Pixie and Brutus comics have a simple formula that never gets old: one tiny, overconfident kitten, one grumpy old dog, and a lot of patience being tested.
The series comes from Ben Hed, a Minnesota-based artist who posts on Instagram as @pet_foolery. His most famous duo is Pixie, a naive little kitten, and Brutus, a scarred German Shepherd who retired from military work. The first Pixie and Brutus comic was posted in September 2018, and the pair later got their own graphic novel, Gnome Sweet Gnome.
This list follows three short stories. Pixie plays hide-and-seek and slowly cracks the oldest trick in the book. Lola, a bubbly yellow dog, tries to start a conversation with Brutus. And Pixie meets a mouse trap, which goes exactly as badly as you’d expect.
Here are 3 Pixie and Brutus comics, told in 16 panels, that show why these characters have such a loyal following.
Artist credit: Instagram
3 Pixie and Brutus Comics
1: Pixie’s Hide-and-Seek Breakthrough
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Pixie is “it” in a backyard game of hide-and-seek, and her instincts send her straight to the log pile. A voice from behind the logs calmly reports that nobody is back there, while a dog’s nose pokes out in plain sight. Pixie says “Oh, OK!” and trots off, happy with the answer. Then Ben Hed slows the story down. Across four quiet panels, Pixie stops, frowns and thinks it through: “But if… Then how… Unless…” The last beat is framed like a thriller, with only her narrowed eyes showing in a strip of light. When she storms back, Brutus, Lola and a hairless cat are crammed behind the logs, shocked that their trick failed. Lola gasps that it usually works, and Brutus, sounding almost proud, says she’s learning. It’s one of the sweetest Pixie and Brutus comics, since the real joke is that the little kitten is getting smarter.
2: Lola’s Endless Questions
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Lola, a bubbly yellow dog, is full of big questions. What’s it like to be a bat? What about a whale? Brutus answers every one with a flat “No.” When he finally asks if she ever wonders what it’s like to sit quietly without pointless hypothetical questions, Lola goes silent and grumpy for one panel. Then she fires back, asking if he ever wonders what it’s like to not be a massive grumpy-butt. His reply, “I can only imagine,” is deadpan perfection.
3: Pixie vs. the Mouse Trap
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Image credit: Instagram
Pixie spots a little wooden trap with a cheese cube on it and asks what it is. Brutus tells her it’s a mouse trap, but the cheese wins. SNAP. Pixie flies into the air with the trap on her paw while Brutus shouts her name. Once it’s off, he asks why she did it, and her answer is simple: she wanted the cheese. Her logic is airtight, too. If it worked on cats, why would they call it a mouse trap?
