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Watching Tom & Jerry as a kid, I never understood why the titular protagonists could never communicate beyond acts of violence and emotive grunts whereas the dog (whom I always called “Spike” - and I'm just now discovering that's his actual name) was a full-fledged character capable of speech and caring for a puppy son. Now, years later, I wonder less on this point, since I’m now conflicted as to whether it represents the writers’ belief that dogs are either less complex than mice and cats and thus incapable of conveying all emotions and ambitions through a series of facial tics and violence, or maybe it’s just the opposite and the writers inherently favored dogs and believed them more sophisticated than the two animals that made up the eternal struggle that entertained children in a weekly battle royale. Instead, I now I ponder a different question.

Based on the episodes in Tom and Jerry,...