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Amazon Prime’s “Kevin;” A Disillusioned Cat Learning the Ropes of City Life…

May 4, 2026

Amazon Prime’s adult animated series “Kevin” featuring anthropomorphic animals is highly polarizing to viewers, with one review terming it “unpleasant, unfunny, and unwatchable,” while others have found it “heartwarming!” But as a furry and cat lover, I had to check this out…

At the heart of Kevin is an anthropomorphic neurotic tuxedo cat (voiced by Jason Schwartzman) who loses his home when his humans break up, casting him into a local pet rescue center in Queens called “Furrever Friends” filled with “independent” animals where he encounters a number of homeless and displaced animals, predominantly felines, most of which are even more disordered and scarred by life than he is. Take for example “Cupcake,” voiced by Whoopi Goldberg, who portrays an emaciated, battered, and battle-scarred feral cat who is fearless, cynical, and yet quite adept at surviving in the environs of New York City…

…and man, the animals in the city are tough! His feral instincts triggered, Kevin chases a squirrel who in turn pulls a knife on him! A half-dead pigeon begs Kevin to eat him to put him out of his misery (thankfully, he refuses)! These are not cutesy animals, but rather hardened, grim individuals who provide the inexperienced, once pampered house cat with an education in the “School of Hard Knocks.”

Make no mistake, this is NOT a cartoon series for children! The language is generously sprinkled with vulgarities and obscenities, and the animals are raunchy, and at times quite twisted. There is humor here, but it’s quite dark. There is a content advisory for “nudity, violence, substance use, alcohol use, smoking, foul language, sexual content, and flashing lights and strobing patterns that might affect photosensitive viewers.”- – Something for everyone, right?! As a furry I like all things furry, but this series at times pushes the boundaries into rather extreme territory that will turn off many. The series explores the question of finding where you belong in the world, which is something that most of us will ultimately contend with. It just won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but that’s why we have buttons to change the channel or turn sets off…

All eight episodes of the first season of Kevin may be streamed from Amazon Prime, and I’d consider it an acquired taste…you’ll either love it or hate it, but it may grow on you…

Categories: alternative realities, animals, animation, anomalies, anthropomorphic, Brilliant but twisted, cartoons, fantasy, furry, furry art, furry fandom, furry interest, furry satire, furry television, humor
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“Screwball Squirrel’s” Short, Memorable Run…

September 17, 2025

Tex Avery was an animation genius who rebelled against many traditions, creating in Screwball Squirrel a deliberately unlovable character who was intended to be a satire of cute, sentimental cartoon characters such as were often seen in Disney productions. Also known as Screwy Squirrel, this rodent was aggressively chaotic and obnoxious, and appeared only in five theatrical shorts between 1944 and 1946 before being discontinued as Avery himself grew to find the character annoying, and disliked him! This was not an affable, cutesy, or nice squirrel…

Screwy was really manic and wild, and so you might say that there were elements of Daffy Duck and the much later Roger Rabbit in him, but without any redemptive or likeable features. Screwy would actively torment a dim-witted dog called Meathead, and bring about the unseen but clearly implied destruction of other characters that he found offensive…

(“Disney-esque” squirrel versus “Screwy…”)

Screwball Squirrel meets his apparent death in a 1946 cartoon when he is crushed to death by a hug from a spoiled, dim, and emotionally-needy dog called Lenny. Since death is seldom permanent in cartoon characters, however, Screwy who “don’t move no more” appears at the end of the feature holding up a sign reading, “Sad ending, isn’t it?” The aggressively chaotic character would much later be seen in the 1990’s TV series “Droopy, Master Detective” and “Tom and Jerry...”

Categories: cartoons, furry, furry art, furry satire, humor, twisted reality, Vintage
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In Praise of Walter Lantz ‘Toons…

October 26, 2024

Walter Lantz cartoons often play a distant third to Disney and Warner Bros. creations, but they can be worthy of your attention, and display a level of creativity and simple exuberant ‘toon fun that’s really noteworthy. One of my fave Walter Lantz characters is Smedley, illustrated above. Now Smedley is a dog, but his tail looks rather foxy to me, and if you stare at his face and body type, you can almost see a bit of Yogi Bear reflected. What really struck me is that Smedley’s voice sounded very evocative of Huckleberry Hound…

No coincidence, that…both Smedley and Huckleberry Hound were voiced by legendary voice performer Daws Butler, who also voiced Yogi Bear for many years as well as numerous other cartoon characters. One of those characters included Fibber Fox, who of course I have a personal affection for!

Fibber Fox was drawn somewhat cat-like, and I consider him likable and a good guy, in spite of the fact that he was an antagonist to Yakkey Duck, and would try to eat him while never succeeding. We all knew that Yakkey would never be eaten, however, as he was almost unbearably cute! Death itself in cartoons, of course, is at worst a temporary inconvenience, with many characters sustaining what would have been mortal poundings and mishaps only to emerge whole and none the worst for the wear in the very next sequence…

Getting back to the Walter Lantz stable, Chilly Willy the penguin was another memorable character who sometimes spoke not at all but communicated with expressions and gestures, and at other times spoke in kind of an abbreviated English (example: “Yes, me like!”) . Chilly Willy was largely concerned with finding food and keeping warm, and while cute and appealing was far from defenseless…

The kingpin of Walter Lantz cartoons was of course Woody Woodpecker, he of the iconic laugh, who took on a variety of antagonists, mocking and thwarting their most insidious schemes against him…

All I am saying is that Walter Lantz cartoons are frequently overlooked, and don’t get their proper respect…and voice actor Daws Butler was like the legendary Mel Blanc, but without the size of Mel’s WB paycheck…

Categories: alternative realities, anthropomorphic, cartoons, famous furries, furry, furry art
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The Fabulous, Gangster Felines of “Lackadaisy”

March 15, 2023

Cats, when you think about it, are natural vintage 1920’s-era gangster animals. You’ve heard of swing cats, and they’ve got the music of the jazz era covered, with an electro-swing soundtrack. So put a bunch of anthropomorphic cats in prohibition era New Orleans. complete with the garb, wheels, weaponry, and style of the era, and you’ve got a real winner! I’d like a piece of their action, frankly…

Now Lackadaisy is a speakeasy that operates during Prohibition behind the front of the Little Daisy Cafe eatery. It’s previous proprietor was slain in a hit, so it remains to the surviving members of the mob to find their way again, and keep their business operational. Fortunately, cats are nothing if not adaptable survivors, and within their numbers they are well able to meet these challenges, all the time looking good, and fully in the spirit of the age…

Lackadaisy is the creation of Tracy J. Butler, and originated as a webcomic that is approaching breakout status, with a short film in the works. Her artwork is richly detailed and highly expressive, with a world of distinctive characters. I really think that great things lie ahead for these gangster cats, and their retro, fully-visualized 1927 speakeasy world…check ‘em out! 😸


“We play rough. That ‘s why they call us animals!“

Categories: alternative realities, anthropomorphic, furry, furry art, furry films, furry movies
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Shape-shifting in ‘Toons, Circa 1930…

January 4, 2023

It’s easy to think that the notion of shape-shifting from human to animal or animal to human form is a relatively modern notion, whereas references to it can be found dating across cultures from hundreds to thousands of years ago. To limit our discussion of shape-shifting, we’re just going to consider one early example of it occurring in the cartoon world…

Now the character of Betty Boop began as kind of an anthropomorphic French poodle who first appeared in Dizzy Dishes crafted by animation pioneer Max Fleisher. She was the girlfriend of Bimbo, a mischievous, trouble-making dog (below)…

Yes, I still like this guy, echoes of whom reverberated in 1960’s counter-culture cartoon art such as that created by Robert Crumb and others. Yet it was Betty who the viewing public latched onto, and within a year, her long dog ears had morphed into earrings, and her black dog nose had become tiny and human. Moreover, the evolved Betty was hawt, a caricature of a 1920’s flapper girl, and…gasp…a sexual woman!

Consider how female cartoon characters were commonly portrayed at the time, for example, Disney’s Minnie Mouse. It’s hard to imagine anyone being turned on by Minnie, including Mickey. But Betty had it all going on, although her features were described as neotenous, with the enlarged head, big eyes, and small limbs reminiscent of those of an infant or young child. Betty’s catch phrase of Boop-oop-a-doop was also evocative of infantile “baby talk.” So hot was Betty that she had to be toned down a bit for the general viewing audience that included children…

It must last be considered who was the real life model in styling for the cartoon character of Betty Boop. While several people have claimed credit for that honor and even litigated for the recognition, credit should actually be given to an African-American woman by the name of “Baby” Esther Jones, who died in 1984, and was an accomplished singer and dancer in Harlem…

So to paraphrase an old ditty, “Don’t worry if you work hard, and your rewards are few. Remember that Betty Boop was once a dog like you!”

Categories: alternative realities, anthropomorphic, cartoons, furry, furry art, retro cool
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The Legacy of Foxy Fagan…

November 29, 2019



In the mid-1940’s, the funny animal cartoon boom was in full swing, and every publisher wanted a menagerie of such anthropomorphic characters in print.  Foxy Fagan  was an obscure, Golden Age comic book character who was commercially unsuccessful, running for only a brief seven issues from 1946 to 1948.  Furthermore, the drawn character had a disquieting resemblance in some panels to Tom of Tom and Jerry fame, almost as if he was a cat with a few fox features tacked on.  The feet were also terribly wrong for a fox, but were drawn in the cartoon style of the day…

If the late great Foxy Fagan resembles the much more successful feline Tom, that’s because he was drawn by Harvey Eisenberg in collaboration with Joe Barbera’s storylines in a low budget, moonlighting-type operation called Dearfield Publishing which operated out of a shed while both of them were under contract to MGM.  Dearfield also produced Red Rabbit comics.  Eisenberg was a highly experienced and admired cartoonist who was for many years the main artist on the Tom and Jerry comic books, and he also did numerous stories for Disney comic books featuring Chip ‘n’ Dale, also drawing on the Yogi Bear and Flintstones newspaper comics.  He could draw characters convincingly in any pose, and gave them expressive personalities, making them relatable and alive.

Now Foxy Fagan was cut in the Bugs Bunny mold, with Foxy being sly but trouble-prone, and things often didn’t work out as he planned.  His foil was a hapless canine inventor, Bobble, who bore a striking resemblance to the later Hanna-Barbera character Droopy Dog, and kind of played the Porky Pig role.  We can almost see Foxy morphing into Tom in this bottom image, and Tom and Jerry would become an enduring part of cartoon history…

 

 

 

Categories: anthropomorphic, cartoons, comics, furries, furry, furry art
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Maxwell the Geico Pig’s Date…

February 3, 2013

Maxwell's date– – Maxwell the Geico pig continues to evolve; he doesn’t appear to exclaim “Wheee!” anymore, plays with electronics, and apparently can even drive a car.  He could use some coaching on relationships with the opposite sex, however, passing up an ideal lover’s lane opportunity with a girl who appears to be hot for his porky body.- -Maxwell, it would seem, is more of a techie than a lover!

In the latest Geico commercial featuring Maxwell, he is stranded in a broken-down convertible car with a rather comely lass, and appears to be fooling with his hand-held device.  “Did you just turn your ringer off so no one would interrupt us?,” questions the lady.  Maxwell responds that he just used his Geico app to summon a tow truck, his ears rising as he finally perceives that his date wants to “pass the time.”  Maxwell has an idea ready to pass the 30-minute waiting interval, and unfortunately it’s not the past-time that the lady apparently desires; no, for Maxwell immediately switches his hand-held to a rousing game of “Fruit Ninja!”  The look of disappointment (or whatever) on his date’s eyes is classic as Maxwell enthusiastically launches into the game…

Many questions go unanswered.  We are not told how Maxwell’s little legs can reach the car’s pedals, or how his cloven hooves can operate his device, for example…but at least we are spared the messy and probably distasteful details of human/pig relationships, something for which we all can be grateful…although I’m sure that some of our readership can relate to having dated real pigs!  Thankfully, no one can refer to Maxwell as a chauvinist pig…

Categories: absurdities, animal spokepersons, animals, anthropomorphic, famous furries, furry art, furry commercials, television
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“Frankenweenie” is Coming!

September 13, 2012

– – Frankenweenie, a film directed by Tim Burton, is coming this October!  A remake of a 1984 short film by Burton, Frankenweenie is a 3D, black-and-white, stop motion-animated comedy horror film.  Like its 1984 predecessor, the film is both a parody of and an homage to the 1931 film Frankenstein as based on Mary Shelley’s classic gothic novel.  

In the film, a young Victor Frankenstein deploys the power of science to bring his beloved dog, Sparky, back to life.  Unintended and sometimes monstruous consequences ensue.  Vocal talents include Martin Short, Winona Ryder, and Martin Landau.  The art has the look of The Nightmare Before Christmas, and should be well worth a look!

Categories: animals, fantasy, furry art, furry film classics, furry stories, movies

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Dead Cat Helicopter?

June 9, 2012

– – Me-ouch!  Call me old fashioned, but I’m not too keen on the idea of turning a deceased cat into a mini-helicopter, finding the idea unsettling and perhaps gruesome; I like bizarre and creepy, but in a good way.   PETA likewise dislikes the notion, with a spokesman calling the postmortem transformation “…a macabre way to honor a beloved family member.”  The artist, however, sees the visual exhibit as paying tribute to his cat, who now can soar with the birds that he loved.

The male cat appropriately named Orville died following a less than positive encounter with a car about six months ago.  His Dutch artist owner taxidermied the skin, encased it in polyester, and put a propeller on each of the four outstretched paws.  A remote control device enables the cat-quadcopter to fly.  The end product has been called creepy, sick, or hilarious, depending on one’s perspective.  The Orvillecopter has been on display at an art fair in Amsterdam, although Dutch animal lovers and the Dutch animal welfare party have heavily criticized the exhibit…

…the late cat, Orville, has a brother, Wilbur, who is still alive.  Both  animals were named after the Wright brothers of aviation fame.

Categories: absurdities, animals, controversial, furry, furry art, strange, weird
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It’s A Warner Bros. World…

April 26, 2012

— My better half brought home a little statue of an angel the other day; you know the type I’m talking about.   They’re white resin imitating marble, widely sold at places like K-Mart, and this one stands about ten or twelve inches tall.  The angel in it has unfurled wings clearly visible, curly hair, and bare feet.  In its hand the angel holds a bird regarding it, the bird (probably a dove) in turn looking at the angel.  I laughed hysterically for several minutes after seeing the statue, which admittedly is not a normal reaction.  It did, however, reflect the way that my mind works!

I knew what was going to happen next, you see…the angel would open its mouth, and stuff the bird into it,  just as Sylvester the cat would Tweety in a Warner Brothers cartoon.  Perhaps a stray feather would escape from the corners of the Angel’s mouth.  A slight satisfied smile would cross over the Angel’s mouth, and then the bird would somehow force open the angelic mouth and emerge, verbally abusing the angel.  The bird would further retaliate by wrecking mayhem upon the angel,  in effect sending it to the nether regions.  In my mind’s eye, I could see all of this happening perfectly!

Having been raised on Warner Bros. cartoons, I knew that this was simply the way that things happened and played out.  Now, many years later,  those same cartoons continue to shape and warp my perceptions of reality,  strongly shaping the way that I respond to it…Sufferin’ Succotash!

Categories: cartoons, feathered friends, furry, furry art, television
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