Diamond Announces Top Products for December 2015
(BALTIMORE, MD) — (January 8, 2016) — The heroes of the Marvel universe lay siege to Doom's castle in Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic's Secret Wars #8, the penultimate chapter of Marvel Comics' crossover event and the best-selling comic book of December 2015, according to information provided by Diamond Comic Distributors, the world's largest distributor of comics, graphic novels, and pop culture merchandise.
Marvel Comics was December's top publisher with a 37.09% dollar share and a 41.87% unit share. DC Entertainment was the month's number two publisher with a 29.32% dollar share and a 29.93% unit share. November's number three publisher was Image Comics with a 10.29% dollar share and a 10.65% unit share. In fourth was IDW Publishing with a 5.31% dollar share and a 4.10% unit share. Dark Horse Comics placed fifth for the month with a 3.05% dollar share and a 2.43% unit share.
Marvel Comics had six of December's top ten best-selling titles, including Jason Aaron and Mike Deodato's Star Wars #13 at #3, Dan Abnett and Carlo Barberi's Guardians of Infinity #1 at #5, and Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca's Darth Vader #14 at #7. DC Entertainment had four titles among the top ten, led by Frank Miller, Brian Azarello, John Romita, Jr., and Klaus Janson's Dark Knight III: The Master Race #2 at #2. Among the other premier publishers, Image Comics' top book in December was The Walking Dead #149 at #26, Dark Horse Comics' Fight Club 2 #8 was their top book at #81, and Back to the Future #3 from IDW Publishing was their top book at #106. December's top non-premier comic book was Oni Press' Invader Zim #5 at #86.
Image Comics collected the Eisner Award-winning Best Digital Comic from Brian K. Vaughan and Marcos Martin for The Private Eye Deluxe Edition, giving the publisher the best-selling graphic novel of December. Also in the top ten for Image Comics was Vaughan and Fiona Staples' Saga Volume 5 at #5. DC Entertainment had three titles among the top ten, led by Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti's Harley Quinn Volume 2: Power Outage at #2. Dark Horse Comics' Avatar the Last Airbender Volume 11: Smoke & Shadow Part 2 ranked #3. Marvel Comics had three titles in the top ten, led by Star Wars: Darth Vader Volume 1: Vader at #8. Also among the top ten was Black Mask Comics' We Can Never Go Home at #6.
IDW Publishing's Locke & Key: Shades of Terror Coloring Book, a new entry in the adult coloring book genre based on the acclaimed comic, was the best-selling book of December and one of the publisher's two products among the top ten. Also in the top ten were two books from Dark Horse Comics, led by The Art of Fallout 4, an artbook based on the best-selling video game, at #4.
Kotobukiya's Halo: Mjolnir Mark V and Mark VI Deluxe ArtFX+ Statue 2-Pack, based on Microsoft's best-selling sci-fi video game franchise, was the best-selling toy product of December. DC Collectibles had eight products in the top ten, led by the DC Comics Bombshells: The Joker and Harley Quinn Statue at #2. Also in the top ten was Diamond Select Toys' Marvel Select: Dr. Strange Action Figure at #10.
BOOM! Studios' Mouse Guard Roleplaying Game Boxed Set (Second Edition) was December's best-selling game. Diamond Select Toys' Back to the Future Monopoly remained in the top ten, ranking #2 for the month, and their Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back Monopoly returned to the top ten at #9. Also of note, Image Comics' Superfight Decks took five spots in the top ten.
TOP COMIC BOOK PUBLISHERS
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NEW TITLES SHIPPED
| PUBLISHER | COMICS SHIPPED | GRAPHIC NOVELS SHIPPED | MAGAZINES SHIPPED | TOTAL SHIPPED |
| DC ENTERTAINMENT | 98 | 36 | 1 | 135 |
| MARVEL COMICS | 81 | 27 | 0 | 108 |
| IMAGE COMICS | 77 | 16 | 0 | 93 |
| IDW PUBLISHING | 50 | 29 | 0 | 79 |
| DARK HORSE COMICS | 32 | 17 | 0 | 49 |
| BOOM ENTERTAINMENT | 31 | 9 | 0 | 40 |
| DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT | 23 | 9 | 0 | 32 |
| TITAN COMICS | 17 | 6 | 4 | 27 |
| VIZ MEDIA | 0 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| ONI PRESS INC. | 8 | 4 | 0 | 12 |
| OTHER NON-TOP 10 | 139 | 138 | 41 | 318 |
COMPARATIVE SALES STATISTICS
| DOLLARS | UNITS | |
| DECEMBER 2015 VS. NOVEMBER 2015 | ||
| COMICS | -2.14% | 0.68% |
| GRAPHIC NOVELS | 12.73% | 7.36% |
| TOTAL COMICS/GN | 1.53% | 1.09% |
| DECEMBER 2015 VS. DECEMBER 2014 | ||
| COMICS | 25.05% | 18.63% |
| GRAPHIC NOVELS | 14.12% | 7.03% |
| TOTAL COMICS/GN | 21.85% | 17.80% |
| YEAR 2015 VS. YEAR 2014 | ||
| COMICS | 8.99% | 6.54% |
| GRAPHIC NOVELS | 3.14% | 3.35% |
| TOTAL COMICS/GN | 7.17% | 6.28% |
TOP 10 COMIC BOOKS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | SECRET WARS #8 | $3.99 | AUG150653-M | MAR |
| 2 | DARK KNIGHT III: THE MASTER RACE #2 | $5.99 | OCT150141-M | DC |
| 3 | STAR WARS #13 | $3.99 | SEP150832-M | MAR |
| 4 | BATMAN/TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #1 | $3.99 | OCT150148-M | DC |
| 5 | BATMAN #47 | $3.99 | OCT150202-M | DC |
| 6 | GUARDIANS OF INFINITY #1 | $4.99 | OCT150747-M | MAR |
| 7 | DARTH VADER #14 | $3.99 | OCT150943-M | MAR |
| 8 | HARLEY'S LITTLE BLACK BOOK #1 | $4.99 | OCT150151-M | DC |
| 9 | STAR WARS ANNUAL #1 | $4.99 | OCT150941 | MAR |
| 10 | DARTH VADER ANNUAL #1 | $4.99 | OCT150939-M | MAR |
TOP 10 GRAPHIC NOVELS & TRADE PAPERBACKS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | THE PRIVATE EYE DELUXE EDITION HC (MR) | $49.99 | OCT150484 | IMA |
| 2 | HARLEY QUINN VOLUME 2: POWER OUTAGE TP | $16.99 | SEP150302 | DC |
| 3 | AVATAR THE LAST AIRBENDER VOLUME 11: SMOKE & SHADOW PART 2 TP | $10.99 | AUG150057 | DAR |
| 4 | BATMAN VS. SUPERMAN TP | $9.99 | SEP150285 | DC |
| 5 | SAGA VOLUME 5 TP (MR) | $14.99 | JUL150565 | IMA |
| 6 | WE CAN NEVER GO HOME TP (MR) | $9.99 | SEP151091 | BLA |
| 7 | HARLEY QUINN VOLUME 3: KISS KISS BANG STAB HC | $24.99 | AUG150272 | DC |
| 8 | STAR WARS: DARTH VADER VOLUME 1: VADER TP | $19.99 | JUL150827 | MAR |
| 9 | CIVIL WAR TP | $24.99 | JAN072436 | MAR |
| 10 | AMAZING SPIDER-MAN: RENEW YOUR VOWS TP | $17.99 | SEP150861 | MAR |
TOP 10 BOOKS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | LOCKE & KEY: SHADES OF TERROR COLORING BOOK | $9.99 | OCT150443 | IDW |
| 2 | STAR WARS ARTIFACT EDITION HC | $75.00 | JUL150362 | IDW |
| 3 | GRIMM FAIRY TALES: ADULT COLORING BOOK | $12.99 | OCT151871 | ZEN |
| 4 | THE ART OF FALLOUT 4 HC | $49.99 | JUL158450 | DAR |
| 5 | THE LITTLE BOOK OF BATMAN FLEXICOVER (MR) | $9.99 | SEP151821 | TAS |
| 6 | WONDER WOMAN: TIARA BRACELET & BOOK KIT | $9.95 | OCT151892 | RUN |
| 7 | THE LITTLE BOOK OF WONDER WOMAN FLEXICOVER | $9.99 | SEP151823 | TAS |
| 8 | THE SHADOW DOUBLE NOVEL VOLUME 102 SC | $14.95 | OCT151917 | SAN |
| 9 | THE LITTLE BOOK OF SUPERMAN FLEXICOVER | $9.99 | SEP151822 | TAS |
| 10 | LEGEND OF ZELDA: HYRULE HISTORIA HC | $34.99 | SEP120055 | DAR |
TOP 10 TOYS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | HALO: MJOLNIR MARK V & MARK VI DELUXE ARTFX+ STATUE 2-PACK | MAY152430 | KOT |
| 2 | DC COMICS: THE BOMBSHELLS JOKER & HARLEY QUINN STATUE | MAY150291 | DC |
| 3 | ALEX ROSS JUSTICE LEAGUE ACTION FIGURE 6-PACK | JUN150332 | DC |
| 4 | DC COMICS: THE NEW 52: JUSTICE LEAGUE ACTION FIGURE 7-PACK | NOV138235 | DC |
| 5 | DC COMICS: BATGIRL STATUE | JUN150340 | DC |
| 6 | BATMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES: MASK OF THE PHANTASM ACTION FIGURE 2-PACK | JUL150355 | DC |
| 7 | DC COMICS COVER GIRLS: CATWOMAN STATUE | JUN150350 | DC |
| 8 | DC ICONS: GREEN LANTERN: HAL JORDAN DARK DAYS DELUXE FIGURE | MAY150299 | DC |
| 9 | DC ICONS: THE FLASH CHAIN LIGHTNING ACTION FIGURE | MAY150295 | DC |
| 10 | MARVEL SELECT: DR. STRANGE ACTION FIGURE | MAY152177 | DST |
TOP 10 GAMES
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | MOUSE GUARD ROLEPLAYING GAME BOXED SET (2ND EDITION) | FEB151158 | BOO |
| 2 | BACK TO THE FUTURE MONOPOLY | JUL152198 | DST |
| 3 | MONOPOLY: THE WALKING DEAD SURVIVAL EDITION | OCT128266 | USA |
| 4 | SUPERFIGHT ORANGE DECK | SEP150634 | IMA |
| 5 | SUPERFIGHT RED DECK | SEP150635 | IMA |
| 6 | SUPERFIGHT BLUE DECK | SEP150636 | IMA |
| 7 | SUPERFIGHT PURPLE DECK | SEP150637 | IMA |
| 8 | SUPERFIGHT GREEN DECK | SEP150638 | IMA |
| 9 | JAY & SILENT BOB STRIKE BACK MONOPOLY | DEC142209 | DST |
| 10 | DC HEROCLIX BRAINIAC SKULL SHIP | OCT158547 | NEC |
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Dollar Market Share – December 2015 |
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Unit Market Share – December 2015 |
How does Diamond calculate the charts? It all starts at the comic book shop.
Data for Diamond’s sales charts — which includes the monthly market shares and all top product charts — are compiled by Diamond Comic Distributors from sales made to thousands of comic book specialty shops located in North America and around the world. Additional sales made to online merchants and other specialty retailers may be included as well.
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 comics marked with an asterisk (*) have had their reported quantities reduced due to retailer returnability, and thus 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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