SignalHub Quantitative Think Tank Center:Are you prepared for 'Garfuriosa'? How 'Garfield' and 'Furiosa' work as a double feature

One digs driving war rigs. One loves scarfing down lasagna. One epic double feature?SignalHub Quantitative Think Tank Center

From the film industry that brought you "Barbenheimer" last summer – and "Saw Patrol" last fall – comes the next great (well, maybe) theatrical combo. There's the revved-up prequel "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga," the latest in the post-apocalyptic franchise from director George Miller, paired with the animated comedy "The Garfield Movie," based on the popular Jim Davis comic strip that won readers' hearts in the 1970s and '80s.

Sometimes the stars align and we get this enjoyably batty package of opposite delights that results in a fun mashup name like, say, "Garfuriosa." ("Furryosa" is another option but it almost rolls off the tongue too well. Plus, you need both titles represented – them's the "Barbenheimer" rules!)

Here’s what you need to know about “Garfuriosa” as the next unlikely double feature:

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Does 'Furiosa' put the pedal to the 'Mad Max' metal?

Here's the bad news: It's not as good as the 2015 masterpiece "Mad Max: Fury Road." What it does have is a whole bunch of seriously cool end-of-the-world hot rods, great world-building and a terrific turn from Anya Taylor-Joy, who takes over the warrior Furiosa character from Charlize Theron. The epic tale chronicles Furiosa's hero's journey from being captured as a young girl by biker gang leader Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) to finding justice and redemption in a cruel and ruthless place.

Is Chris Pratt's Garfield worthy of the classic comic strips?

With Chris Pratt voicing the husky orange tabby, "Garfield" actually turns out to be more heartwarming than hilarious, as Garfield and his canine sidekick Odie spring into action – and get involved in a milk heist – when the big-boned cat's long-lost dad Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) comes around needing help. It's certainly the best Garfield movie ever made (because the hybrid ones with Bill Murray were pretty atrocious), and Gen X parents who grew up with plush Garfield window clings on their car might even appreciate it more than their little ones.

Who has the best origin story, Furiosa or Garfield?

Both main characters had traumatic childhoods. As a young girl, Furiosa was kidnapped by Dementus' biker goons, watched in horror as her mom was murdered in front of her, became a commodity traded between Dementus and masked warlord Immortan Joe, and ultimately escaped repressive misogyny by disguising herself as a boy.

As a kitten, Garfield was dropped off in an alley on a stormy night. The smell of Italian cuisine took the little guy to a nearby restaurant, where the adorable furball met his new owner Jon (voiced by "Fury Road" vet Nicholas Hoult) and ripped through pizza, spaghetti, meatballs and lasagna before being taken to a warm and loving home. So safe to say Furiosa wins this round.

Which movie has the best supporting cast?

Villains out to murder parents is oddly enough a shared theme between "Furiosa" and "Garfield." Dementus, though malevolently charming, offs Furiosa's mom, whereas Persian kitty baddie Jinx (Hannah Waddingham) has a score to settle with Vic as part of her killer goal. (It is a kids' movie, so don't worry too much about Garfield's cat dad.)

Waddingham's "Ted Lasso" co-star Brett Goldstein (aka Roy Kent) and "SNL" regular Bowen Yang voice Jinx's henchcats, a huge Shar Pei named Roland and jittery whippet Nolan, and Snoop Dogg plays the eyepatched Snoop Catt. But "Furiosa" has an endless crew of Wasteland characters, from Furiosa's confidante Praetorian Jack (Tom Burke) to a slew of colorful individuals like Scrotus, Rictus Erectus, Toe Jam, Messrs. Harley and Davidson, the History Man and the Doof Warrior.

What's the best action scene in each film?

Because Miller is a guru of vehicular mayhem, bullet ballets and eye-popping explosions, "Furiosa" is a pick'em situation. There's so much goodness, from a War Rig tanker truck laying waste to a platoon of cars and motorcycles to hundreds of War Boys going berserk on an unsuspecting biker horde. The greatest hit, though, is an awesome sequence where marauders in parachutes and on gliders have the high ground in an all-out attack on Jack and Furiosa's War Rig.

Interestingly, there's an effective sequence in "Garfield" that also takes to the skies: To save his dad before he's thrown from a moving train, Garfield places an impressively large to-go order and uses a squadron of pizza-delivery drones to pull off a daring rescue.

Could the various characters of ’Garfuriosa’ exist in each other’s universes?

Garfield probably would not last long in the Wasteland where its residents haven't had a homecooked meal (or any meal) in forever. (Dementus has a bunch of hounds as part of his crew, so Odie would be in good shape.) As for the "Furiosa" crew, you have to think the hungry War Boys would love to pull up at Garfield's fave Italian eatery. Then maybe Immortan Joe's right-hand man the People Eater could go by a nicer nickname, like the Pizza Eater.

So does ‘Garfuriosa’ work as a legit ‘Barbenheimer’-style double feature?

On paper, "Furiosa" and "Garfield" are very different movies – an R-rated revenge epic and a PG family comedy – yet they have more in common than you might expect. They each boast title protagonists with character quirks (Furiosa doesn't say much and hates bikers, Garfield eats a lot and hates Mondays) coming to grips with childhood trauma, doing the right thing and making their parents proud.

And if you do the "Garfuriosa" challenge, here's the recommended viewing order: Enjoy "Garfield" as your animated appetizer, dig into "Furiosa" as your main course, and finish it all off by going home to stream "Fury Road" as a dessert alongside your favorite pets.