September 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels

For the first time in 2021, a superhero title cracked the chart of the Top 20 Adult graphic novels in the book channel, based on NPD BookScan data for September 2021 (8/29/21 – 10/02/21) provided to ICv2.  Batman/Fortnite: Zero Point, by Christos Gage and Reilly Brown, was the seventh best-selling Adult title in September.  It was also one of the top five graphic novels in comic shops, according to POS data via ComicHub (see “Top 20 Graphic Novels – September 2021“).

This was the second month in a row in which a non-manga title made the top 20.  In August it was Run, the sequel to John Lewis’s best-selling trilogy March.

Also noteworthy is the presence of Volume 6 of Given, a boys-love manga with a large female audience, in the monthly top 20.  It’s not unprecedented; volume 5 charted in February (see “February 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels“), and previous volumes have also made the chart.  What’s interesting is that Given is the only yaoi and one of the few manga targeted at women to ever make the Top 20.

Not at all surprising, of course, is the top seller, Volume 29 of My Hero Academia, which came out early in the month.  There are five total volumes of the series on the September chart, the first three and the last two.  There was a time when there would be eight or nine volumes in the top 20, but that’s no longer the case, whether because readers are checking out more series or because those volumes aren’t available in physical form (see “The Great Manga Shortage of 2021“).

These three books are all September releases, and there were two more on the chart as well: Volume 14 of Dragon Ball Super and Volume 9 of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.  Five August debuts lingered on the chart as well, including Volume 23 of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, the final volume of that popular series, and Volume 8 of Dark Horse’s deluxe edition of Berserk, which came out on August 31 and didn’t make that month’s chart.

For charts of September 2021 graphic novel sales from NPD BookScan:
September 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Author, Manga, and Superhero Graphic Novels
September 2021 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:
September 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Adult Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
September 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Author, Manga, and Superhero Graphic Novels with Actual Sales
September 2021 NPD BookScan – Top 20 Kids 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.”

Source: ICv2