Who’d thought that food would have such attitude and minds as rotten as our own? Author, artist and publisher Alex Hahn seemed to think so and put this premise to good use with Cruffin & Muffnut, a rather twisted but lovable story of boy meets girl, or more accurately; half-muffin, half-doughnut meets half-muffin, half croissant in a world of living food. It may sound a little weird on this one, but stay with me on this as this premise has more heart and humour than you would first think. Don’t be surprised if you feel peckish after reading this either…
As mentioned earlier, the story revolves on the titular character Muffnut, the stereotypical shy guy that we all love to see win the day, attempting to gain the affection of Cruffin, an all round troublemaker that menaces and torments him so (and everyone else she meets for that matter). The story follows a rather vague narrative, as the pages unfold on separate scenarios as Muffnut attempts and fails to gain Cruffin’s affection, often with embarassing and painful results. From the cliche flowers and cards, to literally taking a bullet for her, Cruffin is ready to retaliate with a less than desired response that often leaves Muffnut disheartened but more determined than ever. Oh, and food puns.
There is a lot served up here. In fact the very first scene has one that you can’t help but chuckle when you see it. The humour is set straight from this point and flows well throughout the story and the pages at a frequent pace, capturing a good blend of immaturity and sincerity, which does make it difficult to narrow down who this was intended for at times, kids or immature adults? Either way, I found the content captivating and simple to follow, with a good moral compass within its often dark instances.
The art style itself follows a simplistic nature but has the charm and details that fits well with Alex’s unique style when looking at his other content. The designs are consistent and easy to recognise, and brings to light the fantastic character designs (with handy character diagrams included). The basic overall simplicity is what brings its appeal, the ability of presenting character expressions with only eyes present on the characters is a difficult process but is used efficiently and effectively to create a rollercoaster of emotions as each scene unfolds. At times I felt if the scenes could benefit from colour, but the subject matter and the overall design benefits well without it.
In my opinion, Cruffin & Muffnut presents a fair balance between adult humour and child like wonder which makes it a unique read from most titles available out there. It builds upon a unique idea and promotes Alex’s artistic integrity and creativity. My only gripe is the lack of solid story and narrative, as it is presented in a collection of singular incidents that felt jumbled and out of place sometimes. But aside from that personal little nitpick, I hope this becomes the first of many adventures of these bizarre food hybrids.
Have you had the chance to read through Cruffin & Muffnut? What did you think of it? Sound off in the comments or send us your thoughts on Twitter! Check out the comic as well as Alex’s other work here!