Happy early Thanksgiving!
This year, many major retailers decided to really drag out Black Friday — some having preview days as early as October — and/or they’ve forgone traditional flyers. So you may have seen some of these deals already elsewhere. Still, here are some of the highlights for anime and manga fans, and keep an eye on next week for some Cyber Monday/Cyber Week specials.
If an item is sold out, keep checking for any restocks, and sometimes, other stores will have automatically price matched — Amazon especially. So don’t give up hope! But while most major chains are offering a rather low free shipping threshold (usually under $50), depending on stock or the sale, you may need to head out to the store. Some places may also offer you an incentive if you choose store pickup.
Ongoing
$100 Apple eGift Card – $100 + $15 Target Gift Card at Target
Whether you use iOS or not, an Apple gift card is still nice to pick up. Anime fans can often find discounted seasons or complete series, and manga volumes and Japanese music are also available. The $15 gift card can be used on anything at Target (online or instore), and there is no expiration date on it. Best Buy is also doing this same offer.
Sonic Frontiers – $29-$35 at Walmart
This game just came out, so seeing any kind of discount on it is rather surprising. While other stores also have marked it down, Walmart is the lowest, especially if you pick up the Switch or Xbox versions, as those are over half off MSRP.
Nintendo Switch Games – $59.99 or less + $10 Coupon at Meijer
The list of games in this sale includes a couple of PS5 offerings, but the highlights are the two recently released Pokémon Scarlet/Violet titles. You can get up to two coupons per transaction, and they are unlikely to roll (i.e. get a coupon, buy another game and use the coupon to get another). But any discount on a new hit title is great. Even better, if your Meijer manages to keep them in stock until November 25th, you can use a Santa Bucks coupon and get an additional $10 off one game. You can use your Meijer coupon right away and on pretty much anything besides the usual restrictions like alcohol and gift cards.
Books, Movies, and Music – Buy Two Get a Third Free at Target
A sale that comes around every now and then, but it’s always worth looking through the offerings. You can often find anime and manga for about the same price as Amazon, and if you match three titles around the same price, it’s like getting 33% off. Also look for preorders and some Target exclusives, like this exclusive Komi Can’t Communicate box set.
Pokémon Trading Card Game Sword & Shield Elite Trainer Boxes – $24.99 at Target
Pokémon cards are still a popular gift item, and these boxes are a nice way for both newbies and veterans to add to a collection. You get eight boosters per box, so it’s like paying $3.12 a pack plus getting the energy cards, guidebook, and other items.
Starting Thursday
Digimon Survive – $17 at GameStop
Most places who have this game discounted are selling this for around $40, and many other retailers still have this at full MSRP. So $17 is a very good discount on this visual novel and tactical RPG hybrid.
PlayStation/Xbox Gift Cards – 20% off at Dollar General
Get a multipack of PlayStation or Xbox gift cards for 20% off, or get a $25 single gift card or GamePass Ultimate card for 20% off. A nice discount, so stock up if you’re a big digital gamer and can sneak out to a store.
Starting Friday
Azuki Premium Annual Subscription – $29.99 at Azuki
From Friday until Monday, new members can sign up for Azuki’s all-you-can-read plan for 50% off. That means for a year you have unlimited access to Azuki exclusives and selections from publishers like Kodansha Comics and Star Fruit. It costs $2.50 to rent just a chapter or two at other outlet, so getting simulpubs and more here for $2.50 a month is a great way to get your manga fix.