It is that time of the month where we get to check out the latest graphic novels sales numbers. As always, ICv2 is the best source for these sales numbers. ICv2 released several sales charts for August 2021 including the Top 100 Graphic Novels, Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels, Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels, and Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels.
Keep in mind, the Top 100 Graphic Novels chart is based on orders tracked by the ComicHub system at local comic book shops selling American comics. This includes over 3,000 stores selling American comics worldwide. These numbers are also not actual sales. These numbers only represent the number of units ordered by local comic shops.
The 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 including e-tailers, chains, mass merchandisers, independent bookstores, and more. NPD BookScan covers approximately 85% of the U.S. trade print book market.
August 2021 ComicHub Top 100 Graphic Novels
- Sensor HC (VIZ Media)
- Radiant Black Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Department of Truth Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Avatar Last Airbender Vol. 21 (Dark Horse Comics)
- Demon Slayer Kimetsu No Yaiba Vol. 23 (VIZ Media)
- Nightmare Before Christmas Mirror Moon #2 (Tokyopop)
- Did You Hear What Eddie Gein Done (Albatross Funnybooks)
- Something Is Killing Children Vol. 1 (Boom! Studios)
- Something Is Killing Children Vol. 2 (BOOM! Studios)
- Something Is Killing Children Vol. 3 (BOOM! Studios)
- Mighty Marvel Masterworks X-Men Strangest Super Heroes Vol. 1 (Marvel Comics)
- Adventure Zone Vol. 4 Crystal Kingdom (First Second Books)
- Jojos Bizarre Adventure Part 5 Golden Wind Vol. 1 HC (VIZ Media)
- Invincible Compendium Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Monstress Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Saga Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- I Am Not Starfire GN (DC Comics)
- Avatar Last Airbender Rift Omnibus (Dark Horse Comics)
- Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 11 (VIZ Media)
- Paper Girls Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Pokemon Sword and Shield Vol. 1 (VIZ Media)
- X-Men by Jonathan Hickman Vol. 3 (Marvel Comics)
- Lady Mechanika Vol. 1 Mystery of Mechanical Corpse (Image Comics)
- Loki God Who Fell To Earth (Marvel Comics)
- Sweet Tooth The Return (DC Comics)
Top 10
There is so much to unpack here. Keep in mind that this ComicsHub chart tracks sales from local comic book shops that sell American comics. This is historically never been the province of manga at all. This is the safe space for Marvel and DC Comics.
However, Marvel and DC placed zero titles in the Top 10. That is stunning and shows the decline in popularity that Marvel and DC have been experiencing the past few years.
Boom placed three titles in the Top 10 thanks solely to Something is Killing Children which took three spots in the top 10.
Viz placed two titles in the Top 10. That’s right. Manga beat out Marvel and DC in their historical stronghold.
Image places two titles in the Top 10. Dark Horse, Tokyopop, and Albatross Funnybooks rounded out the Top 10 with one title apiece.
Top 25
Things do not get much better for traditional powerhouses Marvel and DC when you look at the Top 25. Image continues to rule the chart by placed seven titles in the Top 25. It is also a testament to Image’s success that their seven titles were spread out across a wide cross-section of titles. Image did not need to lean solely on one title or franchise.
Viz came in second place with five titles in the Top 25. Manga continues to flex its muscle in American comics’ own exclusive outlets. Viz also has a wide range of titles in the Top 25 and not having to rely on just one franchise or title for their sales.
Boom added no additional titles and remained at three titles for the Top 25.
Oh, here we are! We finally get to one of the Big Two. Marvel placed just three titles in the Top 25. What is even uglier is that Marvel’s best-selling title was Might Marvel Masterworks X-Men Strangest Super Heroes Vol. 1 in the number 11 spot. That graphic novel consists of classic Stan Lee and Jack Kirby X-Men stories. That is not a ringing endorsement for the current offerings that Marvel is trying to serve to the masses.
The other two Marvel titles in the Top 25 are Hickman’s X-Men and a Loki graphic novel which collects Loki #1-5 from 2019.
Things are even more dismal for DC Comics. DC placed just two titles in the Top 25. I Am Not Starfire and Sweet Tooth The Return. Even worse is that only one of the two titles actually deals with the DCU. And that one is just a stand-alone YA story.
Dark Horse is the only other publisher with more than one title in the Top 25 as they placed 2 titles in the Top 25.
Top 50
As we expand to the Top 50, we should see Marvel and DC finally taking up more spots on the chart since they simply publish far more titles per month than all of the other publishers. Amazingly enough, neither Marvel nor DC claim sole possession of first place even when looking at the Top 50.
Image and Marvel are tied as both publishers placed ten titles in the Top 50. That is a real testament to Image and a stinging wound to Marvel as Marvel publishes far more titles per month than Image. Kudos to Image for giving their readers what they want.
Nine of Marvel’s ten titles come from the X-Men franchise and Venom. Miles Morales Ultimate End sneaks in as the tenth title in the number 48 spot.
Viz takes third place with seven titles in the Top 50. Yup. Third place in sales at local comic shops specializing in American comics. Impressive.
DC Comics clocks in with an embarrassing fourth-place finish with just six titles in the Top 50. Three of the six titles are non-DCU stories. We do get a Supergirl graphic novel and a Batman graphic novel. DC Comics only placing two graphic novels that deal with the DCU is horrendous. DC Comics continues to seem like a publisher who has lost the script of what fans want to read.
Both Boom and Dark Horse placed four titles in the Top 50.
Top 100
As we pull back and look at the entire Top 100 we finally see Marvel’s strength in numbers finally pulling them to the top. At some point, if you simply outproduce your opponents you will eventually overwhelm them. And, to be sure, nobody publishes more titles than Marvel.
Marvel placed twenty-eight titles in the Top 100. The Spider-man franchise leads the way with eight titles. The X-Men franchise comes in second with four titles. We then get three Loki titles, three Star Wars titles, one Heroes Reborn volume, one Strange Academy volume, one Maestro War and Pax volume, one Infinity Gauntlet volume, one What If Classic Collection, one Hawkeye volume, one Wanda and Vision volume, and one Fantastic Four volume.
Image took second place with twenty titles in the Top 100. That is correct. Image beat out DC Comics in the Top 100. And it was not even close.
DC Comics notched a third-place finish with just thirteen titles in the Top 100. As always, DC Comics leaned on the Batman franchise like a wounded man does a crutch. The Batman franchise had seven of DC’s thirteen titles. There were three non-DCU volumes, a Supergirl volume, A DCeased volume, and the Starfire OGN.
Viz placed nine volumes in the Top 100 for graphic novels sold at local comic book shops. Manga is sneaking its way into the traditional stronghold of American comics. It will be interesting to see how this trend continues going forward. I know the local comic book shops in my area did not start carrying manga until a year ago. Even now, their manga section is incredibly small. However, maybe we will see local comic shops pivoting more and more and trying to expand their manga offerings going forward.
Rounding out the Top 5 publishers was Dark Horse with seven titles in the Top 100 and Boom with 6 titles in the Top 100.
August 2021 Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels
- THE BATMAN WHO LAUGHS (DC COMICS)
- WATCHMEN (2019 EDITION) (DC COMICS)
- BATMAN: YEAR ONE (DC COMICS)
- BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN (DC COMICS)
- BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE DLX. ED. HC (NEW EDITION) (DC COMICS)
- HARLEEN HC (DC COMICS)
- THE SANDMAN VOL. 1: PRELUDES & NOCTURNES 30TH ANN. ED. (DC COMICS)
- MS MARVEL VOL. 1: NO NORMAL (MARVEL COMICS)
- BATMAN: THREE JOKERS HC (DC COMICS)
- BATMAN: WHITE KNIGHT (DC COMICS)
- STRANGER THINGS AND DUNGEONS & DRAGONS (DARK HORSE COMICS)
- V FOR VENDETTA (DC COMICS)
- DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL: DLX. ED. HC (DC COMICS)
- BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS (DC COMICS)
- SUICIDE SQUAD: THEIR GREATEST SHOTS (DC COMICS)
- STAR WARS: GUARDIANS OF THE WHILLS: THE MANGA (VIZ MEDIA)
- INFINITY GAUNTLET (MARVEL COMICS)
- STAR WARS: DOCTOR APHRA VOL. 2: THE ENGINE JOB (MARVEL COMICS)
- LOKI: AGENT OF ASGARD – THE COMPLETE COLLECTION (MARVEL COMICS)
- INJUSTICE: GODS AMONG US YEAR ONE: THE COMPLETE COLL. (DC COMICS)
The sales numbers are not that impressive for superhero graphic novels. The Batman Who Laughs took the number one spot with just 4,015 units.
Top 10
While the sales numbers may not be impressive, what was impressive is how DC Comics stomped all over Marvel Comics. DC Comics placed a whopping 9 titles in the Top 10. Marvel snuck in just one. Marvel Comics got completely embarrassed.
Having said that, there is an ominous warning for DC Comics. The Batman Who Laughs may have taken the top spot, but it sold just 4,015 units. Seven of DC’s nine titles were from the Batman franchise. And only three of DC’s nine titles were published in the past three years.
Marvel’s sole title in the Top 10 was Ms. Marvel Vol. 1 which sold an unimpressive 1,068 units.
Top 20
DC continued its domination of this chart by placing fourteen titles in the Top 20. However, once again, it is all about Batman as the Batman franchise accounted for nine of DC’s fourteen titles. Further, only four of the fourteen titles were published in the last three years. This goes to the growing concern that DC Comics is not putting out new content that appeals to a large audience.
Marvel Comics only managed to place a pathetic four titles into the Top 20. Marvel’s four titles were spread across different franchises.
All in all, the unit numbers for the Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels chart were terrible. The best selling graphic novel on this chart, The Batman Who Laughs did not even come close to making it onto the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels lists which pulls from superhero, author, and manga graphic novels,
August 2021 Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 11 (VIZ MEDIA) 50,145
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 23 (VIZ MEDIA) 44,529
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 6 (VIZ MEDIA) 36,453
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 28 (VIZ MEDIA) 20,671
- SENSOR HC (VIZ MEDIA) 19,765
- JOJO’S BIZARRE ADVENTURE: PART 5–GOLDEN WIND VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,151
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 1 (YEN PRESS) 16,036
- HAIKYU!! VOL. 45 (VIZ MEDIA) 15,379
- THE PROMISED NEVERLAND VOL. 20 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,601
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 10,116
- ATTACK ON TITAN VOL. 1 (KODANSHA COMICS) 10,047
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 8,883
- TOMIE: COMPLETE DLX. ED. HC (VIZ MEDIA) 8,639
- UZUMAKI (3-IN-1 DLX. ED.) HC (VIZ MEDIA) 8,475
- BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 2 HC (DARK HORSE COMICS) 7,887
- KOMI CAN’T COMMUNICATE, VOL. 14 (VIZ MEDIA) 7,572
- MY HERO ACADEMIA, VOL. 27 (VIZ MEDIA) 7,508
- WOTAKOI: LOVE IS HARD FOR OTAKU VOL. 1 (KODANSHA COMICS) 6,986
- BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 1 HC (DARK HORSE COMICS) 6,908
- ONE PIECE VOL. 1 (OMNIBUS ED.) (VIZ MEDIA) 6,550
As usual, VIZ Media dominated this Top 20 chart. Viz placed nine titles in the Top 10. Yen Press snuck in one title in the Top 10. The story remains the same with the Top 20 as Viz had fifteen titles in the Top 20. Kodansha Comics had two titles in the Top 20. Dark Horse Comics also placed two comics in the Top 20.
My Hero Academia continues to be a sales beast by placing four volumes in the Top 20. Berserk slotted two volumes in the Top 20. I was particularly pleased to see Chainsaw Man Vol. 6 in the third spot with 36,453 units sold. Chainsaw Man is one of my favorite mangas so I am glad to see other people enjoying Tatsuki Fujimoto’s work.
Unlike the chart for Superhero Graphic Novels, the manga chart boasted some large sales numbers. While the number one Superhero Graphic Novel sold just 4,015 units, the number one manga title in Jujutsu Kaisen Vol. 11 sold 50,145 units. Nuff said.
August 2021 Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 11 (VIZ MEDIA) 50,145
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 23 (VIZ MEDIA) 44,529
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 6 (VIZ MEDIA) 36,453
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 28 (VIZ MEDIA) 20,671
- SENSOR HC (VIZ MEDIA) 19,765
- JOJO’S BIZARRE ADVENTURE: PART 5–GOLDEN WIND VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,151
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 1 (YEN PRESS) 16,036
- HAIKYU!! VOL. 45 (VIZ MEDIA) 15,379
- THE PROMISED NEVERLAND VOL. 20 (VIZ MEDIA)12,601
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 10,116
- ATTACK ON TITAN VOL. 1 (KODANSHA COMICS) 10,047
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 8,883
- TOMIE: COMPLETE DELUXE EDITION HC (VIZ MEDIA) 8,639
- UZUMAKI (3-IN-1 DELUXE EDITION) HC (VIZ MEDIA) 8,475
- RUN: BOOK ONE HC (ABRAMS) 8,059
- BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 2 HC (DARK HORSE) 7,887
- KOMI CAN’T COMMUNICATE VOL. 14 (VIZ MEDIA) 7,572
- MY HERO ACADEMI VOL. 27 (VIZ MEDIA) 7,508
- WOTAKOI: LOVE IS HARD FOR OTAKU VOL. 1 (KODANSHA COMICS) 6,986
- BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 1 HC (DARK HORSE COMICS) 6,908
Nope. Your eyes are not deceiving you. The Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels list which pulls from Superhero Graphic Novels, Author Graphic Novels, and Manga is nearly identical to the Top 20 Manga chart. The only non-manga graphic novel on this Top 20 chart is Run: Book One in the number fifteen spot. That is how utterly dominant manga has become as Marvel and DC continue to shed long-time readers and mail to attract new readers.
Nothing from Marvel of DC managed to make the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels list. And nothing from Marvel or DC Comics came even close to cracking into the Top 20. Berserk Deluxe Vol. 1 in the number 20 spot sold 6,908 units which was easily more than the number one selling Superhero Graphic Novel in The Batman Who Laughs which sold just 4,015 units.
All right, that is it for August 2021. Will manga continue its stranglehold on the Top 20 in September? We will find out!
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