DC League of Super-Pets, at Look Cinemas

It might be the “Summer of Superman,” but Krypto has been the biggest winner from the trailer release. If you think he is cute there, check out Krypto All In #1. Every panel fully capitalizes on his adorableness, while still telling a dramatic story. Hopefully, Ryan North and Mike Norton can sustain that high quality. At this point, most viewers probably still know Krypto best from this animated film. He is a bigger Krypto, but he probably had to be, since he is voiced by The Rock in Jared Stern & Sam J. Levine’s DC League of Super-Pets, which has a special family screening this Tuesday at Look Cinemas.

Originally in the comics, Krypto landed on Earth after Superman. In League of Super Pets, he jumped into the escape-craft with Kal-El (in far and away the cutest scene of the film). Of course, they grow up to be Superman and Krypto, inseparable superhero buddies, protecting Metropolis from villains like Lex Luthor. However, Krypto feels like Lois Lane is on the verge of breaking up the band, like an animated Yoko Ono.

Ironically, it is not Luthor who renders Superman and Krypto powerless. It will be his literal guinea pig, Lulu, whom Krypto rescued from Luthor’s lab. However, Lulu did not want to be rescued, because she absorbed Luthor’s villainous persona. Consequently, she works on her evil scheme to refine Orange Kryptonite from the animal shelter, where she is imprisoned with Ace the Boxer, Merton the turtle, PB the potbellied pig, and Chip, the squirrel, who really shouldn’t be in a domestic adoption shelter, but whatever. Together, they all gain superpowers as a result of Lulu’s Kryptonite super-charge.

Krypto got off on the wrong paw with Ace and his pals, because he is not good with other pets. However, they all start to grow on each other. Krypto also promises to hook them up with nice farm homes in Smallville. Unfortunately, Lulu acclimates to super-villainy much quicker than the Super Pets adjust to super-heroism.

League of Super-Pets is undeniably kid-friendly and amusing, but sometimes maybe in ways that are a little too silly for fans of the DC Animated Universe, which this film is not a part of. Arguably, the talking animal business drives the film rather than their roles within the DC Universe. Obviously, Krypto has an honored place in the Universe and Ace is also an established member of the Bat-Family. Chip and Merton have precedent but they are very loosely based on their namesakes, while PB and Lulu are entirely original.

The best moments capture the human-animal bond shared by Superman and Krypto, who are nicely voiced by John Krasinski and The Rock. Conversely, Kevin Hart is a lot as Ace—sometimes too much. Natasha Lyonne and Vanessa Bayer are almost as much as Merton and PB. However, there are some standout guest voices, notably including Keanu Reeves as Batman (that one makes a lot of sense, right?), Alfred Molina as Jor-El, and Keith David as Dog-El, Krypto’s father, whose hologram provides some of the best jokes for hardcore DC fans.

Serious fans will probably bemoan the absence of Streaky the Supercat, Supergirl’s companion. Adapting Chip the human-sized Ch’p from the Lantern Corps also seems questionable, when screenwriters Stern and John Whittingham could have easily borrowed several members from Captain Carrot’s Zoo Crew. Frankly, one cannot help wondering how DCAU filmmakers like Bruce Timm and Sam Liu might have shaped a Super Pets film in ways that more embraced comic book traditions.

There is an inconsistency to League of Super-Pets, but the high points are incredibly endearing, while the low points could very well delight younger viewers. It should also be noted Krasinski makes a good Superman, or at least his voice does. Regardless, one thing is for sure. Krypto is a very good dog, especially in his current comic. Recommended as a solid family film rather than a great DC adaptation, DC League of Super-Pets screens this Tuesday afternoon (7/8) at Look Cinemas and it streams on HBO Max.