Captain Underpants
Captain Underpants is an illustrated children's novel series by American author and illustrator Dav Pilkey. The series revolves around two fourth-graders, George Beard and Harold Hutchins, living in Piqua, Ohio, and Captain Underpants, an aptly named superhero from one of the boys' homemade comic books, who accidentally becomes real when George and Harold hypnotize their ill-tempered principal, Mr. Krupp. Soon after, Mr. Krupp gains superpowers by drinking alien juices in the third book.
Currently, the series includes 12 books, two activity books, 11 spin-offs, and won a Disney Adventures Kids' Choice Award on April 4, 2006. As of 2014, the series has been translated into more than 20 languages, with more than 80 million books sold worldwide, including over 50 million in the United States. DreamWorks Animation acquired rights to the series to make an animated feature, which was released on June 2, 2017, to positive reviews.
After the main series concluded with the twelfth novel, Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot, in 2015, a spin-off series titled Dog Man was released the following year. This spin-off series has eight books so far.
Characters
Main
- George Beard and Harold Hutchins – Two fourth-grade pranksters, who are best friends and next-door neighbors and the main protagonists of the series. They started a comic book company called "Treehouse Comix, Inc.", and every so often at school they sneak to the secretary's office to make copies of their latest comic book and sell them on the playground for 50 cents. They are the class clowns in 4th grade at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School, a school which discourages imagination and fun, located in Piqua, Ohio. They often get in trouble and serious events with Mr. Krupp. Harold's birthday is March 6, 1986, and George's is July 11, 1985. After time travel antics, duplicates of them are created in the present, referred to as Yesterday George and Yesterday Harold. After the original duo travel to the future, they find their others selves to have become graphic novel creators, with Future Yesterday George married to a woman named Lisa, and Future Yesterday Harold married to a man named Billy. George's parents are named Moses and Barbara, while Harold's mother is named Grace. In the adaptations, their personalities are mostly unchanged, but they now usually only prank to entertain their schoolmates and treat Captain Underpants more as a friend than a last resort. In the film, they are respectively voiced by Kevin Hart and Thomas Middleditch and by Ramone Hamilton and Jay Gragnagi in the series.
- Mr. Krupp – The cruel principal of Jerome Horwitz Elementary School and the antihero of the series. He’s usually depicted as an overweight man. Mr. Krupp has a deep hatred of children and also tries to protect the students at Jerome Horwitz Elementary from George and Harold's antics. Why he’s so mean to children, in general, is unknown, but it’s hinted that it’s because of his own troubled and dysfunctional past. Krupp's birthday is on April 1; he has a younger brother named Jasper, and his parents are named John and Bernice. When Krupp was little, performing an awful hip-hop dance at a talent show, his mother passed out fruits and vegetables to the audience so they could throw them at him because he didn't watch the cows from his family farm. This leads him to become mean, cold-hearted, and vow to make all kids feel worse just like he did. His last name is a pun of the word "corrupt". When he goes by his full name, it's a pun on "bankrupt". In the film, it’s revealed that he read George and Harold's comics when he confiscated them and felt they were a little funny, which explains how he knows what Captain Underpants acts like when he’s hypnotized. In the film, he’s voiced by Ed Helms and in the series, he’s voiced by Nat Faxon.
- Captain Underpants – The alter ego of Mr. Krupp, when he’s hypnotized to think he’s "Captain Underpants," a character created by George and Harold. He only wears white briefs and a red cape with black polka dots. Whenever Mr. Krupp hears the sound of fingers snapping, he turns into Captain Underpants, and he turns back into Mr. Krupp when he’s soaked with water. Captain Underpants gains superpowers in the third book and possessed superhuman strength, durability, flight, and "wedgie power" where he can pull unlimited underwear from his utility waistband. As the book series went on, Captain Underpants seemed to have increasingly minor roles in each installment. In the 12th book, he lost his superpowers and was erased from existence, much to George and Harold's apathy. Captain Underpants is considered to be the "light side" of Mr. Krupp himself, as he is nice and kind to everyone, especially children. He is very protective of children, most especially George and Harold since he believes they are his trusty sidekicks. In the film, he is voiced by Ed Helms and in the series, he is voiced by Nat Faxon.
- Melvin Richard Sneedly – George and Harold's nerdy nemesis. He’s an annoying snitch, a mechanical genius, the school brainiac, and a tattletale. His parents, Cindy and Gaylord, are professional scientists and are canonically neglectful. It is thought that his parents' neglectful behavior and snobby attitudes contribute to his anger and snobbiness. In the Netflix series, he is thought to have been inventing since he was a baby and has a bizarre sense of humor, laughing at videos of rotting fruit. Apparently, in the movie, he is the only student who has no sense of humor because he thinks everything childish isn't funny and only focuses on his studies so he can get extra credit. He’s also said to have no brain stem. In the film, he is voiced by Jordan Peele and in the series by Jorge Diaz.
- Sulu and Crackers – George and Harold's pets. Sulu was Melvin's abandoned pet bionic hamster after he yelled at Sulu which offended him but afterward was adopted by George and Harold. Crackers is their pet Quetzalcoatlus they got when they traveled back in time with Melvin Sneedly's time machine.
Recurring
- Mr. Kenny Brian Meaner – Mr. Meaner is Jerome Horwitz Elementary School's gym teacher. He is depicted as being an overweight man and with a personality similar to Mr. Krupp's. Like him, he is very cruel to students and often yells at them. He appears in the series, where he is depicted as being incredibly ignorant and talks in a studder by saying "yeah yeah yeah yeah." In book 12, Meaner becomes Sir Stinks-A-Lot. His name is a pun on the word "misdemeanor" or by saying that "can he be meaner." Voiced by David Koechner in the TV series.
- Miss Edith Anthrope – The school secretary who is often shown to be in a bad mood. Like all the other teachers at the school including Mr. Krupp, she is unkind to children. She is slightly overweight, in contrast to most of the other teachers. In the movie, she is on hold for three days thinking she will win a contest with a cash prize of $1 billion. In she does not speak, but in the series, she is voiced by Patty Mattson where she is glum but yells "Fine!". A running gag in the series involves her entering Mr. Krupp's office saying "Did you call me?" followed by something else she says. Her name is a pun of the word "misanthrope" or by saying "eat it/miss and throw up."
- Mr. Morty Fyde – Mr. Fyde was the science teacher at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School. Unlike all the other grown-ups in the school, he is rather dorky and stupid. The events of the first three books gradually cause him to believe himself is insane and resign from his job to put himself in a mental institution. His name is a pun on the words "mystified" and "mortified." In the film, he is voiced by Mel Rodriguez. In the series he is voiced by Stephen Root, where he is released from the mental institution, though he becomes nervous around loud noise, which unfortunately for Mr.Fyde; an elementary school is practically built on noise. One of Melvin's inventions accidentally fuses Mr. Fyde with an avocado pit belonging to Harold and George, turning him into a giant avocado pit monster named Avocadwoe that attacks everything that makes loud sounds. Mr. Fyde is planted by Captain Underpants and he is turned into an avocado tree in a peaceful forest behind the school, something that Mr. Fyde is content with.
- Ms. Tara Ribble – Ms. Ribble is the homeroom teacher of George and Harold's 4th-grade class. In book 5, she is hypnotized into becoming Wedgie Woman. Her name is a pun on the words "terrible" and "miserable." Voiced by Dee Dee Rescher in the movie and Laraine Newman in the TV series.
- Miss Singerbrains – Miss Singerbrains is the librarian at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School who banned all but one of the books in the library and eventually closed down the library. Her name is a pun on saying she is "missing her brains."
- Mr. Riles Rected – Mr. Rected is the guidance counselor at Jerome Horwitz Elementary School. He is very nasty to students especially George and Harold and is often seen hanging with Mr. Krupp, Mr. Meaner, Miss Anthrope, and Ms. Ribble. His name is a pun on the word "misdirected." He is also voiced by Brian Posehn in the film and Jorge Diaz in the animated series.
- Ms. Dayken – Ms. Dayken is a member of the teaching board at Jerome Horwitz Elementary school. Her name is a pun on the word "mistaken." In the film, she is voiced by Susan Fitzer and was George and Harold's kindergarten teacher where she teaches about the planets, including "Uranus," which the boys find very amusing.
Villains
- Doctor Diaper – A diaper-clad mad scientist and the first villain Captain Underpants ever faced.
- The Turbo Toilet 2000 – A giant toilet created by George and Harold, who was accidentally brought into the real world with a modified photocopier. In the film, it was now Melvin's invention that was also Poopypants' giant robot with his size ray.
- Zorx, Klax, and Jennifer – Three space aliens who planned to invade Piqua, Ohio. They disguised themselves as lunch ladies to turn the students of Jerome Horwitz Elementary School into Zombie Nerds by using Evil Zombie Nerd Juice.
- The Dandelion of Doom – A dandelion that drank alien rapid-growth juice, causing it to grow into a giant, evil monster.
- Professor Pippy Pee-Pee Poopypants – A brilliant scientist who unfortunately comes from a foreign country where everyone has a silly name. In book 4, he forces everyone on earth to change their names into a silly one. After his defeat, Professor Poopypants changes his name to Tippy Tinkletrousers. In the film, he is voiced by Nick Kroll.
- Wedgie Woman – A villain created by George and Harold who was based on their teacher Ms. Ribble. After a second mishap with the Hypno-Ring, it convinced her that she is Wedgie Woman. at first, she has no superpowers, but after her hairstyle gets splattered with superpower juice from the third book her hair transforms into arms and she gains super-intelligence.
- Robo-George and The Harold 2000 – Two giant robots built by Wedgie Woman based on George and Harold. They were fully obedient to Wedgie Woman; each had a vast arsenal of powerful weapons and gadgets and were programmed to destroy Captain Underpants once they heard him say "Tra-la-laaa!"
- The Bionic Booger Boy – A fusion of Melvin Sneedly, boogers, and a super-powered robot. His growth is triggered by a field trip to a tissue factory.
- Carl, Trixie and Frankenbooger – Boogers who all come from the Bionic Booger Boy. They all share a weakness to oranges, which Captain Underpants successfully used to destroy the rampaging trio of living mucus. Carl had the Bionic Booger Boy's legs, Trixie had the tentacles, and Frankenbooger had the arms. Whenever they eat, they become bigger and more evil.
- Evil George and Evil Harold – Alternative versions of George and Harold from an alternate dimension who are both intelligent and evil. They helped Captain Blunderpants and unlike the sketchy, amateurish George and Harold they are good authors and illustrators. Additionally, they also tended to change the signs into evil phrases.
- Captain Blunderpants – The opposite of Captain Underpants from an alternate dimension, who has a toupee and looks and acts more like Krupp, while the alternate Krupp is nice. Also, his transformation is the opposite; when water is splashed on him, he becomes the evil Captain Blunderpants and when someone snaps their fingers, he becomes the nice Mr. Krupp.
- Kipper Krupp – A sixth-grade bully and Mr. Krupp's nephew, who would bully George, Harold, and other children when they were all in kindergarten. Due to a series of pranks that George and Harold conducted, he would eventually become nicer to the children.
- Sir Stinks-A-Lot – Mr. Meaner later becomes the alter ego of Sir Stinks-A-Lot, an evil hypnotist. While in prison, Meaner transforms into a blob of pure energy after eating an egg salad sandwich. He later removes an alternative version of Captain Underpants's superpowers and the effects of the Hypno ring, erasing him from existence entirely and giving himself, Old George and Old Harold all of Captain Underpants's superpowers and the effects of the 3D Hypno-Ring.
Novels
Novels 6–12 in the main series form one unbroken story, in which the ending of each of such novel except the last is a cliffhanger, and the next novel in sequence immediately picks up where the last one left off.
''Captain Underpants'' novels
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants
- Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets
- Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space
- Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants
- Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman
- Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets
- Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2: The Revenge of the Ridiculous Robo-Boogers
- Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People
- Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers
- Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers
- Captain Underpants and the Tyrannical Retaliation of the Turbo Toilet 2000
- Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot
''Captain Underpants'' activity books
- The Captain Underpants Extra-Crunchy Book o' Fun
- The All-New Captain Underpants Extra-Crunchy Book o' Fun 2
- The Captain Underpants Super Silly Sticker Studio
''Captain Underpants'' spin-offs
- The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby
- Super Diaper Baby 2: The Invasion of the Potty Snatchers
''Dog Man'' novels (In full color)
- Dog Man
- Dog Man Unleashed
- Dog Man: A Tale of Two Kitties
- Dog Man and Cat Kid
- Dog Man: Lord Of the Fleas
- Dog Man: Brawl of the Wild
- Dog Man: For Whom The Ball Rolls
- Dog Man: Fetch-22
- Dog Man: Grime and Punishment
''Captain Underpants'' collectors' editions
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants: Collectors' Edition
- Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets: Collectors' Edition
- Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space : Collectors' Edition
''Captain Underpants'' collections
- The Tra-La-La Riffic Captain Underpants Collection/The First Captain Underpants Collection
- Three More Wedgie-Powered Adventures in One
- The Second Captain Underpants Collection/The Tra-La-Larious Captain Underpants
- Captain Underpants: Three Pantastic Novels in One
- The New Captain Underpants Collection
- The Tra-La-La Tremendous Captain Underpants Collection
- The Complete Captain Underpants Collection
- The Captain Underpants Collectors' Edition Collection ''
''Captain Underpants in Full Color''
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants
- Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets
- Captain Underpants and the Invasion...
- Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants
- Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman
- Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets
- Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy Part 2: the Revenge of the Ridiculous Robo-Boogers
- Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People
- Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers
- Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers
- Captain Underpants and the Tyrannical Retaliation of the Turbo Toilet 2000
- Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot *
Potentially cancelled books
- The Captain Underpants Cartoon-O-Rama Book Heroes, Villains, and Supercreeps
- FrankenFart vs. The Bionic Barf Bunnies from Diarrhea Land
- The Adventures of Ook and Gluk Jr: Kung-Fu Cavekids in Outer Space
- Captain Underpants Proudly Presents F.A.R.T.S. The Major Motion Picture
Controversy
Book bans
The Captain Underpants books were reported by the American Library Association to be the most frequently challenged books in the year 2012. Dav Pilkey also mentioned this in his website. According to the American Library Association, Pilkey's Captain Underpants series was explicitly banned in some schools for insensitivity and being unsuited to the age group, as well as encouraging children to disobey authority.The American Library Association stated in a release by the National Coalition Against Censorship that "This year's #1 banned book, Captain Underpants... is the gift that keeps on giving. Why? Because these popular, silly books are read by parents, with their children, all over the country. The toilet humor makes parents roll their eyes and kids giggle. The absurdity of banning books to attack perceived moral problems is exemplified by this year's winner."
In October 2015, the 12th book received controversy due to a reference to Harold being gay. Some elementary schools have banned the book for this reason.
Costumes
In 2007, Captain Underpants Halloween costumes created controversy at Long Beach High School in Long Island, New York. Three female students dressed up as Captain Underpants causing the principal, Nicholas Restivo, to enact a costume ban for all students. The three girls put on beige leotards and nude stockings under white briefs and red capes. According to Principal Restivo, "The appearance was that they were naked."Hiatus
Although the first few books came out regularly, the ninth book, Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers, wasn't released until 2012, after a six-year wait. During this time, Dav Pilkey was caring for his terminally ill father, who died in 2008. In 2009, he signed a deal with Scholastic for four new books, the first of which was The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung-Fu Cavemen from the Future, released August 10, 2010. The second was Super Diaper Baby 2: The Invasion of the Potty Snatchers, released June 28, 2011. The third book, Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers, was released August 28, 2012. The fourth book, Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers, was released January 16, 2013.Other media
Film adaptation
On October 20, 2011, it was reported that DreamWorks Animation had acquired rights to make an animated feature film based on the Captain Underpants series. On October 25, 2013, it was reported that Rob Letterman would direct the film, while Nicholas Stoller would write the script. It would have been the second film to have Letterman and Stoller working together, the first being Gulliver's Travels. On January 21, 2014, the cast was announced, with Ed Helms joining as Mr. Krupp/Captain Underpants; Kevin Hart as George Beard; Thomas Middleditch as Harold Hutchins; Nick Kroll as the insidious villain, Professor Poopypants; and Jordan Peele as Melvin, the nerdy nemesis of George and Harold. On June 12, 2014, the film was scheduled for release on January 13, 2017. Following DreamWorks Animation's reorganization in early 2015, the studio announced that the film would be produced outside of the studio's pipeline at a significantly lower cost. It would be instead animated at Mikros Image in Montreal, Canada, and it would look differently than most of DWA's films. A month later, Deadline reported that Letterman had left the project, and that David Soren, the director of Turbo, was in talks to direct the film, but Letterman returned to the project and served as an executive producer with Dav Pilkey. The film was expected to be released on March 10, 2017, but in September 2015, DreamWorks Animation's The Boss Baby took over its date. The film was released on June 2, 2017.Television series
also produced a television series based on the film that was streamed to Netflix. It was released on July 13, 2018.Interactive episode
In 2020, an interactive episode called Captain Underpants Epic Choice-o-Rama was released on Netflix. The episode involves Harold and George stopping Mr. Krupp from blowing up their beloved treehouse.Reception
Censors in the United States have been targeting the Captain Underpants series after the first book was released in 1997. The Office of Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association reported that Captain Underpants is the book series with the most complaints from libraries due to offensive content in the United States in 2012 and 2013. Several parents accused the book of having language inappropriate for the book's target audience, children enrolled in elementary schools.Jessica Roake, in an article published in Slate, argued that the books are well suited for young readers. She wrote that "They're drawn to them because for the first time in their reading lives they are understood, entertained, and catered to all at once. It is theirs, not ours, and that feeling of exclusive ownership forges the kind of connection everyone should have with at least one book in their life. For that, most every English teacher of my acquaintance will be more than happy to take the shot to the ego the Captain provides."
The series has frequently been compared with the Horace Splattly series, but not always positively.
International publishing
- Brazil: Cosac Naify | Companhia das Letras
- Canada, Argentina, Mexico, UK, Ireland, Hong Kong, India, Australia, New Zealand: Scholastic
- Catalan: Editorial Cruilla
- China: Nanhai Publishing Company
- Hong Kong: Thinkingdom/New Buds
- Taiwan: Commonwealth, Thinkingdom
- Croatia: Mozaik Knjiga
- Czech Republic: Egmont, Baronet
- Denmark: Forlaget Sesam, Carlsen
- Finland: Tammi
- France: Le Petit Musc ; Bayard Presse
- Germany, Austria: Ueberreuter ; Panini
- Greece: Modern Times, Psichogios Publications
- Hungary: Ulpius-Haz
- Iceland: JPV Forlag ; Bókafélagið
- Indonesia: Kompas Gramedia Group
- Israel: Kinneret Zmora-Bitan Dvir
- Italy: Edizioni Piemme, Salani
- Japan: Tokuma Shoten
- * is the Japanese translator of the book series.
- Korea: Gimm-Young Publishers, Inc.
- Latvia: Zvaigzne ABC
- Lithuanian: Alma littera
- Norway: Cappelen Damm ; Schibsted Forlag, Vigmostad & Bjørke.
- Poland: Egmont, Jaguar
- Portugal: Gradiva ; Marcador
- Romania: Editura National; Art Grup Editorial
- Russia: Machiny Tvoreniya Publishing
- Slovenia: Založba Mladinska Knjiga
- Spain: Ediciones SM
- Sweden: Egmont Richters ; Bonnier Carlsen
- Thailand: Pearl Publishing
- Turkey: A.I. Iletisim/Altin Kitaplar
- Ukraine: Krajina Myri
- United Kingdom: Scholastic, TedSmart
- Vietnam: Nha Nam Publishing