Looking for that perfect gift for the entertainment & pop culture enthusiast on your holiday shopping list this year? We’re here to help with our top recommendations across a wide range of entertainment & pop culture interests with our 2019 holiday gift guide.
TV/Streaming
For the TV and/or streaming enthusiast, pick up the Roku Ultra to make finding and watching the highest quality streaming content a breeze. The 2019 version of the Roku Ultra is the most advanced streaming media device on the market. The device integrates with Alexa or Google Assistant, provides Dolby Audio support or listening to your content through a headphone jack so you don’t bother others in the room, and streams in HD, 4K, or HDR.
Purchase the Roku Ultra at Amazon.
What are you going to watch on that Roku Ultra? How about Disney+? The streaming service launched earlier this month, opening a catalog of Disney, Marvel, LucasFilm, Fox, and National Geographic content, including original content like The Mandalorian. Disney+ is available as a standalone subscription or bundled with Hulu and ESPN. While there is only one way to surprise the recipient with the gift of Disney+ — purchasing physical gift cards from your nearest Disney store — this article from USA Today details how you can give the gift of Disney+ without leaving your house.
Purchase a Disney+ subscription online.
Films
With so much content available to stream, it takes something special to make it worth the time and money to purchase physical media. One such item is the Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films Criterion Collection. This collection features the 15 films released from 1954 to 1975 on Blu Ray and comes in a stunning, oversized collectible book featuring a history of each film and of the series as a whole, along with unique artwork. Truly a must-have for the kaiju fan on your list.
Purchase Godzilla: The Showa-Era Collection at Amazon.
What better way to work your way through the first 15 Godzilla films than with authentic movie theater popcorn? The Great Northern Antique Popcorn Machine pops roughly 3 gallons of popcorn per batch in this convenient countertop sized model. With what you’ll save by watching movies and eating popcorn at home, this device will pay for itself in no time!
Purchase the Great Northern Antique Popcorn Machine at Amazon.
Video Games
Arguably the best console of the current generation is the Nintendo Switch Lite. Take your Switch games like Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and more on the go in this lighter, more compact, better battery life version of the full-sized Switch. Right now, the best Switch deal can be found online via Google Shopping when you enter the code 19CYBERNS at checkout.
Purchase the Nintendo Switch Lite at Google Shopping at enter the code 19CYBERNS at checkout.
With the release of The Mandalorian on Disney+ and Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker in theaters next month, the Star Wars franchise is having a bit of a moment, and that moment wouldn’t be complete without a new video game to capitalize on the buzz. Enter Jedi: Fallen Order on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Set between the prequels and the original trilogy, Fallen Order is a new story with gameplay elements that blend the best of the classic Star Wars: Jedi series with modern storytelling and sensibilities. Plus, who doesn’t love the new droid BD-1?
Purchase Jedi: Fallen Order at Amazon.
Tabletop Games
Nominated for the 2020 Toy of the Year Award by The Toy Association, Funkoverse tabletop games combine light strategy gaming for players ages 10+ with the fun of collecting Funko Pop!s from their favorite licensed properties. That’s where the real fun in Funkoverse lies — players can mix and match characters from various properties like Harry Potter, DC Comics, and Rick and Morty to create match ups reminiscent of playing with a mash up of action figures found in the toy box.
Purchase the Harry Potter 4 Player Funkoverse (Harry, Hermione, Bellatrix, and Voldemort) at Amazon.
Purchase the Harry Potter 2 Player Funkoverse (Ron and Draco) at Amazon.
Purchase the DC Comics 4 Player Funkoverse (Batman, Batgirl, Joker, and Harley) at Amazon.
Purchase the DC Comics 2 Player Funkoverse (Robin and Catwoman) at Amazon.
Purchase the Rick and Morty 2 Player Funkoverse (Rick and Morty) at Amazon.
Purchase The Golden Girls 2 Player Funkoverse (Rose and Blanche) at Amazon.
Music
Sure, vinyl is making a comeback, but who has the space for a turntable and a new collection of albums? Why not give the gift of what LifeHacker.com recently called “the best life hack of the decade” with Spotify Premium. There are a number of ways to give the gift of Spotify Premium, whether giving a physical gift card or making an online purchase, as detailed in this article at LifeWire.com.
Purchase a Spotify Premium subscription.
Comics
Whether the recipient missed Dark Horse Comics’s Eisner Award-winning original series in its initial run, or they’re a fan (like us) looking to collect the definitive version of one of the best new series of the past few years, be sure to pick up the Black Hammer Library Edition this holiday season. This hard cover book collects Black Hammer volumes 1 and 2 and the Black Hammer: Giant Sized Annual in an oversized format with a new cover, extra sketches, and more.
Purchase Black Hammer Library Edition at Amazon.
No discussion of the best original comic book series of the past decade would be complete without mentioning Saga. The Saga Compendium One trade paperback collects the entire 54 issue run (so far) of the Eisner Award-winning series, including new cover art and more.
Purchase Saga Compendium One at Amazon.
Books
If there’s one thing I enjoy it’s a good, spooky thriller. If there’s one thing I like even more, it’s a bunch of spooky short stories by one of my favorite writers. Full Throttle by Joe Hill is just that. Whether you fly through the stories like you binge your favorite streaming television series or you slow down and savor each one at a time, Full Throttle features 13 stories, a couple of which have already been adapted by services like Netflix and Shudder.
Purchase Full Throttle at Amazon.
Staying in the spooky thriller genre, be sure to pick up Pop Goes the Culture Podcast guest Scott Thomas’s sophomore novel Violet. Thomas returns to the place where he excels as a novelist — the unquiet house. Set in rural Kansas, Violet deals with the grief of loss and the scars that are left even after those initial wounds heal.
Collectibles
As mentioned already, The Mandalorian on Disney+ is breathing new life into Star Wars. Until Funko cranks out a Baby Yoda Pop!, collectors will want to get their hands on this The Mandalorian Funko Pop!.
Purchase The Mandalorian Funko Pop! at Amazon.
Enjoy the holiday tradition of the advent calendar with a trio of new Funko Pop! advent calendars for 2019. This year’s offerings include a new Harry Potter calendar, a Marvel Comics 80th anniversary calendar, and a Fortnite calendar. Each features 24 pocket sized Pop!s.
Purchase the Funko Pop Harry Potter Advent Calendar at Amazon.
Purchase the Funko Pop Marvel Comics 80th Anniversary Advent Calendar at Amazon.
Purchase the Funko Pop Fortnite Advent Calendar at Amazon.
In the Kitchen
If the person on your shopping list hasn’t jumped aboard the Instant Pot train yet, now is the time for them to do so. Williams Sonoma has added to their already extensive Star Wars lineup of kitchen gadgets with a series of Star Wars skinned Instant Pots. Among the units available are 6 quart R2-D2, Darth Vader, and Stormtrooper Instant Pots, the smaller 3 quart BB-8 Instant Pot, and the larger 8 quart Chewbacca Instant Pot.
Order the size that best fits the needs of the people on your holiday shopping list (and maybe pick one up for yourself) at Williams-Sonoma.com.
What else are you hoping to get this holiday season? What’s on the shopping list for the people in your life? Let us know in the comments below!
Please consider purchasing through the links above. Purchases made by clicking through the links above may help support Pop Goes the Culture.
