Something you see on the Internet from time to time: “Be the person your dog believes you to be.” Because dogs have instincts, and can see the stronger emotions within a person – anger fear, love, etc. And it’s been said Hitler loved dogs, but they may not have regarded him as one of the worst villains of the 20^th century.

So when a magical amulet enables a petty criminal to merge with a dog he took in lieu of payment, the dog’s better instincts take over, helping to reform the criminal into more than a better citizen. Together, they become G’Dog (pronounced like an abbreviated “good dog,” not some street name), a human/dog hybrid, and earn the admiration of the citizens and other heroes of Astro City.

Norton’s artwork is considerably different than that of series regular Brent Anderson. Perhaps not quite as dynamic, but in this age of dynamic poses and unrealistic anatomy, it’s refreshing to see a Corgi rendered simply and accurately. It reminds me of the comics of the 1950s and ‘60s, when artists were called upon to draw horses, cars and other every day objects with accuracy rather than stylized flair.

It’s a great story, but it only goes so far, as dogs notoriously have life spans 1/7^th that of humans. So what does that mean for our former-thief-now-hero? Well, that’s  a question to be answered next issue.