Unwardogs Rhetorical Analysis

UNDERDOGS is presented as an animated web series. It’s divided into several small episodes. The six episodes center on a dog talent agency and on their struggle to film a commercial with the right dog. The idea of a dog talent agency is very appealing, especially for children. One can envision many episodes for this type of web series. The plotline for the six episodes regarding the beer commercial is good and has merit.

With that said, however, the target audience for the show is not well defined. Essentially, the series isn’t appropriate for children given that it mentions bisexuality and incest, as well as depicts a naked character (page 13).

On the other hand, the series isn’t mature enough for a sophisticated adult animated series. Thus, select the target audience and structure the plot, characters, dialogue, and the humor around the targeted and intended audience.

This brings one to the humor and comedy style. As currently structured, the humor feels too mild. As mentioned, it’s not the type of humor or comedy that would appeal to a child and it’s not the type of humor that would appeal to an adult. For example, watching a character vomit because she slept with a guy who had a gay relationship with another co-worker isn’t

To create more tension consider focusing more on Gabe’s goal and Lawrence, building to his big moment. Identify what’s at stake for Gabe and Lawrence. The stronger the stakes, the more tension is generated. For example, comedy is about the situation spiraling out of control. So maybe Gabe finally gets them to agree to use Lawrence, but he’s told if Lawrence fails, Gabe’s job is at stake. Thus, Gabe goes home to get Lawrence, but maybe he discovers that Lawrence is gone. Maybe Lawrence ran away looking for his previous owner (the ex-lover) or maybe Lawrence has stage fright. This elevates the tension. The audience wants Lawrence to do well, but the script needs to build more anticipation of his