Categories: Holiday Guide

YBMW 2022 Holiday Gift Guide – Books & Puzzles

Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Art of the Animated Series 
Darkhorse 
$26.99 
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For fans of Nickelodeon’s Avatar: The Last Airbender, Darkhorse has released a must-own art book showcasing all the breathtaking art from the animated series (The only series worth talking about) that has garnered numerous industry honors. Offering an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look, this collectors’ item gives us a glimpse at concept, design, and production art with words by series creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino. Featuring rich color, each page will take you on a guided tour through the development and process that brought this amazing television series to life and into our hearts. Whether you’re a fan of the animation or behind-the-scenes process, this is a must-own for any Avatar fan! 


He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Minicomic Collection
Darkhorse 
$28.99
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 If you were a kid from the 80s you probably knew the words… “By the power of Greyskull! I HAVE THE POWERRRRR!!!!!” You too can now have “the power” with Darkhorse’s He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Minicomic Collection featuring reprints of sixty-eight classic minicomics from the popular Masters of the Universe and Princess Power action figure line. With over 1000 pages, this amazing nostalgic collection is rich with illustrations and depicts the vintage stories that launched a franchise that still lives on today. This massive volume also includes early work by some now legendary greats such as Bruce Timm, Mark Texeira, and Alfredo Alcala. This is a must-have for a MOTU fan old and young!


Just Like Momma Used To Say – Card Game
It’s a Southern thing
$24.99
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Your friends and family will be laughing till the cows come home playing the Just Like Mama Used to Say card game from It’s a Southern Thing. Y’all this might be the most fun card game to come round since you were knee-high to a grasshopper.  The style of play is akin to Apples to Apples or Cards Against Humanity, if you don’t know what those are, well bless your heart. It’s a fill-in-the-blank game using different words and phrases you would hear your sweet Meemaw yell across the room to Pawpaw down south. With 100 Action cards and 400 Phrase-maker cards, you might end up playing until the cows do indeed come home.


Batmobile Manual: Inside the Dark Knight’s Most Iconic Rides (Haynes Manual)
Insight Editions
$29.99
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When the Joker asked where Batman “got all those wonderful toys,” he had no idea how many amazing toys the caped Crusader really had. Hell, I collect Batmobiles and I had no idea how many different vehicles he had until I checked out this book. If you know anyone who loves Batman, or even just loves cars, this Haynes Manual dedicated to Batman’s various vehicles is the best gift you can get them this year. Think of it as the ultimate Batmobile encyclopedia. It’s filled with over 200 pages of stunning illustrations and detailed descriptions that go beyond the comics and into the cartoons, TV shows, and all of the different big-screen adaptations from artists like Tim Burton, Christopher Nolan, Zack Snyder, and more.  The only problem we had with this book is the glossy black pages… The book was so beautiful that it was all we could do to not drool all over it!


Doomlings
Doomlings
$24.99
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It’s the end of the world as we know it, and my Doomlings feel fine. The end of the Doomling world is inevitable. The question is, who will survive? This silly card game played by 2-6 players (recommended ages 10+), will determine that answer. The goal is for your Doomlings species to outlast the rest, aka win the most points. Determine your species’ physical and personality traits with the help of Traits cards, making them stronger, more adaptable, or persistent. These traits will determine your species’ survival during each round of Ages and potential Catastrophes. Have the most point by the time the third and final catastrophe befalls the plant, and your Doomlings species will rule the world!


The Art of Star Wars Visions
Insight Editions
$79.99
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The Disney era of Star Wars has been a bit of a roller coaster, but there have been some real gems that have been released and are finding their way into the hearts of even the most die-hard fan. One of the best and most recent additions to the galaxy far, far away is Star Wars Visions, a series of anime-style shorts that give iconic Japanese creators a chance to explore new characters and stories inside the universe of the Jedi and The Sith. The shorts are visually stunning and extremely compelling. If you know someone who loved Visions as much as we did, this book is an amazing gift to share with them this year. The book highlights the artwork, storyboards, and creators behind each of the vignettes in the series. We rewatched the series and then looked over each corresponding section of the book after we finished its episode, and it made us appreciate the artistry more than we could have thought possible. The deluxe version comes in a slipcover, but you will want to make sure this book is somewhere that people can see it. As an added bonus, this deluxe hardcover version also comes with a portfolio that folds out to reveal high-quality prints depicting each of the episodes. We think this is a great book for Star Wars fans, anime fans, or anyone that appreciates animation and wants to take a peek behind the curtain on a great show. 


Labyrinth Bestiary
Insight Editions
$25.99
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Jim Henson’s Labyrinth is a timeless classic whether you love the story, the fantastical creatures, or you just couldn’t stop staring at David Bowie’s pants. As strong a cult following as the film has, there are not too many books out there that celebrate it the way it deserves. That’s why this new release is a must-have for any Labyrinth fan on your gift list this year. This book is as close to an encyclopedia of the film’s characters and creatures as you’ll ever hope to find. It’s full of stunning illustrations of pretty much every character from Ludo and Hoggle to the different goblins and even the Helping hands. It doesn’t even stop there. The book takes time to break down each section of the labyrinth itself for you. The artwork of Iris Compiet would make Jim Henson proud to own this book. Think of how it will make any other Labyrinth fan feel when you give it to them this holiday season. 


Journal 29
Journal29
15.99
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If you have a puzzle lover in your life, this unassuming little book is the gift that will keep on giving for them this holiday season. Some people call it an escape room in a book. We call it a really awesome and inventive interactive puzzle. Each page provides you with a new puzzle and a QR code where you can submit your answer. If you get it correct, you get the key to move on. It’s a ton of fun, but it’s also challenging enough for seasoned puzzlers. This is good as a gift or a stocking stuffer and there’s two volumes if you want to give them both as a bundle!


Mazebook Hard Cover (Dark Horse Direct Exclusive) By Jeff Lemire
Dark Horse
$100.00
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Jeff Lemire has been working in comics for years. The NYT best-selling author is probably best known for creating Sweet Tooth but has also worked on plenty of books like Green Arrow, Justice League, and Hawkeye. Maze book is not your typical graphic novel. It’s a story of tremendous loss and finding your way back to being able to live again. The entire story focuses on one man who is dealing with the loss of his daughter. The journey that his loss takes him on is his last chance to move forward. On the surface, this might not sound like a very jolly holiday gift, but this hardcover, signed and limited edition compilation of the Mazebook story is something that anyone who loves a good character story or who has ever been a fan of Will Eisner will love this book. It definitely explains why Lemire has been nominated for 8 Eisner awards. Lemire not only wrote the story, but he also did the art. It’s minimalist and has a very watercolor-type vibe to it and it is every bit as important to make you feel the story as his words. This book deserves a place on the shelf of any self-respecting comic fan, but you’ll have trouble keeping it there. The cover of the book is absolutely beautiful in a minimalist way. It is made of cloth and actually embroidered with the red line of the maze. This is just a beautiful book. We could see it being the kind of thing that could help someone going through loss, but I think there’s something in it for everyone who is lucky enough to pick it up.


The Art of Ducktales Hardcover Deluxe Edition
Dark Horse
$79.99
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No series has been more successfully rebooted for Disney than Ducktales. The series was a hit in the late 80s/ early 90s, but when it was brought back for Disney XD, the show took things to a new level, bringing the entire Disney Afternoon team into a shared universe, and it didn’t hurt that Doctor Who’s David Tennant was on board as the voice of Scrooge McDuck. If you know someone who loved the new version of the series, this is something that they won’t just want, but may actually need. The coffee table book is full of art from the evolution of the series, interviews with the creators as well as cast members like Tennant, Danny Pudi, Ben Schwartz, Bobby Moynihan, Kate Micucci, and Don Cheadle. This book is a treasure trove for anyone who loved the series. The great thing is that, because this is the deluxe hardcover version, there are additional bonuses for you like a beautiful slipcase, expanded versions of the interviews, and an actual replica of the Number One Dime that Scrooge McDuck credits as being his lucky charm and the key to his fortune. This might be one of the best gifts you could ever give a Duck Tales fan short of an actual animation cel. 


Adventures In the Abyss: A Dystopian Activity Book For The Modern Age
Boredwalk
$20.00
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Do you have a snarky millennial on your gift list this year? If you do, this activity book might be the perfect thing for their dark personality… and it will probably bring a big smile to their face. In the same vein is the activity books we all suffered through as children, Adventures In The Abyss has word searches, crosswords, coloring pages, mazes, spot-the-difference pages, and every other activity that you remember from magazines like Highlights, but these are geared to a generation that has been through the wringer. YOu can practice your hopeless haiku, solve demotivational cryptograms, fill in mad libs about Earth President Kim Kardashian and more! We showed this to multiple millennials and we think it’s the first time we actually heard three of them laugh.


Witcher 3: Wild Hunt World Map 1000 pcs Puzzle
Dark Horse
$15.99
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We love the Witcher, love puzzles, and love a good fantasy map. It doesn’t matter if it’s Middle Earth, Westeros, or even Arkham. There’s something amazing about a map that can make you feel like a fictional place is real. That’s one of the reasons we loved the Witcher 3: WIld Hunt World Map. This map has all the major cities, villages, and important spots from The Witcher: Wild Hunt. When completed, this 1000-piece puzzle turns into a beautiful 20x 27” map that you will definitely want to seal and hang on the wall. 


Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Monster Faction 1000 pcs Puzzle
Dark Horse
$19.99
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Fans of the Witcher love the books, the games, and (for the most part) the Netflix series, so if you know someone in your life who loves The Witcher and happens to also enjoy puzzles, we think they’d love this Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Monster Faction puzzle from Dark Horse. The vibrantly colored, 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle designed by Yu-Chen T was done for The Witcher Universe Expanded: Capsule Collections. It is printed on high-quality, matte puzzle board, and looks so good that once you complete the 20×27” image, you may just want to frame it and put it on your wall. 


Hellboy, His life and Times 1000 pcs Puzzle
Dark Horse
$19.99
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When a comic book company puts out a jigsaw puzzle with art from one of their most popular characters, they usually pick an iconic cover to feature. It’s pretty rare that they pick artwork that hasn’t even been released yet. The Hellboy, His Life and Times jigsaw puzzle is your first peek at artwork by Hellboy creator Mike Mignola and colorist Dave Stewart from the upcoming Hellboy Omnibus. Until you can get the book in your hands, you can pass the time with 1000 pieces of a challenging and colorful puzzle that come together into a truly epic Hellboy illustration. This a great gift for any Hellboy fan in your life, and an even better gift if you are giving it to them to let them know that they’ll also be getting the Omnibus. 


Catch The Moon
Thames & Kosmos
$34.95
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The Thames & Kosmos Catch the Moon game is as beautifully whimsical as it is fun. This stacking game tests your dexterity while you place a series of ladders in an attempt to catch the moon. Players take turns rolling a die to determine how they must place their wooden ladder, but they must have a steady hand or the whole structure will collapse earning them a raindrop. The player with the least raindrops wins, but everyone has a ton of suspenseful fun along the way.


Naruto Shippuden 53-Piece 3D Ichiraku Ramen Shop Puzzle
Stunned Mind
$30.99
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Jigsaw puzzles are great, but they are so… flat. The great thing about 3D puzzles is that they almost feel like you are putting together a model kit, and when you are done, you have a detailed, scale replica of whatever you were building. If you have a Naruto fan in your life who likes a good puzzle, we think that the Ichiraku Ramen Shop puzzle is a great gift to slip under their tree this year. The 53-piece puzzle comes together to make a perfect 5.5 x 5.59 x 5.75-inch replica of the ramen shop popularized in Naruto Shippuden. It’s not just a puzzle, it will become something that looks great on the shelf with their figures and other Naruto collectibles.


Hoob

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