In-Fur-Nation

Actually, Sanctuary is a black & white on-line comic book by Stephen Coughlin, published as part of Slave Labor Graphics on-line comics initiative. It’s a funny animal adventure, but also a murder mystery. “ A research station on a secluded island houses a game reserve/sanctuary where the animals seem to be just a tad smarter than the human researchers observing them. The arrival of a Panda bear threatens to upset the delicate balance of life for everyone involved.” Word is out that Sanctuary will also be released soon on dead trees.  For now, check it out at SLG’s page.

image c. 2012 by Stephen Coughlin

Lynn Hogan is an author and artist from the Seattle, Washington area. She’s worked for Marvel Comics and Bella Sara, among others. Prydwen is a fantasy-adventure comic she has been putting up on line for some time. Now Sofawolf Press have released Prydwen: Gods and Monsters, the first graphic novel compilation of the on-line comic. This full-color work is available in softcover and hardcover editions. “Orphaned at a young age and raised in a Sui monastery, Prydwen settles into a peaceful life tending the gardens, never knowing who she is or where she came from. When disturbing dreams give way to waking up in patches of ash where flowers used to be, she flees the safety of the church grounds with her friend Auric, looking for answers. Her path takes her deep into the sacred gardens of the Wanderkind God, where she is destined to release his imprisoned Elynd and learn more about her past.” Sofawolf has a preview on their web site, and a video preview up on YouTube as well.

image c. 2012 Lynn Hogan

Animator Chris Ayers became well-known for his Daily Zoo project, in which he drew one new animal character every day for a year — therapy while he recovered from a life-threatening illness.  Two Daily Zoo books have been released so far… but his latest book takes a different tack. My Daily Zoo is a softcover book featuring over 96 pages of interactive black & white drawing exercises where you unleash your creativity and draw new cartoon animals. You can find out more about Chris, his inspiring story, and his works at his web site.

image c. 2012 Chris Ayers

Back from San Diego Comic Con with sore feet and lots of stuff to tell you about!

First up: Among the many things at SDCC dedicated to My Little Pony — Friendship is Magic was the news that IDW Publishing will release a brand-new full-color MLP-FIM comic book series, starting up in November. The lead artist for the series is Andy Price, who since the announcement of the comic has been answering a flood of questions over on his Deviant Art page. According to him (and IDW, whom your trusty ed-otter spoke to at the con), the series will feature brand-new in-canon stories of the inhabitants of Equestria, not adaptations of the existing TV episodes. Various artists have been commissioned to create the covers for each issue. Mr. Price made it a point to note that his art for the series will be all hand-drawn and hand-colored. Check out his site or the IDW site for more news on a release date for the first issue.

image c. 2012 IDW Publishing

Interesting news making the rounds yesterday: Dreamworks Animation have inked a deal with the developer Triple Five to bring a 14-plus acre indoor theme park to Meadowlands, New Jersey. Here’s the scoop: Triple Five (who built the successful Mall of America entertainment complex in Minneapolis, Minnesota) took over the development of a large 5-story shopping and entertainment center complex built near the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Originally called Xanadu, the project has remained vacant and un-used since 2009 after having gone way over budget. Now re-named American Dream, the plan is for the new property to include an indoor theme park featuring thrill rides, dark rides, walk-about characters, and shows all based on Dreamworks animated films. The New York Times has the story on-line. The governor of New Jersey was hoping that the project would be complete by early 2014, when Met Life Stadium will be hosting the Superbowl, but for now it’s looking like American Dream won’t open until later that year.

And with that, we’ll see you again after San Diego Comic Con!

image c. 2012 Dreamworks Animation

Here at In-Fur-Nation we’ve covered a lot of pirates, and a lot of werewolves, and a lot of little doggies.  Well, how about a little doggy who fights pirates who are werewolves? Welcome to the world of Mike Norton’s The Curse. In 2009 Mr. Norton, creator of Battlepug (which we’ve also covered here) took up the 24-Hour Comic Book Challenge, which yes, challenges comic book creators to bring about a 24-page comic book, from scratch, in 24 hours. The result was The Curse, in which a small but tenacious pet pug helps his master to defeat an evil band of pirates who’s bite turns you into one of their kind! The response to The Curse was so positive that Mr. Norton returned to it and created Parts 2 and 3 in 2010 and 2011 for the same challenge. Now Oni Press has collected all three sections into a single black and white trade paperback, which is available for pre-order and headed to the shelves this October.

image c. 2012 Mike Norton / Oni Press

Shut Up Cartoons is a YouTube channel of original animated series put together by the Smosh Channel, which claims to be the third largest Channel on YouTube.  In amongst titles like Oishi High School Battle and Zombies vs. Ninja are a couple of shows that furry fans might want to take notice of. Krogzilla is one of the newest. “Born as an unknown mutation of aquatic lizard, Krogzilla was a 200-foot tall fire-breathing sea monster that terrorized coastal cities all over the world, until a team of scientists defeated him by shrinking. Now reduced to only six feet in height, Krogzilla has to figure out how to become a functioning member of society. First thing Krog needs to do is find a job”. The series updates every Thursday, and you can find it on YouTube here. While you’re there you might also want to check out the preview trailer for Weasel Town, which premiers next week.

image c. 2012 Smosh Channel

It’s an all-new rodent! CEC Entertainment Inc, owners of the Chuck E. Cheese line of pizza restaurant/arcades, have announced a total make-over for the company’s mascot.  Gone is the portly circus ringleader (and gone, at least in TV commercials, is Chuck E’s voice of 20 years, Duncan Brannan). In his place is a new slimmed-down Chuck E. in a t-shirt and jeans, sporting a Gibson Les Paul Guitar! The new Chuck E is voiced in ads by Jaret Reddick, lead singer for the pop-punk band Bowling for Soup (well-known for their song “1985″).  ScreenMag.com has the first ad from the new campaign up on their web site. Trivia bit for you: Did you know that Chuck E. Cheese’s pizza restaurant chain was founded by Nolan Bushnell — who also founded Atari?

image c. 2012 CEC Entertainment

First off, wishing a very Happy Independence Day to all of you and yours!

Later this month Moonstone Publishing will bring us Werewolves of New Idria, an illustrated novel / trade paperback written by John Chadwell with art by Duncan Long. Here’s the publisher’s description: ” The Aceves family is like no other. With patriarch, Roberto Aceves, forever a Spanish knight after being bitten by a werewolf, he and his clan have secretly fought man’s wars for 900 years. Today, near the abandoned mining town of New Idria, they must battle against a demon and his biker gang who want nothing more than to destroy the entire clan. A new breed of werewolf! Holy warriors, led by a 900-year-old knight who fought beside El Cid, now in a deadly struggle against a motorcycle gang headed by Satan’s ken, hell bent on revenge!” Check out the pre-order page at Amazon.com.

image c. 2012 Moonstone

Another animal who decides to follow his own, different path; this is a cat known as Chote Meow. “Banished from their original homeland of Harmonystan, the cats have been living in the Dark Forest for a long, long time. No one trusts them and hardly anyone gives them any work. They steal. They kill. They cause panic and fear. But all that is about to change… Meet Chote Meow! He is the strangest cat in the world. His best friends are a rat and a crow. Even though his father is a famous cat burglar, this young cat won’t steal but sing for his supper. There is nothing that Chote Meow loves more than adventure and his guitar. Chote Meow’s love for adventure takes him both far and near. Harmonystan, the kingdom of his birth now ruled by an evil Sultan, is where their life changes. Whether it’s winning hearts, fighting bad guys, or forming a musical band this young cat will do it all.” This full-color book for younger readers was written by Pooja Lulla and illustrated by Sachin Nagar. Look for it from Campfire Orignals this August.

image c. 2012 Campfire Originals

Gordon the Giraffe is a new full-color trade paperback from Arcana Entertainment, written by Bruce Brown and illustrated A. Shelton. It tells the story of Gordon, a young giraffe who discovers that he’s different from other giraffe kids… and how the other kids learn to accept that. Here’s the description from Word of the Nerd: “In the jungle where Gordon lives, there is a special game that the giraffe children play with each other (much like 1-on-1 volleyball, but with bananas). Gordon’s issue is that, instead of playing banana volleyball with a girl giraffe, he finds it much more fun to play the game with Gary. So the other boys decide to play a trick on Gordon. When that trick backfires, it is up to Gordon to rescue the other boy giraffes.”  This new storybook comes out in early July.

image c. 2012 Arcana Entertainment

There’s a new, decidedly adult-oriented furry fanzine in the works, and its currently seeking contributions. Its intentions are stated pretty clearly by the title: LFR, which stands for Lesbian Furry Rag. The editors are looking for stories, illustrations, and comics “of the girl-kissing-girl persuasion”, to quote them, and female characters of all body types are welcome. Ratings run from pretty and romantic to full-on erotica, with an emphasis on the pleasure of the ladies, rather than the “fetish” sort of lesbian scene meant to entertain straight males. Visit their Tumblr site to find out more about how to contribute and what they’re looking for.

image c. 2012 LFR

Here’s a different take on the traditional princess vs. dragon story: “Princeless is about Princess Adrienne who lives in a land of fairy-tale castles.  When the Princesses reach age 16 they are put in a tower guarded by a fearsome dragon, where they languish until a dashing would-be Prince comes to rescue them.  It’s traditional.  Apparently knowing which end of a sword to stick in a dragon is a fit test for kingship…  Adrienne isn’t pleased with this state of affairs, and after one particularly luckless knight turns up she decides she’s had enough.  Chatting late into the night with Sparky (the dragon) they decide to abandon the castle, fake her own death and set off on a quest to save her sisters from their towers.” Fantasy creatures and fantasy tropes show up aplenty in this series, and none of them looked at in the traditional way. Now Action Lab Comics have released Princeless: Save Yourself, which collects the first story arc of the series (written by Jeremy Whitley and illustrated by M. Goodwin) into one handy full-color trade paperback. Check out their blog.

image c. 2012 Action Lab Comics

Our friends at Cartoon Brew have a link to the first trailer for the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TV series, premiering this fall on Nickelodeon. This new CGI series (similar to the TMNT feature from 2007) features the voices of Jason Biggs (American Pie) as Leonardo, Sean Astin (Lord of the Rings) as Raphael, Rob Paulsen (Animaniacs) as Donatello, and Greg Cipes (Teen Titans) as Michelangelo. “Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles chronicles the adventures of the teenage turtle brothers as they emerge from their hidden lair in the sewers for the very first time. Ready to confront the wondrous and hostile world of New York City, they face enemies more dangerous and pizza more delicious than anything they could have ever imagined.” The trailer premiered on Nickelodeon last Saturday.

image c. 2012 Nickelodeon

As Furry Fandom’s Ursa Major Awards enter their 10th year, Fred Patten (a long-time member of the Awards’ parent organization, the Anthropomorphic Literature and Arts Association) has collected and edited some of the best winners and nominees from the Awards’ “Short Fiction” category into a new book, the Ursa Major Awards Anthology. It’s coming at the end of June from Fur Planet Productions. Featuring short stories by Brock Hoagland, Michael H. Payne, M.C.A. Hogarth, Chas P.A. Melville, Kristin Fontaine, Kyell Gold, Jim Hayden, Samuel C. Conway, Paul Di Filippo, and Naomi Kritzer, as well as original illustrations, the anthology also features a new wrap-around cover by Blotch. Sample copies of the anthology were available at Anthrocon — and sold briskly. You can find out more  at Fur Planet Productions’ pre-order page.

image c. 2012 Fur Planet Productions

Look, we know that we very recently did a report on Chew: Secret Agent Poyo from Image Comics. Well even more recently they lobbed a curve-ball right at us, and we thought we’d better respond.  So first off, what is Chew? Here’s the description from Wikipedia: “Chew is an Eisner Award-winning American comic book series written by John Layman with art by Rob Guillory and published by Image Comics. It is a story about an FDA Agent who solves crimes by getting psychic impressions by eating things, including people.” Got that? Okay. Well now comes the announcement for issue #28 of the regular Chew series.  Check out the cover below, and check out this description from Image: “‘Space Cakes’,Part Three. Remember last story arc when Tony Chu got kidnapped? This issue he gets kidnapped again! How lame is that? Meanwhile, we shamelessly pander to comics’ coveted ‘furry’ demographic.” Got that? Okay.  We don’t know anything more about it, but we figure if they’re going to pander to us, we’ll pander right back at them.  So there!

image c. 2012 Image Comics

Gotta love the Japanese sometimes — especially their animation, of course. Kanokon is a direct-to-video animated series from Media Blasters.  It is decidedly adult in nature, though not pornographic. Here, we’ll let them describe it: “Kouta, a country boy who lives with his grandfather, is moving to the city to attend high school. Changes come with his new home and new school, but nothing could have prepared the gentle young man for girls, specifically a bombshell fox spirit named Chizuru! As if her aggressive advances weren’t enough, he also catches the attention of a frosty wolf spirit named Nozomu. Kouta is dragged into supernatural events as a result of his contact with the two girls, and his school life only gets more chaotic by the day. But with a girl who gives ‘foxy’ new meaning and another howling after him, things are looking up for his love life.”  Now Media Blasters have released all the Kanokon episodes in one DVD collection.  RightStuf.com has information on it and other special releases from the series.

image c. 2012 Media Blasters

We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: We couldn’t make up some of this stuff if we tried. Somehow we missed the 2002 direct-to-video film Play-Mate of the Apes, a soft-core erotic spoof starring Misty Mundae. It’s described and discussed on the Internet Movie Database, though. Now Seduction Cinema Comics is presenting the Play-Mate of the Apes Deluxe Pack, coming (no pun) this July. The Deluxe Pack not only features the original film on DVD, but also a brand-new full-color comic book version of the film written by John Bacchus (the original film’s director) and illustrated by Noel Scotch Anderson. What’s it all about? “Sexy and fearless U.S. astronaut Gaylor and her shipmates crash land on a desolate planet dominated by a tyrannical race of intelligent talking apes, sparking a revolution of untamed and uninhibited female lust that threatens to bring down the repressive ape society…or set it free!” You heard it here. You can check it out on Things From Another World, too.

image c. 2012 Seduction Cinema

Jeff Goode is the creator of American Dragon: Jake Long for the Disney Channel. Previous to that he was well-known as a playwright, responsible for such works as The Eight: Reindeer Monologues. He has also been a Guest of Honor at several furry fandom conventions. Combine all those facts and you might just have an explanation for his latest work for the stage, Fursona Non Grata. Here’s what the press release says: “A young woman raised furry brings her mundane fiancé home for the holidays to meet her family for the first time.  Fur-larity ensues. Screenwriter and playwright Jeff Goode, the creator of Disney’s American Dragon: Jake Long and the author of The Eight: Reindeer Monologues is developing a new stage play for SkyPilot Theatre Company in Los Angeles, inspired in part by his misadventures as a GoH at Califur, Rocket City Furmeet and Oklacon.  The original comedy Fursona Non Grata will have its first public reading on:  Sunday, June 17 @ 3:00 p.m.  at the Sherry Theater, 11052 Magnolia Blvd, North Hollywood, CA. Admission is Free! Featuring Katie Apicella, Jude Evans, Brett Fleisher, Kelly Goodman, Joanna Kalafatis, Christian Levatino, Bart Petty, Rosina Pinchot, and Julia Sanford.  There will be a post-reading talk-back with the author.  This will be a chance for actors, audience and the furry fandom to give the author direct feedback on this new work-in-progress which is set to premiere in 2013 as part of SkyPilot’s main stage season.” Fursona Non Grata also has its own Facebook page where you can learn more about the new production.

image c. 2012 Sky Pilot Theater

Animator James Burks (who previously gave us Gabby & Gator from Yen Press) returns with Bird & Squirrel Volume 1: On the Run, a new full-color graphic novel from Graphix Press. “Bird and Squirrel outwit Cat and become best friends in this zany adventure. Squirrel is afraid of his own shadow. Bird doesn’t have a care in the world. And Cat wants to eat Bird and Squirrel. Of course, he’ll have to catch them first, and that’s not going to be easy. Join this trio as they head south for the winter in a hilarious road trip. But watch out! Cat is waiting around every bend, and he’s one pesky feline.” Barnes & Noble have pre-order information for the book, which is coming this August.

image c. 2012 James Burks