It's been nine years since TV on the Radio last graced our airwaves. The Brooklyn indie rock quintet is older, wiser and a bit more reflective than when they first emerged from the Williamsburg scene 티비몬
Just like Gotham delved into the world of Batman, Metropolis will explore DC's iconic city before Superman arrived on the scene.
Superfriends
With a few exceptions, this season of Super Friends (later retitled Challenge of the Superfriends) is pretty much a complete disaster. The eight-episode set is an exercise in awfulness and utter idiocy, with scripts that turn our heroes into useless buffoons. Most stories, if they make any sense at all, are painfully, pathetically tied into the trends of the day: a poltergeist at an Indian burial ground, Superman stuck inside a Pac-Man video game, and even a story that finds our heroes on another planet, where they must stop a spaceship that contains the body of the cyborg villain Cybron.
This was also the era when Super Friends dumped all those politically correct, ethnically ambiguous sub-heroes onto us — and the results are truly dreadful. In one episode, the Wonder Twins, a black girl named Packrat and her white brother Shy, get a little carried away in their efforts to help paralyzed kids walk again. The result is a bitch-slamming story that puts the whole franchise at risk.
It's a shame, because the animated series otherwise had some good points — re-orchestrated versions of John Williams' classic theme music, an opening sequence that used the same narration from the 1950s Adventures of Superman television series, and episodes that recapped the events of the previous season in the form of comic book-style panel illustrations. Plus, the cast of voice actors remained mostly the same from the first two seasons. The DVD set looks a bit worn out, with heavy grain and some print damage, but still quite watchable.
The Legion of Super Heroes
In the 31st century, a colorful team of teenage superheroes travel back in time to meet Superman and enlist him in their fight against evil. This animated series from Kids' WB is a good example of the type of superhero-themed shows that were popular in the late-fifties, sixties and seventies, but have since faded from public memory. It's a fast-paced, character-driven series that pits the Legion of Super Heroes against otherworldly threats.
The show was developed by James Tucker, who also worked on the animated Superman and Justice League Unlimited series. It was developed specifically for the Kids' WB block and it debuted on September 23, 2006. The show is based on the DC Comics storyline, with a diverse group of intergalactic teen heroes from various planets and eras.
There's no single leader of the Legion, but instead, each of the members have a specific specialty or power. Blok can teleport, Bouncing Boy is springy and rubbery, Brainiac 5 is the smartest of the Legionnaires, Element Lad has the ability to create elements, Colossal Boy can shrink in size, Dream Girl predicts the actions of enemies, Lightning Lad has lightning powers, Saturn Girl is level-headed, and Shrinking Violet can shrink her body. Other members include Chameleon Boy, Matter-Eater Lad, Ferro Lad and Sun Boy.
Some of the episodes feature flashbacks to see how the Legionnaires met up and formed the group. The team's first adventure involves protecting a scientist named R.J. Brande from an assassination attempt that's orchestrated by his treacherous partner Roderick Doyle. In another episode, the Legion battles their nemesis Zyx.
The Legion's other recurring missions involve the bottled city of Kandor, which is being sought by robotic cowboy Terra-Man. Imperiex, a villain from the future, is also after the city for advanced technology that can make him invincible.
Despite its short run, the series was well received by critics. It was a good example of the type of kids' superhero shows that were popular in the late-fifties, early-sixties and throughout the seventies and eighties. Its success may have prompted the creation of a few similar cartoons that followed, including Batman: The Animated Series and Teen Titans.
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
Animated series based on Superman, the man of steel from the comic books by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Unlike the live-action films, DC's animated television productions focus on Superman as a family man rather than an action hero. The first season of the show aired in 1993 with a large number of story arcs including a fight to save the lives of the people of Smallville and the discovery that Superman's mother was a Kryptonian princess.
The show's second season saw a shift to a darker tone with the introduction of Lex Luthor. The villain's plans to control the city's water supply were foiled by Clark (as Superman) and he would become a frequent foe of the superhero.
A number of plots were introduced, including one in which Superman attempts to save Lois from a sacrificial druid ritual. Another featured the pair dating antiques dealer Patrick Sullivan who is later killed by Superman for trying to steal his car. Lois also discovers Superman's secret and resents him for not telling her.
In the third season, a new threat to the planet appears and Superman is unable to prevent it. He leaves Earth forever to rule Krypton, in order to preempt the ascension of the evil Lord Nor to the throne. Clark's departure leaves Lois adrift, but she soon realizes she has developed feelings for him, and he reciprocates.
The final season of Lois & Clark featured the couple getting married and starting a family. Despite the ongoing attacks by evil forces, the marriage and the family grow stronger. Lois also develops a crush on fellow reporter Jimmy Olsen.
This DVD release includes commentary for four episodes featuring Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Alan Burnnett and Glen Murakami. Also included are documentaries on the inspirations for the show, including a look at the old Superman serials and early animation leading up to Superman: The Animated Series. There is also a feature on the creation of the supporting cast with Dini, Timm and the voice cast discussing their choices for the characters. The package also includes Superman: Timeless Icon, a short documentary about the iconic superhero.
Batman: The Animated Series
A decade after it was released on DVD, the 109-episode series has finally arrived in HD. A must-have for animation fans, Batman: The Animated Series is considered one of the greatest cartoons ever produced and it certainly lives up to the hype. The show is stylish and visually groundbreaking, and the transfer on Blu-ray is stunning.
The show was a dark, violent, and tonally serious afternoon animated series that dealt with genuinely adult themes and issues like divorce, patent law, insurance fraud, homelessness, class prejudice, typecasting, animal testing, prison abuse, and all manner of mental illness. The series didn't just tackle these themes, it was smart about them and incorporated them into the action and character development of its episodes.
What really set this show apart from other "mature" cartoons of its time was that it was willing to actually let the characters get hurt. Kid's cartoons of the day, even though they were often violent and had fights and gunplay, rarely showed any injuries. On B:TAS, Batman got whipped around the city skyline and thrown into buildings and he frequently got cut up. It also wasn't afraid to use real guns instead of gimmick laser guns and it didn't shy away from bloodshed either.
It was also able to create and elevate a truly memorable rogues gallery of villains including the Penguin, Two-Face, Riddler, Bane, and Mr. Freeze, and it had a strong cast of voice actors led by the great Kevin Conroy who was able to capture the duality of Bruce Wayne and Batman perfectly.
The extras on this release include a great new featurette called Heart of Batman that features the series' creators and other folks who worked on it 25 years later talking about how special the series is. There are also interviews with the cast and crew and a short featurette on the creation of Harley Quinn. Another good feature is a restored original pilot episode for the show and a blooper reel with some fun moments from the production. The set comes in a nice black hardcover book that slides out easily without risk of damage to the discs and it loads directly to static-image main menus featuring Warner's traditional navigation system.
