DreamWorks Animation has provided ComicBook.com with an exclusive clip from The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants, their latest Netflix animated series.
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As the title would suggest, the show is based off of Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants series of books, which follow fourth graders George Beard (Ramone Hamilton) and Harold Hutchins (Jay Gragnani), who can transform their grumpy principal, Mr. Krupp (Nat Faxon), into the superhero Captain Underpants.
The exclusive clip, which you can check out above, gives a brief explanation of how that all works, with the help of series narrator Sean Astin (Stranger Things, The Goonies).
For fans of the book series, or of last year’s Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie, the television series will hopefully feel like a natural follow-up, something that executive creator Peter Hastings was aiming towards.
“I was very considerate of the original book material when it came to making the show, but everything that I’ve done with the show is really based on either something that’s in the books, or the spirit of the books.” Hastings told ComicBook.com. “And so, certainly Dav Pilkey has always had this fondness for telling stories in an interesting way, in a different way. In turning the medium inside-out, and really expressing his creativity with the characters themselves. And then just with the way that he tells the story. So that was what I really land with when it came to expanding it. So it’s this new part, but coming out of the original spirit of the books.”
As Hastings went on to explain, his goal is for viewers both young and old to look at the creative process in a new light.
“I’d like it to be the kind of show where if a parent is walking through the room or sitting down with their kid, that they also enjoy the show and are surprised by it.” Hastings revealed. “But I think ultimately what is important to me is all the devices and techniques, and the kind of story-telling we’re doing, to me are a little bit of a lesson in creative thinking. And while they’re not direct lessons, I think when kids see this thing that there are other ways to do things, that there are alternative ways to tell something, and ultimately you’re developing their sense of humor at the same time. To me, that’s the ultimately takeaway for a kid.”
The first season of The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants will debut Friday, July 13th on Netflix. Check back to ComicBook.com tomorrow for our full interview with Peter Hastings.
