'PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie' (2023)

Note: This article contains spoilers.

PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie is a 2023 Canadian animated children’s movie that is the sequel to the first theatrical movie in the series. A magical meteor crash lands in Adventure City, giving the PAW Patrol pups superpowers and transforming them into The Mighty Pups! This sequel is based on The Mighty Pups TV special in the PAW Patrol series.

The sequel continues from where we last left off at the end of the first movie. Viewers see Mayor Humdinger in jail, as evidenced by the orange jumpsuit and top hat he wears while in prison. He meets Victoria Vance, another prisoner, in his jail cell.

The cast of this sequel is completely different from the cast of the first theatrical movie. Cal Bunker reprises his role as the director. The Junior Patrollers make their debut appearances in the sequel and are the first team in the entire series to wholly consist of voice actors of colors. Liberty, Mini, Nano, and Tot are members of the Junior Patrollers. The voice actors who play Liberty and the Junior Patrollers members are all multiracial and have supporting roles.

Viewers also see a strong representation of women in this sequel, as Skye is the main focus and the main character. Skye feels unimportant due to her small size. With the fate of Adventure City hanging in the balance, the Mighty Pups have to stop the supervillains, Mayor Humdinger and Victoria Vance, before it’s too late. Skye will need to learn that even the smallest pup can make the biggest difference. The sequel focuses on Chase and Skye’s relationship, as the Chase and Skye pairing has become popular among fans of the series. Skye even gets her own backstory.

PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie is an action-packed sequel that brings adventure to young kids and strong representation of multiracial identities, as there are voice actors of color playing supporting roles unlike the first theatrical movie. Victoria Vance, the main supervillain, is voiced by Taraji P. Henson, bringing major star power and representation of Black women. Her skin tone in the animated movie closely resembles a Black woman with colored streaks.

If viewers look closely, they notice the animation style for the sequel is the same animation style used in the first theatrical movie. We also see that most of the characters in this sequel are pet pups; there are very few human characters who all play minor and cameo roles. The human characters from the first movie do not make any appearances in this sequel, as there are new voice actors.

Like the first theatrical movie, this sequel features new vehicles for Ryder and the pups. New vehicles are released as toys in the Spin Master toy line. Mayor Humdinger becomes a giant; he creates chaos, which is an element found in the first movie. Additionally, Mayor Goodway plays a small role when she visits Adventure City.

Fans of the cartoon series will find this Mighty Movie to be action-packed and adventurous.