Five years ago, one of the biggest entertainment headlines in years came along with it was announced that Jim Davis, the creator of Garfield, had sold the rights to his beloved character (and the U.S. Acres gang) to Viacom and Nickelodeon. In the years since, there ha been little noise from Nickelodeon and Viacom in regard to anything new from Garfield. That is at least in regard to television and movies. That movie that was released this year (and which flopped, as its 36% Tomato meter score shows) was not from Nickelodeon and Viacom. Now, with that in mind, what the companies have been doing with Garfield is far more noticeable on the printed page, as they have partnered with Boom! Studios and its children’s division, kaboom!, to release a series of new Garfield comics anthologies titled Garfield Full Course. Three volumes have already been released since December 2023, and now a fourth collection is due out Oct. 15. The appeal of this upcoming collection comes in part through its featured stories. They will be discussed shortly. The artwork featured throughout the collection unquestionably plays into the book’s engagement and entertainment, too. It will be addressed a little later. The bonus content that accompanies the new set also puts its own touch to the whole and will also be examined later. Each item noted here is key in its own way to the whole of the collection’s appeal. All things considered they make Garfield Full Course: Volume Four another fully enjoyable collection that Garfield fans of all ages will love.
Garfield Full Course: Volume Four, the latest addition to Nickelodeon and Boom! Studios’ ongoing series of Garfield comics, is another successful offering from the companies. The anthology’s success comes in part through its featured stories. As with the previous collections, the stories were largely written by Mark Evanier and offer lots of laughs. Right from the collection’s outset, readers get a fun, original story in “Cinderella Stella.” The Stella in question is Liz’s niece, who is a plain type of girl. When a birthday party that she and Jon hold for her does not go as planned, Stella hits a new emotional low, o it is up to Garfield (and his doggie pal, Odie) to turn Stella into a virtual Cinderella. The catch is that Garfield enlists the aid of Squeak and his fellow mouse friends to make it happen. Along the way there is plenty of familiar breaking of the fourth wall, which longtime fans will find enjoyable. Things turn out quite positive for Stella and even for Garfield and company as a result of their efforts. It is a heartfelt story that also offers just enough laughs to still make it fully engaging and entertaining.
On another note, an equally fun story comes in the form of “Up is Down.” Written by Evanier, this Halloween tale is in its own way, a throwback to Garfield & Friends as Odie accidentally stumbles onto a magic wand. This as Garfield is dealing with Nermal, who is trying to trick Garfield into giving him some candy. N Garfield & Friends, there is a slightly similar episode involving Odie finding a magic wand in “Odie the Amazing.” Coming in Season Five, the story finds Odie discovering the wand, which had been thrown out by a magician after mistaking it for a stick he wanted Garfield to throw for him to fetch. The silliness that follows generates plenty of laughs. In the case of “Up is Down,” once again Odie wants Garfield to throw a stick so he can fetch it. This time, Odie discovers the wand (which looks like a stick) after it was thrown out by the animal pals’ neighbor, Mrs. Cauldron. Mrs. Cauldron threw it out because as with the magician, it didn’t work anymore. To make things more interesting, a new character, Gorgon, looks to steal the wand so that he can take over the world and uses one of Nermal’s disguises to try to get it away from Odie. This of course leads to even more laughs. Again, the throwback to Garfield & Friends here is great. That the story is still original makes for even more engagement and entertainment. It is hardly the only story that throws back to that beloved series. Early in the collection’s Evanier throws back again in two other stories, “Won’t Power” and “Gilbert.” “Won’t Power” is an updated take (of sorts) of “Five Minute Warning,” (Season 3), which sees Garfield in a bet with Jon that he can’t go five minutes without eating. In the former story, Garfield this time has to go 30 minutes without eating, and more specifically, eating his favorite food, lasagna. What happens as a result makes for its own share of laughter, too. In the case of “Gilbert,” it can easily be likened to the Garfield & Friends episode, “The Man Who Hated Cats” (Season 7). In “The Man Who Hated Cats,” the man in question hated cats because he missed his cat, who had run away years earlier while the pair was at the park. The story is quite similar in “Gilbert,” except that Gilbert didn’t hate cats. Rather, he was just depressed because his cat had run off years prior. It has just as much a happy ending as ‘The Man Who Hated Cats.”
Getting back to the more original side, Evanier offers readers plenty of that, too, later in the collection in “The Mailman the Make-Believers.” In this story, Garfield ends up helping Herman Post, the mailman after a pair of thieves set out to steal a package that Herman is delivering. The irony is that there is a certain level of truth to this story, considering all the thieves out there who are willing to steal packages right from people’s front doors and even from mail carriers. The stories are out there in the news and easy to find. To have Garfield essentially become a crime fighter of sorts is a unique take and enjoyable in its own right. This is just one more example of how much the stories in this collection have to offer readers. When it and the other stories examined here are considered along with the rest of the book’s sets, the whole makes clear how much the stories themselves have to offer readers.
The stories that make up Garfield Full Course: Volume Four are just part of what makes the book so engaging and entertaining. The art, for the most part, makes for its own appeal. Speaking more specifically, artist Andy Hirsch’s work is quite appealing. That is because it truly once again strives to pay homage to the art style used in Jim Davis’ original Garfield comic strips. The stylistic similarity is stunning even though it is not exactly like that of Davis. There are other unique art styles crafted by other artists throughout the collection, but none stand out quite as much as that of Hirsch. His work, paired with Evanier’s hilarious stories, enhances the engagement and entertainment herein all the more in this collection of Garfield comics.
Putting the last touch on Garfield Full Course: Volume Four is the bonus material. In the case of this collection, the bonus material is truly special. It comes in the form of a handful of original Garfield comic strips from Sunday papers. There are six strips in all, along with a pair of variant covers, but it is those strips that are the true bonuses. Yes, there are several Garfield comic strip collections out there in both hardcover and paperback collections, but reading these Sunday strips creates a certain sense of nostalgia and hope that maybe those hard to find collections will sooner rather than later be re-issued in new hardcover collections. To that end, they help close out this collection in wonderful form. When they are considered alongside the anthology’s stories and primary art, the whole makes Garfield Full Course Volume Four another must have for Garfield fans of every age.
Garfield Full Course: Volume Four, the latest collection of new Garfield comics from Nickelodeon and kaboom!, the children’s division of Boom! Studios, is a wonderful new addition to the companies’ ongoing series of new Garfield comics that readers of all ages will enjoy. That is due in part to its featured stories. Written primarily by Mark Evanier, the stories are both original and throwbacks to stories from Garfield & Friends while still being original. All in all, every story offers readers plenty of engagement and entertainment. The artwork presented by primary artist Andy Hirsch continues a time honored stylistic approach that readers are just as certain to appreciate. The bonus Sunday Garfield comic strips create a welcome sense of nostalgia and hope that the original comic strips will once again be “new” again and soon, putting the final touch to the whole. Each item examined is important in its own way to the whole of this latest collection of Garfield comics. All things considered they make the collection a must read by any true Garfield fan of any age.
Garfield Full Course: Volume Four is scheduled for release Oct. 15. More information on this and other titles from Boom! Studios is available at:
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