It’s beginning to look a lot like… Yeah, I know, it’s still a bit early for most of us (myself included). However, while there might still be over six weeks until The Big Day itself, the beginning of Advent is just three weeks away so I hope you’ll forgive me popping in with a few nerdy Advent Calendars that are a bit different from the norm.
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Themed Advent Calendars have become all the rage in the last few years and this year, Insight Editions have a whole range of them for different fandoms covering everything from American Girl to Dungeons and Dragons, Friends to Fallout. They sent me two of their calendars to explore and while I’ve tried not to reveal too much of exactly what’s inside – they are supposed to be a surprise after all – let’s take a look.
Official The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Advent Calendar
The first calendar I’ll be looking at is the Official The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim calendar. This calendar is single-use and upon opening the large, hardback book-style binding reveals 25 numbered paper envelopes of various shapes and sizes – all of which are Skyrim-themed themselves.
Without wishing to give too much away, within these envelopes you’ll find items of stationery, paper tree ornaments, recipe cards featuring iconic food from the game, and other items like keychains and badges. Every item is clearly themed to the game so fans will love opening this every morning – I know I’m more excited for this Advent season than any I can remember since being a kid!
The Skyrim Advent Calendar is one of a series of calendars from Insight Editions that all have the same format, so if you don’t have a Skyrim fan in your life, you could also choose from:
- Supernatural
- Dungeons and Dragons
- Dragon Ball Z
- Fallout
- Star Wars
- Batman
- The Nightmare Before Christmas
- Marvel
- Harry Potter
- Friends
Star Wars: The Life Day Pop-Up Book and Advent Calendar
The second calendar I was sent is the Star Wars: The Life Day Pop-Up Book and Advent Calendar. Unlike the ones above, this is a reusable calendar than can be brought out every year to help celebrate the run-up to Christmas or Life Day which is the main festive holiday in the Star Wars universe.
When you open the Star Wars: The Life Day Pop-Up Book and Advent Calendar, you’ll reveal an amazing pop-up Tree of Life: the sacred wroshyr tree central to wookie spiritual beliefs. On December 1st, you’ll receive a small book as well as your first tree ornament. In this book are a collection of stories about Life Day taken from various official sources like the comics and books, as well as a guide to the meaning of all the ornaments you’ll open over the following days. Every day after, you’ll open a window to reveal a new cardboard ornament that you can use to decorate the Tree of Life – or you could choose to hang them on your real Christmas tree if you prefer.
I love everything about the Star Wars: The Life Day Pop-Up Book and Advent Calendar but mostly its adorable, cute cartoon illustration style. The calendar is filled with cartoon wookies in the red robes we first saw in the Holiday Special that dare not speak its name, and it’s great to see that piece of iconic Star Wars history being acknowledged here.
As with the Skyrim calendar, there are several other Advent Calendars available with a similar theme to this one including American Girl and Home Alone calendars with a pop-up tree to decorate and a Harry Potter calendar with a pop-up mountain of presents that gradually transforms into a tree during the season.
These Advent Calendars add a geeky touch to the holidays and with so many options to choose from, there’s something for everyone. Right now (November 9th) you can get 30% off by shopping direct at the Insight Editions website too by using code Advent30 so don’t delay.
GeekMom received a copy of this title for review purposes.
