DC Nearly Doubles Marvel's Marketshare as the Absolute Line Keeps Rolling

New sales data for the week of September 22-28 shows DC pulling even further ahead in the direct market, claiming roughly 41% of comic store marketshare against Marvel's 28% and Image's 19%. It's the latest in a string of strong weeks for DC, and the numbers point to one clear driver: the Absolute line. DC landed six of the ten bestselling titles that week, with Absolute Batman #24 topping the chart outright.

Marvel held onto second place but came in with only three top-ten titles, a noticeably thinner showing than its usual output. Image, meanwhile, keeps inching upward, with Terminal #3 cracking the top ten and helping push the publisher's overall share past the high teens. Smaller players like IDW, Titan, and BOOM! Studios rounded out the list, each holding onto a few points of the remaining pie.

None of this is a one-week fluke. DC's Absolute Universe relaunch has been reshaping the sales charts for months now, and retailers are increasingly ordering around it the way they once ordered around Marvel's biggest events. Whether Marvel's upcoming Midnight Universe launch and its early million-copy orders can close the gap in the weeks ahead is the next thing worth watching.