Tag: IDW Publishing

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

From gentle Halloween spirits to ghost-hunting kids, kaiju art showcases, and enduring literary classics, this curated guide highlights IDW and Top Shelf’s best comics for 2025—handpicked titles that belong under the tree.

IDW Publishing SantaFor fans who prefer the indie side of comic books, plenty of publishers still carry the torch for original, creator-driven work. Whether it’s through carefully curated imprints like IDW Publishing’s Top Shelf division or singular passion projects, this gift guide spotlighting IDW and Top Shelf’s best leans into stories that blend the supernatural with a healthy dash of pop-culture charm. The focus here in this latest look are the books I’d be delighted to find under the Christmas tree. The reason is that I didn’t pick them up when they first hit shelves.

Spoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween

Spoops- The Little Spirits of HalloweenWho 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.

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Frankenstein Alive, Alive is Back! Just in Time for Two Tales in Cinema and Book

A handsome trade paperback reprint of Frankenstein Alive, Alive pairs Steve Niles’ weary, poetic monster with Bernie Wrightson’s masterful black-and-white art—an ideal Halloween read even without new material.

Frankenstein Alive, Alive Book Cover
Available to purchase on Amazon USA 

Frankenstein Alive, Alive — the trade paperback graphic novel — is a fitting continuation of Mary Shelley’s timeless tale. IDW Publishing‘s version originally in 2018 and this edition feels perfectly timed. With Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein now in theatres and soon heading to streaming, to experience both visions of the creature’s legacy is, quite literally, just what the doctor ordered.

There’s no difference between the earlier and current editions; readers hoping for new material won’t find any. What you get is something easily carried in the backpack—ideal for travellers who’d rather carry something lighter for reading on a train. It’s a rider’s dream: the rhythm of the locomotive echoing the hum of industry, that same mechanical pulse that Shelley once warned might overtake humanity. Frankenstein remains a mirror to our impulse to create and control—and the inevitable rebellion that follows.

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Why Tobin’s Spirit Guide Won’t Stay Dead

In what makes Tobin’s Spirit Guide so spectral is that it’s a living guide to all things undead, on screen and off!

Tobin's Spirit Guide GENERICIn a follow-up to an article I wrote years ago, it seems Tobin’s Spirit Guide refuses to stay buried. First glimpsed in the Ghostbusters films, this fictional tome has resurfaced in updated editions and fan-made replicas, standing tall as a paranormal counterpart to The Necronomicon. The mere mention of either sparks dread and curiosity; the latter famously shifted from literary oddity to pop culture cornerstone.

Both thrive on mystique, but Tobin’s has gone further — evolving from a prop into a fully fledged artefact that fans can hold, study, and expand upon. Whether through video games or painstaking recreations, the Guide has become the shared-universe grimoire of supernatural cinema. Imagine one volume compiling every ghostly entity, from The Exorcist to The Conjuring — I, for one, welcome it.

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Craving More Than Just Monocyte. Revisiting This Classic and Finding Other Works Just Like It!

From Menton3’s stark white spaces to Bill Sienkiewicz’s nightmare faces, Monocyte remains unmatched in horror comics. We revisit its world & soundtrack—and link it to today’s genre greats.

Monocyte Graphic Novel Cover
Pick up this title on Amazon USA!

As part of the “From the Vault” series, I revisit a horror comic that truly stands the test of time and is a rarity in the hobby. IDW’s Monocyte is one of those titles that has a companion soundtrack! As a striking artistic centerpiece that any horror art or comic collector should treasure, it’s rare to see an additional release offered by the creators.

This four-part saga tells of an uprising led by a one-eyed demon—Monocyte—literally hell-bent on destroying the Conduit, a machine created by the Olignostics. They are immortals born from a fusion of politics and technology. Their origin traces back to an MIT scientist’s experiment harnessing the mysterious power of “Absolute Zero.” What that truly means is left vague in the dense two-page text spread that introduces the Olignostics and their rivals, the Antediluvians.

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Cobra Commander is More Than Ruthless in #2 and #3 of Image/Skybound’s Mini-Series!

In the Energon Universe, Cobra Commander is a lot more cunning and ruthless than anyone realises, and could he be be an anti-hero?

Image Comics & Skybound EntertainmentCobra Commander #3 Front Cover
Spoiler Alert

In issues #2 and 3 of Cobra Commander, just what kind of relationship he will have with the Dreadnoks gets dissected and broken down! Those moments will have a few readers cringing, and others like myself cackling with laughter like The Joker. It’s about time we have a story that can crawl underneath your skin!

The latest issue is all about about who can take the pain. Whether that’s physical or psychological, there’s lots to like with this latest issue. The shock from Buzzer says it all! Unlike the cartoons where this gang are nothing but buffoons and you don’t get to know them, this version offers a bit of backstory and reveals in how bloody ruthless they can be. We see some carnage in #2, but in this continuation, what I loved witnessing is how CC is establishing himself in this hierarchy. This up and coming leader of a global terrorist network needs to prove why he is this motorcycle gang’s superior.

As for Zartan and what he is up to, I do not know! This air of mystery from series writer Joshua Williamson has me rereading the comic in search for clues. It’s easy to see his sister Zarana holding all the cards, but as for what she knows, she’s not telling. Although Destro, Major Bludd, Storm Shadow and Dr. Mindbender have yet to make their entry into this reimagined comic book universe, I am eager to see how the creative team behind this Energon universe will update them.

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After IDW Comic’s release of Cobra Commander #1, There’s More Than Meets The Eye In Store!

Yo Joe! It’s about time there’s a retcon and reimagining on why Cobra Commander must be feared, and IDW Publishing and Skybound delivers!

Cobra Commander #1 Comic Book CoverSpoiler Alert

The reason behind why I think Cobra Commander ranks as one of pop culture’s greatest villains is because of the performance by the incomparable Chris Latta. Not only has he provided the voice to Starscream in Transformers, but also voiced Mr. Burns when The Simpsons first premiered! Although the personalities are somewhat similar for the first two, the latter is vastly different. And while reading Skybound and IDW Comics’ updated origin story about this character, I can only hear his warcry resonating in the back of my head!

This take written by Joshua Williamson takes what’s from the animated movie–for better or worse–seriously! He’s a renegade and a scientist from Cobra-la, a lost civilization cut off from “the world,” and it leads me to think it’s located somewhere on Earth rather than be another planet. After getting chided by Golobulus, he’s given a chance at redemption. He must build a secret militia, and so begins the first issue.

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