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Bugs

All Hale the Weirdness

Look, we couldn’t even hope to give you a better description of The Mighty Bite than this: “What happens when a couple of prehistoric creatures want to become Internet stars? Trilobite and Amber (a walking whale) dream of fame and fortune. They don’t realize that most of the world thinks that they’re extinct. When a wandering paleo-newscaster introduces them to the world of internet videos, they hop at the chance to get behind the camera. The competition for internet fame will be fierce—Trilobite and Amber will face off against ancient sea creatures, talking cacti, floating cat heads, and more! Friendships will be tested, allies will be made, and cameras will be smashed! Our heroes will have to use all of their newfound skills when they find themselves competing in an all-out video-making battle royale!” All of this thanks to popular cartoonist Nathan Hale. The Mighty Bite is available in hardcover from Amulet Books.

image c. 2024 Amulet Books

Bugs and Books

Somehow we missed the Sir Ladybug stories by award-winning creator Corey L. Tabor, but now they’re out with the third volume in this series of graphic novels for young readers. Here’s what the publisher says about Sir Ladybug and the Bookworms: “Sir Ladybug — the duke of the dandelion patch, champion of truth and justice — must fulfill a most noble duty! Upon his knightly honor, Sir Ladybug vows to return his library book before it is overdue. But some diabolical creatures dare to stop this hero and his friends… Beware of the Bookworms!” All the books are available now in hardcover from Harper Collins.

image c. 2023 Balzer + Bray

Bop That Bug!

New from Cat-Head Comics: “Bughouse is cartoonist Steve Lafler’s graphic novel about the life of a jazz band of the same name, set in an ‘insect noir’ Manhattan of the early fifties. Tenor saxophone maestro, Jimmy Watts, leads his talented band of bugs from the swing era into the uncharted maelstrom of Bop. And as he and his band mates claw their way to the top of the jazz world, they must fight the temptation to be consumed by addiction to a substance known as ‘bug juice’.” Now the man himself has released From The Top: The Complete Bughouse, available hardcover and softcover editions.

image c. 2022 Cat-Head Comics

He’s Busting Out All Over

An inspiring, humorous full-color graphic novel for young readers, with some cool facts to learn about insects thrown in for good measure! It’s Burt The Beetle Doesn’t Bite, written and illustrated by Ashley Spires. “Meet Burt, a ten-lined june beetle. He’s sure he belongs in the category of bugs with superpower-like abilities. No, he can’t carry 50 times his weight, like ants. No, he’s not able to spray paralyzing venom, like some termites. No, he can’t release a bad smell to repel predators, like stink bugs. What june beetles are known for is chasing porch lights and flailing their legs in the air — does that count? Hmm … Maybe Burt will just have to accept the truth. June beetles don’t have any special abilities. But when some other bugs find themselves in perilous trouble that even their superpowers can’t get them out of, Burt suddenly realizes there is one thing that he can do to save his friends — and it’s something that only a june beetle can do!” Available now in trade paperback from Kids Can Press.

image c. 2021 Kids Can Press

This Room Might Be Bugged

Cartoon Brew pointed us at something we had not heard of. Thanks! “Inspector Sun and the Curse of the Black Widow, a family-oriented animated thriller from Spain, has entered production… Set in a world where humans and insects co-exist, the story unfolds on a seaplane journey from Shanghai to San Francisco in the 1930s. It centers on the spider detective Inspector Sun and his nemesis the Red Locust, paying homage to the detective stories of Agatha Christie and the fictional Charlie Chan. The script, by Rocco Pucillo, won the prestigious students-only Samuel Goldwyn Award in 2013. The film is a co-production from The Thinklab Media and Gordon Box. It is directed by Julio Soto Gúrpide, who helmed the Goya-nominated 2017 feature Deep.” Currently Inspector Sun is set for release in the summer of 2022. We’ll certainly find out.

image c. 2021 Thinklab Media

Black Bug Singing in the Dead of Night…

Netflix have recently announced a new CGI animated series, Beat Bugs. Premiering this summer, it’s bug-size stories set to the music of The Beatles. Yes.  According to Animation World Network: “Beat Bugs features original characters and a world created by Josh Wakely, who will direct, write and produce the series… Beat Bugs incorporates songs from the Lennon/McCartney ‘Northern Songs’ catalogue, to tell uplifting and life-affirming stories filled with hope and melody. World-leading artists, animators and writers have come together to work on this extraordinary show. The Beat Bugs are charming, funny, adventurous, and have a knack for getting themselves into mischief and mayhem. Each of the five friends (Jay, Kumi, Crick, Buzz, and Walter) has a distinctive personality, and they display the charm and energy of five knockabout, lovable kids. They are best friends who band together to explore and learn in an overgrown suburban backyard, which to them is their entire universe.” The article also has a teaser trailer for the show.

Image c. 2016 Netflix

Image c. 2016 Netflix