For those of us of previous generations, this might be a bit hard to follow. But we’ll let Animation World Network explain it: “What’s the kitty been smoking? Fan favorite actress Mila Kunis (That 70’s Show, Family Guy, Bad Moms) has released the new animated series Stoner Cats, by far the highlight of this past month. Kunis teamed with Chris Cartagena (The Grinch), Sarah Cole (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), and Ash Brannon (Toy Story 2) under the Orchard Farm Productions banner to create the show, which features (surprise, surprise) a bunch of weed smokin’ felines.” Here’s the fur-rub though: “Interestingly, the first episode of the series was released as 10,420 NFTs on July 28th, which sold out within 30 minutes. Each episode was sold for .35 ETH, or approximately $8 million in cold hard American dollars. While NFTs are still new, strange, and misunderstood by many, there is a huge market for those wanting to own a piece of entertainment history.” Got all that? Here’s hoping they eventually release the series through other avenues as well.
Comedy
Don’t You Monkey with the Monkey
All right… We’re just going to let this new graphic novel from Random House Studio for young readers speak for itself: “It’s Wednesday! Which means it’s time for Jim Panzee’s weekly Wednesday walk. He wakes up, stretches a little, grabs his stress orange, and sets off. Jim’s favorite part of the walk is the blissful silence. When he’s alone, he can hear all the jungle sounds. Until . . . his best buddy, Norman, decides to join him. And before he knows it, Jim is followed by every animal in the jungle. It’s all just too much. Now Jim and his not-so-helpful friends are on a quest across the jungle to find another stress orange before it is too late!” Got all that? Turns out there’s a whole series of Grumpy Monkey books written by Suzanne Lang and illustrated by Max Lang. Grumpy Monkey: Freshly Squeezed is available now in hardcover.
He Doesn’t Even Have A Shell
Comic artist Yehudi Mercado is back with another graphic novel for young folks. (We talked about him recently!) This time he’s illustrating for writer Matthew Cody as they bring us the first book of Cat Ninja. “Beware, villains! Cat Ninja may appear to be nothing more than a silly internet meme. But he is evil’s greatest enemy, and the silent master of Kat Fu and carpet scratching! Raised from a kitten by a kindly old ninja master, Claude now spends his days as the pampered house cat of an eleven-year-old boy. But when trouble arises, Claude dons his mask and springs into action as Cat Ninja — Metro City’s secret protector! In Book 1 of the series, follow our feline hero’s early exploits as he tries to keep his secret identity under wraps while thwarting the evil plans of slimy thugs, rampaging robots, and a certain rodent nemesis who lives under the same roof!” Simon & Schuster have a preview on paw.
He Ain’t Heavy
Chunky is a new full-color graphic novel, written and illustrated by Yehudi Mercado. The publisher says this: “In this full-color middle grade graphic memoir… Yehudi Mercado draws inspiration from his childhood struggle with his weight while finding friendship with his imaginary mascot, Chunky, as he navigates growing up in a working class Mexican-Jewish family.” So what’s it about? “Hudi needs to lose weight, according to his doctors. Concerned about the serious medical issue Hudi had when he was younger, his parents push him to try out for sports. Hudi would rather do anything else, but then he meets Chunky, his imaginary friend and mascot. Together, they decide to give baseball a shot.” From there, things get more complicated. Take a look at the web site to find out just how much! It’s available in hardcover or trade paperback.
When Your Spirit Animal Hates You…
Look, we’re just gonna let the folks at Source Point Press explain THIS one… “Ten years after a freak incident at the zoo, Yuki finds herself attending a prestigious college on the road to success, unaware that a panda bear from that fateful day has been hunting her down to exact bloody revenge. Nothing can prepare you for this outrageous comedy filled with epic fights, awkward romance, supernatural powers, and plenty of zigs and zags. Put up your pigtails! Sharpen your claws!” Written by Graham Misiurak and illustrated by A. L. Jones, Yuki vs. Panda is available now as either a physical comic or a free PDF. And, you have GOT to see the trailer for the animated series as well…
Hog vs. Hell
We are not gonna top the title of Ham Helsing: Vampire Hunter. We won’t even try. We’ll just tell you it’s a new hardcover graphic novel, written and illustrated by Rich Moyer. “Ham Helsing is the descendant of a long line of adventurers and monster hunters–who don’t often live to rest on their laurels. Ham has always been the odd pig out, preferring to paint or write poetry instead of inventing dangerous (dumb) new ways to catch dangerous creatures. His brother Chad was the daredevil carrying on the family legacy of leaping before looking, but after his death, it’s down to Ham. Reluctantly, he sets out on his first assignment, to hunt a vampire. But Ham soon learns that people aren’t always what they seem and that you need a good team around you to help save your bacon!” Ooo, pretty scary kids! Look for it now from Penguin Randomhouse.
They Bump Back. Hard.
After several entries for young readers, now it’s time for something truly different…! “Bigfoot, the Jersey Devil, the Loch Ness Monster. All are age old folklore fodder, but could they actually be real? In recent years the myth of Man Goat and The Bunny Man has grown locally, and many have claimed sightings of the two unique creatures; yet no concrete evidence exists… And that’s exactly how they want it! Dealing with the things nightmares are made of so we don’t have to – deranged mutants, satanic cults, demons, summer vacationers – Man Goat and the Bunny Man protect us from the evils that hide in plain sight. But they don’t want your adoration, they just want to be left alone!” Issues of Man Goat and the Bunny Man (created by Joe Brusha, Ralph Tedesco, Dave Franchini, and Edgar Salazar) are available now from Zenescope.
Dogs… In… Yeah, you know…
Netflix continues to present us with animation that is at very least worth checking out. The latest is called Dogs in Space. “In this animated comedy adventure, in the not-so-distant future genetically enhanced dogs are sent across the universe in search of a new home for the human race. It’s a giant cosmic game of fetch, as the canines seek a planet that will save humanity and — more importantly — let them return to their beloved owners… The series is created by Jeremiah Cortez, who is also executive producer alongside Adam Henry. The voice cast includes Haley Joel Osment (Kominsky Method), Sarah Chalke, Kimiko Glenn (Into the Spider-Verse), Chris Parnell (Archer), David Lopez, Debra Wilson (MADtv), and William Jackson Harper.” According to Animation World Network, Dogs in Space is due on Netflix this fall.
Pets Can Have Problems
Animation Magazine let us know about a new animated TV series called Housebroken, which just premiered on Fox. Housebroken is “…a new animated series which centers on Honey (Lisa Kudrow), a standard poodle who runs group therapy sessions to help animals from her neighborhood manage neuroses brought on by their owners and each other. The show’s super hip voice cast includes Nat Faxon as a sloppy St. Bernard, Will Forte as a sex-positive tortoise, Sharon Horgan as an aging Persian cat, Jason Mantzoukas as a street-smart cat, Sam Richardson as a co-dependent cat, Tony Hale as a sweater-wearing terrier with OCD, and Clea DuVall as a know-it-all corgi.” There’s more information still gathering on Wikipedia, too. Woof.