It’s that time of year again: the holidays are creeping up, and it’s time to find the perfect gift for your loved. It’s an especially harrowing challenge when it comes to buying manga and comics simply given the sheer volume of titles. That’s why the AIPT staff have joined forces to recommend some of the best deals and comics collections for every fan in your life.
Read on to find some indie titles that may have gone overlooked, incredible omnibus collections, and some recently released, can’t-miss comics, too. Because whether you’re looking for something with Batman, or chainsaw-featuring manga, our staff has the picks to have your favorite comic fan fa-la-losing it this holiday season.
We learned at NYCC 2021 that Saga will be returning in 2022, so why not get the soon-to-be-released mega-box set of all the compendium collections for the series? The book has been on hiatus for over three years, so it’s highly likely you or the person you’ll gift this to needs a refresher on the series anyway. Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples’ incredible sci-fi series also looks fabulous in the box made special for these nine volumes. Plus, it features everyone’s favorite character, Gus.
– David Brooke
When it comes to the holidays, people tend to have a little more downtime. And so what better way to fill the hours than with a thick omnibus or absolute edition of a great comic series? That’s why these three massive collections are worth your while — starting with the Empyre Omnibus that collects every issue and tie-in for last summer’s big event. It contains 1,424 pages of action and features a brief look into a few of the tie-ins that didn’t make it. Need more proof? Check out our review to see why it’s among Marvel’s most compelling story-events in recent years.
– David Brooke
The Eternals: The Complete Saga Omnibus
Now that the Eternals have their own MCU movie it’s probably a good time to see what Jack Kirby was up to when he created these characters. Running 1,120 pages, this collection came out for the first time late last year, which means your fave comic fan likely doesn’t have it. It’s also a massive tome of alien awesomeness that only King Kirby could realize.
– David Brooke
The Department of Truth: The End of the World (Vol. 1)
Whether your giftee is a hardcore conspiracy theorist, or an enthusiastic skeptic like our science editor Russ Dobler, they’re sure to enjoy the first volume of The Department of Truth.
James Tynion (writer) and Martin Simmonds (art) have a wonderfully demented take on how conspiracy theories are even more dangerous than we realize…and the secret government organization whose job it is to put a lid on these massive secrets.
The trade paperback also carries the standard $10 price tag found on most first volumes for an Image Comics series. That’s a hard price to beat for a great gift.
– Nick Nafpliotis
Over seven years after it was first published, I continue to recommend Jason McNamara and Greg Hinkle’s The Rattler. It’s still one of the most hauntingly fantastic stories I’ve read in any medium. No matter how many times I reread it, the ending still hits me like a punch to the gut.
I’ve also had a 100% success rate with this book as a gift — even with folks who said they weren’t into crime or horror tales. At only $11.99, it’s a great and affordable way to give someone a unique reading experience they likely haven’t heard of, but will immensely enjoy.
– Nick Nafpliotis
With the upcoming hype for the return of X-Men the animated series, there are two books by Eric and Julia Lewald that will give you an insider’s look at what happened behind the scenes of the show, including interviews with folks who worked on the series and all the ups and downs of the mutants’ foray into TV. Check those two books out (and read our review of The Art and Making of the Animated series):
- X-Men: The Art and Making of the Animated Series
- Previously on X-Men: The Making of an Animated Series
If you want to take a wild space trip via the mind of Grant Morrison, then check out his collaboration with Liam Sharp and Xermanico (for the Blackstars mini-series). In these adventures, you can see Hal Jordan explore inner and outer space with a wild imagination and crazy illustrations. The entire store can be collected in these sets:
- The Green Lantern Vol 1: Intergalactic Lawman
- The Green Lantern Vol 2: The Day The Stars Fell
- The Green Lantern: Blackstars
- The Green Lantern Season Two Vol. 1
- The Green Lantern Season Two Vol 2: Ultrawar
– Christopher Franey
Instead of taking a trip through space, you can always take a journey of the soul with Chip Zdarsky and Daredevil. This current volume is going to make history, even if Zdarsky doesn’t trust my pull quote (like he knows good comics). If you’ve enjoyed Born Again, Man Without Fear, and even the Netflix series, then this run will be perfect for you to dive into, here are some collected editions to check out:
- Daredevil Vol. 1: Know Fear
- Daredevil Vol. 2: No Devils, Only God
- Daredevil Vol. 3: Through Hell
- Daredevil Vol. 4: End of Hell
- Daredevil Vol. 5: Truth/Dare
- Daredevil Vol. 6: Doing Time
– Christopher Franey
I Think Our Son is Gay (Vol. 1 and 2)
In terms of sappy, feel-good family comics that have come out recently, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better series than I Think Our Son is Gay. The manga stars a mother named Tomoko as she goes about her everyday life raising her children. She suspects that the eldest, Hiroki, is gay, and does her best to support him while allowing him all the space and independence he needs. As the series goes on the rest of the family factors in as well, and their interactions are all written with tenderness and care while still reading believably and not just like fluffy wish fulfillment.
– Alex Cline
Chainsaw Man (Vols. 1-7 Out Now, Vol. 8 Out 12/7)
On the opposite side of the fluffy-or-edgy scale, there’s Chainsaw Man. Many (myself included) have touted it as one of the best comics in the world ever since it first ran in Weekly Shonen Jump, and Viz is most of the way through localizing its tankobon releases. Is it yet another supernatural horror action series? Yup. Is it a mind-breaking, gut-wrenching, hyper-dramatic, and just plain silly series that’s among the most gore-filled and generally extreme ever run in Jump’s pages? Also yes. The series is on fire popularity-wise already and is sure to prosper even further once the much anticipated anime begins. Get in on it now when you can; volumes have been selling out left and right.
– Alex Cline
Spawn Compendium Vol. 2 (Out 12/8)
It’s hard to believe we’re nearing the 30th anniversary of Spawn. While Todd McFarlane and company are still blazing a path forward with books like King Spawn and Gunslinger Spawn, the past remains open for exploration thanks to these massive compendiums. Volume two, for instance, collects Spawn #51-100, and features contributions from writer Brian Holguin and artists Dwayne Turner, Greg Capullo, and, of course, McFarlane himself. It’s truly a prime era for Spawn, and the perfect gift if you want your friend/family member/loved one to cultivate a brand-new obsession.
– Chris Coplan
Batman/The Maxx: Arkham Dreams
If you’re this particular writer, The Maxx meeting Batman is as close to a dream collabo as PB&J. Writer-artist Sam Kieth does an amazing job of depicting the madness and fury that comes to be as these two clash as their respective worlds collide in some psychedelic fever dream. It’s really the perfect gift for indie and Big Two fans alike, and a stellar example of crossovers that need to happen far more often.
– Chris Coplan
Once & Future Book One Deluxe Edition
OK, lots of books work well in the deluxe and/or hardcover format. But Once & Future — a powerful re-telling/recontextualization of Arthurian legends — is especially perfect. It’s just such a gorgeous and thrilling tale, and it deserves to be consumed in rapid-fire succession (namely, the first 18 issue or three story arcs). It’s the sort of story you’ll tear through an arc in one sitting, and now you can do so in glossy, extra-high-quality fashion.
-Chris Coplan
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