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What do you get when you enter a world full of nekomimis--a mixture of human and feline, usually indicated by cat ears and a tail? A bunch of empty bottles of lube and tissues strewn about as you watch their escapades go wild.Purrfect Tails, edited by Tarl Hoch, goes through a cast of feline-human hybrids trying to find their way into a myriad of others’ pants. From a workhouse escapee sneaking into a noble swan lady’s garden, to a cybernetically modified hedonist testing shady attachments, there is no shortage of sexual activities to be had throughout these nine stories.Unfortunately, I found the proofreading of this anthology lacking. It was difficult to read through most of these stories. Misspellings, missing words, the wrong word; it felt like the stories were just picked and slapped into the book without a second thought or look. That being said, the stories that were well-written kept my attention well enough, the characters within feeling alive and vibrant.“Milk and Brass” by Madison Keller takes the reader to the streets of London where a neko named Carla has just escaped a workhouse with miserable conditions and is on the run from the police. She winds up within the garden of Nellie, a swan lady who offers shelter to the feline-human hybrid and, despite being betrothed to someone she despises, experiences her first time—and love—with a woman behind closed doors. Now, while I do enjoy a good story about two hopeless romantics who try to find happiness no matter where they came from, it does irk me that there is mention that the hybrids were created with no further backstory to it, just that the swan was created for her master’s purpose. It adds a completely different element to the story that’s left in the dust to further the goal of carnal delights, especially considering it seems that mostly the nekos are the ones who end up caught and forced into a kind of slave labor in this universe. Also, the sex was written out in a tantalizing way that showed how much the two were enjoying themselves romantically.“Following the Trail” by Dark End follows Jacqyl, a girl bored of her everyday life and stuck in a dead-end job until a chance encounter with Martin, a splicer—a human whose DNA has been spliced with another animal—changes her perspective on life. This story ended up piquing my curiosity, placing me in a world where having your DNA spliced to become part-animal was considered bad and treated like a kind of racism. The story flowed smoothly, and the sexual interactions were short but poignant, going so far as to explore how a human would explore a splicer’s body.Next, we have “Cat Toy” by Royce Day. This time, we’re looking through the eyes of a crewman on a freighter working a shift on Felicia, a town filled with feline-analogs described as a kind of cat-like alien. One particular Felician who simply goes by Princess stumbles upon him, leading him back to a hotel and claiming to have made him hers. This story was a delight to read. The writing gripped me, particularly in regards to Princess’s personality displayed throughout, and was a fair bit descriptive, too; it moved along into the sex, detailing how it felt to have a feline’s tongue inside the crewman’s mouth. Everything felt so smooth with how the scenes transitioned from one to the next.In “Schematic for a Purrfect Artifact,” Akiko, a destitute and jobless neko, is salvaged by Yuka. The fox woman decides to employ the cat boy in her machinist company Naked Creations. The name wasn’t just for fun, though: all employees are required to be nude while they work, whether it is on machines or on Yuka as per their contract. This one was a bit of a hurdle for me to get through. While I put this more on the editor for not correcting, there were far too many misspellings and grammatical errors that tripped me up as I read. The writing seemed plain and uninteresting. Even the sex felt dull and methodical, just the participants going through the motions. Also, all the characters just seemed simple and childish. While I admit one can get flustered with their first time as Akiko did, the character seemed completely inept at first, as if he had never researched or heard of sex in the slightest. And this character also had the sex appeal to attract every woman and even cause them to change their goals.In “Enter the Garden” by James Pyke, a goddess has recreated the Garden of Eden, bringing in two human-feline hybrids, Cryo and Priscille, in the hopes of spreading the goddess’s glory across the desolate land outside the garden. This one was an interesting read. The writing took a flourishing outtake on Genesis where sex is spread out as a gospel. Also, it portrays a lover’s first time mating beautifully, depicting the emotions and even the bit of pain following with it.“Leather Boots” by Thurston Howl centers around Jonas, a Canadian visiting Japan on a business trip. On the news, there’s talk about a neko—nude aside from a pair of leather boots—who’s committed three murders in the area. Treating the strange murders as just a typical day in Japan, he starts flipping the channels, soon actively enjoying himself as he watches a game involving swimmers. When Jonas hears a knock on the door, however, his world is flipped upside down. The only horror erotica in the collection, this story was quite the thrilling sexcapade. The creepiness factor was up there with the writing, and the ending was a hell of a turnaround. The pacing was fluid as well, leading into the sex scene—which itself was fantastic, leading from hesitation and fear to pleasured moans and then confusion—exactly when the protagonist was at his most vulnerable.“The Good Girl” by E. S. Lapso revolves around the neko Sora and the man that bought him, Samson. The neko loses a bet and has to dress as a maid for the day while serving his master’s whims. The writing was short and sweet, and the sex scene was definitely enticing with how the characters expressed themselves. However, the entire story was just one single sex scene, more of a “smut” story than erotica, and, considering this is a collection of erotica, “The Good Girl” shouldn’t belong in this anthology.Delving into “Lacuna Vice” by Searska GreyRaven, Ganymede the hedonistic cyber-neko makes his entrance into the nightclub Purgatory. The place is alive with spliced and cybernetically-modified people, with some of the spliced beings going through the full process of becoming two-legged, sentient animals. Gan is soon greeted by Mr. Goodfellow, a representative of a shady company known for scandals such as the illegal splicing of a tentacled creature known as the Protheopi and attempting to steal the plans for a set of implants. What Mr. Goodfellow doesn’t know, though, is that the offer he has to give may actually bite him in the ass. “Lacuna Vice” was wonderful to read through. I was enthralled with the writing, particularly with how Gan was fleshed out and how Mr. Goodfellow doesn’t live up to his name. Even the transitions from place to place impressed me: the switch didn’t leave me jarred and wondering how everyone got from the club to the testing facility. It was intriguing to see how a tentacled machine works to invade and pleasure a living being, while the crafty neko was battling against the machine’s true objective.The last story, “Pussy Perfect” by Kandrel, starts with a group of four friends, Lee, Kim, Charles, and Judy, making their way into an exotic brothel in China Town. With Kim hesitant about this particular cathouse, Lee takes the time to enjoy a gene-modded neko courtesan in the back room. It’s not until after that, after listening to Kim’s protests, that Lee learns a deep secret about his friend. While I enjoyed the writing and content, there were a couple of red flags. The word “Asian” was overused far too much to my tastes in describing Kim’s appearance, and how the author described her laugh as “the typical ‘Asian’ habit of covering her mouth” was just appalling. While it was pleasing to see how a neko acts and lives once out of a subservient position like a brothel, the blatant use of “asian [sic]” to describe Kim’s actions just left a bad taste in my mouth to where I couldn’t truly appreciate the story. Barring that, though, the story paced nicely and kept my attention, and the sex scenes were expressive with how the emotions and even the features of the nekos were detailed.Overall, Purrfect Tails was an arousing anthology to read. If not for the lack of editing, most of these stories would be provocative. Many of the stories gave such unique and ravishing tales that left me wanting more. I’m excited, if the editor can improve with future projects, to see what other stories may make their way to Armoured Fox Press.

We always could use a bit more Banjo Kazooie in our day.
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We came across this new 6-issue comic mini-series at a bookstore! “Auntie Agatha’s Home for Wayward Rabbits is in danger. Run by the titular Agatha and her niece, Julie, this peculiar shelter cares for damaged and dysfunctional rabbits — and now it’s being threatened by a wealthy businessman who will stop at nothing to tear it down.” Auntie Agatha’s Home for Wayward Rabbits is also the latest comic series from famed writer Keith Giffen, helped out by artist Benjamin Roman. It’s available now from Image Comics.

image c. 2018 Image Comics

This episode Roo and Tugs are together in the Salt Lake City studio as they discuss the crazy and amazing world that is the Brazilian take on the furry fandom.


Show Notes
Special Thanks

Burgus, for joining us from Brazil!
Kit
Dusky
And everyone who wrote in!

Music

Opening Theme: RetroSpecter – Cloud Fields (RetroSpecter Mix). USA: Unpublished, 2018. ©2011-2018 Fur What It’s Worth. Based on Fredrik Miller – Cloud Fields (Century Mix). USA: Bandcamp, 2011. ©2011 Fur What It’s Worth. (Buy a copy here – support your fellow furs!)
Potty Break Music: Tudd + General Offensive (Feat. Jayhan) - ARMS REMIX. Online: YouTube, Unknown. (Listen to it here!) Used under Creative Commons license.
Space News Music: Fredrik Miller – Orbit. USA: Bandcamp, 2013. Used with permission. (Buy a copy here – support your fellow furs!)
Fifty Sheds of Grey: Kevin MacLeod – Spy Glass. Licensed under Creative Commons: by Attribution 3.0. Visit Incompetech for more.
Closing Theme: RetroSpecter – Cloud Fields (RetroSpecter Chill Mix). USA: Unpublished, 2018. ©2011-2018 Fur What It’s Worth. Based on Fredrik Miller – Cloud Fields (Chill Out Mix). USA: Bandcamp, 2011. ©2011 Fur What It’s Worth. (Buy a copy here – support your fellow furs!)

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Lygris S8 Episode 7: Brasil - This episode Roo and Tugs are together in the Salt Lake City studio as they discuss the crazy and amazing world that is the Brazilian take on the furry fandom. Show Notes Special Thanks Burgus, for joining us from Brazil! Kit D

Note: There are subtitles if you turn CC on, There doesn't appear to be a way to force it. The Hungarian Institute of Film Science has recently posted a bunch of older animated shorts newly remasterd and I thought I would share one while they are still available. I present to you the very silly Variations on a Dragon. "Seven variations on the traditional story of fairy tales when the dragon kidnaps the royal - but this time, things are not formed according to the paper form." UPDATE: They took the film down so I updated this with another location. If they ever turn the video back on here is the original location: https://vimeo.com/305753980 Also a translation: Ladies and gentlemen, who wouldn't remember that once upon a time there was a beautiful princess. And one day the evil dragon kidnapped the princess. Of course we all remember... And the noble-hearted knight... came, saw, and won. He took the beautiful princess home, their wedding banquet was a festive event famed across the empire, and they lived happily hereafter. That is how the fable ends. But is that the only way the fable could be told? What if this is not the way it ended? Let us try a couple of new versions. VARIATIONS ON A DRAGON 1. Stark Reality 2. Sports Passion Hello... 3. Unexpected 4. A True Friend 5. The Two Scallybag Arthur, please... The horse is soaking. 6. The Weaker Sex 7. Help..! I won! The End
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Whoa, don’t give up on 2018 just yet!  Take a look at some things we missed… Back around Halloween (!) DC Comics continued their mightily-odd hook up with classic Hanna-Barbera characters in new comic book settings. How so? How about the Green Lantern / Huckleberry Hound Special? Yes. “Returning from recent duty in Vietnam, veteran Marine John Stewart — now a member of the Green Lantern Corps — contemplates what, if anything, he should do about the issues tearing his country apart. Meanwhile, Huckleberry’s comments against the Vietnam war have left him a celebrity outcast, and a visit back home to Mississippi puts him face to face with the Civil Rights Movement. What can one man — and one hound — do? Plus, part two of a Secret Squirrel backup story written by J.M. DeMatteis.” Got all that? Check out the web site if you don’t believe us. The main story is by Mark Russell and Rick Leonardi. Not weird enough for you? How about the Deathstroke / Yogi Bear Special, the Nightwing / Magilla Gorilla Special, or the Superman / Top Cat Special? We kid you not.

image c. 2019 DC Comics

The last episode from 2018! We will be back Jan 10th with the first 2019 Episode to come! Episode 51 - Merry Sharkmas and Happy Sharkyear

Yet another episode uploaded for you all to enjoy and consume! Episode 50 - Shark keeps it moving!

A long delayed episode posted for ya all! Episode 49 - Shark gets his butt moving

Here's a National Film-board of Canada short that's currently nominated for an Oscar this year. "Dealing with what comes naturally isn’t easy, especially for animals. In Animal Behaviour, the latest animated short from the Oscar®-winning team of Alison Snowden and David Fine (Bob’s Birthday), five animals meet regularly to discuss their inner angst in a group therapy session led by Dr. Clement, a canine psychotherapist. The group includes Lorraine, a leech who suffers from separation anxiety; Cheryl, a praying mantis who can’t seem to keep a man; Todd, a pig with an eating disorder; Jeffrey, a bird with guilt issues; and Linda, an obsessive-compulsive cat."
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Check out the new crop of of Squirrel bumpers ads from the Russian TV station Первый канал [1] (Channel One Russia) So cute! [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_One_Russia
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Sounds like a trashy grindhouse movie, doesn’t it?  Well, no… it’s Pinky & Pepper Forever, a full-color graphic novel created by Ivy Atoms and published by Silver Sprocket. “After Pinky’s lethal performance art piece, her devoted girlfriend Pepper follows her into death, only to find that in Hell, Pinky is… thriving?! Pinky & Pepper Forever is a dark comedy full of furry feelings and a little gay Catholic guilt. Follow these two puppygirls’ relationship and artwork on Earth and their new life along the River Styx.” It’s available now in trade paperback. Check out the preview over at Silver Sprocket’s web site. [And on that cheery note — welcome to 2019! Hey, remember: Nominations for the Ursa Major Awards for 2018 will be open soon! Ye ed-otter.]

image c. 2019 Silver Sprocket

If you're still up ... Happy New Year!
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Earlier this year we told you about a squirrel named Taco, and a book about him written by Andrew Cangelose and illustrated by Josh Shipley. Well now that same team is back with a new hardcover book, this time following Taco’s friend named Whoopsie — in, you guessed it, This Is a Whoopsie! “This is supposed to be a book about all the different things moose can do, like leaping and jumping and being really tall. But maybe Whoopsie isn’t the right moose for the job. You might want to pick a different moose for this book. Maybe instead we can do a book about falling down a lot? Yeah! Whoopsie would be great at that. From the creators of This Is a Taco! comes the hilarious tale of a clumsy moose who shows how sometimes being a little different can make one great story.” It’s available now from Cubhouse, Lion Forge’s imprint for beginning readers. [And with that, we wish you all a happy, safe, and Furry New Year! — ye ed-0tter]

image c. 2018 Cubhouse

Lets end off 2018 with a wonderful short film by Tyler Purcell of a furry wedding shot on super 16mm film. Man, All that nice film grain. "As part of my documentary about artists in the Furry Fandom, two of our lead characters were getting married at convention in Seattle. Off we went to not only capture the convention, but also the wedding as part of my new documentary. #furrydoc Shot on my Aaton XTR Prod with Zeiss 12-120 zoom, 9.5mm Optar and 24mm Rokinon Xeen. Most of the film was shot with a Tiffen Steadicam A30, which worked well, but difficult to balance for the camera in a full build. Film processed and prepped for telecine at Fotokem. The transfer was done on a Spirit 2k datacine with a flat transfer. Converted the DPX files to Pro Res 4444 in DaVinci with a base pass. Then that file was used for the edit since the DPX files don't playback in real time well. The final output is a 2048x1152 (16x9) Pro Res HQ file with a slight zoom on all the clips to fill the 1.75:1 aspect ratio output format so there are no black bars on the side. That exact file was then uploaded to Vimeo."
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Lion Forge Comics have launched their new Caracal imprint for younger readers with Quantum Mechanics, an all-alien themed graphic novel written and illustrated by Jeff Weigel. “On a nowhere asteroid on the far rim of the galaxy, two young alien girls-Rox and Zam-spend their days tearing apart and repairing clunkers in a spaceship junkyard. These aspiring gearheads yearn for the chance to test their skills on something besides rusted old rockets and broken-down planet-hoppers. Their big chance finally comes when the captain of a mysterious ship called the Quasar Torrent enlists the kids for some repair work. But what initially looks like a golden opportunity quickly becomes a nightmare when the young friends find they’ve been kidnapped by what turns out to be a band of space pirates! Rox and Zam find themselves swept up in the astro-bucaneers’ vendetta against a huge intergalactic corporation that’s forced this motley band of working stiffs from across space into a life of crime. Now the girls must chose: Do they want the comforts of home and family, or the glamorous adventure of a lifetime-to be part of a crew of colorful misfits intent on plunder, revenge, and excitement? Their lives, friendship . . . and maybe even the fate of a galaxy . . . hangs in the balance!” Comicosity has an in-depth review.

image c. 2018 Caracal Comics