Marvel Comics returned to its position as the traditionally dominant sales force in the comic shop direct market in October with a sweep of the Top 10 comic books sold led by Brian Michael Bendis and David Marquez's "Invincible Iron Man" #1. The early sales numbers for the month released today by Diamond Comic Distributors revealed a strong showing for Marvel franchises like "Star Wars" and "Spider-Man" which largely rounded out the Top Ten with releases including "Amazing Spider-Man" #1 in the second spot, the new "Spider-Gwen" #1 in third and issue #10 of the core "Star Wars" series coming it as the sixth best seller.
With that performance, Marvel was also able to capture a large percentage of the overall market. The publisher was able to come in first in both dollar and unit shares with 43.65% and 48.26% of the market respectively, widening the gap between it and traditional rival DC Comics which only managed 21.85% and 22.92% respectively.
That strong showing didn't necessarily mean bad news for the rest of the publishing field, however. While Marvel's own margins widened, it seemed to be taking most of the sales potential away from DC while other top publishers like IDW, Dark Horse and BOOM! Studios kept their shares solidly within ranges seen in recent months.
Most notable from elsewhere in the field was Image Comics, who placed five books in the Top Ten graphic novels sold in October. Leading that group was the first volume of Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine De Landro's "Bitch Planet" which came in third place after two "Star Wars" collections. Other charting graphic novels from Image included the third massive compendium of Robert Kirkman's "The Walking Dead" and the fifth collection of Brian K Vaughn and Fiona Staples' "Saga." DC Comics placed its sole Top Ten performer on the graphic novel chart with the comic shop exclusive "Deathstroke" book and mask set.
Overall, the month was a mixed bag for the market. Comic Shops increased sales of single-issue comics by 22.33% and 20.47% in dollars and units from September, but graphic novels were down 7.5% in dollars and 17.96% in units respectively. And every category is down from October last year, however the total market is slightly up for the whole of 2015 than it was in 2014.
Check out the full charts below.
TOP COMIC BOOK PUBLISHERS
| PUBLISHER | DOLLARSHARE | UNITSHARE |
| MARVEL COMICS | 43.65% | 48.26% |
| DC ENTERTAINMENT | 21.85% | 22.92% |
| IMAGE COMICS | 9.17% | 9.27% |
| IDW PUBLISHING | 6.16% | 4.96% |
| DARK HORSE COMICS | 4.04% | 3.10% |
| BOOM! STUDIOS | 2.41% | 1.93% |
| DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT | 1.60% | 1.53% |
| TITAN COMICS | 1.21% | 1.16% |
| VALIANT ENTERTAINMENT | 0.92% | 0.99% |
| VIZ MEDIA | 0.88% | 0.34% |
| OTHER NON-TOP 10 | 8.12% | 5.54% |
COMPARATIVE SALES STATISTICS
| DOLLARS | UNITS | |
| OCTOBER 2015 VS. SEPTEMBER 2015 | ||
| COMICS | 22.33% | 20.47% |
| GRAPHIC NOVELS | -7.57% | -17.96% |
| TOTAL COMICS/GN | 11.91% | 16.59% |
| OCTOBER 2015 VS. OCTOBER 2014 | ||
| COMICS | -7.49% | -12.27% |
| GRAPHIC NOVELS | -14.27% | -14.94% |
| TOTAL COMICS/GN | -9.55% | -12.47% |
| YEAR-TO-DATE 2015 VS. YEAR-TO-DATE 2014 | ||
| COMICS | 5.37% | 4.21% |
| GRAPHIC NOVELS | 4.45% | 5.80% |
| TOTAL COMICS/GN | 5.08% | 4.33% |
TOP 10 COMIC BOOKS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #1 | $3.99 | JUL150696-M | MAR |
| 2 | AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #1 | $5.99 | AUG150700-M | MAR |
| 3 | SPIDER-GWEN #1 | $3.99 | AUG150805-M | MAR |
| 4 | SECRET WARS #6 | $3.99 | MAY150786 | MAR |
| 5 | DOCTOR STRANGE #1 | $3.99 | JUN150680-M | MAR |
| 6 | STAR WARS #10 | $3.99 | JUL150764-M | MAR |
| 7 | CHEWBACCA #1 | $3.99 | AUG150855 | MAR |
| 8 | JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS: SHATTERED EMPIRE #2 | $3.99 | JUL150772-M | MAR |
| 9 | GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #1 | $3.99 | AUG150760-M | MAR |
| 10 | AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #2 | $3.99 | AUG150712 | MAR |
TOP 10 GRAPHIC NOVELS & TRADE PAPERBACKS
| RANK | DESCRIPTION | PRICE | ITEM CODE | VENDOR |
| 1 | STAR WARS VOLUME 1: SKYWALKER STRIKES TP | $19.99 | MAY150811 | MAR |
| 2 | STAR WARS: DARTH VADER VOLUME 1: VADER TP | $19.99 | JUL150827 | MAR |
| 3 | BITCH PLANET VOL. 1: EXTRAORDINARY MACHINE TP (MR) | $9.99 | MAY150482-M | IMA |
| 4 | DEATHSTROKE BOOK AND MASK SET | $29.99 | JUN150300 | DC |
| 5 | MARVEL SUPER HERO: CONTEST OF CHAMPIONS VOL. 1 TP | $7.99 | AUG150846 | MAR |
| 6 | THE WALKING DEAD COMPENDIUM VOLUME 3 (MR) | $59.99 | AUG150497 | IMA |
| 7 | SAGA VOLUME 5 TP (MR) | $14.99 | JUL150565 | IMA |
| 8 | OUTCAST BY KIRKMAN & AZACETA VOLUME 2 TP | $14.99 | JUL150633 | IMA |
| 9 | LUMBERJANES VOLUME 2 TP | $14.99 | AUG151216 | BOO |
| 10 | INJECTION VOLUME 1 TO (MR) | $9.99 | AUG150488 | IMA |