For an over-view and analysis of the best-selling comics and graphic novels in May, see 'Spider-Man, Batman Up in May.'
For an analysis of the dollar trends in May, see 'May Comic and Graphic Novel Orders Continue Sharp Increases.'
For the top 300 comics in May, see 'Top 300 Comics -- May.'
 
QtyRank   GuideDescription     PricePub Est.Qty.
125.44LONE WOLF & CUB VOL 22 HEAVEN & EARTH  TP$9.95 DAR13,203
216.27MURDER MYSTERIES HC$13.95 DAR8,444
315.01ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN VOL 3 TP$17.95 MAR7,790
412.45SPAWN BOOK O/T DEAD HC$24.95 IMA6,461
510.94GI JOE VOL 2 TP$24.95 MAR5,678
610.12FORGE #2$9.95 CRO5,252
79.42EDGE #2$9.95 CRO4,889
88.61WARREN ELLIS ATMOSPHERICS GN (MR)$5.95 AVA4,468
98.49ASTRO BOY VOL 4 TP$9.95 DAR4,406
107.86BLADE O/T IMMORTAL SECRETS TP (MR)$16.95 DAR4,079
116.74CLASSIC STAR WARS LONG TIME AGO VOL 1 TP$29.95 DAR3,498
126.73UNIVERSE X VOL 2 TP$29.95 MAR3,493
136.31ABSOLUTE AUTHORITY VOL 1 OVERSIZED HC$49.95 DC3,275
146.11OH MY GODDESS WRONG NUMBER TP$13.95 DAR3,171
155.67BULLETPROOF MONK TP$9.95 IMA2,943
165.5FATHOM VOL 1 TP$24.95 IMA2,854
175.18PUNISHER HC$34.95 MAR2,688
185.02NEON GENESIS EVANGELION VOL 6 TP*$15.95 VIZ2,605
194.96ADV OF BARRY WEEN BOY GENIUS GORILLA WARFARE VOL 4 TP$8.95 ONI2,574
204.85WONDER WOMAN ARCHIVES VOL 3 HC$49.95 DC2,517
214.82EIGHTBALL 20TH CENTURY EIGHTBALL TP (RES) (MR)$18.95 FAN2,501
224.81WARLANDS VOL 2 TP$11.95 DRE2,496
234.74CLIVE BARKERS HELLRAISER COLLECTED BEST TP$21.95 CHE2,460
244.56NAMES OF MAGIC TP (MR)$14.95 DC2,367
254.51MARVEL MASTERWORKS IRON MAN HC$49.95 MAR2,341
264.35GREEN LANTERN CIRCLE OF FIRE TP$17.95 DC2,258
274.21INU YASHA VOL 11 TP$15.95 VIZ2,185
284.12COMICS JOURNAL LIBRARY VOL 1 JACK KIRBY TP$18.95 FAN2,138
294.04HUMAN TARGET FINAL CUT HC (MR)$29.95 DC2,097
304.04CRUX VOL 1 TP$15.95 CRO2,097
313.87BLAZE OF GLORY TP$11.50 MAR2,008
323.7VAMPIRE MASQUERADE GN BECKETT (MR)$6.95 MNS1,920
333.63DRAGONBALL VOL 8 TP$12.95 VIZ1,884
343.63LOVE HINA VOL 2 GN$9.99 TKP1,884
353.63SUPERMAN TARZAN SONS O/T JUNGLE TP$9.95 DAR1,884
363.61NO NEED FOR TENCHI VOL 12 NO NEED FOR ENDINGS TP$15.95 VIZ1,874
373.09GHOST RIDER HAMMER LANE TP$15.95 MAR1,604
383BTVS FALSE MEMORIES TP$12.95 DAR1,557
392.89ANGELIC LAYER VOL 1 GN$9.99 TKP1,500
402.89X 1999 VOL 7 RHAPSODY TP$15.95 VIZ1,500
412.74SORCERER HUNTERS VOL 10 GN$12.99 TKP1,422
422.73TENTH NO SWEETS AFTER DARK TP$9.95 DAR1,417
432.68EL HAZARD VOL 1 TP$15.95 VIZ1,391
442.6ANGEL LONG NIGHTS JOURNEY TP$12.95 DAR1,349
452.32KODOCHA VOL 1 SANAS STAGE GN$9.99 TKP1,204
462.29NOCTURNALS DARK FOREVER TP$9.95 ONI1,188
472.19RAGNAROK VOL 1 GN$9.99 TKP1,137
482.18KARE KANO VOL 1 GN$9.99 TKP1,131
492.08FLIPPED #2$9.95 AST1,079
502.08GTO VOL 2 GN$9.99 TKP1,079
 
 
 
 
 
Notes on this chart:

Some titles have been truncated or abbreviated for space reasons.

Publisher abbreviations have also been used.

Mar = Marvel

Dar = Dark Horse

Dre = Dreamwave

Ima = Image

Bla = Black Bull

Car = Cartoon Books

Har = Harris

Cro = Crossgen

Bon = Bongo

Tok = Tokyo Pop

Cha = Chaos

 

The quantities in this chart are ICv2 estimates of initial raw orders to Diamond North America on titles scheduled for shipment in May 2002. 

 

Marvel, DC, Dark Horse and Image distribute 100% of their comic store orders through Diamond.  Some other publishers distribute directly to stores or through other distributors and as a result this analysis may underestimate their sales. 

 

Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, and Image distribute some of their titles through channels other than comic specialty stores, e.g., newsstands and bookstores.  These quantity estimates do not reflect distribution through those channels. 

 

The quantities above do not include advance reorders, late orders, or reorders.

 

Most of the titles on this chart are also distributed to Europe by Diamond UK, which can account for significant sales for the publisher, ranging from 3-20% of the US numbers.   Sales by Diamond UK are not included in the numbers above.

 

Even given the above, however, it is probably safe to say that these quantities reflect 80% or more of the total North American sales by the publisher on most periodical comics.   

 

One other factor to consider is that sales through Diamond and other comic distributors are non-returnable to retailers.  That means that there is a considerable unknown percentage of books unsold at the retailer level.  If that percentage is 10-20% of sales (a reasonable assumption), the estimates above may be quite close to actual sales to consumers.

 

For a list of the top comics in April, see 'Top 300 Comics -- April 2002.'

 

For a list of the top graphic novels in April, see 'Top 50 Graphic Novels -- April 2002.'

 

For an over-view and analysis of the best-selling comics and graphic novels in April, see 'Retro Rules in April.'

 

For an analysis of the over-all dollar trends for April, see 'Comic and Graphic Novel Orders Surge in April.'