Diamond Announces Top Products for August 2020
(BALTIMORE, MD) — (September 30, 2020) — Marvel Comics’ Venom #27 by Donny Cates and Juan Gedeon, continuing Cates’ acclaimed run on the title, was the best-selling comic book distributed in August through Diamond Comic Distributors, the world’s largest distributor of comics, graphic novels, and pop culture merchandise.
Marvel Comics claimed all ten spots in August’s top ten best-selling comics. Peter David, German Peralta, and Dale Keown reveal the untold origin of the future, villainous Hulk, in Maestro #1, which debuted at #3. Other books from Marvel in the top ten include Amazing Spider-Man #46 and #47, Empyre #4 and #5, Thor #6, Venom #25, Wolverine #4, and X-Men #11.
The best-selling comic titles from the premier publishers in August were:
- Image Comics (#15): Spawn #309 by Todd McFarlane and Ken Lashley, continuing McFarlane’s record-setting series.
- BOOM! Studios (#46): Seven Secrets #1 by Tom Taylor and Daniele Di Nicuolo, a new urban fantasy series about a secret society of magical guardians under attack.
- Dynamite Entertainment (#49): Vampirella #12 by Christopher Priest and Giovanni Timpano, continuing Priest’s acclaimed run on the title.
- IDW Publishing (#65): Locke & Key: In Pale Battalions Go… #1 by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez, a new World War I-set chapter of the horror-fantasy series.
- Dark Horse Comics (#79): Alien: The Original Screenplay #1 by Cristiano Seixas and Guilherme Balbi, adapting the original Dan O’Bannon screenplay.
Also of note, August’s top selling non-Marvel Comics title came from Titan Comics; Horizon: Zero Dawn #1 fell just outside the month's top ten comics, ranking #11 for the month.
Deadpool’s earliest appearances, including his first appearance in New Mutants #98, are reprinted in Marvel Comics’ Deadpool Classics Volume 1, the best-selling graphic novel of August. Other Marvel titles among the top ten include Spider-Man/Deadpool Volume 0: Don’t Call It a Team-Up, a collection of the duo’s early team-ups, ranked #2; Inhumans by Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee ranked #4; and Jonathan Hickman, Pepe Larraz, and R.B. Silva’s House of X/Powers of X, which launched a new era of X-Men adventure, ranked #5.
Also among the top ten graphic novels for August were two titles from Image Comics. The fourth collected volume of Jeff Lemire, Andrea Sorrentino, and Dave Stewart’s Eisner Award-winning series Gideon Falls ranked #4, and Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, and Jacob Phillips’ original graphic novel Pulp ranked #7.
Funko’s POP! Marvel Heroes: Absolute Carnage Deluxe Vinyl Figure, a PREVIEWS Exclusive figure inspired by Marvel Comics’ best-selling Absolute Carnage event, was August’s best-selling toy and one of the three Funko products among the month’s top ten. Also in the top ten from the manufacturer were the POP! DC Heroes: Red Hood vs. Deathstroke Comic Moment Vinyl Figure Diorama, a PREVIEWS Exclusive for San Diego Comic Con 2020, at #2 and the life-size POP! Star Wars: The Mandalorian: The Child 10-Inch Vinyl Figure at #9. Mezco’s One:12 Collective: Marvel: Stealth Suit Spider-Man Action Figure, a PREVIEWS Exclusive, ranked #3 for the month. Diamond Select Toys also had four products in the top ten, led by The Nightmare Before Christmas Deluxe Lighted Action Figure Box Set, produced for San Diego Comic Con 2020, at #4.
Paizo Publishing had a strong August, taking all ten spots in the month’s top ten best-selling game products, with the Pathfinder Second Edition Advanced Player’s Guide topping the chart. Also in the top ten were the Starfinder RPG: Starship Operations Manual at #2, the Pathfinder Second Edition: Lost Omens Legends Sourcebook at #3, the Pathfinder Second Edition Core Rulebook at #4, and the Pathfinder Second Edition Advanced Player’s Guide Special Edition at #5.
“We’re very encouraged by the strong performance we saw in many titles this month,” said Tim Lenaghan, Chief Purchasing officer of Geppi Family Enterprises, the parent company of Diamond Comic Distributors, of August’s sales. “The market continues to rebound, and in many cases, we’re seeing new series debut from many of our publishers that are outperforming what we saw in the first quarter. Similarly, issues of established series are seeing increases in subsequent issues as well, and we believe this bodes well for the strength of the industry in third and fourth quarter.”
TOP 10 COMIC BOOKS BY UNITS SHIPPED
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | VENOM #27 | $3.99 | APR201001-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 2 | THOR #6 | $3.99 | MAR201009-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 3 | MAESTRO #1 | $4.99 | JUN200648-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 4 | X-MEN #11 | $3.99 | MAR200872-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 5 | AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #47 | $3.99 | APR200985-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 6 | WOLVERINE #4 | $3.99 | MAR200900-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 7 | AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #46 | $3.99 | MAR200990-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 8 | EMPYRE #4 | $4.99 | APR200845-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 9 | VENOM #25 | $5.99 | FEB200943-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 10 | EMPYRE #5 | $4.99 | APR200851-M | MARVEL COMICS |
TOP 10 COMIC BOOKS BY DOLLARS INVOICED
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | VENOM #27 | $3.99 | APR201001-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 2 | THOR #6 | $3.99 | MAR201009-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 3 | MAESTRO #1 | $4.99 | JUN200648-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 4 | AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #47 | $3.99 | APR200985-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 5 | X-MEN #11 | $3.99 | MAR200872-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 6 | AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #46 | $3.99 | MAR200990-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 7 | WOLVERINE #4 | $3.99 | MAR200900-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 8 | VENOM #25 | $5.99 | FEB200943-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 9 | EMPYRE #4 | $4.99 | APR200845-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 10 | EMPYRE #5 | $4.99 | APR200851-M | MARVEL COMICS |
TOP 10 GRAPHIC NOVELS & TRADE PAPERBACKS BY UNITS SHIPPED
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | DEADPOOL CLASSIC VOLUME 1 TP | $29.99 | FEB082311 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 2 | SPIDER-MAN/DEADPOOL VOL. 0: DON’T CALL IT TEAM UP TP | $34.99 | FEB160956 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 3 | INHUMANS BY PAUL JENKINS AND JAE LEE TP | $34.99 | JUN150836 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 4 | GIDEON FALLS VOLUME 4 TP (MR) | $16.99 | FEB200126 | IMAGE COMICS |
| 5 | HOUSE OF X/POWERS OF X TP | $44.99 | JUN200667 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 6 | DEADPOOL VS. CARNAGE TP | $16.99 | MAY140932 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 7 | PULP HC (MR) | $16.99 | MAR200016 | IMAGE COMICS |
| 8 | RETURN OF THE LIVING DEADPOOL TP | $16.99 | MAY150827 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 9 | MILES MORALES: ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN VOLUME 1:REVIVAL TP | $17.99 | AUG140912 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 10 | DEADPOOL FIRSTS TP | $34.99 | NOV150949 | MARVEL COMICS |
TOP 10 GRAPHIC NOVELS & TRADE PAPERBACKS BY DOLLARS INVOICED
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | HOUSE OF X/POWERS OF X TP | $44.99 | JUN200667 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 2 | SOLOMON KANE: THE ORIGINAL MARVEL YEARS OMNIBUS HC | $100.00 | JAN201040-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 3 | CONAN THE BARBARIAN: THE ORIGINAL MARVEL YEARS OMNIBUS VOLUME 1 HC | $125.00 | JUL181158-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 4 | CRUEL SUMMER HC (MR) | $34.99 | JUN200096 | IMAGE COMICS |
| 5 | MARVEL MASTERWORKS: FANTASTIC FOUR VOLUME 22 HC | $75.00 | JAN201046-M | MARVEL COMICS |
| 6 | STERANKO IS REVOLUTIONARY KING-SIZE HC | $125.00 | NOV190951 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 7 | X-MEN EPIC COLLECTION: PROTEUS TP | $39.99 | APR201110 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 8 | UNCANNY X-FORCE BY REMENDER OMNIBUS HC | $100.00 | SEP190971 | MARVEL COMICS |
| 9 | PULP HC (MR) | $16.99 | MAR200016 | IMAGE COMICS |
| 10 | WORLD OF CYBERPUNK 2077 HC | $39.99 | DEC190236 | DARK HORSE COMICS |
TOP 10 TOYS BY DOLLARS INVOICED
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | POP! MARVEL HEROES: ABSOLUTE CARNAGE DELUXE VINYL FIGURE | DEC198585 | FUNKO |
| 2 | POP DC HEROES: RED HOOD VS. DEATHSTROKE COMIC MOMENT SDCC 2020 VINYL FIGURE DIORAMA | SEP198705 | FUNKO |
| 3 | ONE-12 COLLECTIVE: SPIDER-MAN STEALTH SUIT FIGURE | NOV198726 | MEZCO TOYS |
| 4 | THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: DELUXE LIGHTED SDCC 2020 ACTION FIGURE BOX SET | DEC198805 | DIAMOND SELECT TOYS |
| 5 | TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: RETRO ROTOCAST SDCC 2020 6-PIECE ACTION FIGURE SET | NOV198145 | PLAYMATES |
| 6 | THE MUPPETS: BAND MEMBERS SDCC 2020 DELUXE ACTION FIGURE BOX SET | DEC198804 | DIAMOND SELECT TOYS |
| 7 | LOST IN SPACE: B-9 ELECTRONIC ROBOT | AUG142281 | DIAMOND SELECT TOYS |
| 8 | MARVEL DEADPOOL LEGENDS 6-INCH ACTION FIGURES | MAR208127 | HASBRO TOY GROUP |
| 9 | POP! STAR WARS THE MANDALORIAN: THE CHILD 10-INCH VINYL FIGURE | OCT198608 | FUNKO |
| 10 | THE IRON GIANT SELECT ACTION FIGURE | DEC192335 | DIAMOND SELECT TOYS |
TOP 10 GAMES BY DOLLARS INVOICED
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | PATHFINDER RPG: ADVANCED PLAYERS GUIDE HC (P2) | NOV198464 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 2 | STARFINDER RPG: STARSHIP OPERATIONS MANUAL HC | NOV198469 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 3 | PATHFINDER: LOST OMENS LEGENDS HC (P2) | NOV198463 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 4 | PATHFINDER: CORE RULEBOOK HC (P2) | MAY193227 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 5 | PATHFINDER RPG: ADVANCED PLAYERS GUIDE SPECIAL EDITON HC (P2) | NOV198465 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 6 | STARFINDER RPG: CORE RULEBOOK POCKED EDITION | NOV198467 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 7 | PATHFINDER: CORE RULEBOOK HC SPECIAL EDITION (P2) | MAY193228 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 8 | PATHFINDER RPG: CORE RULEBOOK POCKET EDITION | APR168770 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 9 | PATHFINDER: GAMEMASTERY GUIDE HC (P2) | NOV192998 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
| 10 | PATHFINDER: BESTIARY HC (P2) | MAY193229 | PAIZO PUBLISHING |
NEW TITLES SHIPPED
| PUBLISHER | COMICS SHIPPED |
GRAPHIC NOVELS SHIPPED |
MAGAZINES SHIPPED |
TOTAL SHIPPED |
| MARVEL COMICS | 65 | 35 | 0 | 100 |
| IMAGE COMICS | 44 | 5 | 0 | 49 |
| BOOM! STUDIOS | 25 | 16 | 0 | 41 |
| IDW PUBLISHING | 31 | 9 | 0 | 40 |
| YEN PRESS | 0 | 31 | 0 | 31 |
| SEVEN SEAS ENTERTAINMENT | 0 | 26 | 0 | 26 |
| VIZ MEDIA | 0 | 26 | 0 | 26 |
| KODANSHA COMICS | 0 | 19 | 0 | 19 |
| SCOUT COMICS | 13 | 3 | 0 | 16 |
| ANTARCTIC PRESS | 12 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| OTHER NON-TOP 10 | 110 | 152 | 11 | 273 |
| TOTAL | 300 | 322 | 11 | 633 |
How does Diamond calculate the charts? It all starts at the comic book shop.
Data for Diamond’s sales charts are compiled by Diamond Comic Distributors from sales made to thousands of comic book specialty shops located inNorth Americaand around the world. Additional sales made to online merchants and other specialty retailers may be included as well.
Premier Publishers are defined by Diamond as Marvel Comics, Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, IDW Publishing, Dynamite Entertainment, and BOOM! Studios.
Unit and dollar market shares are calculated based upon orders for comic books, graphic novels, and magazines invoiced and shipped to Diamond customers during any given month, which comprises pre-orders, advance reorders, and reorders, minus any copies that are received back from a title marked as returnable. Please note that reported quantities on comics marked with an asterisk (*) have been reduced based on an estimate of retailer expected returns that may or may not occur and thus, the title may rank lower on the charts than their actual sales would reflect.
The New Titles Count Chart includes all titles that were invoiced by Diamond to retailers for the first time during the month and is not the official solicited title count for the month. Variant edition comic books and graphic novels at the same price point count as a single SKU. Variant edition comic books, lenticular covers, digital combo packs, and graphic novels at different price points count as separate SKUs for each edition.
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