Fuzz and Pluck: Splitsville

Fuzz & Pluck #2

by Ted Stearn

Fuzz & Splitsville tells the hilariously bizarre adventures of Pluck, an irritable and featherless rooster, and his best pal, the awkwardly unsocialized but lovable teddy bear known as Fuzz. These two usually inseparable and co-dependent misfits find themselves suddenly separated and alone. Pluck vows to establish his place in the world's pecking order by becoming a champion gladiator, while the more demure Fuzz finds himself a POW in a stuffed animal collection, only to escape and befriend a mercurial ferryman who recruits him for an impossible task. These absurdities pile on and eventually converge in a fatal collision course that reunites our heroes.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction

232 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 15, 2008

Reviews

[karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

so of course i had all the comic book issues of this and as soon as it came out in book format i had to buy that too. can someone explain this mad collection bug?? can someone stop it?? because between space and money shortages, im screwed. in a way its nice to have books absolutely everywhere, but in a way its pathological. i need a cure.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ted Stearn does MTV animation, among others things. His credits include Beavis and Butthead. Fuzz and Pluck was originally serialized in Zero Zero Comics, and is the nicer side of Beavis and Butthead, for sure. There's an annoyed chicken and a sort of lost and lovable bear. Reminds me of Pogo for some reason, just spinning adventures. Fine artist, Stearn. I wasn't all that engaged, but this may just have to be where my mind is at the moment. I found it likable, all right?! It's pretty fun! Liked it just fine.

[Eva Mitnick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The continuing very odd adventures of a timid stuffed bear and a featherless rooster. Some strange part of me really relates to the hapless and strange characters and situations in this cleanly drawn graphic novel. The scene with the stuffed animals and dolls in a little girl's bedroom was both nightmarish and touching, as they rip off a stuffed duck's wings and stick them on Fuzz with band-aids so he can fly...

[Jamie Felton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the artwork, the story, everything. Super funny graphic novel with an engaging plot and array of eccentric characters.

[Kar Kaim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fuzz & Pluck's adventures are pure genious; a black humor jewel, and a narrative work of art. Can't be left unread if dark humor, surrealism, and social criticism are called in attention.

[Derek Royal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread these Fuzz and Pluck comics in preparation for an interview with Ted Stearn.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I like most about this graphic novel is the way the author straddles the line between kiddie and grown-up stories. He doesn't quite manage to stay equally between the two as he ends up landing on the adult side. Sure, most of the characters are cute and they don't use bad language (except one of the characters is named Lardass). But very bad things happen to both Fuzz and Pluck. There is violence, drugging, death, and an evil mutant fruit named Sourpuss. None of the things I will allow my daughter to look at when I trust her to go through my graphic novels. The graphic style is spot on for the type of stories that Stearn tells and the hardbound book is nicely packaged and perfectly sized.

Most of the comics I own are either cheesy superhero, classic horror and crime, or aimed strictly at an adult audience. But I'm glad I took a chance and picked up something a little different for my collection.

[Peter Landau · Rating 5 out of 5]

FUZZ AND PLUCK: SPLITSVILLE by Ted Stearn is a silly animal book about a teddy bear and a featherless chicken, and their adventures in a surreal world of dangers. The story of a teddy bear and featherless chicken is surprisingly realistic. I mean, sure, I’ve not been menaced by a sour lemon half or had wings sewn on my furry hide to see if I could fly, but Stearn’s beautiful drawings and inventive narrative always felt just this side of reality, maybe even more real, oddly, because of being off-kilter. It made me see my place in the world as being just as haphazard and tenuously held together by weird happenstance and friendships. That’s a lot to convey with pen and ink, but Stearn’s cartooning is vaudeville with a big heart: the cream pies in your face are as sweet as the seltzer down your pants is refreshing.

[Noel Kalmus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to live in this surreal little animal world that Stearn has created. He expertly captures that bizarre, adorable, dream-like mood that so many try for and fail to truly pin down. This novel is reminiscent of playing with tiny animal toys when you are young, that effortless creative universe that is so weird yet so perfect. Ted Stearn just seems like one of the best people. A weird brain but not shocking or deranged, just the right amount of spacey.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ted Stearn is a unique artist, bringing some truly wild and weird ideas to the world of comics. The world he has created follows a logic all it's own, and he has populated this world with an unpredictable mix of talking animals, sentient mutant fruits, and scheming stuffed toys. If you have a taste for the offbeat and the absurd, you'll dig this one; if not, you're likely to the be perplexed at the minimum, and thoroughly confused at the maximum.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wacky graphic novel for grown-ups who like weird stories told in comic form (I guess that's me). Reminds me of "Krazy Kat" comics although maybe a bit easier to understand because of its more modern humor. I'll keep an eye out for more books featuring the "hapless li'l bear and his defeathered friend" in their unpleasant but entertaining adventures.

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book! It focuses on the value of a friend who will stick with you even if the rest of the world kicks you when you're down. Behind the absurd adventures of Fuzz (a teddy bear) and Pluck (a featherless rooster) there is a very real message of loyalty and friendship.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

the surreal, hilarious, witty adventures of a plucked chicken and a teddy bear. this is probably even better stoned.

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hysterical!

[Eric Stodolnik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun, silly little comic. Loved every second.

[alifstyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cute character but a heartbreaking storyline. Bought it a long time ago, but only managed to read it last week — and that was because I took an express bus to Kedah.

[Kacper · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's okay.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun romp that felt like mixing Tom Sawyer with The Simpsons. The plot was fun, if random. A good pick for those looking for a light-hearded graphic novel with bits of darker humor.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun.

[Erik Wirfs-Brock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just a fun,light hearted funny animal comic that skirts the border between being for kids amd some sort of twisted adult swim cartoon.