How Superman: The Animated Series Used This Banned Character For One Episode

Bruce Timm likes to set rules for himself. He, Eric Radomski, and their team on "Batman: The Animated Series" had three rules they tried never to break: No aliens, no ghosts, and no overt social commentary. When it came to Timm's follow-up effort, "Superman: The Animated Series," similar guidelines were put in place. Of course, Kal-El actually is an alien, so there couldn't be any anti-extraterrestrial rules on that show. But there was one species that Timm banned: dogs. Unfortunately, that meant Krypto the Superdog never showed up except for a brief moment in the series' pilot.

"Superman: The Animated Series" isn't quite as revered as its predecessor, but it still commands significant respect. Most of that comes from the fact it did what all those great animated superhero shows of the 1990s did and treated kids like they could handle more mature storylines. "Spider-Man: The Animated Series," "X-Men: The Animated Series," and Timm's Batman show all presented stories that were far more complex and adult than other kids' entertainment. That allowed them to engrain themselves in the collective memory of a generation.

Despite the fact it dealt with a super-powered alien, "Superman: The Animated Series" was no different. Timm knew he had to take the same approach he used for the Dark Knight, so he crafted a show that, while lighter in tone than its predecessor, never shied away from emotional heft. Heck, Timm's favorite "Superman: The Animated Series" scene features a man being vaporized, prompting Supes to crumple into an emotional wreck. This focus on maturity was part of the reason we never saw the character's super-powered canine friend Krypto appear on the show. Well, again, almost never.

When they weren't adhering to their own rules, the "Batman: The Animated Series" creators were kept on a tight leash by the Fox censors. After Bruce Timm moved on to his Superman show, he continued to operate within a similarly strict framework. Of course, with "Batman: The Animated Series" being a big hit, he had much more leeway. Still, it seems he wasn't willing to budge on a rule that prohibited Krypto the Superdog from appearing.

Supes' canine companion first appeared in "Adventure Comics" #210 back in 1955, and he's since cropped up in all manner of media. "Smallville," "Titans," "DC League of Super-Pets," "Superman & Lois" — all these shows and movies managed to find a place for Krypto, who gained renewed popularity after being a significant part of James Gunn's charming 2025 crowd-pleaser "Superman." But "Superman: The Animated Series" simply had no room for him — apart from the single time it did.

The show debuted in 1996, which was the same year that veteran writer Paul Dini sat down for an interview with Comics Scene and recalled his love for Krypto. "The first model kit I ever got when I was a kid was the Superboy model kit," Dini admitted. "I spent about a week with these gummy, stained fingers putting Superboy and Krypto together." The writer went on to explain that he "loved the idea that Superman had a dog" and, as a child, would buy every comic book featuring Krypto on the cover "just 'cause he was neat." As such, Dini came up with a Krypto storyline for "Superman: The Animated Series," only for Timm to shoot it down.

James Gunn's "Superman" shone in large part due to Krypto, but the DC Animated Universe wanted little if anything to do with him. As Paul Dini recounted in his Comics Scene interview: 

"Early on, I did come up with a pretty good Krypto story. I had a talk with Bruce [Timm] where I said, 'I want to do a Krypto story,' and he said, 'NO!!!' I pitched him the story and he said, 'It's pretty good, but NO KRYPTO!!' When he made up his rules on what we will and won't put in Superman, Krypto was at the top of the 'No' list.'"

Dini later developed the animated series "Krypto the Superdog," which ran for 39 episodes between 2005 and 2007. But even though his superdog storyline never made it into "Superman: The Animated Series," the show's very first episode actually did feature Krypto on Krypton. Specifically, there was a brief shot of baby Kal-El that showed him playing alongside a white puppy. By the end of the episode, however, the last son of Krypton is rocketed away from his home planet as it explodes, presumably destroying Krypto in the process.

That said, the super-pup did appear in issue 40 of the tie-in comic "Superman Adventures." On the TV side, though, the anti-Krypto rule held through "Justice League Unlimited," save for one episode titled "For the Man Who Has Everything" (which explored a fantasy life where Superman's home planet didn't explode). For Dini, it was all for the best. "Krypto is only really good for one story anyway," the writer confessed. "[...] if we did it on the show, we would kick open the door for Super-Horse, Super-Monkey and Super-Wombat. There was even a Super-Mouse in one story."