Josie and the Pussycats in Space

Josie and the Pussycats in Space #1-5

by Alex de Campi, Devaki Neogi

Josie and the Pussycats are the hottest band in outer space! But with fame and fortune comes turmoil as internal conflicts are threatening to tear the group apart. But that's nothing compared to the alien horrors they're about to encounter as they find themselves adrift in the vastness of space! Even if the Pussycats manage to stick together as a band, will they be able to survive the horrors that await them in the final frontier?

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels Comics, Graphic Novels

110 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 22, 2020

About the author

Alex de Campi is a New York-based writer with an extensive backlist of critically-acclaimed graphic novels including Eisner-nominated heist noir Bad Girls (Simon & Schuster) and Twisted Romance (Image Comics). Her most recent book was her debut prose novel The Scottish Boy (Unbound). She lives with her daughter, their cat, and a Deafblind pit bull named Tango.

Reviews

[A.J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I usually hate digital-only comics, like I’m only in my early 20’s but Jesus Christ all this Comixology, MU, DCI, and Hoopla crap is all so annoying and extra to me, just give me a print edition of a book and leave me alone. And while I do enjoy Archie comics, they are by no means my favorite stories...but this was super fun and totally worth dealing with the giant hemorrhoid stuck on the ass of reading comics known as Comixology.

I hope it gets a print edition one day, beacause I’d like to reread this sometime on something other than a half broken app. I’m honestly surprised it’s not under the Archie Horror imprint, as it gets a bit dark at times. Ending is sweet as well, but this shouldn’t be surprising since this is by the AVP writer, and she makes fun comics. Recommend.

[Rebecca Crunden]

I thought this was a nifty spin on the narrative!

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[Mimi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has taken the old show to a new heigth. But even without knowledge of the series, this will be an entertaining, exciting read.
And now I can´t get the theme song out of my head 😅

[Sem · Rating 3 out of 5]

spoilers>, by the way. In case you can't guess how yet another alien horror will end.

You know how every single monster movie has to end with the monster dead but then it's suddenly alive again? Like slashers will have Freddy or Jason dead and buried but uh-oh, he's coming back from the grave for another installment!

... I think I hate it now.

It's been done in most popular franchises and then done to death in a barrage of sci-fi and horror and thrillers. It almost feels obligatory at this point. Of course the devious space alien has to rear its head again, of course it has to win in the end! But why though?

This wasn't the best of de Campi's work but it was fun, it was colorful, it had something going. And then half the last issue is spent on this fakeout that everything's fine and the good guys won. and then the monster is actually still there somehow, wow, what a twist, so fun, sure good to know that literally all of that was for nothing.

I know this isn't as much a review as a rant, but I'm just really tired of this nihilistic trope of the bad creature never really being dead. It's a dead horse and horror as a genre has beat it to a pulp. For once, I'd like to see the good guys win. Or at least lose in a way that isn't so damned cheap.

[Bud Latanville · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly dark, even though I knew it was written by Alex de Campi (who has gone very dark, indeed, in other books I've read by her!), for a "Josie & The Pussycats" book.
I know, probably the common impression of Josie... is that it's fluff for kids. And that may be true of some of the books in the series. I don't know, I'm not typically a Josie reader (I was recommended it by The Algorithm because: past reads), but that's my impression. And I'm not dismissing them because of that.

But, back to the book at-hand: I did NOT expect THAT!
The art is fun and energetic, too.
Check it out if you're looking for a twist on "kiddie comics."

[oh, and special mention of de Campi's handling of people with emotional or psychological trauma. There's something we can learn about how to really help, here.]

[Alex Sarll]

I was expecting madcap adventures with oddball extraterrestrials and strange interplanetary gigs. I got the Pussycats trapped in hyperspace with something horrible - a riff on the SF horror likes of Alien, The Thing and Event Horizon, but one which also has room for a cat in a spacesuit. I'm not convinced it comes off quite as thoroughly as de Campi's previous mixing of these genres in the two Archie Vs Predator series, but there are some lovely moments along the way, not least at the end, and the leads are all thoroughly themselves even as they're put through a story way outside their normal territory. Also, a story about being stuck in limbo, outside the world, can't help but feel prescient now - though at least if you're in cryosleep it doesn't count against your allotted span like lockdown does.

[Doc · Rating 4 out of 5]

In space nobody can hear you sing

Another remake of a classic series in the now semi realistic Archie comics (don't worry original Archie is still coming out) what I thought I would get is another story about teh Pussycats dealing with band issues while rocking out in space but what I basically got is space horror. Mind you that is not a bad thing with the original Josie and the Pussycats already handling the subject of band building and cooperation with an assortment of hijinks mixed in. However unlike the other book this one does tend to less humor and more horror making one of my favorites in Melody into something altogether depressing which I didn't particular care for. All in all I enjoyed it but I kind of want to watch the more zany cartoon to feel good about the band once again.

[Maraya21 (The Reading Dragon) · Rating 2 out of 5]

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[Adam Windsor · Rating 2 out of 5]

"The Pussycats meet the Thing From Another World" ought to be right in my wheel house, but this ship goes as far astray as the one in the story itself.

First off, the art is just not good; in particular, it is a real challenge to tell which character is which, at various points. This made the comic much more of a struggle to read than it should be.

Second, the Pussycats don't really get to do anything. They're just there to witness a bunch of people dying, basically.

Third, the ending, which is painful hackneyed horror movie dross.

[Colee B · Rating 5 out of 5]

My preschooler loves Josie and the Pussycats, so he is the reason I picked up this series. I’m very happy that I did because it was a fun, well paced read with solid art. The author did a great job capturing the feel of classic sci-fi horror, and I loved the twist at the end (my little one did too).

I appreciate the scenes where Melody has a panic attack because it showed by little one, who is on the anxious side, that he can use exercises to redirect his focus and stay calm (Melody is his favorite character).

[Glenn Proven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent story, poor art. I enjoyed the original cartoon, and thought this was a good conversion to comics for it. All the original cast but slightly different take on the dynamics of the group. Disappointed in the art, even made following the story difficult.

Probably only a 2 star graphic novel but I gave an extra star for nostalgia’s sake.

[The Endless Unread · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing like the old series used to be. Just felt a bit flat. 2 dimensional characters with barely any world building. Such a shame, considering I used to be a huge Josie and the Pussycats fan.

Would not recommend if you used to be a fan. If you're going into this with fresh eyes, then you may be able to get into it. It just didn't have the spark that the old ones used to have.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an okay horror-comedy sci-fi take on Josie and the Pussycats, no doubt somewhat inspired by the old cartoon series, Josie and the Pussycats in Outer Space. It feels more like Alien, though. Or Metroid.

[Lucas Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the writing and the concept, but had real problems with the art, especially telling characters apart… though I eventually worked out that one of them probably wasn’t Josie when she was brutally murdered by an alien halfway into the story.

[Sandro Falce · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun and unexpectedly tense sci-fi horror adventure with a band of classic characters.

Full review up now on ImpulseGamer: https://www.impulsegamer.com/josie-an...

[Bill Coffin · Rating 2 out of 5]

As much as I enjoyed the other recent takes on Josie and the Pussycats, this just didn’t work for me, mainly because of its really off-putting tone shift into space survival-horror.

[Kathryn Grace Loves Horror · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh. I like Alex de Campi a lot usually, but this one was kind of a downer.

[Vincent · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know what to make of Alex de Campi's version of Josie and the Pussycats. In particular her changes to the Melody character. Portrayed in the past as ditzy, for the better de Campi's Melody is not. She's out-of-sync and speaks her mind but I wouldn't call her ditzy which is a definite improvement. However, I've always thought of old Melody as being an unwavering optimist sifting through shitty circumstances for that gem of hope. Alex de Campi's new Melody seems to be missing that in your face optimism that the first version had.

I liked the story though. The Pussycat's tour spaceship is invaded by a parasitic space creature that possesses its host. The story follows the band's search for a way off their spaceship. It is familiar plot territory made interesting by the different portrayals of familiar Pussycat characters.

[Whatcha Reading Heather? · Rating 2 out of 5]

So first off, I'd like all of the covers as artwork (as well as numerous panels) and I DID enjoy the plot and think it would be fun if it were implemented into film form. However, there were so many parts of this that didn't feel like Josie and the Pussycats at its core that it ultimately made it feel like they were just used by name recognition only (which worked because I'm a HUGE Josie and the Pussycats fan).