May 2026 Top 50 Single Issues Chart

So yes, the story of the month is of course Absolute Green Arrow, which is the biggest launch we've ever had. Yup. Even bigger than the Absolute Bat-dude back in the day. Not undead at all! The book has also been received extremely well by critics. So I would be very surprised if this six-issue series is not turning into an ongoing. DC would honestly be stupid not to do it.

Then we have Absolute Batman #20. It's worth noting that issue #20 sold roughly 30% more copies than issue #19. A lot of that has to do with the pretty Robins variants, I get that. But considering there were some printing issues and people started wondering whether this might throw a wrench into the machine and slow the momentum down... well: not at all. Just keeps rolling.

Main universe Batman #9 also sold more copies than Batman #8 in absolute numbers. So even there, sales continue to grow.

Daredevil #2 at #4 is a sign of life from Marvel. Yay!! It may also be the only truly strong signal from Marvel in the entire Top 50, but hey, it is nevertheless extremely encouraging to see that launching a major Marvel hit is still possible in 2026.

After that comes Absolute Catwoman, which would actually be the #1 book of the month if we ranked purely by revenue. The reason isn't hard to guess: our own exclusive variant cover by Belen Ortega, produced together with Kings Comics. We're incredibly proud of that book, and I'm very happy to report that sales have been strong. It encourages us to experiment more with projects like this in the future. This is also the first time that I am separately identifying pre-orders in the chart. In fact, it's the first time a title is explicitly marked as a pre-order, simply so readers can distinguish between pre-order hype vs on-sale hype. Hauptsache hype (as we say in Germany)!

The rest of the Top 10 is rounded out by more Absolute titles and Invincible Universe: Battle Beast #9, which continues to benefit from the momentum of the animated show and has now become a genuinely stable bestseller for Image Comics. I wonder what would happen if a crazy scientist would finally cross Robert Kirkman with Absolute DC. Would a new secret dimension open for comic fans? (And for retailers of course, the best people of the Comics Industry!)

What also stands out is the sheer number of Absolute Batman reprints scattered throughout this chart. And here's the funny thing: our extremely popular Absolute Batman bundle is currently on hold because we've run out of one of the issues (#15, resocking soon!). So people are still jumping on board. Let the madness continue!

Ben 10 #1, which I've already talked about, remains a huge success for Dynamite. Odin #1 by James Tynion was also a strong debut for Image Comics. And then we have not one but two DC/Marvel crossover books in the Top 50 that were not brand-new releases, proving that those projects continue to move solid numbers. At #35 we find If Destruction Be Our Lot by Matthew Rosenberg, another strong showing for a creator-owned title. And otherwise?

Take a look at the pie chart.

DC accounts for 73.5% of all books in the Top 50.

I have a hard time using the term "The Big 2" anymore. This is becoming a monopoly, people.