Unless you’ve been living in the dregs of Foggy Bottom, then you’ve for sure come across the furry group of hero pups hailing from Adventure Bay. They’ve thrilled and entertained many a little one for the past decade and even made the jump to the silver screen with 2021’s "Paw Patrol: The Movie."

Now Ryder and his team of pups are back on the big screen with the latest Paw Patrol film, "Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie." This time, they’re up against Victoria Vance, who, while she will totally deny it, is quite the villainous yet giddy mad scientist. But have no fear because a a mysterious meteorite from outer space that crashes into Adventure City contains crystals (conveniently one for each pup.) that grant the wearer superpowers based on their personality.

The pups themselves are pretty easily identified by some defining quality or role. Chase is the Police dog, the de facto leader next to Ryder. Marshal is the clumsy firefighter pup, Rocky is the recycling pup, and so on. This helps kids tell them apart (and let’s be honest, it helps the parents, too), and it also provides a variety of things to relate to. Every kid will see something of them reflected in the pups, and that makes them easy to connect with.

While they might normally be one-note characters on the show, the movies offer opportunities to round out their characters a bit more. The first film tackled Chase, and his origin story. This time around, we get to learn a bit more about Skye. McKenna Grace lends her voice to the adorable little pilot of a pup. While normally quite positive and optimistic, Skye, in this film, has to deal with some of her lingering insecurities.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. This is a clever way for the powers that be to move merchandise. A new version of each pup, a new vehicle for each pup, a new this and that, all targeted at youngsters to want them and to parents to buy them.

Well, yes, probably. In fact, the movie makes a joke about it, apologizing in advance for the tsunami of incoming toys. But it really is nothing new. The old cartoons of the 80’s, like Transformers and He-Men, were well known to be half-hour-long commercials for toys. But those of us who were kids in those days didn’t care. We didn’t care because the cartoons had stories and characters that mattered to us. The cartoons were made for us, and that got us invested.

I see the same thing today with kids and Paw Patrol, and speaking as a child of the 80s who has a child of his own, I can frankly say I’m happy for them. The Paw Patrol gives kids cute and furry role models without them even realizing it. Working together is always emphasized, but never at the expense of the individual. Each pup has a role, and when they do it well, they solve the problems. When they work together, they save the day.

Grown-ups go and watch with the kiddos in the theater and relax and zone out, as there’s nothing exceptionally scary or troubling in the movie. It is 100 percent parent-approved.

"Paw Patrol" has always had an old-school feel, and the Mighty Movie is no exception, with the lovable, individual characters and cool, converting vehicles. All these are dialed to 10 in the film, but it remains clean, old-fashioned, age-appropriate action-filled fun! Kids will love it, and kids at heart definitely will too!