Avid dog-show lover Pops finally adopts a furry friend of his own, but Lunella suspects the new pet isn’t what he seems.
- Actor Allusion: Franklin, who is voiced by David Tennant, has a ship that look like a cross between a dog house and the TARDIS.
- Aliens of London: Franklin, an alien dog, for some reason speaks with a Scottish Brogue. When this is lampshaded, he justifies it by saying it's just a cool manner of speaking.
- Ass in a Lion Skin: In order to infiltrate the dog show, Lunella and Casey shrink down Devil and disguise him as a dog.
- Call-Back:
- As Franklin explains Kat Swan's villain backstory, Casey interrupts and asks why the Beyonder isn't covering it. Lunella mentions they haven't seen him since the Wish-Tar ordeal.
- When Franklin says every dog in all of New York plus Jersey City in danger, a sticker saying "No disrespect to Jersey" pops up.
- Casting Gag: Kat Swan is played by Parker Posey, who previously played an obnoxious and entitled dog show competitor named Meg Swan in Best in Show.
- Cuteness Proximity: Lunella and Casey can't help but coo at all the cute dogs at the dog show.
- The Dog Is an Alien: Franklin turns out to be a dog-like alien who came to stop Kat Swan from mind-controling all the dogs on Earth. He chose Pops to find him because his love for dogs is the purest.
- Foreshadowing: Pops tells Lunella that he took Franklin's alien revelation well because he came forward with the truth when it was time. Lunella herself is still worried about revealing Devil Dinosaur and her Moon Girl persona to her family, which is handled later in the season.
- Ironic Name: This episode's Villain of the Week is a dog lover named Kat Swan. Her name comes from the animals "cat" and "swan", both of which are enemies to dogs.
- Named After Someone Famous: Played with. Pops names Franklin after his favorite dollar bill — the $100, with the face of Benjamin Franklin.
- Only the Pure of Heart: Kat claims that love for dogs don't exist if a simple whistle can control them, but Franklin believes otherwise. After the heroes take the dog whistle from Kat, Franklin has Pops blow on it to cancel the control, as his heart holds the purest form of canine love.
- Red Herring: After discovering that Franklin is an alien and is suspiciously roaming the streets, Lunella assumes he is controlling the other dogs in stealing their owners' valuables. She soon learns that he's actually pursuing the real culprit: the dog show host Kat Swan.
- Running Gag: Throughout the episode, the cast keeps making dog puns, complete with a tracker marking each one. note .
- Shout-Out:
- The episode's title is a reference to Dog Day Afternoon.
- The insignia of Franklin's Guard Dog team looks like the Starfleet insignia turned into a paw.
- Talking Animal: Franklin, because he's actually a member of a team of space dog heroes.
