Dexter's Laboratory (TV series)

This article is about the TV series. For other uses, see Dexter's Laboratory.

Dexter's Laboratory
Season 2-4's title card.
Created by	Genndy Tartakovsky
Network	Cartoon Network
Production company	Hanna-Barbera Cartoon Network Studios
Distributor	Turner Entertainment Company Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Original release	April 27, 1996—November 20, 2003
Run time	22 minutes
Starring	Christine Cavanaugh Candi Milo Allison Moore Kat Cressida Kath Soucie Jeff Bennett Eddie Deezen Frank Welker Rob Paulsen Tom Kenny
Executive producer(s)	Larry Huber Sherry Gunther
Producer(s)	Debby Hindman Selma Edelman
Music composed by	Thomas Chase Steve Rucker Gary Lionelli
Writer(s)	Genndy Tartakovsky Jason Butler Rote Zeke Kamm Michael Ryan Seth MacFarlane
Director(s)	Genndy Tartakovsky (also voices) Craig McCracken Paul Rudish Rob Renzetti Robert Alvarez John McIntyre Rumen Petkov Chris Savino Don Judge
Second title card
Season 1's title card.

Dexter's Laboratory, also known as Dexter's Lab, is an American animated sci-fi/fantasy comedy television series created by Genndy Tartakovsky. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera (seasons 1-2) and Cartoon Network Studios (seasons 3-4) for Cartoon Network. It ran from 1996 to 2003, airing 78 episodes that spanned four seasons. A TV movie titled Dexter's Laboratory: Ego Trip aired in 1999.

Underneath his ordinary suburban house, boy genius Dexter lives a secret life in his laboratory, creating new inventions the world has never seen before. However, they all fall prey to his intrusive older sister, Dee Dee, who despite meaning well, acts rather foolish and clumsy.

There are two other segments set within the world of Dexter's Laboratory: Dial M for Monkey, which starred Dexter's superhero pet, Monkey; and The Justice Friends, a trio of superheroes, who after saving the world together, go home under the same apartment roof.

The entire series has been released on DVD.

Production

Development

After being transferred from Columbia College Chicago to the California Institute of Arts in 1990, Genndy Tartakovsky wrote, directed, animated, and produced two student short films; one of them of which was the basis for the television pilot of Dexter's Laboratory. The concept of the short originated with one of Tartakovsky's designs at CalArts, where he drew a tall, skinny girl dancing and decided to pair her with a short, blocky scientist who's the opposite. The drawing of these two would become the characters of Dee Dee and Dexter, respectively. It was included in a university screening for the producers of Batman: The Animated Series, who were impressed and hired Tartakovsky.

Later, Tartakovsky joined Hanna-Barbera in the production team of 2 Stupid Dogs. The co-workers on that series—Craig McCracken, Rob Renzetti, Paul Ruddish, and Lou Romano—were classmates of his and went on to collaborate with him on Dexter's Laboratory. While working as a sheet timer on The Critic, Tartakovsky received a phone call from Larry Huber, a producer on 2 Stupid Dogs. Huber had shown Tartakovsky's unfinished student film to the recently-emerging Cartoon Network and wanted Tartakovsky to develop its concept into a seven-minute storyboard. Unhappy with his position on The Critic, Tartakovsky accepted the proposal, and the resulting project was produced as part of Cartoon Network's showcase series, What a Cartoon! The pilot, "Dexter's Laboratory," made its debut on February 26, 1995.

Segments

• Dexter's Laboratory
• Dial M for Monkey (1996-97)
• The Justice Friends (1996-98)

Music

The music and main/end title themes were composed by Thomas Chase and Steve Rucker. Additional music was provided by Gary Lionelli. The end credits featured lyrics written by Pamela Phillips Oland. Bodie Chandler was the director of music production.

Episodes

Title	Original air date
0x01 "Changes"	February 26, 1995
0x02 "The Big Sister"	March 10, 1996
0x03 "Old Man Dexter"	March 24, 1996
0x04 "Dimwit Dexter"	April 14, 1996
1x01 "DeeDimensional" Dial M for Monkey: "Magmanamus" "Maternal Combat"	April 27, 1996
1x02 "Dexter Dodgeball" Dial M for Monkey: "Rasslor" "Dexter's Assistant"	May 4, 1996
1x03 "Dexter's Rival" Dial M for Monkey: "Simion" "Old Man Dexter"	May 11, 1996
1x04 "Double Trouble" Dial M for Monkey: "Barbequor" "Changes"	May 18, 1996
1x05 "Jurassic Pooch" Dial M for Monkey: "Orgon Grindor" "Dimwit Dexter"	May 25, 1996
1x06 "Dee Dee's Room" Dial M for Monkey: "Huntor" "The Big Sister"	June 1, 1996
1x07 "Star Spangled Sidekicks" The Justice Friends: "TV Super Pals" "Game Over"	November 20, 1996
1x08 "Baby Sitter Blues" The Justice Friends: "Vallhallen's Room" "Dream Machine"	November 27, 1996
1x09 "Dollhouse Drama" The Justice Friends: "Krunk's Date" "The Big Cheese"	December 4, 1996
1x10 "Way of the Dee Dee" The Justice Friends: "Say Uncle Sam" "The Tribe Called Girl"	December 11, 1996
1x11 "Space Cases" The Justice Friends: "Ratman" "Dexter's Debt"	December 18, 1996
1x12 "Dexter's Rival" The Justice Friends: "Bee Where?" "Mandarker"	December 25, 1996
1x13 "Inflata Dee Dee" The Justice Friends: "Can't Nap" "Monstory"	January 1, 1997
2x01 "Beard to Be Feared" "Quacker the Fowl" "Ant Pants"	July 16, 1997
2x02 "Mom and Jerry" "Chubby Cheese" "That Crazy Robot"	July 23, 1997
2x03 "D & DD" "Hamhocks and Armlocks"	July 30, 1997
2x04 "Hunger Strikes" "The Koose is Loose" "Morning Stretch"	August 6, 1997
2x05 "Dee Dee Locks and the Ness Monster" "Backfire" "Book Em'"	August 13, 1997
2x06 "Sister's Got a Brand New Bag" "Shoo, Shoe Gnomes" "Lab of the Lost"	August 20, 1997
2x07 "Labels" "Game Show" "Fantastic Boyage"	August 27, 1997
2x08 "Filet of Soul" "Golden Diskette"	September 3, 1997
2x09 "Snowdown" "*Figure Not Included" "Mock 5"	September 10, 1997
2x10 "Ewww That's Growth" "Nuclear Confusion" "Germ Warfare"	September 17, 1997
2x11 "A Hard Day's Day" "Road Rash" "Ocean Commotion"	September 24, 1997
2x12 "The Bus Boy" The Justice Friends: "Things That Go Bonk in the Night" "Ol' McDexter"	October 1, 1997
2x13 "Sassy Come Home" "Photo Finish"	October 8, 1997
2x14 "Star Check Unconventional" "Dexter is Dirty" "Ice Cream Scream"	October 15, 1997
2x15 "Decode of Honour" "World's Greatest Mom" "Ultrajerk 2000"	October 22, 1997
2x16 "Techno Turtle" "Surprise!" "Got Your Goat"	October 29, 1997
2x17 "Dee Dee Be Deep" "911" "Down in the Dumps"	November 5, 1997
2x18 "Unfortunate Cookie" "The Muffin King"	November 12, 1997
2x19 "Picture Day" "Dexter Detention" "Now That's a Stretch"	November 19, 1997
2x20 "Don't Be a Baby" Dial M for Monkey: "Peltra" "G.I.R.L. Squad"	November 26, 1997
2x21 "Sports a Poppin'" "Koos a la Goop a Goop" "Project Dee Dee"	December 3, 1997
2x22 "Topped Off" "Dee Dee's Tail" "No Power Trip"	December 10, 1997
2x23 "Sister Mom" "The Laughing"	December 17, 1997
2x24 "Dexter's Lab: A Story" "Coupon for Craziness" "Better Off Wet"	January 28, 1998
2x25 "Critical Gas" "Let's Save the World You Jerk!" "Average Joe"	February 4, 1998
2x26 "Rushmore Rumble" "A Boy and His Bug" "You Vegetabelieve It!"	February 11, 1998
2x27 "Aye Aye Eyes" "Dee Dee and the Man"	February 18, 1998
2x28 "Old Flame" "Don't Be a Hero" "My Favorite Martian"	February 25, 1998
2x29 "Paper Route Bout" "The Old Switcharooms" "Trick or Treehouse"	March 4, 1998
2x30 "Quiet Riot" "Accent You Hate" "Catch of the Day"	March 11, 1998
2x31 "Dad is Disturbed" "Framed" "That's Using Your Head"	March 18, 1998
2x32 "Dim" "Just an Old Fashioned Lab Song..." "Repairanoid"	March 25, 1998
2x33 "Sdrawkcab" "The Continuum of Cartoon Fools" "Sun, Surf and Science"	April 1, 1998
2x34 "Big Bots" "Gooey Aliens That Control Your Mind" "Misplaced in Space"	April 8, 1998
2x35 "Dee Dee's Rival" "Pslightly Psycho" "Game for a Game"	April 15, 1998
2x36 "Blackfoot and Slim" "Trapped With a Vengeance" "The Parrot Trap"	April 22, 1998
2x37 "Dexter and Computress Get Mandark!" The Justice Friends: "Pain in the Mouth" "Dexter vs. Santa's Claws"	April 29, 1998
2x38 "Dyno-Might" "LABretto"	May 13, 1998
2x39 "Last But Not Beast"	June 15, 1998
3x01 "Streaky Clean" "A Dad Cartoon" "Sole Brother"	November 18, 2001
3x02 "Mind Over Chatter" "A Quackor Cartoon" "Momdark"	November 18, 2001
3x03 "Copping an Attitude" "A Failed Lab Experiment" "The Grand-Daddy of All Inventions"	November 30, 2001
3x04 "Poppa Wheelie" "A Mom Cartoon" "The Mock Side of the Moon"	January 18, 2002
3x05 "If Memory Serves" "A Mandark Cartoon" "Tele-Trauma"	February 22, 2002
3x06 "A Boy Named Sue" "Lab on the Run"	March 29, 2002
3x07 "Dos Boot" "A Dee Dee Cartoon" "Would You Like That in the Can"	June 7, 2002
3x08 "That Magic Moment" "A Silent Cartoon" "Opposites Attract"	June 14, 2002
3x09 "Comic Relief" "A Third Dad Cartoon" "RoboDexo 3000"	June 21, 2002
3x10 "Glove at First Sight" "A Mom & Dad Cartoon" "Smells Like Victory"	June 28, 2002
3x11 "Oh, Brother" "Another Dad Cartoon" "Bar Exam"	July 5, 2002
3x12 "Jeepers, Creepers, Where is Peepers?" "Go, Dexter Family! Go!"	July 12, 2002
3x13 "Scare Tactics" "A Mom Cartoon" "My Dad vs. Your Dad"	September 20, 2002
4x01 "Beau Tie" "Remember Me" "Over-Labbing"	November 22, 2002
4x02 "Sis-Tem Error" "Bad Cable Manners" "Dexter's Library"	April 25, 2003
4x03 "The Scrying Game" "Monstrosi-Dee Dee" "Dad Man Walking"	May 2, 2003
4x04 "Dexter's Little Dilemma" "Faux Chapeau" "D2"	May 9, 2003
4x05 "Head Band" "Stuffed Animal House" "Used Ink"	May 16, 2003
4x06 "School Girl Crushed" "Chess Mom" "Father Knows Least"	May 23, 2003
4x07 "Dexter the Barbarian" "Tuber Time" "Sore Eyes"	May 30, 2003
4x08 "Babe Sitter" "Mountain Mandark" "2Geniuses 2Gether 4Ever"	September 5, 2003
4x09 "Height Unseen" "Bygone Errors" "Folly Calls"	September 12, 2003
4x10 "Voice Over" "Blonde Leading the Blonde" "Comic Stripper"	September 19, 2003
4x11 "Tee Party" "Dexter's Wacky Races"	September 26, 2003
4x12 "The Lab of Tomorrow" "Chicken Scratch" "Garage Sale"	November 4, 2003
4x13 "They Got Chops" "Poetic Justice" "Comedy of Feathers"	November 20, 2003

There was also the never-aired episode, "Rude Removal," which was produced during season two. It eventually was uploaded to YouTube by Adult Swim on January 22, 2013.

Release

Dates are in order of release:

• United States: April 27, 1996 on Cartoon Network
• United Kingdom and Ireland: On Cartoon Network; on ITV

Cast

• Christine Cavanaugh (seasons 1-3) and Candi Milo (seasons 3-4) as Dexter
• Allison Moore (seasons 1 and 3) and Kat Cressida (seasons 2 and 4) as Dee Dee
• Kath Soucie as Mom, Computer and Agent Honeydew
• Jeff Bennett as Dad
• Eddie Deezen as Mandark
• Frank Welker as Monkey and Krunk
• Rob Paulsen as Major Glory
• Tom Kenny as Van Halen

Celebrity guests

• Dom DeLuise
• Paul Williams
• Gary Owens
• Fred Willard
• Martin Mull
• Gilbert Gottfried
• Mark Hamill

In popular culture

Gilmore Girls

• "Haunted Leg" and "One's Got Class and the Other One Dyes:" Lorelai and Rory have a box of Kellogg's Rice Krispies with Johnny, the Powerpuff Girls, and Dexter on them.
• "Application Anxiety:" Lorelai says Rory should send Harvard their photo of them with their faces sticking out of cardboard holes of Johnny Bravo and SpongeBob SquarePants.

• 

Merchandise

Home media

In 1996, Turner Home Entertainment released the pilot episode for What a Cartoon! on the VHS tapes of Roger Bannon in Army of One and Scooby-Doo and a Mummy, Too. On July 3, 2001, Warner Home Video released more episodes on a VHS called by Dexter's Laboratory: Greatest Adventures. On October 12, 2010, Warner Home Video released the first season on a two-disc DVD called Dexter's Laboratory: Season One. On June 25, 2024, all the episodes were released together on a ten-disc DVD set called Dexter's Laboratory: The Complete Series.

In the UK and Ireland, a VHS released by Warner Home Video on March 27, 2000.

In Australia and New Zealand, Madman Entertainment acquired the rights and rereleased Warner Home Video's same season 1 two-disc set on February 13, 2008. On June 11, 2008, Madman Entertainment followed this with Dexter's Laboratory: Season 2, Part 1, another two-disc set. On October 25, 2017, Madman Entertainment released the entire series on ten-disc set called Dexter's Laboratory: Collected Experiments.