Comic Cats #23: One Cat

Oh Oda, I'm convinced science took out a restraining order on you long, long ago. It's the only way to explain how in One Piece a ship traveled on a river that runs UP a mountain and how there's an island in the sky that can only be accessed by a tide that supposedly explodes and shoots ships into the air, not to mention the violation of basic science principles by every main (and most minor) characters on that show JUST BY EXISTING. I mean, I have a decent amount of suspension of disbelief- I make comics, for goodness' sake- but really? Really? You hurt me sometimes, Oda... but I always come back for more, because let's face it, One Piece is entertaining and FUN. I will suffer/love all 500+ episodes. Like most anime, this was a manga (comic) first.

Comic Cats #22: Wandering Cat

Wandering Son is one of the most beautiful and subtle manga I've read in a long time. Most of the other manga I've seen has been over-the-top in one way or another- epic battles in shounen, soap-opera story lines in shojo- but Wandering Son takes a deliberately slow, show-don't-tell approach to building up its characters and action. It's realistic; I could see something like this actually happening, unlike just about any other manga I've read. On the business side, it's notable that this manga made it to the States in the format that it did. Fantagraphics doesn't print much/any manga, and Wandering Son came out in the US as a hardcover with some color pages AFTER the second largest manga publisher/distributor in the US Tokyopop all but shut down. Interesting choices, all of them, but I for one am glad that they were made, and hope that they pay off. I'd love to see more manga like this, more selective importation of artistically notable manga marketed towards the alternative comic reader and packaged like an art book.

Comic Cats #21: Axe Cat

Axe Cop is a webcomic written by a 5 year old and drawn by his 30 year old brother. It captures the nonsensical charm (and lack of logic) of a kid's imagination with great art. It's got a playfulness that is easily recognized but nearly impossible to recapture in work done at a later age.

#19 Scooped Princess

 Princess has a rather different reaction to being picked up. Apparently, when that happens, I am a train. I'll walk around with her on my back, and she'll purr the whole time. I think she's got me fairly well trained.

Comic Cats #20: Love and Cats

For this one I tried to mimic the style of the Hernandez Brothers instead of a single character. I found the way they did highlights in some of the characters' hair interesting, so I decided to focus that. It was fun to do.