How do they do it?!
First off I'm a fan of Marvel and DC(who would have thought such a thing existed, right?) I'm starting to think a rivalry only exist in the mind of DC fanboys. It's time to end this. We should be peaceable and tolerant of all studios and properties. I say this because as a DC fan, after examination this is getting increasingly embarrassing. There's a obvious chasm between the two.
After pondering over the current events in the comic world I've come to the conclusion that DC will never pull ahead of Marvel. The current film situation got me to wondering about other facets of the genre. Such as Videogames, TV, animation etc..... So I stumbled upon comic sales. Here's what I found.
MARVEL HAS BEAT DC FOR THE LAST 17 YEARS IN A ROW!! You read that right. 17 YEARS!!
On average Marvel has beat DC by at least 100% dollar share on a yearly basis. This year, 2017 will be one of the closest for a while. Marvel will win by about 60-100% dollar share for the year. The last time DC beat Marvel was for the three years Marvel went bankrupt and sold film rights to studios. But get this, up to those three years Marvel had beat DC 15-20 years in a row. If not for the three years Marvel was bankrupt it would be around a 40 year victory for Marvel.
Up until last years rebirth the whole of DC comics relied on Batman to survive. Marvel peppered the whole top 60 monthly with different titles. The next most popular DC character on average wouldn't even make a appearance until about #50 on top sales charts. While DC comics in the top 60 would normally be numerous Batman titles like:
Detective Comics Batman
Batman & Robin
Harley Quinn
Justice League(because Batman)
Etc...
It was like this for years until DC's rebirth came along. After Rebirth DC still has consistently lost but saving a little face now. It's no longer a humiliation.
Marvel has been beating DC this whole time while recently not even handling there core universe the best. It's been some issues with lead characters such Captain America, Ironman ect... And maybe even to much of a SJW push at times. But get this. They have still consistently won.
And now I believe Marvel is about to fix core issues with the comics and just...well, destroy. Now that the Fantastic Four and X-Men have returned home it's no doubt Marvel is about to restore those to former comic glory. I believe this is what they have been waiting for. Along with those bringing back Cap, true Ironman etc... They'll use Avengers: Infinity Wars as a launching point. A huge comic event restoring all those characters to former glory.
Marvel has been winning without a core universe. Restoring those heroes is a HUGE ace in the whole Marvel can play whenever they want. When they do...Marvel will win every month by about 25% dollar share.
And remember Marvel wins even if they don't.
EDIT: Think I could have been wrong about the 40 year Marvel victory excluding the bankruptcy months. After Marvel entered the superhero world in 66-67 with Fantastic Four #1 it's been a consistent Marvel victory ever since!! It's like a 60+ year victory!