Under the Tree: IDW and Top Shelf’s Best of 2025

Spoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween

Who changes the leaves? Who summons the autumn winds, wakes ghosts, and chills the air just enough to make October feel right? Why, Spoops, of course. These tiny spirits hatch from the smallest gourds in pumpkin patches at the start of every fall, then dutifully tend to their towns to make sure Halloween goes off without a hitch.

This whimsical take on the season’s hidden caretakers is beautifully illustrated. The cover alone is cute and begs to be embraced. As for the title characters, there’s no shortage of moments that inspire a heartfelt “aww” when I first saw it.

The story centres on young Holly Hollowell, who loves Halloween more than anything, much to the dismay of her parents, who disapprove of anything involving tooth-rotting sweets. While other kids trick-or-treat, Holly watches sadly from her window… until the Spoops arrive to turn things around. With a little magical help, Holly shows her parents the genuine spirit of All Saints’ Eve, not candy, but creativity, imagination, and the freedom to let your spooky side soar.

Psychic Investigators, Evil Exterminators

Gabriel Navarro can see ghosts. Or at least, he always thought he could, until his beloved tía dies and he finds himself unable to reach her. Feeling lost and alone, Gabe stumbles into a strange encounter during a school field trip and ends up forming an unlikely friendship, and business partnership, with his eccentric classmate Clementine.

Readers may pick up on echoes of ParaNorman, and that comparison isn’t far off. The big difference lies in how this story approaches the undead and the emotional weight behind its ghost-hunting premise.

As Psychic Investigators, Evil Exterminators, Rustin Middle School’s very first paranormal organization, the duo faces the most tough part of being kid-sized Ghostbusters: actually finding ghosts to catch. Clem’s thrill-seeking enthusiasm often puts them in danger, while for Gabe, the work cuts far closer to home than he’s prepared for.

Godzilla: The Monster Comic Art Collection

This oversized 8” × 12” hardcover gathers together cover art from over twenty of IDW’s Godzilla-related series, specials, and one-shots. It’s an essential volume for fans of the King of the Monsters, especially considering how firmly Godzilla has planted himself as one of IDW’s flagship properties.

The book doesn’t stop with Godzilla alone. Mothra, King Ghidorah, Gigan, Battra, and many others all make appearances. For artists and monster obsessives alike, select pages even showcase elements of the creative process behind the illustrations. Featuring work from Arthur Adams, Eric Powell, James Stokoe, Matt Frank, Iñaki Miranda, Dave Wachter, Alberto Ponticelli, Simon Gane, Dan Schoening, and Jeff Zornow, this is a collection that invites serious geeking-out. If that whets your appetite, TOHO’s own published works pair nicely alongside it.

The Wind in the Willows

With illustrations by David Petersen

Originally released as a hardcover in 2016, this lovingly revisited edition returns as a trade paperback. Painstakingly completed over three years, it features twenty full-colour illustrations and more than fifty pen-and-ink drawings throughout.

First conceived as a series of letters from Kenneth Grahame to his son, The Wind in the Willows has endured since its initial 1908 publication as a timeless tale of animal antics and gentle human insight. Generations of readers have fallen in love with its riverside world of whispering reeds and winding paths, home to Rat, Mole, Badger, and the irrepressible Mr. Toad of Toad Hall. From stolen motorcars to perilous excursions into the Wild Wood, these adventures remain as charming and engaging as ever.

Star Trek: Picard Omnibus

There’s more to Jean-Luc Picard’s story than what unfolds onscreen. Long before retiring to his vineyard, Picard was among Starfleet’s most decorated admirals, with a career that shaped countless lives and worlds. Before his Enterprise days, a younger Picard and his crew aboard the U.S.S. Stargazer believed they had saved a thriving planet from resource-hungry Romulans. Years later, returning to that same world, Picard finds it utterly transformed.

This omnibus explores those moments in Picard’s past and how they resonate with who he ultimately becomes. While it avoids spoilers, the stories deepen the themes familiar to viewers of the television series, placing the human spirit, moral consequence, and self-reflection at the forefront. Whatever Q ultimately represents, and whatever Picard evolves into, these stories help lay the groundwork for understanding why his journey continues to matter.