Let’s start with the superhero chart (our term for titles based on intellectual properties owned by companies), which is remarkable because 9 of the 20 graphic novels are based on media properties, not superheroes: Stranger Things, Life is Strange, Star Wars, League of Legends, Rick and Morty.
As is frequently the case, the May chart is dominated by newer titles: 12 of the titles are May 2019 releases, and 2 more were released in the last two months and were on the April chart as well. Readers of superhero and media comics like their content fresh, it seems.
On the other hand, the older properties on the chart certainly have staying power. Infinity Gauntlet tops the chart for the second consecutive month, and it was the number one property a year ago as well (see "May 2018 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Superhero, Manga, Author Graphic Novels"). In fact, for most of the past year, it has been in the top 3, and it has never moved lower than number 6. The other two older books that have charted every month for the past year are Watchmen and Batman: The Killing Joke.
In terms of publishers, Marvel has nine slots on the chart, DC Comics has four, Dark Horse Comics has three, and Legendary, Titan Comics, IDW Comics, and BOOM! Studios have one each.
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NPD BookScan Top 20 'Superhero' Graphic Novels – May 2019 (5/5/19 - 6/1/19) |
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|
Rank |
Title |
Author |
Publisher |
|
1 |
INFINITY GAUNTLET |
JIM STARLIN |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
2 |
STRANGER THINGS VOL. 1: THE OTHER SIDE |
JODY HOUSER |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
3 |
GODZILLA AFTERSHOCK HC |
NELSON, ARVID |
LEGENDARY COMICS |
|
4 |
THE LEGEND OF KORRA: RUINS OF THE EMPIRE PART ONE |
MICHAEL DANTE DIMARTINO |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
5 |
WATCHMEN |
ALAN MOORE |
DC COMICS |
|
6 |
LIFE IS STRANGE VOL. 1: DUST |
EMMA VIECELI |
TITAN COMICS |
|
7 |
AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER: IMBALANCE PART TWO |
FAITH ERIN HICKS |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
8 |
RICK AND MORTY VS. DUNGEONS & DRAGONS |
PATRICK ROTHFUSS |
IDW PUBLISHING |
|
9 |
MARVEL'S AVENGERS: ENDGAME PRELUDE |
VARIOUS |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
10 |
JUSTICE LEAGUE VOL. 2: GRAVEYARD OF GODS |
SCOTT SNYDER |
DC COMICS |
|
11 |
SHURI: THE SEARCH FOR BLACK PANTHER |
NNEDI OKORAFOR |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
12 |
INFINITY WAR |
JIM STARLIN |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
13 |
STAR WARS: AGE OF THE REPUBLIC - VILLAINS |
JODY HOUSER |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
14 |
BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE DLX. ED. HC |
ALAN MOORE |
DC COMICS |
|
15 |
MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS VOL. 8 |
KYLE HIGGINS |
BOOM! STUDIOS |
|
16 |
BATMAN: WHITE KNIGHT |
SEAN MURPHY |
DC BLACK LABEL |
|
17 |
IMMORTAL HULK VOL. 3: HULK IN HELL |
AL EWING |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
18 |
LEAGUE OF LEGENDS: ASHE - WARMOTHER |
ODIN AUSTIN SHAFER |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
19 |
STAR WARS: AGE OF THE REPUBLIC - HEROES |
JODY HOUSER |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
20 |
CIVIL WAR |
MARK MILLAR |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
Source: The NPD Group/BookScan |
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With no new volume of My Hero Academia this month, the other superhero manga, One-Punch Man, tops the chart, followed by the first volume of the deluxe edition of Berserk. Berserk isn’t a manga you hear a lot about, but it is one of Dark Horse’s best-selling properties of all time. The series has been running in Japan since 1989 and is still going, with 40 volumes completed so far.
The chart is dominated by shonen manga, including such perennials as My Hero Academia, Dragon Ball Super, and One Piece, but it’s worth noting the new shojo (girls) series that debuts on the May chart: Snow White with the Red Hair, which stars an herbalist who leaves the country rather than marry the prince. It plays with the elements of the traditional Snow White to come up with a very different type of story, although it’s no surprise to learn that the kingdom that Snow White travels to is home to another prince, this one more handsome and more chill than the one she was fleeing.
Junji Ito is having a bit of a moment, thanks in part to the Junji Ito Collection anime, and not only does his new book Smashed make the chart, but the older Uzumaki does as well.
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NPD BookScan Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels – May 2019 (5/5/19 - 6/1/19) |
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|
Rank |
Title |
Author |
Publisher |
|
1 |
ONE-PUNCH MAN VOL. 16 |
ONE |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
2 |
BERSERK DELUXE VOL. 1 |
KENTARO MIURA |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
3 |
DRAGON BALL SUPER VOL. 5 |
AKIRA TORIYAMA |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
4 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
5 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 2 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
6 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 18 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
7 |
JOJO'S BIZARRE ADVENTURE: PART 4--DIAMOND IS UNBREAKABLE VOL. 1 HC |
ARAKI, HIROHIKO |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
8 |
ONE PIECE VOL. 90 |
EIICHIRO ODA |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
9 |
SMASHED: JUNJI ITO STORY COLLECTION HC |
JUNJI ITO |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
10 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 3 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
11 |
BLACK CLOVER VOL. 15 |
YUKI TABATA |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
12 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 4 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
13 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 17 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
14 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 5 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
15 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 16 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
16 |
SNOW WHITE WITH THE RED HAIR VOL. 1 |
SORATA AKIDUKI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
17 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 15 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
18 |
SAILOR MOON ETERNAL EDITION 4 |
NAOKO TAKEUCHI |
KODANSHA COMICS |
|
19 |
UZUMAKI HC |
JUNJI ITO |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
20 |
TOKYO GHOUL VOL. 1 |
SUI ISHIDA |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
Source: The NPD Group/BookScan |
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As always, the Author chart is a mixed bag, with old and new graphic novels in a variety of genres bumping up against one another. The Umbrella Academy still leads the list, followed by March: Book One, The Handmaid’s Tale, and The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins. Mari Andrew’s Am I There Yet? The Loop-De-Loop, Zigzagging Journey to Adulthood, missing from the Adult Top 20, is here at number 7.
Three Image Comics titles debut on the chart: Rat Queens, volume 9; East of West, volume 9; and Blackbird, volume 1. Also making the chart in its release month is The Ghost of Ohio, a horror story by Andy Biersack, frontman of Black Veil Brides, which ties into their album of the same name.
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NPD BookScan Top 20 Author Graphic Novels – May 2019 (5/5/19 - 6/1/19) |
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|
Rank |
Title |
Author |
Publisher |
|
1 |
THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY VOL. 1: APOCALYPSE SUITE |
GERARD WAY |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
2 |
THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY VOL. 2: DALLAS |
GERARD WAY |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
3 |
MARCH: BOOK ONE |
JOHN LEWIS |
TOP SHELF PROD. |
|
4 |
THE HANDMAID'S TALE: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL HC |
MARGARET ATWOOD |
NAN A. TALESE |
|
5 |
THE ADVENTURE ZONE: HERE THERE BE GERBLINS |
CLINT MCELROY |
FIRST SECOND BOOKS |
|
6 |
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD: A GRAPHIC NOVEL HC |
HARPER LEE |
HARPER |
|
7 |
AM I THERE YET?: THE LOOP-DE-LOOP, ZIGZAGGING JOURNEY TO ADULTHOOD HC |
MARI ANDREW |
CLARKSON N POTTER |
|
8 |
RAT QUEENS VOL. 6 |
KURTIS J. WIEBE |
IMAGE COMICS |
|
9 |
THE WALKING DEAD VOL. 31 |
ROBERT KIRKMAN |
IMAGE COMICS |
|
10 |
EAST OF WEST VOL. 9 |
JONATHAN HICKMAN |
IMAGE COMICS |
|
11 |
SHEETS |
BRENNA THUMMLER |
LION FORGE |
|
12 |
THE ADVENTURES OF ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT HC |
ANDREA WULF |
PANTHEON BOOKS |
|
13 |
ANNE FRANK'S DIARY: THE GRAPHIC ADAPTATION HC |
ANNE FRANK |
PANTHEON BOOKS |
|
14 |
FUN HOME: A FAMILY TRAGICOMIC |
BECHDEL, ALISON |
MARINER BOOKS |
|
15 |
SAGA VOL. 1 |
BRIAN K. VAUGHAN |
IMAGE COMICS |
|
16 |
SAGA VOL. 9 |
BRIAN K. VAUGHAN |
IMAGE COMICS |
|
17 |
THE GHOST OF OHIO |
ANDY BIERSACK |
Z2 COMICS |
|
18 |
HELLBOY OMNIBUS VOL. 1 |
MIKE MIGNOLA |
DARK HORSE BOOKS |
|
19 |
I WAS THEIR AMERICAN DREAM: A GRAPHIC MEMOIR |
MALAKA GHARIB |
CLARKSON N POTTER |
|
20 |
BLACKBIRD VOL. 1 |
SAM HUMPHRIES |
IMAGE COMICS |
|
Source: The NPD Group/BookScan |
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For charts of May graphic novel sales from NPD BookScan:
May 2019 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels
May 2019 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Kids Graphic Novels
For the charts with the actual sales numbers from NPD BookScan, see these articles on the ICv2 Pro site:
May 2019 NPD BookScan - Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
May 2019 NPD BookScan - Top 20 Kids Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
May 2019 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Superhero, Manga, Author Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
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. The ranks on this chart are based on piece sales. Some publishers classify titles that are primarily text, or art books, as graphic novels; we've removed those titles from the ranking above.
For past BookScan Top 20 Graphic Novel lists, see the "BookScan Top 20 GN Index."
