Literally every series on the top 20 manga chart is from VIZ Media, and 10 of the top 20 are volumes of My Hero Academia. Two more are one-shots by horror master Junji Ito. All this is predictable.
There’s one new series that debuts in the number 7 slot: Persona 5, which is based on the video game (Udon Entertainment had previously published manga based on Persona 3 and Persona 4, both by a different creative team).
The rest are a smattering of recent volumes from series that have been doing well but are overshadowed by My Hero Academia: Vol. 6 of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, is in the number 2 slot, and Vol. 10 of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is number 3 (with the first volume popping up at number 13. Also charting are the newest volumes of The Promised Neverland, Splatoon, Beastars, and Dr. Stone. All are shonen series.
Komi Can’t Communicate, which has also done well in recent months, isn’t on the chart this month, but watch for Vol. 5 to crack the chart next month.
So the manga chart is homogenous in that it is composed entirely of shonen and seinen series from VIZ, and half is My Hero Academia, but there’s a good assortment of other series as well.
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NPD BookScan Top 20 Manga Graphic Novels – January 2020 (1/5/20 - 2/1/20) |
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|
Rank |
Title |
Author |
Publisher |
|
1 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 1 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
2 |
THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: TWILIGHT PRINCESS VOL. 6 |
AKIRA HIMEKAWA |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
3 |
DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 10 |
KOYOHARU GOTOUGE |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
4 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 2 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
5 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 22 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
6 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 3 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
7 |
PERSONA 5 VOL. 1 |
HISATO MURASAKI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
8 |
UZUMAKI HC |
JUNJI ITO |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
9 |
THE PROMISED NEVERLAND VOL. 13 |
KAIU SHIRAI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
10 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 4 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
11 |
SPLATOON VOL. 8 |
SANKICHI HINODEYA |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
12 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 20 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
13 |
DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA VOL. 1 |
KOYOHARU GOTOUGE |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
14 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 5 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
15 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 19 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
16 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 21 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
17 |
BEASTARS VOL. 4 |
PARU ITAGAKI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
18 |
NO LONGER HUMAN HC |
JUNJI ITO |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
19 |
MY HERO ACADEMIA VOL. 18 |
KOHEI HORIKOSHI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
20 |
DR. STONE VOL. 9 |
RIICHIRO INAGAKI |
VIZ MEDIA |
|
Source: The NPD Group/BookScan |
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The Author chart is diverse by its nature, but most of the books are recidivists: Strange Planet (at number 1 for the third month in a row), They Called Us Enemy (which hasn’t left the chart since it was published in July), March, Fun Home, The Adventure Zone. Two brand-new graphic novels debut on the chart, though: Bowie: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreams, by Michael Allred, Steve Horton, and Laura Allred, with a foreword by Neil Gaiman; and the final volume of Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
No single publisher dominates the chart. Three of the books are from Top Shelf Productions, three are from First Second Books, and three are from Dark Horse Comics.
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NPD BookScan Top 20 Author Graphic Novels – January 2020 (1/5/20 - 2/1/20) |
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|
Rank |
Title |
Author |
Publisher |
|
1 |
STRANGE PLANET HC |
NATHAN W. PYLE |
MORROW GIFT |
|
2 |
THEY CALLED US ENEMY |
GEORGE TAKEI |
TOP SHELF PROD. |
|
3 |
BOWIE: STARDUST, RAYGUNS, & MOONAGE DAYDREAMS HC |
MICHAEL ALLRED |
INSIGHT COMICS |
|
4 |
MARCH: BOOK ONE |
JOHN LEWIS |
TOP SHELF PROD. |
|
5 |
FUN HOME: A FAMILY TRAGICOMIC |
ALISON BECHDEL |
MARINER BOOKS |
|
6 |
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD: A GRAPHIC NOVEL |
HARPER LEE |
HARPER |
|
7 |
THE ADVENTURE ZONE: MURDER ON THE ROCKPORT LIMITED! |
CLINT MCELROY |
MACMILLAN |
|
8 |
CRITICAL ROLE VOX MACHINA: ORIGINS VOL. 1 |
MATTHEW MERCER |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
9 |
THE ADVENTURE ZONE: HERE THERE BE GERBLINS |
CLINT MCELROY |
MACMILLAN |
|
10 |
THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN (VOL IV): THE TEMPEST |
ALAN MOORE |
TOP SHELF PROD. |
|
11 |
THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY VOL. 3: HOTEL OBLIVION |
GERARD WAY |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
12 |
THE WALKING DEAD COMPENDIUM VOL. 4 |
ROBERT KIRKMAN |
IMAGE COMICS |
|
13 |
THE MUELLER REPORT ILLUSTRATED: THE OBSTRUCTION INVESTIGATION |
THE WASHINGTON POST |
SCRIBNER |
|
14 |
THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY VOL. 1: APOCALYPSE SUITE |
GERARD WAY |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
15 |
THE HANDMAID'S TALE: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL HC |
MARGARET ATWOOD |
NAN A. TALESE |
|
16 |
OPEN BORDERS: THE SCIENCE AND ETHICS OF IMMIGRATION |
BRYAN CAPLAN |
FIRST SECOND BOOKS |
|
17 |
QUEER: A GRAPHIC HISTORY |
MEG-JOHN BARKER |
ICON BOOKS |
|
18 |
NOISE: A GRAPHIC NOVEL BASED ON A TRUE STORY |
KATHLEEN RAYMUNDO |
LIGHTNING SOURCE |
|
19 |
MARCH: BOOK TWO |
JOHN LEWIS |
TOP SHELF PROD. |
|
20 |
ANIMAL FARM: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL HC |
ORWELL, GEORGE |
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN |
|
Source: The NPD Group/BookScan |
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Half the titles on the Superhero Top 20 chart, on the other hand, are from DC Comics. Seven are from Marvel Comics, two from IDW Publishing, and one from Dark Horse Comics. Four are Batman comics; three are Star Wars.
The top title is the new edition of Watchmen, and another Alan Moore graphic novel, V for Vendetta, is number two. A third Moore title, Batman: The Killing Joke, pops up at number six.
Three January releases debuted on the chart: Injustice: Gods Among Us Year Five, Absolute Carnage and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The IDW Collection, Vol. 10.
This month’s Superhero chart points up the stark difference between sales of superhero graphic novels in the book channel and the direct market: Absolute Carnage was the number one title on the Diamond chart (see "Top 500 Graphic Novels—January 2020") but didn’t even crack the top 20 Adult graphic novels in BookScan; it does show up on the Superhero chart at number 6. The videogame-based Injustice: Gods Among Us Year Five, which is number four on the book channel superhero chart, did not appear until number sixty-two on the comic store chart.
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NPD BookScan Top 20 'Superhero' Graphic Novels – January 2020 (1/5/20 - 2/1/20) |
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|
Rank |
Title |
Author |
Publisher |
|
1 |
WATCHMEN (2019 EDITION) |
ALAN MOORE |
DC COMICS |
|
2 |
V FOR VENDETTA |
ALAN MOORE |
DC COMICS |
|
3 |
THE WITCHER OMNIBUS |
PAUL TOBIN |
DARK HORSE COMICS |
|
4 |
INJUSTICE: GODS AMONG US YEAR FIVE- THE COMPLETE COLLECTION |
BRIAN BUCCELLATO |
DC COMICS |
|
5 |
DOOMSDAY CLOCK PART 1 HC |
GEOFF JOHNS |
DC COMICS |
|
6 |
BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE DLX. ED. HC (NEW ED.) |
ALAN MOORE |
DC BLACK LABEL |
|
7 |
ABSOLUTE CARNAGE |
DONNY CATES |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
8 |
DCEASED HC |
TOM TAYLOR |
DC COMICS |
|
9 |
HOUSE OF X/POWERS OF X HC |
JONATHAN HICKMAN |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
10 |
THE BATMAN WHO LAUGHS HC |
SCOTT SNYDER |
DC COMICS |
|
11 |
SILVER SURFER: BLACK TREASURY EDITION |
DONNY CATES |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
12 |
BATMAN: DAMNED HC |
BRIAN AZZARELLO |
DC BLACK LABEL |
|
13 |
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE IDW COLLECTION VOL. 10 |
KEVIN EASTMAN |
RANDOM HOUSE |
|
14 |
MS. MARVEL VOL. 1 |
G. WILLOW WILSON |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
15 |
STAR WARS: DARTH VADER, VOLUME 1: VADER |
KIERON GILLEN |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
16 |
BATMAN: YEAR ONE |
FRANK MILLER |
DC COMICS |
|
17 |
THE SANDMAN VOL. 1: PRELUDES & NOCTURNES 30TH ANN. ED. |
NEIL GAIMAN |
DC COMICS |
|
18 |
STAR WARS: DARTH VADER: DARK LORD OF THE SITH VOL. 1: IMPERIAL MACHINE |
CHARLES SOULE |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
19 |
RICK AND MORTY VS. DUNGEONS & DRAGONS |
PATRICK ROTHFUSS |
IDW PUBLISHING |
|
20 |
STAR WARS: GALAXY'S EDGE |
ETHAN SACKS |
MARVEL COMICS |
|
Source: The NPD Group/BookScan |
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For charts of January graphic novel sales from NPD BookScan:
January 2020 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels
January 2020 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:
January 2020 NPD BookScan - Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
January 2020 NPD BookScan - Top 20 Kids Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
January 2020 NPD BookScan - Top 20 Author, Manga, and Superhero 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."