Oh, Grumpy Cat has taken our hearts and the smile right off of our faces. This cat has a hate/hate relationship with a lot of things, so what better way to celebrate the success of an unfriendly cat than putting her in her very own comic. With a few other furring friends, Grumpy Cat meets a new genre. So how did she do? Well there were some hits and misses. Let’s talk about the good steps first. The comic is broken up into four mini stories. So the crossing genres can be tough, but I think breaking it down leads to quick changes in the story that keep the reader interested. Honestly, it does entice you to keep moving on to see what these two crazy cats are up to. Which brings me to the cats themselves. Pokey is great. He is the positive cat, and lives life to the fullest. This balances out Grumpy Cat’s negative attitude and “can don’t” way of life. The way the view the world is so different that it has to be funny. And with Pokey not really noticing Grumpy’s sarcastic comments, it creates this non-stop love/hate of the world.
Some things just can’t transfer to all genres. And I thought Grumpy Cat, well the way I perceive Grumpy Cat, didn’t fully transfer into this comic. Sure she is grumpy, but she gets this straight up mean ass attitude that is directed towards Pokey. Her attitude on life is great, but I guess it was weird to 1. see her be so mean to someone so nice and 2. go on adventures that didn’t seem to fit her. Some stories seemed misguided on Grumpy Cat’s personality. I think the haunted house one was by far the least fitting. Grumpy Cat's overall goal seems pointless because Grumpy Cat doesn’t have a goal in life, so it just didn’t fit. Same deal with the TV comic. Both torturing the other pets to win something isn’t the Grumpy Cat I want to read about.
Then you come across the Paws of Justice story, and this is what I picture Grumpy Cat doing. She gets dragged along, but isn’t exactly choosing to be part of a superhero team. Again, her apathetic attitude on life shined through. Her comments were everything you would expect and although she was sassy with Pokey, she wasn’t rude. She was just grumpy.
All in all, I think kids will appreciate some stories from the comic, while others don’t seem aimed towards kids. I would think that most people picking up this comic will buy it for their children and may sneak in a story or two. So just skip ahead to the Paws story and have some laughs or moans with Grumpy Cat.
Score: 3/5
The Misadventures of Grumpy Cat (And Pokey!) #1 Writer: Ben McCool, Ben Fisher, Royal McGraw, Elliott Serrano Artist: Steve Uy, Michelle Nguyen, Ken Haeser Colorist: Mohan (Paws of Justice) Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment Price: $3.99 Release Date: 10/7/15 Format: Mini-Series, Print/Digital