Dog Names that Start with Un

Underdog was an animated television show that started in October of 1964 and continued on television until 1973. However, it can still be found on some channels as a rerun, and there was a movie about Underdog in 2007. But who was Underdog? His real name was Shoeshine Boy, and he was a Beagle with superpowers who would fight crime, usually when his favorite female, Sweet Polly Purebred, was being bothered by one of the neighborhood villains such as Riff Raff or Simon Bar Sinister. 

This awesome Beagle almost always spoke in rhymes with some of his favorite sayings like, “There’s no need to fear, Underdog is here” or “When Polly’s in trouble (or when help is needed), I am not slow. It’s hip hip hip and away I go!” When Polly was in need, or there was some other catastrophe, he would run to a telephone booth (like Superman) and change into a cape and suit with a giant U on it for Underdog. When Polly needed him, she would sing “Oh where, oh where has my Underdog gone?”

The furific cartoon was ranked number 74 on the Best 100 Animated Series List by IGN and number 23 out of 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All-Time list by TV Guide. There were other ways in which Underdog was similar to Superman such as having an alter ego who was mild and meek. Superman had Peter Parker the reporter and Underdog had Shoeshine Boy who stuttered and could barely talk to Polly. Their superpowers were similar as well. They could both fly, had super strength and super speed, but Underdog’s powers seemed to change from show to show whereas Superman’s was always the same

Unlike Superman, Underdog did not have a weakness like kryptonite, but he did sometimes lose some of his strength and would have to take a Super Energy Pill to replenish his energy. However, in the mid-70s and afterward, the Super Energy Pill was changed to a Super Vitamin and then were cut out completely because some feared that children would see a pill that looked like the Underdog energy pills and take them. But the episodes that featured the pill were still shown, and some just did not make sense. Many believe that Underdog taught children good lessons about strength and sticking up for others while others complained that it was silly. But kids all agreed that Underdog was pretty pawesome.