The Stray's First Day

“**The Stray's First Day**” is the feature-length first episode in season one of *Pup Academy*. It first aired on August 26, 2019, and received up to 380,000 (0.38 million) viewers.

## Plot

### Overview

Meet the freshman class at Pup Academy; a secret school where pups become dogs. There's goofball golden Corazon, shy sheepdog Whiz, stray boxer Spark, and 10-year old Morgan, who is about to discover his secret destiny: his family have been the caretakers of this secret school for generations, and it's time for Morgan to start his new job.

### Full Plot

The episode opens with Charlie, D.O.G, Coach K9, Professor Howard, Headmistress Gruff, and Professor Fitz in blue robes standing in front of the school at midnight, with golden statue of the Great First Dog directly behind them.

    D.O.G establishes first off that Pup Academy is in danger. Humans are distracted and their bond with dogs is weakening, leaving Canis Primus is starting to fade. D.O.G then goes on to say that he will be making unconventional choices for students that year, leaving Fitz disgruntled. D.O.G explains his three choices for students, providing flashbacks for each one.
His first choice is a black and white sheepdog named Whiz, “who -- while timid -- makes up for it with wisdom.” Whiz is first seen standing in the backyard of his house with his owner, looking forward at the sheep. The kid gives his dog some words of motivation, which Whiz says his own version of more meekly. He walks up to the closest one, but when it makes noise, he screeches and runs off toward his owner. He tries to run too, but slips and falls face-first into mud. Whiz hides in a barn, where D.O.G greets him for the first time; giving Whiz his tag, telling him what to do, and leaving without a trace.

The second pup is a golden retriever called Corazon, “with a heart of gold, who has trouble focusing; but has no trouble having fun.” Corazon is against a makeshift backdrop in the basement of a house, wearing what appears to be a Wolfehead Elementary sports outfit. His owner is behind her phone a few feet away, exclaiming how she’ll get into the best film school in the world after that video. Corazon shakes, so she leaves to go find a brush, telling him to stay put. He quickly forgets, chasing his tail as D.O.G appears. Soon he tells what he came to do, giving us the new information that humans cannot see the tag while it is on a dog’s collar.

Fitz is unimpressed, stating that Pup Academy is "built on pedigree”. D.O.G says that this isn’t the case anymore, going on to tell them that “underdogs stick together” and that “the stray will need friends”.

   The last one is a dog who goes by Spark, who is rushing out of a store with a link of sausages in her mouth, being pursued by a butcher until he reaches the door. Spark retreats to a small blue box, her presumed home, and D.O.G comes up to her. Spark doesn’t seem to be interested in the tag or finding a human, but she does perk up when she hears there is food involved.

Fitz seems thoroughly against the idea of “another” stray, and when D.O.G brings the idea of some sort of mysterious prophecy into the conversation, Fitz doesn’t seem to think it means that much. D.O.G ends the scene with saying the world has changed, so they must change.

The Pup Academy logo is shown on screen for a few seconds, then we see a boy, Morgan, and his mother walking towards a school.

     He seems embarrassed that she is walking him up like this, and we learn a few things about him: he had lived in Wolfehead before but moved away, and was against moving back; his favorite lunch is a meatball sandwich (which is included in the lunch he has). His mother gestures to Whiz's owner while they were talking, and when she leaves, Spark follows him up the stairs. He tries introducing himself twice, one of the times being to Izzy, and fails. Spark runs up to snatch his lunch, but then groans miserably after the school bell rings and he has to go to class. Before he does though, he sees D.O.G enigmatically watching from the trees.

Charlie and D.O.G are talking to each other in the workshop of Pup Academy. Charlie is metalworking, while D.O.G is sitting close by. They talk for a bit, revealing that Charlie is Morgan's grandfather, and that Morgan was the youngest apprentice he had yet to work with. Charlie reveals Morgan's new dog tag, and they both wish each other good luck. D.O.G is certain that the stray will save the school, saying that if the prophecy were to be correct, she would, along with a human boy, implying that there is another member to this prophecy.

The next day, Charlie and D.O.G blow a whistle in the front of the school, opening the portals disguised as hydrants all around Wolfehead. Spark is cornered by two members of Animal Control, but easily escapes. She walks into a dump, but it is already occupied by other dogs. The leader, a German Shepherd, is impressed with her skills. He offers her a place in his group, The Lost Dogs, but says that she can't join if she's a pet. The other three dogs, some mutts with no identifiable breed, chant that they were against collars, leashes, and humans. Spark exclaims that she's a stray with pride, only to see Animal Control drive up behind the fence right after. The leader is furious, assuming she allowed them to follow her there on purpose, to which she says she was only trying to find a place to eat. They all scatter, leaving the two members of Animal Control alone in the junkyard and confused. During this, Charlie blows the second whistle, and suddenly hoards of pups come barging in from the hydrants. Corazon's owner is walking to school, and Corazon squirms out from under the gate and runs through his hydrant. Whiz is being chased by a sheep and goes through his as an escape. Spark is a similar story, only her sheep is Animal Control. The three pups meet each other on the other side of the hydrants, standing in the schoolyard. They are all wearing uniforms, with no idea where they are but awestruck by the place. Corazon jokes that they were in a dream, being startled by Spark and coming to the conclusion that he was, in fact, awake. Whiz recommends introducing themselves, so Corazon and Whiz circle around a hydrant and do so while Spark sits on her tail, telling them to "keep their cold noses to themselves". Headmistress Gruff comes over to welcome them all to the school, informing them of the schools purpose, and their specialty for getting in. A Pomeranian runs over, welcoming them as well, who is told by Gruff to be the head cheerleader, Pom-Pom. Spark stays back for a few moments, remembering that there was supposedly food, and decides to follow her on a tour.

Pom Pom is taking Spark, Corazon, and Whiz on a tour of the school, showing them the lockers, water fountains, the Dog Park, and the Dog Bowl. She shows that she doesn't like other dogs doing cheering as well.

Morgan is in his apartment, taking a bowl of cereal out of the fridge and putting the sticky-note on the door with the hundreds of others. He jumps in fright and spills most of this cereal when Charlie is sitting back at the table, holding a jug of milk. He calls Morgan "muffin," and Morgan exclaims that he's ten, and that he doesn't like it. Charlie suggests that Morgan skips school that day and instead come do something with him, and he immediately agrees.

Charlie is standing on top of the toilet in the bathroom, trying to get Morgan, who has a screwed-up face, to hold his hand. Morgan stalls by repeating everything Charlie had told him. Morgan exclaims that he's insane, then says he's going to call his mother at the hospital to check him in, but stops in his tracks when he sees it shimmer. Charlie gets on the toilet seat and flushes himself through, followed by Morgan. They arrive in a small outhouse near the workshop, and Charlie shows him the academy.

Spark, Corazon, and Whiz sit down in the front row together in the assembly hall. However, somebody else seems to be sitting there, as a little dog named Bite and his friend Rotty come over, growling and telling them to leave their spots. Eventually D.O.G starts the assembly and the two leave, but not before threatening that their dispute would resume.

     D.O.G explains the history of Pup Academy and just how crucial the school was to the relationship of canines and mankind, as well as all of them. Charlie and Morgan walk through the academy to where all the pups are gathered. Headmistress Gruff starts to lead everyone in the school howl when Charlie and Morgan walk in, but Morgan can only hear barks. Once they're done, D.O.G introduces Charlie as the H.O.C, or Human On Campus.

Charlie and Morgan are cleaning leaves off of the Canis Primus statue as Charlie explains the family gift of talking to dogs. Meanwhile, Pom Pom tells Spark, Corazon, and Whiz their doghouse (Howlers) and shows them their lockers. They talk for a minute, and Corazon suggests they call themselves the "Dos Amigos." Two more dogs walk over, also from the Howler house; George, a Boston Terrier, and Mullet, a mutt. The bell rings, and Headmistress Gruff urges them off to class.

The pups are now in the class "Canine Languages" with Professor Fitz. That day, they were working on the "Welcome Home Human" bark. Whiz is much too quiet, Corazon is too busy chasing his tail, and Spark breaks the meter with her rough barks. The bell rings, and the class is dismissed. Their next class is Human Behavior with Headmistress Gruff, to understand humans better.

         Charlie and Morgan are also there. The lesson is to figure out what Morgan needs; Whiz and Corazon try, but fail. Spark attempts to sneak out of the room to get to the Dog Bowl, but is caught and uses grabbing the leash as a cover. This was the correct answer, and thus she gets a treat. That class ends too, leaving the pups to go to recess. Spark walks toward the Dog Bowl alone, but is confronted by Bite and Rotty in the hallway. They try to corner her, but Corazon and Whiz come to the rescue. As the five pups begin to bicker and altercate, Coach K9 and Fitz walk in on them, proclaiming there was a rule against fighting. The pups head over to the fetchball field for recess, but Spark hangs back. She hears the teachers discussing something in a classroom. Fitz is trying to convince Gruff, K9, and Howard to turn against the Dos Amigos. They eventually agree that if they do well in fetchball, they get to stay in the school, for now. If not, they get D.O.G to consider removing them.

Charlie is in front of the school, guiding all the pups to the field. Spark accidentally loses her tag and tries to run off to the hydrants. Whiz and Corazon stop her, but she turns their offer of playing with them down and keeps walking.

Coach K9 and Charlie explain the rules of fetchball, with Morgan running back and forth across the field to demonstrate. Once they finish, the Howler and Growler teams head onto the field. Gruff and Howard are commentators, so we see and hear the events taking place. The first launch is a bone, which Bite picks up and buries immediately. The Growlers get the first point. The second launch is a chew toy that Rotty grabs. George tries to block him, but Rotty jumps right over and scores another point for the Growler team.

     The third launch is a ball, which Corazon gets. However, he is distracted by Pom Pom and is sent into daydream, so he puts it in the toy chest instead of the hoop and misses the point. Charlie sends Morgan looking for Spark, who is trying to get back through the hydrant. Without her tag, though, it won't work for her. Morgan finds her like this and they have an awkward conversation of having no idea what the other is saying, but it ultimately seems to have change Spark's view. In the end, he gives her back the tag and walks away, telling Charlie he doesn't think she's coming back. The fourth launch is a ball, which Bite eventually ends up with and puts in the hoop. He does a victory dance, and then the game resumes. The fifth launch is about to commence when Spark dashes over in her outfit. She calls a quick team huddle, and then Morgan launches a ball.

     Spark takes it and runs promptly to the net. The sixth and seventh launches, a double launch, are a bone that Corazon gets and a shoe that Spark places in the cubby. Bite calls a time-out and tells Rotty to hold Spark down while he bites her. The game starts back up, the eighth launch being a ball. Spark grabs it, but Rotty bowls her over and Bite takes hold of her leg.

     Bite gets a red penalty "bone" for this and is sent to sit in the penalty box. The Howlers huddle again, and devise a plan to beat the Growlers: a shoe and a chew toy WILL be launched; Whiz takes the shoe and runs around aimlessly so that the Growlers don't get it; Corazon will get the chew toy, spin around chasing his tail as fast as he can, then pass it to Spark, who will pretend to collapse on it until Whiz gives a cue, when she runs over to the chest and places it inside. The ninth and tenth launches are a shoe and chew toy, so they carry out this plan and win the game.

     Fitz declares that it isn't over and walks away.
The day ends with Gruff and D.O.G telling the pups to get to their homes, since human school was over. The Dos Amigos chat, Corazon makes the dream joke again, Spark startles him again, and they all go through the hydrants and back to Wolfehead. Charlie congratulates Morgan on his first day. He reveals that his mother also knows about the academy, which is why they moved, and how they set up a deal with the school to let him do work-study some days and school the others. Morgan goes back home, and night falls over the school once more. Charlie and D.O.G have a discussion about the future of the school, and the leader of the Lost Dogs comes to look at Spark as she sleeps. He notices her tag, and leaves ominously singing the school howl to himself under the moonlight.

## Cast

### Main Cast

* Christian Convery as Morgan Edwards
* Don Lake as Charlie Edwards
* Aria Birch as Izzy
* Riley O'Donnell as Spark (voice)
* Chance Hurstfield as Corazon (voice)
* Dylan Schombing as Whiz (voice)
* Brian George as D.O.G. (voice)

### Recurring Cast

* Islie Hirvonen as Pom Pom (voice)
* Zion Simpson as Bite (voice)
* Travis Turner as Rotty (voice)
* Islie Hirvonen as Pom-Pom (voice)
* Emily Delahunty as Mullet (voice)
* Luke Roessler as George (voice)
* David Milchard as Professor Fitz (voice)
* Ellie Harvie as Headmistress Gruff (voice)
* Jason Schombing as Coach K9 (voice)
* Stuart Malinowski as Professor Howard (voice)
* Jed Rees as King (voice)
* Cameron Hughes as Tail (voice)
* Fred Ewanuick as Head (voice)
* Gabrielle Miller as Molly Edwards

### Guest Cast

* Michael Teigen as Clark
* Lauren McGibbon as Lou
* Nolan Hupp as James

## Transcript

Click here to see the transcript of "The Stray's First Day"

## Trivia

* The episode came out on National Dog Day.
* This is the first time that Rico didn't speak of this episode.

## References

1. ↑ http://www.showbuzzdaily.com/articles/showbuzzdailys-top-150-monday-cable-originals-network-finals-8-26-2019.html