Ahoy Comics Review: CAPTAIN GINGER SEASON TWO #3
[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]
Writer: Stuart Moore
Artists: June Brigman, Roy Richardson
Colours: Veronica Gandini
Letters: Richard Starkings, Comicraft’s Jimmy Betancourt
Reviewed By: Derek McNeil
Summary
Captain Ginger Season Two #3: Scattered and trapped on a world of dogs (RUFF RUFF), Captain Ginger and his crew must use all their feline skills to survive! “This is the comic to introduce your friend that hasn’t read comics for a while.” – Adventures in Poor Taste. Plus a selection of extra features, including prose stories and illustrations.
Positives
In Captain Ginger Season Two #3, the cats have their first meeting with their dog counterparts. They learn that the dogs had also encountered the Lumen, who stranded them on an Earth-like planet.
I found it interesting that the dogs and cats don’t instinctually see each other as enemies upon meeting. There is some suspicion, but generally the dogs are helpful and the cats are grateful for their aid.
However, the dogs’ children are essentially puppies as we know them. The puppies and kittens react exactly as today’s pets would, with one puppy chasing a poor kitten up a tree. But the adults quickly form a polite, if tentative, relationship.
Positives Cont.
I had a bit of a chuckle when one of the dogs mentions that they would “table the butt-sniffing for now”. It makes sense that a race of sentient dogs would use “butt-sniffing” as slang for making introductions. Or is it slang? Considering that the cats still use litterboxes, maybe the dogs actually do greet each other this way. The creatures in this book do tend to have a number of throwback tendencies.
The cats see their ship get destroyed by the Lumen, with the wreckage crashing on the planet. It seems nearly certain that the titular Captain Ginger is dead. However, we learn that he survived the crash. But the issue ends with him encountering some mean looking Bulldogs, which is the cliffhanger that Captain Ginger Season Two #3 ends on.
Negatives
Ahoy Comics has announced that as of this issue, Captain Ginger Season Two will be digital only due to current economic pressures and the state of the print comic industry. This won’t affect readers who already follow the series in digital form, but will be a disappointment for readers that were buying the print issues. If you prefer reading the series in print, you will need to wait for the trade collections.
However, Ahoy is committing to keeping their titles coming out, in whatever evolving forms evolve out of the changing comic book industry. While I can understand the preference for a physical copy, I will gladly continue reading this title in whatever format it’s available in.
Verdict
I have previously declared that Captain Ginger is a comic made for cat-lovers, but now it can appeal to dog-lovers as well. This is a great story that gets better as it continues to evolve. I look forward to seeing how events develop as the cats learn more about the Planet of the Dogs.
