Oh, this was so cute!! Artie And The Wolf Moon had the kind of tight-knit found family I’m happy to see in a werewolf story for the first time (okay, maybe not the first time, but this was more convincing), but there was also a nice overlap of the communities biologically related to Artie(the pack in Pinewood), and outside of it(the pack in Willow Ridge). In general, the pack community was refreshing to read about, and I liked the new mythos incorporated into these werewolves. I was indifferent about the vampires, though, mostly because there wasn’t as much time spent on them.

Cat wasn’t really a convincing friend to Artie, either? I know there’s a plot reason for her toxicity, but I just couldn’t wrap my mind around how Artie grew so attached to her. However, I had my fair share of toxic friendships in middle school, and I could appreciate how Artie’s all-consuming relationship with Cat was shown through the panels. 

The inclusion of the photographs was so cool, too! Not only can you see them be brought together like pieces of a puzzle in the chapter title cards, but when they're in the story itself, there’s a kind of uncanniness in how the different vampires or werewolves are rendered in them. It’s such a cool contrast to the rest of the art—which is simpler in shading/lighting, and more “cozy”—and is also a creative way to show the film photographs as a different medium!

The final fight against the vampires was also a blast to read about. And the emotions shown through Loretta’s wolf form… some of those panels crushed me!! I’ll admit, though, that her wolf form was the only one I could really distinguish. I wish the other wolves were more unique in their designs.

The pacing was a little fast, but there was still enough history given on the characters (the wolves, at least), action, and characterization to make this an engaging read. I think the target demographic(middle schoolers with a taste for monster/creature-focused stories that aren’t totally creepy) will absolutely love this.