The uniting of heroes and villains into Lantern Corps to defeat Nekron helped send Blackest Night #7, the latest chapter of the cosmic crossover event by writer Geoff Johns and artist Ivan Reis, to the top of the sales charts, giving DC Comics the best-selling comic book in February 2010, based upon total unit sales to comic book specialty shops, according to Diamond Comic Distributors.
Battling Blackest Night for the #2 spot on the chart was Siege #2, the second issue of Marvel Comics' Avengers crossover, which helped Marvel Comics take the top publisher spot in February with the company leading in both the Unit Market and Dollar Shares categories, for a 45.42% Unit Market Share and a 41.66% Dollar Share for the month.
Bill Willingham’s take on the creatures of myth and fairy tales, Fables, has been a strong seller for DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint and was optioned for a pilot by ABC. The latest collected volume of the series, Fables Volume 13: The Great Fables Crossover, collecting a nine-part storyline that ran between Fables and Jack of Fables, provided DC/Vertigo with the best-selling graphic novel to comic book specialty shops in February.
DC Direct brought the heroes and villains of their best-selling comic book mini-series Blackest Night to life, and the Blackest Night Series 3 Action Figures gave DC Comics the best-selling Toy product to comics specialty retailers in February. Wizards of the Coast’s latest expansion for the Magic the Gathering trading card game, Worldwake, gave the publisher the best-selling game product to specialty retailers for the month.
TOP COMIC BOOK PUBLISHERS
| PUBLISHER | UNIT SHARE | DOLLAR SHARE |
| MARVEL COMICS | 45.42% | 41.66% |
| DC COMICS | 34.37% | 30.95% |
| DARK HORSE COMICS | 3.47% | 4.61% |
| IMAGE COMICS | 3.38% | 3.61% |
| IDW PUBLISHING | 2.52% | 3.10% |
| DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT | 2.09% | 1.91% |
| BOOM! STUDIOS | 2.00% | 2.21% |
| VIZ MEDIA | 0.88% | 1.96% |
| ARCHIE COMICS | 0.83% | 0.59% |
| WIZARD ENTERTAINMENT | 0.50% | 0.58% |
| OTHER NON-TOP 10 | 4.53% | 8.83% |
TOP 10 COMICS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | BLACKEST NIGHT #7 | $3.99 | DEC090133-M | DC |
| 2 | SIEGE #2 | $3.99 | DEC090432-M | MAR |
| 3 | GREEN LANTERN #51 | $2.99 | DEC090136-M | DC |
| 4 | BATMAN AND ROBIN #8 | $2.99 | DEC090151-M | DC |
| 5 | BATMAN AND ROBIN #9 | $2.99 | DEC090153-M | DC |
| 6 | DARK AVENGERS #14 | $3.99 | DEC090436-M | MAR |
| 7 | NEW AVENGERS #62 | $3.99 | DEC090435 | MAR |
| 8 | GREEN LANTERN CORPS #45 | $2.99 | DEC090138-M | DC |
| 9 | THE FLASH: REBIRTH #6 | $2.99 | JUL090202-M | DC |
| 10 | UNCANNY X-MEN #521 | $2.99 | DEC090546-M | MAR |
TOP 10 GRAPHIC NOVELS & TRADE PAPERBACKS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | FABLES VOLUME 13: THE GREAT FABLES CROSSOVER TP (MR) | $17.99 | NOV090228 | DC |
| 2 | KICK-ASS PREMIERE HC (MR) | $24.99 | DEC090575-M | MAR |
| 3 | ALL-STAR SUPERMAN VOLUME 2 TP | $12.99 | NOV090170 | DC |
| 4 | NARUTO VOLUME 47 TP | $9.99 | NOV090945 | VIZ |
| 5 | STAR WARS ADVENTURES VOLUME 3: LUKE SKYWALKER AND THE TREASURE OF THE DRAGONSNAKES TP | $7.95 | SEP090035 | DAR |
| 6 | GREEN LANTERN: SECRET ORIGIN TP | $14.99 | NOV090177 | DC |
| 7 | THE DARK TOWER: THE FALL OF GILEAD PREMIERE HC | $24.99 | NOV090539 | MAR |
| 8 | HELLBLAZER: PANDEMONIUM HC (MR) | $24.99 | OCT090300 | DC |
| 9 | STAR WARS: LEGACY VOLUME 8: TATOOINE TP | $17.99 | NOV090075 | DAR |
| 10 | BERSERK VOLUME 33 | $14.99 | SEP090043 | DAR |
TOP 10 TOYS & STATUES
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | BLACKEST NIGHT SERIES 3 FIGURES | AUG090260 | DC |
| 2 | COVER GIRLS OF THE DCU: POWER GIRL STATUE | JUL090329 | DC |
| 3 | RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK UQS: INDIANA JONES FIGURE | APR088045 | DST |
| 4 | MARVEL: SCARLET WITCH BISHOUJO STATUE | SEP091442 | KOT |
| 5 | BATMAN: BLACK & WHITE STATUE: MARSHALL ROGERS | JUL090312 | DC |
| 6 | JLA CLASSIFIED CLASSIC SERIES 2 FIGURES | JUL090313 | DC |
| 7 | STAR WARS UQS: DARTH MAUL FIGURE | AUG084941 | DST |
| 8 | BATMAN: MAD LOVE COLLECTOR’S SET | JUL090327 | DC |
| 9 | PLANET HULK STATUE | JUL091506 | BOW |
| 10 | WOMEN OF THE DCU: SERIES 3 HIPPOLYTA BUST | JUL090328 | DC |
TOP 10 GAMES
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | MAGIC THE GATHERING TCG: WORLDWAKE BOOSTER PACKS | DEC091562 | WIZ |
| 2 | YU-GI-OH! TCG: 5DS ABSOLUTE POWERFORCE BOOSTER PACKS | DEC091503 | KON |
| 3 | MAGIC THE GATHERING TCG: WORLDWAKE FAT PACKS | DEC091563 | WIZ |
| 4 | MAGIC THE GATHERING TCG: WORLDWAKE INTRO DECKS | DEC091564 | WIZ |
| 5 | BAKUGAN 7-IN-1 MAXUS DRAGONOID | DEC091534 | SPI |
| 6 | PEARLIZED POLY 7-PIECE DICE TUBES | NOV091447 | KOP |
| 7 | PEARLIZED POLY 10-PIECE DICE TUBES | NOV091446 | KOP |
| 8 | YU-GI-OH! TCG MACHINA MAYHEM STRUCTURE DECKS | DEC091504 | KON |
| 9 | PEARLIZED POLY 100-PIECE DICE BOX | NOV091448 | KOP |
| 10 | DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: MARTIAL POWER #2 | DEC091540 | WIZ |
How does Diamond calculate the charts? It all starts at the comic book shop.
Data for Diamond’s sales charts — which include the monthly market shares and all top product charts — are compiled by Diamond Comic Distributors from a universe of over 3,500 comic book specialty shops located in North America and around the world. The account base includes brick-and-mortar comic book specialty shops, Internet merchants, and other specialty stores.
Unit and dollars sales are calculated based upon orders invoiced and shipped to Diamond accounts during any given month, which comprises initial pre-orders, advance reorders, and reorders, minus any copies that are received back from a title marked as returnable.
ABOUT DIAMOND COMIC DISTRIBUTORS—the world's largest distributor of English-language comic books and pop-culture related merchandise, Diamond is based in Baltimore, MD, and services more than 3,500 specialty retailers worldwide. For more information, visit Diamond on the web at www.diamondcomics.com.
