Bravest Warriors Presents: Catbug’s Treasure Book Review

If you’re a fan of the Bravest Warriors animated series, chances are you’re also a fan of the cutest member of its cast, Catbug! Absolutely adorable with his squeaky voice and somewhat ADD personality, he now reveals all his secrets in Bravest Warriors Presents: Catbug’s Treasure Book!

Back Cover Blurb

Four teenage travelers traverse the universe saving those in need…though not always in the way you’d expect…in fact…never! Along the way they meet aliens, phantoms and other interdimensionals—including everyone’s favorite, Catbug. Sometimes…they even meet themselves!

In Catbug’s Treasure Book we see the world from his perspective. A kind of scrapbook, the pages are filled with memories and souvenirs of his adventures with the Bravest Warriors, along with his playtime imaginings. There are also allusions to past episodes (Danny’s eyebrows taped to a page, for example), and hints at secrets not yet revealed.

The Review

If you do not know who Catbug is, can’t identify all four Bravest Warriors, and haven’t the foggiest what an Impossibear is, do yourself a favor, and do NOT buy Catbug’s Treasure Book. At least not until you’ve acquainted yourself with Cartoon Hangover’s Bravest Warriors animated series. Prior to my taking this book off the Fandom Post review pile, my only exposure to Bravest Warriors was seeing my 21-year-old cousin in Catbug cosplay at Fanime 2013, and I can personally attest that giving a Bravest Warriors noob Catbug’s Treasure Book will only result in mass confusion. However, if you are a Catbug fan and enjoy his playful hijinks, silly interjections, and wild imagination, you can get plenty more in his treasure book.

The hardcover design of the book is very similar to a child’s storybook but don’t be fooled. If you’re expecting a single cohesive story with beginning, middle, and end, you won’t get it. Catbug’s Treasure Book is actually a kind of journal, the written record that would result if a highly sophisticated artificial intelligence transcribed all of Catbug’s thoughts. And since Catbug has the intelligence and attention span of a 7-year-old boy chugging Mountain Dew, the content of the book goes all over the place. Then again, it’s the sort of randomness that’s typical for Bravest Warriors.

Most of the book is presented as a dialogue between Catbug and the journal, the Futuristic Electromagnetic and Enigmatic Learning Encyclopedia X, (a.k.a. Feelex). Feelex does have a personality though it does take things a little too literally and seriously. As mentioned earlier, there is no plot per se, but over the course of their conversations, we get a few anecdotes about the Courageous Battlers and Bravest Warriors, the origins of Feelex, and a couple ramblings that go absolutely nowhere. The book is illustrated throughout and includes a few two-page spreads.

As you might guess from the title, Catbug is the star of this book. The four Bravest Warriors are relegated to supporting roles. Interestingly, Impossibear features predominantly and not just in the illustrations and Catbug’s stories. On nearly every page of the journal are “handwritten” comments from Impossibear (ostensibly jotted down when Catbug had him fill in the blanks for some Mad Lib style pages), and for me, Impossibear’s snarky remarks are the most entertaining part of the book.

In summary

Catbug’s Treasure Book contains pictures, anecdotes, and other Bravest Warriors-styled flights of fancy you won’t find anywhere else. However, be warned that it does not contain an overarching plot, and the four Bravest Warriors have relatively minor parts. But if you’re a big Catbug (or Impossibear) fan, this will probably be up your alley.

First published in The Fandom Post.

Bravest Warriors: The Search For Catbug Art Book Review

If you’re a fan of the Bravest Warriors animated series, chances are you’re also a fan of the cutest member of its cast, Catbug! Absolutely adorable with his squeaky voice and somewhat ADD personality, he’s now the star of an art book: Bravest Warriors: The Search for Catbug!

Back Cover Blurb

Four teenage travelers traverse the universe saving those in need…though not always in the way you’d expect…in fact…never! Along the way they meet aliens, phantoms and other interdimensionals—including everyone’s favorite, Catbug. Sometimes…they even meet themselves!

Featuring more than 25 artists, this is a new one-of-a-kind art book in the style of a classic seek & find from Perfect Square featuring the Bravest Warriors.

The Review

The Search for Catbug is a collaboration between Cartoon Hangover and Viz Media. What they’ve done is take the cast of Bravest Warriors, twenty-eight artists, and a simple prompt and created a book that’s part game, part art collection, and part Bravest Warriors merchandise.

This hardcover opens with a two-page intro in comic book format that lays the premise for the rest of its contents. In short, Catbug eats foodstuff cubes from Chris’ dreams, which cause him to lose control over his jump abilities. The Bravest Warriors can’t let him go careening through dimensions so they take off to find him.

What follows is not so much a cohesive story as it is twenty-eight separate graphic interpretations of what the Bravest Warriors’ search might look like. Each drawing is presented as a two-page spread in full color. Those looking for a collection entirely rendered in the cartoon’s style may be disappointed. Character designs and art media are as varied as the artists participating, ranging from Leong’s anime interpretation to Kuhn’s CG illustration to Hillburn’s watercolor candyland to Monlogo’s Escher inspired piece.

However, two things unify this collection. Every illustration features the four Bravest Warriors, and each has Catbug hidden somewhere in the details. And of course, the game is to locate Catbug in each picture. It’s very similar to Where’s Waldo?, but unlike the Where’s Waldo? illustrations which hide Waldo among crowds of people, these artists use a variety of tactics to hide Catbug, ranging from making him super tiny to placing him against a backdrop of ladybugs.

That aside, the artists don’t appear to have had any constraints with the subject matter. Most depictions include other characters, objects, and places from the animated series, and several feature the foodstuff cubes that caused Catbug’s uncontrollable jumping in the first place. Some have the Bravest Warriors in battle mode, while others are more pastoral. In keeping with the tone of the show, the pieces are generally fun with a heavy dose of randomness. And for those who search and search but just can’t seem to locate Catbug, the book includes a handy answer key in the back along with artist credits and their self-portraits.

In summary

The Search for Catbug can be summed up as a playful artist tribute to Bravest Warriors. If you are completely unfamiliar with the Cartoon Hangover series, this book probably isn’t the best introduction. While the artwork is entertaining and it is possible for newbies to have fun locating the Bravest Warriors’ cute little mascot, this collection will be best appreciated and enjoyed by those who are already fans.

First published in The Fandom Post.