After “Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie” tra-la-la-la-la’d into the audience’s hearts at its release in 2017, it was likely DreamWorks would eventually seek to adapt another of Dav Pilkey’s graphic novels for the silver screen. Eight years later, what came of it was “Dog Man,” adapted from the spin-off to “Captain Underpants” which has since spawned 14 books.
“Dog Man” adapts plot points that span from the series’ first, second, third, and seventh books, featuring scenes like his ‘birth,’ feuds with Petey the Cat, and struggles against his animal nature. But does “Dog Man” lend itself to a Loyola student audience?
Vilnis Chakars ’25, leader of Anime Hounds, shared a perspective.
“I was just really interested in art as a child, and there’s quite the few elementary school/middle school children’s books series about kids who are into cartoons and comics. But I think there’s one thing in particular charming when you get to sit in the comics that the kids in the book made, and ‘Dog Man’ is a big replication of that as well,” Chakars said.
Indeed, a great many of Loyola’s current undergraduate students would have been in elementary or middle school at the release of the original “Dog Man” graphic novel, which was released in 2016. It seems that as the classes of 2025 to 2028 grew up, so did “Dog Man.”
“In elementary school, I read a number of the ‘Captain Underpants’ books, and then I remember ‘Dog Man’ coming out, and I read, I think the first one, but it’s been a while,” Chakars said.
“Dog Man” has amassed a more recent talent in its cast, such as Pete Davidson in the titular role of Petey the Cat, but Dog Man is himself unvoiced, committing to the accuracy of his dog-natured communication in the books. Like this, the movie is accurate in several regards, not the least of which being the animation and the humor.
The movie throws intentional misspellings, on-the-nose place names, and visual gags at a speed that would surely encourage the viewer to come back now that the film has hit streaming services. But this humor is an expectation from prospective viewers, including Sarah Flores ‘28, who is an officer for the Loyola Film Society.
“I have expectations for this movie to be silly, fun, family friendly, that’s what ‘Captain Underpants’ was for me when I went to go see it. I thought it was actually really comedic. For me, it’s just fun, just something nice,” Flores said.
Many high-grossing or popular movies recently have been aimed at younger audiences in a move that drives a schism between audience opinion and the historically dismissive views on animated movies. Yet, “Dog Man” is nonetheless picking up the baton and pairing its inventive art style with meaningful messages of found family and doing the right thing. Animated movies are powerful, at least according to Professor Nguyên Nguyễn, who teaches digital media and comics creation.
“My son is too young to know ‘Dog Man,’ but he loves both picture books and comics. Stories are an effective way to imprint morals and lessons to children,” Nguyễn said.
So far, there is no major announcement of plans for a sequel, nor is there any public knowledge of an animated Netflix show, which was the case with “Captain Underpants,” after its theatrical release. Only time will tell if Pete Davidson will once again voice a cat with an unpaid intern.
So far, “Dog Man” has grossed more than $89 million at the domestic box office according to The Numbers and is available for purchase on platforms such as Amazon Prime and Apple TV. Any greyhounds looking to engross themselves in more “Dog Man” content can look out for Dav Pilkey’s “Dog Man: Big Jim Begins,” wherever books are available.
