Your Guide to the World of Furry Fandom
Otis & Peanut is a new graphic novel for young readers, written by Naseem Hrab and illustrated by Kelly Collier. “A long-haired guinea pig and a naked mole rat may seem like unlikely friends, but Otis and Peanut are a perfect pair! In three stories told in graphic-novel form, Otis and Peanut explore themes of loss, fear of change, and cooperation, while demonstrating what it means to be a supportive and caring friend.” Look for it in hardcover from Owlkids.
image c. 2024 Owlkids
Didn’t hear about this coming, but here it is: “Disney Channel has dropped the official trailer for its upcoming 2D animated sibling superhero comedy Hamster & Gretel. From Disney Branded Television and produced by Disney Television Animation, the series introduces Kevin and his younger sister Gretel, who are prepped and readied to become a superhero sibling duo. In the show, the super siblings are about to receive superpowers from space aliens. But alas, things do not go as planned, and Gretel’s pet hamster, who happens to be named ‘Hamster,’ suddenly has new abilities. So now Kevin must figure out how to work with Gretel and Hamster to protect their city from mysterious dangers.” Check out the trailer at Animation World Network. It hits the air (ha ha) on August 12th.
image c. 2022 Disney Branded TV
And look: Here’s a whole new series of novels for young readers by Bruce Hale. The first book in the Class Pets series is called Fuzzy’s Great Escape. “Fuzzy is the ambitious and unfortunately named guinea pig of class 5B. He has big plans for this year — namely, to be president of the Class Pets Club. Then the cutest, most charming new bunny shows up and spins Fuzzy’s plan like a hamster wheel. There’s only one way to topple the adorable new club president: Fuzzy is taking the pets on a field trip!” Follow up that fun with Fuzzy Takes Charge and Fuzzy Freaks Out. All of them are available now from Scholastic Press.
image c. 2018 Scholastic Press
One of Marvel’s most unusual super heroes (and that’s saying a lot!) is getting her own full-color series this January. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl follows the adventures of, who else, Squirrel Girl — perhaps the world’s most upbeat superhero. And with her accomplishments, who wouldn’t be? With the help of her squirrel-like powers and her trusty squirrel sidekick, Tiptoe, she’s taken on and defeated some of the Marvel Universe’s biggest and baddest super-villains. From Entertainment Weekly: “In Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, writer Ryan North [Adventure Time] and artist Erica Henderson [Quantum & Woody] take on the lighthearted superheroine whose mutant gene gives her an endearing cocktail of squirrel-related superpowers. When the comic book begins, she’s starting college—but in no time at all, Squirrel Girl is defending Earth from threats most cosmic.” Check out the interview with Ryan North over at Comic Book Resources.
Image c. 2014 Marvel Comics
Wow, look: Even more anthro animals at war! Is this some kind of a trend? In Squarriors (new from Devil’s Due Entertainment) we join a band of squirrels living after the apocalypse. “Squarriors is the epic saga of warring animals in a post-human world. Specifically a small tribe known as the Tin Kin, and their struggles building a life in the new world while confronting the hostile neighboring Maw tribe. Two tribes of animals find themselves on the brink of war. Will they survive and find peace, or follow humanity into extinction?” That’s the question posed by artist Ashley Witter and writer Ash Maczko in this new full-color comic book series. Like many recent projects it all began on Kickstarter, and now it’s on its way to comic book stores in early December. Check out the official Squarriors web site, and a press release from the creators over at Mad Mimi. WARNING: Graphic, bloody images abound. You have been warned.
image c. 2014 Devils Due Entertainment
