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 January 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 including e-tailers, chains, mass merchandisers, independent bookstores, and more. NPD BookScan covers approximately 85% of the U.S. trade print book market.
ComicHub January 2022 Top 100 Graphic Novels Sales Chart
Top 10
- Something Is Killing The Children Vol. 4 (BOOM! Studios)
- Demon Slayer Kimetsu No Yaiba Stories Water & Flame (VIZ Media)
- Many Deaths of Laila Starr (BOOM! Studios)
- Something is Killing the Children Vol. 1 (BOOM! Studios)
- Deserter Junji Ito Story Collected HC (VIZ Media)
- Saga Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Department of Truth Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
- Non-Stop Spider-Man Vol. 1 Big Brain Play (Marvel Comics)
- Daredevil By Chip Zdarsky Vol. 7 Lockdown (Marvel Comics)
- Stray Dogs Vol. 1 (Image Comics)
Ouch. The Top 10 graphic novels is an ugly sight for both Marvel Comics and DC Comics. But, far more painful for DC Comics.
Boom! Studios and Image Comics tied for first place with both placing three titles apiece in the Top 10. Kudos to both smaller presses for showing up the big boys in Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the Top 10.
VIZ Comics and Marvel Comics tied for third place with both placing two titles respectively in the Top 10. It is amazing and speaks to the awesome power of manga that VIZ Comics can tie Marvel Comics in sales in local comic book shops which have long been the base of power for Marvel Comics and DC Comics.
DC Comics got shut out and embarrassed as they placed zero titles in the Top 10.
Top 25
- Mighty Marvel Masterworks Fantastic Four Micro-World Vol. 2 (Marvel Comics)
- Something is Killing the Children Vol. 2 (BOOM! Studios)
- Amazing Spider-Man Beyond Vol. 1 (Marvel Comics)
- Nightwing Vol. 1 Leaping Into The Light HC (DC Comics)
- Immortal Hulk Vol. 11 Apocrypha (Marvel Comics)
- Ultimate Spider-Man Omnibus Vol. 1 HC (Marvel Comics)
- Mighty Marvel Masterworks Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1 (Marvel Comics)
- Chainsaw Man Vol. 1 (VIZ Media)
- Something is Killing the Children Vol. 3 (BOOM! Studios)
- Dragon Ball Super vol. 15 (VIZ Media)
- Strange Adventures HC (DC Comics)
- Falconspeare HC (Dark Horse Comics)
- BRZRKR Vol. 1 (BOOM! Studios)
- Department of Truth Vol. 2 (Image Comics)
- Mighty Marvel Masterworks Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 2 (Marvel Comics)
Marvel took the lead in the Top 25 with eight titles. Marvel’s success was largely rooted in the Spider-Man franchise as it accounted for five of their eight titles.
Boom took second place with an impressive six titles in the Top 25. Of course, Boom’s success largely relies upon the Something is Killing the Children franchise which accounted for four of Boom’s six titles.
Image and VIZ tied for third with four titles each. Again, seeing a manga publisher come into the traditional stronghold of American comic books and do this well is impressive.
DC Comics placed a pathetic two titles in the Top 25. One was a Batman franchise title in Nightwing. I have to say that Nightwing continues to impress as the best selling Non-Bruce Wayne Bat-title on the market. But, c’mon. DC Comics got pantsed by VIZ in the Top 25 in local comic shops that are historically DC Comics’ home court.
Darkhorse took last place with one title in the Top 25.
Top 50
Marvel Comics dominated the Top 50 with seventeen titles. The Spider-Man franchise lead the way with a total of seven of those seventeen titles. The Star Wars franchise took second place with two titles out of their seventeen titles. The remaining eight titles were spread out among Moon Knight, Shang-Chi, Hawkeye, Hulk, Daredevil, Captain America, the Fantastic Four and the Avengers.
VIZ Media, Boom Studios, and Image Comics all tied for second place with seven titles apiece. Again, how about VIZ Media coming into American comic books traditional stronghold and grabbing a tie for second place in the Top 50. Impressive.
DC Comics limped into fifth place with just five titles in the Top 50. Three of DC Comics’ five titles were from the Batman franchise.
Darkhorse placed three titles in the Top 50. Kodansha, Del Ray Manga, Seven Seas Entertainment, and Graphix all placed one title each in the Top 50.
Top 100
Marvel dominated the Top 100 with an unrivaled twenty-nine titles. This was better than the twenty-six titles Marvel had in the Top 100 in December 2021. The Spider-Man franchise led the way with twelve of the twenty-nine titles. Star Wars was in second place with five titles. The X-Men franchise was in third place with three titles. No other franchise had more than one title in the Top 100.
Image Comics grabbed second place by placing eighteen titles in the Top 100. This was a great showing by Image Comics. The Saga franchise was the best performer for Image Comics and accounted for four of the eighteen titles.
VIZ Media took third place in the Top 100 with sixteen titles in the Top 100. This was even better than VIZ Media’s thirteen titles in December 2021. Times are changing. Manga is beginning to grow stronger and stronger within the traditional stronghold of American comic books. I never would have imagined that VIZ Media would beat one of the Big Two American publishers in local comic book shop sales. But, here we are.
DC Comics got embarrassed and only placed thirteen titles in the Top 100. DC Comics fall from grace as one of the Big Two is stunning. In December 2021, DC Comics managed twenty titles in the Top 100. The Batman franchise accounted for five of DC Comics’ thirteen titles and was easily the most successful franchise.
Boom Studios finished with eight titles in the Top 100. Something is Killing the Children almost completely powered Boom’s success by accounting for five of Boom’s eight titles.
Darkhorse ended up with four titles in the Top 100. Kodansha managed three titles in the Top 100. Seven Seas Entertainment, IDW Publishing, and Graphix all placed two titles each in the Top 100. Fantagraphics Books, Albatross Funnybooks, and Random House tied for last place with one title apiece in the Top 100.
JANUARY 2022 Top 20 Author Graphic Novels
Top 10
- LORE OLYMPUS: VOLUME ONE (DEL REY) 8,196 units
- LORE OLYMPUS: VOLUME ONE HC (DEL REY) 6,932 units
- SOLO LEVELING VOL. 1 (YEN PRESS) 5,026 units
- SOLO LEVELING VOL. 3 (YEN PRESS) 4,130 units
- THEY CALLED US ENEMY (TOP SHELF PROD.) 3,895 units
- SOLO LEVELING VOL. 2 (YEN PRESS) 3,570 units
- MARCH: BOOK ONE (TOP SHELF PROD.) 2,763 units
- FUN HOME: A FAMILY TRAGICOMIC (MARINER BOOKS) 2,578 units
- RUN: BOOK ONE (ABRAMS) 2,205 units
- BRZRKR VOL. 1 (BOOM! STUDIOS) 2,193 units
The top end of the Top 20 Author Graphic Novels sales chart crashed and burned with the passing of the Christmas season. In December 2021, the number one seller was Lore Olympus: Volume One HC with 31,901 units. That is far higher than the number one seller in January 2022.
The bottom of the January 2022 chart was lower than the December 2021 chart. In December 2021, the number 20 title sold 3,107 units. In January 2022, the number 20 title sold 1,289 units.
In the December 2021 Top 20 Author Graphic Novels sales chart, the sales numbers did not dip into the 8,000 unit range until the number 6 spot. That is where the January 2022 Top 20 Author Graphic Novels sales chart begins.
Yen Press took first place with three titles in the Top 10 due to the success of Solo Leveling. Del Rey took second place with two titles in the Top 10 due to Lore Olympus. Again, Asian webtoons dominate the Top 20 Author Graphic Novels sales chart by taking five of the Top 6 spots on this chart.
Top 20
- IN LOVE & PAJAMAS: A COLLECTION OF COMICS ABOUT BEING YOURSELF TOGETHER HC (ANDREWS & MCMEEL) 2,138 units
- SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN VOL. 4 (BOOM! STUDIOS) 2,100 units
- INVINCIBLE COMPENDIUM VOL. 1 (IMAGE COMICS) 2,083 units
- SAPIENS: A GRAPHIC HISTORY VOL. 1: THE BIRTH OF HUMANKIND (HARPER PERENNIAL) 1,999 units
- THE ABANDONED EMPRESS VOL. 1 (YEN PRESS) 1,808 units
- CRITICAL ROLE: THE MIGHTY NEIN ORIGINS–JESTER LAVORRE (DARK HORSE COMICS) 1,656 units
- THE WALKING DEAD COMPENDIUM VOL. 4 (B&N EXCLUSIVE) (IMAGE COMICS) 1,591 units
- INVINCIBLE COMPENDIUM VOL. 2 (IMAGE COMICS) 1,542 units
- SAPIENS: A GRAPHIC HISTORY VOL. 2: THE PILLARS OF CIVILIZATION (HARPER PERENNIAL) 1,371 units
- GENDER QUEER: A MEMOIR (ONI PRESS) 1,289 units
Yen Press takes first place with four titles in the Top 20. All in all, the January 2022 Top 20 Author Graphic Novels sales chart was very weak. In fact, none of the titles in January 2022 from the number 7 spot on would have even made the December 2021 Top 20 sales chart.
JANUARY 2022 Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels
Top 10
- WATCHMEN (2019 EDITION) (DC COMICS) 2,565 units
- BATMAN/FORTNITE: ZERO POINT HC (DC COMICS) 1,865 units
- BATMAN: YEAR ONE (DC COMICS) 1,807 units
- V FOR VENDETTA (DC COMICS) 1,410 units
- SPIDER-MAN: LIFE STORY HC (MARVEL COMICS) 1,382 units
- HARLEEN HC (DC COMICS) 1,285 units
- BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE DLX. ED. HC (NEW EDITION) (DC COMICS) 1,229 units
- BATMAN: THREE JOKERS HC (DC COMICS) 1,228 units
- ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN OMNIBUS VOL. 1 HC (MARVEL COMICS) 1,212 units
- BLOODBORNE: 1-3 BOXED SET (TITAN COMICS) 1,192 units
Superhero comics continue to be in a free fall. The best selling title in the December 2021 Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels sold 7,085 units. That is far higher than the number one title in the January 2022 sales chart. In fact, the number one title in January 2022, would have only placed in the number 11 spot in the December 2021 Top 20 Superheroes Graphic Novels sales chart.
The bottom of the January 2022 sales chart is also weaker. The title in the number 20 spot in December 2021 sold 1,179 units. The title in the number 20 spot for January 2022 sold just 734. It just keeps getting uglier for American superhero comics.
DC Comics dominated the Top 10 with seven titles. Of course, three of the seven tiles are ancient old. Five of the seven titles are from the Batman franchise.
Marvel Comics only managed two titles in the Top 10. Both of them came from the Spider-Man franchise.
Titan Comics placed one title in the Top 10.
Top 20
- THE BATMAN WHO LAUGHS (DC COMICS) 1,136 units
- THE WITCHER OMNIBUS (DARK HORSE COMICS) 1,079 units
- STAR WARS: WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS (MARVEL COMICS) 1,076 units
- STAR WARS: BOUNTY HUNTERS VOL. 3: WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS (MARVEL COMICS) 1,052 units
- NIGHTWING VOL.1: LEAPING INTO THE LIGHT HC (DC COMICS) 987 units
- STAR WARS: THE HIGH REPUBLIC VOL. 2: THE HEART OF DRENGIR (MARVEL COMICS) 852 units
- TRANSFORMERS/BACK TO THE FUTURE (IDW PUBLISHING) 825 units
- BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN (DC COMICS) 789 units
- BATMAN: WHITE KNIGHT (DC COMICS) 767 units
- STAR WARS: DARTH VADER BY GREG PAK VOL. 3: WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS (MARVEL COMICS) 734 units
DC Comics continued their domination by placing eleven titles in the Top 20. Many of them are old titles. Nine of DC Comics’ eleven titles came from the Batman franchise. DC Comics continues to fail to generate any interest in any of their new comics that are not related to the Batman franchise.
Marvel Comics only placed six titles in the Top 20. All of it came from just two franchises. The Star Wars franchise powered Marvel Comics’ numbers by placing four out of six titles in the Top 20. This was another unimpressive month for Marvel Comics.
Titan Comics, Darkhorse, and IDW all placed one title apiece in the Top 20.
JANUARY 2022 Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels
Top 10
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA–STORIES OF WATER AND FLAME (VIZ MEDIA) 56,339 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 31,586 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 0 (VIZ MEDIA) 24,143 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 22,327 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 21,625 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 21,254 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 20,218 units
- DRAGON BALL SUPER VOL. 15 (VIZ MEDIA) 20,107 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 4 (VIZ MEDIA) 17,038 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 3 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,241 units
VIZ Media dominated the Top 10 by taking all ten spots. Demon Slayer was the top franchise with four volumes in the Top 10. Chainsaw Man was the second best franchise with three volumes in the Top 10. Jujutsu Kaisen placed two volumes in the Top 10.
Top 20
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 3 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,170 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 14,132 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 5 (VIZ MEDIA) 13,858 units
- MY HERO ACADEMIA: TEAM-UP MISSIONS VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,719 units
- ATTACK ON TITAN VOL. 34 (KODANSHA COMICS) 12,700 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 8 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,686 units
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,207 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 6 (VIZ MEDIA) 11,673 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 13 (VIZ MEDIA) 10,726 units
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 12 (YEN PRESS) 10,356 units
VIZ Media attacked the Top 20 with ruthless aggression by placing eighteen volumes in the Top 20. That is incredible. Chainsaw Man was the top franchise with seven volumes in the Top 20. Demon Slayer came in second with four volumes in the Top 20. Jujutsu Kaisen came in third with three titles in the Top 20. My Hero Academia took fourth place with two titles in the Top 20.
Kodansha and Yen Press each placed one volume each in the Top 20. I am thrilled to see that manga continues to grow by leaps and bounds in the United States. However, I am beginning to worry that VIZ Media has a stranglehold on the market. Competition is vital and necessary for a healthy market. I would love to see Kodansha and other Japanese manga companies making a more concerted effort to challenge VIZ Media in the United States market.
JANUARY 2022 Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA–STORIES OF WATER AND FLAME (VIZ MEDIA) 56,339 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 31,586 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 0 (VIZ MEDIA) 24,143 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 22,327 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 21,625 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 21,254 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 20,218 units
- DRAGON BALL SUPER VOL. 15 (VIZ MEDIA) 20,107 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 4 (VIZ MEDIA) 17,038 units
- DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 3 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,241 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 3 (VIZ MEDIA) 16,170 units
- SPY X FAMILY VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 14,132 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 5 (VIZ MEDIA) 13,858 units
- MY HERO ACADEMIA: TEAM-UP MISSIONS VOL. 2 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,719 units
- ATTACK ON TITAN VOL. 34 (KODANSHA COMICS) 12,700 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 8 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,686 units
- MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 (VIZ MEDIA) 12,207 units
- CHAINSAW MAN VOL. 6 (VIZ MEDIA) 11,673 units
- JUJUTSU KAISEN VOL. 13 (VIZ MEDIA) 10,726 units
- TOILET-BOUND HANAKO-KUN VOL. 12 (YEN PRESS) 10,356 units
In August 2021 the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales chart was all manga except for BRZRKR in the number 20 spot. In September 2021, the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales chart was all manga except the number seven spot which was Batman/Fortnite: Zero Point. In October 2021, the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales chart was all manga. Period. In November 2021, the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales chart was all manga except for Lore Olympus Vol. 1 HC and Lore Olympus Vol. 1 paperback at the number one and two spots. In December 2021, the Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales chart was all manga except for Lore Olympus Vol. 1 HC and paperback at the numbers 6 and 7 spots.
Well, the manga domination continues unabated. The January 2022 Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels sales chart is identical to the Top 20 Manga sales chart. The complete collapse of American superhero comics and the massive rise of manga continues to be astounding. And it is not even close. The best selling superhero title was Watchmen with just 2,565 units. That is miles behind the number 20 selling manga title which moved 10,356 units.
All right, that is it for January 2022. Will manga continue its utter dominance in the Top 20 in February 2022? We will find out!
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