In-Fur-Nation

Recently we spent some time on vacation in the United Kingdom — and we met a lot of furry fans while we were there! Among them was the artist Lyndsey Green. She describes herself as a wildlife illustrator and creator of eco-conscious gifts: “Drawing wildlife, raising awareness about endangered species and the unusual animals you might not find in High Street shops”. Some of her work is collected in portfolios and booklets like Fauna Fusions, The A – Z of Feliformia, and The Tiny Book of Tiny Animals. She even covers more mythical animals in Gryphonology and Jackalopia. Her web site has links to her Shopify.

image c. 2023 by Lyndsey Green

Driving around Southern California, we saw this on a billboard, of all things. Bearific.com. Knowing nothing about it, we had to investigate! Here’s what we found out about Bearific Books: “Katelyn Lonas is 16 years old and the CEO of her company, Bearific. Currently, she has over 60 published books, which are sold worldwide and available on Barnes & Noble and Walmart. Katelyn has also published five apps on the Google Play Store and has a YouTube channel called Bearific Studios, where she posts drawing videos and cartoons based on her books. She published her first book when she was 9 years old, and it was called Bearific Adventure.” And yes, it’s all about bears. Check out her web site!

image c. 2023 Bearific Books

This showed up recently at Animation World Network: “No Fat Ego’s Niels Juul has teamed with Sherman Theatrical Entertainment to adapt Inkas the Ramferinkas into an animated musical. The film, which follows a small flying dinosaur, pulls from a decades-long project from the Sherman Brothers, best known for their musical contributions to multiple Disney classics, including The Jungle Book and Mary Poppins. The upcoming film marks the only musical from the late Robert B. Sherman and his brother Richard M. Sherman. Before teaming with Disney, the brothers were focused on adapting Inkas, which began as a children’s record from 1951, into a film. In the mid-2000s, Robert’s son Robbie optioned the rights to the Inkas IP and worked with his father and uncle to pen a feature-length script.” The project has been on hold since 2008, but it’s back in production now. No release date yet, but we’ll let you know more when we do!

image c. 2023 No Fat Ego

Previews recently gave us an interview with Matt Wendt, artist and co-creator (along with writer Chad Corrie) of Sons of Ashgard: Ill Met in Elmgard, a new fantasy graphic novel. “Erick Redfur seeks a new life. Exiled from his homeland he craves a fresh start, but has yet to find it. Hopeful of a better fate in Elmgard he soon finds himself embroiled in a series of troubling events that quickly escalate into a near kingdom-wide war. Yet even as he attempts a remedy through fast thinking and the aid of some new companions, he risks jeopardizing his chance for a more peaceful future. But in so doing he will find his redemption along with new hope for the days ahead.” It’s available now from Dark Horse.

image c. 2023 Dark Horse Comics

We’ll openly admit it: Many collectible phenomena out there simply pass us right back. Like this one… and now it’s getting it’s own TV series! Recently, this showed up on Animation World Network: Apple TV+ ordered a new 13-episode CG animated series,Be@rbrick, based on Medicom Toy’s popular collectible bear-shaped figures. DreamWorks Animation and Dentsu Inc. will produce with Meghan McCarthy (My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Centaurworld) on board as showrunner and executive producer. The music-driven comedy follows young singer-songwriter Jasmine and her bandmates pursuing their dreams and inspiring others to do the same. But it won’t be easy to do when living in a world where everyone’s role is chosen for them and where the painted-on look you receive when you graduate from high school determines who you’ll be for the rest of your life. So, Jasmine realizes that for her world to change, she and her friends may have to make it happen themselves.” No word yet on a release date.

image c. 2023 Dreamworks Animation

Years ago we stumbled across a trailer for the Turkish animated film Bad Cat, based on the graphic novel Kötu Kedi Şerafettin by Bülent Üstün. Now the film, directed by Mehmet Kurtuluş and Ayse Ünal, has been dubbed into English and picked up by Tubi. “In the film, a profane house cat must deal with the arrival of his illegitimate son, an accidental killing, his owner’s eviction, and more – all within a day of debauchery and mayhem.” As you can probably tell, this features a lot of adults-only content! Animation World Network has the trailer.

image c. 2023 Tubi

Whoa! One we missed from last summer: The Forest Beckons, the first volume in the new Order of the Night Jay series of graphic novels for young readers, created by Jonathan Schnapp. “Frank is perhaps the most un-bear-like bear Camp Jay Bird has ever seen. Actually, he’s probably the ONLY bear Camp Jay Bird has ever seen. And there are tons of bugs, he’s getting picked on, and he can’t seem to earn a single badge! But there’s Ricky, an excitable little raccoon who shares Frank’s love of Mega Bunny comics. But Ricky’s friendship might be more than Frank can handle. After breaking camp rules, getting lost in the woods, and discovering ancient secrets about the long-forgotten Order of the Night Jay, how will Frank explain all this to his dad?” It’s available now everywhere from Penguin Random House and Top Shelf Comix.

image c. 2023 Top Shelf Comix

Up next at the Festival of Books was the Dogfish series of illustrated books, written by Rita Reed and with art by Craig Cartwright. Starting off with Dogfish Saves The Ocean: “Dogfish is enjoying a beautiful day in the ocean when suddenly he sees his friend Turtle with a straw stuck in his snout! After he calls his friends to help, they all discover that ocean pollution is a BIG problem! Join Dogfish and his friends as they learn more about pollution and what they can do to help.” All the books are available now from Fine Eye Media, including Dogfish Stands Up To Bullying and Dogfish: Just Be You!

image c. 2023 Fine Eye Media

Recently made a visit to the L.A. Times Festival of Books in Los Angeles (of course), and as usual came across some interesting furry items we want to tell you about. First up is the Red’s Planet series of graphic novels by Eddie Pittman — a Disney animator who worked on films like Emperor’s New Groove and Lilo & Stitch, as well as TV series like Phineas and Ferb. Here’s the run down: “Meet Red, a quirky, headstrong 10-year-old who longs to live in her own perfect paradise far away from her annoying foster family. But when a UFO mistakenly kidnaps her, Red finds herself farther away than she could have possibly imagined—across the galaxy and aboard an enormous spaceship owned by the Aquilari, an ancient creature with a taste for rare and unusual treasures. Before Red can be discovered as a stowaway, the great ship crashes on a small deserted planet, leaving her marooned with a menagerie of misfit aliens. With her newfound friend, a small gray alien named Tawee, Red must find a way to survive the hostile castaways, evade the ravenous wildlife, and contend with Goose, the planet’s grumpy, felinoid custodian. Surely this can’t be the paradise she’s been hoping for.” Three hardcover books are out so far from Amulet.

image c. 2023 Amulet Books

Atlas Games has created a new all-ages role-playing game called Magical Kitties Save The Day. Which is precisely what it’s about! “You are Cute. You are Cunning. You are Fierce. You are Magical Kitties, and it’s time to Save the Day! Every Magical Kitty has a human. Every human has a Problem. In Magical Kitties Save the Day, you need to use your magical powers to solve problems and save the day! But kitties live in Hometowns that are filled with Troubles like witches, aliens, and hyper-intelligent raccoons. Troubles make Problems worse, so the kitties need to go on adventures to take care of the Troubles before that can happen.” After a successful Kickstarter campaign (with several stretch goals already acheived!), the game is available on-line now.

image c. 2023 Atlas Games

Recently at AnaCon (held each year at the Anaheim Main Public Library!) we came across Sebastian Dorn. A self-described “cartoonist with autism”, Sebastian moved to Southern California with his family, with the goal of creating his own comic book. Recently he gave us Turbofox, a new black & white science fiction comic released through Sebastian’s own imprint, Dorn Comics. “A wicked wolf sorcerer named Jacobus Lupus vows to conquer and destroy the planet Foxtopia, where he was banished from a thousand years ago. And so the Fox Squad — consisting of Jet McFox, Tonito, Sparky, and Vicki Vixen — head off into space to stop the villain”. Guess what? There’s even animation now!

image c. 2023 Dorn Comics

We got this announcement sent right to us from the source! Lisa Cheese and Ghost Guitar: Attack of the Snack is a new upcoming graphic novel from Top Shelf, written and illustrated by Kevin Alvir. “In Lisa Cheese and Ghost Guitar, a sweet unicorn girl from another dimension moves to Earth City hoping to make a name for herself as a folk singer…but her very first open mic is a disaster, leaving her with a bionic arm and an identity crisis. Now she’s starting a crummy office job, her parents back in their home dimension are laying on the guilt trip, and the cool girl at the record store leaves her tongue-tied. But once she’s drawn into a knock-down, drag-out encounter with a gang of hamburger-headed goons from the sinister megacorporation Beef is Burger, Lisa must rally a ragtag band of supernatural hipsters, conspiracy freaks, and burnt-out office coworkers to thwart their diabolical ambitions!” Might all make more sense if you check out the preview pages over at Major Spoilers. Lisa Cheese hits the shelves this September.

image c. 2023 Top Shelf

Capstone Press recently gave us a new series of full-color graphic novels for young comic readers, featuring folktales from cultures all over the globe. And of course, many of them are furry. For example: The Sky Fox, A Peruvian Graphic Folktale, written by Alberto Rayo and illustrated by Fabiana Faiallo. “What happens to a fox that won’t stop teasing the others animals? Read this Peruvian tale to find out.” Other books in the series include The Magpie’s Tale (Sweden), The Turtle and The Geese (India), and The Tortoise and The Hare (West Africa). Each of the titles features writing and art by folk from the culture in question.

image c. 2023 Capstone Press

Magnetic Press brings us a new graphic novel: Loonicorns, a fantasy from a different angle. “Looniland is a joyful and colorful world populated by mythical and extinct creatures: Unicorns, cyclops, dodos… But behind this facade hides a highly unequal society: From an early age, each inhabitant of Looniland is categorized as ‘beautiful’ or ‘ugly’ according to certain subjective criteria. The life of the ‘beautiful’ is idyllic, while that of the ‘ugly’ is filled with drudgery and danger. But the balance of society will be upturned by the arrival of Penny, an amnesic human child.” Loonicorns is written by Ced, and illustrated by Waltch and Gorobei. No, we don’t know them either! But take a look!

image c. 2023 Magnetic Press

At this year’s WonderCon in Anaheim, we had the honor of meeting Knave Murdock and joining them on a panel discussion of LGBTQ-themed furry comics over the decades. Knave is the creator of the comic book TransCat. What’s it about? “TransCat is a transgender superhero who fights evil and doesn’t afraid of anything! Follow TransCat on her adventures as she goes to school, hangs out with friends, goes on dates, and saves the world from the forces of darkness!” All with the help of her magical cat-hat. Visit the official web site to find out all about it — or, look for the paper version where-ever indie comic books are sold.

image c. 2023 Parasomniac Comics

How did we miss this? We just discovered Zabezoo — Ears n’ Tail, a new animated series for preschoolers that’s making quite a splash on the Internet. Created by an international consortium of artists, the series follows the title character Zabezoo, a young mixed-race girl with a monkey father and a rabbit mommy. The series sets out to teach young children to accept and even celebrate each other’s differences. Originally released in Russian, some episodes have been translated into English — and there are more to come. The L.A. Weekly out of Los Angeles recently interviewed the creator, Eugene Lobachev.

image c. 2023 Zabezoo.com

We not sure how “well” the Skydance animated film Luck did last year (it’s always complicated to tell with releases on streaming services…) but evidently it did well enough that the makers decided to created a spin-off short cartoon in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day (which so recently passed!). This is from Animation World Network: “Apple Original Films and Skydance Animation are celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with a new animated short Bad Luck Spot featuring the hilarious hazmat bunnies from the animated feature Luck and its ‘Land of Luck’. In the short, when a bad luck crystal finds its way into the Land of Luck, the elite team of hazmat bunnies springs into action!” You can see the short on Apple TV+, of course, but you can also watch it on YouTube.

image c. 2023 Skydance Animation

There’s a new CGI animated series coming soon, according to Animation World Network: “Apple TV+ just released a trailer for Eva the Owlet, a new animated kids and family series based on the New York Times bestselling Scholastic book series Owl Diaries by award-winning author Rebecca Elliott. The series premieres globally on Friday, March 31. The show follows Eva, a creative, cheeky owlet who lives next door to her best friend, Lucy, in the woodland world of Treetopington. With big ideas and an even bigger personality, Eva goes on high-flying adventures, expressing herself in her journal along the way!” The article has a link to the show trailer on YouTube as well.

image c. 2023 Apple TV+

But not that Fox and Hare. Or that fox and… rabbit. This is something all together different. Cartoon Brew recently told us about Fox and Hare Save the Forest, a new CGI feature in production now from European director Mascha Halberstad. “The film’s screenplay was adapted by Fabie Hulsebos from the Vos en Haas en de Bosbaas book series from author Sylvia VandenHeede and illustrator Thé Tjong-Khing. Halbersted and Dutch production company Submarine previously adapted the property as an animated series in 2018… In the film, Fox and Hare become distressed when they find their friend Owl has disappeared. Together with a group of woodland creatures, they set out to track down the missing bird, but instead find that their forest has been flooded by a giant lake that wasn’t there the day before. Unsure if Owl’s disappearance and the floodwaters are somehow related, the animals must embark on a crazy adventure to find their friend before the rising water overtakes the forest.” The film-makers hope to finish production and release the film later this year. As usual, no word yet on if there will be distribution in North America.

image c. 2023 Submarine

We know intriguingly little about Good Morning Kevin… other than the fact it’s a popular meme phrase on the Internet. But this is something different: A new animated series created by Andrew Gordon, a 20-year veteran of Pixar. Now he’s started his own animation studio, Songchain. At their Twitter site, you can see lots of sketches of Kevin the bear interacting with various alien creatures — and a quick teaser of the new series showing Kevin animated in CGI. They tell us it’s coming out this May. We’ll let you know when we find out more!

image c. 2023 Songchain