In October 2022, ahead of the series premiere, the series was renewed for a second and final season. Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur premiered on Disney Channel on February 10, 2023, and was released on Disney+ five days later. The series received highly positive reviews for its writing, animation, soundtrack, representation, and characters. The series won five Children's and Family Emmy Awards.[1] The second season premiered on February 2, 2024.[2] On October 18, 2024, it was announced that the remaining episodes of season two would premiere in 2025.[3]
Premise
Lunella Lafayette is a 13-year-old genius living with her parents and grandparents in the Lower East Side of New York City. One day, she activates a portal and a red Tyrannosaurus steps out of it. With the support of her friend Casey, she becomes a superhero named Moon Girl and names the dinosaur "Devil Dinosaur".
Devil Dinosaur, a red Tyrannosaurus accidentally brought to present-day New York City by Lunella. He is shown to have a big appetite for food, especially hot dogs.[4]
Coach Hrbek, Lunella's gym teacher at Intermediate School 833 who also works as a substitute science teacher.
Alfre Woodard as Miriam "Mimi" Lafayette, Lunella's grandmother who is a snack bar attendant at Roll With It and is an expert cook. In the first season finale, it is revealed that Mimi was actually the original Moon Girl, having operated under that code name as a scientist, and that she secretly knows that Lunella and Moon Girl are one and the same.[4]
Gary Anthony Williams as James "Pops" Lafayette Sr., a middle-aged man styled as 1960s punker, Lunella's paternal grandfather, and the proprietor of Roll With It.[4]
Libe Barer as Casey Calderon, Lunella's manager, best friend of Puerto Rican and Jewish ancestry, and confidant in regards to Lunella's identity as Moon Girl.[4]
Carlee Baker as Sofie Slugfoot / Instantanegirl, an ex-hurdler who took a chemical compound that enhanced her leg muscles to give her more speed which got her banned from the Olympic games
Diamond White as Devil Girl, an alternate reality version of Lunella.
Fred Tatasciore as Moon Dinosaur, an alternate reality version of Devil Dinosaur.
Edward James Olmos as Molecule Man, a powerful alien being wielding a reality-warping wand who rules over a planet in another reality.[13]
Robin Thede[2] as Zakiya / Quickwhip, an aspiring culinary chef who became a whip-wielding supervillain because of a bad turning point in her life that involves Lady Bullseye.[14]
Laurence Fishburne as The Beyonder, a trickster with immense cosmic powers who is described as "curious and mischievous".[4][17] He is here to judge humanity to see if they are worthy of existence. The Beyonder also provides background information about Lunella's foes (credited as "Backstory Man" for his voiceover narration in earlier episodes) to the viewers.
Omid Abtahi as Ahmed, one of Lunella's neighbors who runs the local deli.
Fred Stoller as Toothgnasher, a goat who refuses to talk about his superhero partner due to an "impending lawsuit".
David Tennant[2] as Franklin, a Scottish-accented alien dog who is a hero in his own right.
Parker Posey[2] as Kat Swan, a philanthropist who owns a dog whistle that makes dogs do her bidding every since dogs didn't love her back when she was young.
Lunella is flung through time and space, but gets rescued by the Beyonder. They end up on a desolate planet where the Beyonder's powers suddenly become null. When Lunella spots a black hole, she concludes that they can build a ship that is fast enough to allow them to travel through it. The two must avoid other aliens that have a grudge against the Beyonder as Lunella teaches him to become more independent without his powers. Just as they are about to leave, they are attacked by the Molecule Man, the owner of the planet, and reveals that the Beyonder was the cause of the planet's desolation. Molecule Man comes close to killing Lunella, but the Beyonder snags his wand, getting his powers and allowing both of them to escape. Lunella is kicked back to the moment she left Mimi, Casey and, Devil; she reunites with them, but is traumatized from her trip.
18
2
"Suit Up!"
Trey Buongiorno Annie J. Li (co-director)
Liz Hara
Chivaun Fitzpatrick, Annie J. Li & Kalen Aris Whitfield
Mimi decides to take Lunella out to her scientist friends to see if they can produce upgrades to her suit. The scientists—Merle and Matsuye—happily take on the challenge, but Lunella, still traumatized from her trip, insists on adding extra things to the suit out of fear. An enlargement ray accidentally causes a desert scorpion to grow large. After the suit proves too clunky, Lunella strips down to a simpler model and defeats the Scorpion. Lunella finally decides on a simplistic suit, but is saddened that Merle and Matsuye cannot see their family. Mimi agrees that both her and Lunella will tell their family their secrets when they are ready.
Casey surprises Lunella with the new and improved lab, but their contrasting workplace etiquette soon leads to a heated falling-out between them. When an experimental bomb accidentally gets swallowed by Devil, both girls shrink themselves down and venture inside of him to get it out. The two continue to bicker and split up, but when Lunella finds the bomb and gets trapped, she uses a song to alert Casey, who comes to her rescue. Lunella allows Casey to use her method, and both girls manage to escape and toss the bomb in a safety box so it can explode. Both girls apologize for their behavior towards one another, promising to be kinder.
20
4
"Ride or Die"
Trey Buongiorno Annie J. Li (co-director)
Halima Lucas
Chivaun Fitzpatrick, Annie J. Li, Jessica Lin & Kalen Aris Whitfield
Lunella finally catches Quickwhip, but due to S.H.I.E.L.D. getting swamped with work, Lunella is forced to take her to their base by herself. On the train, they are attacked by Lady Bullseye and her Diabolical Darts. Quickwhip, whose real name is Zakiya, reveals that she wanted to be a chef, but circumstances lead her to be a criminal working for Lady Bullseye; she has been on the run since. Lunella finally understands her and they work together to defeat Lady Bullseye. When Maria Hill arrives to pick up Zakiya, Lunella instead offers an outreach program for her. Zakiya begins working at Bubbe Bina's bakery, fulfilling her dream.
Lunella meets Marvin, a mysterious boy who turns out to be a Kree child named Mel-Varr, who was sent to Earth to capture Moon Girl and prove himself to his father, Pad-Varr. Lunella and "Marvin" end up befriending one another over their shared interest in science, while their alter egos battle one another on the streets. Lunella discovers Mel-Varr's true identity, saddening both of them, as Mel-Varr genuinely liked her. As Pad-Varr comes to pick up his son, Lunella admits that she still likes him, and Mel-Varr finally impresses his father with his science know-how. Lunella and Mel-Varr decide to stay in touch with each other.
22
6
"The Gatekeeper"
Samantha Suyi Lee
Maggie Rose
Samir Barrett, Sixiao Tang, Yunhao Zhang & Jordan K. Rosato
IS 833's volleyball team, the Squirrels, prepare to face off against the Lady Leopards. Upon learning that the Squirrels' captain—Brooklyn—is transgender, the Leopards' coach—Greer—attempts to have her disqualified from playing. When this fails, Greer uses a key that she purchased from a supervillain's yard sale to transform the Squirrels' locker room into a shape-shifting escape room, with the team and Lunella locked inside; a hologram of Greer explains that they must "follow [her] rules" and find twenty keys in order to escape. Despite finding the keys, the room does not let them out, since Brooklyn's gender identity falls outside the confines of Greer's "rules". Instead, the team forcibly breaks through the bounds of the escape room, banding together and reaching the exit. Greer is removed from the court for her bigotry, and the Squirrels are able to begin the game.
Lunella and Casey try to keep up with the trends started by rapper Bobby the Myth. When the Lafayettes purchase a machine called Wish-Tar, Lunella learns that the Beyonder has possessed it and wants to help her. He grants her every wish, before finally wishing for Bobby the Myth to play at Roll With It. When Bobby asks for a new piano, Lunella wishes for the "baddest" piano, but the new model ends up turning Bobby evil. Lunella angrily tells the Beyonder to go away, forcing Lunella and Devil to defeat Bobby and returning him back to normal. Lunella decides to no longer jump to follow trends, before wondering what happened to the Beyonder.
24
8
"Make It, Don't Break It!"
Annie J. Li
Story by: Halima Lucas Teleplay by: Taylor Vaughn-Lasley
Chivaun Fitzpatrick, Jessica Lin & Kalen Aris Whitfield
IS 833 gets a new science teacher, Dr. Akonam Ojo from Wakanda. Lunella gets Dr. Ojo to sponsor her for the RobotWarz competition, but finds her methods to be harsh and demeaning. Dr. Ojo explains that she wants her to be her best, and Lunella makes a more satisfactory robot. However, when her robot comes apart, Lunella has a panic attack just as Big Wheel arrives, forcing Devil and the STEM kids to fight and defeat him. Casey and Mimi get Lunella to think clearly, and she tells off Dr. Ojo, who admits that her methods were unfair. She invites Lunella to join her top secret group, but Lunella decides to join the STEM kids instead.
25
9
"The Devil You Know"
Christine Liu
LaGina Hill
Jules Bridgers, Lidia Liu, Morgan Hillebrand & Shanelle Wang
Lunella and her family go on a road trip for the weekend, leaving Devil to feel bad over the fact that she cannot tell her family about him. He finds a support group for other animals, led by Pebble, the former sidekick to Granite, and has fun with them. Devil later realizes that they are irresponsible troublemakers, and puts his foot down when Pebble demands that they destroy Granite's base. They fight until Granite returns. Granite reveals to Pebble that their falling-out was due to a misunderstanding, and they make up. Lunella returns and apologizes to Devil about his secrecy, promising that she will make the effort to introduce him to her family.
While visiting the museum, Lunella and the STEM kids become curious about a gem. Lunella recognizes it as Kree and calls Mel-Varr, who reveals that it can cause weather-type disasters. Lunella convinces the STEM kids to help steal it, but must avoid the museum curator Dr. Stern, who is onto their scheme. Anand nearly ruins their plan due to his self-demoralizing, but Lunella coaxes him to help. In the end, the kids successfully abscond with the diamond, replacing it with a fake, and Dr. Stern is fired. Afterward, Lunella delivers the diamond to Mel-Varr.
In preparation for the annual dog show, Pops finds an unusual dog, who he names Franklin. Lunella quickly discovers that Franklin is not normal, and after following him one night, believes that he is trying to kidnap other dogs. At the dog show, a chase ensues that ends with Lunella, Pops, Devil, and Casey learning that Franklin can talk and is an alien trying to take down Kat Swan, the organizer behind the show and the true culprit—thanks to a dog whistle she uses to rob banks. The group work together and defeat Kat. Franklin gives Pops a tearful goodbye before taking Kat away to face her crimes on his planet.
The Lafayettes hold their annual Roller Jam, but Lunella accidentally invites Vernell Lewis, Pops' former friend turned rival. The two were blading partners, but broke up due to a disagreement. Lunella attempts to bring them both together, but neither is willing to admit defeat and hold a skate off to determine who will continue skating. Their competition is put off by the arrival of Brian Glory, Blue Streak, who wants to prove himself the best by beating Moon Girl. Lunella teams up with Pops and Vernell, who finally put aside their differences, to defeat the deranged villain and become friends again.
Lunella is interested in going to the middle school dance with her friends, but when they all find dates, she begins to feel left out. Mel-Varr suddenly arrives, trying to escape General Hyles and the Zingaran Army, and Lunella asks him to go with her. When Hyles arrives to kidnap Mel-Varr, Lunella learns that her friends were also nervous about dating and realizes that it is okay to not be ready. Lunella and Mel-Varr suit up as Moon Girl and Kid Kree and fight and defeat Hyles and his army. Lunella and Mel-Varr decide to remain friends for the time being while Mel-Varr forms a friendly rivalry with Eduardo, who also has a crush on Lunella.
30
14
"Family Matters"
Annie J. Li
Halima Lucas
Luz Batista, Chivaun Fitzpatrick, Jessica Lin, Travis Marks & Shanelle Wang
While struggling with revealing her double life to her family, Lunella encounters the superhero Turbo doing battle with Silvermane, who is after her armor. The two of them team up and eventually capture the villain and send him to S.H.I.E.L.D. Turbo reveals her origin and the fact that she and her mother, Erma, have not spoken in a long time as she has neglected to bring up her double life. Silvermane escapes and kidnaps Erma, but Lunella and Turbo transfer his consciousness to a stuff toy. Moved by her experience with Turbo and not wanting to make the same mistakes as her, Lunella finally sits her family down to tell them the truth.
Lunella finally tells Adria, James Jr., and Pops that she is Moon Girl, but the family does not believe her until Devil shows up. Mimi reveals that not only did she know already, but that she was a former scientist as well. As Lunella explains that there is no reason for them to be afraid of anyone else knowing her identity, their home is suddenly attacked by Molecule Man. He reveals that he could not find the Beyonder, so he decided to go after Moon Girl instead. Molecule Man entraps the family, and Lunella is pushed to her limit. With Devil's help, she rescues her family, and helps Molecule Man by reminding him the reason he created his planet. Changed by the events, Molecule Man apologizes to Lunella and returns home. While the Lafayettes are grateful for Lunella's superheroics, Adria forbids her from doing them anymore.
Shorts
Chibi Tiny Tales
Chibi Tiny Tales is a series of shorts that depict characters from various Disney Channel properties in chibi-style animation. In June 2023, the series began releasing shorts based around Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.
Lunella and Devil are chasing the Bone Raider within the museum. Lunella orders Devil to use his "adaptations" and proceeds to explain, through rap, what adaptations are and how they help with everyday life for him. Together, they capture Bone Raider and Lunella promises to explain how Devil is related to a chicken.
Lunella and Devil are battling Vicente Cimetta, the matter shifter, in an ice cream factory. Lunella decides to explain to Devil how his powers work and they work together to literally put him on ice. Afterwards, Devil sneaks off to eat the ice cream in the factory.
Lunella buys a greenhouse thanks to Casey finding a good discount on it, only to discover that it houses a sinister plant monster. Lunella realizes that it needs TLC and raps about plants need for sunlight, water, and fresh dirt. Casey, who wanted to do a photoshoot, winds up covered in dirt and Devil's mucus after he sneezes.
Lunella and Devil once again run into Rockin' Rudy who speeds off. Lunella decides to use the method of forces and motion. They manage to successfully get Rudy to crash his vehicle, but he calls a backup vehicle and escapes. Luckily, Lunella and Devil manage to get the money he stole back.
Lunella, Devil, and Casey chase Nox to Coney Island. Using her new Sun Blaster, which Nox and Casey feel is brand confusion, Lunella raps about light and uses it to defeat Nox. She comes up with a new name, but it is too long, causing Casey to embrace Sun Blaster.
Lunella and Casey are in the subway listening to subway musicians when Flying Fox appears and steals their money. Using her knowledge of echolocation, Lunella manages to trace where Flying Fox is and sets a trap using foam to block out her sound, trapping her and delivering her to justice.
While enjoying an outdoor concert by Bobby the Myth, the public is attacked by the Gammadroid, a creation of the Mad Thinker's. Lunella sings a song about coding and locates Gammadroid's code for destroying and replaces it with dancing, saving everyone.
While admiring the moon, Lunella and Devil are accosted by Beyonder who sends an asteroid towards it. Lunella explains the moon's importance to Earth's ecosystem and they successfully destroy the asteroid, with Beyonder claiming that he did it so Devil can be educated, though he still thinks the moon is made of cheese.
During discussions with Marvel Studios regarding a potential collaboration with Cinema Gypsy Productions for a Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project, president Louis D'Esposito showed actor and comic book fan Laurence Fishburne the comic book Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur.[76][77] Having read the original Moon-Boy and Devil Dinosaur comic book as a child, Moon Girl piqued Fishburne's interest. He afterwards began reading the comics, which gave him the inspiration to create an animated series based on the duo.[78][76] Fishburne and a production team worked on the series for two years at Disney Television Animation, before hiring Steve Loter as executive-producer due to his experience on female-centered shows such as Disney's Kim Possible.[79][77] Loter and the team then created a roller-skating sequence played over "Sweatpants" by Childish Gambino as a proof-of-concept piece and pitched it to both executives at Disney Television Animation and a Marvel Studios team including Brad Winderbaum and president Kevin Feige, who greenlit the series for development.[80][81]
On August 24, 2019, during the D23 Expo, Fishburne revealed that the series would premiere in 2020 on Disney Channel, with Disney Television Animation being set to co-produce the series, marking the first time Disney and Marvel worked together on an animated series.[85] Loter executive produces the series alongside Fishburne and Sugland;[85] Loter also serves as the series' showrunner.[86] Jeff Howard and Kate Kondell work on the series as co-producers and story editors.[85] Howard and Kondell were the first two writers hired for the series. The two helped the production team define the characters, with an hour being dedicated to a specific character. By the time writing for the episodes started, the characters were defined enough that not many ideas were revised.[87] Kondell also serves as head writer for the series.[88]
Fishburne said that "Disney Channel is the perfect platform to explore this pint-sized female African American superhero and [he] can't wait for their audience to enjoy the lighthearted adventures of Lunella and Devil Dinosaur",[85] while Cort Lae, Marvel Family and Entertainment's then-senior vice president, said that "[Moon Girl's] adventures with giant buddy, Devil Dinosaur, are filled with so much wonder and joy, and this historic partnership with Disney Television Animation and Cinema Gypsy Productions proved the right formula to bring them to television".[85]
In February 2021, it was reported that Rodney Clouden would serve as supervising producer for the series, while Pilar Flynn would produce.[4] Due to Disney Television Animation's studios having closed in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic,[89] most of the series was produced remotely.[90] The producers developed each episode with a feature film-like pipeline, with each script receiving a "color script" as with films, and each episode being treated as a "mini-movie".[91][87] The producers wanted the team to be composed of people with different filmmaking experiences.[87]
In October 2022, the series was renewed for a second season.[92] The series was renewed after a positive reception from both Disney and Marvel executives.[93] Rafael Chaidez took over as producer for season two, while Flynn and Clouden serve as co-executive producers alongside Kondell. Kondell also serves as story editor alongside Halima Lucas, the latter who also became a co-producer alongside Ben Juwono, who replaced Clouden as supervising director.[92] Flynn was also promoted to co-showrunner alongside Loter.[94] Production for season 2 began by February 2023.[87]
Loter said that the production team envisions the series to span three seasons, believing they could tell a complete story within that timeframe while remaining open to the possibility of creating more seasons.[95] He also mentioned that the show's renewal or cancellation depends on the ratings of the season 2 premiere on both Disney Channel and Disney+.[96]
Writing
The series features entirely of women of color in its writers' room, as well as on its directing team, as the producers wanted the production team to reflect the diversity within New York City, where the show is set.[93][79] The writers, alongside other crew members of color, were allowed to provide feedback regarding representation of minorities within the show, with some of said crew members receiving promotions within the crew while working on the series.[80] The crew also worked alongside Disney production coordinator Allen March to identify moments to add diversity to the show via background or speaking characters, as well as to calculate the representation per episode.[79] Loter, who lives in New York City, said that it was important for the crew to "make sure they've got New York right", wanting to respect the city's "vibe" and "tone".[93] He also reused elements of the series' portrayal of NYC from his cancelled Cars spin-off film Metro,[97] such as prominently featuring the New York City Hall station, which appears in the series as Lunella's lab.[98] The series starts off with an episodic format as it explores Lunella becoming Moon Girl, before transitioning into a more serialized story, with an arc unfolding throughout the first season.[93][99]
Supervising producer Rodney Clouden said it was important for the production crew to accurately portray a multigenerational African-American family.[80] They wanted to show both Moon Girl learning from her family and her family learning from her through their multiple perspectives.[80] Each character was given a different personality and profession, such as Pops being owner of a roller-skate and Andria being a DJ, to further explore diversity and how "everyone is so different [from each other]".[100]Sasheer Zamata, who voices Lunella's mother, said that family is a crucial theme in the show, and described the series as "a nice way to see a Black family work together and enjoy each other and spread love in their community".[101] Producer Pilar Flynn said it was important for the writers to have Moon Girl and Casey have a close and supportive relationship, which is rarely seen among female friendships in animation.[100]
The producers used the original comic as "a springboard" and "a point of reference" for the series, although making several alterations regarding the source material to make the story fit in a television format while still incorporating nods to multiple comic-book storylines.[80] According to Diamond White, the series features "levels of emotions" that were absent from the original comic.[102] The series portrays the relationship between the duo as "a partnership" instead of "a pet/owner dynamic", with Devil becoming fiercely loyal to Moon Girl and feeling "at home with her" due to how she treats him.[102] Another changes were the increased role of Lunella's family and the addition of her friend Casey, which were made to showcase how Lunella's world changes as she grows through the series.[80] They also felt it was important for Lunella to have a support system, and for her household to represent that of many audiences' households.[100] The producers changed Lunella's age from 9 to 13-years-old because they wanted social media to play a prominent role in her character, which they felt would not work with her being 9-years-old.[103]
The series features several obscure characters from Marvel comics. The characters included were selected due to potential roles they could play in the story, interest from the producers, and/or recommendations from Marvel, such as the Beyonder, who was suggested by Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige as a foil for Lunella;[86][93] the producers were particularly interested in featuring characters that hadn't been adapted to other media before, such as Aftershock, as their obscurity allowed the creators to make changes that fitted within the show's narrative,[93] though more prominent Marvel characters are also set to appear. Fishburne noted, however, that some characters were unable to appear due to "proprietary issues",[104][103] such as Amadeus Cho, whom the team wanted to include in season 1 but were forbidden by Marvel; elements of the team's plans for the character were ultimately used for Kid Kree in season 2.[81] Elements from Marvel comics will appear more prominently later in the series, after Lunella and "her world" are properly established.[104] Some of the villains represent real-life issues within the show, such as Aftershock draining the Lower East Side's energy in the first episode, which serves as "a statement" about gentrification.[6] The series was also described as "complimentary" to the MCU, with the creators including multiple nods to the franchise through the series.[105] Fishburne claimed that the series is not "connected to the MCU officially", while Loter revealed that "a couple of MCU characters" would appear in the series.[106] Additionally, Flynn stated that the producers consider the series a "companion series" to the MCU but not part of the franchise.[107]
Casting
In February 2021, it was reported that White and Tatasciore would voice the titular duo, with Woodard, Williams, Zamata, and Fowler providing the voices of Lunella/Moon Girl's grandparents and parents, respectively, and Barer as her best friend, Casey.[4] It was also reported that Fishburne would voice The Beyonder in a recurring capacity.[4] Additional recurring and guest roles were announced at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2022.[108] White was cast shortly after Loter heard her audition tape; according to Loter, her tape was the only one he heard, as he was impressed with her performance.[87]
Voice recordings for season one were partially done remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[93] Williams, whose work on the show was his first role during the pandemic, received help from his wife to prepare to record his lines from their home.[93] White and Barer ad-libbed several dialogues between Moon Girl and Casey,[93] with the two recording their lines simultaneously either physically or through Zoom.[109] White also recorded some of her lines with Tatatsciore,[110] as well as with Woodward, Zamata, and Williams.[111] While providing the vocal effects for Devil, Tatasciore was given a script with lines for him, which he would later work into animal vocals.[102] The idea of Fishburne voicing the Beyonder was suggested by Loter.[112] For his performance, Fishburne wanted it to be lighter and less recognizable than his previous roles, so he and Loter worked together to develop his voice for the Beyonder.[77][112]
Animation
The series is animated by Flying Bark Productions, in Sydney, Australia.[82][113] Titmouse worked on early visual development for the series.[82] Flying Bark, whose employees were fans of the source material, was hired due to the studio's work on Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.[91] Animation lead Kat Kosmala created a series of rules for the animators, among them being that the character animation must draw the viewers' attention, the action must be "simple and direct", and simplification should be used only for designs.[91] The visual style is meant to "[lean] heavy into [a] 2D graphic comicbook sensibility".[114] The animation combines hand-drawn animation with Toon Boom Harmony, with Toon Boom being used for stage and head-rigging, while the bodies of the characters are hand-drawn. The producers originally planned to only use Toon Boom, but ultimately felt hand-drawn animation was also required.[87]
Multiple animation styles were used per episode.[91] For the New York sequences, the producers drew inspiration from graffiti artists, as well as artists such as Andy Warhol, for the series' art style, to portray New York in a more realistic style than most animated shows, while also portraying the city as its own character.[93] Loter and Clouden drew inspiration from their childhood for the series' portrayal of NYC.[87] Graffiti artists were hired to work on the graffiti depicted through the show to show accurate graffiti.[93] The camera movement was also meant to evoke the feeling of a real-life city recording, with "forced tight shots" and "object obstruction".[91] The buildings and streets were also drawn to be accurate to their real-life counterparts.[115] The musical sequences feature a more abstract art style that is more colorful and action-focused.[91] Flashback sequences feature a simpler graphic style with colors that "quickly enhance emotional beats".[91]
Due to Fishburne's love of comic books,[106] producers also wanted the animation to "feel like an illustrated moving comic book",[93] so the artists drew inspiration from comic books from the 1970s, featuring a lack of "perfect shapes" and "edgy line work", while having a hand-drawn feel.[91] Details such as black spots were also added so they could "[feel] like a very complete piece" even before adding color.[115] Artists wanted to avoid using digital techniques such as motion blur, wanting instead to rely mainly on ink-and-paint techniques.[116] The animation also drew inspiration from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, with the producers wanting the animation to be as energetic as possible within a budget for a TV series. The animators also sought for the animation to be "complimentary" to Into the Spider-Verse without recycling its animation style.[87][91]Marvel Studios Animation's What If...? was also an influence on the series' visual design.[77]
Lead character designer Jose Lopez wanted the characters to have multiple shapes that were "fun to look at", such as Moon Girl's silhouette changing when she dons her superhero outfit.[91] He also wanted Devil Dinosaur to look like "a mean dinosaur" while also being "believable as a lovable pet".[91] He also drew inspiration from comic strip artist Bill Watterson, of whom Lopez is a fan of.[91]Marc Hempel and Devil's co-creator Jack Kirby were also inspirations for the art style of the show, with the artists incorporating the Kirby Krackle into the series.[117][118] The artists also incorporated elements to visually represent the characters' feelings, such as manga-style "flairs",[116] as well as emojis that were "simple and clear and direct".[119]
Music
In July 2022, it was announced that Raphael Saadiq would serve as the executive music producer for the show.[120] He also provided both the score and songs for the show.[93] Loter, a fan of Saadiq, approached him to work on the project during an autograph signing.[120] Each episode features a different song by Saadiq, depicted in-universe as part of a mix-tape Moon Girl listens to; the songs were written before animation work began so the animators could synchronize the songs to the sequence.[91] Saadiq included different musical genres in the soundtrack to reflect the diversity within New York City.[120] Producer Pilar Flynn described his score as "sophisticated" and "unlike anything [she has] seen in animation before", saying it "elevated the entire show to another level".[100] According to Flynn, the crew generally pitched ideas for the score to Saadiq, only for him to discard them in favor of something different, which the producers received positively.[100] The first episode features a song titled "Where You Come From", which Loter described as "a love letter to New York".[93] Saadiq also wrote songs for the series' villains.[78]
The show's theme song, "Moon Girl Magic", was performed written by Saadiq alongside Halima Lucas and Taura Stinson, and performed by White.[121][120] The song was written by Saadiq with "a similar energy" to "Juice" by Lizzo, and received an "instant green-light" by the executives, which is rare for most theme songs for a TV series.[91] Saadiq said he wanted the song to be both "uplifting" and "happy", while White was excited to "bring Lunella's voice to the show in a singing way".[120] The title sequence was storyboarded by supervising director Ben Juwono, who drew inspiration from the music video for Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" and storyboarded it to play to "Juice", as the theme song had not been written by that point.[91] The song was released as a single on November 14, 2022.[121]
A soundtrack featuring selected songs from the first season was released on February 10, 2023.[121]
Release
Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur premiered on Disney Channel on February 10, 2023.[122] The series was originally scheduled to premiere in 2020,[85] before being delayed to 2022,[4] and later to its eventual premiere date.[108] The first six episodes of the series were added to Disney+ on February 15, 2023, resulting in episodes 3 to 6 being released prior to their television debuts.[34]
An episode from Season 2, entitled "The Gatekeeper", was shelved from release; however, the full episode leaked on November 15, 2024. The episode revolved around the openly-transgender character Brooklyn.[123][124] James Whitbrook of io9, after reviewing the leaked footage, noted that "the episode is clearly not subtle" with its focus on Brooklyn and "the explicit prejudice she faces as a trans teen who wants to participate in school sports".[125] Artists who worked on series alleged that the episode was pulled as a result of the political climate surrounding Donald Trump winning the 2024 United States presidential election and the Republican Party winning both chambers of Congress.[123][125][57] Michael McWhertor of Polygon reported that a Disney source stated the episode was held instead of banned, with that determination occurring "more than a year ago and was not based the result of recent U.S. elections".[123] Whitbrook reported that a Disney source claimed the intent of the hold was "to ensure material doesn't potentially push ahead discussions around social issues before families can have them themselves", however, Whitbrook also commented that "it would not be the first time Disney has capitulated to right-wing systems of power by censoring its own material".[125] Despite being unreleased, the episode won a Velma Award from the non-profit LGBT organization, The Rainbow Project.[126]
Marketing
A teaser trailer showing clips from the opening was released by executive-producer Laurence Fishburne in December 15, 2021.[127] An official clip was released during San Diego Comic-Con in 2022,[128] while the first trailer was released during the D23 Expo, where the first episode was shown to the attendees.[129][130] The series' intro was released during the New York Comic Con 2022, with the first two minutes of the season premiere also being shown during the panel.[131][92] A music video for the theme song was released in November 14, 2022.[132]
Merchandising for the show will include apparel and a series of toys produced by The World of EPI and Funko Pop! that serve as tie-ins for the series.[92][133] Characters from Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur appear as limited-time meet-and-greet characters at the Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure starting from February 15, 2023, in commemoration of Black History Month.[134][135] A soundtrack featuring songs from the first season, in digital and audio cassette formats, was released on January 4, 2023 by Walt Disney Records.[136]
Reception
Critical reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 100%, based on 16 reviews with an average rating of 8.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "With dazzling visuals and punchy pacing that feel beamed straight from a child's imagination, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur will enthrall kids while impressing animation connoisseurs."[137]
Joel Keller of Decider asserted, "Marvel's Moon Girl And Devil Dinosaur is a dynamic, smart, visually arresting series that has a unique girl at its center, a puppy-like dinosaur, and stories that will entertain both kids and their parents."[138] Matthew Aguilar of ComicBook.com gave the series a 4 out of 5, writing, "Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is an enchanting adventure that wears its heart and charm on its sleeve. The show carves out a corner of the Marvel universe all its own with personality for days and characters that leap off the screen, and any Marvel fan will regret missing out on this one-of-a-kind gem."[139]
Laurence Fishburne, Steve Loter, Helen Sugland, Rodney Clouden, Pilar Flynn, Jeffrey M. Howard, Kate Kondell, Rafael Chaidez and Lisa Muse Bryant (for "Moon Girl Landing")
Won
Outstanding Voice Performance in a Children's or Young Teen Program
On May 12, 2023, it was reported that a graphic novel based on the series was in development, entitled Wreck and Roll. It was released on April 2, 2024.[150][151][152] The novel was written by Stephanie Williams with art by Asia Simone, while Scholastic published it.[150]
Notes
↑ This episode is a one-hour special, comprising two regular half-hour episodes.
1 2 3 4 These episodes were first released on Disney+ on February 15, 2023.[34]
1 2 The episode "Goodnight, Moon Girl" was originally scheduled to air as the seventh episode on March 4, 2023. However, due to a change in scheduling,[37] it was replaced by the episode "Moon Girl's Day Off", which was originally scheduled to air as the tenth episode on March 25, 2023. "Goodnight, Moon Girl" eventually aired as the tenth episode on March 25. On Disney+, the episodes are arranged in their original production order, which is how the episodes are presented here.
↑ This episode was produced as the sixth episode of the second season,[56] but was left unaired due to its LGBTQ+ themes. It was leaked online on November 15, 2024.[57]
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↑ Steve Loter [@steveloter] (February 11, 2023). "It's Fred" (Tweet). Archived from the original on February 12, 2023. Retrieved February 11, 2023– via Twitter.
↑ Steve Loter [@steveloter] (February 11, 2023). "yes" (Tweet). Archived from the original on February 16, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2023– via Twitter.
↑ Steve Loter [@steveloter] (February 11, 2023). "Brooklyn!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on February 14, 2023. Retrieved February 12, 2023– via Twitter.
1 2 3 4 5 6 October 10, 2022. Alexander Yarde. October 10, 2022. Archived from the original on December 26, 2022. Retrieved December 26, 2022– via YouTube.
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