Pajama Man: The Dark Dimension (2019 film)

Pajama Man: The Dark Dimension is an American comedy adventure superhero film and a sequel to 2017’s Pajama Man. It is produced by The Heroes Productions and distributed by Gabriel Combs Movies. It stars Colbi Shofler, Dylan Bond, and Paul Bettany reprising their roles from the previous film, while Noah Schnapp appears in a role for the film. It is also the second spin-off and the fourth overall film in the Captain Underkid franchise.

The film was released theatrically in the United States on May 4, 2019. It was also a box office success, grossing $950 million against a $60 million budget, and received generally positive reviews for its plot, casting, performances, humor, and heart, though some criticized the pacing. A sequel is in development.

Plot
2 Years Later, Jimmy Walker (Colbi Shofler) struggles to keep his identity a secret as his parents (Chris Pratt, Megan Fox), former bully Josh (Jeremy Ray Taylor), and Principal Barber (Patrick Wilson) begin to punish him for not focusing on his school work and more on superhero studies. Jimmy meets up with Joe (Dylan Bond) for a meeting about not keeping his powers a secret. It ends with the two splitting up to fight a new crime. The two stop the crime and discover that they are mutants created by Captain Stone.

In his Lab, Captain Stone tries to replicate the serum that gave Doctor Danger powers in order to kill Pajama Man and Bug Man after 2 years of them fighting crime. His mutants tell him about their failure and he is furious. He discovers research about the Dark Dimension, a mystical realm full of monsters and demons. Stone then decides to give up on the serum and unleash the monsters and demons from the Dark Dimension onto Pajama Man and Bug Man, killing the two in the process. He then begins research on how to open the portal.

Pajama Man and Bug Man return home after a swell day of fighting crime. They return their suits to their lair and Jimmy finally gets caught up on his homework. Their parents decide that Jimmy, due to graduating 2 years ago, should move out of the house without Joe. Jimmy then has a fight with his Parents that ends with him in tears. Jimmy returns to his room and is worried about never seeing Joe again. He then discovers that Captain Stone’s mutants are roaming the streets.

Jimmy gets into his Pajama Man suit and goes to the streets to stop Captain Stone’s mutants. The Mutants capture Pajama Man and kidnap him. Joe tries to search for Jimmy and discovers his kidnapping. Jimmy is then taken to Captain Stone’s lair, where he reveals that he created a serum to drain Jimmy’s powers. He then locks hi, up next to Jack Wheeler (Noah Schnapp), a former college student who was kicked out for being too smart. Jimmy and Jack decide to become friends as Captain Stone has a failed attempt of hypnotizing Jimmy, who laughs at him for his failure. Captain Stone then returns to his lair and Jimmy escapes his cell, discovering his plot to open the Dark Dimension. He then returns to his cell and requests a team up with Jack, which he agrees to.

Joe, still searching for Jimmy, goes to the hero lair to use the tracker he put on the suit in case of another kidnapping, and discovers his whereabouts. He then gets the Bug Man suit and flies to the lair. Jimmy and Jack then search for a way to escape the cell. They try to escape with Jimmy’s super strength, but discover that his powers are useless when he’s in the building. Captain Stone continues to try to open the Portal and finally gets it 25% open. Jimmy and Jack go to the Cafeteria, where the Mutants try to capture them again. Jimmy defeats them without his strength and Jack is revealed to have superpowers, as he is a former superhero named Lightning Bolt.

Jimmy and Jack then go after Pajama Man’s suit in order to escape with Pajama Man’s explosives. Jack discovers a prison with innocent citizens and the two free them, accidentally recreating a loud sound. They find Jimmy’s Pajama Man suit and Jimmy suits up for battle. Pajama Man and Lightning Bolt then have a huge fight with the Mutants, ultimately leading the heroes to win the battle. Captain Stone then discovers that his serum is complete and he is now made of Stone, giving him super strength and the power to morph into Stone objects. Pajama Man fights Captain Stone, but is defeated in battle and knocked out. Lightning Bolt defeats Captain Stone, but the two are overpowered by the Mutants.

Bug Man arrives in the building and discovers Captain Stone trying to drain Pajama Man and Lightning Bolt’s powers. Bug Man knocks out Captain Stone with Gold and saves the two knocked out heroes. He wakes the two up and they end up outside of the building. Pajama Man wakes up and the two save Lightning Bolt’s life. Captain Stone wakes up and opens the portal to the Dark Dimension, unleashing Monsters and Demons upon the heroes. Lightning Bolt fights the Monsters, Bug Man fights the Demons, and Pajama Man goes after Captain Stone. The three send the Monsters and Demons back to the Dark Dimension and finally defeat Captain Stone. As Pajama Man tries to close the portal, Lightning Bolt is revealed to have been controlling Captain Stone, as he was hologram, and Lightning Bolt is revealed to be the one that created and Mutants.

Pajama Man and Lightning Bolt then have a fight, but Lightning Bolt overpowers Pajama Man, knocking him through the portal, and closing the portal to the Dark Dimension. Bug Man is also captured by Lightning Bolt in the process. Pajama Man finds himself trapped in the Dark Dimension with monsters that replay his past. Pajama Man the overcomes his mistakes and realizes that when he had his fight with his parents, that he was being overprotective about Joe, and he finally lets go and decides to move out without Joe, leading to Joe living his own life and Jimmy being less controlling over his brother. Pajama Man then uses his powers to reopen the portal, leading him back to the real world.

Pajama Man arrives on Earth, overpowered by the energy from the Dark Dimension, and has his final fight with Captain Stone. Bug Man wakes up and tries to learn how to close the Portal, as the Dark Dimension is what powers Lightning Bolt. Pajama Man is badly wounded in battle and nearly killed until Bug Man closes the portal, disintegrating Lightning Bolt in the process. Pajama Man then throws the rest of the serum that gave him his powers into the Sun, ending what Captain Stone started. Pajama Man and Bug Man return their suits in their lair and Jimmy finally moves out, leading Joe to live his own life. Jimmy returns home one last time to promise Joe one last mission after they go to Space for an adventure.

In a mid-credit scene, Pajama Man and Bug Man find Ninja Dog floating in Space.

Cast

 * Colbi Shofler as Jimmy Walker/Pajama Man, a superhero who is kidnapped by Captain Stone and the partner of Bug Man.
 * Dylan Bond as Joe Richardson/Bug Man, a superhero who is Jimmy’s partner and has to free him from Captain Stone’s prison.
 * Paul Bettany as Captain Stone, the man who gave Pajama Man his powers and kidnapped Pajama Man to kill him.
 * Noah Schnapp as Jack Wheeler/Lightning Bolt, a former hero who was kidnapped by Captain Stone and is now secretly a villain.

Additionally, Patrick Wilson, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Chris Pratt, Megan Fox, Lennon Richardson, and Gabriel Combs appear in uncredited roles and cameos as Principal Barber, Josh the Bully, Tom Walker, Mary Walker, Captain Underkid, and No-Shirt Boy, respectively.

Reception
The film received generally positive reviews for its plot, casting, performances, humor, and heart, though some criticized the pacing. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film received an 82% score, based on 567 reviews, with an average score of 8 out of 10. The website’s critical consensus reads, “Pajama Man’s stellar sequel improves upon the original, though it still doesn’t hold up to other superhero films.”

Release
The film was released theatrically in the United States on May 4, 2019. It was also released digitally on July 30, 2019, and on Blu-Ray and DVD on August 13, 2019.

Sequel
A sequel, titled Pajama Man: Aftermath, is scheduled to be released theatrically in the United States on May 14, 2021.