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Cat Burglar (Netflix)

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by ISD (talk | contribs) at 18:55, 22 February 2022 (→Reception). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Cat Burglar is an American interactive animation created by English writer Charlie Brooker for Netflix. Debuting on February 22, 2022, the viewer plays cartoon cat Rowdy who is trying to steal a valuable artwork from a museum which is being protected by security guard dog Peanut. The viewer must answer a series of trivia questions correctly in order to advance the story, with the animation having different outcomes depending on how the viewer answers.

Plot

Rowdy (James Adomian) a feline burglar learns that a museum is displaying a valuable artwork which he decides to steal. Dog Peanut (Alan Lee), the museum's security guard, is ordered by the museum's director (Trevor Devall) to protect the artwork from being stolen. The story sees Rowdy attempting to break into the museum and successfully steal the painting without being caught by Peanut, which is done by the viewer answering a several of trivia questions. Every time the viewer gets the questions right, the story progresses. The cartoon ends when either Rowdy successfully steals the artwork and wins, or the Rowdy runs out of lives and loses.[1]

Production

Cat Burlgar is inspired by an episode of Brooker's anthology series Black Mirror entitled Bandersnatch, which was also interactive, with the viewer making choices which changed the plot of the story. It was also inspired by the Looney Tunes series of cartoons, in particular those made by Tex Avery. While a normal viewing of Cat Burglar lasts on average 15 minutes, there is over 90 minutes of animation made, combining all the possible outcomes the viewer may make.[1]

Reception

Cat Burglar received good to mixed reviews. Stuart Jeffries gave it 4 out of 5 stars in The Guardian, praising the music and the homages to classic cartoons.[2] Lauren O'Neill of i also gave Cat Burglar 4 out of 5 stars, liking the interactive elements which make the viewer less passive in comparison to most streamed television.[3] Caroline Framke of Variety enjoyed the interactive aspects, saying that was tempting to mess up to see what kind of twists the show would take.[4] Ed Power of The Daily Telegraph was more critical, giving it 3 out of 5 stars, liking the animation, but feeling frustrated by the interactive elements, arguing that they felt, "tacked on".[5]

References

  1. ^ a b Richardson, Jay (February 2, 2022). "Charlie Brooker interactive cartoon Cat Burglar coming to Netflix". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  2. ^ Jeffries, Stuart (February 22, 2022). "Cat Burglar review – Charlie Brooker's note-perfect nostalgia trip for cartoon fetishists". The Guardian. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  3. ^ O'Neill, Lauren (February 22, 2022). "Cat Burglar, Netflix, review: More to Charlie Brooker's interactive cartoon than meets the eye". i. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  4. ^ Framke, Caroline (February 22, 2022). "'Cat Burglar,' Netflix's New Interactive Cartoon From 'Black Mirror' and 'BoJack Horseman' Producers, Is a Wacky Good Time: TV Review". Variety. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  5. ^ Power, Ed (February 22, 2022). "A superb pastiche of Looney Tunes with an iffy video game tacked on: is this really the future of TV?". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
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