Report to the Alpha Watchdog submitted by BK Munn
Catland Empire
by Keith Jones
Drawn and Quarterly
29.95 US/32.95 CDN
isbn 978-1-897299-92-0
Report from watchdog agent Snips Barkley, based on super secret Catland spy satellite surveillance:
After several months of study, I have determined that Catland Empire is a specially designed ego stimulation technology created to bring about peace in the Universe and realign human-animal communication systems. In human subjects with the correctly aligned brain patterns, the scientifically calibrated combination of colour images and English language code-words in the form of a “graphic novel” creates the overwhelming desire to have a party in a bowling alley and ingest quantities of catnip, fishsticks and beer.
Special agent of the Universe Keith Jones has compiled this device and distributed it through cosmic signal emitter Drawn and Quarterly, the same combination of entities previously responsible for the distribution of the device known as Bacter Area, sub-categorized in Earth terms as a “petit livre.”
As near as can be determined, the words and images in Catland Empire are arranged in what humans refer to as a “plot” or “story,” a form of amusement that humans prefer to biting, chasing sticks, and sniffing things. The story involves the efforts of a human to make all the other humans become obsessed with killing each other, part of a larger plot engineered by aliens to “kill the Earth through methodical psychic imprisonment.” Deeming this a worse crime than possessing hot dogs or being disloyal, Mr. Universe and his lieutenants, Mr. Time and Mr. Space, enlist the aid of two Catland agents, Captain Cat and Rodney Rollerderby, who are instructed to teach humans how to have fun and party instead of killing everything, and eventually help relocate humanity to the Great Plain at the Bottom of the Universe.
The tools used by the human Keith Jones in compiling this device include bright dayglo colours, geometric shapes, flat images with unusual perspective, and humourous juxtaposition.
All loyal citizens of Dogland are advised to avoid copies of this device since it contains images of cats insulting dogs, ingesting hallucinogenic catnip and hot dogs, and generally being joyous, curious, and radiant.