"Where pups become dogs."
Pup Academy is a children's fantasy series and spinoff of the Air Bud franchise. It was released in 2019.
Since the time of the first dog, the prestigious Pup Academy has taught puppies everything they need to know about being man's best friend. With the magic of Canus Primus, a constellation created by the bond between dogs and humans, the Academy's adorable students travel to school every day, returning to their homes each night.
But times are changing, and the light of Canus Primus is fading- putting the school itself at risk. Its Dean takes drastic action, enrolling a very special pup in the school; a stray dog. The stray he chooses, Spark, is a hardened Boxer who doesn't trust humans. But she will have to learn, for the Academy- and the friends she's made there- are in danger...
Related series are Super PupZ and Phantom Pups, other productions from Air Bud Entertainment.
This series contains the following tropes:
- A Boy and His X: Several pairs.
- The main plotline is Spark's From Stray to Pet journey with Morgan.
- Charles and (the) D.O.G watch over the Academy.
- Izzy and Corazon, the subject of her amateur films.
- A Dog Named "Cat": The first dog, Canus Primus, was actually a wolf. But when he protected a human from other wolves, he became a dog, philosophically speaking- a creature defined by its ability to be loyal to different species.
- All Just a Dream: Most of the season 2 premiere is a shared nightmare showing what will happen if the heroes fail. Puppies being thrown out on the street to starve is not the worst part of it.
- Ancient Order of Protectors: Morgan's family are the only humans who know about Pup Academy. Most of them have worked there as janitors/teacher's aides/thumb-havers, of which Morgan is the newest.
- Cat Stereotype: Zipper, a gray tabby, follows the "independent and extremely friendly" stereotype associated with tabbies.
- Cliffhanger: Season 1 ends with all the various bad guys getting some degree of what they want, including Spark's expulsion.
- Cosmic Retcon: The reason humanity can love dogs is because of a huge magical working that took place sometime around Ancient Egypt (incidentally ending cat worship). If the gem enabling this working is broken, most humans instantly switch to loathing dogs, forgetting they ever did otherwise. The one guy who remembers the truth is desperate to get everyone sane (insane?) again.
- Dog Stereotype: Sometimes played straight, sometimes not.
- Corazon is a ditzy, extroverted golden retriever.
- Gruff the corgi is a calm, queenly headmistress.
- D.O.G's fatherly personality subverts the husky stereotype.
- The Don: King, who leads the Lost Dogs in beating up anyone who enters their territory and mugging little girls. He does not like Spark's refusal to join his gang, or the protection the Academy gives her.
- Exact Words: The Academy test for walking specifies that participants must not chase the faux-squirrel used to distract them. It doesn't say that participants can't close their eyes to resist the temptation.
- Food as Bribe: The D.O.G convinces Spark to go to school by telling her meals are provided. Because Spark has previously had to steal food to live (and protect it from other thieves), this is very appealing to her.
- Hypocrite: The Academy teaches unconditional love...for humans. Not dogs without owners, which is why those dogs have never received the benefit of its education. The D.O.G, and most teachers, are aware of this hypocrisy and trying to rectify it.
- Mirroring Factions: Cats have Kitten Academy, which is like Pup Academy but led by a villain. The usual Fantastic Racism aesop makes an appearance.
- The Poorly Chosen One: It was thought that King(sley) and George's son would save the school. They didn't.
- Power Crystal: The "Heart of Friendship" hidden in the Canus Primus statue is mostly a glowy meter of how strong the dog/human relationship is, but there's a reason the Big Bad wants to get his paws on it.
- Prophetic Name: The town of Wolfehead has a serious feral dog problem.
- Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory: In the Bad Future, only dogs and Academy caretakers remember the role they played in humanity's history.
- Sadist Teacher: Fitz, who makes no secret of his prejudice against strays, has been crusading to get Spark expelled since literally her first day. He's later revealed to be a murderous Evil Teacher.
- Savage Wolves: The denizens of the Wildwood.
- The Stars Are Going Out: And if they do, humanity's compassion goes with them.
- Street Urchin: Spark's backstory mostly consists of stealing food, fleeing dog-catchers and the gang bent on (forcibly) recruiting her, and sleeping in a box. The reason she's an orphan is that her parents were taken away by Animal Control.
- Technologically Blind Elders: George is not opposed to technology per se, but he can't understand his grandson's need for apps or cleaning equipment that wasn't produced decades ago.
- The Power of Love: Inter-species talking can only be done between conversationalists who have been at Pup Academy for awhile note and truly love a member of the species they're talking to. Izzy and Corazon don't fit the second criteria yet, but they understand each other well enough that, ironically, they don't really need it.
- This Is My Human: The source of many of the series' jokes.
- Dogs believe that humans play fetch because they like throwing balls around.
- Strays believe that humans walk dogs; the Academy teaches the opposite, encouraging puppies to keep their humans fit and not pull on their leashes too hard.
