Wallace & Gromit: Catch of the Day

    (Titan, 2002)
™ and ©2002 Aardman

This is not the first book starring Nick Park’s Wallace and Gromit, but it is probably the best. The art is cleaner and more professional than in previous books; the lettering is far more readable; and they have resisted the urge to cram in more than is viable.

Wallace and Gromit are the stars of a trio of stop-motion animation films. Wallace is a clever inventor but oblivious to the world around him. Gromit, his dog, is savvier, as well as long-suffering when it comes to his master.

The plot of this hardcover book revolves around a lack of fish and Wallace’s designs to acquire some. If this sounds too close to his quest for cheese in his first film, fret not; the story goes in a completely different direction.

Artist Hansen has captured Gromit. The dog is the smarter of the two but mute. Most of his expression comes from his eyes. It’s not always easy to convey what a silent character is thinking, especially when he has no visible mouth, but Hansen pulls it off nicely.

There is one joker in the deck, what Hitchcock called a McGuffin. Feathers McGraw, the perilous penguin from the film The Wrong Trousers, is reported on the loose in this story, but there is no payoff. That’s probably supposed to be funny, but we’re just left hanging.

— Jack Abramowitz
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#1 (Hardcover Edition)

November, 2002
Cover Price: $8.99
2 copies available from $14.00 		Ian RimmerJimmy Hansen