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The Complete Series Pet Shop of Horrors Volume 1 reviews by robin Introduction Art |
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Most volumes in this series are filled with short stories, each entitled with a "D" word or phrase, working more like a detective television series than one extended story arc. In this volume, our first encounter with Count D is Dream, where a young woman purchases a glorious bird from D only to regret its loneliness in her elegant arboretum. Determined to find him a mate, she pesters D to find her a female of the species, only to learn too late that this species mating habits are a tad more vicious than she expected. Within this first story the reader is treated to the elements that make Pet Shop of Horrors so addictive ¸ the elaborate beauty and costumes of the "pets" and the anticipation of the twist at each tales end. Detective Orcot arrives at the shop in Despair, trailing clues when a young actor, fading in popularity, is discovered dead in his own home with only a rare lizard, also dead, by his side. D spins a fine tale for the Detective, but can it be true? In Daughter, a pair of grief-stricken parents seek a pet to comfort themselves after a loss, but when D introduces them to a pet rabbit who looks eerily like their dead daughter, they can't resist. When they break the rules in caring for her, though, things go horribly awry. In the final installment, Dreizhen, an orphaned girl, blinded in the fight and fire that led to her parents' murders, finds a most loyal bodyguard at D's shop. Can he help her regain her sight in time to recognize who is responsible for her parents' murders? |
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In Dragon, the Count show's his fiercely protective side when a delivery mix up leaves a rare dragon egg, about to hatch, in the hands of a pet owner expecting a lizard. He manages to wrangle Orcot into helping him break in to retrieve the legendary creature before it hatches -- D is insistent that they don't want to see what happens in they fail in their mission. In Dice, a pickpocket finds his luck with one of D's "stray cats" by his side ¸ but will his newfound wealth make him forget just where his luck came from? Delicious features one of the creepier stories of the entire series. When a popular pop idol, Evangelin Blue, seems to commit suicide on the eve of her wedding, her distraught fiancŲ and the woman he once loved fall under the influence of what appears to be a mermaid. The catch? The mermaid is a dead ringer for the lost Evangelin. Destruction brings the series back to its lesson-giving purpose when Orcot visits the shop only to get transported into a dreamscape (or is it real?) where all of the extinct species linger. At first astounded, he soon learns he's there to defend humanity's interference in the world versus allowing the natural order. |
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Though there are always hints at D's family, and past, in Diamonde we get another piece of the puzzle not to mention a frightening glimpse of just how little D may actually care about human life (not to mention the rare sight of D wearing pants.) When asked to make good on his grandfather's agreement to protect a royal lineage, it seems even murder is not outside D's expertise. Orcot, is shocked, then determined to bring D to justice ¸ for all of D's talk of humanity's cruelty, he could never have predicted this level of callousness. But was it all really D? In Desire, a little girl learns that using a pet to feel superior only lessens others' opinions of her, no matter how angelic she thinks she is. Dessert shows that D may favor more than sweets when tempted by the right person. D is swept away by a sexy new chef specializing in Chinese delicacies, but Orcot is convinced the gentleman has ulterior motives that bode ill for the Count. He should know by now that D is always one step ahead. Devil focuses in on weightier matters by tracing a woman's memories through her vast collection of teddy bears. Her regression leads her to memories of a hidden past in Nazi Germany, allowing her descendants to uncover a lost heritage. |
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As the series continues, the stories get more complex and the morals even murkier ¸ though D seems to always have the last word, there are never any easy solutions. In Digital, a man is found murdered in his apartment with no leads except hundreds of rare fish housed in tanks stacked floor to ceiling. Orcot is stumped, but he knows at least one person who might be able to talk to fish. The short and sweet vignette Flowers and the Detective see Orcot learning that the gift of a plant from D is not to be taken lightly and can be just what the doctor ordered. The second vignette later in the volume shows that sometimes Orcot should just leave well enough alone, not to mention some hilarious asides about the pets' behavior including raccoon Pon-chan washing her food and the always ravenous T-chan's threats to munch on Orcot. Dark Horse follows the needs of a horse trainer and her thoroughbred horse, 1000 Deaths, and as occasionally happens, D decides to help those who deserve it rather than punish the careless. Finally, in Dracula, the series takes on the classic horror character of the vampire. A "vampire" serial killer arrives in LA with the FBI hot on his heels, but the number one suspect seems to be Marquis Alexander, an old (and undead) friend of D's. Orcot struggles with being outranked by the fiery female FBI agent put in charge of the case. When Orcot is challenged to a duel for D's affection by the temptestuous Alexander, the two men find unexpected common ground that leads Orcot to discover the true culprit. This series, while always maintaining the flashes of humor that make it delicious fun, excels at using it's fantastical base to address issues as weighty as transgenderism and lost love with a deft and caring touch. Akino expertly sprinkles every volume with more hints about D's past, and though occasionally readers may want to shake D by his collar like Orcot, the clues are always worth the wait. |
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At the halfway point, the series gets a little deeper into our characters' lives as Orcot's family arrives on the scene. Our first tale, Dual, follows an ambitious politician and his arrogant demand that Count D hand over the creature that apparently cinched his grandfather's political prowess in decades past. D, never one to take orders, reluctantly allows a meeting, but the mythical Kirin, the lord of all animals, has another master in mind. In Day Nursery, Orcot shows just how much he trusts D by leaving his six-year-old brother Chris in his care while trying to juggle work and custody questions with his remaining family. Chris, mute since he discovered his mother died giving birth to him, runs away into the depths of the pet shop and is astounded at all the people he meets there, completely unaware of their true nature. Will he return from the refuge, and will Orcot find a way to keep his brother by his side? Most importantly, will he convince D to help him? Darling, featuring a hilarious beginning that has D and Orcot bickering like an old married couple, brings a grumpy feline, the animal who chooses the heir of a foreign country, to D's shop hoping to hide from responsibility and the conclusion that her own prince does not love her enough to give up the throne. In the final story, Dance, a swan-loving prima ballerina realizes her time has past ¸ will she be able give up the love of her "prince" and her career or will she unleash her bitterness on her current rival? This volume includes some wonderful highlights of Count D and Orcot's friendship, from D scouring Orcot's apartment clean of muck and porn to shield the young Chris to Orcot getting tipsy in the pet shop and finally "seeing" all of the pets in their human forms, much to his bewilderment. |
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Pet
Shop of Horrors Volume 1
Pet Shop of Horrors Volume 2
Pet
Shop of Horrors Volume 3
Pet Shop of Horrors Volume 4
Pet
Shop of Horrors Volume 5
Pet Shop of Horrors Volume 6
Pet
Shop of Horrors Volume 7
Pet Shop of Horrors Volume 8
Pet
Shop of Horrors Volume 9
Pet
Shop of Horrors Volume 10
copyright Robin Brenner 2002-2004