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Funny Animal

Monkeys… in… Space!

And speaking of animal “companions”, try this far-out adventure for size: “From the outer reaches of space, the Space Hustlers kidnap, blow-up, extort, or just give well-deserved noogies to those who stand in their way! Joined by a Confucius alien kung-fu monkey and a semi-conscious robot, street knowledge clashes with ancient philosophy as the Space Hustlers accomplish any mision, just so long as they don’t kill each other first!” Steve Owen, writer and illustrator, presents the Space Hustlers graphic novel in trade paperback. It’s coming this November in black & white from Hey Drude Productions. Check it out at Westfield Comics too.

image c. 2012 Hey Drude

Everyone’s Favorite Penguin — In Color

Before they were surfing, before they were singing and dancing, before they were even marching, penguins were… resting among the dandelions. Throughout the variations of Bloom County and all of its off-shoots, one constant has been the penguin known as Opus. Now creator Berkeley Breathed has brought together all of the Opus full-color Sunday strips from 2003 to 2008 in one hardcover collection, Opus: The Complete Sunday Strips (appropriate, huh?). Besides our shy, friendly, waddling friend, this “magnum opus” (sorry…) also features many well-known and well-loved characters from Mr. Breathed’s comics new and old, some of them making their final appearances. Amazon has the book available for pre-order, and IDW Publishing will have it out this December.

image c. 2012 IDW Publishing

Llama, Llama, Llama, No Duck

Somehow, another cultural meme has passed us by (we admit it), but evidently this is a Very Important Llama: “Polka Spot has traveled the world as a fashion model, pop superstar, movie star, magazine editor, diplomatic problem-solver, and general global icon. She goes where no llama has gone before. Her life in pictures is worth a million words. And every one is massively important.  In the rare moments that Polka Spot has any down time, she lives at home with Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, better known as The Beekman Boys, on their farm in Sharon Springs, NY. The Beekman Boys, who will be competing in the Amazing Race on CBS this season, wanted to feature their popular llama from their show that will start airing on the Cooking Channel later this month.  Bluewater Productions is giving this larger-than-life personality a brand new comic series titled Polka Spot: My Life in Pictures. The all-ages comic was co-written by Bluewater President Darren G. Davis, Michael Troy and the Beekman Boy himself, Brent Ridge. Polka Spot’s vibrant art was created by talented artist, Bernat.” Following all that?  We really didn’t either. But, you can find out more at 1st Comic News. Bluewater Productions will bring us Polka Spot #1 in full color this October.

image c. 2012 Bluewater Productions

Bride of Porkula

Look, it’s probably better if we just let the creators describe this one: “Virginia Hamm along with friends Herford Bovis and Bill E. Goat travel to Porksilvania to claim the estate of her late uncle, Otto McMonster. Little does our trio know that they must survive the likes of Count Porkula, Beefenstein, Mr. Gruff and a host of other ghosts and ghouls to bring home the bacon!” Got it? Old McMonster’s Haunted Farm was created by Brent E. Erwin, and this first full-color 48-page graphic novel in the series, Bride of Porkula, was written and illustrated by Jay Fosgitt. Ape Entertainment will be releasing it on the world this October — and if none of this makes sense to you, then check out the preview on their web site. Blah! Blah!

image c. 2012 Ape Entertainment

The Easter Kangaroo…?

In case you haven’t caught wind of it yet, Dreamworks Animation will release their new feature film Rise of the Guardians on November 21st.  And already the character of the Easter Bunny — voiced by Hugh Jackman, and referred to in the story as Bunnymund — is turning quite a few heads in furry fandom. Now the tie-in merchandise is beginning to show up. First out the gate is a new full-color graphic novel from Ben Lichius and Marcelo Ferreira, Rise of the Guardians: The Hidden Truth and Other Stories. It goes like this:  “North. Bunnymund. Sandman. Tooth Fairy. They are the make-believe characters that populate the imagination of children the world over. But young Jamie believes otherwise. They’re all real, and he’s been collecting the ‘evidence’ to prove it! When Jamie’s friend, Toby, comes over to spend the night, he finds Jamie’s ‘Weird Stuff’ scrapbook full of copious notes and samples about unexplained phenomenon, and the talk turns to Jamie’s stories of near-miss encounters. It soon becomes evident, however, that Toby has a pretty amazing story of his own to tell.” Ape Entertainment will release this new trade paperback on October 23rd, and you can pre-order a copy at Barnes & Noble.

image c. 2012 Ape Entertainment

Pi-Rats Beneath the Street

We don’t look at a lot of board games around here (how anthropomorphic can you get with them, really?), but now and then something catches our interest.  One such thing is Sewer Pirats. It’s a new 4-player board game created by Andreas Pelikan, with artwork by Marina Fahrenbach, and published by Heidelberger Spieleverlag (whew!). Here’s how they describe it: “In Sewer Pirats, deep underground in a maze of domed caverns, narrow tunnels, and piped passages, a motley cast of rodents, insects, and other vermin sail the treacherous waters of human refuse aboard bizarre vessels in search of discarded booty. In order to claim the best haul from the abandoned flotsam, players must make careful use of the unique abilities of their crews’ rats, cockroaches, weasels, and other critters. Don’t settle for less than left-over fast food and dumped toys. Go for your goal to become a true legend among the sewer pirates.” Apparently out for a while now in Europe, the game has only recently become available in North America. Check it out at Board Game Geek.

image c. 2012 Heidelberger Spieleverlag

Disney Animation — From the Ground Up

There’s a new book coming around, simply called A Disney Sketchbook. Edited by Ken Shue, it’s been getting considerable buzz prior to its release. Here’s the publisher’s summary: “The Disney Sketchbook is a glorious, collectible coffee-table book showcasing the rich visual development art by Disney animators over the more than eighty-year history of the Walt Disney Animation Studios (originally Disney Feature Animation). The sketchbook appears as if Disney’s animation artists have passed it among each other through the years, from the early beginnings of the Studios’ work, through the present day. Frequently, current artists have drawn their concepts alongside earlier characters that have influenced their work. In brief but potent text, the current Disney animators will reflect on the inspiration of the artists who have preceded them, going back to the “first generation” of animators who created the Silly Symphonies and early cartoons, to the first Golden Age of Disney animation (Snow White to The Black Cauldron) to the present second Golden Age (The Little Mermaid onwards).” Harper Collins will release A Disney Sketchbook in hardcover on October 9th.

image c. 2012 Harper Collins

Hello Kitty! Have Some Art!

Think of your favorite so-cute-it-hurts art meme, and chances are at some point it was inspired by the success of Sanrio’s Hello Kitty line.  The little white cat with tiny black eyes (first designed in 1974 by Yuko Shimizu) has become a billion-dollar yearly world phenomenon since first breaking out of Japan in 1976. Now, this October Abrams will bring us Hello Kitty, Hello Art!, a hardcover collection of kitty-inspired illustration. “Hello Kitty, Hello Art! is a celebration of the iconic Hello Kitty character and other beloved Sanrio characters through the eyes of dozens of contemporary artists and Hello Kitty fans, including Gary Baseman, Ron English, Luke Chueh, CRASH, Anthony Lister, Eric Joyner, Camilla d’Errico, Amanda Visell, Colin Christian, Huck Gee, Luke Chueh, Deph, and Yosuke Ueno, among others. This hardcover collectible book features a variety of well-known international artists and their unique interpretations of Sanrio characters in various media, including canvas, spray paint, watercolor and ink, aerosol and acrylics on wood, mixed media, oil on panel, and silk screen. The pieces in the book reflect the many ways Hello Kitty and Sanrio have influenced and inspired so many artists around the world.” Pre-order it on Amazon.

image c. 2012 Abrams

And… yet more Sonic!

Hey, weren’t we just here? Well, yes, but that was mostly about Sonic the Hedgehog in comic book form. Now Udon Entertainment brings us The History of Sonic the Hedgehog, which is more about Sonic in the original games. Got it? Here, let Amazon tell you: “Celebrating over 20 years as SEGA’s official mascot, The History of Sonic the Hedgehog is the ultimate guide to SEGA’s spiky blue speedster! This hefty 300-page hardcover volume covers in detail every 2D and 3D Sonic game, plus spinoffs and crossovers. You’ll also find character profiles, promotional artwork, rare concept art, and a detailed look at the origins of the ‘Blue Blur’.” Edited by Marc Petronille and William Audureau, this large volume comes our way in early October.

image c. 2012 Udon Entertainment