''2 Stupid Dogs'' is an American
animated television series
An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have eith ...
created and designed by
Donovan Cook
Donovan Ryan Cook III (born January 30, 1968) is an American film director, cartoon creator and producer, best known for creating, directing and producing the animated series ''2 Stupid Dogs'' and directing the Disney animated features ''Return ...
and produced by
Hanna-Barbera Cartoons. It originally ran from September 5, 1993, to May 15, 1995, on
TBS as a part of their ''Sunday Morning in Front of the TV'' block and in syndication. The show's main segments feature two unnamed dogs, called "The Big Dog" and "The Little Dog" in the credits (voiced by
Brad Garrett and Mark Schiff, respectively).
The show has been described as "Hanna-Barbera's answer to ''
Ren and Stimpy''",
a hit show that premiered two years earlier in 1991 on
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...
. Like ''Ren & Stimpy'', the ''Dogs'' characters are not very bright, the show is scored with jazz music, and the comedy style leans on gross-out body-secretion humor. Asked about the comparison, Hanna-Barbera CEO
Fred Seibert was unconcerned, saying that it was "like
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, g ...
worrying about being compared to
Nirvana
( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lamp Richard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colomb ...
."
[ Ironically, following his dismissal from ]Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...
, ''Ren and Stimpy'' creator John Kricfalusi was credited as contributing "bad taste" gags to a few episodes of ''Dogs''.
A backup segment, ''Super Secret Secret Squirrel'' (a sequel series to '' Secret Squirrel''), is shown in between the main ''2 Stupid Dogs'' cartoons in the first season's episodes, similar to early Hanna-Barbera cartoons from the 1960s.
The show entirely used digital ink and paint in every episode.
The series was cancelled after the second season due to declining viewership and former president Ted Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded the Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he ...
negatively comparing the series to ''The Ren & Stimpy Show''.
Plot
The show is about two unnamed dogs—neither of whom, as the title states, is very intelligent—and their everyday misadventures. The Big Dog tends to talk much less than the Little Dog. When the Big Dog talks, he usually talks about food. The animation style in the first season is unusual for the time: a very flat and simplistic style similar to the early Hanna-Barbera cartoons of the 1950s and 1960s, but with early 1990s humor and sensibility. The wilder, more absurd second season has more fluid and exaggerated character animation.
Characters
* The Big Dog (voiced by Brad Garrett) is a large grey Old English Sheepdog with a purple nose. He is much stronger and significantly more stoic and reserved than the Little Dog, and speaks much less – on occasion, he has also been shown to be surprisingly smarter than the Little Dog.
* The Little Dog (voiced by Mark Schiff), a small, tawny-colored Dachshund
The dachshund ( or ; German: " badger dog"), also known as the wiener dog, badger dog, and sausage dog, is a short-legged, long-bodied, hound-type dog breed. The dog may be smooth-haired, wire-haired, or long-haired, and comes in a variety o ...
, is much more energetic and hyperactive than the Big Dog. The Little Dog is very scared of cats, and when a cat (usually the same cat) appears, it is the Big Dog who scares it away.
* The Cat is a small innocent cat which the Little Dog is terrified of, despite it being harmless. The Big Dog's bark causes the Cat to freeze in terror; however, the Cat is not afraid of the Big Dog unless he barks.
* Mr. Hollywood (voiced by Brian Cummings) is a large man who is both arrogant and loud, and likes to point out others' mistakes. He has a completely different job in each appearance, including teacher, farmer, casino manager, Noah
Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5� ...
and pet shop salesman. When pointing out others' mistakes he will first say, "Well now, isn't that cute..." and then yell out, "...BUT IT'S WRONG!!!", usually accompanied by a blaring foghorn
A foghorn or fog signal is a device that uses sound to warn vehicles of navigational hazards such as rocky coastlines, or boats of the presence of other vessels, in foggy conditions. The term is most often used in relation to marine transport. Wh ...
.
* Cubby (voiced by Rob Paulsen
Robert Frederick Paulsen III (born March 11, 1956) is an American voice actor, known for his roles in numerous animated television series and films. He received a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program and three Anni ...
) is a fat, spotty man with big glasses, blonde hair and blue lips. In the episodes that he appears in, he works different jobs, like Mr. Hollywood.
* Kenny Fowler (voiced by Jarrett Lennon) is a small skinny kid with nerdy glasses, who is often pushed around by Buzz and often falls down.
* Buzz (voiced by Whit Hertford) is a school bully who picks on Kenny and says "What a Fowler!" whenever Kenny falls or makes a mistake.
* Buffy Ziegenhagen (voiced by Tawni Tamietti) is a girl in Kenny's class who he has a crush on and who has a secret crush on him.
* Red (voiced by Candi Milo) is a small, meek little girl that the dogs sometimes encounter in the woods. When she speaks, she shouts one word (sometimes two) in the sentence very loudly compared to the quiet tone of voice she usually has. Trying to visit her grandmother, she ends up in trouble due to her bad eyesight and the dogs' stupidity.
Episodes
Home media
On August 14, 2018, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros.
It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video ...
(via the Warner Archive Collection
The Warner Archive Collection is a home video division for releasing classic and cult films from Warner Bros.' library. It started as a manufactured-on-demand (MOD) DVD series by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on March 23, 2009, with the inten ...
) released the first season of the series as ''2 Stupid Dogs/Secret Squirrel Show Volume One'' on DVD.
Reception
Martin "Dr. Toon" Goodman of ''Animation World Magazine
Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...
'' described ''2 Stupid Dogs'' as one of two "clones" of ''The Ren & Stimpy Show
''The Ren & Stimpy Show'' (also known as ''Ren & Stimpy'') is an American animated television series created by Canadian animator John Kricfalusi. Originally produced by Spümcø for Nickelodeon, the series aired from August 11, 1991, to Dece ...
'', the other one being ''The Shnookums and Meat Funny Cartoon Show
''The Shnookums and Meat Funny Cartoon Show'' is a half-hour American animated comedy television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation and aired in 1995 as a spin-off of the show ''Marsupilami'', a spinoff itself of '' Raw Toonage' ...
''. The series was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award but lost to ''Rugrats
''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers; most prominently— Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, and twins Phil and Lil, a ...
''.
Accolades
See also
* List of works produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions
* List of Hanna-Barbera characters
Notes
References
External links
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{{The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera
1993 American television series debuts
1995 American television series endings
1990s American animated television series
1990s American children's comedy television series
American children's animated comedy television series
Animated television series about dogs
English-language television shows
First-run syndicated television programs in the United States
The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera
TBS (American TV channel) original programming
Television series by Hanna-Barbera