By Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)
Viz Media
Sept 17, 2019
Makoto Kobayashi’s “What’s Michael” may well have captured the hearts of many with his hilarious look at one of Japan’s most beloved cats, but over in Paris, Taiyo Matsumoto shows not every feline has to be an alley cat. They can be refined little nekos. Cats of the Louvre is a welcome addition to my family of kitties to play with.
Matsumoto’s artistic style more inspired by the talents from this country, namely Moebius, and it is perfect to capture the romance and beauty of everything Paris represents.
Instead of specifically focusing on the cats roaming around the Louvre, a group of humans are just as involved. Cecile is a tour guide, Patrick is a new employee of the museum and Marcel is a security guard which almost takes after a certain character from Night at the Museum. No, I’m not talking about Larry Daley (Ben Stiller’s character).
Marcel’s past is also key the strange goings on here. His sister went missing over 50 years ago, and he thinks she’s still alive, but living in a painting! One day, he thought he saw her walk into a work of art. Snowbebe is a kitten who also can wander the planes. Whether these paintings are portals to other realms, I certainly thought so.
At night, the museum also comes alive and a small family of cats are following the antics. I’m enjoying this work and am treating it as a slow read. As a fan of the aforementioned film trilogy, this work is right up my alley and that’s nothing to meow at.
5 Stars out of 5
