni Press, IDW Publishing, First Second Books, Harper Perennial, Titan Comics, and PGW tied for sixth place with one title apiece in the Top 20.
This was a diverse selection of publishers as there was not a single company or two that really dominated the market. Sales in general for Author graphic novels are nothing impressive. However, they are still far superior to what American superhero graphic novels are able to produce.
NPD BookScan April 2022 Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels
Top 10
- BATMAN: YEAR ONE (DC COMICS) 3,401 units
- THE SANDMAN BOOK ONE (DC COMICS) 2,629 units
- BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN (DC COMICS) 2,148 units
- WATCHMEN (2019 EDITION) (DC COMICS) 2,009 units
- MOON KNIGHT BY BENDIS & MALEEV: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION (MARVEL COMICS) 1,897 units
- MOON KNIGHT: LEGACY – THE COMPLETE COLLECTION (MARVEL COMICS) 1,832 units
- MOON KNIGHT BY LEMIRE & SMALLWOOD: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION (MARVEL COMICS) 1,795 units
- BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE DLX. ED. HC (NEW EDITION) (DC COMICS) 1,617 units
- BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS (DC COMICS) 1,550 units
- BATMAN VOL. 1: THE COURT OF OWLS (THE NEW 52) (DC COMICS) 1,452 units
The outlook just keeps getting worse and worse for American superhero comic books. Year-over-year sales declined at a steep rate. In April 2021, the number one selling superhero comic book sold 8,347 units. The number one selling superhero comic book in April 2022 did not even come close to that number and only posted sales of 3,401 units.
April 2022 was also weaker than sales in March 2022. The number one title in March 2022 sold 9.870 units. This is far more than the number one selling title in April 2022 which only sold 3,401 units. In March 2022, sales dropped into the 2,000 unit range by the number five spot. In April 2022, sales dropped into the 2,000 unit range by the number two spot. In March 2022, the title in the number ten spot sold 2,246 units. In April 2022, the title in the number ten spot sold 1,452 units.
None of this is comforting news to Marvel Comics and DC Comics. American superhero comic books continue their death spiral in Graphic Novels sales charts. It is obvious that something is not working with how Marvel Comics and DC Comics are handling their titles and their characters.
DC Comics completely dominated Marvel Comics by placing seven titles in the Top 10. Five of DC Comics’ seven titles were from the Batman franchise. All five of the Batman titles were Bruce Wayne titles. As usual, six of DC Comics’ seven titles are between twenty to thirty years old. One title is over five years old. DC Comics continues to fail to generate any reader interest in what they have been publishing over the past five years.
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Marvel Comics meekly placed three titles in the Top 10. What is stunning is that all three of Marvel Comics’ titles in the Top 10 came from the Moon Knight franchise. Seriously, I remain amazed at how Moon Knight has become Marvel Comics’ best and most consistent seller each and every month in the Graphic Novels sales charts.
Top 20
- BATMAN: HUSH (NEW EDITION) (DC COMICS) 1,434 units
- MOON KNIGHT VOL. 1: THE MIDNIGHT MISSION (MARVEL COMICS) 1,364 units
- INFERNO BY JONATHAN HICKMAN HC (MARVEL COMICS) 1,170 units
- THE BATMAN WHO LAUGHS (DC COMICS) 1,169 units
- BATMAN/FORTNITE: ZERO POINT HC (DC COMICS) 1,162 units
- STAR WARS: THE HIGH REPUBLIC – TRAIL OF SHADOWS (MARVEL COMICS) 1,140 units
- X-MEN BY JONATHAN HICKMAN OMNIBUS HC (MARVEL COMICS) 1,078 units
- BATMAN VOL. 2: THE CITY OF OWLS (THE NEW 52) (DC COMICS) 1,063 units
- BATMAN: WHITE KNIGHT (DC COMICS) 1,035 units
- BATMAN: THREE JOKERS HC (DC COMICS) 1,013 units
Sales in the bottom half of the Top 20 were stronger in March 2022 than they were in April 2022. In March 2022, sales did not drop into the 1,000 unit range until the number twelve spot. In April 2022, sales dropped into the 1,000 unit range by the number five spot. In March 2022, the number twenty title sold 1,214 units. That is better than any title in April 2022 below the number twelve spot.
DC Comics placed thirteen titles in the Top 20. Eleven of DC Comics’ thirteen titles were from the Batman franchise. Eleven of the thirteen Batman titles were Bruce Wayne titles. Only three of DC Comics’ thirteen titles are from the past five years. This remains a real problem for DC Comics.
Marvel Comics put seven titles in the Top 20. Four of Marvel Comics’ seven titles were from the Moon Knight franchise. Remarkable. Two titles were from Hickman’s X-Men.
There is nothing positive to take away from the Top 20 Superhero Graphic Novels sales chart. DC Comics and Marvel Comics need to conduct some serious self-reflection to see why they are continuing to get poor sales numbers every month.
NPD BookScan April 2022 Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels
Top 10
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 10 (VIZ MEDIA) 65,657 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 15 (VIZ MEDIA) 46,498 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 7 (VIZ MEDIA) 37,518 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 31,444 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 0 (VIZ MEDIA) 24,285 units
- KAIJU NO. 8 VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 23,793 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 22,882 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA–STORIES OF WATER AND FLAME (VIZ MEDIA) 21,769 units
- BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 1 (DARK HORSE COMICS) 19,676 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 18,728 units
Jesus. Look at the difference in the sales numbers in the Top 10 for manga compared to American superhero comic books! If this does not scare Marvel Comics and DC Comics then they are beyond help.
Sales for the Top 20 manga in April 2022 were stronger at the top end but weaker at the bottom end than the sales numbers in March 2022. The number one title in April 2022 sold 65,657 units. In March 2022, the number one title sold 57,071 units.
In April 2022, sales did not drop into the 30,000 unit range until the number three spot. In March 2022, sales dropped into the 30,000 unit range with the number two spot. In April 2022, sales did not drop into the 20,000 unit range until the number five spot. In March 2022, sales dropped into the 20,000 unit range with the number four spot. In April 2022, sales did not drop below 20,000 units until the number nine spot. In March 2022, sales dropped below 20,000 units with the number eight spot.
However, in April 2022, the title in the number ten spot sold 18,728 units. In March 2022, the title in the number ten spot sold 19,216 units.
Viz Media dominated the competition by placing nine titles in the Top 10. Dark Horse Comics managed to place one title in the Top 10.
Spy x Family was the top franchise by placing three volumes in the Top 10. This is no surprise. I expected this to happen once the Spy x Family anime hit Crunchyroll.
Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen tied for second place with two volumes apiece in the Top 10.
Chainsaw Man, Kaiju No. 8, and Berserk all tied for fourth place with one volume each in the Top 10. It should be pointed out that Chainsaw Man did take the overall number one spot with a healthy 65,657 units in sales.
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Top 20
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 30 (VIZ MEDIA) 17,330 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 3 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,586 units
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,007 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 14,752 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 14,566 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 4 (VIZ MEDIA) 13,299 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 6 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,883 units
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 13 (YEN PRESS) 12,112 units
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 1 (YEN PRESS) 11,740 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 4 (VIZ MEDIA) 11,594 units
Sales in the bottom half of the Top 20 were lower in April 2022 than they were in March 2022. In April 2022, the number eleven title sold 17,330 units. In March 2022, the number eleven title sold 19,077 units. In April 2022, the number twenty title sold 11,594 units. In March 2022, the number twenty title sold 15,481 units.
Spy x Family dominated all other competitors by placing a whopping six volumes in the Top 10. Behold the power of an entertaining anime.
Chainsaw Man and Demon Slayer tied for second place by putting three volumes in the Top 20. Chainsaw Man continues to be a hot title despite not having an anime. I would think that Chainsaw Man’s sales are going to be insane once the anime hits Crunchyroll this fall.
My Hero Academia, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Toilet-Bound Hanako-Kun all tied for fourth place by placing two volumes apiece in the Top 20. Remember when the manga sales chart relied heavily on My Hero Academia? Things have changed.
Kaiju No. 8 and Berserk tied for seventh place as each placed one title in the Top 20.
Overall, the Top 20 manga chart was populated by eight different franchises. This ties the number of franchises in the Top 20 in March 2022.
Viz Media crushed the competition by placing seventeen titles in the Top 20. Yen Press managed two titles in the Top 20. Dark Horse Comics placed one title in the Top 20. Again, it would be nice to see more competition in the Top 10. The consumer would benefit from other manga publishers stepping up their game to challenge Viz Media.
NPD BookScan April 2022 Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels
Top 10
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 10 (VIZ MEDIA) 65,657 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 15 (VIZ MEDIA) 46,498 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 7 (VIZ MEDIA) 37,518 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 31,444 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 0 (VIZ MEDIA) 24,285 units
- KAIJU NO. 8 VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 23,793 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 22,882 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA–STORIES OF WATER AND FLAME (VIZ MEDIA) 21,769 units
- BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 1 (DARK HORSE COMICS) 19,676 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 18,728 units
Top 20
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 30 (VIZ MEDIA) 17,330 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 3 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,586 units
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,007 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 14,752 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 14,566 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 4 (VIZ MEDIA) 13,299 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 6 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,883 units
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 13 (YEN PRESS) 12,112 units
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 1 (YEN PRESS) 11,740 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 4 (VIZ MEDIA) 11,594 units
Here it is. For the fourth month in a row, the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels chart is all manga. Absolutely nothing from an American superhero comics publisher. The number-one-selling superhero graphic novel in April 2022 only sold 3,401 units. That is not even remotely close to the number twenty manga title with 11,594 units. The gap between the number twenty manga volume and the number one superhero graphic novel is shocking. The decline of American superhero comics is very real. Manga remains undefeated and without a single blemish in the battle for the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales chart for the entire first quarter of 2022. Marvel Comics and DC Comics need to view this as a serious wake-up call in order to stop this slide into irrelevance.
All right, that is it for April 2022. Will manga continue its utter dominance in the Top 20 in May 2022? We will find out!
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