Because COVID-19 has caused a major disruption in new comic books, for the next few weeks Scoop will reexamine issues, runs, trades, and titles that are already available. We’ll take a look at perennial classics, current titles we are enjoying, significant runs, and our overall favorite books to suggest some new reading material or inspire fellow comic fans to dust off the old favorites. And if you live near a comic shop that’s still open during this time, we hope our suggestions will prompt you to check out their back issue and collected edition inventory.

The Legend of Zelda: Art and Artifacts

Dark Horse; $39.99

A follow-up to Dark Horse’s previous Hyrule Hystoria release, this book exhaustively catalogs the history of the Legend of Zelda franchise. It sheds a lot of light on how far this franchise has come over the last three decades or so, with a particular focus on the art of the series.

It clocks in at more than 400 pages, with plenty of oversized artwork gracing every single one of them. The size of the book means that you can really get into the details of the artwork, which ranges from character and item designs to promotional pieces, game box art, instruction booklet illustrations, sprites, and more. It’s even got interviews with the artists, which is a lot of fun to parse through.

If you’re a fan of the franchise, this is a must-buy. And its lengthy size means that you can really spend a lot of time with it, which might be even more of a plus during the ongoing situation. This book is best when read alongside the likes of the other Dark Horse hardcovers about The Legend of Zelda, those being Hyrule Historia and The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia.

-Carrie Wood