“Justice League” No. 1 tops 2011 comic-book sales

DC Comics’ revamp of its superhero line was a sales success, with titles from DC’s “The New 52” making up nine of the top 10 titles in the year-end sales list of the comic industry’s primary distributor.

Diamond Comics Distributors Inc. reported that “Justice League” No. 1 topped all comics sold in 2011.

Diamond does not release sales numbers, but DC Comics released sales numbers for three of its top titles to The Hollywood Reporter. Through mid-December, “Justice League” No. 1 sold 361,138 copies, “Batman” No. 1 sold 262,379 copies and “Action Comics” No. 1 sold 250,898 copies. Those comics rank 1, 2 and 3 on Diamond’s end-of-year sales

Marvel Comics, typically the industry’s top publisher, slipped behind DC in the months following DC’s revamp. Marvel’s top comic for 2011 was “Ultimate Comics Spider-Man” No. 160, which featured the death of Peter Parker in the “Ultimate” line of comic books. The Hollywood Reporter indicates that issue sold 159,355 copies, and Diamond’s rankings put it at No. 6.