Paw Patrol Movie 2 - October 4

 Obligatory disclaimer: real life sucks, while on the imaginary side of the equation, we got… what?

First, there is Ahsoka, or rather – ‘Ahsoka’ the TV series. As some people have suspected all along, at the S1 (?) finale, the titular character and her cohorts got stranded in another galaxy, away from the main scene, leaving the canon plotline free to develop however, it wants, if the setting of the SW films 7 through 9 is the endgame. Yes, Ezra, Hera and Chopper are still free to confront Thrawn, but given that this series is, or was, about Ahsoka, the fact that the Jedi knight Tano is off the main board at the moment doesn’t inspire optimism that this series will continue, (even if Ahsoka herself will). What is next?

In the SW-universe – anything can go, of course, as for us… well, ‘Loki’ S2 is almost upon us, joy, but we will discuss it when it actually starts, airing, (maybe). For now, though, there is also the ‘Paw Patrol Mighty Movie’, and I can only ask: what?

Here is the thing: while ‘PJ Masks’ went all over the place lately, as the show lost its initial successful identity and tries to acquire something new, (rather than keep the old format – that of superhero fables), ‘Paw Patrol’ hasn’t. It is the same as always: Rider and his six pups, (the core characters), go all over their world, exploring new places, solving new puzzles and obstacles, making new friends, and… that is it, really. Aside from the Humdinger people there are few real opponents for the titular characters; everyone tries to get along, (more or less), and there was little superhero-like shenanigans in the franchise.

Then came the mighty meteor story arc, where the pups acquired a meteor – or rather a meteorite from space that gave them superpowers; them, and various another people as well, and so, for a while, the pups did have other ‘real’ foes aside from the Humdinger people: a human woman named Lady Bird, and a housecat named Copycat. For a while, the paw patrol franchise did feel like a good-natured spoof of the superhero genre… and then the arc was over, and the pups moved on with their lives.

And then, in September 2023, the franchise tried to reboot itself with the mighty meteor – what gives? That arc is officially over, and frankly, the new movie feels the worse take out of the two on the bloody space rock; (we have discussed the difference between meteors, meteorites and asteroids elsewhere, remember?). Moreover, what about continuity? The first PP movie – one that introduced Liberty, (a dachshund), had fit into the main narrative quite neatly, as Liberty was installed into the main PP TV series with nary an issue; now she’s been sidelined and the franchise tried to introduce a new villain – Victoria Vance – who feels like a rebooted (and somewhat upgraded) Lady Bird variant. What gives?

…By that I mean with the PP franchise in question: previously, it worked, and better so than the PJ Masks’ one; now… maybe not so much. Ah well, that is real life for you. Did I mention that it sucks?

For now, however, this is it. See you all soon!