Reading the Captain Underpants books in order starts with Dav Pilkey’s illustrated chapter-book series about best friends George Beard and Harold Hutchins. After the boys hypnotize their school principal, Mr. Krupp, he becomes Captain Underpants, the superhero they created in their homemade comics.
The original story contains 12 books. The wider franchise also includes separate manga retellings, full-length graphic-novel spin-offs, television tie-in books, two activity companions, and several screen adaptations.
Jump to:
- Captain Underpants Books in Order
- Captain Underpants Manga Books
- Captain Underpants Spin-Off Books
- The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants Tie-In Books
- Captain Underpants Activity Books in Order
- Captain Underpants Adaptations
Captain Underpants Books in Order
Read the original Captain Underpants series in publication order. The early adventures are fairly self-contained, but the later books continue storylines across multiple installments and introduce time travel and altered timelines. Publication order is the simplest way to follow every reveal without spoilers.
The Adventures of Captain Underpants was first published in the United States on September 1, 1997. The original series concluded with Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot on August 25, 2015.
There are 12 books in the original story. Some retailers display 14 because they include the two Extra-Crunchy Book o’ Fun activity companions in the same series. Those companions are listed separately below, as are the manga retellings and graphic-novel spin-offs.
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants (1997)
- Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets (1999)
- Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space (and the Subsequent Assault of the Equally Evil Lunchroom Zombie Nerds) (1999)
- Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants (2000)
- Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman (2001)
- Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets (2003)
- Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2: The Revenge of the Ridiculous Robo-Boogers (2003)
- Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People (2006)
- Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers (2012)
- Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers (2013)
- Captain Underpants and the Tyrannical Retaliation of the Turbo Toilet 2000 (2014)
- Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot (2015)
Captain Underpants Manga Books
The manga books retell and expand the original Captain Underpants adventures with scripts adapted by Dav Pilkey and full-color artwork by Motojiro. They read from left to right and form a separate sequence, so they aren’t books 13 and 14 of the original story.
Read the manga volumes in publication order. Each one follows the story arc of its matching original chapter book while adding new dialogue, scenes, jokes, and Flip-O-Ramas.
- Captain Underpants: The First Epic Manga (2026)
- Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets: The Second Epic Manga (2027)
Captain Underpants Spin-Off Books
George and Harold’s homemade comics also became three full-length graphic-novel spin-offs. They aren’t required to follow the original 12 books, but they’re the best place to continue if you want more stories from the same fictional world.
- The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby (2002)
- The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung-Fu Cavemen from the Future (2010)
- Super Diaper Baby 2: The Invasion of the Potty Snatchers (2011)
Scholastic stopped distributing The Adventures of Ook and Gluk in 2021 with Dav Pilkey’s support after concerns that the book perpetuated passive racism. That’s why new copies are difficult to find through regular retailers.
The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants Tie-In Books
Meredith Rusu wrote several licensed books based on DreamWorks’ The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants television series. The two Epic Comix Collection volumes gather comics from the show, while the other books adapt its holiday specials and adventures. Read them in publication order, separate from Dav Pilkey’s original 12-book series.
- George and Harold’s Epic Comix Collection Vol. 1 (2019)
- George and Harold’s Epic Comix Collection Vol. 2 (2020)
- The Horrifyingly Haunted Hack-A-Ween (2020)
- The Xtreme Xploits of the Xplosive Xmas (2021)
- The Maniacal Mischief of the Marauding Monsters (2023)
Captain Underpants Activity Books in Order
Dav Pilkey wrote and illustrated two original Extra-Crunchy Book o’ Fun companions filled with comics, puzzles, jokes, drawing activities, and Flip-O-Ramas. They don’t continue the main story, so you can read or use them anytime after the first book.
- The Captain Underpants Extra-Crunchy Book o’ Fun (2001)
- The All New Captain Underpants Extra-Crunchy Book o’ Fun 2 (2002)
Captain Underpants Adaptations
DreamWorks expanded Captain Underpants beyond the books with an animated feature film, a television series, and several Netflix specials.
- Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017): The animated film combines characters and story elements from several books. Kevin Hart voices George, Thomas Middleditch voices Harold, and Ed Helms voices Mr. Krupp and Captain Underpants.
- The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants (2018–2020): The animated series follows George, Harold, and Captain Underpants through three seasons of original adventures.
- The Spooky Tale of Captain Underpants: Hack-a-Ween (2019): A Halloween special in which George and Harold create their own holiday after Mr. Krupp cancels Halloween.
- Captain Underpants: Epic Choice-o-Rama (2020): An interactive special that lets viewers make choices for George and Harold.
- The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants in Space (2020): A six-episode continuation that sends the students and staff of Jerome Horwitz Elementary into space.
- The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants: Mega Blissmas (2020): A Christmas special about George and Harold’s attempt to improve their favorite holiday.
Looking for more books in order?
If you want more authors and reading-order guides like this one, start with my Books in Order index.