Brightheart's new story was disappointing

A new Warrior Cats graphic novel, "A Thief in ThunderClan," was released just this past Tuesday! Here are my thoughts on how it was good, but not quite great. Most the art in this video is from the new graphic novel, illustrated by the talented James L. Barrry: www.jlbarry.com/
Lionheart art by Miss Dako:
Intro by Lapid Feder:

[@izumi7871]

I just hate that brighthearts scar is drawed so small, but in the books half of her face is the scar.

[@Moony1568]

These books are for children. That’s why. The graphic novels are never gory. They rarely show blood and when they do, it’s small droplets. These are children’s books. Let’s not forget that.

[@citrusbeanz]

@@Moony1568 *wings of fire graphic novels staring cutely*

[@crowkat4519]

@@Moony1568 Although longtails eyes being ripped out is all graphic and shi, more graphic than brighthearts injury

[@torra9979]

@@Moony1568 There is no excuse, Warrior Cats is, and always will be a series for teens. It has had much more graphic imagery both described and illustrated over the years. The scarring should be allowed to be drawn as it is described in the books.

[@WorldsBiggestSelenaGomezFan]

@@citrusbeanz not true. Did u guys ever read exile from shadowclan?

[@Rainbowpaw_shine]

I'm really disappointed that the Erins never gave Brightheart an apprentice. It's just... ARGH

[@BugsyBugYT]

hi again XD

[@dragonaura6698]

Also Firestar promising to give her Foxkit or Icekit as an apprentice when they became of age and he just DIDN'T FIRESTAR IS A LYING LEADER WHO ONLY GAVE BRIGHTHEART JAYPAW AS AN APRENTICE BECAUSE HE WAS BLIND AND SHE WAS HALF-BLIND

[@HiHi-lt1cb]

I literally hate it so much, if they retcon it in some other book between arcs I will not be upset

[@flowergirlfix]

​@PISSABILITY jay was an asshole to her 😢

[@Willowfloofs]

*runs to go write an au where she does*

[@flamestormthecat2833]

My problem with this book really came from the fact that 80% of Brightheart's distrust of her clanmates directly comes from the events of The darkest hour. Like really, besides her 2 nightmares (which are only briefly shown), she doesn't seem to see the dog attack as a traumatic event? Which felt off to me. I always wanted a Brightheart books, bc I hoped it would explore how she dealt with getting over the trauma's of the dog attack and how she dealt with Swiftpaw's loss (who's implied to have been a close friends, even possible crush of hers). But Swiftpaw only gets mentioned once in the entire book, and it's more as a "yeah, he died lmao" kind of way. Other then that we briefly see his body in the last nightmare, and even then his loss is not explored at all. About the dog attack itself, besides the two nightmares it also only gets mentioned once or twice, wile the BloodClan battle and Tigerstar's actions in The darkest hour were seemingly explored more. I honestly just found this sad, the events of The darkest hour and the aftermath of it are already properly explored by characters such as Ravenpaw, Firestar, Brambleclaw, Leopardstar and Greystripe. We don't need another cat added to that list, especially not if it would make more sense for her to be traumatised by a different event.

[@sillyboyblogger]

I agree but swiftpaw was her cousin so i dont think she really had a crush on him..😭(correct me if im wrong!)

[@flamestormthecat2833]

@@sillyboyblogger tbh, back when the first series came out Lionheart and Goldenflower weren’t related, that was something that was made canon way later down the line, and it is implied the two were very close in A dangerous path. I believe it was even stated in one of the guides that she liked Swiftpaw a lot. And the literally the entirety of ThunderClan is related to each other, you don’t wanna know how many cats are each other’s cousins when they got together lol. On top of this, most readers don’t even know these two are related bc no one remembers Lionheart is Brightheart’s dad. But i am still sad that they didn’t even explore this aspect of their relationship.

[@sillyboyblogger]

@@flamestormthecat2833 ehh, i get what you mean but, its still weird. To me. Even if to me it wasnt, its still morally (theyre heavily humanized) wrong, and it would be avera (hebrew word for sin) for me to support that as it’s not allowed in my religion- But yeah, the Erins may have implied that they had a crush on eachother first.

[@Anonymous-ng4wc]

other than* that, while*

[@-Warriorseverything-]

Some times I think the fans can write better super editions then the Erin’s can

[@-Warriorseverything-]

I mean manga book thing

[@BugsyBugYT]

fr

[@Cosmictuft]

Yeah, some fan made content is shockingly better than anything canon could ever make.

[@thewindofsuicune]

@@Cosmictuft Got any cool examples?

[@14chakita]

​@@Cosmictuft Also asking for any cool examples because I'm intrigued

[@AndromedaTheCat_]

I know everyone is talking about this, but the way Brightheart's scar is drawn really bugs me. The dogs didn't just nibble at her eye a little, they literally mangled and disfigured half of her face...

[@Snowstar837]

Not to mention that in her official art in Cats of the Clans, she has the full scar, so there's no reason that they would keep the artist from drawing it in this less realistic style (painted full portrait vs. the style of the graphic novels)

[@catdotcom]

​@@Snowstar837The way she's depicted in the official art is very much the same as in the manga, though. Brightheart is always depicted with just a scar over her eye in any of her official merch and art.

[@marguerite2286]

​@@catdotcomyeah and i don't know why , i just reread the Book and it describe her nose as heavily scarred and her face and ear torned off

[@VictorTheCommander99]

It’s probably for the purpose of age restriction. Keep in mind that the Sasha manga wasn’t even allowed to show a dead rabbit, even though there was no visible blood. Simply put, writing violence is one thing, drawing it in all its detail is quite another as far as the censors are concerned.

[@IxyXVIII]

I agree.... They really didn't explore her disability too much. Just.... Gets pregnant and is kinda unoriginal.

[@grasshoppersofdoom]

True. I was just thinking about how many books lately have been about kits/a pregnant cat, or had a huge plot dedicated to them. Squirrelflight's Hope - One of the main conflict was the fact that Squirrelflight wanted kits, another main conflict was the that Moonshine was expecting kits, and she didn't want to leave the area but a lot of the other cats wanted her to leave. Pebbleshine's Kits - Pebbleshine was expecting kits during the novella. Daisy's Kin - The focus of the book is on Coriander's kits I know there's more but I can't remember them.

[@darkacademialover]

​@@grasshoppersofdoom*cough* Spotfur's *cough* rebellion, like, it's called REBELLION, show us more how she helped against ImpostorStar

[@grasshoppersofdoom]

@@darkacademialover I was thinking Spotfur's Rebellion but I wasn't 100% sure, thanks for confirming my memory. I would have loved to see more of the secret meetings with all the other cats who were part of the rebellion.

[@mawdoesnotlikechips]

@@grasshoppersofdoom Yellowfang’s Destiny focusing on how she is expecting kits as a medicine cat.

[@StarLupus]

I REALLY hate the scar. I get that they can’t draw a gorey mutilated cat but can’t they at least let the cartoony scar she has on the cover extend to the entire side of her face? With a more ripped ear maybe? I’m also super sad it doesn’t explore her disability more.

[@SLTheOneAndAwesome19]

C'mon Akira, it's not fair to say Frostfur never showed up! She was in one panel congratulating Brightheart and Cloudtail and *then* she never showed up! lol I think my biggest problem with the book is that it doesn't feel like a story suited to Brightheart. Brightheart is portrayed in the books as being a very open communicator *when it comes to the needs of the Clan*. Her being quiet about suffering with her pregnancy? Makes total sense for her character. But when it comes to her Clan's needs she has always been vocal. There's also this persistent "we have to tell Firestar, we have to tell Firestar" happening throughout the book and... she did. And he brushed her off for lack of evidence or urgency. So she wants to collect evidence before bringing it up again... but when they don't have any kind of evidence, suddenly there's pressure to bring it up to Firestar again, and the idea of telling Graystripe, despite it being suggested multiple times, is brushed off. It's just really weird. Brightheart notices that the prey is missing more and more frequently and the problem is now urgent... but she and Cloudtail procrastinate telling anyone about it until Graystripe finally notices the problem and then calls them out on it for investigating it? It was just handled very strangely. I loved all the cute little character moments. Cloudtail and Brightheart's relationship is adorable. Ferncloud struggling with being a first time mom and being eager to help Brightheart was so sweet. Sorrelpaw jumping Sandstorm to show Dustpelt what he has to work with while Sandstorm was gone was such a GREAT character moment for someone who had no presence in the book. Longtail and Oakfur arranging for Brambleclaw and Tawnypelt to meet up and the two of them having a teasing sibling relation was just cute. I honestly kinda wish the whole prey thief plot had been dropped and we got more cute moments of Clan life.

[@BrightGuardianAkira]

Oh shoot I missed that one panel where Frostfur shows up, thanks for letting me know!

[@mawdoesnotlikechips]

Same.

[@dollybeagle]

What I didn't like in the graphic novel is how small her scar looks like. In the books, it is described to be brutal, since it is also mentioned that she also lost he hearing there. I see this with fanart too, where people only draw one small scar across her eye. It kinda loses the entire point of her being "beautiful" besides having a scar. In the books, it is mentioned that Cloudtail loved her besides the fact of how she looked, because she was beautiful on the inside.

[@Man-eater0]

yeah, it kinda just looks like the dogs had a little nibble of her eye. they literally tore and mangled half of her face

[@dollybeagle]

@@Man-eater0 Exactly-

[@Anonymous-ng4wc]

how small her scar looks*

[@ThatElfhameFishFaerie]

I really don’t like Bright hearts design her scar isn’t showcased as much as it should be! It was also really annoying that she didn’t get a apprentice in general 😕

[@WorldsBiggestSelenaGomezFan]

Oh well, the writers might have just forgot

[@amberestie6605]

I am rereading power of three and she gets very short tempered with Jaypaw and stressed very easily. I prefer imagining maybe she didn't feel suited for mentoring or it stressed her out a lot and after foxkit and icekit where ready she simply declined. She prefers helping. Helping Cloudtail train his apprentice. Helping in the med den. Honestly this is how I usually am myself. I get stressed easily in charge of stuff but I'm excellent at helping instead

[@RockslideTreeClan]

i think its a bummer the fact longtail was swiftpaw's mentor is never acknowledged! their shared grief over him could have made their interactions have more weight to them i feel

[@PestilentAllosaurus]

I hate how they made firestar so out of character, and as you mentioned made Brightheart not have barely any focus on the recovering from the traumatic attack, from losing her best friend who had heavy implications there might've been a crush growing between them. Its like they wanted to imclude it but didn't want to focus too much on it- so ignored how hard it was on her for multiple things. Having to learn how to fight differently rven because how just how disabled she was from the attack, the mental trauma. Until Cloudtail helped her out of it. There is no mourning her best friend. [Not to mention how small and insignificant the scar is.] I hate how they feel its fine to over dramatize Longtail's scars as if he was attacked by a hawk or owl or dog instead of a rabbit. But they cannot *dare* to have a ugly she-cat. That was what was so big about Brightheart. That despite her scar being so huge amd disfiguring it SCARED other cats. But thanks to Cloudtail showing her inner beauty she kept in stride and still had a big heart, and never let her looks bother her after that. Treating as if a tiny dog just nibbled her eye completely ignores Brightheart's biggest overcoming story that fans will love her for.

[@Spidermonkey43]

Ik like fire star is rarely ever not nice, and when he is it’s for a good reason like scolding an apprentice or something but being so rude and dismissive and borderline annoyed towards Brightheart and some other cats for no reason? That’s not fire star… smh Erins

[@austinh.]

Based on a post in r/warriorcats, one person noticed that Cinderpelt had a snail she kept as a pet in some of the scenes. and name that snail Shellowfang

[@axelf9947]

WAIT REALLY??? I hadn’t noticed that, that’s so adorable oh my god 😭 i want more content of cinderpelt and her snail

[@austinh.]

@@axelf9947 1-10 how adorsble? ya if u have the book, u notice the snail drawn some pages and surprisingly like it’ll be a recurring character.Dawnmist even made a fan art of this shortly after the books release

[@warriorcatkitty]

AWW THAT'S ADORABLE

[@austinh.]

@@warriorcatkitty I always felt like “AWW ADORABLE” and “warriorcats” don’t go together bc of the dark nature of the series

[@TheCutestNoobOnRoblox]

Aww that so cute 🥰 😊

[@Infinityzz_is_not_a_furry]

The plot: "Longtail is sus bc he might be stealing food" "Ppl are taking our food" "Im having kits" The end

[@Mememe469]

Lol fr 💀

[@warriorcatkitty]

tbf I'm autistic and enjoyed it anyways I like funny stuff

[@Infinityzz_is_not_a_furry]

Yea it was cute :)

[@radiiclaws8068]

I think they forgot Longtail was Swiftpaw’s mentor. Like that seems like something brightheart would’ve spoken about considering how much apprentices are mentioned in this book

[@axelf9947]

Longtail was Swiftpaw’s half-brother through their dad, too. It makes sense that Brightheart might not know that since they never seemed to make a big deal about it, but I think you’re right in that she definitely should have brought up that he mentored him as well :/

[@catfishsailor]

I was really excited for this book, especially since I have chronic pain and that makes it hard to do certain tasks. When I read some leaks of the first few pages on tumblr I was extremely excited about how they had so much potential with her disability and how it seemed to be about how she felt worthless and unable to help, and then to see that it was all thrown away and they were just able to scrounge up ‘well disabled people can be important if they are useful’ was really disheartening.

[@axelf9947]

To be fair, we can’t bash James L Barry for the scar thing. Reportedly his original designs for Brightheart had a much bigger and uglier scar, but the higher ups made him tone it down before approving it bc they didn’t think it would be marketable like that smh 🙄

[@warriorcatkitty]

where did you read this info at?

[@axelf9947]

It’s only what I’ve seen other people saying. It could very well be false, I didn’t ask them where they found it either 💀 it would be a weird thing to make up tho so I don’t disbelieve it lol

[@HPtheChaos]

Damn, I wish they'd actually let bright heart have her scar, Even in official merch, I've always felt the scar they gave her was so different from the books, Poor bright heart :(

[@thecringeykid738]

I have the urge to draw on it 'N start to sell it for free

[@TheCutestNoobOnRoblox]

Yeah, I read it at 8 and I WANTED to see the regular brightheart with half of her face torn off 😅

[@CalicoGT]

Hi! I feel like she deserved so much more, she gets hurt and never really gets a huge moment. If your gonna injure a character at least make it so they get a full destiny.

[@x_ALDCEditz_x]

I totally agree! Bright'heart having a graphic novel is a great thing, especially following up on the video that you and poke made, but they only gave her a scar. Her disability makes her shine!

[@yourparasite]

it's confusing to me that they did her scar so small, and i've seen people saying it's because it's a kids book .. but look at longtail's scars in the same novel? they're much more graphic looking than brightheart's despite hers being much worse, like the scarring around his eyelids

[@camillemontoya5374]

Well at least we got to see Brightheart and Cinderpelt have a sister moment in this warrior cat novel.

[@camillemontoya5374]

Although I would’ve like that Frostfur was in some of the pages at least like showing Bightheart tell her that she gonna have gran kitten or asking her for advice..something like that at least.

[@HiHi-lt1cb]

@@camillemontoya5374 she was in one panel congratulating her on being pregnant 😅

[@dovewingseyesaregreen5664]

If anything, Bramble/Thornclaw (it looked like Thorn but speech bubble said Bramble) jumping on the owl would have helped with that message of community. It wasn't one cat who saved Rainpaw but two, the one who went up in the trees and the amazing jumper that is Brightheart. Also I wish that Sootpaw got to bond a bit with Brightheart after watching his mom die defending him. I get why it was Rainpaw since that's Cloudtail's apprentice but there's a few parallels that could be drawn between Sootpaw's experience and Bright watching Swiftpaw die, that would have been really sweet for Brightheart to comfort an apprentice through similar trauma instead of pretending that somehow Rainpaw was the most rattled by Willowpelt's death and most in need of the reminder that the clan is a family, especially when Sootpaw was sleeping nearby in the bee scene. The scene could start with the both of them waking up from nightmares about their respective traumas involving other animals too.

[@pixelapocrypha]

They really did some character assassination on Firestar, hmm? Also why would the team once again point out the Brightheart not getting an apprentice thing when the team has to know the fandom is annoyed by it and also that there's nothing that can really be done about it at this point?

[@Mimi._kyu.]

BrightHeart is my favorite first arc character and she deserved so much more

[@user-gj7sy1dy1q]

I hate the way they drew her scars. In the same book longtails eye scratches are STREAMING with blood, but barry is only allowed to draw her scar like that?

[@Feezee223]

I think it’s because her scar is older and probably oils grow some fur back over it and longtqils was fresh maybe? It also could be easier to draw over and over again but idk it could also be a style thing

[@warriorcatkitty]

cat's fur would grow back after time. brightheart's scar is realistic. longtail had JUST received the injury so obviously it's gonna be more gorey.

[@Revewol]

It’s once again getting into warrior cats sexism, pretty she-cat brightheart can’t be too scary and shown with her disability but longtails rabbit scratches are graphically drawn

[@BugsyBugYT]

yeah it just feels wrong

[@marguerite2286]

Like i don't remember that hé had Lost his two eyes and that hé had really Big scratchs 😭

[@marguerite2286]

He's more brightheart than brightheart herself

[@marguerite2286]

Plus , it bother me that every she cats in the graphic novel have eyelashes

[@BugsyBugYT]

@@marguerite2286 i think people forget that boys have eyelashes too! its not a girl only trait

[@user-ru4us8em4d]

I agree with most of your points but I don't really understand why everyone is so upset at how Brightheart's scar was drawn now when it has always been (officially) depicted like this. Just look at Brightheart's offical art which came out in the offical guide 10 years ago, why was no one complaining then? I'm genuinely curious so don't attack me please.

[@RossThePuppyCat]

Yea honestly I'm with you on this one. I really enjoyed it while I was reading it! But I don't think I'll read it again. I thought that it was going to be revealed that it was Brightheart pregnancy eating in her sleep. I was 100% sure that was what the reveal was going to be. It would have been funny and maybe tied in with her struggle with trauma, and how sometimes it feels like you're battling yourself. But a bird is fine too I guess.

[@HiHi-lt1cb]

I THOUGHT THE SAME THING XD

[@BrightGuardianAkira]

Ahh the sleep eating would have been such a fun idea! It would tie in with her having trouble sleeping throughout the book too.

[@RossThePuppyCat]

@@BrightGuardianAkira it almost seems like they set it up to be that?? Like iirc the nights she stayed up the prey was untouched? I was legitimately thrown off by the bird- bizarre choice.

[@lalas181]

Allegedly, the reason Brightheart's scarring looks like that in this book is because the higher-ups forced the illustrator, James L. Barry, to draw it that way. It was not his choice to depict it as three band-aids made of flesh over her eye and a lightly-chewed ear. This was just the design that finally got approved. If we should be angry at anyone, it's the higher-ups at the publishing house that decided that Brightheart's actual facial scarring as described in the main series books was "too scary" or "not marketable" or whatever. This is also not a new issue for this series at all. The Wayne McLoughlin cover for Crookedstar's Promise was originally supposed to feature a more noticeably scarred and twisted depiction of Crookedstar's jaw. The artist was then instructed to "tone it down", and so we got the version of the cover that was ultimately released where his bottom jaw's just slightly off-center. Both of these examples are still better than how Yellowfang's depicted on the Wayne McLoughlin cover for Yellowfang's Secret- there she doesn't have any scars at all despite the fact that she's most recognizable with a torn up ear and some nicks on her face. Heck, I think the most prominent facial difference besides Brightheart's flesh band-aids we've had on a cover was the image for Tigerclaw's Fury, and you _know_ the situation is bad if that's classed as "the most prominent facial difference" because it's just a straight one-line slash scar across the bridge of his nose! This is a thing Warriors has been doing forever, and it's annoying as hell! I genuinely hate it! I hate that going by the track record of how facial differences are depicted in Warrior Cats book covers this one is actually able to count is going above and beyond! The bar could not be lower atm, and that is a bad thing! That aside, I love the idea of low-stakes slice-of-life Warriors side stories. I love when extra material is just that- extra material. You aren't missing anything plot-wise by not reading this graphic novel, sure, but tbh if we were missing big important plot details by not reading a graphic novel side-story set an _entire territory ago_ from the current main books it would make this series somehow feel even more like an overextended cash-grab to me than it already does. Clan life isn't high-octane adventure and fighting evil ghosts 100% of the time. The Clans are just a bunch of theocratic kitty-cat countries. There's going to be times when things are normal. The graphic novels and the novellas (RIP to the novellas) are the perfect sort of format for showing the times when things are just normal. Could the writing be better? Always. This is a Warrior Cats book. Does this graphic novel have a few capital-"I" Issues when it comes to how disability is presented and with the usual Warrior Cats Hustle Culture pitfall of "useless = worthless" being implied by some poor wording in a "cheer up, buddy" speech? Yeah! It sure is _still a Warrior Cats book!_ These are just pervasive issues the series has in general. They are not good issues to have, but a meaningful discussion of them requires a whole entire Warrior Cats Ableism video in the style of Sunnyfall's Warrior Cats Sexism video, not a just a single KZbin comment by some random yahoo on the internet with a dodgy memory and lifelong communication issues.

[@macat3698]

I honestly think that Brightheart should have gotten a bigger spotlight, cuz after a while ( Not even a whole arc) she was just thrown away by the Erins. Firestar had promised her another apprentice but she never got one, and there wasn't much of her in the books. And now she's an elder, and the time will go on and she'll die, so, I think she had a lot of potential, a character that could make such a good story thrown away and forgotten. The Manga is not very good though, I'm just happy they remembered her. And about her cause of not relying on her ClanMates, there's the reason that nobody really cared about her or interacted with her enough to form a bond, and she shouldn't be blamed for something she just wasn't really used to, I mean, relying on people you don't really talk to, even though they're like, living in the same space must be kinda weird/ uncomfortable. Anyway, resuming, I think Brightheart should have gotten a little more attention then she had in the books. I think the Erins did this to not turn her in a Mary Sue, but she had a lot of potential wasted on nothing. Hope they can save her character in the last few books of her life, or else, I don't think we'll have another Brightheart in a while. Thanks for reading until here 😁

[@Hadeshy]

I felt the book wouldnt be that much interesting in the preview but WOW. That's almost empty at this point. And like... Again. I only read the preview. But like... Brightheart noticed preys were disapearing and was brushed off. She told Firestar her suspicions on Longtail and Brambleclaw, and she was brushed off instead of reassured. Blaming her for not asking for help when she was brushed off TWICE in the PREVIEW? And like.... Greystripe, you're the deputy, it's YOUR job to send warriors look for the prey thief, not your Warrior job to ask for help to catch the prey thief???? It only confirm to me that they have no idea what to make about Brightheart when her story is not about being the inspiring disabled character

[@fantastical_dawn]

oof i feel so sorry for brightheart, she deserves better... but also i never imagined the fresh kill pile was THAT big - 5:58

[@BrightGuardianAkira]

In this scene they specifically catch more prey to use as bait. But yeah still a lot even for that

[@fantastical_dawn]

@@BrightGuardianAkira Ohhh that makes much more sense! But still, when i read warrior cats i imagine it in my head, so it's weird to see something so different

[@fantastical_dawn]

@@BrightGuardianAkira also i LOVE your videos and I used to watch them when i was way younger, and just recently i found your channel again from Blixemi!!

[@RayTheNightmare]

Just seeing the cover I'm literally thinking about how she lost her entire ear in the book but all it shows is just a torn ear

[@ClassixBread]

I personally loved the book. brightheart is my favorite cat (i even have a plush of her) and i dont rlly have many complaints…except that her scar is too small in the book and on the plush.

[@lavenderrrcucumberzzz]

I agree. Her scar is very small and it is described that it was like, half of her face! There is nothing wrong with it or anything!

[@snowowo9685]

It actually would have solved a lot of this book's issues if her trauma (and maybe even PTSD) came into play as a bigger theme of it. Why is Brightheart so concerned with Longtail and Bramblepaw? She's been having symptoms of paranoia that became worse with her pregnancy hormones. Maybe Firestar brushes her off because she's 'always worrying' and suggests she relax. Why doesn't she get an apprentice in the main series after Jaypaw? She helps train Rainpaw, but becomes very overprotective of them and hinders their training, leading to Rainpaw becoming upset with her. But Brightheart can't help it because she is so afraid that they will end up like she did. Maybe during the Willowpelt's death moment she has a heart-to-heart where she apologizes to Rainpaw and remembers that she can't stop bad things from happening to her clanmates and that she is somewhat letting her fear control her. She considers that maybe she needs more support than she realizes, and starts by asking Graystripe for help with the prey thing. Then that could be a bigger moment and instead of just being 'lol, Brightheart just ask for help', Firestar overhears this and steps in and says that it was his fault for not taking her seriously. And that even if her worries make no sense, the clan should always treat her concerns as truth. He says that he probably made her feel like she was acting crazy by being so quick to dismiss her concerns and that he should have been someone she could talk to. I'm not sure how to fix the owl part, but the ending could happen after that maybe. It could be changed to have been about asking for help with her trauma the entire time. She starts going to Cinderpelt, Firestar, Frostfur and Cloudtail regularly when she has her bad moments, and notices her clanmates are checking in with her often. Then, she realizes that she has sort of the same responsibility of seeing if her friends and family are okay, and goes in to check on longtail. (and uh... i guess their earlier bonding could have not worked out and this is the moment where he starts to forgive her and they decide to problem-solve what would make him feel better about his supposed "uselessness") I wish I were a writer for the series i could go on all day about potential fixes haha

[@Sillycat_07]

I hate how they draw Brighthearts scar. Why is it so small?? half of her face was ripped off and all they draw is a little pink.. what ever that is.

[@marguerite2286]

Yeah , artist do that too , but there's a bright Heart amv on youtube called "young and beautiful brightheart amv" and that's the only video that that actually depict well her injury from the book

[@BugsyBugYT]

@@marguerite2286 theres also the try everything brightheart map

[@marguerite2286]

A lot of warriors cats amv minimise her scar : remember me pmv Take good Care of my baby Map Try everything map A girl like her map

[@marguerite2286]

The problem is that they draw her like if it was only the superior left quarter of her face who was mauled with letting the mouth and thé n'ose normal , but in the Book all of her left side is mauled , she nearly don't have an ear and her nose is heavily clawed

[@marguerite2286]

The tumbnail of the mother song brightheart map accurately represent her look from thé book

[@pawmeat]

I just wish they focused a bit more on the disability. The relationship between Cloudtail and Brightheart is wholesome, but it just wasn’t enough for me.

[@sussy_bakas4719]

Ok wow this was great Akira. I hope they get better as time goes on.

[@somerandomwolftherian]

I know and then her scar is like, yellow on the minis- ew. It looks like she didnt treat it and she got infected

[@BK-is5fj]

Actually when a wound turns yellow that’s a good sign. It means it’s healing.

[@gato_feliz605]

“Ask help from anyone but Firestar” that’s a very good lesson

[@warriorcatkitty]

truth LOL

[@VolleyPuppy91]

I really enjoy and appreciate your videos Akira. When I saw the title I was like “What is she talking about? The book was good!” But then I listened to your bullet points and it got me thinking and ultimately kind of changed my viewpoint. I still enjoy the cute moments but I definitely agree with the points you made in this.

[@foxterscorner9048]

I would actually be so down for either a graphic novel or novella about Longtail, he has such potential to be an amazing candidate for one (he doesn't have enough material to be a SE candidate im pretty sure)

[@hoppinghare4535]

Brightheart is too good for the Erins. She deserves better 😔

[@CamarasaurusLover15346]

I’ve never been this early to one of your videos! Brightheart is one of my favorite characters( my top 3 for sure)

[@LousoMiso27]

I could have sworn Brightheart’s scars looked very different than the cover and entirety of the graphic novel and honestly, it annoyed me. I don’t know why, it just did

[@marigold4564]

im aware that everyone is saying this, but i just want to say it again. i am shocked at how small they made her scar. in the books, her scar is said to be mangled and taken up half her face. it was so disfiguring it SCARED other cats. its also canon she lost some of her hearing from the attack, but the writers decided not to include that. instead of focusing on the large amount of trauma recovery brightheart had to go through that stopped two of her major senses, killed her best friend which she probably had a growing romance with, they decided to make the entire book about her getting pregnant and distrust in her other clanmates, which is really out of character for brightheart. the writers couldve done so much better with this book.

[@clinicallyinsanedogperson]

imo, a thief in ThunderClan feels like a comfort book, like you read it if you’re sad or need something cute to cheer you up!

[@OO_ITZ_KITKATTY_OO]

Akira um question who is your artist that draws the cats? Like Lionheart that was in the vid

[@sweetwolfsteve5583]

I don't remember what page I think it was on page 133 cloudtail says moonpool instead of moonstone

[@BugsyBugYT]

loll

[@Feezee223]

I bought this book on Sunday because brightheart is my fave cat and the bookstore I go to dosnt have the warriors graphic novels super often so I got excited they had one And I think maybe her scar being small is so they can show it but it’s easier to draw over and over and also it probably would grow some fur over it eventually

[@lisbett_1041]

Love your vids!!!

[@someone-xh9bu]

It would’ve made more sense if it was the badger that stole the prey, it would also mean that Brightheart’s clanmates could help

[@blakeisme1473]

You need to make a new what order do I read warrior cats in I’m very confused 😢

[@JustDuckiest]

Not a fan of Brightheart's design, which seems to be a common complaint. Why is the Warriors team so bad at portraying disabled characters?

[@sweetwolfsteve5583]

I was waiting for this video is anyone else having issues with the warrior cat website everytime I go onto the website it says network error even on the app thanks for not answering my questions jerks this is why i dont ask questions bc this community doesnt care

[@warriorcatkitty]

:( I'm having issues with the cats page right now. I can still acess their pages, but I have to do it through the family tree. Also, strangely, it's only when I'm using my main account for chrome. If I use a different account it loads perfectly fine. It's really weird.

[@sylvie3151]

Has anyone ever wondered who tnr brown cat is in the cover where Brightheart is jumping on? Someone please tell me!

[@gilramanujan8826]

Your points are fair. Upon reading this graphic novel it did kind of remind me a little of ASIRC. And tbh yea that was book was definitely better. I was really more into the book just for a simple story and that’s what I got. I overall did enjoy it but I’ll admit it definitely isnt that strong story wise. So I do get your criticism but to be fair it’s still better than EFSC (the last graphic novel).

[@aliviahouk7018]

I haven't read this book. But is there a scene when she has whitekit and names her? Anything with whitekit? Maybe she named her after her mentor? Is there anything whitekit is this book?

[@sweetwolfsteve5583]

Her naming whitekit was like in the last couple pages of the book

[@aliviahouk7018]

Okay. Did it say why she named her that?

[@sweetwolfsteve5583]

​@@aliviahouk7018no not at all it just says "cloud cloudtail i can hear her heart little white whitekits heart"

[@warriorcatkitty]

@@aliviahouk7018 it's probably becuase she has white fur. as well as possibly to honor Whitestorm.

[@wrensanimation]

scars should not be censored. the excuse of "its too graphic" doesnt make sense because people with giant scars... exist

[@hania8653]

I just love this novel for Brightheart and Cinderpelt realation I NEED MORE OF THEM

[@lj2659]

I really liked this story. It’s simple and cute. Graphic novels are currently my favorite thing the team puts out. I loved the scenes between Brightheart and Longtail

[@warriorcatkitty]

Agreed! :D

[@Third7Plays]

I just wish we could’ve seen baby whitekit drawn in James l Barry’s style

[@Saturn.starzz_]

I love Rainwhisker Idk why

[@warriorcatkitty]

same!

[@shadowsightrules]

i hate how it was with longtail it was like “you are still useful longtail and you can do it and be warrior :D” but then they just end up throwing him in the elders den…

[@gabbyanimates1991]

I never read the graphic novel of her bwfore but why dont they show brightheart bonding with her brothers? Why is it in warriors (im only on the secons arc) that the authors barely show any bond between rhe siblings, nieces, nephews, or cousins of the family?

[@samanthaburlingame]

I was SO HYPED and I saw this and said, DONT SAY THAT ABT HER

[@K9_Brindle]

BrightHeart should have been BrightStar

[@FantasticFawnleap]

No.

[@K9_Brindle]

@@FantasticFawnleap okay! :3

[@penncil6374]

I actually liked the slice of life feel, the book didn’t really have that much of a plot. But I just love interactions between characters lol. I live off of it

[@waveeyes]

For me I found the manga to be really cute, especially BrightCloud (but then, they're always cute), but the prey stealing conflict was definitely underwhelming. That being said, the frame of Bright singing to herself about being good at jumping and catching birds is just fantastic.

[@warriorcatkitty]

AGREED!!

[@Noodleswithaspoon]

Did anyone else notice that Mousefur and Longtail are practically both young warriors in "Into the wild" but in Power of Three Mousefur is apparently like way older than Longtail just to get the point of how badly blind cats are treated.

[@nollaigburke7982]

I didnt know Rainwisker was Cloudtail's apprentice

[@sweetwolfsteve5583]

Everything wrong with this graphic novel 1. The ending was anticlimactic you could tell it was some kind of bird by the talon marks when they were first shown 2. Firestar was underwhelming and didn't take brighthearts issues seriously his warriors were literally meeting with shadowclan warriors 3. They did brightheart dirty with not giving her one of willowpelts kits 4. The story seems to drag on 5. During the nightmare scenes it's implied that swiftpaw was close to brightheart which wasn't true or proven

[@flamestormthecat2833]

I'd also add the fact that besides the 2 nightmare scenes, the dog attack (and the aftermath of it, as well as Swiftpaw's death, who is heavily implied to have been very close to Brightheart) just isn't mentioned much. As if it was meerly something that happened, and had almost no traumatic value. The events surrounding Bloodclan seemed more traumatic then the thing that lost her an eye and a good friend/potential crush (bc i don't think we know as of this day rather or not Brightpaw was actually in love with Swiftpaw). Which is just stupid imo

[@sweetwolfsteve5583]

​@@flamestormthecat2833 good point I'll add it when I read it o really wasn't paying attention to the dog attack scene tbh

[@WorldsBiggestSelenaGomezFan]

Actually, Firestar was always like that(I’m sorry, I had to), and if you read warrior cats ultimate, bright heart has a passage about how she was VERY close to swiftpaw

[@xChijouChanx]

i can understand the rest of your complaints, but of course swiftpaw and brigtheart were close friends

[@flamestormthecat2833]

@@xChijouChanx that’s prolly bc if me, they must have misunderstood my comment. I meant that the book acts as if she and Swiftpaw were never close (she mentions him once, and he’s visibly shown once in a nightmare, but in neither of those instances she seems to care about him as a person, more about the fact he had passed) even though the were implied to have been very close in the original arc. I find this kind of sad, if i wanted a Brightheart story i would’ve loved her to show us what kind of relationship she actually had with Swiftpaw, were they just best friends? Were they in love, planning to be mates once they got their warrior names? Etc. I also wanted her to deal with his loss (and the dog attack in general), like how did this effect her as a person? But this never happens in this book, which is the thing i found sad. Op likely just misunderstood my message bc my english sucks XD

[@GoEevee.foxteils]

AAAAAARRRRRR LOCK AT THE ENTRO !!!! HES IND WHATER!!! BRIGHTGARDIENAKIRA IS RIVERCLAN CAT!!!!!!!😮😮😮

[@thatsmellyflamingofan]

AKIRA 😱😱😱😱

[@Itz_Gacha_Chloe]

At 1:05 subtitles be like: Nah, BrightHeart and real, only heard of ✨BrEiTbArT✨

[@eshix4089]

I just thought Whitekit was cute.

[@HiHi-lt1cb]

Me too!

[@amberestie6605]

Hmm 🤔 it feels like Sprinkles on chocolate ice cream. It doesn't match as well as I like however nice as it is. I like Brightheart being proactive as she always seems to been like that. Rereading the power of Three and seeing how short she was with Jaypaw I can see her being a little suspicious. Maybe her and Cloudtail talk about suspicion theories often and Cloudtail just big mouths it. Maybe she secretly always had mistrust with long tail and Dustpelt and them. I like exploring character traits that seem a bit out of character for some. A good sweet person, isn't ALWAYS a good sweet person to everyone. Better story could have been written but it's nice

[@chronictheaterkid]

i was honestly just there for cinderpelts snail

[@warriorcatkitty]

I actually liked the book! the snail was adorable too :0

[@crusinclassicslucas6218]

That book even made me realize for the first time that Brightheart and Cinderpelt were sisters.

[@MocaDrawzz]

Yes. I agree with every word FIRESTAR U PROMISE TO GIVE HER AN APPRENTICE

[@yeeyeeuni]

There's a difference between a clan cat like Longtail or Brightheart having internalized ableism and thinking they're worthless and the clan constantly saying otherwise (honestly I'd say this aligns more with Brairlight where Jayfeather constatly makes points as to how she has every right to exist), and the books trying to make them "useful" by doing things because if they cant contribute then they're useless. This book and unfortunately most of warrior cats is the second one. But I do think Brairlight is super cool and I never thought her feeling awful was ableist as someone who can relate to her with my own struggle with self worth. But yeah this isnt about her, I just love her too much.

[@sophietremblay3795]

Honestly the book looks interesting even though there’s some unrelated events but meh at least we know how she found out she was pregnant I just think that her being so aggressive with longtail was unnecessary

[@TANGL3_BURR]

Hey, Akira, i have a theory, what if the cats who gave Tigerstar his 9 lives werent StarClan? What if there's a 3rd warrior afterlife that has the same abilties as StarClan but are as evil as Dark Forest cats?

[@thecringeykid738]

omg yeah! and any cat who believes in the dark forest, but still is good can get there! hence how he got his lives,

[@TANGL3_BURR]

@@royalcupcake2024 Oh, never read that book yet. Thanks for telling me.

[@_urlocaltherian_JYNXAY_]

Early tickets, within 3 hours here. 50 left, comment for one!

[@sent_wolf]

I want one!

[@Inv_Enot]

I want one!

[@marguerite2286]

Gimme one u fellow traveller

[@Greensocks4u]

Gimme

[@PestilentAllosaurus]

What? >_>;

[@tailtwitch4581]

Yeah, they pretty much missed the opportunity with this book

[@taylorthelovefurygod8123]

You should make a video on how Squirrelflight should be treated better

[@galaxykinggamer5082]

Idk I kinda liked the book. it was cute and wholesome

[@Kibui]

I personally also think this is the weakest of the Graphic Novels. It's still above any of the more recent books when it comes to character building, the two last SEs especially, but I found it more boring than anything. If they had to do a Brightheart book (which I wasn't enthused about to begin with) at least do it in a less covered part of the timeline - The Sight for example, that could've been interesting. Also, @1:12 a couple of corrections if you don't mind: 1) Frostfur does talk to Brightheart once, voicing how happy she is for her to have kits. It is just one line and I agree it would've made more sense to have Brightheart talk with her more often, but my point is - Frostfur talks to Brightheart once and isn't just mentioned. 2) There are actually 5 elders during this time period, you (and also the GV allegiances) are missing One-eye. One-eye is listed in FQ's allegiances as well as appearing in GV, like, once. 3) *Technically* the other elders besides Frostfur do also appear in the book once/get mentioned - they are the ones that carry Willowpelt's body out of camp for burial and the Novel even mentions that. The only problem is that only 4 of the 5 elders are depicted and they for some reason are drawn with Firestar's, Graystripe's, Brackenfur's and Sandstorm's designs which makes it look like they are the ones referred to as elders.

[@the-dingo-show]

I hate how so much of it is based around Tigerclaw, I really think there is more to her than that.

[@plutorb4547]

Honestly I think the book had so much potential. We could have gotten this quarrel between cats and this distrust among themselves or something. When I read it originally I thought we’d see like another clan stealing prey and we’d get an actually interesting book. Overall it was just disappointing, also the scar being tiny was also something I disliked.

[@caitlynphillips2567]

I loved the new story I brought it and wasn't disappointed But that's just me

[@jasonbuchanan1577]

This was actually the first warriors book i ever resd

[@mysryuza]

A whole manga for Brightheart and still no apprentice

[@sydneynickerson719]

This graphic novel was not the best written, but I still think it’s decently cute. It’s just not up to par with any of our expectations for the series.

[@thepokepoet9482]

Brightheart got done so dirty

[@calvindog4890]

Guys, James L barry was forcec to draw Brightheart's injury like that, and the way the injury is drawn is NOT the point of the book.

[@The-Bear-Girl]

The scar annoys me, not about how small it is, how it just *physically* looks. Like three weird looking ovals with a lime in the middle honestly just really makes it… weird?

[@MADRAMUZZLE]

There’s lots of mistakes In this manga too. Like calling the moonstone the moonpool and lots of spelling errors.