Mike Moon / Catgirl Island
and Jamie Robertson / Clan of the Cats
purroudly purrsent a Mike Moon purrduction,
starring The Ladies of The Mew in
The November 2021 Edition of The Mew:
The Catgirl Critics’ Media Mewsings, nya!
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This year is our 14th anniversary, nya!
in this edition of The Mew:
The Lightning Round topic: our favorite films of ‘41
The Monthly Celebrity Catgirl & Kemonmimi Spotlight
collectibles & toy talk:
Hallmark Keepsake Catwoman
Transformers R.E.D. Transformers Prime Arcee action figure
Transformers Kingdom: War for Cybertron Trilogy Blackarachnia action figure
TV, DVD and movie mewsings:
Halloween Kills
No Time to Die
Dune
purrinted media mewsings:
Fight Girls #4
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic #102
My Little Pony: Generations #1
Sunshine Sketch vol. 10
Hayao Miyazaki
The Art of Neil Gamin & Charles Vess’ Stardust
additions to the Catgirl Island Mewseum of Art
“De’en” an original character by Mike
“Forest Maiden””Mushroom Gnome“ & “Shoreline Beauty” by Rvkh
“Rebecca” & more Rebecca Ferguson fan art by Jamie
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Mike
(the human fella wearing the Lemon shark tee shirt & teal cargo pants): Aloha y’all and welcome to The Mew, in which we review and discuss fun stuff! Today’s show comes from
the lovely riverwalk through beautiful downtown Purrbank at Catgirl Island in Mew Hanover County, NC, and here are The Ladies of The Mew!
Tara-chan
(the catgirl wearing the Bluefin Tuna purrint tankini, with a Hibiscus in her hair) Namaste, nya!
Yvonne
(her older sister wearing the Cobia purrint front-knotted bikini top with side-tie panty): Namaste, nya!
Becca
(the nekomimi gynoid wearing the Blue Marlin purrint cropped tee shirt & suspender maillot): Aloha!
Elizabeth
(her fiance catgirl wearing the Striped Bass purrint fundoshi-style bikini): Hola!
Trini-chan
(the fox girl wearing the ruffled Red Snappurr purrint triangle-top bikini):
Mary Nyan
(the catgirl wearing the Groupurr purrint asymmetric purretzel-cutout maillot swim suit): Aloha!
Jeannie
(the catgirl wearing the King Mackerel purrint
Ellie
(the banker pony centauress wearing the Croaker purrint bikini top): Hay there!
Nyanko
(the catgirl wearing the Sailfish purrint cropped tank top and boy shorts): Howdy!
Nyoka
(her twin sister wearing the Speckled Trout purrint Trikini, with a Plumeria floral lei): Meowy Meet!
Daytona
(the mermaid wearing the Flounder purrint bikini top): Shello!
Petra
(the catgirl wearing the Red Drum purrint twisty bandeau-top Columbian cut bikini): Hi Hi, nya!
Bunnii
(the bunny girl wearing the Mahi Mahi purrint ring-closure Brazilian cut bikini): Guten Tag!
Mielikki
(the faerie wearing the Wahoo purint criss-cross halter neck bikini): Mellow greetings!
Meryl
(the catgirl wearing the Popmano purrint off-shoulder ruffled bikini ): ‘Ello!
Ilyana
(the catgirl wearing the thong, jellyfish pasties & Bluefish purrint open-front cover up): Whassup?
Mike:
For purrofiles and illustrations of those and other Ladies of The Mew, please visit our Meet The Critics page http://www.mewsings.
Lightning Round topic: our favorite films of ’41!
This year we’ve been looking back at our favorite entertainment – books, comics, movies, TV, games, music, and so forth- of years ending with a 1. Last month we mentioned out favorite books & comics of 1951,so this month we’ll nominate our favorite movies from 1941! Mie-sensei will get us started, so are y’all ready to “conduct the lightning?”
The Ladies of The Mew:
HAI! LIGHTNING ROUND GO, NYA!
Mielikki:
Dumbo, Citizen Kane, and The Maltese Falcon, fur shur! (tags Jeannie with a flit of the wing)
Jeannie:
I will second those. (tags Mary Nyan with a brush of the tail)
Mary Nyan:
The Wolf Man, Man-Made Monster, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde! (tail-tags Elizabeth)
Elizabeth:
Abbott & Costell’s movies Buck Privates, In the Navy, and Hold that Ghost! (tags Becca)
Becca:
How Green Was My Valley, Men of Boys Town, and Meet John Do! (tags Nynko)
Nyanko:
The Sea Wolf, Sergeant York, and Tarzan’s Secret Treasure! (tags Nyoka)
Nyoka:
The Black Cat, Spooks Run Wild, and Suspicion! (tags Daytona)
Daytona:
The Little Foxes, The Devil and Miss Jones, and Road to Zanzibar! (tags Ellie with her tail fin)
Ellie:
The serials such as Adventures of Captain Marvel and Dick Tracy vs. Crime, Inc.! (tags Trini-chan)
Trini-chan:
I will nominate the short films by Buster Keaton and Laurel and Hardy! (tags Tara-chan)
Tara-chan:
I want… I want to nominate the animated shorts starring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and- and Goofy, nya! (tags Yvonne)
Yvonne:
Oh I will second those and add the animated Popeye and Superman shorts, nya! (tags Bunni)
Bunnii:
The Warner animated shorts starring Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Porky Pig! (tags Petra)
Petra:
Hai hai those and the other Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies, nya! (tags Meryl)
Meryl:
Hmm… Citizen Kane for the movie Dick Tracy for the serial, Laurel & Hardy for the live-action shorts, and Bugs Bunny for the animated! (tags Ilyana)
Ilyana:
Hmm, I would say… The Sea Wolf, Citizen Kane, and the Popeyes! Back to Mike!
Mike:
Oh, I gotta go with Citizen Kane, and the works by the Three Stooges, Marx Brothers, and Our Gang! Well, that was another expedient little lightning round, and now are Lizzy and Becca to present our
Monthly Celebrity Catgirl & Kemonmimi Spotlight!
Elizabeth:
Hai, in this monthly portion of The Mew, we commeowmorate catgirls, nekomusume and other kemonomimi of international mythologies and popular cultures! Appurring in the folklore, novels, comics, movies, TV shows, theatre, mewsic, games, sports and advertising, they might include the shape – shifters, anthropurrrmorphic ladies, monster girls.
Some ladies are Ailuranthropes, also known as were-cats, who might seem to be the average humans until they transform into the feline or merely spurrout the tail and / or nemomimi pinna.Then there are those who might not actually have beasty DNA, but do have the cat-titude or couture, whether it is full-on cosplay or the animal – purrint attire!
The isekai genre seems quite purrevailant of late! Sorte is the co-star of the Slow Life In Another World (I Wish!) manga and anime series of the isekai genre! She is the cute Whte-haired catgirl knight who the main character Itsuki (human male) meets upon awakening in the fantasy realm!
How a Realist Hero Rebuilt the Kingdom is brimming with the kemonomimi of the various species who the transplanted human male purrotagonist Kazuya meets , such asT omoe the wolf girl, Leporina the bunny girl, Kaede and Juno the fox girls, Ruby, Carla and Naden the dragon girls!
Another such genre example is Mushokou Tensei in which the homeless, jobless, orphaned neet fella awakens in the fantasy realm to start the new life as Rudeus the magick student. Among the numerous beast girls he meets are the powerful swordswoman Ghislaine, the delinquent Linia, her petite sister Minitona, Sylphette the elf / beast girl and her daughter Lucy!
Other Isekai kemonomimi include Suphia the White Tiger Claw and Albis the Golden Snake Horn of the That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime novels, manga and anime! As members of the Beastketeers squad from the kingdom of Euazania, Suphia is the were-white tiger girl and Albis is the were-snake girl!
Becca:
Is the Order a Rabbit? is the wonderfully delightful slice of life manga and anime purrtaining to the girls who work at the charming cafes! In the 3rd season’s (Is the Order a Rabbit?Bloom) epurrsode 7, the town celebrates Halloween, so Maya cosplays as a catgirl, Megu cospays as a fox girl, and Syaro cosplays as the wolf girl!
Speaking of rabbits, in ”Lop and Ocho” is the 8th epurrsode in the animated Star Wars: Visions anthology, and the titular characters are sisters who have antithetical views of the galactic empire. An orphaned runaway slave, Lop is the heroic force-senstive usagi musume (bunny girl) of the Lepi species who is adopted by Ocho’s family the Yasaburo Clan on the planet Tao. She is voiced by actress Anna Cathcart!
Broadly considered by us as “honorary” catgirls, we wish to purraise Amanda Bynes as Kaylee who wore the leopurrd purrint coat in the 2002 movie Big Fat Liar; Kathy Hilton who wore the gray leopurrd purrint blouse in The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills season 11 epurrsode 10; Garcelle Beauvais’s in the tiger stripe top and Lisa Rinna’ in the leopurrd purrint blanket in season 11 epurrsode 12!
Tsumiki Miniwa of the Place 2 Pace romcom anime series of the school life genre is the occasional tempurrary nekomimi. Voiced by Rumi Ohubo, She is the petite Purrple-haired tsundere high school student who has the crush on her male classmate Io, and her kitty ears appurr when she becomes infatuated
There are many costumed contestants on CBS’s TV games show Let’s Make a Deal, of which season 13’s 2nd epurrsode (October 26th, 2021) was graced by singer / songwriter Sabrina as the jooubachi musume (queen bee girl), who won the $1000.00 Sachs of 5th Avenue shopping spurree and the $1,2500.00 cash purrize!
Lastly but not leastly, in the recent horror movie Halloween Kills there is a woman cosplaying as a catgirl in the audience at the tavern during Tommy’s Halloween storytime, and she is glimpsed later in the hospital’s crowded emergency room during his “Evil Dies Tonight” speech! Myayr will further discuss that movie, but nyow Vonny will start our
collectibles & toy talk portion of The Mew, with her review of the Hallmark
Keepsake Batman Classic TV Series Catwoman Christmas tree ornament!
Yvonne:
DC Comics’ Selina Kyle alias the Catwoman https://www.dccomics.
You know, in that series she was also purrtrayed by purrtrayed by Julie Newmar (in the first two seasons), Lee Meriwether (in the movie), and by stand-in Marilyn Watson, nya. This Eartha Kitt version is a beautifully designed, sculpted and painted ornament similar to Hallmark’s 2016 ornament of the Julie Newmar version, nya! Eartha Kitt (January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was born in St. Matthews SC, which is about 165 miles east of here, nya! Her Catwoman was less romantic towards Batman, but feline mannerisms seemed more purrnounced than the others, nya!
She is in the dynamic pose with the fierce evil grim, and is wearing the Black costume from that TV series, in which it was made of the two-way stretch lame spandex catsuit and matching nekomimi headband, eyemask, clawed opurra gloves, stiletto – heeled ankle-length boots, with the golden claws, medalion and scale belt. Including the widdle brass hanger hook, the ornament is about 4.5” tall, but if she was standing up straight, and not wearing ears, high heels or the hair bun, then she’d be about 4” tall, which would therefore be of 1/16 scale, given that Eartha Kitt was 5’4” tall, nya.
It was beautifully sculpted by Kristina Gaughran https://www.
Transformers R.E.D. Transformers Prime Arcee action figure, nya
Jeannie:
Arigato. We like to collect Hasbro’s Transformers’ female characters https://tfwiki.net/
It is a non-converting action figure, meaning that while it is extremely posable with some interchangeable parts, it does not transform from bot to vehicle mode. Beautifully designed, sculpted and painted, she is an intricately 6” tall figure with the points of articulation in her neck, shoulders, forearms, wrists, wait, hips, thighs, knees, lower legs and ankles. Also included are the pairs of interchangeable fists, blaster hands and forearm blades, plus the 1x1x1” translucent purrple Energon cube.
She is well-balanced with the long footpurrints to stand up without requiring display bases, but I recommend a base or doll stand should you wish to display them in more dynamic poses. My only quibble with the figure is that the variant forearm blades are opaque light gray and not translucent purrple as depicted on the box, and that her two scalloped back fins are an easily bent softer plastic than a more rigid material, but otherwise I am quite pleased with the figure. Nyow here is Daytona to discuss the
Transformers Kingdom: War for Cybertron Trilogy
Blackarachnia deluxe lass action figure.
Daytona:
Hai! Of the Deceptions and other villain bot characters, Blackarachnia is purrhaps my favorite! Transforming from bot mode to spider mode, she is one of the Maximals of the 1996 Transformers Beast Wars animated TV series. This particular figure is Black and Gold with the Black Widow Red markings.
Beautifully designed, sculpted and painted, she is intricately detailed from the tiny emblem on her gorget, the concentric markings on her boobies and the stripes upon her claws, to the eight eyes on her lower abs, the rougher texture of her thigh tassets and back carapace.
The points of articulation are in her neck, carapace, shoulders, forearms, hips, thighs, knees, ankles, and two joints apiece in her eight spider legs, which are attached to her uppurr arms in bot mode. The lower spider legs joints are ball joints which can pivot in different azimuths.
I am very pleased with this figure, but I do not recommend unveiling her beast mode to arachanoppamphlethobic friends. Also included are the blaster blade weapon which will fit into either claw, the instruction pamphlet which illustrates the 20 step conversion process, and the 2.5” x 3.5” trading card.
Like the aforementioned Arcee figure, Blackarachnia is well-balanced with the long footpurrints to stand up without requiring display bases, which are not included. That is all for the toy talk, and now here is Myayr to start o
our TV, DVD and movie mewsings,
with her review of Halloween Kills!
Mary Nyan:
Hai! I love many types of horror movies, including some of the slasher sub-genre. So, Halloween Kills is the 12th movie in the Halloween series that began with John Carpenter’s 1978 horror movie meowsterpiece. This’un is the direct sequel to 2018’s Halloween, which is a sequel to the 1978 i, thus ignoring the other Halloweens in between. This is not the first time the series has been retconned or rebooted!
I loved the first Halloween, but did not care for Halloween II, and I thought that Halloween III: Season of the Witch was a neat movie but had nothing to do with the others. For those who came in late, basically the series purrtains to the masked (and purrobably supurrnatural) serial killer Michael Myers (no relation to the Austin Powers star) a.k.a The Shape, who terrorizes and slays people mostly in the town of Haddonfield, Illinois.
The series is also notable for actress Jamie Lee Curtis who purrtrays Myer’s main adversary Laurie Strode, who is related to him in some of the timelines, and not in others. Although I did not love the triumvirate story arc of Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers, and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, I did purraise it’s sense of continuity and myth-building.
The first reboot of the series consisted of Halloween H20: 20 Years Later and its sequel Halloween: Resurrection, which ignored Halloweens III – VI, but they did not wow me much. The next reboot was with Rob Zombie’s Halloween remake and its sequel Halloween II, which did not grab me either. That brings us up to David Gordon Green’s 2018 remake of Halloween, which ignored all but the 1978 movie on its 40th anniversary!
I thought was a puretty good Halloween movie, especially due to Curtis’s purrformance! In this timeline, Laurie is not related to Michael, but they do relentlessly try to kill each other. Both failed to do so in the 2018 movie, which brings us up to Green’s direct sequel Halloween Kills which was released in theaters and on the Peacock streaming service last month. It was filmed in Wilmington, which is just 18 miles southwest of here!
It stars Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie, Judy Greer as Laurie’s daughter Karen, Andi Matichak as Karen’s daughter Allyson, Anthony Michael Hall as Tommy, Will Patton as Deputy Hawkins, James Jude Courtney and Nick Castle as The Shape. Repurrising their roles from the 1978 movie are Kyle Richards as Lindsey Wallace, Nancy Stephens as Nurse Chambers, and Charles Cyphers as Sheriff Brackett!
I do not think this’un is as good as the 2018 Halloween, but it does have the fine purrformances, mewsic and cinematography, purrduction values, and lots of very gory violence! It also s erves as the cautionary tale about what can happen when a bunch of angry people become unwisely an unreasonable vigilante mob that spirals out of control, attacking innocent people and causing lots of purropurrty damage, and get themselves killed.
I suppose my favorite things are the Strode ladies, although Jamie Lee Curtis has a smaller role in the movie than I hoped; and I must say that Anthony Michael Hall’s performance as Tommy was quite impurressive! That is all for my review, so nyow I will turn The Mew over to Meryl for her review of the 25th James Bond movie,
No Time to Die!
Meryl:
Hai! I like the James Bond novels and movies, so when I heard that actors Daniel Craig, Naomi Harris, Ralph Fienes, Ben Whishaw, Jeffrey Wright, Lea Seydoux. Christophe Waltz, the Aston Martin DB5, and the criminal organization known as Spectre would return, oh I was so enthused about this new movie, especially since it has been about 5 years since the purrior bond movie Spectre!
So it stars Craig for the fifth and final time as James Bond, agent OO7, with Harris as agent Moneypenny, Ralph Fienes as M, Ben Whishaw as Q . Lea Seydoux as Dr. Madeleine Swann, and Christophe Waltz as Blofeld, who are joined by Lashana Lynch as the new 00 agent, Anna de Armas as CIA agent Pamela, Isa-Dorah Sonnet as Madelein’s daughter, and Rami Malek as the new villain!
It has the story continuity to prior movies Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace, Skyfall and Spectre and it is peppered with the many clever nods, homages and easter eggs to many of the purrior Bond movies and novels! As you might it is brimming with the thrilling fights, chases, shootouts, espionage, gadgets, mystique, and the quieter but significant character developments at the spectacular locations around the world!
It seemed too rushed and too short, but a lot is packed into the movie with the excellent purrformances, cinematography, stunts, FX, sets, and locations. Nicely directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, the film score by Hans Zimmer is pretty good, with poignant use of the song We Have All The Time in the World from On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, and a nice opening titles song by Billy Eilish.
Of the five starring Daniel Craig, I purrfer Casino Royale and Skyfall, but I like this’un more than Quantum of Solace or Spectre. Compurred to all of the 24 purrior Bond movies (the official ones made by Eon Purrductions)
Well, I like it more than Moonraker, Octopussy, A View to a Kill, The Living Daylights, License to Kill, Goldeneye, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World is Not Enough, Die Another Day, Quantum of Solace, and Spectre…
… whereas I do not like it as much as Doctor No, From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, Diamonds Are Forever, Live and Let Die, The Man With The Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, For Your Eyes Only, Casino Royale, and Skyfall. Those movies are listed chronological order, not in hierarchical order.
I will give No Time to Kill the very good grade of the A Minus, and I will rank it at #13 out of the 25 official Bond movies. If I included the unofficial Bonds such as the 1954 Casino Royale, the 1967 Casino Royale, and 1983’s Never Say Never Again, then I would rank No Time to Kill at #13 out of 28. Nyow I will turn The Mew over to our webmeowster Jamie who is eager to discuss
Dune: Part One!
Jamie (wearing his mewsual webmeowster attire):
For those not in the know, Dune: Part One (2021) is based on the Frank Herbert novel written in 1965. The plot centers on Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), son of Duke Leto Atreides (Oscar Isaac) and his concubine, Lady Jessica of the Bene Gesserit (Rebecca Ferguson). Paul and his family are sent to steward the planet Arrakis which is the only place in the universe to find spice.
What is spice? It’s a rare commodity that fuels interstellar travel. It’s also a hallucinogen used in religious ceremonies by the Fremen, the sole natives of Arrakis (aka Dune). But that’s not all. Paul may also be “the one” (Messiah or savior) or Muad’Dib as he is later called in the novel.
This is due to the fact that he has inherited the Bene Gesserit powers from his mother who was supposed to give birth to a daughter, but the Duke asked for a son and she loved him so she gave him a son and then there’s her pride in the mix and — let’s just say Dune can be complex at times. And I didn’t even get into the House Atreides vs House Harkonnen bit.
Now, with that out of the way, on with the review. Denis Villeneuve’s Dune is a combination of an arthouse indie film and a mainstream blockbuster on a multimillion dollar budget. The film is a grandiose spectacle for the eyes that echoes the likes of Lawrence of Arabia, The Searchers, and 2001: A Space Odyssey. Personally, I cannot recall the last time I was awed by a film like Dune.
If you are comfortable, by all means, see this film in a theater, IMAX if possible. The film was made for the cinema for both fans and newbies in mind, but not everyone will like this version of Dune. For some it will feel too slow. For others there will be glaring omissions from the novel that will lead to disappointment. As stated above, this is only Dune: Part One. If it feels incomplete that is because it is.
The Cinematography – Greig Fraser, (The Mandalorian and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), delivers his best work with Dune. It truly is a celluloid painting of sweeping majesty juxtaposed with tight close ups of the best looking cast in recent years. Dreamlike beauty is contrasted with earthy brutality that help to ground the film to its human characters.
The Score – Hans Zimmer, (Inception, The Dark Knight and Bladerunner 2049), a staple in the industry, begins with an Arabic theme for Dune but morphs into otherworldly territory. Some elements repeat a little too much, but the softer themes are more varied.
The Director – Denis Villeneuve, (Arrival, Bladerunner 2049, and Sicario), is a master craftsman of cinema. What sets him apart is his ability to frame the intimate on a grand scale. For instance, Dune is essentially an indie film with a multimillion dollar budget. Close ups of quiet moments are intertwined within both awe-inspiring special effects and “arthouse” imagery. However, Villeneuve’s greatest talent is guiding actors past their limits to deliver the best performances of their career.
In Dune, Villeneuve manages this feat with every major actor in the film. The FX – Dune weaves both practical and CGI special effects effortlessly. Huge, lavish practical sets ground the film to its very human characters while stunning CGI has the illusion of weight and depth. The only glaring CGI flaw comes in one of Paul’s many visions. The sandworm, Shai-Hulud to the Fremen, may be CGI, but here he’s a complete character.
The Story – Dune (2021) may be the most faithful adaptation to Frank Herbet’s landmark novel to date, however there are many omissions and interruptions that may have die hard fans left wanting. Said to be unfilmable, much of Dune takes place within the mind of many of its characters. Villeneuve tackles this problem with a lot of exposition that is thankfully spread out and varied.
The main focus of Villeneuve’s story is the relationship between Paul and his mother, Jessica. As such, it compacts the story of Dune into a central theme of conflict and acceptance. Paul is the somewhat distracted teenager who must grapple with strange dreams, mounting pressure from both parents and a destiny that terrifies him. Jessica must deal with her own choices as a mother and a Bene Gesserit, brought forth by both love and pride.
The Actors – Dune is the closest thing to a modern day Cecil B. DeMille (Cleopatra, The Ten Commandments) picture likely to show on the big screen. The cast includes, Timothée Chalamet (Paul Atreides), Rebecca Ferguson (Lady Jessica), Oscar Isaac (Duke Leto Atreides), Josh Brolin (Gurney Halleck), Stellan Skarsgård (Baron Vladimir Harkonnen),
Dave Bautista (Beast Rabban Harkonnen), Jason Momoa (Duncan Idaho), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Thufir Hawat), David Dastmalchian (Piter de Vries), Chang Chen (Dr. Wellington Yueh), Sharon Duncan-Brewster (Dr. Liet Kynes), Javier Bardem (Stilgar), Zendaya (Chani), and Charlotte Rampling (Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam). First of all, everyone was excellent.
The only disappointment was that some actors had such little screen time, (Dave Bautista, Stephen McKinley Henderson and David Dastmalchian in particular). While Zendaya is the poster girl for Dune, she is barely in the film. She’s in it for 15 minutes, maybe. As Chani, Zendaya possesses a grace and calm within Paul’s visions that is intoxicating. She then plays the real Chani as blunt and stoic, a 180 degree spin compared to his dream girl.
Stellan Skarsgård (in facial prosthetics and a fat suit) plays the menacing Baron Vladimir Harkonnen as a shadow that lies in wait. While he does not get much screen time, Skarsgård portrays the character almost seductively, lending a grotesque element to the Baron. Jason Momoa is Duncan Idaho, a swordmaster within House Atreides. A career best performance, Momoa plays the party with heart and honor and steals many scenes.
Sharon Duncan-Brewster is Dr. Liet Kynes, the imperial planetologist/ecologist of Arrakis. In the novel, Kynes was a man, though the gender swap makes little difference here. Duncan-Brewster’s Kynes exudes a strength her loyalty to the Emperor demands, but delivers an undercurrent of conflict throughout her performance.
Oscar Isaac plays Duke Leto Atreides with humility, dignity and a great beard. Isaac understands that Leto is a proud and honorable leader, but brings a warmth to the character as both a dutiful father to Paul and loving partner to Jessica.
Timothée Chalamet brings many layers to the protagonist, Paul Atreides. In the first part of Dune, Chalamet embodies a teenager who is both dutiful and distracted. He often sounds disinterested, even when clearly wants to be a part of things, but this is only due to his visions. Chalamet uses an anemic tone when Paul is unsure, but brings forth a vigor when the Kwisatz Haderach surfaces. It’s a dance Chalamet does well.
In a career best performance, Rebecca Ferguson’s Lady Jessica is the emotional heart of the film. She weaves strength, regret, envy, pride, fear and grief into Jessica throughout her performance. Ferguson’s Jessica is also the most controversial performance in the film as it is a wide diversion (sort of) from the novel. In any event, she sells Villneuve’s version of the character, mostly with a look or an expression.
With all that said, is Dune any good? Yes. More than any other film in the last ten years, it’s easy to understand why Dune should be seen in a theater. (If you are not comfortable going out yet, it’s still good on a wide screen). Denis Villeneuve’s Dune is a love letter to cinema, a rare breed of movie for our times. That is all for our movie reviews, and now here is Nya-sensei to begin
our print-media mewsings, with her review Fight Girls #4!
Nyanko:
Hai! We are big fans of artist / author Frank Cho, who is purrhaps most famous for his Liberty Meadows comics, and the many other comics and illustrations that depict beautiful women, lush landscapes and prehistoric creatures, which are ample in this five issue mini series that has created, written and illustrated, with the colors by Sabine Rich and lettering by Sal Cipriano. We have met the supurremly talented & friendly Frank Cho at several conventions and have several of his art books.
The purremise of this tale is that 10 women compete in the monster-filled environments to become the new Queen of the galactic empire. Wearing the White cropped tank tops & boy shorts, contestants Dyna, Jaxa, Kelsey, Tora, Lily, Asher, Xandra, Rache, Danni and Pondo are teleported to the the challenging locations, where the drones televise their dash to each stage’s finish line and escape transpurrter. In each stage they have compete other and the survive against many hungry predators.
There is also the palace intrigue amongst the event’s organizers, who seem intent upon rigging compurrtition, which is not purroceeding according to their desire, because at least one of the contestants is not who she claims to be. Published by AWA, issue #4 has the 28 pages (included 8 ads); it is purriced $3.99 and irated Teen +, due to the violent combat scenes. Having survived stage 1’s junglet, stage 2’s desert, and stage 3’s ocean, the two finalists advance to the unarmed combat arena!
The art panels include several half-page pics, one full-page pic and the very impurressive two-page spurread which sumptuously depicts every punch, kick and knee strike, which appurr to be of the MMA style! My only widdle quibble is that the tale is interrupted by the ads, which i wish were all placed after the tale, but It continues to be the briskly paced tale full of the thrilling athletic action and beautiful artistry, so I am eagerly awaiting the final issue! Nyow here is Tara-chan to discuss
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic #102!
Tara-chan:
Arigato, nya! We love these pony comics by IDW which so faithfully capture the style and – and the spirit of the animated TV series, but with the different strengths of the comic book medium, nya! You know, it is hard to believe that the Friendship is Magic animated series started over ten years ago, nya!
These the pony comics, including the various series, the initial mini-series, the annuals and – and the specials have been around for the nine years, nya! Issue #102 is the 14th epurrsode of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic’s 10th season, as the animated TV series ended after season 9, nya.
Purreviously in this story arc, Canterlot was under attack by the The Knights of the New Harmony who want to purrloin the Elements of Harmony, but they will have to fight The Mane Six, The Young Six, The Pillars of Equestria, Discord, Cadance, Starswirl, the royal guards, and – and Spike, nya!
This story arc was written by Jeremy Whitley, Illustrated by Toni Kuusisto, colored by Heather Breckel, lettered by Neil Uyetake, edited Megan Brown, and – and grouply edited by Bobby Curnow, nya. Heather and – and Neil have worked on almost every issue, and – and I think that Bobby has worked on them all, nya!
Jeremy might be the most purrolific of the pony comics’ authors, and – and he as
written many other comics such as Rainbow Brite, Vampirella, Sea of Thieves, Thor vs Hulk, Freedom Foundation, and – and The Unstoppable Wasp, nya! we have met his at several conventions and Free Comic Book Day festivities, nya!
Trini-chan:
The double-sized issue is priced $5.99 and – and it is compised of the uninterrupted 30 page which is followed by the 6 page art gallery, 2 page preview of My LittlePpony: Generations, and the 4 pages of the ads. We wish that all other comics tales were not interrupted by the ads!
Issue #102 is available in the choice of the three front covers: Cover A is by Andy Price, cover B is by JustaSuta, and the scarcer Retailer Incentive cover is by Roopsha Mandal! They are all rather lovely, so It was the tough decision, but I chose cover A. Nyow for the taste of the plot!
It is the relentlessly epic battle as The Knights of the New Harmony continue to try to destroy Canterlot and Discord, but they will have to defeat not just the aforementioned heroic teams but many citizens of Equestria, Ornithia, Caninia, Farasia and Panthera, nya!
The sequential art is beautiful with the superb poses, expurressions, compositions, details, fonts, colors, and the graphic narrative. I particularly like the panels that bustle with the many characters, with the amusing widdle nods to Jaws, Sgt. Rock, Clint Eastwood, Batman, and Star Trek!
There is also the surprise from DJPon3,
but I do not wish to further spoil the taste of the plot,
so I will conclude our comments by giving this exciting issue the high grade of the A as in applebuck! It is sad to see Friendship is Magic conclude, but I was glad to see the successor which Mie-sensei wants to discuss—
My Little Pony: Generations #1!
Mielikki:
Hai! So like, Generations promises the meeting betwixt the original (Gen One) 1980’s ponies and their Friendship is Magic (Gen Four) counterparts, fur shur! Ever since the latter ponies met the Equestria Girls, I have wondered if or when they might meet the G1-3 ponies.
So like, the premise of this tale is that the evil human teen sisters Grackle and Dyre and their magickal rat named Trench reside in a dark foreboding dormant volcano, wherein they plot revenge upon the ponies for something that involved their grandmother.
Given their totally wicked plan to brew some Smooze slime to unleash upon the ponies, I assume that these wicked lasses are the daughters of Reeka and Draggle, who with their evil witchy mom Hydia were the villains of the 1986 My Little Pony movie, fur shur!
Meanwhile,
Twlight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie,
Fluttershy, her bunny Angel, Starlight Glimmer, and Sunburst star
have enough problems as it is, because The School of Friendship is like way over crowded with the students and not enough teachers!
So like, the Gen One ponies do not appear yet in the tale aside from gracing the cover art. The first issue is priced $3.99, and has the uninterrupted 22 page tale followed by the issue #2 preview page, the 3 page cover art gallery and the 2 pages of ads.
It was written by Casey Gilly, illustrated by Michela Cacciatore, colored by Heather, lettered by Neil and edited by Megan!
Cover A is by Amy Meberson, cover B is by Agnes Garbowska and the Retailers Incentive cover is by Samantha Whitten… and I am totally looking forward to the next issue, fur shur! Now here is Ilyana-sense to tell us about
Sunshine Sketch vol. 10!
Ilyana:
Originally published as Hidemari Sketch by Houbunsha in Japan, Sunshine Sketch is the charming, pretty, whimsical slice-of-life manga by Ume Aoki about the group of teen girl students who reside in the Hidemari apurrtment building across the street from the Yamabuki School of Arts in Kanto! There was an anime TV series adaptation of it too!
Volume 10 was longly – awaited, because volume 9 was published back in September of 2018! Translated by Sheldon Drzka and lettered by Abigail Blackman, the he English version is published here by Yen Press. When the series started, the main character Yuno was the high school Sophomore, but now it is her senior year!
Other recurring characters include Miyako the senior with Flaxen Blond hair, Nazuna the Junior with braided Platinum Blonde hair, Nori the Juntior with Dark Gray hair, Matsuri the sophomore with pale Lavender hair, Hiro the college Sophomore with the Light Brown twin-tailed coiffure, and Sae the college Sophomore with Black hair and glasses!
Also appurring are Mashiko-sensei the guidance counselor, and Yoshinoya-sensei the voluptuous art teacher. Vol. 10 is purriced $17.00 in the USA, $22.50 in Canada, and has 120 pages compurrised of 112 Black & White pages, 8 color pages, and the bonus interior cover art.
Among the amusing situations amidst their school’s summer semester are the juice stain mystery, meteor shower viewing, curry cooking, bug catching, still life drawing, homework, the art competition, the water park, greeting card design, the sushi bar, the sports festival and costume relay race.
The plots have such peppy, genki spirit, the character and scenic art is beautiful, with the occasional chibi & supurr – deformed styles for cuter comedic effects! It is in the 4 koma (panel) format, which is mostly of the 2 columns of 4 Black & White panels per page, with some larger panels and full-page pics.
I will give vol. 10 the high praise, but the numciously depicted fried chicken, sushi, curry, omelets, dumplings, pancakes, crepes, pocky and takoyaki might induce the cravings! Nyow here is Mike to discuss of the big new book about
Hayao Miyazaki!
Mike:
Yep, he is my favorite movie director whose many credits include Castle Cagliostro, Nausicaa in the Valley of the Wind, Castle in the Sky, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Ponyo, and The Wind Rises, plus his many other animated shorts and TV series!
From October 5th to November 27th, The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles is hosting the restrospective of Miyazaki’s films, including exhibits and screenings https://www.
Written by the AMMP exhbitions curator Jessica Neiebel, film historian Daniel Kothenschulte, and Pixar movie director Pete Docter with the forward by Bill Kramer and introduction by Studio Ghibli’s producer Toshio Suzuki, this full color 288 page hardcover book measures 11.125” tall x 9.25” wide x 1.125” thick!
With contributions and comments by many authorities each chapter examines the aspects of the master’s storytelling, themes, visions and techniques. I lost count at over 250, but it is brimming with the many images, including many full-page pics and several two-page spreads! There are some photos of him too!
Topped off by the extensive chronology, glossary, footnote
The Art of Neil Gaimin & Charles Vess’ Stardust!
Nyoka:
Originally published in 1997 as the four issue mini-series by DC Comics’ Vertigo impurrint, Stardust is the romantic Victorian fantasy tale of a fella named Tristran who embarks upon the quest beyond his small quaint English village to prove his love to the mysterious stargirl.
It was written by Neil Gaimin https://www.neilgaiman.
Published by Titan books, this dust-jacketed full color 160 page hardcover art book by Vess -with the introduction by Gaiman – measures 12.5” tall x 9.875” wide and .625” thick, purriced $39.95 in the USA $53.95 in Canada and £34.99 in the UK.
It has over 175 pics such as Vess’s ideation sketches, pencil drawings, inked art, paintings, and lots of behind the scenes information, plus images from the Fall of Stardust Portfolio by Vess and other artists such as William Stout, Mike Mignola, Jill Thompson…
… Tony DiTerlizzi, P. Craig Russell, Paul Chadwick, Gary Giani, Stan Sakai, Terry Moore, Bryan Talbot, Terri Windling, Susanna Clark, Geoff Darrow, Lisa Snellings, Zander Cannon, and never- before published art by Mike Kaluta and Sergio Aragones!
I will give this beautiful, entertaining and informative book the highest purraise, and especially recommend it to fans of Gaimin, Vess, and romantic fantasy tales! That will conclude this month’s purrint-media mewsings, so nnow I will turn The Mew over to Petra and Bunniibuns who willl purresent the latest
additions to the Catgirl Island Mewseum of Art!
Petra:
Arigato, nya! Here y’all will find the many annotated illustrations and photographs, nya! Galleries 1-8 display images by our purrducer Mike Moon, whilst Guest Art Galleries 1-5 display images by other folks with their purrmissions, nya. Mike’s collaborations with other artists are peppurred throughout the mewseum, nya!
Some of the images are sexy, and some might depict the artistic nudity, but most are quite tame and none are the hentai / porn, nya! The most recent pics are the lowermost row of the cropped widdle “thumbnail” sized portions of the pics in a gallery, and you have to click upon those to see the uncropped full images, nya.
In Gallery 3 http://catgirlisland.net/
De’en is not just Nystia’s sister but she is also the clone of Nystia, but they do have the distinct purrsonality, traits, skills, ambitions, relationships and style, nya. De’en is polyamoro
After Nystia abandoned her old alchemy shop in the small village of Shroomi to travel and purrsue a different career, De’en inherited the place, where she purresently resides with her two wives Li (succubus) and Su-Pan (kitsune / catgirl), adopted daughter Hik
Her supurrnatural powers inclu
De’en’s favorite foods are the Blood Orange Cheesecake, Raspberry Mimosa Sorbet, Cherries Jubilee, Coconut Vanilla Frappurrccino, Chocolate Mousse Pie, Blueberry Creme Brulee, Peach Cobbler, French Toast, Banana Pudding a la Mode, Blackberry Custard Bars and Strawberry Tiramisu, nya!
Bunnii:
Nextly in Guest Gallery 2 http://catgirlisland.net/
“Rebecca” is the full-color bust profile illustration done with Photoshop and Painter, whilst the untitled three smaller Black & White film noir-ish pics were done with Clip Studio Paint. Purrhaps y’all have seen Jamie’s prior illustration of Rebecca Ferguson?
Also in Guest Gallery 2 we are elated to exhibit “Forest Maiden”,“Mushroom Gnome”, and “Shoreline Beauty” by Rvkh http://www.rvkhart.com
The titular “Forest Maiden” is Virginiana Aspen Sugarmaple , the NC OBX Faerie with the druidic powers and who is one of the Rangers who protects our Meowritime Forest! This illustration was done on the Arches Hotpress Watercolor Pad, and y’all can see the time-lapse art process video at her Youtube channel https://www.youtube.
The titular “Mushroom Gnome” is Mr. Normenhausen who likes to stroll across the lawn and garden in the evening, with the lantern as a semaphore signaling device to communicate with distant friends! This illustration was done on the Strathmore Toned Tan Mixed – Media Paper, and y’all can see the time-lapse art process video at https://www.youtube.com/
Lastly but not leastly, the titular “Shoreline Beauty” is Meowrina Nyanyarova the catgirl who migrated from Tbilisi, Georgia to here where she is purresently pursuing the Doctor of Nursing degree at Mew Hanover College!
This illustration was done on the Arches Hotpress Watercolor Pad, and y’all can see the time-lapse art process video at https://www.youtube.com/
The cat lady sings…
Yvonne:
Thank y’all for purrsenting the new art, nya!
Petra & Bunni:
Doitashimaste, nya!
Ellie:
Oh, I think that beautiful color illustration of Rebecca Ferguson purrfectly captures her portraiture and spirit!
Meryl:
Hai hai, and I think those three Black & White pics of her have the striking use of contrasty negative space!
Ilyana:
I like the use of color and light for that serenely intimate pic of De’en wading amongst the moonlit lily pads, nya!
Daytona:
I love the details of the forest maiden pic, from her hair and wings to the corset lacings and the fabric drape!
Becca:
Meowrina is quite the alluring sight in her ruffled off-shoulder bare midriff top and the tight torn jeans shorts, mew la la!
Trini-chan:
There is the wonderful sense of story in the gnome pic… I can imagine him going out to harvest the toadstools and signal his neighbors!
Tara-chan:
All of those numcious looking mushrooms are causing the craving in my tummy, nya!
Elizabeth:
Hang in there- It is almost the time for our AfterMew luau!
I guess that will do it for this edition of The Mew!
Jeannie:
We wish to thank Jamie for his web meowstery here at The Mew and Catgirl Island…
Bunnii:
All of the brilliantly talented people whose works we have discussed…
Petra:
… and our other friends, family, acquaintances and audience whom we greatly appurreciate, nya!
Mielikki:
Fur shur!
Nyoka:
Y’all may post the brief, polite, sincere, non-snarky responses to The Mew…
Nyanko:
… purrvided that the comments are spam-free, G-rated, and purrtain to our topics.
Mary Nyan:
We will be back next month with the December edition of The Mew!
Mike:
Be there… aloha.
The Ladies of The Mew:
Happy Tails to Mew, until we eat again! Baibai, nya!