Below is the complete list of Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants books in publication order. For this series, the chronological reading order is the same as the order of publication.
Captain Underpants Books in Publication Order
- The Adventures of Captain Underpants (1997)
The Adventures of Captain Underpants was published in 1997 and is listed as book #1 in the Captain Underpants series. - Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets (1999)
Published in 1999, Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets is listed as book #2 in the Captain Underpants series. - Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space (1999)
Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space is a 1999 release and appears as book #3 in the Captain Underpants series. - Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants (2000)
In the Captain Underpants series, Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants is book #4 and was published in 2000. - Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman (2001)
Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman was first published in 2001; within the Captain Underpants series, it is listed as book #5. - Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 1 (2003)
Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 1 was published in 2003 and is listed as book #6 in the Captain Underpants series. - Captain Underpants and the Big Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2 (2003)
Published in 2003, Captain Underpants and the Big Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2 is listed as book #7 in the Captain Underpants series. - Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People (2006)
Captain Underpants and the Preposterous Plight of the Purple Potty People is a 2006 release and appears as book #8 in the Captain Underpants series. - Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers (2012)
In the Captain Underpants series, Captain Underpants and the Terrifying Return of Tippy Tinkletrousers is book #9 and was published in 2012. - Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers (2013)
Captain Underpants and the Revolting Revenge of the Radioactive Robo-Boxers was first published in 2013; within the Captain Underpants series, it is listed as book #10. - Captain Underpants and the Tyrannical Retaliation of the Turbo Toilet 2000 (2014)
Captain Underpants and the Tyrannical Retaliation of the Turbo Toilet 2000 was published in 2014 and is listed as book #11 in the Captain Underpants series. - Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot (2015)
Published in 2015, Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-A-Lot is listed as book #12 in the Captain Underpants series.
About Captain Underpants
Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants series is one of the most influential children’s book series of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, especially for readers who prefer jokes, drawings, comics, and chaos over traditional classroom-style storytelling. The series follows George Beard and Harold Hutchins, two fourth-grade best friends who love making comic books, pulling pranks, and challenging the dull authority of Jerome Horwitz Elementary School. Their greatest creation is Captain Underpants, a ridiculous superhero who becomes real when their grumpy principal, Mr. Krupp, is hypnotized into believing he is the underpants-wearing champion they invented.
The brilliance of the series is that Pilkey turns children’s mischief into creative power. George and Harold are not model students in the usual sense. They are disruptive, funny, imaginative, and constantly in trouble. Yet Pilkey clearly respects them as storytellers. Their homemade comics, misspelled signs, flip-o-rama action scenes, and wild superhero plots are not treated as lesser forms of creativity. They are the heart of the books. For many young readers, especially reluctant readers, that approach makes the series feel welcoming in a way more polished books sometimes do not.
The first book, The Adventures of Captain Underpants, establishes the formula: George and Harold’s prank goes too far, Mr. Krupp becomes Captain Underpants, and an ordinary school problem turns into a superhero disaster. Later books expand the world with increasingly absurd villains such as Professor Poopypants, the Wicked Wedgie Woman, the Talking Toilets, and Tippy Tinkletrousers. The titles are intentionally outrageous, and the humor is full of toilet jokes, wordplay, and slapstick. Beneath that silliness, though, the books have a strong sense of structure. Pilkey knows how to build momentum, escalate a joke, and keep young readers turning pages.
The series also becomes more complicated as it develops. What begins as a simple school-prank superhero parody grows into a much larger comic universe involving time travel, alternate versions of George and Harold, Melvin Sneedly’s inventions, and increasingly elaborate consequences from earlier adventures. That expansion is part of the fun, but it also means publication order gives the smoothest reading experience. The later books often build on earlier jokes, character relationships, and running gags, especially once the series begins playing with timelines and duplicate characters.
George and Harold’s friendship is the emotional center of Captain Underpants. They are creative partners before anything else: one writes, one draws, and together they make stories that reshape their world. Their bond gives the series warmth under the nonsense. They may cause trouble, but they are loyal, generous, and determined to fix the disasters they accidentally create. Mr. Krupp, meanwhile, works as both antagonist and accidental hero. As principal, he represents boredom and control; as Captain Underpants, he becomes pure foolish courage.
Captain Underpants is also important because it helped change how many adults thought about children’s reading. The books were sometimes challenged for their bathroom humor and anti-authoritarian jokes, but their popularity showed how strongly children respond to stories that match their sense of humor and imagination. Pilkey’s own background with ADHD and dyslexia adds another layer to the series’ significance. He created books that validate messy creativity, visual storytelling, and the joy of reading something that feels like it was made for kids rather than merely approved for them.
The series remains memorable because it is both ridiculous and sincere. It celebrates friendship, comics, laughter, and the idea that children who are constantly told to behave may still have extraordinary creative energy. Captain Underpants may look like a joke in a cape, but the series’ lasting power comes from the way Dav Pilkey turns silliness into confidence for young readers.