Monday, April 25, 2016

U is for…Underdog

http://underdog704.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/the-cartoon-dog.jpg
Underdog might be the first superhero I ever admired. I used to sit on the floor as a toddler watching the humble and lovable shoeshine boy save Sweet Polly Purebred while my mother folded laundry around me.

The cartoon was silly and light, in the vein of Rocky and Bullwinkle, Hong Kong Phooey, and other cartoons of the era. Underdog had a range of talents/powers, with no consistency from episode to episode, but this didn't bother me. I liked his rhyming speeches. I even sort of got the Superman references, thanks to watching the old TV show with George Reeves in reruns with my uncles.

Sometimes, in the face of dark and twisted superhero stories like the recent Batman franchise, I miss the wide-open optimism and joy of heroes like Underdog, who knew simply what was right and fought villains who were clearly wrong. His secret identity stayed secret and his ego remained in check. Maybe some more recent superheroes could learn a thing or two from this shoeshine boy.
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This post is part of the A to Z Blogging Challenge. I'll be writing about superheroes I love all month. You can check out other bloggers and see their creative takes on the challenge here.

Don't forget to check out my own superhero stories. Change of Life, book two of my Menopausal Superheroes series just came out a few days ago!






7 comments:

  1. I watched Underdog as a little kid too.
    Polly Purebred is one of my favorite "damsels in distress" because she was pretty smart and involved in her rescues. I had forgotten that he was a lowly shoe-shine boy.

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  2. I used to love Underdog, too. He's such a great character!

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  3. Underdog was always good for a laugh and Polly Purebred was such a great character.

    @Kathleen01930
    Meet My Imaginary Friends
    #AtoZchallenge

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  4. They made a movie with Underdog recently didn't they, a real dog I think? Yes, Polly Purebred, what a name! :)

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  5. I vaguely remember watching Underdog. Now the theme is stuck in my head...

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  6. I don't know Underdog, but you're the second person I've seen mention him for U :). I'm with you on the optimism and joy part - sometimes that's what we need. I've heard it said the new Supergirl is more in that vein.
    Tasha
    Tasha's Thinkings | Wittegen Press | FB3X (AC)

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