Pug Davis is a very strange, successful, and popular web comic written and illustrated by Rebecca Sugar. She’s already on her third “issue” (read: story arc), and now the first two have been released as a single-volume black & white trade paperback by Albatross Exploding Funny Books (what a name!). The story concerns a famously dangerous space adventurer known as Pug Davis: Gruff, grouchy, conservative, politically incorrect… Maybe it’s got something to do with the fact he’s got the face of a cute little pug dog, complete with bright and shiny little puppy-eyes. He and his companion, an optimistic and unashamedly gay human known as “Blouse”, travel the galaxy together — one looking to make friends and find a home, one looking to bash some heads. The Web Comic Overlook site has a much more detailed review and explanation of it all… but afterward, it still won’t all make sense!
Dogs
The Puppy Sister Graphic Novel
The Puppy Sister is a 1997 novel by a well-known author of books for young readers, S. E. Hinton. It tells the comic story of Aleasha, a newly-adopted puppy who decides that her human family will be much better off if she becomes human too — and so, she sets out to do precisely that, and the book details her adventures as told from her point of view. Now, Bluewater Productions have released a new edition of The Puppy Sister as a full-color graphic novel, illustrated by Ramon Salas. It’s available now from (among other places) the Barnes & Noble web site.
Cats and Dogs Get Help — From Hell!
A power-house team-up has brought together Dark Horse Press’ new full-color one-shot, Beasts of Burden & Hellboy. Evan Dorkin (Milk and Cheese), Jill Thompson (Scary Godmother) and Mike Mignola (Hellboy, of course) join forces to bring us the latest story of the animals of Burden Hill. A team of dogs (and one cat) have been fighting together to find and destroy the source of evil energy haunting their neighborhood with strange events — and brutal murders, human and non-human. But when things start going really bad, the animals have no choice but to bring in outside help — in the form of Hellboy, perhaps the world’s greatest supernatural detective.
The Pet Avengers Hardcover Collection
“Once upon a time, in a world of super heroes and villains, there lived a team of animals that saved the universe…and no one knew it. These creatures asked not for fortune or fame, merely to help the humans that pet them. But a new threat to the world has arisen, which only they know of, that could change everything…and kill one of them. Join Chris Eliopoulos, Ig Guara, and Chris Sotomayor for an epic tale of adventure, courage…and sacrifice.” This new hardcover collection (available now from Marvel) brings together issues 1 through 4 of Lockjaw and the Pet Avengers Unleashed, as well as Tails of the Pet Avengers: The Dogs of Summer. Check out the review at Amazon.com.
image c. Marvel Comics
Furries for a Good Cause
It’s always nice to see funny animal projects supporting charity — there are, of course, a lot of them out there! This particular one from Alterna Comics has the rather lengthy title of The Unlikely Trio: Last Barn on the Left. Their web site describes this one-shot black & white comic (written by Scott and Callie West and illustrated by Scott) like this: “A story of three unlikely friends, Lil’Bit the mouse, Mrs. Butters the cat, and Abby the Collie dog that join together to brave the last barn on the left in their small town. The only problem is that a scary monster is said to lurk in the shadows of the barn! Printed in black and white (so kids can be the colorist!) and featuring fun activities in the back of the book, The Unlikely Trio will be sure to entertain even after you’re done reading!” Best of all, $2.00 from the sale of each book will be donated to the ASPCA. The Alterna Comics page also features a preview of the comic, and a link to The Unlikely Trio’s official web site.
Duncan the Wonder Dog
Here’s how Adhouse describes writer and artist Adam Hines’ new graphic novel miniseries, Duncan the Wonder Dog: “What if animals could talk? Would some of them form a militant group in reaction to how humans treat them? Would humans treat them different? Come explore this dense tome of an alternate universe where the lavish renderings recall Dave McKean. 2009 Xeric winning Duncan the Wonder Dog WILL be one of the most talked about books of 2010.” Really now. We’ll certainly see. The first 400-page, softcover volume of this black & white series is available now from Adhouse. There’s also a multi-page preview available for viewing at Newsarama.com.
Where Cute Things Go
Bekyoot.com, in their own words, “features one-of-a-kind original designs and character merchandise inspired by life, laughter, and the pursuit of cuteness. There is a story behind every character — a life of whimsy and simplicity sure to set a smile on your face”.Though characters like Fat Cat, The Evil Landlord (a chibi raccoon fem), Pudge the Pug, and Kyoot Bear look like they stepped right out of Japanese culture, Bekyoot is actually based in Houston, Texas. Besides their web site they have an on-line comic strip (Where Cute Things Go) and of course a store full of merchandise featuring their characters.
Science Dog!
Worlds-within-worlds stuff is always complicated to explain, but here we go… Readers of the Invincible comic book (from Image Comics) will recall that perhaps the favorite comic book character of Mark Grayson (aka Invincible) is named Science Dog — pulp hero of comic books, Saturday morning cartoon shows, and numerous product tie-ins. Well, the creators of Invincible eventually started putting actual Science Dog stories in the Invincible comics as back-ups. Now, Image Comics has collected the original full-color Science Dog stories from Invincible #25, #50, and #75 in Science Dog Special #1, coming this September from writer Robert Kirkman and illustrator Cory Walker. Science Dog! Once an ordinary pet dog living in a brilliant scientist’s lab… but then transformed by a freakish time-travel accident into a super-smart, super-strong humanoid adventurer on a never-ending mission to destroy evil! Got all that? You can find out more about the story at ComicVine.com.
Go, Dog, Go!
Animation historian Jerry Beck gives us the following on Cartoon Brew: “Animation storyman Phil Eastman (1909-1986) worked for Disney, Warner Bros., UPA, even Terrytoons during his career in the 1940s, 50s and 60s. But his biggest claim to fame has to be the series of Beginner Books he wrote and drew beginning in the late 1950s. Sam and The Firefly, Are You My Mother? A Fish Out of Water, and of course Go, Dog, Go! were certainly on my reading list at age 5. They influenced a lot of folks who later went into animation and comic art. I loved those books and still have my original battered copies. Now Sue and Tony Eastman (Phil’s son, and one of the best animators in the business himself) have put together a new website dedicated to his father’s books. Tony writes: Its purpose is to entertain/inform, and at the same time sell books. There really wasn’t a place where you could see all of his books together, plus we thought a short biography (appropriate for children) and a way to get in touch with his family would be useful. ” You can visit the P.D. Eastman website to find out more.
