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Creative Team
Written by: Tom King; Illustrated by: Peter Gross; Colored by: Tamra Bonvillain; Lettered by: Clayton Cowles; Variant Covers by: Yuko Shimizu, Gabriel H. Walta, Bill Sienkiewicz, Skottie Young, & Clay Mann; Created by: Tom King & Peter Gross.
Animal Pound from Boom! Studios
Animal Pound is a new comic series inspired by the story, Animal Farm. Animal Farm was a short novel from the 1940s written by George Orwell. In the Orwell version farm animals attempt to put aside their differences to rise up against their common enemy: the farmer. However, things don’t go according to plan when one farm animal wants to take over. This leaves all the animals where they were to begin with. This story, however, begins at a pound, with a dog ironically named Lucky.
Check out another review from Lauren.
The Story for Chapter 1
As the title suggests, Lucky doesn’t last long. While animal lovers may immediately be nervous to read a story where a dog named Lucky gets put down right away, they shouldn’t be. While Lucky’s story is tragic, it fuels the story and motivates the other animals in the pound on their quest for freedom. We often underestimate animals, but if Shadow, Chance, and Sassy from Homeward Bound taught us anything, it’s that when cats and dogs (or known enemies in general) work together, they can take down their common enemy.
The Art
Comic book art is just as important as the writing. The two must flow together to visually help tell the story in a way that a book cannot. The art in Animal Pound did just that. It is dark yet calming. The pain and sadness on Lucky’s face makes it all too evident that he knows he’s a “dead dog walking.” The art also humanizes the animals, while dehumanizing the humans, making you root for the animals in their ultimate goal of freedom.
Animal Pound Chapter 1 Rating: 8.5/10
Much like Animal Farm, Animal Pound reflects real life issues. The animals are portrayed as having human characteristics while still being very self aware of their strengths and weaknesses as cats and dogs. While this story overall has a dark tone, the self awareness and cat/dog comparisons are so accurate they’re comical at times. Anyone who has ever had a cat or a dog will find themselves nodding and smiling throughout the story, despite the sad truth behind it all. If you’re a comic book lover who also loves animals, definitely add this to your pull list, and read it next to your furry best friend.
Lauren is half of Hops GEEK News: a weekly podcast that discusses all things geek pop culture, while enjoying a craft beer of the week. They also interview many different people from the comic book world and beyond.
