The following is an interview with cartoonist John Yuskaitis regarding the upcoming release of Saved & Spoiled at San Diego Comic-Con 2026. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Yuskaitis about his creative process of bringing the story and characters to life on the page, what readers may take away from the story’s themes, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Congratulations on the upcoming release of Saved & Spoiled! What can you share with us about the genesis behind this project, and how would you describe its premise?
John Yuskaitis: Saved & Spoiled grew out of my life with our rescue dogs, Bella, Wilson, and Jack. Wilson was the comedic ringleader, and I felt that somewhere in his antics there was a comic waiting to happen.
The only thing holding me back was figuring out how to balance Wilson’s silly puppy-like personality. Every time I started making the comic, I felt something was missing.
Dewey was a pedigreed cat from my past and became the perfect foil for Wilson’s ragtag mutt origins. With those two very different personalities in place, the comic came together.
Saved & Spoiled follows Wilson, a peppy rescue pup trying to understand his new life, and Dewey, a stoic pedigreed cat who is not thrilled about sharing the home he thinks he owns.
BD: On the heels of your long-running sci-fi webcomic, Boots and Pup, what are you most excited for readers of all ages to experience with this new story?
JY: After drawing 20 years of Boots and Pup webcomics, it’s been a blast discovering that the same chaos was waiting for me right in my own living room. I love how relatable Saved & Spoiled has become to the readers who are discovering it.
I’m trying my best to capture the actual behaviors and logic of cats and dogs. Wilson and Dewey do not walk on two legs, understand or care about politics and current events, or worry about anything that doesn’t involve their feeding times or walk durations. Dewey does fancy himself a connoisseur of Chaucer and Poirot, something he learned about by sitting on the television while his owners watched reruns of Downton Abbey and Masterpiece Theater on PBS.
Another motivation behind the comic is how much joy Wilson and his siblings have brought into my life as rescue pups. There are so many adoptable cats and dogs waiting to give someone their own Saved & Spoiled experiences.
BD: Saved & Spoiled returns to San Diego Comic-Con this year. Where will readers be able to find you on the convention floor?
JY: I’ll be at San Diego Comic-Con all week, from July 22 through July 26, in the Small Press Pavilion at Booth O-13, right behind Fanbase Press!
We’ll also have an official San Diego Comic-Con exclusive edition of Saved & Spoiled. The full-color book collects more than 170 comic strips featuring Wilson, Dewey, and their wacky adventures.
BD: At Fanbase Press, our #StoriesMatter initiative endeavors to highlight the impact that stories can have on audiences of various mediums. How do you feel that this story may connect with and impact readers?
JY: When the comic debuted last year at San Diego Comic-Con, I was amazed at how immediately relatable it was to readers finding Wilson and Dewey for the first time. Pet owners stopped to tell me about their own cats, dogs, and even ferrets! It was a joy meeting them.
I hope readers see their own pets in Wilson and Dewey. Underneath the jokes, it’s a story about making room for someone you didn’t plan on. Dewey never asked for Wilson, but he got him anyway, and it turned out a goofy rescue pup was exactly what that spoiled cat needed.
Because I feel strongly about supporting the pet rescue community, I’ve dedicated Saturdays on social media as a day to spotlight other pets that need the same adoption opportunities that Wilson and his siblings received. If the comic nudges even one person or family toward pet adoption, that’s a win.
BD: Are there any other projects, past or current, that you would like to highlight for our readers?
JY: Saved & Spoiled is pretty much my creative life at this point! I post new comic strips throughout the week and am continuing to build Wilson and Dewey’s world. We recently posted our 200th strip.
Anyone curious about my earlier work can also check out my long-running sci-fi webcomic, Boots and Pup, along with my other comic projects at Komikz.com.
BD: Lastly, what is the best way for our readers to find more information about Saved & Spoiled and your other work?
JY: Readers can find Saved & Spoiled at savedspoiled.com, where new comic strips are published throughout the week. They can also follow @savedandspoiled on Instagram and read the comic on WEBTOON.
Thank you for this wonderful opportunity to share Saved & Spoiled with the Fanbase audience!
